Studying writing to me means reading and also rewriting obsessively. That's the best way to learn.

What's the point of having a book club if you don't get to eat brownies and drink wine?

In the wintertime I like macaroni and cheese.

An ellipsis is a giant ocean of possibilities.

I find that short stories are almost like palate cleansers, or brain cleansers.

You can quit smoking, and never have to have a cigarette again to survive. But with food, it is a daily challenge.

I love doing readings. I could really give a crap about reviews. It's kind of about the readers.

I remember being banned from other houses as a younger child during the winter holiday season; I was the only one who didn't believe in Santa Claus, and I was ruining everyone's Christmas.

I just think structure can make a book feel so much bigger. It's the architecture. You could use flimsy materials if you wanted to, even, but it could still feel big.

In 1998, I started a blog, something I could control very easily and update at my own whim.

I'm not that much of a researcher. I'm good at channeling characters, and I'm good at structure.

We ought to face our destiny with courage.

Apathy sets in when our passion for the future is miscarried.

If your not annoying somebody, you're not alive.

For myself, losing is not coming second. It's getting out of the water knowing you could have done better. For myself, I have won every race I've been in

A leader has to know how the system functions - not just the system of government but the whole social and economic system, including business, the unions, and the universities.

Two seemingly incompatible conceptions can each represent an aspect of the truth... They may serve in turn to represent the facts without ever entering into direct conflict.

These days, government employees are better off in almost every area: pay, benefits, time off and security, on top of working fewer hours.

Since declaring that she would not serve in a second Obama administration, Clinton has dismissed suggestions that she will run in 2016.

First sentences are doors to worlds.