I love to prove people wrong. They expect I'll sound a certain way when they see me, then they hear me and they can't believe it. I love that.
Self criticism must be my guide to action, and the first rule for its employment is that in itself it is not a virtue, only a procedure.
For a writer, children make life needlessly hard. I've muddled through a lot of things, but I have not muddled through my writing life. I work absolutely flat out, giving it my all.