I blinked and told him I didn't know. Of course you do. Who and when to ask for permission to quote First, you have to understand the doctrine of Fair Use.
Fair use is of necessity an elastic notion.
The same would be true if you were quoting lines from a song by Bob Dylan or the Beatles. Another issue would be the kind of use you intend to make of the quoted material. Each instance has to be examined on its own merits. A thousand words quoted from a 250 page book becomes a little iffy. If you're going to quote ten thousand words, obviously you need permission.