Moving to the country has been incredibly good for my work, for my sense of perspective.

What was going on inside of me became louder because everything around me became quieter.

The Internet and all its lures are much, much harder than anything I've ever encountered. If you're writing on a computer, the very instrument you're writing on is already tainted by the world out there in all its permutations.

It's essential to have sacred time for writing. All successful authors have some daily commitment to keep on-track and moving forward.

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.

When I near the end of a book, it feels as if the entire universe meets me more than halfway and supports me. The whole world seems to shimmer when I find the words. My mind quiets.

The writing life requires courage, patience, persistence, empathy, openness, and the ability to deal with rejection. It requires the willingness to be alone with oneself. To be gentle with oneself. To look at the world without blinders on. To observe and withstand what one sees. To be disciplined, and at the same time, take risks. To be willing to fail - not just once, but again and again, over the course of a lifetime.