I find it inspiring to actively choose which traditions to celebrate and also come up with new ideas for traditions of my own.

The new contract between writers and readers is one I'm prepared to sign up to. I've met some fascinating people at events and online. Down with the isolation of writers I say! And long live Twitter.

I'm not sure how much easier it is for a mother to balance her life now - have we simply swapped one set of restrictions for another?

Writers of novels live in a strange world where what's made up is as important as what's real.

It is through our extended family that we first learn to compromise and come to an understanding that even if we don't always agree about things we can still love and look out for each other.

Something I notice speaking to writers from south of Hadrians Wall is that the culture is different. At base, I think Scotland values its creative industries differently from England.

I've always had a keen sense of history. My father was an antiques dealer and he used to bring home boxes full of treasures, and each item always had a tale attached.