One of the things I've learnt is not to depend on there being a woman in your life to make it work. I love my work, I love my children, I've got wonderful friends, you know, I have a nice life.

There needs to be a thorough examination, by Muslims everywhere, of why it is that the faith they love breeds so many violent mutant strains.

When you're writing for the screen you're really thinking all the time of what you have to do to make sure that they have the information that they need, that the emotional thread is not snapped, that the story moves at the right speed, to keep the audience hopefully sitting on the edge of their seats or else weeping or laughing.

When you write, you write out of your best self. Everything else drops away.

Airport security exists to guard us against terrorist attacks.

Sometimes when you finish a book, you don't know quite what you've got.

Books choose their authors; the act of creation is not entirely a rational and conscious one.