All of a sudden it felt like people were peering over my shoulder, wondering what I would write next. I was blocked for four years.

Asleep, he looked a lot younger than going-on-seventeen, but I had noticed that Johnny looked younger when he was asleep too, so I figured everyone did. Maybe people are younger when they are asleep.

You still have a lot of time to make yourself be what you want. There's still lots of good in the world. Tell Dally. I don't think he knows.

nothing can wear you out like caring about people

It was too vast a problem to be just a personal thing. There should be some help, someone should tell them before it was too late. Someone should tell their side of the story, and maybe people would understand then, and wouldn’t be so quick to judge a boy by the amount of hair oil he wore.

My mother was physically and emotionally abusive. My father was an extremely cold man.

I have no idea why I write. The old standards are: I like to express my feelings, stretch my imagination, earn money.