His characters are ravaged, beaten. They walk through infernos and emerged charred doves.

Sometimes it takes more courage not to let yourself see. Sometimes knowledge is damaging - not enlightenment but enleadenment.

...the deepest secrets about ourselves that we, in the ultimate act of humanity, will spare those we truly love.

People had an illogical, self-serving rationale when it came to interpreting the behavior of others.

It’s hard, in America, not to equate ‘happiness’ with ‘things’.

It’s what we chase but never find. It is the mystery of our lives, the understanding that even when we have everything we want it is one day to leave us. It’s the something unseen, the lurking devastation, the darkness that gives our lives dimension.

Look at Picasso. O’Neill. Tennessee Williams. Capote. Were these shiny happy people spreading sunshine? No. Only the greatest of personal demons can force you to do powerful work.