Peter Swanson

Ten words to sum up your working life to date ...

Weed-puller, dishwasher, census-taker, bartender, bookseller, English teacher, administrator, writer, poet.

Nine things you can see from where you're sitting ...

A stack of my new book, a Shakespeare mug, a little brass snake, a fake Tiffany lamp, a pair of reading glasses, a framed vintage map of Boston, my Tintin collection, a set of Dr No action figures, and my cat.

Eight minutes to prepare a meal. What's it going to be ?

A frittata, with whatever’s left over in the fridge.

Seven people you'd like to go for a drink with ...

At once, or separately? Either way, Donna Tartt, Quentin Tarantino, Anthony Horowitz, Stephen King, either of the Coen brothers, Fran Lebowitz and Marion Cotillard.

Six things you can't live without ...

A book, Levi’s jeans, Honey Nut Cheerios, headphones, my wife and my cat.

Five favourite words ...

Dusk, wintry, island, cellar, ale.

Four places you'd run away to ...

Key West, Florida, the Yorkshire countryside, the coast of Maine, and Oslo, Norway.

Three books you've bought recently ...

Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara, and Will in the World by Stephen Greenblatt.

Two things that make you rant ...

Trump and Twitter.

One thing you'd tell your teenage self ...

Don’t get a cellphone, even when everyone says you have to have one.