I think I'm a very religious person. I think I believe in God as much as any man does. I don't only believe in God, I know there's God.

I write with as much objectivity as I can.

Words mean nothing. Action is the only thing. Doing. That's the only thing.

You learn from music, from watching great athletes at work - how disciplined they are, how they move. You learn these things by watching a shortstop at work, how he concentrates on one thing at a time. You learn from classic music, from the blues and jazz, from bluegrass. From all this, you learn how to sustain a great line without bringing in unnecessary words.

I suppose I started writing seriously at 16 years old. I thought I wrote a novel at 16 and sent it to New York! They sent it back because it wasn't novel.

I have no more to say except this: We must live with our own conscience.

When I'm sitting in the church alone, I can hear singing of the old people. I can hear their singing and I can hear their praying, and sometimes I hum one of their songs.