Don't write love poems when you're in love. Write them when you're not in love.

You owe reality nothing and the truth about your feelings everything.

To write a poem you must have a streak of arrogance-- not in real life I hope. In real life try to be nice. It will save you a hell of a lot of trouble and give you more time to write.

A creative writing class may be one of the last places you can go where your life still matters.

Assuming you can write clear English sentences, give up all worry about communication. If you want to communicate, use the telephone.

An act of imagination is an act of self-acceptance.

Say nothing and just make music and you'll find plenty to say.

Don't write with a pen. Ink tends to give the impression the words shouldn't be changed.

A good creative-writing teacher can save a good writer a lot of time.

Think small.... If you can't think small, try philosophy or social criticism.

Never want to say anything so strongly that you give up the option of finding something better. If you have to say it, you will.

Some artists benefit less from being interviewed than they do from being left alone.

One best success comes after their greatest disappointments.

I would be lying if I didn't admit there might be a scene in the movie where there might be alcohol in my system.

Whatever your body type is, just use it.

Respect for woman, the much lauded chivalry of the Middle Ages, meant what I fear it still means to some men in our own day - respect for the elect few among whom they expect to consort.

It is the characteristic of the magnanimous man to ask no favor but to be ready to do kindness to others.

If Dr. King marched today, would Bill Gates march? I know Obama would, but would Hillary take part?

Music is a science which should have definite rules; these rules should be drawn from an evident principle; and this principle cannot really be known to us without the aid of mathematics.

You have to have a feeling for where you are. You've got only one life to live and you don't have to live it for six people. Pay attention to it.

When I see that people are touched, and they feel solidarity with him, I say to myself, "I made a little change."