“why did i so passionately require the truth? because all great fiction is true”

“The best fiction is true.”

“The art of writing fiction is to sail as dangerously close to the truth as possible without sinking the ship”

“There's a fine line between fiction and non-fiction and I think I snorted it somewhere in 1979”

“I was so high, I needed a stepladder to scratch my own ass.”

“Most people, of course, spend their lives caring about the wrong things. The worry about South Africa or Nicaragua. They spend so much time finding themselves that they lose their taxicabs. They don't see that what kind of napkin you get at a delicatessen is a matter of much significance in the world today.That's why they don't get linen”

“see the people on the sidewalk?...aren't you glad you're not one of them?they're all so self-importantly going nowhere...they just have no idea of who they are or where they really belong. nothing will ever be enough for them. nothing will truly make them happy. they all think they've got to get someplace, got to meet someone, got to get to work, got to get home, got to keep that appointment. if they had a hundred million bucks, it wouldn't be enough for them. if they had four cars, they'd need more. if they had four homes, they'd need more. they are organically out of touch with their land and their tribe.”