The fabric of a garden is determined as much by its textures as by its tonal range and architectural flair.

Clearly, any well-kept garden will be a source of pleasure in the summer months; in the bleak urban midwinter, however, there are few activities more likely to energise the spirit than a botanical walk.

I love the subtlety and tonal range of the acoustic guitar.

Eighty percent of my pieces gravitate towards an A, as a tonal thing, not at the beginning, but somewhere in it.

I love long sentences. My big heroes of fiction writing are Henry James and Proust - people who recognise that life doesn't consist of declarative statements, but rather modifications, qualifications and feelings.

'The Asylum Dance' was written after I'd moved back to Scotland and was a response to moving to my old home area of Fife.