Out of all the neighborhoods in Manhattan, Soho in particular had the charged atmosphere of a movie set, populated with passersby who looked like extras from Central Casting, so perfectly did they fit into this environment. There was the feeling of everything being not quite real, or too perfectly cliched to actually be true, and it began to rain in a fine, misty drizzle from a black patent leather sky.

You have to let go of who you were, to become who you will be.

The universe may not always play fair, but at least it's got a hell of a sense of humor.

The most important thing in business is a persona, Nico,' he was fond of saying. 'People want to know immediately what they're dealing with. And when they think about you, you've got to stand out in their minds--like one of those characters in a novel.

For me, having it all is being paid to write novels.

This is the most powerful thing I can do! I'm going to be a writer.

I love Chicago. I lived there briefly for three months and kept a boat under one of those space-age buildings. It was very Jetsons.