Marriage is what happens when one at least of the partners doesn't want the other to get away.

one learns best, and writes best, in a state of defiance.

We shelter children for a time; we live side by side with men; and that is all. We owe them nothing, and are owed nothing. I think we owe our friends more, especially our female friends.

Preserve your peace of mind. There is not much time; all things end in death. Do not lament the past too much, or fear the future too acutely, ot waste too much energy on other peoples' woes, in case the present dissolves altogether.

Much sheer effort goes into avoiding the truth; left to itself, it sweeps in like the tide.

Writers were never meant to be professionals. Writing is not a profession, it is an activity, an essentially amateur occupation. It is what you do when you are not living.

People hear what they want and expect to hear, not what is said.