I've written a book about my mother, and I don't remember anyone going to Antigua or calling up my mother and verifying her life. There is something about this book that drives people mad with the autobiographical question.

What I don't write is as important as what I write.

The sound of words in a novel is a pretty amazing thing, and I am concerned with the sound of every word I write.

I'm very aware that we make these decisions toward love or hate every day. I certainly don't have the stamina to live through each day making only the noblest decisions.

One of the things reading does, it makes your loneliness manageable if you are an essentially lonely person.

I've written a book about my mother, and I don't remember anyone going to Antigua or calling up my mother and verifying her life. There is something about this book that drives people mad with the autobiographical question.

Why is a picture of something real eventually more exciting than the thing itself?