Weakness, like not being able to bury the past. Weakness, like not giving up hope when you know you should.

No matter what losses happen in a given season, the Red Sox always have next year.

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

I'm a writer of faith who worries about the intolerance of religion. I look at the past and fear we haven't learned from it. I believe that humanity is capable of evil as well as great acts of courage and goodness. I have hope. Deep down, I believe in the human spirit, although sometimes that belief is shaken.

I prefer a cluttered workspace.

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

You learn to exploit genre for the more important things - to my mind - like story, character, image, language.