From: clare

Have just finished reading Stay in bed last night; can’t believe that there’s no more Aud for a while. The Blue Place was a revelation and Stay was a wonderful follow-up. To keep me reading I’m ordering another copy of The Blue Place from your recommended University Bookstore and I’m trying to think of what you can sign in it for me!

You’ve introduced me to a wonderful person - in fact many people via your books and like Jen in her e-mail I can’t wait, [but I know I’ll have to] for more of Aud. ps Thanks for an excellent web-site too.

I've had a few compliments about the website lately, which pleases me greatly. I was saying to Kelley the other day: Why do so few writers have websites? And why are so many of them such crap? She gave me a jaded look and said: Because, hon, it's a lot of work. Oh, I said, right. Having said that, though, it's really only a lot of work on the front end. The first few months might be tough going but after that it's fairly easy. If I answer lots of Ask Nicola questions, I can burn up a few hours, true, but otherwise it's only a few minutes here and there. And I get an enormous kick out of seeing all that stuff in one place. All those words. It's not the same kind of pleasure I get from writing fiction, but it's similar.

I'll look forward to hearing from Duane at University Book Store about signing that copy of Stay.

From: Lynne (bie-line@earthink.net)

Based on The Blue Place/Stay... The series of Aud Torvingen are under my skin to STAY... I would like to express that you captured the Norwegian Culture/Spirit as REAL as I have experienced... The visit to Tante Hjordis brought a deep heartfelt memory (geitost and tyttebaer...and never forget the romme on the table with the fine enamel spoons /silver and pewter... Every meal was a "formal" and Norwegian prayer...and the trolls and folklore were precious!)... I appreciate Aud... She is brilliant, fine, loner and volnerable... To listen and understand the duel of Aud's thoughts draws us in so deep; the complex nature of all of us...

I am a Vigland/Kartevold of Norway... Vigland is my Mother's side - Your views on Vigland were most enlightening (egotistical/monster-truth) Most fasinating.... Skal...

Are you saying that you're related to Vigland, the sculptor? Very cool.

I get an *enormous* kick out of hearing that I got the Norwegian details right. So much of writing is describing feelings, places, and events that are impossible to experience. In The Blue Place those impossibilities (not impossible, but certainly not yet experienced by me) were all things Norwegian, and what it feels like to kill people. I've heard from a few Norwegians and people who have lived in Norway--but not from any killers. At least not that I know of. (Anyone out there who--ah, no, forget I asked that. Not sure I want to know. Except, of course, I really do. Sort of. Curiosity can be a terrible itch.)

Anyway, back to Vigland. I'd like to see those sculptures one day. I'd like to walk in Sognefjord, see that church, visit a couple of clubs in Oslo, meet someone like Hjordis. One of these fine days.

From: Mary Pardo (mpardo@nc.rr.com)

Ok, this may not be exactly in the same universe as the books you listed (but I find myself sharing some of your preferences--Patchett is a graceful, effortless kind of writer [Magician's Assistant was very sweet]; and Sarah Waters is a bit of a phenomenon, though I find her wordy--there's melodrama and there's melodrama): have you read Sebald's Austerlitz? Even translated from the German as it is, it reads with a fluency that I find irresistible. It IS very Old Europe, but the irony is sharp, the melancholia is profound, and the evocations of place are amazing. If you enjoyed Patchett, you might also like an equally graceful writer, Carol Anshaw--but maybe you find her too much a miniaturist? Lucky in the Corner, in its quiet way, struck me as genuinely life-affirming without sentiment--and with a sly wit (plus I like it that her novels always have a lesbian protagonist).

I know what you mean about actors metamorphosing into their roles. I never understood about theater until I experienced a season of live performances by a small repertory company in Pittsburgh. It was awesome, especially as these were anything but famous actors, just deeply attuned to the plays they were enacting. All of the artificiality of the stage set, the literary language, the conventions of gesture, the entrances and exits, just melted away, as if some higher reality had been unveiled.

