I don't read other science fiction. I don't read any at all.
I'd never been published when I was young.
The universe is eight billion years old, the last two billion of which have produced intelligent life. During this time not one hour of absolute equity has prevailed.
I was an omnivore at reading, so that everything I ever read contributed.
Vance has a genius in evoking the beauty of strangeness, the strangeness of beauty.
I do read books. I suppose it's more or less the same thing, but at least I'm alone and I'm an individual. I can stop anytime I want, which I frequently do.