Action isn’t my forte. I’m an expert on contemplation and mild regret.

I was never able to write seriously about heroes because I was very aware that I was not one and that in my background there was not this heroic thing.

Science fiction is very healthy in its form.

As far as the mechanics go, working with other people on received ideas was for me a very interesting technical problem. I can't say that any of my collaborations engaged my heart, but they engaged the craftsman in me.

I'm not too fond of the hard work and the constant battle with self-doubt that goes on when I write, but I figure that's part of the territory.

A lot of us don't want to be quite that serious about world problems. Our life is there to enjoy, not to be an eternal dissident, eternally unhappy with how things are and with the state of mankind.

The absurdist stuff wasn't terribly popular at the time I was doing it.