Open adoption, when it works, is fabulous. But when it goes wrong, it's so traumatizing for everybody.

I think the Internet has made things a lot easier. Twitter and Facebook let you really connect to your readers effortlessly!

L.A. is a place people come to for all sorts of reasons, often to reinvent themselves, and that fascinates me.

When you love what you do, it stops seeming like work and instead becomes necessity.

People love stories. They need stories.

I always think that in a big city, anything is possible, including reinventing yourself.

A haunting, harrowing punch to the heart, Among the Missing is flat-out brilliant. About the secrets we keep, the lives we are desperate to live, and the chances we miss, it's a psychological dazzler. Truly, one of my favorite books of this year-or any year.