"A writer's life is not about writing. It's about living."

"I can't say 'I'm writing a book' unless I have a topic, a subject, a theme, and characters who are struggling with that theme."

"I'm not interested in being a black writer. I'm interested in being a writer who happens to be black."

"It's a wonder women have no sense of humor."

"When you get to be my age, you realize that people are not all that different."