Your mid-thirties is a good time because you know a fair amount, you have some self-control.

If you're going to write a good book, you have to make mistakes and you have to not be so cautious all the time.

People with children will know this: when the childcare is over, it's over on the dot. You immediately have to go into child mode; there's no down time.

Well-run libraries are filled with people because what a good library offers cannot be easily found elsewhere: an indoor public space in which you do not have to buy anything in order to stay.

In my situation, every time I write a sentence, I'm thinking not only of the people I ended up in college with but my siblings, my family, my school friends, the people from my neighborhood. I've come to realize that this is an advantage, really: it keeps you on your toes.

English writing tends to fall into two categories - the big, baggy epic novel or the fairly controlled, tidy novel. For a long time, I was a fan of the big, baggy novel, but there's definitely an advantage to having a little bit more control.