Reading is entering into the consciousness of another human being.

I have my own dying empire to contend with, and I do not wish for any other.

The only way to write about right now is to write about the future.

She took my hand and pulled me after her, her shoulders giving off a sweet peppermint concoction that the bodies of young women sometimes produce to make my life more difficult.

I felt the weakness of these books, their immateriality, how they had failed to change the world, and I didn't want to sully myself with their weakness anymore.

Before my first novel, I was dating a woman who later went to prison for bashing a guy with a hammer.

Don't be pretentious is my first advice to young writers. This is the big problem - just because you're getting an MFA doesn't mean you have to write for the Academy. Be true to your personality. Don't temper your personality down with words. Don't build defensive fortresses around yourself with words - words are your friends.