“You are set free whenever you love—even those who believe you're crazy.”

“You break through the veil whenever you strap on a sword or chant the ancient verses. You escape when you write a poem or a tale that brings beauty into the world. You are set free whenever you love—even those who believe you’re crazy.”

“But what would happen if I put on the ring?” the boy asked.“There is only one way to find out.”

“Writing well means never having to say, "I guess you had to be there.”

“But avoidance allows you to believe that you're making all kinds of strides when you're not.”

“Imagine if every Thursday your shoes exploded if you tied them the usual way. This happens to us all the time with computers, and nobody thinks of complaining.”

“To say to the slave who has not been emancipated 'Do not behave as a slave' is to mock his enslavement. But to say the same to the slave who has been set free is the necessary appeal to put into effect the privileges and rights of his liberation.”