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I considered that I had to write stories about the people I had met, with whom I'd worked, the history of my books - just in case I up and die.

Write the kind of story you would like to read. People will give you all sorts of advice about writing, but if you are not writing something you like, no one else will like it either.

I had developed this habit of writing scenarios as a hobby. I would find out which stories had been sold to be made into films and I would write my own treatment and then compare it.

If the story wasn't overly long, I'd type it out. And I'd carry it around with me for a week and jot notes on it, and then I'd throw it away and do another one.

Write the story you need to tell and want to read. It's impossible to know what others want, so don't waste time trying to guess.

I still write the occasional short story, and poked at a novel once, but it's just not what I want to do.

I didn't plan to write YA - I had a story that simply wasn't working as a straight-up fantasy novel.

Find the story you want to tell. If you don't want to write it, find somebody to write it.

I used to write things for friends. There was this girl I had a crush on, and she had a teacher she didn't like at school. I had a real crush on her, so almost every day I would write her a little short story where she would kill him in a different way.

Writing is an extremely rewarding and humbling process, and I've learned to go with it, that even if it feels absolutely impossible, I will find a way to tell the next story.