If the director says you can do better, particularly in a love scene, then it is rather embarrassing.

Be a part of all that is decent and be an ambassador for the kind of world that you want to live in.

A lot of my life happened in great, wonderful bursts of good fortune, and then I would race to be worthy of it.

When I start to write, I see my stories as a kind of movie. For instance, I ask myself, "What kind of opening do I want for this book?"

Perseverance is failing 19 times and succeeding the 20th.

You never feel lonely if you're writing, because you're living with all these characters in your head.

I was named after my two grandmothers - Julia Elizabeth.