I thought you could play ... You've got nothing. Where's the big hair? I brought my scissors today so I could cut the hair. You've got nothing.

It is important not to turn the dead into saints. Nobody can walk in the shadow of a saint.

I grew up treating a life as a writer as a career in letters, one devoted to many kinds of writing. And so it seemed normal to study both fiction writing and the literary essay as an undergrad.

I realized about 10 years ago that my wealth has to go back to society. A fortune, the size of which is hard to imagine, is best not passed on to one's children. It's not constructive for them.

I want my flowers while I'm alive.

The body, enervated by the excesses of the preceding day, weighs down and prostates the mind also.

After I've done the salesman bit, I like to be quiet and retreat, because that's whereI write from. I'm a sort of quiet little person.

Poetry isn't written from the idea down. It's written from the phrase, line and stanza up, which is different from what your teacher taught you to do in school.

If you take different mythologies from different cultures, the names may change and the story lines may vary but there is always something in common.

To be left behind... or to leave behind. I wonder which hurts more.

From breathing techniques, muscle toning to overall flexibility and relaxation, my Pilates sessions have become something of a weekly necessity that keeps me fit, happy and energized.