I've always liked reading books that contain funny lines or situations, and maybe because my work is known chiefly for its violence and misery, I made a more conscious attempt with The Heavenly Table to do that myself.

When I turned fifty, I decided to quit the mill and go to graduate school.

A lot of people get the wrong impression, think there's something romantic or tragic about hitting bottom.

I don't think writing fiction has changed my worldview.

I'm always doubting my work, even when people are kind enough to say good things. I still have a hard time believing I've written some books, let alone that they've actually done pretty well.

I look upon [writing about religion] as a nice way to get by in this precarious world, though I've never been able to do it myself.

I think my characters - well, at least a few of them - are hoping or searching for some kind of contact with god.