‘We have all the time in the world, as long as we are finished tomorrow morning. That should be fine, right?’ Per Olov Enquist smiled teasingly, his eyes sparkling, while his hands were busy handling cups and coffee filters to provide his company with coffee. It was an unexpectedly cheerful opening of the interview for Knack with this famous Swedish author in his writing home in Stockholm. He has reached the age of eighty, which he felt: ‘My time is starting to run out.’ We were allowed to record a unique conversation about sin, guilt and punishment; about drinking, madness and poetry; about why writing about love is so difficult. ‘Do you mind if I smoke?’