Creating emotion was what my career was all about. I wanted people to laugh at me; I wanted people to cry with me. I wanted people to feel good or to think about something when they watched me. I think that's why, even not being an Olympic champion, I have such a huge following around the world.

Nobody gets lucky all the time. Nobody can win all the time. Nobody's a robot. Nobody's perfect.

I design all of my costumes. I like to go out there and feel like I have contributed to every part of what I do. I choose the music, the choreographer, I've obviously chosen my coach, my costumes - all if that falls under my realm of power, my realm of influence.

That makes me think of spandex-covered football players. It's not me. I'm in rhinestones and velvet, not spandex.

It's really grinding to always play out of both sides of your mind and always be thinking what will offend people. Or what won't. But I'm strong enough to deal with that. I own that I'm freakish in my way.

I feel like at the Olympics I gave the best performance of my life and I wasn't rewarded for that as an athlete. Yes, my fans and my mom were happy about it, but I didn't win that gold medal.

I got into figure skating for the art of it, as well as the sport, and how much I love it. And, you know, I do everything that I want. I march to my own drummer. Sometimes people have an issue with that, and I can't control it.