My characters have to talk, or they're out. They audition in early scenes. If they can't talk, they're given less to do, or thrown out.

Never open a book with weather. There are exceptions. If you happen to be Barry Lopez, who has more ways to describe ice and snow than an Eskimo, you can do all the weather reporting you want.

Everyone has his own sound. I'm not going to presume how to tell anybody how to write.

I have fun writing. I don't make it a chore. I don't have to struggle with it.

I won't read a book that starts with a description of the weather. I don't read books over 300 pages, though I'll make an exception for Don Delillo.

It doesn't have to make sense, it just has to sound like it does.

I don't believe in writer's block. I don't know what that is. There are just certain little areas that I know I'm going to get through. It's just a matter of finding a way.