Well, haven’t we all got that nostalgic back-to-school feeling? 

There has been rather a lot going on, most of it unfortunately having little to do with writing. We have moved house, work has been predictably busy (who doesn’t love an Autumn Statement ready to drop faster than the rusting leaves), and the last few weeks have disappeared into unpacking, redecorating, broadband problems and trying to work out why old houses have quite so many switches that apparently do nothing. 

All of which is a long way of saying that progress on book three has been slow. But it is still progressing. It is just taking its time, like a slow-sprouting crop oblivious to the fact that at some point lots of big shiny machinery is going to turn up and expect it to have done something. 

I have, to be fair, always been fairly resistant to the idea that books should be factory-farmed, and I would rather not rush something out simply because the anxious publisher in my head says I should. This is one of my less favourite internal voices. I far prefer the one that suggests building Lego while watching a rerun of Grand Designs is a perfectly valid life choice after a long day dealing with demanding clients, even more demanding cracks in the walls and wondering whether your own grand designs have reached the point where you’ve discovered the supporting steels were ordered in the wrong size. 

But despite all these competing demands for my attention, I’m not quite able to leave the third book alone. That’s the thing about writing: once you’ve opened that door, it has a tendency to jam. 

The first draft is taking shape, although admittedly the shape changes often, as I try to figure out where I am. Literally. You see, my next book is set in The Countryside, which seemed like quite a lot of fun before I moved into a countryside home and remembered just how big the spiders get. 

We will be out in the wilds of Hepshire rather than the Citadel, with Taryn Underfoot returning home for a bit of an escape and discovering, inevitably, that work has somehow followed her. There is modern magic in the land, and quite a lot going on behind closed doors. And you know what they say about one door opening: sometimes it really would be better if it hadn’t. 

In other news, the audiobook of Trading Futures will be out in November, which is very exciting. Sarah Kempton will be performing her own special kind of magic once again. I loved hearing her bring Modern Magic to life, and I am looking forward to hearing what she does with Wrex, Hop and the rest. More on that soon.

So life is settling down a little, and I am finding my way into book three. Just in time to watch the leaves fall as I write, and those big shiny machines turn up in the fields next door.