I got a publishing deal with BMG, they were supportive, and some money to record demos.

I also wanted to make a record that was about other things than romance, yeah, after two years on the road singing all the songs from the first album, I got kind of tired of that.

I privilege the music over the lyrics.

I feel fortunate about being able to make the music I want to make and getting away with it.

Backstreet Boys, we don't stop. We just keep going.

When you start to work out during your holidays, you know you've got the motivation. When I stop working hard during my holidays and getting excited before the beginning of the season, that's when I'll know it's time to call it quits.

We will be judged as a society and as a culture by how we treated our meanest and most vulnerable citizens. If we keep going the way we're going, we will be judged very, very harshly - and sooner, perhaps, than we think.

There are as many routes to writing success as there are writers who got there. My advice, however, applies across the board: read widely, learn the craft by whatever means you can - workshops and writing programs are ideal, but even self-study can work - apply what you learn, and persevere.