Why do you write?

To tell stories. My father didn’t read to us at night, but he did tell his own made-up stories. Crucially for my crime writing, I saw the value of the cliffhanger (‘I’ll finish this tomorrow night, son’).

Are you a vivid dreamer?

I’m sometimes aware of surviving a monochrome epic, but mostly I’m not aware that I dream. Dream content doesn’t interest me (listening to others relate their dreams is a form of hell).