Canadians are Americans with no Disneyland.

It changes you for ever, but you are changing for ever anyway.

It is a good idea to know which publishers publish which stories. For example, there is no sense in sending a picture book text to a publisher who does not publish picture books.

New Zealand is the only country I know well enough to write about. It can sometimes lead to complications.

I, personally, have found reading a continual support to writing.

When I was a child I had a best friend who lived across the road from me. When her mother died unexpectedly it was like losing a member of my own family. I think I am still affected by the memory of that loss.

At the same time, I think books create a sort of network in the reader's mind, with one book reinforcing another. Some books form relationships. Other books stand in opposition. No two writers or readers have the same pattern of interaction.