What do I do when writing isn't going well? Well, I don't write - which is symptom, cure, and cause. And then sometimes I just tell myself, as I'm writing, "I'll fix it later." And sometimes it's true, I do.

To me, writing is much freer than dancing. With writing, you could do it whenever you wanted. You didnt have to do little exercises and stay in shape. You could have great moments of inspiration that advanced the story. In dance, unless youre going to choreograph things yourself, youre at the service of someone else.

To write a short story, you have to be able to stay up all night.

Pleasantness was the machismo of the Midwest. There was something athletic about it. You flexed your face into a smile and let it hover there like the dare of a cat.

The affectionate farce I make of him ignores the ways I feel his lack of love for me. But we are managing.

This is what happened in love. One of you cried a lot and then both of you grew sarcastic.

(Such a life)engaged gross quantities of hope and despair and set them wildly side by side, like a Third World country of the heart.