Every profession has its own culture, but the police look at the world differently to everybody else. I call it a 'healthy culture of suspicion'.

There's no question that ghosts exist. The big question for me is whether ghosts are simply electronic imprints left in the walls or the atmosphere of places, or whether they do actually represent something from the afterlife.

We're full of electricity, and the walls and floor of a building contain carbon - the same makeup as a video tape - and I think we give off a huge amount of energy. Some people are able to see that and pick that up. I think almost every person I've met in my life has had some sort of experience that they can't explain, and those fascinate me.

There are an awful lot of readers who won't pick up a book if they think it's got anything horrific in it, or paranormal or whatever.

Brighton is a beautiful seaside city, but it's got a dark underbelly.

Most good police officers are very open-minded. The bad ones are the ones who are close-minded.

Music is an important part of my writing process.