Beyond the Book: Background information when reading The Runes of The Earth

Beyond the Book

This article relates to The Runes of The Earth

When asked why he waited two decades before starting The Last Chronicles Donaldson says that he's had  the story in mind for at least 25 years but that he wanted to prove to his readers and himself that he could write other types of stories, and write them well; plus he admits to being afraid - 'At my first glimpse of "The Last Chronicles," I knew that it would be astonishingly difficult to write; that as a narrative exercise it would make the previous "Covenant" stories look like a stroll in the park. If this last story is done right, if it fulfills my intentions, it will complete and unify the entire saga. But in order to accomplish that goal I'll have to go far beyond my known abilities, both as a story-teller and as a writer. The prospect terrified me. It still does. The argument could be made that everything I've written since I first conceived "The Last Chronicles" has been an attempt to expand my abilities and resources; to make myself ready for the story I'm writing now.'

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This article relates to The Runes of The Earth. It first ran in the September 1, 2005 issue of BookBrowse Recommends.