Because of the Thames I have always loved inland waterways - water in general water sounds - there's music in water. Brooks babbling fountains splashing. Weirs waterfalls tumbling gushing.

I became very famous as a teenager and my name and photo were splashed in all the media. They made me larger than life so I wanted to live larger than life and the only way to do that was to be intoxicated.

What I want to do is tell stories about normal people in the American suburbs. I don't write the book where it's a conspiracy reaching the prime minister I don't write the book with the big serial killer who lops off heads. My setting is a very placid pool of suburbia family life. And within that I can make pretty big splashes.

'Design Star' was incredible and I didn't think it could get any better and then 'Color Splash' happened.

What I find cool about being a banned author is this: I'm writing books that evoke a reaction books that if dropped in a lake go down not with a whimper but a splash.