When I've taught writing to five, six, and seven year olds, it's not very different than talking to an adult writer. They're writers then, and when they get to be young teenagers they're not anymore. You might go and talk to them about writing, and they'll be very self-conscious or will have detached themselves from the group.

I just like doing it, I like writing.

Whoever would write books? It's suffering as well as greatly satisfying. And certainly there's suffering in the sense that you don't know for a long time how to do it.

It's a scary thing for fiction writers, when you're always writing from the point of view both as and for someone who is different.

The main thing is to explain to yourself that everybody suffers.

There seems to be a tremendous desire among many people now to know authors and how they work, to know what's autobiographical and what isn't.

I love to read nonfiction and memoir, but I'm mostly interested in the piece of writing more than the person.