I base a lot of decisions on my gut, and going with an independent label was a good one.
— Taylor Swift
I've never thought about songwriting as a weapon. I've only thought about it as a way to help me get through love and loss and sadness and loneliness and growing up.
I'm the type of person, I have to study to get an A on the test.
At some point, you grow out of being attracted to that flame that burns you over and over and over again.
I second-guess and overthink and rethink every single thing that I do.
On 'Grey's Anatomy' I wouldn't care what I was playing - I would play a corpse, 'cause I love it that much. It is deep true love, and it will never die.
Seeing a live Kenny Chesney show, you know what you're going to get. You know it's going to be an all-day party.
I've just tried to grow up in the most natural and gradual process that I possibly can and make choices I feel are right for me and my fans.
I'm like 6'2 when I wear heels, so I tend to wear cowboy boots a lot.
All of my songs are autobiographical.
I often get ideas for songs on the tour bus at odd times. Like at 6am when no one is around, I'd just write.
I wouldn't wear tiny amounts of clothing in my real life so I don't think it's necessary to wear that stuff in photo-shoots.
Love is the one wild card.
Your feelings so are important to write down, to capture, and to remember because today you're heartbroken, but tomorrow you'll be in love again.
What makes me happy is just curling up in with my mom in her bed and watching a marathon of 'CSI' and 'Grey's Anatomy' episodes with pints of ice cream.
I get so excited when a song I wrote that's very personal to me goes No. 1 and I look down and see people singing the words back to me.
But, I've always loved John Mayer and I think T-Pain is brilliant.
I'm not concerned with people seeing me in a certain way. Some people see me as a kid, some people see me as an adult. But I'm seriously not going to complain how anybody sees me, as long as they see me.
I'm sick of the tabloids' saying I obsess over guys. Why would you obsess over guys? They don't like it.
My fans don't feel like I hold anything back from them. They know whatever I'm going through now, they'll hear about it on a record someday. They'll hear the real story. There's a little bit of lag time. It's not as instant as going on a gossip blog. But it's much more accurate.
I can say I'd honestly rather be happy than have 30 to 40 songs that I've written about these thrilling, exciting, horrible, unhappy times.
I feel like in my music I can be a rebel. I can say things I wouldn't say in real life.
I think, as far as branching out with acting, it would take something really right on the mark to distract me from music, because music is everything to me.
The business aspect is one of the most important things about having a music career, because every choice you make in a management meeting affects your life a year-and-a-half from now.
I didn't want to just be another girl singer. I wanted there to be something that set me apart.
I have this fear of falling in front of large groups of people. That's why I tend not to wear heels.
I've got my Grammys on top of my piano and I look at them when I play.
I always have to be writing.
And if you're horrible to me I'm going to write a song about you and you are not going to like it. That's how I operate.
I've been careful in love. I've been careless in love. And I've had adventures I wouldn't trade for anything.
And, honestly, if somebody wants to criticize me for not being a trainwreck, that's fine with me!
I would like to do a duet with Taylor Hanson, because I have loved Hanson since I was 8.
Most of the time, songs that I write end up being finished in 30 minutes or less.
For me, great music doesn't just have to fall into one category or one genre and I love appreciating all kinds of music.
I don't like it when people who are young act like they're 40. That's taking too much on. Putting up a shield and trying to act like you're so mature or whatever - I don't try to act mature. Some people might say I'm mature for my age, but it's not something I'm trying to do, you know? I'm just me.
I have to practice to be good at guitar. I have to write 100 songs before you write the first good one.
I like the way the stories of my relationships sound to music more than the way they look in print, in gossip columns or in me talking about them in interviews. I think it's a better way of telling the stories.
It's pretty intense writing about my own life, my own struggles.
As soon as I accomplish one goal, I replace it with another one. I try not to get too far ahead of myself. I just say to myself, 'All right, well, I'd like to headline a tour,' and then when I get there, we'll see what my next goal is.
I'd like to do a completely off-the-wall collaboration. I would like one of my songs to be the hook to a rap song. That would be so much fun!
Faith Hill is a big role model.
A development deal is where they're giving you recording time and money to record, but not promising that they'll put an album out.
But when I hear a great song, I can't help but be inspired by it, regardless of whatever genre that song falls under.
I feel the emotion that life conjures up and the songs I write get me closer to my feelings and realising who I am. It's a natural process.
If you're yelling you're the one who's lost control of the conversation.
When I'm getting to know someone, I look for someone who has passions that I respect, like his career. Someone who loves what he does is really attractive.
For some reason, I'm really comfortable talking about my personal life in songs.
I think the tiniest little thing can change the course of your day, which can change the course of your year, which can change who you are.
I don't think I'd ever make an album of just covers because I love writing my own music.
A lot of the jewelry that I wear are fan gifts because they're so awesome and they give me great presents.
