I believe that the memoir is the novel of the 21st century; it’s an amazing form that we haven’t even begun to tap…we’re just getting started figuring out what the rules are.

There were a number of books about Bill Wilson, and by him, but a lot of the basic biographical tasks had not been done.

You mustn’t be so open-minded that your brains fall out.

Our [western] culture embraces sex addiction. If I drink too much or rack up credit-card debt or lose the rent in Vegas, that's bad. But if I have many lovers, that's good.

Love is a great wrecker of peace of mind.

There is no such thing as expecting too much.

All writers have strengths and weaknesses. I am terrified of being boring, so I write short, compressed stories that sometimes don't give a reader time to think about what they have read. I struggle to slow down.