I try not to think too much about my writing process - I tend to feel my way forward and find more insights that way.

From a purely craft standpoint, a simple character has a single motivation, while complex characters have two or three or more motivations, at least one of which is in direct conflict with another.

Character drives the story, and the story drives the book. I don't think about where the action should go, or how much there should be, until it's required by the characters. When I find myself adding conflict just because I'm afraid that the reader might get bored, I know I've taken a wrong turn somewhere.

To be a carpenter or a builder or a home inspector, you have to have that kind of visual brain where you can sort of imagine something taken apart.

I hope that America will do away with the death penalty. I truly believe we are better than that.

I draw inspiration from everywhere, whether it's country, R&B, gospel.

The book is there for inspiration and as a foundation, the fundamentals on which to build.

I'm not comparing myself at all to him, but I like the idea that Ernest Hemingway always wrote about certain things he knew, he knew the ins and outs, back to fronts of what he was talking about. I love that as an inspiration for myself, to keep it true to what you know.