With 28 bestselling novels to his name, David Baldacci has established himself as a huge best-selling thriller writer. Since bursting onto the literary scene with the publication of his first novel, Absolute Power, in 1996 which was made into a film directed by and starring Clint Eastwood, his novels have been translated into more than 45 languages and sold in more than 80 countries.

Born and bred in Virginia, the author has received numerous accolades for his writing; most recently, he was inducted into the International Crime Writing Hall of Fame and received the Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Award.

But what qualities helped him to become the writer he is today? (Clue: he talks...a lot) Which writers does he most admire? Why does he worry about literacy rates? And why does he have an identity problem in Italy?