Having a point to start is important. You know that when you decide to write something it's like a commitment. It's like falling in love.

It's going to go away because we all need silence. We all need time to reflect and think. I am not at all pessimistic about this.

I carry around a little stool to stand on when people want a picture with their cellular phones.

Write to register history, and name each thing. Write what should not be forgotten.

The first two, three, four weeks are wasted. I just show up in front of the computer. Show up, show up, show up, and after a while the muse shows up, too. If she doesn't show up invited, eventually she just shows up.

The fact that I am a writer comes from the experience of being cut away from my roots and living in Venezuela, where I couldn't find a place for myself, for years and years.

The most poor and backward areas in the world are those in which women are subjugated and exploited. Improving the situation of the woman improves the family, the community, and by extension the whole country.