What writing practice, like Zen practice does is bring you back to the natural state of mind...The mind is raw, full of energy, alive and hungry. It does not think in the way we were brought up to think-well-mann ered, congenial.

You'll lose your reader if you are vague, not clear, and not present. We love details, personal connections, stories.

Don't let yourself be thrown away....Continue on no matter what....Continue to make a positive effort for the good.

It is odd that we never question the feasibility of a football team practicing long hours for one game; yet in writing we rarely give ourselves the space for practice.

So even though I couldn't bear writing about cancer, I faced it every day.

I came out with a book called The True Secret of Writing: Connecting Life with Language. It's a book that describes how writing is a practice and how my teaching is part of that practice. I direct the writing and create books but underneath, there's always the river of practice happening. No good, no bad. Just do it.

When we write we begin to taste the texture of our own mind