From: helen (hmalbert@charter.net)

I just finished reading The Blue Place. What a great book. Your language is so sensual and the descriptions so apt. As a woodworker, I especially enjoyed your description of making the rocking chair. Do you do woodworking yourself?

I read The Blue Place after reading Stay. Now I'm going to read Stay again. I'm really glad there's to be another Aud book. She's a great character who deserves more adventures. What made you choose Norway as her country of origin?

It wasn't a conscious choice. I had a dream about a woman who killed a man, and was wondering about her when I just happened to come across some books about Norway. (For more about that, listen to this excerpt from an NPR radio interview broadcast last week.)

Ah, but it wasn't just coincidence. My reticular activating system was ready to see those books about Norway. Why? I think it's because of how, and, more specifically, where I grew up: in the north of England, which was settled by the Norse for hundreds of years. They left a mark on the language and culture of the region. The ground had been turned and sown; the dream was the spring sun that made the notion sprout.

I'm sorry to say that, no, don't know one end of a chisel from the other. I do love the idea of it, though, of working with wood, putting my hands on something and shaping it. I love the feel and smell of wood. Love its honesty: it grows, it shows its grain, it can take a lot of use and still look fine. All those patterns. It's like looking at the clouds, or flames, or a fractal. Wonderful stuff.

I was very excited to read that ALWAYS is on the horizon.

I must say I loved The Blue Place and Stay, although The Blue Place left ME in a "blue place" for days after reading an ending so full of poignant loss. (I have my own personal theory that the great majority of individuals in therapy are there centering around issues of loss and we as humans strongly react on a visceral level to vicarious experience of loss in print, visual media, or in music.)

I have written to you before and compared your writing to Annie Dillard who writes so poetically and beautifully in Pilgrim at Tinker Creek and An American Childhood. Both of those works contain brutal and violent pictures balanced with images of the graces provided in nature which occur in our prescence everyday if we just open ourselves to claim them.

I read your response to a reader who said she did not "get" the ending of Stay and was looking for more pages. Your explanation was so very beautiful and has other meaning for me at this moment in my life. I got it then and I get it now...

I am pleased to hear that Aud may continue to find her true core while not losing her whole self. Very pleased to read no tragedy. I STILL maintain that Xena deserved a happy ending.[g] Hmmmm, Aud too seemingly is on a road to a personal redemption of sorts now that I think about it. I do hope she finds it.

I somewhere had a question in all this for you but Lord knows where it went! I hope this isn't an "age" thing. :)

Nevertheless, I look forward to Aways. I wish you continued good things in life.

Yes, Xena should have had a better ending. Death is such an easy way out. It's become a great cliche: let's substitute cheap drama for real thought. It's a failure of imagination. On the other hand, Buffy had a great ending. Aud won't have an ending in that sense. I think I'll write the occasional Aud book as and when it pleases me. She'll go on forever--or at least as long as I have stories to tell. When I no longer have stories about her, I'll stop. I won't kill her off. I've had enough of grief for a while. I've lost too many people: two sisters, and just before Christmas, my mother.

You know, I still haven't read Annie Dillard. She's on my wishlist but somehow never gets bought. Perhaps one year I'll just say, Enough of working, time to just read for a few months. Has anyone reading this ever done that?

From: anonymous

Re: earlier question on immigration My sweetie is from Doncaster, though two of her grandparents were native Welsh speakers so she would say she is British not just English. She gets irritated when everyone assumes she's from London; does that happen to you?

Canada, like other countries, changes the rules all the time. Now we could get full-out federally married here, but ironically, the rules for immigrating here in the first place have changed, so neither of us would be eligible now. (I haven't written Ammonite or won Wimbledon I am afraid ;-)

We thought about the Netherlands also; we love Amsterdam. We always talk about moving back to England (I spent as much time there as I could) but I don't think we'd civil-partner because at this point, we have lived together long enough, it wouldn't make any difference. Besides, if we wanted a wedding we could have one in Toronto!

By the way I'm a Southerner myself so I understand about Atlanta...

From: Tiffany

Just writing back about your response to my comment on 7-30-06 posting.

You are right to assume that I had the misconception of thinking that all lesbian books would be about the character's first time and such things. I am in a point of my life where I've read a lot of YA books, and those are usually about first time: first date, first kiss et cetera. So I just got the idea that about books about lesbians. I was getting tired of this kind of books and want a break from it. However now I was proven wrong about my assumption of lesbian books.

I think another factor of my initial response is the residual effect of growing up in a family who thinks homosexuality is wrong. I'm not making excuses for my relatives but they grew up in a country where being gay is one of the worst things possible, while I grew up in America. As a child I just agreed with my parents because they are my parents and are suppose to teach you how to live life. Also as a child I had this belief that parents knew everything and everything they say was the truth. But their view about homosexuals never sat well with me, when I actually understood what homosexuality was, because it contradicts the lessons I've learned in school from kindergarten and up about treating everybody as equals that no matter the difference and that the Bill of Rights are suppose to guarantee that.

It wasn't until in highschool several years ago when a brave classmate of mine announced at a school assembly that she was a lesbian that I consciously decided that my family was wrong. (Probably long over due.)

As for if I will read anymore books about lesbians, I actually found these two great mystery series, one is the Kate Martinelli series by Laurie R. King and the other is the Micky Knight series by J.M. Redmann.

First of all, sorry to take so long to get back to you. I've been a bit remiss with Ask Nicola duties/pleasures the last few months. I love doing this stuff, but when actual fiction and essay writing calls (as it's done a lot since last summer), with written deadlines and money riding on the line, I find it hard to justify taking too much time away from it. I could, of course, just write one line answers to these AN questions, but that seems, hmmn, 'disrespectful' isn't the precise word I'm looking for, but something like. I feel as though every question and comment reserves thought. Thought takes time.

But, okay, I'm here now. Thank you for writing back. My family thought homosexuality was wrong, too. They don't anymore; Kelley is very much a part of the group. But life wasn't always easy growing up. Wasn't always awful, either, but parts of it certainly were. The thing is, families are often wrong. Often, too, they come around. The most astonishing thing is how well they rewrite history. I think mothers have a special gift for this. Everyone convinces themselves that they always treated you well, because that's what they wish had been true. It can feel bittersweet, sometimes.

I, too, announced at school that I like girls. Though it wasn't with words: I got caught in flagrante delicto with my girlfriend in the Chaplain's office. Actually, we got caught so many times in so many places that eventually the school heirarchy couldn't ignore it. I was threatened with the Board of Governors (i.e. expulsion)...but that's a long story, and will have to wait for my memoirs.

From: carol

Does it make you smile for an instant when big stars like Brad Pitt and Charlize Theron tell the world that they won't wed their partners until everyone can marry in this country?

It does me. And my wife. Unlike you and Kelley, we didn't wait - we got married in Victoria BC last July. It will be years and years before our marriage certificate counts here in Texas, but our friends and family are thrilled, and I guess there are states where it is valid.

Yep. Though it would make me smile more if they didn't have to, y'know?

Many congratulations. I can't wait until it's all legal here. Plus, we can register again. Presents! Party!