I do whatever is necessary in order to maintain the equanimity we all need to withstand the disappointment and rejection that are the lot of every writer, no matter where we are in our careers.

You can start your day over anytime.

There are books that a writer undertakes because she wants to go on a journey, and there are journeys a writer undertakes because she wants to write a book.

When I was writing my first novel, I smoked cigarettes. And when I think about what it was like to smoke, I remember exactly the feeling of sitting in front of my big old computer in that little room where I wrote my first novel.

I'm most connected to myself when I'm alone in a room, moving my hand across a page. That's when I feel most like me.

My parents made the decision never to focus on my looks, and I had no sense of myself as beautiful.

We're all simultaneously separated and connected by our devices, staring into our little screens, and also hungry for experience and community.