Yes, it’s finally time for The Wall Of Night #4 (working title: The Chaos Gate) update.

Back in July I reported being on the cusp between the endgame setup and the final denouement, when all the character arcs and storylines will resolve (where they have not done so already.)

And no, “resolve” does not mean “dies”: i.e. WALL #4 is not a Shakespearean tragedy where all the main protagonists usually end dying messily in the final scene. So perhaps I should have written, “resolve, whether happily or unhappily.” 😉

In July, I also reported that I was going to have to rejig some earlier material, an exercise that turned out to be considerably more major than I anticipated. All setbacks are, of course, always the author’s responsibility, but the three C’s—aka Characters Behaving Badly, continuity (with earlier sections but also the previous books), and contrary, if not downright cantankerous muses—also play their part.

However, all the gnarls and passages-of-arms did eventually resolve (that word again), allowing the story to roll onward. There is still a large part of the denouement to write, but Kalan is currently in the right place, Malian is well along the path, and as of today I commenced the final instalment of the heralds’ arc. So I can report steady progress.

I’m sorry I can’t offer more specific information at this stage, but with the writing at a critical stage I don’t want to jinx anything by getting ahead of myself. So it’s “steady as she goes” time—but I have pencilled in 7 April for the next update, if not before. (All writing digits pretzelled.)

Remember, too, that the places to check for updates (if they’re not at the top of the masthead) is under “About My Books” & “About What I’m Doing” (under Categories in the far-right-hand sidebar.)

Thank you, too, as always, for staying the course with me and for continuing to check in. It’s greatly appreciated, as are you.

A virtual bouquet