Author Interviews

Authors are some of the most fascinating people to talk to. It’s always illuminating to find out how and why they write. 

Nina Amir
Blog a Book, May 29, 2012
Writing in the age of the Internet is certainly different! For one, why not use your blog as a place to write the draft of your book and get your readers at the same time?

Margaret Stohl
Margaret Stohl finds her voice, Dec 27, 2011
The co-author of the bestselling Young Adult series The Caster Chronicles thought she couldn’t write a novel. It took a challenge from her daughter to help her overcome her fear. [Extra: Interview transcript]

Sonny Liew
Progress of a comic artist, Oct 7, 2011
This Singapore-based comic artist has illustrated for big comic publishers such as  DC Vertigo, Marvel, Disney and SLG. He talks about how he came to be on this road.

Michael Pollan
Make informed choices about food, Oct 18, 2010
It was exciting to speak to the guru of good food because I’ve always been a great admirer of his work. I learn how the gardener and veteran journalist become a “food activist”.

Ooi Yang-May
Blogging to unblock, Dec 17, 2006
The British-based Malaysian writer took time off from her busy job as a lawyer to write the novel she had always wanted to write. Although she wouldn’t recommend others to do the same, it did result in three books.

John Connolly
Getting at the truth, Sept 11, 2005
The writer of the popular Charlie Parker series of novels was a delight to talk to. He’s also a very thoughtful man. He actually sent me a postcard after the interview, saying that he enjoyed our talk. And I enjoyed it immensely too – the man was so inspiring!

Belle Yang
Trials and Tribulations, Aug 20, 2010
The life of this Chinese-American artist reads like a novel. In the graphic novel Forget Sorrow: An Ancestral Tale, she reflects on her life and family history.

Carol Berg
World Weaver, May 30, 2010
Carol Berg is one of my favourite fantasy authors. I’d grab a new book of hers without hesitation the moment it comes out. Therefore, it was really wonderful to be able to “talk” to her. (She was busy writing Soul Mirror and travelling so we couldn’t speak on the phone.) [Extra: Interview transcript]

Troy Chin
Chasing the Dream, April 2, 2010
Troy Chin had a high-powered career in New York City, but driven by something he couldn’t explain, he decided to leave that all to become a graphic novelist in his home country, Singapore. Follow your passion, no matter what, he believes.

Karim Raslan
Catching a mood, June 28, 2009
I started reading Karim Raslan’s incisive columns about Malaysian politics when I was in college. It was nice to finally meet him after admiring him from afar after all these years. He’s the only writer I know who writes on his Blackberry!

Helen McCarthy
Veteran Otaku, March 8, 2009
Helen McCarthy is proof that you can write a novel while holding a full-time job. She loves anime and manga, and since there were hardly any books on the subject in the 90s, she decided to write them.

William Young’s The Shack
Publishing phenom, Sept 28, 2008
It’s a writer’s dream come true: Self-publish a book, and suddenly it’s on the bestseller’s list. Then publishers which rejected your book come crawling back to you to give you a book deal. I didn’t interview William Young (left, pic), however, but spoke to his publishers, whom I’ve known for years before they accidentally became publishers of a bestseller.

Jodi Picoult
Pursuing Perfection, June 15, 2008
It was a treat to talk to Picoult, because I adored her books, especially Second Glance. This is an author who will go to great lengths when researching for her books, including participating in a ghost hunt! [ Extra: Blog post ]

Tim Harford
Everyman’s Economist, Feb 24, 2008
Harford was kind enough to answer my questions while travelling on a plane! Seriously, if my economics teacher was this witty and entertaining, my life would have turned out very differently indeed. Elizabeth Tai, stockbroker, perhaps? [ Extra: Blog post ]

Louise Penny
Penny-wise thoughts, Jan 27, 2008
Louise Penny was such an inspiring person! I related so much to her because she was a journalist and had the same perfectionist attitude I have: “I’m going to write this perfect novel, and I’m not going to write it unless it’s perfect”. [ PDF ]