That is one thing I've learned, that it is possible to really understand things at certain points, and not be able to retain them, to be in utter confusion just a short while later. I used to think that once you really knew a thing, its truth would shine on forever. Now it's pretty obvious to me that more often than not the batteries fade, and sometimes what you knew even goes out with a bang when you try to call on it, just like a lightbulb cracking off when you throw the switch.

The secret is to keep adding voices, adding ideas, and moving things around as you put together your life. If you’re lucky, putting together your life is a process that will last through every single day you’re alive.

Some people need a huge amount of attention, and they are worthy of that attention, and they're still exhausting.

I think, if you want to grow a novelist, for that person to have a lot of boring time trying to entertain themselves is very important.

The thing you can count on in life is that Tennessee will always be scorching hot in August.

You throw a person in the river and then make a spectacle of jumping in to save them.

I really do think that our subconscious gets corrupted with fear, and fear is how news media - all media - makes us [watch] long enough to get to the Tide commercial. That's all it's about. Generating fear so that we can buy the proper laundry detergent.