If you are under the impression you have already perfected yourself, you will never rise to the heights you are no doubt capable of.

What interests me is the surprising enormous extent to which most people accept the fate that's been given to them, and find some dignity.

An artist's concern is to capture beauty wherever he finds it.

…It’s hard to appreciate the beauty of a world when one doubts its very validity….But I’ve long since lost all such doubts, Ono,’ he continued. ‘When I am an old man, when I look back over my life and see I have devoted it to the task of capturing the unique beauty of that world, I believe I will be well satisfied. And no man will make me believe I’ve wasted my time.

Screenplays I didn't really care about, journalism, travel books, getting my writer friends to write about their dreams or something. I just determined to write the books I had to write.

One is not struck by the truth until prompted quite accidentally by some external event.

We took away your art because we thought it would reveal your souls. Or to put it more finely, we did it to prove you had souls at all.