She started out all excited and impressed. ... (She took an immediate dislike to Bill, who struck her as a narcissistic snake.)

When we first met, I was so impressed with him. But Hal took a dislike to me, just like his character in the play. Probably my Southern politeness, which he thought was kind of phony. It was only near the end of the shoot, when I was sick as a dog with the flu and I stopped trying to charm him, that he got over that dislike, and we started to laugh together.

I don't know that he was awe-struck, but he was terribly excited.

Let the novelists fret about consistency - story writers should feel free to jam; to get things right in new, surprising ways by allowing themselves, now and then, to get things wrong.

Ask Jeeves! Who ever used that thing? College freshmen to find out who Goethe was - that's it.

Once you realize just the sort of glut of books that exists out there, it does become incumbent on you not to add to it unless you have a damn good reason.