In other words, the people who populate my books are more than caricatures.

Readers are paramount. I live to write books for them.

I've often said that there's no such thing as writer's block; the problem is idea block. When I find myself frozen-whether I'm working on a brief passage in a novel or brainstorming about an entire book-it's usually because I'm trying to shoehorn an idea into the passage or story where it has no place.

I also try very hard to create characters - both heroes and villains - with psychological depth.

So I work hard to present the human side of my characters while not neglecting the plot.

The outline is 95 percent of the book. Then I sit down and write, and that's the easy part.

We have years to converse with someone, to blurt and rant, to explain our desires and anger and regrets - and oh how we squander those moments.