But I think this: that whatever prices I've paid, whatever sorrows I shoulder, well, I have blessings, too. Not just my family now, but the others-the ones who have died...They're with me still. They're here...

But what are our stories if not the mirrors we hold up to our fears?

Only there's two sides to every story, you know. You just remember that.

I think I write fiction for the opportunity to get beyond the limits of my own life.

People waste their happiness - that's what makes me sad. Everyone's so scared to be happy.

Eastern Connecticut is very different from Western; we're more liverwurst than pâté, more bowling than polo.

Dialogue comes naturally to me and I can hear the characters' voices in the scenes.