It came in at 202 typed pages, 115,325 words and 25 chapters. I tend to aim for 200 pages minimum when I write a new book, so I’m satisfied. (If you’re wondering, I’ve found that when in print a book generally has twice as much pages as it did as a manuscript – so if it gets published it’ll be about 404 pages long in print).

…Actually, I’m mostly just completely exhausted. I had made plans to take two writing days this week, because I thought that’s what I would need if I wanted to finish it this week. Looks like I get Wednesday off, though I don’t know what I’ll do with it; go to the movies or something, maybe. In any case, the little holiday I’m going on this weekend will feel very well-earned indeed.

~KJT, feeling a little dizzy and suffering possible RSI in her left wrist, and no wonder.

Having worked in an after school care program for about six years, I of course learned quite a bit about children – and not just how to supervise them (it’s almost impossible).

A common myth about kids is that they’re imaginative. Yep, when you’re a kid it’s all magical fairies and skipping off to see the wizard. But it’s not really true. I spent hundreds of hours watching kids aged six to twelve playing together, and they really aren’t that imaginative. Mostly they just mimicked whatever they’d seen on TV or at the movies.When they wrote or told stories, those were generally imitations of something as well.

Some of them would pester me to tell them stories – not something I’m actually that great at. Not improvising them on the spot, anyway. So I recited the (slightly censored) plots of most of my novels. The kids were all deeply impressed by the things I’d imagined, and I would say that’s half of all good storytelling right there.

In any case, it’s interesting to consider: a Primary (or Elementary, if you’re American) school-aged kid couldn’t have come up with what I’ve come up since I started publishing novels. Small children can’t write novels, and it’s not just because they haven’t had enough practise with words. It’s because a good imagination – at least according to my personal theory- is something that has to be learned.

Most people start writing things when they’re in highschool. And, almost without exception, what they write at this point is fanfiction. Either it’s intentional fanfiction (see: Fanfiction.net and about 30% of the rest of the Internet), or it’s something they think is original but is actually just a regurgitation of something they’ve read or watched – in other words, fanfiction in denial. I’m not excluding myself from this, by the way. I first started writing bits and pieces when I was about thirteen, and it was fanfiction, even though I didn’t know what fanfiction was at the time and the Internet hadn’t been invented yet. I wrote an entire shelf full of (terrible) fanfiction before I eventually wised up.

Ultimately, it wasn’t until I’d spent years mimicking my favourite authors that I finally developed ideas that I could call my own. And I believe that’s the case for everyone. I couldn’t have done that when I was thirteen, and I couldn’t do it at sixteen. I had to learn how to be truly creative. This is also why I scoffed at George R R Martin’s statement about fanfiction. He doesn’t allow it, and when people said “but it’s good practise”, he claimed that he never wrote it, and lots of other people didn’t either, and fanfiction is a waste of time (I’m paraphrasing, but I believe that was the gist of it). Frankly, I don’t believe him. I’m willing to bet he wrote fanfiction when he was a kid, but just didn’t realise that’s what it was. Because in the beginning, that’s all you know how to write. Unlike him I’m willing to own up to it – but it’s nothing to be embarrassed about.

I suppose if I’m trying to impart some sort of meaningful life lesson here, it’s that you shouldn’t expect to magically come up with a brilliant, 100% original idea of your own when you’re just starting out. It doesn’t work that way. It didn’t for me, and I seriously doubt it does for anyone else. Creativity and ideas come to those who work for it, and it comes with life experience as well, which children just don’t have. You can’t write interesting and realistic characters when you only know ten people.

I could be wrong, of course, and feel free to argue with me. But that’s what I think, and it seems valid to me.

~KJT, being insufferable again.

In the meantime, I have a question for anyone reading this: would you like it if I wrote more short prequel stories for the site? I haven’t done any in quite a while, but I’ve been thinking that perhaps I should go back to it. Is there a character you’d like to learn more about, or something else you’d like to see expanded? Don’t be shy; I want to know what you think.

~KJT, who is now close to 100 pages into book 13, and slightly scared.

Anyone have any suggestions? Something that goes with Puzzle would be good, and nothing too cute.

So, can you guess which one is the little and which one is the big? It’s a toughie!

~KJT, whose shoulders are occupied again.

And if anyone’s wondering, yes I did embroider that robe I’m wearing myself.

Here is a picture of me aged five, playing with a snake. I remember I was sick at the time, but that snake cheered me right up.

What can I say? I like snakes, and they like me back. Although that could be because I’m hot-blooded.

Apparently, my little buddy here is camera shy. Note the big paws – they show he’s only a youngster.

On a related note, this is my current backdrop. Most people would probably find this picture horrifying, but to me it’s the equivalent of a basket of fuzzy kittens. There’s no accounting for taste, I suppose.

Statistics aside, finishing this book means that I have finally reached a point I’ve been building up to for about seven years: I am now ready to begin writing the fifth and final trilogy in the series, which as I’ve said here before is called The Falling Sky trilogy. Seven years of planning, and I can finally start. I’m very excited, and I intend to see to it that the series ends with a bang – or several. The ultimate ending to the entire series. Odd to think of, but I think it’ll be worth the wait.

Of course, I’m not expecting you to share my excitement at this point; if any of these books are ever published it won’t be for a long time. For now, the enjoyment is all mine. I’ll have to wait a while before I can pass it on. But there’ll be that to look forward to, at least.

Three cons. Two Supanovas, and a Conflux/Natcon to follow. How do I sum it all up? To be honest, by the end of these things you start losing track of how many people you’ve talked to, how many books you’ve signed, and what day of the week it is. In between my con-going this month I also had my day job to go to, plus my new home was under construction and half the time I wasn’t there to keep an eye on things, which was a tad on the stressful side, but as always, we got through.

And now that things have quietened down, I’m left wondering what I can say about the cons themselves. Should I write a poetic blog about how much fun I had, with some self-congratulatory blather about all the famous people I chatted to (for the record: quite a few, and all of them were lovely)?

In the end, I decided not to. Instead, I shall (for once) put my ego aside and recommend two books I read this month, both of whose authors I met and signed alongside. The first one was The Landing by Colin Taber (see below for some accidental product placement for that one), and Bloody Waters by Jason Franks. Both excellent books written by very nice guys. I highly recommend them.

I’d also like to give a shout-out to Tad Williams, who I signed next to at the Gold Coast. He’s a very wise, kind man, and I enjoyed talking to him. I also enjoyed the company of my friend and fellow Voyager author Kylie Chan, Hugh Howey, and Marianne De Pierres (I hope I spelled that right!), who shares an agent with me. It was so wonderful hanging out with fellow authors again. I look forward to doing it again.

Advertising? What advertising?

And finally… this month everyone has been asking me about my currently-under-construction home. Well, it’s finished. At least, the outside is – the inside still has to be fitted out. But the outside is lovely and here, as promised, is the proof.

Yurt Sweet Yurt

And finally… I was in Melbourne when I heard the news that my yurt was ready to go up. I therefore decided that I’d only buy useful, household items at the con. So I picked up a set of Portal 2 coasters. And there was much rejoicing.

~KJT, who suspects she may have fallen in love with her beautiful new yurt.