[emerald_dragyn]

P.S- And are you/have you ever been afraid of dogs?

[alison]

Hi Emerald-dragyn -

I was wondering if book 4 will be called 'The Singing' in australia, or 'The Song'?

Book 4 will be called The Singing everywhere, unless I can come up with a better title!

Also, will Irc play a large part in The Crow? I know it's a silly question, but does he do anything heroic, or save the day, or turn out to be something in disguise?

Yes, Irc is very important, not to say crucial, in various ways - but I'm not saying how - :)

And where can I get mushrooms like Innail has???

Try Swiss mushrooms, fried slowly with garlic, pepper and about half a pound of butter - absolutely delicious!

And last question: Is it against bard etiquette to interfere with another's school? I was thinking about Ettinor, and why other bards haven't intervened to help the people?

Yes, Schools are autonomous, although Bards from other Schools would protest anything they perceieve as being out of the Balance. In Annar, it would really be Norloch's job to get Ettinor to behave, as the First Bard would have the authority to order them to - but obviously, that is going to happen...

What is a usual day's work like? Do you work according to a strict schedule or is it a more flexible one?

Hi whitesilkbreeze...

My day really varies, according to what I'm doing - if I'm writing a novel, I aim to do my words. Sometimes it happens in the morning, sometimes not until the evening, sometimes it doesn't happen at all...there are days when I simply can't write. In between, I do things like the washing up, eating lunch, making the bed, taking the dog for a walk...today I have a meeting about a poetry prize I'm helping to judge, and hoping it doesn't derail The Crow appendices, which finally have started moving...

And when did you start writing stories and/or poetry?

I really can't remember. I've always written verses - my mother says I wrote a poem on my first day at school, though I obviously don't remember that. I think it came with learning to read and write!

And finally - no Emerald_dragyn, I've never been afraid of dogs. When I was a toddler my mother bred Great Danes, and I used to run around with them. I still have a scar on my foot where one bit me when I trod on its bone, but even that didn't cause any fear (I must have understood why it did it, and apparently the dog was very sorry afterwards). Obviously I thought I was a puppy, because I barked before I talked.

[Aras]

If you had to choose between poetry and writing stories (absolutly had to for some reason..) which would you decide upon?

AND... in your mind, what do you consider the most difficult part of writing. :p

[Quinn]

If Bards live three times longer than non-Bards, why do they not have a longer childhood? And are Bard women able to conceive even when they're into their second lifetime? I just was wondering why (or if) silvia and malgorn didn't have any chlidren after their daughter died. Was the heartbreak too much?

Also, how big is edil-amarandh, compared to continents like Africa etc?

And finally (phew) which is the oldest school? I have a feeling it's Turbansk...

bummer I just thought of more questions, but this post is long enough now!!

[owleye]

did bard get killed like they usued to do to people they thought of as witches?

[Brockie]

I remember finishing one day's work in a foul mood because Maerad and Cadvan had ended up on top of a cliff, and I had no idea how they were going to get down...

LOL, I think I remember that, was that when Maerad got impatient with Cadvan and felt like pushing him off the cliff?

[Aras]

... P.S. why did the bards (or whoever they were) write Maerad's true name in the profecy (sp)? Did they not realize anyone who read it could have power over her? :confused:

[alison]

If you had to choose between poetry and writing stories (absolutly had to for some reason..) which would you decide upon?

Hi Aras - in that unlikely event, it would be poetry, which has never been about choice for me - it's always been something I had to do, for reasons which remain mysterious.

AND... in your mind, what do you consider the most difficult part of writing.

ALL of it... :D I think the first draft is often most difficult - when it's down, then I can work on it, which I really enjoy, but especially with these books, I feel anxious until it's there.

Hi Quinn -

If Bards live three times longer than non-Bards, why do they not have a longer childhood? And are Bard women able to conceive even when they're into their second lifetime? I just was wondering why (or if) silvia and malgorn didn't have any chlidren after their daughter died. Was the heartbreak too much?

Phew, that's a tricky question! I would think the physical maturation of a Bard would be pretty much like ours, but for some reason their aging mechanism (which is built into our biology) operates very differently. So they don't grow any more slowly, but age a lot more slowly.

Also, how big is edil-amarandh, compared to continents like Africa etc?

Hmmm - not sure. I was never strong on geography... I suspect it's a little smaller. Some scholars think it existed in the middle of the Atlantic.

And finally (phew) which is the oldest school? I have a feeling it's Turbansk...

Yes, Turbansk claims to be the oldest School, and that is probably correct - it existed well before the Great Silence.

did bard get killed like they usued to do to people they thought of as witches?

Hi Owleye - yes, in some places they did - that's why Hem was so secretive about having what he called the "witchspeak", because he feared being stoned or drowned.

... P.S. why did the bards (or whoever they were) write Maerad's true name in the prophecy? Did they not realize anyone who read it could have power over her?

Hi Owleye - Yes, Lanorgil would have known that danger. Which maybe makes it a bit mysterious, though there had to be some way of identifying her as the One. But perhaps he also suspected that she had other resources, like her Elemental Name, which she might not have known about if her Truename was not exposed.

Yes Brockie, it was when Maerad wanted to push Cadvan off the cliff - which was probably a reflection of how I felt!

Now, I'm going to be quiet for a while - I really have to get these appendices finished and sent off, or The Crow will never come out - and we can't have that!!!!

[emerald_dragyn]

Sorry, I forgot to ask these questions before,

Will Maerad ever return to Gilman's cot, to face her demons and free the slaves and take swift and terrible revenge?

and

When you hear Maerad and Cadvan talk in your head, do you imagine them with Australian accents?

Just for whenever you finish those appendices! The very last thing all us desperate fans want to do is hold you up! Even a day late would be disastrous!! :eek:

*waves to everyone*

Emerald :) :) :)

[owleye]

erm, i dont n wheather itsb been ake and ifffffso im sorry wat dont you like about wrighting