Questions and Answers:
Do you ever put your family or people you know in your books?
He, he, he – I’ll never tell. Let ‘em keep guessing …
I stare out of windows. Doesn’t really matter what windows, but I definitely prefer ones with an excellent view. Train windows are good too. Living on the top two floors of a Victorian house on the side of a hill overlooking slate roofs and big old trees and the River Tay and an enormous sky means that I never have to worry about not having ideas. Click here to get inspired.
Are you related to John Lennon? Are you related to anybody famous at all?
No, not really. By which I mean, not at all. But there is a family tradition that one of our ancestors on my mother’s side invented ice cream. So that’s a comfort, and a joy.
Why do you think books matter?
To see my answer to that one, go to the Read Together website and look under Reading Champions: Writers and Illustrators.
What are your hobbies, outside of things to do with books?
I sing in a choir. I do Tai Chi once a week. We have a ping-pong table in our garage and I like to scub my sons. Um, I take naps … There are lots of other things that I like to do, like walking and swimming and badminton and building dams in streams and photography, but I don’t do any of those regularly enough to count them as proper hobbies.
What did you want to be when you were growing up?
I wanted to be a writer. And, as you know, a spy. And a wildly successful concert pianist. In that order.
What books did you like when you were a kid?
I read a lot of different stuff, but I remember particularly liking the Narnia books, and anything by Rosemary Sutcliffe, and then when I was a bit older, Mary Renault. And then Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit.
What books do you like now?
I still read a lot of different stuff, but I particularly like Terry Pratchett, P.G. Wodehouse, Diana Wynne Jones, Ellis Peters. Oh, and I recently discovered Sylvian Hamilton and was well impressed.
What would you do if you weren’t a writer?
More of the other thing I’m already doing – teaching piano.
How long does it take to write a book?
A short book takes me three months. A long book takes a year. Getting to the stage where I can write a book in three months or a year, has taken a lifetime.
I want to be a writer too – any words of advice?
Have a look at the Pushkin Prizes website under Writing Tips: The Real Deal. You’ll get my advice plus tips from loads of other authors.
Why is there a horse in your photograph?
Good question. It’s probably symbolic or something.