I had the most delightful fan letter today from a ten year old boy who had just finished reading Halfling with his volunteer reading tutor from Beanstalk, [a charity that helps children who have fallen behind in reading].
I felt kind of sad that I couldn't say I would be writing another book like it. Of course in my thinking there isn't another Danny Broadaxe, although I know that sequels and follow-on books about the same characters are pretty normal these days. People seem to want more of the same, rather than something new. This might be a phase the reading public is going through and the publishing houses are cashing in on, as with all the Potter books. But I have to say that it kind of reminds me of a day I watched a man doing several paintings at the same time on canvases lined up in his studio, first each canvas got a bit of sky, then each got a piece of sand, then waves etc. Like a machine. I expect you might have to be a bit older than ten to appreciate the idea of something that is unique, but the commonality of what the sweet child asked for was a bit saddening somehow.