A memoir is a book about some particular thread or theme or moment in a person's life, whereas an autobiography is the entire life.

The problem with an autobiography is that all these extra factors make it difficult. You don't want to hurt people's feelings. You don't know how much you can trust your memory. You don't want it to be self-serving. And you have all these issues about how to present yourself. All these factors make it harder to do than a novel.

Another thing that's good about writing to describe a situation or a state of consciousness is that you can finally get it right. That was my intention, and that's always interesting.

In fact I thought life was pretty much a losing proposition, and I didn't mind saying so.

we still have the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building and the Woolworth Building, but it just seems like part of the nature of New York, that it's always shifting.

The purpose of rock n' roll is to convince girls to pay money to get close to you.

I believe in people treating each other with respect.