I always begin [a novel] with outlines, but they change and so do my endings and beginnings.

I don't have much of an imagination, but I have a mind bank of details, which I play with. It's how I daydream, so writing like that is natural for me.

What works for me is that I read widely and stay focused on my writing. I'm no longer concerned about what happens in the literary marketplace. It is distracting and can lead to discontent.

I never wanted to be a writer; I just had stories I needed to tell.

I never wanted to be a writer; I just had stories I wanted to share so I learnt how to write and kept going. If I could sing or paint, I would.

I don't remember being a keen reader, but apparently I was. My aunt told me that whenever I was teased for reading, I would say, "To each his own."

People don’t fear the wind until it fells a tree. Then, they say it’s too much.

I don't have a schedule, but I can write for hours non-stop. If I'm drafting a book, I try and do a chapter a day. I dislike first drafts. Revision is a lot more fun, but it takes years.

I have to say that writing about my writing process is more daunting than writing non-fiction.

I read Macbeth as a secondary student in Nigeria and it was like an African play to me. It had all the right elements - witches, kings and assassinations.

At some point, practicality requires that you reach out to people in the business. You have to take care of business if you value your work.

But above all, an author must write passionately and edit passionately.

I pay attention to my diet to be a healthier gymnast, but I'm not obsessive over it.

What eludes logic is the most precious element in us, and one can draw nothing from a syllogism that the mind has not put there in advance.

Sometimes we don't see out of our peripheral vision what's coming right around the corner.

Life should be an unfinished business.

The Department of Agriculture announced that it will ban six new strains of E. coli. Which explains why the hot dog vendor outside my building is now just selling napkins.

The woman who needs to be liberated most is the woman in every man, and the man who needs to be liberated most is the man in every woman

You can't write about a friend, you can only write about a former friend.

I'm an equal opportunity reader - although I don't much read plays. And since I was raised a Presbyterian, pretty much all pleasures are guilty.

I consider the Stooges to be pop music.