I've never seen a worse situation than that of young writers in the United States. The publishing business in North America is so commercialized.

The writer needs to react to his or her own internal universe, to his or her own point of view. If he or she doesn't have a personal point of view, it's impossible to be a creator.

We should try to understand our innermost needs. We shouldn't use irony to reduce their power.

I began teaching in New York because I needed to stay in the United States and didn't have my immigration papers in order, so working for a university was a way of resolving the issue.

I don't want to name names, but the least I can say about rock and roll is that I'm suspicious.

What's better, a poetic intuition or an intellectual work? I think they complement each other.

I didn't choose literature. Literature chose me. There was no decision on my side.