I think once you write fiction, you put it out, and it can be interpreted in a variety of ways, some of which are going to be shocking to the writer. Mary Gaitskill fictioninterpretput Change image and share on social
Sometimes I decide I don't want to write because it isn't the thing for me to be doing right then, and I go do something else. Mary Gaitskill decidethingwrite Change image and share on social
Something like riding a horse - which I've recently started doing - requires courage, especially for me, as I started out being actually scared of horses. Mary Gaitskill couragehavehorse Change image and share on social
If anything is scary about my writing, it's that it's the product of a very particular vision and doesn't reference common speech that heavily. By 'common speech,' I don't mean language as much as an agreed-on way of seeing, or a shorthand. Mary Gaitskill agreecommonheavily share on social
I think it actually started in my late thirties. I started changing psychologically, and it was difficult to translate that into my writing. Mary Gaitskill changedifficultlate Change image and share on social
Stories are the rich, unseen underlayer of the most ordinary moments. Mary Gaitskill momentordinaryrich Change image and share on social
I believe that the truest parts of people can be buried, and for many different reasons. Mary Gaitskill burypartpeople Change image and share on social
Everyone says 'Anna Karenina' is about individual desire going against society, but I actually think the opposite is stronger: the way societal forces limit the expression of the individual. Mary Gaitskill annadesireexpression Change image and share on social
People sometimes turn out to be almost the opposite of how they present. It isn't because they're trying to fool you or because they're hypocrites. It's because they badly want to be that thing, and so they'll try to be it. Mary Gaitskill badlyfoolhypocrite share on social
I loved to read and would read anything that roused my interest, whether it was below my age level or above it, even if I could barely make sense of it. Mary Gaitskill agebarelyinterest Change image and share on social