I'm not afraid of just cranking it out and seeing what comes out of my subconscious. Because I don't always know what I'm feeling. I do a lot of rewriting later. But that first blast feels like a spigot - like it's coming from somewhere else.

New York was the Promised Land growing up. Writers were gods! The great gods of American culture... I thought.

The ridiculous way that workplace politics are conducted completely gets in the way of excellence in America.

Sometimes I feel that my job on earth is to put Julie White through horrible things, watch her writhe and then recover.

Music is the only passion I shamelessly indulge in. However, for recreation I enjoy watching movies. 'Wizard of Oz' was the first film I ever saw, followed by the 'Bond' movies. I also watch a lot of World cinema through DVDs mostly brought by one of my best friends who's now based in Toronto.

Reading time is precious. Don't waste it. Reading bad books, or books that are wrong for a certain time in your life, can dangerously turn you off the activity altogether.

Evanescence fans aren't the popular kids in school. They aren't the cheerleaders. It's the art kids and the nerds and the kids who grow up to be the most interesting creative people.

I have been fully involved in designing my stage shows; it's important to me to do something really unique and almost off-the-wall to bring the music and the visuals together. I love design and actually went to school for a bit for graphic design, so it isn't so much 'pressure' for me; it's a way to be creative, and I really enjoy it.