You draw those cards. I lost my mother when I was 14. When I'm writing, the darkness is always there. I go where the pain is. In her exploration of evil, death, and faith , Rice's books propel readers into a sensual world of danger and delight.
Evil is always possible.
It was writing Merrick that got me out of it. If people only read my books for entertainment, if they only read them to take their minds off their troubles, that's fine. Charles Dickens is my model. He was a popular writer whom everybody respected. Welcome the magic of eccentricity.