Now you see,' said the turtle, drifting back into the pond, 'why it is useless to cry. Your tears do not wash away your sorrows. They feed someone else's joy. And that is why you must learn to swallow your own tears.

But I will win and give her my spirit, because this is the way a mother loves her daughter. -Ying Ying

Fate changes when you change your clothes.

I think books were my salvation, they saved me from being miserable.

I have survivor skills. Some of that is superficial - what I present to people outwardly - but what makes people resilient is the ability to find humour and irony in situations that would otherwise overpower you.

It's both rebellion and conformity that attack you with success.

I started a second novel seven times and I had to throw them away.