I think it would be a shame for any writer to let their publishers in any way corral them into a single genre.

Identity politics are wearisome; you don't want to go on speaking for any one group as a writer.

Something we do know is that review coverage does go to male authors more than women authors. That's a fact. I think it's one of those examples of unconscious bias: If you hire a lot of male journalists, they're more likely to pick up the latest Ian McEwan novel than the latest A.S. Byatt novel.

...sentences swallowed and sung back and swallowed all over again. She was made entirely out of words.

I wrote the novel [Room], and then I thought, "This could work on film, and I want to be the one to do it." So I went ahead and drafted it.

I must say, in the case of "Room," both the book and the film, I don't think being a lesbian author held me back at all.

I needed to do a lot of saying no. I had a lot of [interest] from people who I just didn't think were quite right for it. And I didn't want a bad film to be made of the book, either a sentimental one or a creepy one, so I did a lot of, "No thank you." Then when the right filmmaker came along, yes, I suppose I presented myself very much as wanting to be the writer.