Women basically want the same thing - a good passionate story, a great fantasy - and for our partners to do the laundry and the washing up.

I think you can only be truly mad at someone you really love.

I'm not a great writer.

Sometimes I wonder if there's something wrong with me. Perhaps I've spent too long in the company of my literary romantic heroes, and consequently my ideals and expectations are far too high.

I've set the bar quite high in terms of storytelling.

If you've been married for 400 years, as I have, it's nice to experience first love again and you can vicariously through a book.

It's the fantasy of first love. If you've been married for 400 years, as I have, it's nice to experience first love again and you can vicariously through a book. And it is such a fantasy. It takes you away from doing the dishes and the laundry. I think of this as a contemporary romance rather than erotic fiction.