I write of the wish that comes true--for some reason, a terrifying thought.

When it’s too good, you do it over again. Too good is too easy. If it’s too easy you have to worry. If you’re not lying awake at night worrying about it, the reader isn’t going to, either. I always know that when I get a good night’s sleep, the next day I’m not going to get any work done. Writing a novel is like working on foreign policy. There are problems to be solved. It’s not all inspirational.

That's all it takes, one drop of fear to curdle love into hate.

A guitar has moonlight in it.

New York is not even a city, it's a congerie of rotten villages.

You usually can tell when a writer is going down hill by the size of his liquor bill.

If you have to do it, you can do it.