I suppose what I can say is that I do feel I have a natural spiritual sensibility.

I seemed to recall some words from an old Zen master, something like, "My Zen cuts down mountains." My rejection of Buddhism was a cutting down of mountains; that is precisely how it felt to me.

The quality of that 'who I am', is what I hope comes out in the writing.

There's a strong aspect of Buddhism which is geared towards ending all fertility.

I associate my childhood with two things, mainly: the North Devon countryside and a sense of connection to another world.

I can't imagine anyone ever again being able to make a film like, say, Summer Holiday, for instance, to give a British example, actually. And there will never be another Annette Funicello. I suppose it's the slight starchiness of the innocence that makes it unrepeatable.

I have a sense of them being Easter religions, for some reason. Christianity, of course, is a mystery religion, too, and I believe that Arthur Machen was one of those especially interested in the link between the pagan mysteries and the Christian ones. So, my experience was also a Machenesque experience.