I'm deep into my fourth straight Robin Hobb (aka Megan Lindholm) novel, and she's already in my top five favorite fantasy authors. As a dog lover, the magical ability she calls "The Wit" (which allows a human to attain a "life bond" with an animal) really hit home for me, and makes her writing feel very personal and heartfelt.

My relationships with my dogs have been so intense and real they've felt like magic, so I put a similar dynamic in my new novel before I read any of her work. I was nervous about it, wondering if it would seem ridiculous, but now I'm relieved because Hobb did it so well, if I didn't already have it in my book, after reading her work I'd have had to add it.

Books don't often make me emotional, but she's brought me to tears several times already. Quite a gift!