Are you a spy? Do you need a passport? Are you planning on killing somebody and denying responsibility? Or are you planning on snooping on a country with whom your Government is on allegedly friendly terms?

(The writers' block doesn't only accommodate writers.)

The truth, in my opinion, is that the famed writer's block is nothing more serious than a serious lack of talent; it's the difference between constipation and, having just crapped, just crap (being empty). If you really are a writer, the Muse will find you sooner or later, like it or not.

As a fiction writer who also writes poetry, I'm often asked how a piece of writing becomes a story versus a poem. When I get the urge to write about something, there is no conscious choice as to whether it will be a story or poem or novel; something occurs to me and I know by the shape or feel of it whether it's story or poem material.

Literature, in its quaint fashion entered my life in many sneaky forms. Namely the fleeting, playful chants and sleepy lullabies sung to me as a kid. I have always had a fascination with fun phrasing. However, I do believe literature enters people's lives at different stages, mostly when they need it. Some people are lovers from the very beginning, their relationships with their books almost as precious to them as with other human beings. I did read as a child, but not fanatically.

When is a haiku not a haiku? Like the koans, or riddles that also stem from the Zen Buddhist tradition, it's a hard question to answer. In Japan, where the form originated, things are clear enough: It takes 17 Japanese word sections, or onji, to write a haiku. This produces the much beloved and much-followed 5-7-5 format.