I had a general outline of subjects. The way I start my days is my husband brings me a thermos of coffee up to the bedroom.

With most of my books, there are some parts that pop up right away, and other parts I have to wait for.

I do love that discovery of when you're trying to figure out how to make something work, and it happens in a way that you didn't predict.

I love that when you're writing your mind is sort of figuring things out on its own, without you directing it.

There will be scenes in a movie where people are walking through the park, or through a forest, and you're seeing the flickering leaves around them, and they're walking, but you're also hearing their words. It's an interaction between where they are and what they're saying that's both visual and verbal.

I think we're conditioned by watching movies.

I remember when I was working on All Alone in the Universe, and Robin Roy was my editor. When I first sent it to her, she said kids this age don't want pictures in their books.