To make dictionaries is dull work.
Mostly what ends up inspiring me and affecting my work are books by authors that I love.
I don't know if make a conscious effort to vary the characters and subjects that I write about, but I do find myself keeping track of ideas that come along, as probably most writers do, and whatever seems most interesting to me when I flip through my notes before I begin a new story is usually what I will try to write about next.
Unless I'm writing trying to write about a historical figure, I don't really set out to read or research with a specific topic in mind.
The effects of fame on the not-famous people who are close to a celebrity - this is definitely a topic that continues to interest me.
Jealousy is a potent emotion, of course, and Facebook, texting, email, fan Web pages. . . In theory, being someone like George Clooney's or Halle Berry's paramour - woo hoo - how great would that be? But wait a minute. . . er, no, probably kind of a nightmare.
Thirty years ago, the Pandora's box of the Internet wasn't yet a fact of life, and celebrities inhabited a more remote, hard-to-reach plane.
Our commitment to this founding principle is especially relevant today. Americans are united as rarely before in compassion and generosity for our fellow citizens whose lives have been devastated by Hurricane Katrina, The powerful winds and floodwater of Katrina tore away the mask that has hidden from public view the many Americans who are left out and left behind.
I'm a loner clear down deep to my very guts.
Why do people want to pretend that death is sleep? It isn't. It isn't.
I would rather share one lifetime with you than face all the ages of this world alone.