I used to describe myself as a comic novelist, but my concerns seem to have darkened over the past few years.

There's not some finite amount of pain inside us. Our bodies and minds just keep manufacturing more of it.

Sooner or later we all lose our loved ones. We all have to suffer, every last one of us.

I was also known as Frodo because I was an early adopter of 'The Lord of the Rings.

The interesting part about the writing process is that you can never see all the way to the end, not if something is happening over the course of a year and a half, or two years.

I know very few writers who outline fully before they start. It just doesn't seem possible to do, because so many things don't come out until you're absolutely knee-deep in the world.

It's like the human race has been programmed for misery.