In 1957, I decided: write or perish.

There comes a time when you realize that everything is a dream, and only those things preserved in writing have any possibility of being real.

Love must wait; it must break one’s bones.

Women fall in love when they get to know you. Men are just the opposite. When they finally know you they're ready to leave

Sometimes you are aware when your great moments are happening, and sometimes they rise from the past. Perhaps it's the same with people.

I'm a frotteur, someone who likes to rub words in his hand, to turn them around and feel them, to wonder if that really is the best word possible.

I deem as heroic those who have the harder task, face it unflinchingly and live. In this world women do that.

Dresscodes are for styleless people.

Hope but not enthusiasm is the proper state for the writer.

What is the ultimate impulse to write? Because all this is going to vanish.

I like aristocracy. I like the beauty of aristocracy. I like the hierarchical feeling.

Fear steals your joy and kills your dreams.

Life baffles me most days. Maybe that's why I write. To try and make sense of it all.

Aspire to high standards, expect strong results, offer self praise, and stack your confidence.

Bath twice a day to be really clean, once a day to be passably clean, once a week to avoid being a public menace.

It's always difficult when someone close to you passes away. But it's really tough when they're on top of you.

Hard work, courage and commitment - these are the key elements for success.

The real secret of magic lies in the performance.

I just think it should be illegal to call someone fat on TV... Because why is humiliating people funny?

I consider myself a Chicagoan. I came here to study at the Art Institute in 1951 when I was 18 years old, and I've been here ever since. I still think Chicago is the best city in the country.

San Francisco is poetry. Even the hills rhyme.