I grew up in Florida, and I wanted to go home and I couldn't. I didn't have the money. The book [The Tiger Rising] was a way to go home.

It is our duty and our joy to communicate our hearts to each other. Words assist us in this task.

Going out and not only meeting the kids, but meeting the teachers and the librarians and seeing the world, fills me up.

When I do it [writing] by myself, there's a lot more terror and uncertainty.

I remember wanting to write a book with someone, the someone being Kate [DiCamillo], and we decided to write about two friends. We had no idea how to begin this project - neither of us had ever collaborated with another writer - and I'm pretty sure that we began by giving our two friends a sock, just to see what they'd do with it. And it went from there.

Like most hearts, it was complicated, shaded with dark and dappled with light.

I've been recognized in airports lots of places, but mostly getting recognized is at home.