"I'm not good at finding 'encouraging' features in American culture. I doubt that aesthetic literacy ..." — Philip Roth

I'm an Obama supporter. And if you're an Obama supporter, that means you had a hard time during the Bush years.

That's what you're looking for as a writer when you're working. You're looking for your own freedom. To lose your inhibition to delve deep into your memory and experiences and life and then to find the prose that will persuade the reader.

If I don't measure up as an American writer, at least leave me to my delusion.

The novelist's obsession, moment by moment, is with language: finding the right next word.