how did you write such a good book

What a nice question, Kelly: short and to the point!  The answer is it was very difficult.  I did months of research, thinking and reading about how hunter-gatherers like Torak might have lived – as well as travelling around northern Finland on horseback and sleeping in the forest, to get the feel of it.  Then I took a few months to write the story.  But that wasn’t the end, because then I spent several more months doing the most important bit, which was re-writing: cutting out the boring bits, making it clearer, and above all, really thinking about how it felt to be Torak or Renn – or, of course, Wolf.  (Strangely enough, I found writing Wolf’s bits the easiest; I’ve no idea why.)  It took about a year to get the story the way I wanted it.  So I’m really glad that you enjoyed it – and I hope that in time, you might enjoy the other eight books in the series. May the guardian run with you!  With best wishes, Michelle