Bad luck for the young poet would be a rich father, an early marriage, an early success or the ability to do anything well.

I only want sweet peace and kindliness when I awaken -- but there's always some finger pointing, telling me some terrible deed I committed during the night. It seems I make a lot of mistakes and it seems that I am not allowed any.

Before you kill something make sure you have something better to replace it with.

I got lost somehow, began staring up her legs. I was always a leg man. It was the first thing I saw when I was born. But then I was trying to get out. Ever since I have been working in the other direction and with pretty lousy luck.

Banion wondered which was worse - being sodomized by aliens, or having to sit through two hours of Charles Ives.

"Baby," I said. "I'm a genius but nobody knows it but me."

I was laying in bed one night and I thought 'I'll just quit - to hell with it.' And another little voice inside me said 'Don't quit - save that tiny little ember of spark.' And never give them that spark because as long as you have that spark, you can start the greatest fire again.