It is the day of the autumn equinox, a time when night and day are the same length. On the other side of the world, the days are tipping towards summer while here in Sydney, Australia, there is a new crispness in the morning air, though the sky is brilliantly blue and the ocean is still warm enough for swimming. A few leaves are changing colour, though, and I'm planning my winter vegetable garden.

If I can find any time to do some gardening! It's been such a busy month, and only going to get busier.

'The Puzzle Ring' has gone off to the printers and will be hitting the bookshelves in Australia on 1st May, and in the UK in June. I'm so pleased with its gorgeous, eye-catching cover and beautiful design.

The Puzzle Ring

I spent a couple of happy days last week at the Somerset Celebration of Literature on the Gold Coast, talking to school students and adults about the joys and perils of writing fantasy fiction. It was a wonderful few days, made even better by all the other writers who were also guests. Here are just a few of them.

(from left to right): Tohby Riddle, Christine Harris, Suzanne Gervay, Lee Fox,
Kate Forsyth, P.D. Martin, Garth Nix, Kirsty Brooks, James Roy, Scot Gardner (in front).

I've also been a guest blogger on 'Ripping Ozzie Reads' – you can read what I said here, about 'The Three Ts of Writing'

And this is just a little of what I have to do in the next few weeks:

Travel Back in Time! - Thursday 16th April & Thursday 23rd April

I will be appearing at the Powerhouse Discovery Centre at Castle Hill at 10:30am, telling stories about Gypsies, Oliver Cromwell and the writing of 'The Gypsy Crown'. You can join in your own hunt for the six lost Gypsy charms, and see a real Gypsy caravan just like Luka and Emilia's! For the full program, visit the Powerhouse Museum.

Friday 1st May - OFFICIAL LAUNCH of 'The Puzzle Ring'!

Come & join me at the official launch party celebrating my new book, 'The Puzzle Ring', at the library at Balgowlah Heights Public School on Friday 1st May. Launched by Sophie Masson, the party will include a fashion parade with prizes for best costume, and a yummy afternoon tea inspired by the delicious food in the book – marmalade cupcakes and scones with blackberry jam.

Beginning at 3:30pm, my books will be available for sale and I'm always happy to sign copies!

Monday 11th May – BOOK TALK at Mosman Library

I'll be doing a 45 minute Book Talk about 'The Puzzle Ring' at Mosman Library from 4pm-5:30pm - books will be on sale by Pages & Pages

Friday, 22nd May - Writing Workshop at the NSW Writers' Centre, Rozelle

I'll be doing a CBCA writing workshop for primary students at the NSW Writers' Centre as part of the Sydney Writers festival program – for more information, keep an eye on the NSW Writers' Centre website.

Writing workshops at The Sydney Writer's Centre in May

I will be teaching 'Creative Writing Course 1' at the Sydney Writers' Centre at 55 Lavender St, Milsons Point every Thursday night for five weeks. The course begins on Thursday, 7th May and runs until Thursday, 4th June (the day after my birthday). This is a course for people just beginning to learn their craft, and will cover all sorts of styles and genres. For more information, visit the Sydney Writers' Centre.

I am also teaching 'Writing for Children' at Sydney University for four weeks in late May/early June but this is only for existing students of the university. Then I fly off to the UK in June to celebrate the launch of 'The Puzzle Ring'! What a busy few months!

But of course I've had time for reading – have a look at the books I've read during February and March.

INTERVIEW WITH JOANNE HARRIS

I'm really excited about having Joanne Harris featured in my newsletter because she is one of my all-time favourite writers. I love the way she combines sensuous descriptions of food, love, suspense and magic into one delectable whole.

Joanne is half-French, half-English. As a baby, she lived above the family sweetshop in Yorkshire (which must be the fantasy life of all young children). She spent her school holidays in France with her maternal grandparents who lived in Vitré, in Brittany (which is my fantasy life).

She has written a number of books, the most famous of which is Chocolat, made into an Oscar-nominated film starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp. Famously, the idea for the novel came to her when she was annoyed with her husband for watching the football on television. She asked him what the female equivalent of football was, and he answered "chocolate".

I love Chocolat, but my favourite Joanne Harris book is Five Quarters Of The Orange. Telling the story of a child's experiences in Nazi-occupied France, it is darker and less sweet than Chocolat but still filled with suspense, danger, love and redemption, not to mention extraordinary descriptions of food. My next favourite is Holy Fools and Blackberry Wine - which you really must read if you haven't already – and her latest book, Runemarks, a wonderful fantasy adventure for children which Joanne wrote for her daughter, Anouchka.

Her hobbies are listed in Who's Who as: "mooching, lounging, strutting, strumming, priest-baiting and quiet subversion of the system" – can't you just tell she's a kindred spirit? And here is one of my favourite quotes, from her novel Blackberry Wine:

"The process of writing is a little like madness, a kind of possession not altogether benign."

Here are the answers to my questions:

Are you a daydreamer too?
I think it comes with the territory...

Have you always wanted to be a writer?
Always. I can't think of a more wonderful way to earn a living.

Where do you write?
Mostly at home, in the library - or in the greenhouse, which has the most extraordinary light (and no phone). But I can write on the road too; in planes, trains, airports, hotel rooms. I don't need special conditions when I'm in the zone...

What is your favourite part of writing?
The moment at which everything comes together, and suddenly - wham! You're somewhere else...

What do you do when you get blocked?
I move to something else - another book, a short story, even a fanfic - and wait...

How do you keep your well of inspiration full?
I talk to people. I move around. I read. I observe.

Do you have any rituals that help you to write?
No.

Who are ten of your favourite writers?
Mervyn Peake, Ray Bradbury, Iain Banks, John Mortimer, P G Wodehouse, Edgar Allan Poe, Stephen King, Vladimir Nabokov, Angela Carter, Cormac McCarthy.

What do you consider to be good writing?
Something that I don't want to edit or proof as I read along...

What is your advice for someone dreaming of being a writer too?
Be persistent. Read omnivorously. Know how to take advice - and reject it too, when necessary. Love what you do.

What are you working on now?
I'm just finishing my latest book, Blue-eyed Boy, and also working on the sequel to Runemarks, which is presently called Runelight.

My very best wishes

www.kateforsyth.com.au