As a reader, I do not like to have everything handed to me. Because after a while it gets formulaic and I'm thinking, "If this is so thought through, then why do I need to read it. It's done!" It becomes a beach book at a certain point.

You have to be a minor superhero just to get to be a dignified man, and that's kind of exacerbated for men of color.

I want to give the evidence in a way that is convincing, but I don't want to cheat.

Remember that a book is many drafts - mine certainly are. It's improvisation. It's as much jazz and the way we talk and the way I heard people preach coming up as it is writing.

I get off on anticipating and waiting much more than I get off on the actual event.

As a writer, you don't know what the hell you're doing. You're just doing it. You hope it works out well.

Things seem to fall apart inevitably.