There's an explosion of Indian fiction of all kinds, from military thrillers to chicklit. I think that's exciting.

When I try to understand somebody, create a character, I fall into them. When I think writers are telling me what to think, I get harrumphy.

In my early teens, science fiction and fantasy had an almost-total hold over my imagination. Their outcast status was part of their appeal.

I think it's important for all culturally literate people to understand the technological substrate of new developments.

I'm interested in complexity, in the mathematical sense, as well as the idiomatic sense. The idea of emergence - that it's possible for complex patterns to arise out of many simple interactions - is fascinating.

Being in Harlem on the night of Barack Obama's election was extraordinary. It was the best street party I have ever gone to, and it felt like the period of American history which began with slavery had ended that evening.

There's an explosion of Indian fiction of all kinds, from military thrillers to chicklit. I think that's exciting.