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

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.

Smart, sharp, and hilarious, Slaughterhouse 90210 is the perfect pick-me-up and never-put-me-down book.

The state of ambiguity - that messy, greasy, mixed-up, confused, and awful situation you're living through right now - is enlightenment itself.

Poor in abundance, famish'd at a feast.

You've got to follow that dream, wherever that dream may lead.

Throughout this country's history there have of course been systematic efforts to create an official underclass.

My kids and I make pasta three days a week now. It's not even so much about the eating of it; they just like the process. Benno is the stuffer, and Leo is the catcher. They've got their jobs down.

I stare at her, as dumbstruck as if she'd just admitted she's a Scientologist with an invitation to join Tom and Katie on the spaceship when it shows up.

Sport must be the heritage of all men and of all social classes.

The higher I get the lower I sink.

I know my boyfriend loves to have something to hold onto. Theres a lot of men out there who do.

I think the rapidly growing tendency to regard animals as born for nothing except slavery to so-called humanity absolutely disgusting.