In a story, nothing is real until it is acted upon.

We live in stories. What we are is stories. We do things because of what is called character, and our character is formed by the stories we learn to live in.

The specific danger is us; we are rampant; this earth is our only friend; we are destroying it increment by increment at a horrific rate. We must understand that we can't buy it back.

Writing is a funny business. You sit in your room and listen to voices and write everything down. What kind of a profession is that?

We continually use stories to hold up as mirrors to ourselves.

What I wanted was some dreamlike Frank Lloyd Wright bungalow where we could sit on the veranda forever and it would always be twilight in the temperate zones, in the most beautiful house.

Don't worry about meaning. If a story's any good, it can't help but have meaning. Let the PhDs tell you what your story means.

I had discovered a terrible vulnerability I myself which I think of not as cowardliness but as an ability to imagine too much.

They knew bullshit, and they knew about the ruling class; dying for a ruling class cause was almost always bullshit.

One of finest evocations of life in Western America in recent memory... Powerful and profoundly moving.

We must define a story which encourages us to make use of the place where we live without killing it, and we must understand that the living world cannot be replicated.

Like the ocean, never forget to be generous with your love.

Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live. It is asking other people to live as one wishes to live.

The art of life lies in a constant readjustment to our surroundings.

Really, the only thing that makes sense is to strive for greater collective enlightenment.

From sunny woof and cloudy weft Fell rain in sheets; so, to myself I hummed these hazard rhymes, and left The learned volume on the shelf.

I love Lady Gaga and I love Katy Perry and R&B and rap music... I love big, American pop music.

My life has changed. I'm not walking around any more wishing I wasn't me, which was the case at one time.

Suffering is the greatest treasure on earth; it purifies the soul. In suffering, we learn who our true friend is.

It is still an act of academic heresy to regard Egypt as the cradle of civilization and originator of Jewish and Christian religious traditions.

Don't try to steer the boat. Don't open shop for yourself. Listen. Keep silent. You are not God's mouthpiece. Try to be an ear, And if you do speak, ask for explanations.