Bumble-Ardy is a very wicked little child as far as I'm concerned. He's not to be trusted.

Grown-ups desperately need to feel safe, and then they project onto the kids. But what none of us seem to realize is how smart kids are. They don’t like what we write for them, what we dish up for them, because it’s vapid, so they’ll go for the hard words, they’ll go for the hard concepts, they’ll go for the stuff where they can learn something. Not didactic things, but passionate things.

I'm gay. I just didn't think it was anybody's business.

I'm not jaded. I never have been jaded. I've always been surprised at my success. I've always enjoyed it.

I have a little tiny Emily Dickinson so big that I carry in my pocket everywhere. And you just read three poems of Emily. She is so brave. She is so strong. She is such a sexy, passionate, little woman. I feel better.

My big concern is me and what do I do now until the time of my death. That is valid. That is useful. That is beautiful. That is creative.

I write books that seem more suitable for children, and that's OK with me. They are a better audience and tougher critics. Kids tell you what they think, not what they think they should think.