We are the kind of people who obsess over one word... but we have only one shot to get it right in concert. It was hard the first time I practiced with them. I was so nervous that my vocal…

Quote by Amy Tan

Topics: Amy Tan Quotes

I wanted to write stories for myself. At first it was purely an aesthetic thing...

I wanted to write stories for myself. At first it was purely an aesthetic thing...

My parents told me I would become a doctor and then in my spare time...

My parents told me I would become a doctor and then in my spare time...

My parents had very high expectations. They expected me to get straight A's from the...

My parents had very high expectations. They expected me to get straight A's from the...

I also thought of playing improvisational jazz and I did take lessons for a while....

I also thought of playing improvisational jazz and I did take lessons for a while....

I have a writer's memory which makes everything worse than maybe it actually was.

I have a writer's memory which makes everything worse than maybe it actually was.

I thought I was clever enough to write as well as these people and I...

I thought I was clever enough to write as well as these people and I...

If you can't change your fate, change your attitude.

If you can't change your fate, change your attitude.

Writing is an extreme privilege but it's also a gift. It's a gift to yourself...

Writing is an extreme privilege but it's also a gift. It's a gift to yourself...

I didn't fear failure. I expected failure.

I didn't fear failure. I expected failure.

God, life changes faster than you think.

God, life changes faster than you think.

I think I've always been somebody, since the deaths of my father and brother, who...

I think I've always been somebody, since the deaths of my father and brother, who...

I saw my mother in a different light. We all need to do that. You...

I saw my mother in a different light. We all need to do that. You...

You can get sucked into the idea that, 'Gosh, this is impressive. Maybe I should...

You can get sucked into the idea that, 'Gosh, this is impressive. Maybe I should...

Placing on writers the responsibility to represent a culture is an onerous burden.

Placing on writers the responsibility to represent a culture is an onerous burden.

I read a book a day when I was a kid. My family was not...

I read a book a day when I was a kid. My family was not...

I was intelligent enough to make up my own mind. I not only had freedom...

I was intelligent enough to make up my own mind. I not only had freedom...

People think it's a terrible tragedy when somebody has Alzheimer's. But in my mother's case,...

People think it's a terrible tragedy when somebody has Alzheimer's. But in my mother's case,...

I started a second novel seven times and I had to throw them away.

I started a second novel seven times and I had to throw them away.

I would find myself laughing and wondering where these ideas came from. You can call...

I would find myself laughing and wondering where these ideas came from. You can call...

It's both rebellion and conformity that attack you with success.

It's both rebellion and conformity that attack you with success.