People are more concerned about the economy then these ridiculous concerns as to gender inequity in society, as manifested in marriages, in the mental health system, and then in literature.

When I get too worked up about things I have always escaped into catatonia.

One of my moments of coming to writing, of needing to write to attempt to create myself, to attempt to absolve and understand my past passivity, came when a girl I loved very much, who I had been estranged from for some time, killed herself.

I think that writing and publishing are different. I think I will always write; I might not always publish. The idea of not publishing is wonderful!

I think genius can have a lot to do with nerve. And permission.

I do teach fiction and non-fiction, and usually I'm interested in works that confuse genre, but I'm very new to teaching creative writing, I don't have an MFA, or a PhD, I tend to approach it just through my own practice.

The nonfiction novel or literary memoir as authored by women is usually given a much harder time in mainstream criticism.