When someone writes to tell me something I've written made them laugh or cry, I've done my job and done it well. The rest is all semantics.

I've never sat down and thought about the difference between plot and theme. To me, that's never been important.

The most unrealistic thing I've ever read in comics is when some group of characters calls themselves the Brotherhood of Evil or the Masters of Evil. I don't believe any character believes their goals to be truly evil.

Lord of the Rings, I think, is far and away the most brilliantly done stuff.

It's all about who's where on the food chain. When I'm the story editor, I expect my writers to follow my vision. When I'm working for another editor, I'm obliged to follow their vision.

Sometimes you're not even sure which of your stories were failures. There are things I've written that I thought were complete catastrophes when I finished with them that have gone on to generate some of my most positive feedback.

I realized the only thing I owed my audience was my own judgment and my own best effort.