I spend several years trying to get inside the brain and heart of my subjects, listening to the interior monologues in their letters, and when I have to bridge the chasms between the factual evidence, I try to make an intuitive leap through the eyes and motivation of the person I'm writing about.

The best romance is inside marriage; the finest love stories come after the wedding, not before.

Art's a staple. Like bread or wine or a warm coat in winter. Those who think it is a luxury have only a fragment of a mind. Man's spirit grows hungry for art in the same way his stomach growls for food.

Do not call yourself old. A man is as old as the creative force within him.

I will be an artist. I am sure I will. [Vincent Van Gogh]

When I have trouble writing, I step outside my studio into the garden and pull weeds until my mind clears--I find weeding to be the best therapy there is for writer's block.

Fortune is beastly - it is only suitable for cows and businessmen.