The theme of toxic masculinity, and of how men don’t feel that it’s ‘manly’ to show their emotions, is a strong one in the book. Did you always set out to explore this?

Yes, absolutely. I’ve always been interested in that idea that ‘banter’ is basically how men communicate. I’m quite lucky in that I can actually talk to most of my male friends about that kind of stuff, but I think it’s still very tough for a lot of men, so I was interested to explore that. There’s a scene early on in the book where Ben’s chatting to Harv and unwittingly puts on a ‘comedy’ accent when he confesses to feeling depressed. That’s something I’ve definitely noticed in myself and my own friends: the idea of not wanting to dampen the mood, or of feeling awkward and embarrassed to admit that something’s wrong.

Can you tell us what your favourite Christmas films are? We certainly hope that Love Actually features!

Love Actually is indeed up there, but I’d say The Muppet Christmas Carol probably pips it to the post for me. A great film and arguably Michael Caine’s finest hour (don’t @ me). Home Alone is definitely in the mix, too. There is also a long-standing debate about whether or not Die Hard counts as a ‘Christmas film’ – and I’m very much of the opinion that it does – so that’s probably up there for me, as well.

Do you like to read books in a similar area to All About Us, or watch TV dramas to get ideas? Can you recommend any to us?

Yes! I really like Mike Gayle’s and Marian Keyes’ books, plus lots of other authors writing in a funny, clever, interesting way about modern relationships: Holly Bourne, David Nicholls, Kiley Reid, Beth O’Leary, Lisa Owens, Josie Silver. I am a big fan of funny novels in general, so for comic inspiration I’ll most often go back to stuff by Flann O’Brien, Sue Townsend and Dan Rhodes.

What does your typical writing day look like?

I usually like to go out to a library to write, rather than staying at home, as I tend to get much more done that way. But if that’s not possible, the first half-hour of my writing day will traditionally be given over to intense procrastination – probably tinkering pointlessly with my fantasy football team – before actually getting down to doing some work. I find I’m most productive in the morning, and I tend to work best if I set myself a concrete goal for the day – i.e. to finish a particular chapter, or hit a certain word count. My typical writing day will also involve at least six cups of tea and probably some Haribo.

Do you have any tips for aspiring writers?