Jan Needle

Q: What were you like at school?

Not very clever, but I had lots of friends.

Q: What did you want to be when you were a child?

The captain of an ocean-going tug.

Q: Which three words describe you best?

Friendly. Jolly. Enthusiastic.

Q: What is your favourite word?

Thanks

Q: What makes you cringe?

Too many things

Q: What are you afraid of?

Spiders

Q: When did you last have a really good laugh?

I almost never stop

Q: What is your most treasured possession?

My mandola

Q: What do you do as a hobby?

I sail boats

Q: What strange habits do you have?

I sail boats

Q: What’s your favourite food?

Anything that makes me fat

Q: What do you day dream about?

Being asleep

Q: What’s the most outrageous thing you’ve done?

I really can't imagine

Q: What profession other than yours would you like to attempt?

Bed tester and treacle bender

Q: Do you feel younger or older than your current age?

Younger

Q: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be?

Christopher Marlowe, to ask him if he was really Shakespeare

Q: What quality do you most admire in a person?

Forgiveness

Q: What is the most interesting place you have ever visited?

Ireland

Q: What is the best advice anyone has ever given you?

Keep going

Q: What would you most like to change about yourself?

How long have you got?

Q: What has life taught you?

There's nothing to beat it

Q: How long have you been a writer?

Since I was eight.

Q: Was there a specific moment in your life when you decide to become a writer?

I think I grew up knowing it

Q: Where do you do your writing?

Anywhere at all

Q: What are the best and worst things about being an author?

The best thing is suiting yourself. The worst thing is making yourself do it!

Q: Where do you get your greatest ideas from?

No idea at all. They just arrive.

Q: Which of your own characters do you most identify with?

Wagstaffe the Wind-up Boy

Q: What do you do to combat “writers’ block”?

Never had it

Q: What was your favourite book as a child?

Treasure Island

Q: What book do you wish you had written?

A High Wind in Jamaica

Q: What advice would you give to aspiring authors?

If you want to write, write. Try not to stop. Don't get discouraged.