Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Often, writer's block will occur when I don't understand a character or his/her motivations. So I will make notes analysing characters. ”

When I was volunteering with Hurricane Katrina refugees in Houston in 2005, I first started thinking about the whole phenomenon of grace under pressure. ”

To achieve important things, we have to sacrifice what's important to us. That's an idea that's very central to Indian thinking. ”

I feel I can express the nuances of the Bengali lifestyle and ways of thinking better than other cultures. ”

I was very fortunate that all my holidays I'd spend with my grandfather, experiencing a much more traditional way of life and listening to these wonderful stories, which I now feel are such an important part of Indian thinking. ”

As I remember my grandfather and those Christmas mornings he gave for a little girl's pleasure, I know that often a big life starts with doing small things. ”

I write in my study, where I also have my prayer altar. I believe that keeps me focused and gives me positive energy and reminds me that I'm merely the instrument of greater creative forces. ”

Strong women, when respected, make the whole society stronger. One must be careful with such rapid changes, though, and make an effort to preserve, at the same time, the positive traditions of Indian culture. ”

India has been a very accepting culture. We pride ourselves on that. That is a global truth. In fact, it forms a major theme in my books. ”

I came to the plain fields of Ohio with pictures painted by Hollywood movies and the works of Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller. None of them had much to say, if at all, about Dayton, Ohio. ”