We don't think about pilgrimage in this country. We don't think about meditation. The idea of taking a six-week walk is totally foreign to most Americans. But it's probably exactly what we need.

By definition, I believe I am unapologetically optimistic and I am unapologetically earnest.

What's the level of compromise for making that kind of money? How far do I have to sell my soul? What's the price of that? And I don't know if I want to make those kind of compromises any more. I think I'm a different person. I think I've matured to a great extent. I think that I want different things now. That it's not about the celebrity status that you receive because you're doing the next hot movie. It's about doing good work.

I'm a wonderful disaster. So are you. We're all a mess. We're in this culture that says take this pill and you'll be happy, go on this diet and you'll be thinner, have your teeth whitened, people will love you more.

All the crap that we've encumbered our lives with, it's really meaningless.

Writing is a lonely job, unless you're a drinker, in which case you always have a friend within reach.

We need to risk, we need to dare to risk and fail greatly because that's the only way we grow.