But, most important, we must not become as base and treacherous as our enemies.

When we are no longer capable of love, we are no longer alive.

When I was little, I went to a Catholic school and was required to go to church every morning and with my parents on Sundays, so I spent a lot of time sitting on a wooden pew. Angels are sort of a relief. If you're looking around, the other imagery is so dark and heavy. Looking at the beautifully rendered pictures of angels was more uplifting.

If I'm not writing, I'm not fully living. It has become the essential element that defines who I am.

Stories of a mythical angel paradise called an Angelopolis are like Peter Pan's Never Never Land.

I always knew I wanted to write really imaginative fiction - fiction that was very different from my real life.

Writing grew out of the pleasure of escape. My novels are very much outside of my personal experience. That is why I love writing fiction. It allows me to leave my existence and inhabit other lives.