My four articles of faith: clarity, simplicity, brevity and humanity.

Never let anything go out into the world that you don't understand.

Write about small, self-contained incidents that are still vivid in your memory. If you remember them, it's because they contain a larger truth that your readers will recognize in their own lives. Think small and you'll wind up finding the big themes in your family saga.

Writing is thinking on paper. Anyone who thinks clearly should be able to write clearly-about any subject at all.

If writing seems hard, it's because it is hard. It's one of the hardest things people do.

Ultimately the product that any writer has to sell is not the subject being written about, but who he or she is.

Fighting clutter is like fighting weeds-the writer is always slightly behind.