I'm a writer of faith. I was raised Catholic, and I have a deeply Catholic imagination.

My childhood was marked by the great fear of nuclear holocaust. We practiced our Civil Defense Drills, lining up in hallways, curled to the floor, but we knew we'd die or, worse, survive only to suffer radiation and slow death.

I don't know when I'm writing dark. I don't know when I'm writing funny or even heartbreaking. I'm always just trying to write it true.

The lessons learned in journalism also apply. Writing for NPR has taught me to cut a piece in half and then in half again - without losing the essence. Apply that to the swollen prose of a bulky novel and you might reveal a beautiful work.

As a writer, my main objective is to tell the story urgently - as if whispering it into one ear - and to know the characters intimately.

Don't shame the young for releasing their pent-up fear.

I try not to divide plot and character. I get to know a character by what they want and fear and how those internal forces play out in their lives.