Earned a bachelor's at 27, then an M.F.A. that is still completely unused and in mint condition, never taken out of the box.

I guess it's ridiculously romantic, but I wanted to be a full tilt, sink-or-swim writer.

When poetry is on the money, 12 words can slay you. I admire that greatly.

I am well aware that the writers of New York, London, and Toronto are more readily noticed, though the shadowy and potent Ozarks Literary Cabal does what it can for me, then nightly joins me for dinner and calls me 'honey.'

I've always been fascinated by the Mississippi River and the way of life in these small river towns.