I'm from Chicago, so the Chicago working-class poets still mean a great deal to me.

Don't be afraid to say what you don't know, and speak for what you do know. Say, "I can't speak for all Latinas, but I can speak for me and tell you very, very honestly."

When you have a flourishing of the economy you have a flourishing of the arts.

My mom was a frustrated woman, like so many unhappy women who didn't get the opportunities they wanted.

I am obsessed with becoming a woman comfortable in her skin.

My idea was always to start with a small press and then move up to a national press. I had those goals for my career from the time I was a very young woman. I wanted to win a local award, then I wanted a state or national award. Small press, big press. Some women fantasize about their weddings, their husbands, and children. I fantasized about what I wanted to accomplish with my books.

I hope I'm not just looked as a writer that is popular but as a writer of literary value.