[About a tiresome colleague]: He could bore for Scotland.

I still think most writers are just kids who refuse to grow up. We're still playing imaginary games, with our imaginary friends.

War created bizarre allies, while peace itself could be divisive.

I started writing novels while an undergraduate student, in an attempt to make sense of the city of Edinburgh, using a detective as my protagonist. Each book hopefully adds another piece to the jigsaw that is modern Scotland, asking questions about the nation's politics, economy, psyche and history ... and perhaps pointing towards its possible future.

I'm often asked how I write books, but I don't think my approach is suitable for everyone. If I walked into a creative writing class, all I could say to them was 'I tend to make it up as I go along.' I'm not sure that's brilliant advice.

I think writers have to be proactive: they've got to use new technology and social media. Yes, it's hard to get noticed by traditional publishers, but there's a great deal of opportunity out there if you've got the right story.

You wouldn't think you could kill an ocean, would you? But we'll do it one day. That's how negligent we are.