People say that if you talk too much about sex, you take away the mystery. I say, if you're somebody who likes to talk, talk all you want - it's not listening. You will never take away the mystery. Mary Gaitskill likelistenmystery Change image and share on social
The hard truth is that there are people who believe they're writers and work hard at it and are sincere about it, but they don't make it. You have to be prepared for that possibility. Mary Gaitskill hardmakepeople 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
Perhaps it should be obvious: Adultery is a social threat that arouses raw anger and fear, which the bellicose then need to discharge rather than merely feel, traditionally on the philandering wife or the female home-wrecker. Mary Gaitskill adulteryangerarouse share on social
The first person to blow up my fashion consciousness was a 14-year-old girl named Sandrine. She was the most beautiful human I had ever seen. Mary Gaitskill beautifulblowconsciousness 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 found the world extraordinarily strange, having first left home at 15. Mary Gaitskill extraordinarilyfindhome Change image and share on social
I remember back in the '90s, I used to feel criticized by women for not having children. Like there must be something wrong with me. Mary Gaitskill 90sbackchild Change image and share on social
Where I grew up, in the Detroit area, there was a really good station. Sometimes you would hear songs for the first time on the radio, and if a really special song came on, somebody would turn it up, and everybody would just stop talking. Mary Gaitskill areadetroitgood 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
