Pain could be killed. Sadness could not, but the drugs did shut its mouth for a time.

Sanctimony and self-regard are as American as smallpox blankets and supersize meals.

I think the world's big enough for all kinds of zombies. You can have yours and I can have mine. I think by going with slow zombies I maybe have been asserting my own kind of zombie snobbery, but I don't begrudge the youngsters their tackling, running, jumping zombies.

As I get older and write more books I'm definitely allowing the humorous side of my personality more rein in my work.

It is failure that guides evolution; perfection provides no incentive for improvement, and nothing is perfect.

The only time "early bloomer" has ever been applied to me is vis-a-vis my premature apprehension of the deep dread-of-existence thing. In all other cases, I plod and tromp along. My knuckles? Well dragged.

Early on my career, I figured out that I just have to write the book I have to write at that moment. Whatever else is going on in the culture is just not that important. If you could get the culture to write your book, that would be great. But the culture can't write your book.