If I know somebody is coming 'round, it is incredibly difficult for me to work because I'm waiting for this interruption - even the children's comings and goings are interruptions. Cake-making is a good way of coming out of that space.

A book is not an example of 'women's writing' simply because it is written by a woman. Writing may become 'women's writing' when it could not have been written by a man.

Feminism remains something that needs to be explained to people.

What other grown-up gets told how to do their job so often as a writer?

Writing screenplays makes me a better musician because it clears my head. After writing a movie, I go running back to music as fast as I can.

My hands look like my dad's and my mom's put together. She's a piano player, he was an artist, and I use the creative qualities I got from them in my fighting. But I don't just destroy with my hands; I also create: I cook and make art and garden.

I'm not such an artist type that I can't handle the real world. I read the financial pages, because most people don't talk about art.

A great book provides escapism for me. The artistry and the creativity in a story are better than any drugs.