“The more cultured a man, the less fortunate he is.”

In short stories it is better to say not enough than to say too much, because, because–I don’t know why.

It’s not a matter of old or new forms; a person writes without thinking about any forms, he writes because it flows freely from his soul.

The aim of fiction is absolute and honest truth.

Write, write, write-till your fingers break.

The role of the artist is to ask questions, not answer them.

A woman can become a man’s friend only in the following stages – first an acquantaince, next a mistress, and only then a friend.

You must trust and believe in people or life becomes impossible.

Everyone has the same God; only people differ.

It is easy to be a philosopher in academia, but it is very difficult to be a philosopher in life.

When a person is born, he can embark on only one of three roads of life: if you go right, the wolves will eat you; if you go left, you’ll eat the wolves; if you go straight, you’ll eat yourself.

If in the first act you introduce a gun, by the third act you have to use it.

If our life has a meaning, an aim, it has nothing to do with our personal happiness, but something wiser and greater.

There are plenty of good people, but only a very, very few are precise and disciplined.

People should be beautiful in every way – in their faces, in the way they dress, in their thoughts, and in their innermost selves.

People don’t notice whether it’s winter or summer when they’re happy.

Even while lying, you’ll be believed if you speak with authority.

It’s hard to get into Newsweek because, as more of our former intellectual magazines take on a pop focus, if there’s no buzz, there’s no interest.

In a culture that relentlessly promotes avarice and excess as the good life, a person happy doing his own work is usually considered an eccentric, if not a subversive.

I want to create a culture of life where every innocent human life is welcome to the world. I know those are difficult cases, but I am prolife. And I understand we’ve got to go through the Supreme Court.

On Madonna: She’s a gay man trapped in a woman’s body.

I was watching an HBO special on eating habits and different cultures, and they showed in China how people eat cats …

Creativity is the ability to find new solutions to a problem or new modes of expression; thus it brings into existence something new to the individual and to the culture.

The ability to mingle with so many countries and cultures is extremely valuable for men and women.

When you focus on results, you will very seldom see a change in your culture. But, if you focus on a customer-centric culture, you will realize long-term results.