Amy Winehouse was not a person I ever met, and I can't say that I am overly conversant in all of her music. I do have her albums, and years ago, when I first heard her sing, I thought she was extraordinary. The tone of her voice, her phrasing, her raw appearance - these qualities were extremely captivating to me.

I think to write fiction, this is just how I see it, you have to have a powerful need/desire to connect. I can't. Wanting to and not being able to has lead to a lot of misery in my life.

I have come to the conclusion that it's a waste of time to have too much pride in anything. Perhaps it's good to have a sense of duty, a jealous zeal to protect or improve, but pride ultimately is only that which stands vulnerable to offense and degradation.

If some band sucks, you're going to have to find out about it for yourself, because I don't have the interest in issuing warnings.

The Ruts were a great punk rock band from England whose songs were as excellent as their time together was short.

I don't have talent. I have tenacity.

As the middle class is predated upon with an ever greater malicious intensity, their children stand to lose more and harder than their parents ever did.