Hello Mr. Cornwell, I just finished reading your book “The Last Kingdom”. What a wonderful book except that I will have to devote yet more time reading “The Pale Horseman”. :-) I am attempting to write a novel myself. I read your short writers guide and found it to be very helpful indeed. There are still questions I have about the process though. How do you go about creating your story and developing your characters? How much forethought goes into the process? At what point do you feel good enough about an idea to actually start writing it? I fear that I am not articulating the questions with enough accuracy to get clear answers which may be due to my not fully understanding what exactly I am trying to ask. I realize you must get many inquiries so please accept my gratitude for your indulgence. Sincerely, Richard Free