Where do storytellers find the wisdom to discover their own stories? From no place more mysterious than their own hearts.

It is curious how believable I can be when I criticize myself, how unconvincing when I give myself praise.

Writing the opening lines of a story is a bit like starting to ski at the steepest part of a hill. You must have all your skills under control from the first instant.

Where do storytellers find the wisdom to discover their own stories? From no place more mysterious than their own hearts.

my experience as a fiction writer tells me that the deeper I look into myself, the more universal is the experience I find there.

I used to tiptoe up to my bedroom door and leap into my room in an attempt to surprise my dolls in the midst of some kind of action. Unfortunately, they were always too quick for me. I'm still disappointed about that.

Description needs to slide into a story like a snake through grass - silently, almost invisibly, without calling attention to itself. It should enrich every story moment without slowing the action.