I don't ascribe to the idea of the ivory tower composer who sits alone in a room composing his masterpieces and then comes down from Mount Sinai with the tablets. It doesn't work like that. The job of a composer is putting something down on a piece of paper that will inspire the person who's playing.

As soon as you get a certain amount of attention, then everybody kinda wants to start taking pot shots at you. All your old friends that supported you don't support you any more.

One thing that I do ask myself when I'm in the creative process is, 'Does the world need this?'

I was always an outsider, proud of being an outsider. I always reveled in the outsiders.

I have no doubts. I know what gets in the way and I know what encourages me to do more work.

The idealists will always be in society, and we will survive

When I'm writing, sometimes it gets to that place where I feel like the piece is writing itself and I'm trying not to get in the way