What A Wonderful Piece This Is!

The parent trap: art after children

Is the pram in the hallway the enemy of good art? Frank Cottrell Boyce, novelist, screenwriter and father of seven, makes the case for chaos...

Real creativity should feel like a game, not a career. Having to hang out the washing or get up and make breakfast helps you remember that your "work" is actually fun. And for it to stay fun, you have to be unafraid of failure. It's very powerful to be surrounded by people who love you for something other than your work, who are unaware of the daily, painful fluctations of your reputation. I discovered recently that my youngest child thought I spent my days typing out more and more copies of my book Millions, so that everyone could have one.

Isn't that priceless?