I didn't know if I still had it in me to be really dangerous, but I thought so. It's like knocking someone off a bike with a baseball bat; you never really lose the knack.

There are any number of magical creatures, mostly female, whose singing can bring about horror and death. Sirens, undines, banshees, Bananarama tribute bands...

Never go anywhere without condiments. Condiments are our friends.

The only good hero is the kind who survives to talk about merchandising.

Nothing is hidden, nothing is ever lost, nothing is ever forgotten. That's always been part of my problem.

Though I often run out of courage and good sense, stubbornness keeps me going.

Sometimes humour is all we have to say the things that can't be said.

You know, sometimes I swear the whole universe runs on irony.

If you don't trust anyone, they can't let you down.

Keep your mind too open, and you never know what might walk in.

Wait. You've got principles? We'll have to update your file.

You can use songs, scriptures and godly pictures to chart your thought-course in the right direction.

You can feel sweetness of heart even if you're not an expert.

You, yourself, will never rest until you've tried!

I love research so much that I do an enormous amount; it helps put off the moment of starting to write the story.

Water is the commonest symbol for the unconscious.

My parents used to say faith wasn't something you could pretend about. It wasn't real unless it looked like faith and acted like faith.

There are accounts that, if we open our hearts to them, will cut us too deeply.

I often think, no one wants to read this. No one wants to hear this. My own work makes me cringe sometimes, cringe in a "there's nothing I can do because it had to come out like this" kind of way.

Success is not an accident. It is sheer hard work. There is no short-cuts. You have to take the stairs and you have to start from the bottom.

I am not better than anyone else just because I play football.