I hate the crazy, neurotic characters beyond a certain point.

I try to find what makes even the worst, most despicable character sympathetic at his or her core.

I was a very sickly kid. While I was in the hospital at age 7, my Dad brought me a stack of comic books to keep me occupied. I was hooked.

My father brought me my first stack of comics, when I was seven years old and in the hospital. I was not a well child. And that's where my love for comics began.

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.

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

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