I Am Very Interested In Place, And

When I Hit A Block, Regardless Of What I Am Writing, What The Subject Matter Is, Or What's Going On In The Plot, I Go Back And I Read Pablo Neruda's Poetry. I Don't Actually Speak Spanish, So I Read It Translation. But I Always Go Back To Neruda. I Don't Know Why, But It Calms Me, Calms My Brain.

Suddenness," He Says. " You Do Not Prepare, You Do Not Explain, You Do Not Apologize. Suddenly, You Go. And With You, You Take All Contemplation, All Consideration Of Your Own Departure. All The Suffering That Would Have Come From Knowing Comes After You Are Gone, And You Are Not A Part Of It.

We're All Entitled To Our Superstitions.

I Do No Writing While I'm In Belgrade Visiting My Grandma.

My Road To Publishing Actually Came Through A Colleague Who Connected Me To My Agent, And The Faculty At Cornell Was Very Supportive.