1. I started writing on a whim.
I had never considered writing anything until I was around 30 and my husband and I decided to quit our jobs and backpack around the world. I wasn’t sure how I’d make a living so I decided I’d try my hand at writing a book. I didn’t have any clue what I was doing, never having studied creative writing, but I started writing anyway and four months later had a first draft of my first novel, Hunting Lila. I guess being an avid reader and watcher of television paid dividends! I hope this encourages people who might not think they can write a book to go ahead and write that book.
The Stalker
2. I live in California and I mostly write screenplays these days.
I’m from London originally but now we live in a little town called Ojai (pronounced Oh-hi!) near LA. We moved here five years ago so I could pursue a screenwriting career and it was the best decision of our lives!
3. My book The Weekend Away is going to be a movie.
I adapted The Weekend Away and the movie is coming soon to Netflix. It’s starring Leighton Meester and Ziad Bakri. The book is set in Lisbon and is about two best friends on a weekend away and one goes missing.
4. I get my inspiration in the shower or brushing my teeth
I usually find that ideas occur to me when I’m not staring at a screen. A lot of the time I’ll be brushing my teeth and an idea will pop into my head, or a solution to a story problem I’m puzzling over. I try to take time out to hike too as that gives me the mental space I sometimes need to get clarity.
5. I once wrote a book in ten days.
I write YA novels under the name Mila Gray. The first of these, Come Back To me, I wrote in just ten days because I was on a deadline and didn’t have much time. I managed to write it that fast because I was in India, on the beach in Goa, with no distractions, not even the internet (which always makes me procrastinate).
6. I’m a writer / producer on the show SWAT.
I love writing action. It’s what I’m best known for in Hollywood and it’s why I got hired to write on the show SWAT. I love writing for TV and film because you have the joy of seeing your words come to life on screen and it’s really fun producing as you get to be on set. I continue to write one book a year though.
7. I lived in Bali for five years
Deciding to quit our jobs and travel led us to Bali where we lived for five amazing years. That decision helped us be brave enough to follow our passions. It was scary and took a lot of grit and determination but if I hadn’t made that choice to risk things, I would never have become a writer and wouldn’t be in Hollywood now, doing something I absolutely love – telling stories that reach millions!