Like a third child — more awareness, more experience. Though no less nerve-wracking.

The trilogy was born by accident. But the ending that came out of the first book seemed to hint that it wouldn't be a bad idea to continue. The editor who worked on my book confirmed it: 'Good ending. Especially if you're planning a sequel.' And besides, I had plenty more to share — after moving to another country, we'd already stirred up enough material for a couple more books.

I wrote the second book, like the first, in about a year. But not every day — more when the mood struck. Plus there were three or four months when I got hit by what I call 'writer's block,' during which I stubbornly tried several times to squeeze out even half a line — for nothing. Not a chance. Not a single word. I'd sit down at the computer, hold my hands over the keyboard, and... twenty minutes with not one thought in my head.

So I backed off. Actually, ever since I became a writer, I've often practiced 'backing off from myself' and not forcing anything. If I don't feel like it, I don't make myself do it.

The block passed on its own, and I happily sat back down to the book. I finished it fairly quickly, in a couple of months — I was even surprised it went so fast. But my heroine (meaning me, apparently) pulled another open ending, and the third book more or less invited itself.

The heroine, just like in life, is a woman of her word — when she wants to, she gives it; when she wants to, she takes it back :)))

I could have stopped at the second book. But somewhere in the middle of editing, a Prologue wrote itself, unexpectedly. Well, how about that! And a decent prologue too. Which is funny, because while editing the second book, I somehow ended up going back to the first one too! I surprised myself, because I saw that experienced writers are right — experience comes with every new book. What if it turns into a masterpiece! Look how well that prologue came together.

In truth, the third book is still just notes and a handful of written scenes, exactly how the first two started out. But the main thing is that this book is meant to close out my current life stage. Which means part of the book hasn't even been lived yet. We're living, right now, the very thing I'll write about once this stage is over.

Something like that.