1) Why did you start writing?

I had so many stories in my head, they were beginning to argue with each other and drive me crazy, so I had to get them down on paper to keep myself sane. Plus, I have always loved making stuff up more than anything else.

2) What is your favourite type of dog? Mine is Pug.

Well I love Pugs too, but as you may know, my favourite dog has to be my dog, Huxley, who is a Patterdale terrier crossed with a Border terrier. Patterdale Terriers are very energetic and a lot of work but also incredibly loyal and loving.

3) What is your favourite character in There May Be a Castle?

It is always so hard to choose, but I guess it would be Nonky. I had no idea I would ever create a fictional one eyed talking giant toy horse with her own Instagram account, but as I wrote the story she just appeared fully formed in my head which is always a good sign with characters in my experience.

4) In The Last Wild trilogy, where did you get the idea of talking animals?

I was trying to write a very bad sitcom set on a farm (I grew up in the country) about a dysfunctional family, and a friend said it might be improved if the farm animals could talk or comment on the silly humans. This got me re-reading George Orwell’s Animal Farm again, and I remembered how much I loved talking animals when they weren’t just cute, but got involved in life and death matters which concern us all…

5) If you had a party, who would you invite, doesn’t matter if they are dead or not?

Barack Obama, Carrie Fisher, JK Rowling and Roald Dahl.

6) What’s your favourite breakfast?

Boiled eggs with soldiers of toast.

7) What’s the most exciting thing you have done this week?

I went to a beautiful beach on the Northumbrian coast called Druridge Bay which is enormous, and almost completely empty, so you can run as fast as you like without bumping into anyone.

8) Are you writing another book, if so can you tell us what it’s about?

It’s set just after the Second World War, about four children from the same family who discover a portal to a magical world, where the choices they make will determine the course of history.

9) What is your greatest fear?

That Western civilisation could suddenly collapse very unexpectedly, quickly and dramatically. The events of the last year have not helped!

10) Why do you enjoy writing?

Because by telling stories about the world, as I see it, it helps me come to terms with the chaos and complexity of the world, in a very enjoyable way!

Read my reviews of Piers’s books: