Kids are smart. Knowledge is power. Let them figure things out. Don't turn into that grown-up who they won't come to.

Being an author of banned books is cool, I've decided.

Every time I write a new book, I want to push myself to try something different.

Give your kid some credit for being smart - just because they read about something doesn't mean they will do it.

God, it sucks to disappoint your parents, even at forty-two years old.

I don't shy from controversy. I'm telling stories, and I'll tell whatever story seems like it wants to be told.

I know I seem really friendly, but I'm a closet introvert.

I'm always drawn to the underdogs, to the people whose stories don't get told.

Ideas matter. The world matters. Our lives matter, and the choices we make as we navigate our lives perhaps matter most of all.

It's neither my job nor within my capabilities to save people. But a book sure can try.

Kids need to see their world reflected back to them.

Sometimes I worry I'm writing 'Fifty Shades of Grey' for teenagers, but I'm not.

Whatever you hold onto that you want to do, and that other people tell you you are foolish to want to do - don't give up.

When guys talk about sex, eyebrows don't get raised. It's different for girls.

I understand why parents worry about books - they're worried about their kids. They want to keep their kids safe. But parents aren't always realistic.

What I find cool about being a banned author is this: I'm writing books that evoke a reaction, books that, if dropped in a lake, go down not with a whimper but a splash.