We were a different kind of Christian, the quiet, reasonable kind, a breed embarrassed by the mention of miracles.

I really believe that fiction functions best when stories are allowed to develop in an organic way, so I didn't set out to deliver a specific message.

Working as an editor was like being a professional reader, and the better I became at reading the better I became at writing.

We were a different kind of Christian, the quiet, reasonable kind, a breed embarrassed by the mention of miracles.

I just hope that readers and publishers continue to appreciate good writing and good storytelling in all their various forms. And I hope that people continue to read books, even though we have so many other options for entertainment.

My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that imagined reader, which is a crucial part of learning to tell stories.

To be a good editor or a good writer, I think you really need to be a great reader first.