And I think that's important, to know how the water's gone over the dam before you start to describe it. It helps to have been over the dam yourself.

In a rough way the short story writer is to the novelist as a cabinetmaker is to a house carpenter.

Ordinary parties, he thought, were subtle games of sexual and social badminton.

But the only rhyme he could summon for 'out' was 'sauerkraut,' which lacked poetic glory. He let it go. The right line would come in time. That was the thing about poetry. It crept up through the draws and coulees of the brain.

You should write because you love the shape of stories and sentences and the creation of different words on a page. Writing comes from reading, and reading is the finest teacher of how to write.

If you are looking for smart judging based on merit, skip the Academy Awards next year and pay attention to the Independent Spirit Awards.

Archie was an expert at dividing the affairs of life into men's business and women's business. An empty cupboard and a full plate were the man's business, a full cupboard and an empty plate the concern of the woman.