There's something pretty awesome about staying with a character and growing.

I struggled with being a Latino growing up in Los Angeles. I felt very American. I still do. I went to 35 bar mitzvahs before I went to a single quinceanera. I could talk all day about my culture and what it means to me.

I have a lot of trouble understanding how people see me as a celebrity. I work 14 hours a day, and then I just want to talk to my family, see the people I love, pet my dog, and go to bed. I'm not looking to be best friends with or emulate a celebrity.

Early in my career, I was really spoiled with a beautiful project. I got such a good start that I thought, 'Why would I ever take a step back?' Why would I take on something that wasn't meaningful - to me, if nobody else - and powerful and groundbreaking?

I think everything you do in life is a learning experience.

I'll write about myself, or people I know, or archetypal characters, but the goal is to get at some truth, not to necessarily convey my own experience as an individual to the world.

Even if I stumble on to the absolute truth of any aspect of the universe, I will not realise my luck and instead will spend my life trying to find flaws in this understanding - such is the role of a scientist.

The single most important lesson I learned is that black people are the cause of black people's demise.