I'm a well-intentioned plotter who ends up with wondrous pantsing revelations and (at times) ginormous rewrites that look almost nothing like my carefully plotted plans.

I'm weird - I don't really listen to American music while I'm writing. I do occasionally get an anthem song, but generally speaking, when I write, I only listen to Japanese and Hawaiian music.

I read two to three books a day anyway (I only sleep about two hours a night, and I read really fast).

When I'm about to start writing, I pull up some of my all-time-favorite re-reads to feel inspired and fall headfirst into the world of beautiful words.

I drag my husband out of bed, hook him up to a coffee to stay awake and make him listen to my plotting and any issues I may be having. I *need* his head-nodding (he's an expert head-nodder).

While my writing does seem to ultimately have a lot to do with pantsing in the end, without the plotting, I'd get nowhere to begin with.

Interest in certain themes doesn't mandate a personal stake or personal experience of those themes. I've killed people in plays, but no one asks me what it's like to kill people.

I've chosen jobs that were sexy because I wanted to do them.

The Deep Flight Challenger technology is a game-changer for ocean exploration.

I love to run. I was challenged to run the New York marathon four months after having my youngest son, and since running isn't a big part of softball, the thought of a marathon was a stretch for me.

I bid the chords sweet music make, And all must follow in my wake.

The last thing I think about is losing and pressure... I just go and do it.

You cant censor peoples dreams.

...you have to use your failures as stepping stones to success. You have to maintain a fine balance between hope and despair. In the end it’s all a question of balance.

What is it to be a fool for Christ? It is to control one's thoughts when they stray out of line. It is to make the mind empty and free.

You have to dig SEEEEERIOUSLY deep in Insanity MAX:30!