Every time I finish a book, I forget everything I learned writing it - the information just disappears out of my head

If I hadn't learned my lesson, I would have wished we could stay there forever. But I knew better now. We'd seen what we'd come to see. The way to trick death. Breathe in. Breathe out. Watch as it all rises upwards, black and blue into the even bluer sky.

I must keep my head and not give in to desire, for desire is what causes women to drown.

Young people believe that regret is something you will never feel if you simply do as you please, but sometimes it is a matter of degree.

I think growing up is difficult and it's a process that I'm always interested in, with kids and adults, they are often on two different universes.

They weren't true stories; they were better than that.

I could hardly get a boy to look at me. All right, they'd look, they'd even take me out, but no one asked for a second date. I was too nasty, a real wise guy, and all the boys could tell what my rotten disposition was. Deep down, I wanted a commitment with a capital C. To get anywhere with me, a boy would have to sign his undying loyalty with his own blood.