Somehow, you can achieve a directness in the novel that you can't get anywhere else.

Most writers, most books, you have no idea whether it was a dollar or a million dollars.

The challenge for any fiction writer is that your job involves simply sitting at a desk for a very, very long time.

To my parents, writing seemed precarious and not the best idea.

I play American football every Saturday, which I find calming.

The novel has always been the form that incorporates other forms. For me, it has always been the ultimate medium.

Most great books have been about striving in some sense. In a sense, money is the great topic of the novel. You couldn't necessarily say that about poetry.