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.

There’s a great expression in Twelve Step programs: Act as if. Act as if you’re a writer. Sit down and begin. Act as if you might just create something beautiful, and by beautiful I mean something authentic and universal. Don’t wait for anybody to tell you it’s okay. Take that shimmer and show us our humanity. That’s your job.

Success is so fleeting, even if you get a good book deal or your book is a huge success, there's always the fear: What about the next one?

If you write memoir, it can't be about blame or hurt; it has to be creative.

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.

The truth is in the present moment.

I don't want to lean back into the past, or forward into the future. I don't want to wish the present moment away.