When I was at the beginning stages of writing my book there were 2 things that Ursula K. Leguin said about writing that encouraged me to keep at it. And I am paraphrasing here but they have stuck in my head for all these years and left a mark. If you stay with a story long enough you will be able to tell it. After 9 years of writing – it took me a while to find the story – these words kept me going. Also there was something about how writing in the fantasy/sci-fiction genres provided a cover for you to explore ideas without offending or drawing attention from the censors or the big THEY out there. In other words you can pretty much say what you want. THEY probably aren’t looking. Fantasy fictions are fairy tales and may be thought of in the same harmless category. Take Margaret Atwood for instance with her imaginative visions of our future. Fiction, right? But a pretty scathing commentary on our world. Words for thought . . .