1. Which five adjectives would you use to describe yourself?
Tall, bald, curious, creative, and stubborn. If I was rap star I'd be "Snoop Dogged".

2. Which book would you most like to have written?
The one I'm working on now, which is a long way from being finished. Oh, and also "Life On The Mississippi" by Mark Twain.

3. Which book would you consign to Book Hell?
I tend to believe in forgiveness, so no books go to hell in my little world, not if they'll make a sincere effort to blow their noses, brush their teeth, and write themselves better next time.

4. What books are currently on your bedside table?
"Black Tide", by Peter Temple, a terrific Australian novelist, "Send in the Idiots" by Kamran Nazeer, and "Lost" by Michael Robotham. I'm also dipping into Jane Smiley's "Thirteen Ways of Looking at the Novel" while I'm waiting for Martin Amis to publish his next novel.

5. Tell us more about the way you work.  When does the day start?  Where do you write?  What's your poison?  Can you be disturbed?
Rise after the sun has firmly established itself. Read two newspapers, drink two cups of coffee (okay, sometimes three), answer my mail, and then reread what I wrote yesterday. On a good day I get between three and five new pages. On a bad day I lose pages. If there's too much noise in the world, I put on my sound-cancelling headphones.

6. What would be your ideal way to spend a day off from your writing?
Out the blue Gulf Stream, catching and releasing sailfish, wahoo, and marlin. My wife Lynn is on deck, in the shade, reading a book. Now and then she looks up and says, "Nice fish".

7. If you weren't a writer, what would you be doing instead?
I'd be miserable, but I'd probably be building boats or learning how to paint, or both.

8. What's on your iPod? (or gramophone!)
Bruce Springsteen, U2, Sting, Natalie Merchant, Peter Gabriel, Sheryl Crow, Delbert McClinton, Traffic, and a hot shot of vintage Pink.

9. Which person – living or dead – would you most like to have a chat over a cup of tea?
Mr. Samuel Clemens, also known as Mark Twain. Under a tree at his home in Hartford, Connecticut.

10. Tell us a secret about yourself (and make it a good one!)
I won the freckle contest at summer camp. Also the story-telling contest. Prize - a bag of toffees.

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