I’m a huge freak, and always have been. I spent the first part of my life trying really desperately not to be one, and it was just a waste of time. – Alan Ball
Death is a companion for all of us, whether we acknowledge it or not, whether we’re aware of it or not, and it’s not necessarily a terrible thing. – Alan Ball
I think the world is a place for oddballs and freaks. I’m only interested in oddballs and freaks as characters. – Alan Ball
I don’t really know what it is about vampires that makes them such a powerful symbol, metaphor, whatever in people’s consciousness. But I do know they’re tremendously powerful. I mean, there’s a vampire on ‘Sesame Street.’ And Count Chocula. I don’t know why it’s so powerful. – Alan Ball
I’m at the point in my life where I don’t want to work as hard. Actually, I’ve had to take a good hard look at workaholism and it’s effect on one’s mental health. – Alan Ball
You cannot hold a child accountable to the same standards that you hold an adult accountable to. – Alan Ball
I’m not saying that being gay is what defines me, but at the same time, if you feel like you have to hide it, then it becomes what defines you. You keep it hidden, and the secret becomes you. – Alan Ball
Death showed up in my life very early on, so I’m aware of it. If you look at most of the things I write there’s a sort of contemplation of mortality – although ‘True Blood’ doesn’t fall into that. Even though there’s such a ridiculously high body count! – Alan Ball
I’d seen ‘Interview with A Vampire’ and saw Dracula movies growing up, but I never thought, ‘I love vampires; I have to do a show about vampires.’ – Alan Ball
Well, here’s the thing with relationships on ‘True Blood’: Once they happen then you have to throw a monkey-wrench into them, because to have people be happy is not that exciting. – Alan Ball
I think all writers are armchair psychologists to some degree or another, and I think a character’s sexuality is fascinating. It’s a great way to really get at the root of their identity, because it’s such a personal thing. – Alan Ball
I know a lot of shows are like, ‘Here’s the pages,’ right before they start filming. I’d have a heart attack. The anxiety would be way too much for me. I don’t have as strong a backbone as those other show writers. – Alan Ball
I always choose to look, as much as one can, at the supernatural not being something that exists outside of nature, but a deeper, fundamental heart of nature that perhaps humans… have lost touch with. It’s a more primal thing than perhaps we are attuned to in our modern, self-aware way of life. – Alan Ball
I’m a Buddhist, so one of my biggest beliefs is, ‘Everything changes, don’t take it personally.’ – Alan Ball
‘Six Feet Under’ was about repressing our deepest, most primal impulses, and ‘True Blood’ is about giving full sway to them all the time. In a way they are like yin and yang. – Alan Ball
As a writer, it’s fun to create. And once you get into a long-running show with very established characters and a very established tone and format, after a while it’s a really great job, but that’s what it is – a job. – Alan Ball
‘True Blood’ differs from ‘Six Feet Under’ in that there are way more characters and plot-lines, but fundamentally it’s still about the characters and their emotions. – Alan Ball
Somebody asked me, ‘Why do people like vampires so much?’ This was right after Obama had been elected and I said, ‘Because we just spent eight years being sucked dry by one.’ – Alan Ball
My own belief is that people can come back from anything. It doesn’t mean that it won’t come at a huge cost. – Alan Ball
