A lot of positive psychology is stuck in being the psychology of privilege, and I reject that.

Researchers warn us against walking out on married life without a dang good reason.

I don't know if my mother was a narcissist - or bi-polar or borderline. Those were words she tossed around over the years.

When we strike a balance between the challenge of an activity and our skill at performing it, when the rhythm of the work itself feels in sync with our pulse, when we know that what we're doing matters, we can get totally absorbed in our task. That is happiness.

It is a great paradox and a great injustice that writers write because we fear death and want to leave something indestructible in our wake and, at the same time, are drawn to all the things that kill: whiskey and cigarettes, unprotected sex, and deep-fried burritos.

Everything is freedom and everything is loneliness. Make your choice and let the rest fall away.

Maybe it goes without saying that if you want to become a famous writer before you’re dead, you’ll have to write something. But the folks in my classes with the biggest ideas and the best publicity shots ready to grace the back covers of their best-selling novels are also usually the ones who aren’t holding any paper.