It's a shame that creativity and sloth look exactly the same.

A good novel is a good novel, pointe finale. And I think what I'm writing is exactly that.

I had to learn compassion. Had to learn what it felt like to hate, and to forgive and to love and be loved. And to lose people close to me. Had to feel deep loneliness and sorrow. And then I could write.

But, like peace, comfort didn't come from hiding away or running away. Comfort first demanded courage.

I went through a period in my life when I had no friends, when the phone never rang, when I thought I would die from loneliness. I know that the real blessing here isn't that I have a book published, but that I have so many people to thank.

Winning doesn't mean my book is better than anyone else's. It means I'm very fortunate. And I should be very, very aware of that. And grateful.

Foolish people are never harmless. Stupidity accounts for as many crimes as anger and greed.