My favourite Friday treat is to drive out of the centre of Cambridge, where we live, and go for a swim at the health club I've just joined out in the countryside at Quy. It's a lovely pool, inside a converted barn. Usually it's just me and a couple of other swimmers there. Sophie Hannah barncambridgecentre share on social
For me, a big part of writing psychological thrillers is choosing crimes committed for motives which would only apply to a particular person in a particular situation; a unique, one-off motive that is born out of someone's particular range of psychological afflictions. Sophie Hannah afflictionapplybear share on social
I am trying to write novels for properly clever people, but I also want them to be proper novels that also stick in a person's mind and have an atmosphere about them. Sophie Hannah atmosphereclevermind Change image and share on social
I never write about CIA conspiracies or the FBI or mafia or anything like that because I just don't understand that world. But I think I do understand individual human harmfulness. Sophie Hannah ciaconspiracyfbi Change image and share on social
Poirot is a classic character from fiction, not a MacBook Air; he would not benefit from updates. Sophie Hannah airbenefitcharacter Change image and share on social
All through childhood, I wrote verses and mysteries. There is, for me, one connection: structure. My poetry is metrical, rhyming. Sophie Hannah childhoodconnectionmetrical Change image and share on social
If you ask people if they enjoy crime novels, they'll say, 'Oh, my guilty pleasure is...' then name a really brilliant crime writer. Sophie Hannah brilliantcrimeenjoy Change image and share on social
The brilliant thing about swimming is that, while you're doing it, there's nothing else you could be getting on with, like the ironing or sorting out the children. My mind goes into free-float mode; some of the best ideas for plots come into my head while I'm ploughing up and down the pool. Sophie Hannah brilliantchildfloat share on social
My characters all have issues, but I don't see that as weird or abnormal because I think in real life there are very few bland, normal people. Sophie Hannah abnormalblandcharacter Change image and share on social
With me, even if my life depended on it, I wouldn't be able to cry. Not with somebody there. Because even if I'm talking about bad and upsetting things, if there is somebody else in the room, I am trying to entertain them. If there is somebody there, I am in performance mode. I can only cry if I am on my own. Sophie Hannah badcrydepend share on social