If you are a writer or any kind of artist, if you change something as fundamental as where you live - the way you live - then I think you change the very instrument that is trying to make the art. Dani Shapiro artartistchange Change image and share on social
I don't think it's possible to separate out the strands of a writer's history, circumstances, life events, and that writer's themes. Dani Shapiro circumstanceeventhistory Change image and share on social
Novels are my favorite to write and read. I do like writing personal essays, too. I'm not really a short story writer, nor do I tend to gravitate to them as a reader. Dani Shapiro essayfavoritegravitate Change image and share on social
When it comes to the personal essays I write, I just convince myself that no one will ever read them. Dani Shapiro convinceessaypersonal Change image and share on social
Our minds have a tendency to wander. To duck and feint and keep us at a slight remove from the moment at hand. Dani Shapiro duckfeinthand Change image and share on social
Devotion, as it relates to the title of my memoir, means fidelity - as in fidelity to a person or a practice. I think it's certainly possible to feel devotion without having faith, at least in the religious sense of the word. Dani Shapiro devotionfaithfeel share on social
I had never really felt settled in Brooklyn. I think it had to do with growing up in New Jersey and being someone who her whole life wanted to live in the city, and the city meant Manhattan. Dani Shapiro brooklyncityfelt Change image and share on social
When we reach reflexively for something to dull an ache inside of us, in that very moment of reaching, we are hiding from our pain. We're storing it away. Tamping it down. Dani Shapiro achedullhide Change image and share on social
There's a danger in romanticizing what it means to be a writer. Because what it really means is hard, hard work. It means tearing your hair out. Feeling like your head is about to explode. Dani Shapiro dangerexplodefelt Change image and share on social
I was raised in an orthodox Jewish home where it was expected that, as a woman, I'd marry an investment banker, raise kids in the suburbs and go to temple. I wasn't raised to set the world on fire. Dani Shapiro bankerexpectfire Change image and share on social
