The intricacy of plotting a thriller is akin to writing formal poetry.

A good novel doesn't just transcend the boundaries of its target market - it knows nothing about target markets.

Sometimes the only way to fix a mistake- is to make it twice.

Love is a luxury. It's something that people are allowed to indulge in when they're not simply trying to survive and keep other people alive.

If you look at the world one way, it takes from you - it's a thief of time, energy, creative mojo. But if you look at the world another way, it gives you an endless supply of motivation.

Omission is a sin only if, in the process of deceiving, you forget the truth. Lying is a sin only if, in the process, the lie becomes the only truth.

Red Sox fans have been pushed to the brink over the years, but that's how faith grows stronger.

I prefer a cluttered workspace.

I want women writers to write boldly, wildly, deeply. I want them to feel really liberated to tell the brutal truth, however they see that truth and are moved to tell it.

The poem has to bear the weight with image, language... the screenplay with dialogue, plot.

I try not to divide plot and character. I get to know a character by what they want and fear and how those internal forces play out in their lives.

only kindness that raises its headfrom the crowd of the world to sayit is I you have been looking for, and then goes with you everywherelike a shadow or a friend.

My bed is massive (I drown in it, and it doesn’t matter how big the bed is, my nightmares more than fill it)

I always envisioned myself having a traditional and elegant wedding.

As a child I had no toys; our house was bombed, but there were lots of bricks. Ruins are wonderful because they are the beginning of something new, you can do something with them.

Actually, when you get into your sixties and above, you want to think about exercise differently. It's not just about you know cardiovascular or lifting weights. It's also about avoiding accidents.

I was brought up in industrial south Lancashire, down the cobbled road from where LS Lowry (1887-1976) lived and painted.

Loving yourself means caring enough to make the hard decisions in your life.

The war against illegal file-sharing is like the church's age-old war against masturbation. It's a war you just can't win.

I'll try if I know all the things I used to know. Let me see: four times five is twelve, and four times six is thirteen, and four times seven is - oh dear! I shall never get to twenty at that rate!

Shanghai set out to take over from Hong Kong and I think it's done that. It's got the most amazing futuristic skyline which rivals and even betters Tokyo.