I carry in my datebook a piece of paper that my mother copied out for me, from the 1840 Census. Hardy Callaway Culver of Hancock County, Georgia, had 42 slaves, 31 "employed in agriculture." Culver was my great-great-great grandfather. I carry this piece of paper with me every day because I don't want to forget. I don't know what to do with the information, but I don't want to forget it.

There's a serendipity to real life that the Internet can't duplicate. Do you use the library? For anything? Well, sometimes you end up picking up the book next to the one you were looking for, and it's that book that changes your life.

I adore the work of Stephen Sondheim. I like musicales in general. They make surprisingly great running tapes.

I'm for anything that lets writers stretch, in or out of their series.

I begin each book with a challenge to myself.

I'm a morning person, which is a hideous thing to be. No one likes morning people, not even other morning people.

There's always time to read. Don't trust a writer who doesn't read. It's like eating food prepared by a cook who doesn't eat.