I think the past is something I have spent a lot of time thinking about, not only what is different about the past but what's the same, and what links us to the past.

I am very into genealogy and heritage, and that's how I started writing.

I would not give up a lot of what I know about my heritage. I would not give up knowing where I came from, the good parts and the bad parts.

I love getting into the basement of a courthouse, and all the dusty records - all that stuff makes me really happy.

I think there's a lot that we remember almost chemically, through our DNA.

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 tend to be a very logical, practical person.