Sharon asked Sophie Hannah:

Hello, I've been reading your Culver Valley books in order and have just finished A Room Swept White. I've thoroughly enjoyed all your novels. Apart from the mystery my favourite thing about your books is the way you write and the stories all move along so fluently. I especially liked Fliss in that book and the humour surrounding her character. Part 2 to follow!! (Only allows certain number of characters)?

Sophie Hannah Hi Sharon! I'm so glad you're enjoying my books! You're quite right - not many of my characters are entirely normal and well-adjusted. I suppose this is because I believe that most of us, once you get below the surface, are a bit odd, and driven by strange neuroses and obsessions. Perhaps that's not true of everyone but it's certainly true of me and most people I know! And I'm always aware of the underlying oddness of people, so I suppose it comes out in my writing! Some of my favourite writers are similar in this respect, too, so maybe they've influenced me. Eg, both Iris Murdoch and Ruth Rendell (two of my all-time favourites) wrote novels in which there was so much dysfunction seething beneath people's surface personalities. And I also come from an extended family full of weird characters/situations!

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