“It's terrifying to have a voice right now. It's so terrifying, and it's so essential.” Quote by Deborah Kampmeier
“The history of silencing women is violent. And we feel that in our DNA. On a cellular level we know what it costs to speak our truth.” SpeakViolent Author:Deborah Kampmeier
“My natural tendency is to fall in love with language and character and setting, and kind of forget about pacing. Narrative tension doesn't come naturally to me, and if it does feel fast-paced that makes me incredibly happy.” KindCharacterFallLanguageNaturalForgetFalling In LoveTension Author:Micah Perks
“In general, I think every novel is a political novel, in that every novel is an argument about how the world works, who has power, who has a voice, what we should care about. But political novels can be boringly polemical if they end up being too black and white, too one dimensional, like war is bad, killing people is wrong.” PeopleThinkingWorldWarCarePoliticalBlackNovelArgumentKillingBlack And White Author:Micah Perks
“I'm really interested in the United States, what it means to be American - maybe because my father's an immigrant and my grandparents were immigrants, and also because I grew up so isolated from mainstream life, and it was such a total shock to leave the commune and, in a way, enter America for the first time when I was eleven - so I've always felt a little like an anthropologist - like, what is this strange place I find myself in, what are the rules here?” MeanStrangeFirst TimeGrandparent Author:Micah Perks
“Writers like Twain, Whitman, Dickinson, Melville, Louise Erdrich, Toni Morrison, Russell Banks, Carolyn Chute, Alice Walker, so many others that I read coming up as a writer, that helped form my ideas of what it means to be American - and an American writer. I'm always in conversation with them.” MeanAmerican Writer Author:Micah Perks
“I do feel that both visual artists and writers look out at the world in a similar way, and wonder at what they see. They want to record the visual world in their own, distinctive ways. We could call it "attention to detail," which also makes a good carpenter, for instance. To be what Emerson called the "transparent eyeball" (which is a phrase that makes me a little queasy) is a noble quest, I feel. It's a quest for honesty, and as Frost put it, a momentary stay against confusion. If I had more talent and courage, I would still love to be a painter.” WorldArtistAttentionWonderTalentHonestyConfusionPainterCarpenterVisual Art Author:Connie Wanek
“My poems are certainly in the lyric tradition, but perhaps a reader can tell me more precisely who I am as a poet. How can I be so old and not know? I have always been deeply grateful for the urge to write, the desire to create, that's certain. Writing has always been the way I make sense of life. Perhaps my poems define me, rather than the other way around. They do constantly surprise me.” WritingDesirePoetTraditionGratefulSurpriseMake SenseSurprise Me Author:Connie Wanek
“Four years into the life of my son, I realize I'm so in love with him and he's so in love with me that if I don't find that lifelong partner out there, it's okay.” IfsYearsRealizingFourSonOkayPartnersMy SonFour YearsLifelong Author:Anthony Kiedis
“The literary scene is filled with young people now, which is a great joy. They seem fully capable of saving the world, as we failed to do when young, though heaven knows we tried.” PeopleWorldJoyHeavenSceneCapableSave The World Author:Connie Wanek