Anything you read can influence your work, so I try to read good stuff.

They shouldn't hate each other . . . I don't hate the Socs any more . . . they shouldn't hate . . .

...I knew he would be dead, because Dally Winston wanted to be dead and he always got what he wanted.

They used to be buddies, I thought, they used to be friends, and now they hate each other because one has to work for a living and the other comes from the West Side. They shouldn't hate each other.

Johnny almost grinned as he nodded. "Tuff enough," he managed, and by the way his eyes were glowing, I figured Southern gentlemen had nothing on Johnny Cade.

Even the most primite societies have an innate resepect for the insane.

I am a greaser. I am a JD and a hood. I blacken the name of our fair city. I beat up people. I rob gas stations. I am a menace to society. Man do I have fun!