I'm terrified of being poor, I always have been. It's growing up as a Methodist. I'll spend that bit of extra money to get a better seat on a train sometimes, because it's quieter and calmer, but I refuse to spend money on clothes.

Building your own house is a primal urge, one of those universal genetic drives like the need to provide for your family.

Building your own home is about desire, fantasy. But it's achievable; anyone can do it.

Building a house from scratch in the middle of a field is a bit like building a prototype car. As with all prototypes, if you're building a car you usually have the luxury of producing several prototypes before you arrive at the production line version - so the opportunity for changing things is quite rich.

It's important for country fans to know that I'm not just trying to come in and take their money for a CD.

Traditionally in capitalism, when you have more cash, you can fund more activity, which produces more jobs and creates more wealth. That's basic economic theory.

As soon as I finish a book, I sell the paperback rights to different publishers and that's where I recoup my money.

As dismayed as Americans are with the influence of the special interests that finance election campaigns, they've been reluctant to embrace the alternative: taxpayer-financed elections.