While I've said that there are plenty of things I dislike about the South, I can be clear that there are things I love about the South.

Grief doesn't fade. Grief scabs over like my scars and pulls into new, painful configurations as it knits. It hurts in new ways. We are never free from grief.

By the numbers, by all the official records, here at the confluence of history, of racism, of poverty, and economic power, this is what our lives are worth: nothing.

I wrote the first draft of my first novel at Michigan, and then I wrote the first draft of 'Salvage the Bones' at Stanford. So I workshopped the entire thing.

My father owned pit bulls when I was young. He sometimes fought them. My brother and a lot of the men in my community owned pit bulls as well: sometimes they fought them for honor, never for money.

I wanted to be my own heroine.

That's why I write fiction, because I want to write these stories that people will read and find universal.

I think that I'm trying to hopefully change my children's ideas about what is possible, and about what is possible for them.

I wanted to write about voodoo tradition that I feel has been very important to survival of black people here: people of the African diaspora, people of this region, and throughout the south.

There is laughter, shrill calls. Everyone is flirting, saying in nudges and jokes and blushing what they would do in private

I'm a failed poet. Reading poetry helps me to see the world differently, and I try to infuse my prose with figurative language, which goes against the trend in fiction.

I think it's our obligation to play, Honor. It's just a game, so can I kiss you?”"Yes.""Plan on one minute in heaven, Honor." A split second later his lips were on hers.

Every moment nature is serving fresh dishes with the items of happiness. It is our choice to recognize and taste it.

As you remove toxic people from your life, you free up space and emotional energy for positive, healthy relationships.

The more men see of the world, the bigger their hearts

Wisdom accepts that all things have two sides

If I did not love what is present, if I could not cling to this enormous, safe parachute, I would long since have fallen into the abyss.

After all, you can't expect men not to judge by appearances.

The Balkans arent worth the life of a single Pomeranian grenadier.

I think it’s more like a shirt that says, ‘I’m going to have to end this date early so I can go prepare my Power Point presentation