I'm a history person, and I love the groundedness of that, of being able to go, "Yes! People acted like that."

I would not want to forget the first time I read The Lord of the Rings. I would never want to forget that! That was so magical to me, and that was a real eye-opening experience. I was probably 11 when I read that and already a reader, but I think that book really showed me how you can be transported and how your imagination can take you to a whole other place.

History is absolutely my thing.

It occurred to me at some point that what really links us to the past is memory, and there's so much we've forgotten.

I personally love books that make me think, so I naturally gravitate toward writing a book like that, one that's going to make someone think and make me think.

I never have the feeling that I actually know what I'm doing or anything that I'm writing is any good.

I think [it's necessary to accept] things that are just true about yourself: These are my faults, these are the things I'm good at, this is where I came from, this is where I didn't come from. I think happy people are the ones who have made peace with those truths and acknowledged them, and learned to use them and live with them.