Sophie Kinsella
I never did any training in journalism or in finance, so I really was in the deep end. I got very good at going to press conferences and nodding. I'd figure it out when I got back to the office. Charts and numbers. I've never been great with facts, ever, my whole life. For a journalist, that's not a very good trait.Collection: Finance
I always thought 'chick lit' meant third-person contemporary funny novels, dealing with issues of the day. I mean, it's not the ideal term; when I'm asked to describe what I do, I say I write romantic comedies, cause that's what I feel they are. But I'm quite pragmatic.Collection: Romantic
People used to ask me for advice, and I'd say, 'Please, don't ask me!' Yes, I did economics at Oxford, but that's not the same as having a broad knowledge of personal finance.Collection: Finance
If my writing comes to a halt, I head to the shops: I find them very inspirational. And if I get into real trouble with my plot, I go out for a pizza with my husband.Collection: Inspirational
My earliest, most impactful encounter with a book was when I was seven and awoke early on Christmas morning to find Roald Dahl's 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' in my stocking. I had never been so excited by the sight of a book - and have possibly never been since!Collection: Christmas
When I wrote my first book, 'The Tennis Party', my overriding concern was that I didn't write the autobiographical first novel. I was so, so determined not to write about a 24-year-old journalist. It was going to have male characters, and middle-aged people, so I could say, 'Look, I'm not just writing about my life, I'm a real author.'
I'm an impulse buyer. I don't really go out with a list.
It wasn't until after college that I started writing. I had just applied randomly for jobs in the media and got one on a magazine called 'Pensions World.' So I was writing for a living there and that's when I started my first book.
I change my mind so much, I'm better going on my own. Shopping is a selfish activity anyway.
I'm a great fan of taking my laptop out and about.
When I had the idea for 'Shopaholic', it was as though a light switched on. I realised I actually wanted to write comedy. No apologies, no trying to be serious, just full-on entertainment. The minute I went with that and threw myself into it, it felt just like writing my first book again - it was really liberating.
I chose to publish the first 'Shopaholic' book under a pseudonym because I wanted it to be judged on its own merits.
I'm very lucky. I have a really supportive husband in Henry, and there's my mum, too. I couldn't have a career and manage the kids' routines and household thing single-handedly. I'd just go crazy.
Like most of us, I'm used to juggling about 52 roles in life. Wife. Mother. Sister. Friend. Author. Sometimes I feel a bit 'multiple-personality'.
To some extent, all authors are a little schizophrenic. We lead most of our lives in solitary confinement, living and breathing the books that we're writing.
My own life has been doubly disconnected, as I've written books under two different names. As an author, your name almost becomes a brand; readers know what to expect.
My real name is Madeleine Wickham, under which I write dramas with an edge of humour. As Sophie Kinsella it's fast, all-out comedies, such as the 'Shopaholic' series.
I don't think anyone sits down and thinks, 'I know, I'll be a chick-lit writer.' You write the book that you want to write and then other people say, 'Oh, that's chick-lit.' You say, 'Okay.' But it's not like you look around and go to a careers fair and there will be someone at the chick-lit author stand.
I've never written a children's book, but when people meet me for the first time and I say I write books, they invariably reply, 'Children's books?' Maybe it's something about my face.
I adore all Agatha Christie's books and turn to them whenever I'm ill or need cheering up.
To have someone who never makes a mistake, never finds her personal life in disarray, never worries about work-life balance? I think that would be unreal. What I'm writing is real.
I had no plans to be a writer. My teenaged bid for stardom was to be a pop star... which, ahem, didn't exactly work out.
I'd probably still be a financial journalist now if it weren't for writing novels. Mmm. Fun! I'm much happier writing novels!
The way I write is totally instinctive. I just write what I feel or what I find funny - and hope everyone else agrees.
I love all my characters. I love their weaknesses and flaws. I feel like they're all my best friends and I adore being with them.
The great thing about being a novelist is that you organize your own day.
I can't cook. I don't have the right brain for it, somehow. I can't walk into a room and tidy it up. I get distracted. I pick up one thing and I start looking at it. And my cooking is truly heinous.
When I'm on a break from writing, I'll log on to Amazon and eBay. The doorbell is constantly being rung by deliverymen.
Being a journalist is good if you want to write books: it teaches you to get beyond the blank screen. My books have been described as froth, but there's scope to be witty and ironic about everything in life.
I had gone to Oxford to read music. I had done music all my life, but when I got to college I didn't want to do it anymore.
Philosophy wasn't about facts, it was about ideas. My first essay title was something like: 'How can you know what other people are thinking?' I thought, 'Wow, what an amazing thing.' I really thought deeply for the first time.
I think a lot of people still fantasise about that first love and what might happen if they rekindled the relationship.
Shopping with friends is a great way of still enjoying the thrill of the chase without having to make a purchase. It can also be a real bonding opportunity. Helping your friend find something nice is just as rewarding as helping yourself.
If you want something you can't afford, think what else that money could buy: a week's groceries, a month's rent, or a weekend away. That will put things into perspective.
There is something exciting about saving up for a special treat. Bring back the piggy bank!
I am not a label snob and have learned that the thrill of shopping can be just as great, if not more so, when you find a bargain.
There's no luck in business. There's only drive, determination, and more drive.Collection: Determination
If I've learned one lesson from all that's happened to me, it's that there is no such thing as the biggest mistake of your existence. There's no such thing as ruining your life. Life's a pretty resilient thing, it turns out.Collection: Mistake
Don't beat yourself up for not knowing the answers. You don't always have to know who you are. You don't have to have the big picture, or know where you're heading. Sometimes, it's enough just to know what you're going to do next.Collection: Knowing
She believes in love and romance. She believes her life is one day going to be transformed into something wonderful and exciting. She has hopes and fears and worries, just like anyone. Sometimes she feels frightened. Sometimes she feels unloved. Sometimes she feels she will never gain approval from those people who are most important to her. But she’s brave and good-hearted and faces her life head-on.Collection: Believe
I love new clothes. If everyone could just wear new clothes everyday, I reckon depression wouldn’t exist anymore.Collection: Fashion
It's not enough to believe! Don't you see that, you stupid girl? You could spend your whole life hoping and believing! If a love affair is one-sided, then it's only ever a question, never an answer. You can't live your life waiting for an answer.Collection: Girl
Honestly, shopping beats therapy, anytime. It costs the same and you get a dress out of it.Collection: Shopping
Look into your heart- and go after what you really want.Collection: Heart
This is what happens. You tell your friends your most personal secrets, and they use them against you.Collection: Fake Friends
There’s no such thing as ruining your life. Life’s a pretty resilient thing, it turns out.Collection: Resilient
The truth is, some relationships are supposed to last forever, and some are only supposed to last a few days. That’s the way life is.Collection: Forever
Honestly, it’s so easy to get what you want from people if they think you’re a psycho.Collection: Thinking
Never give up on something you really want. However impossible things seem, there's always a way.Collection: Giving Up
Sometimes, when I can't get to sleep, I imagine all the rules I'd invent if I ever got to be in charge of the world.Collection: Sleep