It's really best not to tell people when you feel bad. Growing up is about keeping secrets, and pretending everything is fine.

I told my girls, 'Look at Rihanna: She's one of the biggest pop stars in the world. She's really famous, really powerful, really rich. Yet in every single video she can only wear panties. Poor Rhianna! We'll know when she is properly powerful and successful when we see her in a lovely cardigan.'

I wrote my first book at eight, all of four pages. At 10, I did a 40-page story. At 12, I wrote two stage plays.

My core belief is that if you're complaining about something for more than three minutes, two minutes ago you should have done something about it.

As a former ballerina, I can't put down Maggie Shipstead's new book, Astonish Me.

If you do it properly, life is art, really.

Never love someone whom you think you need to mend – or who makes you feel like you should be mended. There are boys out there who look for shining girls; they will stand next to you and say quiet things in your ear that only you can hear and that will slowly drain the joy out of your heart. The books about vampires are true, baby. Drive a stake through their hearts and run away.