I pray I die before they day comes when I do not know if my sons are infants or grandfathers.

Making plans is a game. Life chooses for you.

I am so honored to be the vessel into which you pour this story of pain and strength.

I lived through a classic publishing story. My editor was fired a month before the book came out. The editor who took it over already had a full plate. It was never advertised. We didn't get reviewed in any major outlets.

I tell writers to keep reading, reading, reading. Read widely and deeply. And I tell them not to give up even after getting rejection letters. And only write what you love.

I wanted to cry, but I realized that I was too old for that. I would be a woman soon and I would have to learn how to live with a divided heart.

My early childhood was spent in Newark, New Jersey, but my family moved to Denver when I was 12.