There is no sound so terrible as a man's sorrow for his own death.

Happiness is seasonal, like anything else

In my opinion, there's no condition in life that can't be ameliorated by a dose of junk food.

People talk about dysfunctional families; I've never seen any other kind.

Grade school was perilous. ... I can see how I must have worried them. I was the kind of kid who, for no apparent reason, wept piteously or threw up on myself. On an especially scary day, I sometimes did both.

Dream big but think small.

I read the paper every day. There are certain subjects that will catch my attention. I have an entire file of articles. Of course I make up the story, especially since most criminals are not very smart and fictional crime must be clever. I have to make sure the story I am telling is interesting and realistic. In this book I went on line and found out the manners of codes. I thought it interesting to use them as a jumping off point.