I hated childhood, and spent it sitting behind a book waiting for adulthood to arrive.

For my own family, I would always choose the makeshift, surrogate family formed by various characters unrelated by blood.

If I waited till I felt like writing, I'd never write at all.

The first-person viewpoint is more enjoyable to write, because it lets me meander more freely, and it can reveal more of the character's self-delusions. Really all the advantages are with first-person, so I'm sorry I don't get to pick and choose.

No couple buying wedding rings wants to be reminded that someday one of them will have to accept the other one's ring from a nurse or an undertaker.

But what I hope for from a book - either one that I write or one that I read - is transparency. I want the story to shine through. I don't want to think of the writer.

But I don't think people take bad advice. They've got intuition too, you know. In fact I'd be surprised if they take any advice at all.