As a kid, I often figured it was good to be patient to a fault. Aimee Bender More Quotes by Aimee Bender More Quotes From Aimee Bender I really like feeling connected to people and feeling like I have a good, solid sense of empathy. Aimee Bender feelinggoodempathypeople I get a little myopic in the act of doing any writing. I think I'm not as interested or not as able to write about balance, because I think there's something I want to try to get at. I'm trying to get at something about the experience of growing up or about families. Aimee Bender thinkbalanceexperiencewriting I love food. I'm not a great cook, but I love to cook, and I like how different it is from writing. Aimee Bender greatwritingfoodlove Generally, I think most of my writing tends to have some kind of magical element to it. That's the way I can access the emotional life of the character. Aimee Bender thinkcharacterlifeway Novels are so much unrulier and more stressful to write. A short story can last two pages and then it's over, and that's kind of a relief. I really like balancing the two. Aimee Bender shortmorestorylike There's a spectrum of those moments of connection and the moments we fail to connect, going from super-large successes to failures. Success would be love, I guess, and failure could still be love, but the bad side; and loss. Aimee Bender failuremomentssuccesslove I love the idea of numerology, but I don't really believe in it. But I like thinking about what numbers convey. Aimee Bender numberslovebelievethinking I noticed, when I taught elementary school, how true the squeaky wheel thing is, and how endearing squeaky wheels can be! Because when you're being a squeaky wheel, you're also really letting people know who you are. Aimee Bender trueyoupeopleschool I like the idea of a place that is dealing with painful, messy, frightening, and very human events that is also so beautiful and ethereal. Aimee Bender placemessypainfulbeautiful Writing can be a frightening, distressing business, and whatever kind of structure or buffer is available can help a lot. Aimee Bender whateverhelpbusinesswriting At readings, audience members sometimes ask if I keep writing past the two hours if I'm on a roll, but I don't. I figure that if I'm on a roll, it's partially because I know I'm about to stop. Aimee Bender stopwritingsometimespast One thing I don't want to feel is marketplace pressure, so I'm really glad I enjoy teaching because I can rely on that for a salary. I think it would be such a different game if I had to write a book that has to sell well. Aimee Bender feelgameenjoybook For me, even in my first book, the pleasures of writing anything magical is that it has to be physical. It has to be grounded and very much in this world. Then, I get to play with all the consequences of this new thing. Aimee Bender newmebookworld I think teaching keeps me honest because if I'm up in front of a class talking about what I think is important about fiction while knowing I myself have just failed to do that hours earlier at my computer - it's a good and humbling reminder. Aimee Bender goodmyselfthinkme I did plays in college, and I have half of a play. But I'm kind of stuck. I keep revisiting it so maybe it will move somewhere. There's something about plays where you can feel that sense of artifice at any moment. Aimee Bender feelmomentyoucollege Granted, I'm someone who loves words. I've always loved poetry - so it's suited to me. Aimee Bender lovedwordsmepoetry
