Some of the country stuff in the past has been so polished - if you were a guy with a nice pair of jeans, a big belt buckle and nice hat, you were country.

When you set a goal for yourself, you do what you need to.

That's your end goal anyway, is to make the fans happy.

I was a Skynyrd fan before I was approached to be a part of Skynyrd, and they always ended it with 'Free Bird,' so I've been watching it since I was a kid.

The dry academic tomes I wrote very early in my career were earnest reflections of the research I conducted, the analysis I applied and the conclusions I drew. And they had few readers, mostly other academics. I learned along the way and started including more and more stories in my work.

The life purpose of the true social entrepreneur is to change the world.

I love having the opportunity to explore a part for a great length of time, really get deeper and deeper into it, because you only have a chance to do that once or twice in a career.

At every writers' conference, you have the opportunity to hear from best-selling authors, top literary agents, and excellent editors who will demystify the publishing industry and give you great advice, no matter where you are in your writing career or what you're currently struggling with.