Jane Goldman

I've always been drawn to spooky things, to the unusual, to things that are dark but in a friendly way.

Establish character - otherwise, it is difficult to connect with what is frightening.

You need to be invested in what happens. The characters are your conduit to the story. Many modern horror films are fun but not frightening because one has not connected with the characters.

Another thing that freaks me out is time. Time is like a book. You have a beginning, a middle and an end. It's just a cycle.

My first career ambitions involved turning into a boy; I intended to be either a railway guard or a knight errant.

When I was 16, I used to hang out at the Nambucca pub in North London and see The Libertines play live.