How I Write

Fforde explained, "I find that if you concentrate fully and for long periods of time, then it all comes a lot easier -- a bit like getting "on the step" while jet-skiing. Once you get that speed up, then ideas and situations come a lot easier -- full concentration and absorption."

Find out why the former fashion buyer started writing, what kind of schedule she keeps (it's pretty impressive), and what she's learned about her craft over the years. Among other things she tells us, "[G]ood stories bring people together to find common ground and heal, reminding us that, even in the worst of times, we are not really alone."

Speaking as someone who had rewarding careers in two fields, Margolin advises writers to follow his example and "find a good job and write as a hobby."

The author How to Be Lost and Forgive Me shares why she loves seedy motels, how she balances writing and motherhood, and what's changed for her about writing novels -- and perhaps more interestingly, what's remained the same.