For me, the short story is the depth of a novel, the breadth of a poem, and, as you come to the last few paragraphs, the experience of surprise.

My writing process, such as it is, consists of a lot of noodling, procrastinating, dawdling, and avoiding.

The past is a candle at great distance: too close to let you quit, too far to comfort you.

Be real and be unashamed, even of your faults. I do truly know what my husband is made of and vice versa.

I met Jay Jonhson. I won him the way poor people occasionally win the lottery: Shameless perseverance and embarrassingly dumb luck, and every time I see one of those sly, toothless, beaten-down souls on TV holding a winning ticket, I think, Go, team.

Bad people doing bad things is not interesting. What I find interesting is good people doing bad things.

Marriage is not a ritual or an end. It is a long, intricate, intimate dance together and nothing matters more than your own sense of balance and your choice of partner.