"Men are destroyed for being rebellious, and women destroy themselves by failing to be rebellious. Unless you can make that next jump to either getting along with people or resisting people, you are ultimately destroying yourself."

"Find joy in everything you choose to do. Every job, relationship, home... it's your responsibility to love it, or change it."

"You hear the best stories from ordinary people. That sense of immediacy is more real to me than a lot of writerly, literary-type crafted stories. I want that immediacy when I read a novel."

"I used to work in a funeral home to feel good about myself, just the fact that I was breathing."

"I talked to the players and tried to make them aware of what was good and bad, but I didn't try to run their lives."

"It is a timeless truth that strive today so that tomorrow may stand upon solid ground — an essential principle for the reflective life."

"Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle."

"Strive today so that tomorrow may stand upon solid ground. Remember this in moments of decisive trial — an essential principle for the reflective life."