Pop stars exist in a different space, one not necessarily tied to a patriotism. So Rihanna is everyone's. She doesn't just belong to America, even though she's a creation of America.

One of the biggest dishes in Sicily is couscous, and there's always been a North African influence on Italian culture, culinary culture there.

Even if it's just a little thing, something like a song, there's still that sort of common language, that common denominator that we can all relate to.

Sicilians, Calabrians, Neapolitans - there were real differences between them, and then all of a sudden they're all living in the US, and then they're all Italians.

I really wanted to die at certain periods in my life.

I learned that pretending you don't have feelings makes you feel unhappy and unfulfilled and, ultimately, is what really makes you vulnerable because you are hiding from the truth.

Everybody is full of crap. The coin of the realm is being full of crap. The best people - being full of crap are our leaders and our superstars.

Lightning streaks like gunfire through the clouds, volleys of thunder shake the air.

I would rather spend one night with Dracula dead than with my husband alive.

Only free time, imagination, creativity, and an ability to disappear will help you deliver value that nobody ever delivered before in the history of mankind.

I wish you wusses would stop whining about your unhappiness. I'm really fed up with it. Pour yourself a scotch and pull yourself together. Go out and shoot something!

I wish adults would spend less energy freaking out about the cutting itself and work harder to understand what drives kids to self-harm.

If you can't solve a problem, it's because you're playing by the rules

When I read good stories, I want to write good stories too.