‘It can feel quite mysterious’: Alan Garner on writing, folklore and experiencing time slips in the Pennines

At 90, the author reflects on his friendship with Alan Turing, quantum realities and how his grandfather inspired his latest book

My father, the serial killer: how April Balascio put her dad behind bars – and broke free of her childhood

When Balascio was growing up, her charismatic father was violent, controlling, yet often very loving. Then her foster brother was killed and she started piecing together the dates and places that would prove crucial to solving a string of murders

‘Playing games turns me into a person who makes sense’

When he was diagnosed as having autism at the age of 40, author Tim Clare saw a link to his lifelong love of board games. Here, he explains the power of the game for those who struggle to understand the rules of life

Sunday with Bill Bailey: ‘I’ll head up to the Ridgeway and watch the red kites’

The comedian tells Rich Pelley he likes to stay in and takes it easy, or else heads out of London to see some amazing fork-tailed birds of prey

‘It’s got everything you want, plus dragons’: Brandon Sanderson on the joy of writing fantasy

The hugely popular author reveals his excitement at the release of his latest Stormlight saga, how he extracted himself from Amazon and why JK Rowling should have stuck to novels

‘Scotland has always been multilingual’: new Scottish makar Peter Mackay

As new national poet, the Gaelic speaker is looking at all of the languages spoken in the country, to see ‘what we can learn between them’

‘I had this animal, physical desire to be with my child’: author Rachel Yoder on writing Nightbitch

The novelist’s cult book about a stay-at-home mother who turns into a dog is now a film starring Amy Adams. She talks about modern parenting, breaking taboos, and how Trump’s win spurred her to write

‘I’m writing a memoir. It’s a pack of lies’: John Banville on a lifetime in books, bereavement, and the Irish love of words

The acclaimed novelist thought he had finished with ‘serious’ books. But now, at 78 and still grieving the loss of his wife, he has a new project on the go

Novelist Maggie O’Farrell: ‘Children don’t just need butterflies and rainbows’

The Hamnet author talks about bringing her bestselling Shakespeare novel to the screen, working with Paul Mescal, and how her speech disorder inspired her latest children’s book

David Nicholls: ‘I’m genuinely deathly at a dinner party’

The bestselling author on why he finds it easier to be funny on the page, being inspired by Sue Townsend and Victoria Wood, and his struggle with the ending of You Are Here

Charlie and Lola author Lauren Child: ‘My greatest achievement is adopting my daughter’

The author on the power of having regrets, striving to adopt her daughter, why she changed her name – and why she gave up gymnastics

Haruki Murakami: ‘My books have been criticised so much over the years, I don’t pay much attention’

As his new novel is published, the acclaimed author discusses complexity, writing female characters and meeting his fans

‘I’m not saying I’m not scarred. But scars do fade’: Baroness Lola Young on her childhood in care

The crossbench peer grew up in care and went on to become an actor, an academic and one of the first black women in the House of Lords. Now she has written a memoir documenting her remarkable story

Colm Tóibín: ‘Ireland today is a much freer place’

The Irish author on how the sequel to his bestselling novel Brooklyn was inspired by the film, life in LA, and his thoughts on Trump’s victory

Richard Flanagan: ‘I’m not sure that I will write again’

The Tasmanian novelist – whose latest book, Question 7, is up for both fiction and nonfiction prizes – on HG Wells, the TV adaptation of his Booker prize winner The Narrow Road to the Deep North… and his much-missed parrot, Herb