BTW, I too look forward to more short story postings (not to mention castoffs from Aud's story-to-come).

I've heard many good things of Carol Anshaw. I actually half expected Lucky in the Corner to win the Lambda Literary Award this year. I haven't read a thing by W.G. Sebald. Again, though, I've heard good things, so, particularly after your recommendation, I think it's probably time to go ahead and give him a try.

I'm also intrigued by the fact that the translator is Anthea Bell. I think she's very, very good. I first encountered her work in my teens, reading the Asterix books. I read them in English, first, and thought them howlingly funny (I still like some of them). A fascinating combination of visual and verbal jokes, and the more you know of ancient history, the funnier it gets. When I found out they were originally published in French, I had to take a look. My French has never been that great, but with the help of the pictures and a dictionary, I figured out that the French and the English were pretty damn different, yet the English version read as though it was the natural one. I made a mental note of the translator's name and have never forgotten it.

From: anonymous

I don't have a question, just some book recommendations in response to your request. I realize you asked for a blurb describing each. I hope you'll forgive me for providing only the titles and authors.

Jenifer Levin: WATER DANCER, SNOW, THE SEA OF LIGHT. An extraordinary author, I've read and re-read these books compulsively over the years. There's always something new to discover and old treasures to shine and buff.

Jane Rule, DESERT OF THE HEART. In my humble opinion her very best work. BTW the movie is good in it's own right. :)

Laurie R. King, Kate Martinelli Series: A GRAVE DEATH, TO PLAY THE FOOL, WITH CHILD (personal fave), NIGHT WORK. Mary Russell Series: THE BEEKEEPER'S APPRENTICE (too many others to list & very easy to research...besides the first is my favorite).

S.M. Stirling & Shirley Meier, Fifth Millenium Novels: THE SHARPEST EDGE (do NOT under any circumstances read the re-write, SABER AND SHADOW, a pathetic travesty), SNOW BROTHER (the rest of the books in the series aren't up to par in quality but you might want to try them just as filler), THE CAGE, SHADOW'S SON.

I'll stop now. If you like any of the authors/books let me know and I'll share some more faves.

BTW KUDOS!!!! STAY is an amazing sequel. It made me appreciate THE BLUE PLACE a lot more than I had originally. Initially I just couldn't feel any empathy for Aud...she was just too far out of my frame of reference. I suppose the fact that I was much younger when I first read it also played a huge part in my perception shift. Even old favorites take on an extremely different resonance when you read them again years later...all things being relative. Just so you know...I hate coming off as a fawning fan but credit where credit is due... AMMONITE falls under my "all time favorites" category. In fact, the cover is starting to look like it's pleading for a respite from my grubby paws!

Thank you for a tremendous reading experience time after time.

I'm glad Stay gave you a new perspective on Aud. I'm hoping that the new novel will do the same thing. After all, not only has Aud grown and changed, but now that we're all a bit better acquainted with how she works, we have the leisure to stip off some of the barriers and really take a look at what's underneath.

As for your favourites: yes, I like Laurie R. King's work. A lovely combination of plot and character, with the kind of overarching intelligence--historical, social, linguistic--that can't be faked, and which I treasure. The one book of Levin's that I managed, Sea of Light, I admired, but didn't like. I may be misremembering, but it's not a book with a lot of hope in it. I am coming to see more and more clearly that that is one of my requirements for a great novel.

From: anonymous

Have you ever tried any of the Xena fan fiction posted on the net?

Yep. I had a poke around online two or three years ago. Most of it is truly awful, but there's one short story I came across (and, of course, I can't remember what it was called or who it was by) which stunned me. It was a powerful, hard-boned tale of sex and power and responsibility between Xena and Gabrielle. Reading it was like walking through a wood at dusk: otherworldly but very earthy. Amazing work. I delayed writing to the author, and of course lost the printout I made of the story, and then couldn't face wading through the crud online again to find it. But if anyone out there recognises the piece I'm talking about, I'd love to hear from you.