Every child, woman, and man should possess license to speak or sing in his or her true voice.

Every child, woman, and man should possess license to speak or sing in his or her true voice.

When people ask what I write about, that's what I tell them: 'The drama of human relationships.' I'm not even close to running out of material.

If I told you about all the stories I don't tell, I would be violating the very boundaries I set for myself.

More than any other setting - more than battlefields or boardrooms or a spaceship headed for intergalactic travel - I'll put my money on the family to provide an endless source of comedy, tragedy and intrigue.

When I was 12 years old, I read Nancy Drew mysteries and biographies of Madame Curie and Florence Nightingale and books about girls who love horses or go to nursing school. I belonged to the Girl Scouts and got A's in school and rarely disobeyed my parents. I still kept a collection of Barbie dolls in my room, and I almost never spoke to boys.

One of the sad realities of being a parent is that the same stuff you know is exciting, educational, and enriching in your child'slife is often messy, smelly and exhausting to deal with.