John Grisham

John Grisham: I always try to tell a good story, one with a compelling plot that will keep the pages turning. That is my first and primary goal. Sometimes I can tackle an issue--homelessness, tobacco litigation, insurance fraud, the death penalty--and wrap a good story around it. These are the best books, the ones with a story and a message. Other times, I simply want to entertain. I see no deviation from this in the near future.

John Grisham: I was a lawyer for 10 years, and several of my clients had the misfortune, through no fault of my own, of going to prison. I visited them occasionally. Prisons are fascinating places, especially when the inmates are educated white-collar types. Later, when my books were getting published, I received a large amount of mail from lawyers in prison. Their stories were almost always interesting.