Nothing is wrong with you. You're not different. Everybody feels as bad as you do: this is just what writing a novel feels like. To write a novel is to come in contact with raw, primal feelings, hopes and longings and psychic wounds, and try to make a big public word-sculpture out of them, and that is a crazy hard thing to do.

How often have I met and disliked writers whose books I love; and conversely, hated the books and then wound up liking the writer? Too often.

We have reached the point where ignorance and neglect are the best we can hope for in a ruler.

A big silvery janitor. Penny, this can’t be how the universe works.” “In the Order we call it ‘inverse profundity.’ We’ve observed it in any number of cases. The deeper you go into the cosmic mysteries, the less interesting everything gets.

It's a terrible thing for a book, when you feel like you're supposed to like it.

A novel with a bad middle is a bad book. A bad ending is something I've just gotten in the habit of forgiving.

I think for a long time, I was paralyzed by some of my hopes and ideals for what my life was going to be like. I had this perfect vision of how my life should go, but it seemed - it was - impossible to realize, so I sat around for a long, long time doing almost nothing at all.