Nick Bantock

Growing up in England, people told you why you couldn't do things. Suddenly, I had a publisher banging on my door, and was given the creative green light to simply make.

I had never read in public, never given an interview. I was doing it all and trying to produce the next book and raise three young kids and had another child on the way.

One minute I was completely unknown, barely able to feed my family, living on pennies. The next minute, Katie Couric was interviewing me on the breakfast show.