I've learned so much from my professors and have been fortunate to have had so many good ones, including Frederick and Steven Barthelme, Edward Carey, Jim Magnuson, and Elizabeth McCracken.

There are many stories I've wanted to write that I'm simply not able to - sometimes I haven't found the way in yet, and it doesn't matter how hard I try.

There's definitely a magical quality to writing that can't be explained. I can write something I love in two days, or I can work on a story every day for months and it never comes together.

I want to be able to discuss craft but I also want to teach writers to trust their instincts and learn to listen to themselves above all others.

You don't need a dead father to explain a character's sadness. And impressing yourself with wit/cleverness often feels like what it is - authorial intrusion.

A question that always makes me hazy is it me or are the others crazy'Albert Einstein

The next time that something seemingly bad happens to you, look for the divine in it. Look for the soul in the mundane, every day occurrences of your life. Look for the spark, look for the light.

I think a sense of humor will help get a girl out of a dark place.

Be of good cheer, for you will never want, for the bullet was meant for me, though it hit you.

American democracy and the Soviet system may peacefully exist side by side and compete with each other. But one cannot evolve into the other.

I think the way the world has evolved, it's maybe caught up to me. It makes more sense and it makes it click on a larger scale.

I am a big fan of smelly cheeses but the rest of the family don't seem to be particularly keen on them.

Set your goals high; make friends with different kinds of people; enjoy simple pleasures. Stand on high ground; sit on level ground; walk on expansive ground.

Hip-hop has a feeling element, it's not just about knowing music. It's not like classical music or jazz where you can go on raw energy.

Research under a paradigm must be a particularly effective way of inducing paradigm change.