I feel that if I establish the world or the premise from the first line, then I can get the reader to come with me where I want her to go.

It's amazing what you can accomplish when you know you have to hit the ground running.

As a reader I gravitate toward work that rests in the gray area, that doesn't come with easy answers.

I think that absurdity in literature looks into a lack of meaning in some important and fundamental way. It allows us to ask questions in ways that other forms can't, or in ways we can't using solely traditional means.

I don't mind being called a "feminist," as I certainly embrace the tenets of feminism, though it does feel a little sad to me that we need to call a novel "feminist" simply because the female characters are interesting and strong.

I've realized that with each novel I seem to set out a kind of puzzle for myself. And I am never sure in the process of writing a first draft how it's all going to turn out.

I feel that if I establish the world or the premise from the first line, then I can get the reader to come with me where I want her to go.