An absolutely devastating ridicule of all that is false, primitive, and vicious in current American life: the abuses of power, hero worship, aimless violence, materialistic obsession, intolerance, and every form of hypocrisy.

I learned not to care ... and to write for an imaginary reader whose tastes were similar to my own.

In that sense, film is superior, but the difficulty is your lack of control as a writer.

In the case of The Loved One, I was hired to collaborate on an updated version of the book.

Sometimes we would be staked out in the middle of the river, several barges tied together. So we could party.

An angel has no memory.

The important thing in writing is the capacity to astonish. Not shock - shock is a worn-out word - but astonish.