One of the things that Ivar knew about Mrs. Walker was that she would only tell him what she knew if he asked the right question, so he spent a portion of his time meditating over what he might ask Mrs. Walker and how he might phrase the question.

A theory of creativity is actually just a metaphor. A pool of ideas, a well of memories, a voice.

A reader's tastes are peculiar. Choosing books to read is like making your way down a remote and winding path. Your stops on that path are always idiosyncratic. One book leads to another and another the way one thought leads to another and another. My type of reader is the sort who burrows through the stacks in the bookstore or the library (or the Web site — stacks are stacks), yielding to impulse and instinct.

it still astounds me, after forty years, that there is no good bread between Chicago and San Francisco.

Before I write a novel, images float around in my head that work like icons - they are meaningless in themselves, but serve as reminders.

I had spent years thinking about one thing while I was doing another. I had, in fact, prided myself on being able to do two things at once.

How will you know a good farmer when you meet him? He will not ask you for any favors.