I wanted to have a body of work behind me before I wrote about racism.

I personally, as a teenager, didn't like books I felt were trying to preach to me... I did not believe in happy endings. I wanted to read books which reflected life as I thought I knew it.

Life isn't about quantity, it's about quality.

I work in my attic, and the view is next door's chimney stack.

I remember being in a history lesson and saying to my teacher, 'How come you never talk about black scientists and inventors and pioneers?' And she looked at me and said, 'Because there aren't any.'

Books teach children to see the world through the eyes of others and empathise with others. It's about the story.