Q: WHEN WILL THE CROWN BE PUBLISHED?

A: November 2008.

Q: WHY AREN'T YOU WRITING MORE BOOKS ABOUT DAIN?

A: It was my publisher's decision to suspend the Nether/Mandria series for the time being due to dropping sales.

Q: WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO TALMOR?

A: I love this character and have much more adventure planned for him, providing my publisher will agree to bring out more books about Mandria. He's the real father of Prince Guierre, although that's a state secret unknown to the boy or the Mandrian court.

Q: WHY DID YOU LEAVE YOUR MANDRIA/NETHER SERIES TO WRITE THE PEARLS?

A: It was time to let Dain, Alexeika, Pheresa, and Talmor take a break. I felt ready to try something different, especially since I think writers can become stale when they don’t take on new challenges. The Pearls and The Crown (2008) are a two-book set dealing with Lea, the younger sister of the protagonist in The Ruby Throne trilogy that I wrote several years ago. They are not strictly sequels to that old trilogy, although I tied up a dangling plot question that got overlooked in the original books. Enough people kept asking me what happened to the child Lea that I decided to write about her as an adult. She was an endearing little girl, lively and cute and able to see the truth about people, able to command the spirits of air, earth, and water, and able to see – possibly even affect – the future. What would become of her as she matured into a young woman? I figured that she would continue to be extraordinary and special, so special that people might come to idolize her too much. I wanted her to be uncomfortable with excessive adulation, and I wanted her to retain the qualities of goodness and compassion despite the corruption of an imperial court and the evil people determined to harm her.

Q: HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE CHARACTER OF LEGION COMMANDER SHADRAEL?

A: I wanted a foil character for Lea, someone who’s dark, brutish, sworn to shadow, etc. Initially he was just going to be an abductor who carries her off. But of course that was too simple. I started thinking about how and why a man would become a mercenary. That led to my decision that he would be exiled from the army. If he’d achieved the rank of legion commander, it meant he’d been a very successful soldier, so what led to his discharge? That was easy to work out, but I wanted him to be even more complex. Why would an intelligent, capable man swear his allegiance to shadow, and why would he remain loyal thereafter? I’m intrigued by the ways in which people justify committing wrong or self-destructive actions. I chose to make Shadrael a man who’s lost his soul, so he can operate among the dark forces, yet he’s retained enough elemental decency to regret it. When he meets Lea, he falls pretty hard for her, and that gives him the motivation to want his soul back. Taking him through that severe inner struggle gives him some depth, and I hope he proves to be as interesting to readers as I found him.

Q: WHEN WILL THERE BE MORE BOOKS ABOUT THE ALIEN CHRONICLES?

A: To my knowledge, there are no more books planned for the series at this time.

Q: WHEN ARE THE ALIEN CHRONICLES GOING TO BE MADE INTO MOVIES?

A: They were never intended to be filmed.

Q: WHEN I WRITE A SCRIPT OR NOVEL ABOUT THE ALIEN CHRONICLES, WILL YOU READ IT OR PERSUADE GEORGE LUCAS TO LOOK AT IT FOR ME?

A: Although I’m delighted that the characters remain compelling enough for people to want to write more about them, my schedule is such that I regretfully don’t have time to look over anyone’s manuscript.
I have never met Mr. Lucas. If you want to show him any of your material, you should contact him directly through LucasFilm Publishing Ltd.

Q: WHY DOES IT TAKE SO LONG FOR MORE BOOKS ABOUT DAIN AND ALEXEIKA TO COME OUT?

A: Publication of the adventures of Dain and Alexeika alternates with books about Pheresa and Talmor. Due to my teaching schedule at the University of Oklahoma, I’ve slowed down to writing only one book a year. So if you want to read only about Dain, for example, I’m afraid you’ll have to be patient. I’ve just finished writing a new one about him, Alexeika, and their children, and expect it to be published in 2005.

Q: ARE YOU EVER GOING TO WRITE ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE BESIDES NETHER AND MANDRIA?

A: As long as enough fans want more books about Dain, Alexeika, Pheresa, and Talmor, I’ll keep writing them. However, I am working on some new ideas as well. We’ll see what my agent and editor think.

Q: ARE YOU GOING TO WRITE MORE ABOUT THE BOY ANOC?

A: Yes. Anoc was created in The King Betrayed to set in motion a number of events that will lead Dain and his legitimate sons to war. Although Anoc doesn’t appear in the 2004 book, The Queen’s Knight, he is featured in the manuscript that I just completed. It should be published sometime in 2005.