I'm not belittling the art world. Not at all. I take it quite seriously, actually. But the logic of art is a vanguard logic that pressures art to incorporate the quotient of risk.

I don't really have those kinds of intentions when I write a scene. I try to follow the internal logic of the fiction, rather than make an argument or an assertion.

I’d been listening to men talk since I arrived in New York City. That’s what men like to do. Talk. Profess like experts. When one finally came along who didn’t say much, I listened.

To be alive is to listen quietly while other people talk. That's how you learn something.

In short, I'm pretty suspicious of the idea that there's a real and true and authentic world, and then a bunch of false ones.

The kids I knew growing up who worked on bikes all loved the smell of gas. It is the liquid agent for speed.

It's amazing how life conspires to set you up with what you need.