First and foremost, I’m not going to give away the ending of “Refuge” in this post so if you haven’t read it yet or are only halfway through, I promise this won’t spoil it for you.

Okay with that out of the way, I want to address the fact that there are more books to come since I have detected some frustration in recent days in regard to this. It’s not that readers haven’t liked the ending - actually let me reword that - it’s not that readers haven’t appreciated it, it’s just that they’ve ended up feeling frustrated because they want to know where Noor and Charlie’s story goes from here and they don’t want to wait.

Thankfully the majority of the comments have been of the variety that they loved the book and can’t wait for Book Two, but some have been of a more irritated nature. One reviewer told her friends that they should probably wait until Book Two arrives before plunging into Book One, while another just felt cheated.

Now first off, I apologize for not indicating the book is a series. If you’ve read my previous posts you’ll know that originally I intended it to be a single book, but when the first draft hit 250,000 words I realized I’d have to break it up into thirds. I think one of the reasons I didn’t indicate it was a series was because I didn’t know if I would write Book Two let alone Book Three. I mean what would happen if no one liked it? Would I devote thousands upon thousands of hours to what would be a fruitless exercise? Further I felt strongly that “Refuge” stood up well on its own. In fact a good friend of mine, and a nihilist of sorts, begged me not to write the other books - he felt the ending was exactly where it should end.

Now I might have agreed except I had from the get-go had a conception of where the story would culminate. I’m obviously not going to tell you what that ending is but be rest assured that I know it and it won’t change.

In terms of telling other readers to wait until all three books are finished before plunging in, I do have to object. First, if no one buys the book then there is little incentive for me to write the next two. I know how Noor and Charlie’s story ends so in a curious way I am satisfied, but I need others to want to know if I’m going to undertake the arduous task of crafting it properly.

Secondly I’m not the first author to write a book that is then followed by further installments. The master of this was Charles Dickens who released his books in twenty monthly installments, but couldn’t Stephanie Meyer and J.K. Rowling be considered more modern equivalents. Should J.K. Rowling have written all seven Harry Potters before anyone read them? Trust me if the first had sold a 1000 copies, I severely doubt she would have even gotten around to the second. 

Finally there’s a part of me that thinks that waiting is good. Delayed gratification is something that our on demand society is not used to, but it’s my suspicion from my own life experiences that it has its upsides. Whenever I have truly accomplished something in this life, I’ve often been astonished to discover that the accomplishment wasn’t that important, it was the journey I took to get there that was. Perhaps it’s a good thing that Book Two and Book Three aren’t in print yet. Perhaps it will mean that Charlie and Noor will stay with you longer, and perhaps (AND THIS IS A SPOILER SO DON’T FINISH THIS PARAGRAPH IF YOU HAVEN’T FINISHED THE BOOK) you will, in a small way, be able to share their agony at the end of Refuge. If Book Two and Book Three were readily available I doubt you would feel it so acutely - especially the injustice which so many women across the world have to endure.

So with all that said here is my pledge. I pledge that within the midst of my Hollywood, and at this time sole moneymaking, career, and without sacrificing what is most important, my family, that I will set to writing (or rewriting since I have a first draft already written) Book Two. I won’t sacrifice quality - as you know I wrote eight drafts of Refuge - but I suspect it will be a lot quicker this time around. Noor, Charlie, Tariq, Ivor, Elma, the Prince, Wali and Bushra are all now fully formed in my mind. The majority of the book takes place in Saudi Arabia and I have done the research needed to write it truthfully.

Thank you for all the comments, thank you for all your passion, thank you most of all for caring. I can’t tell you how humbled it makes me and how indebted I am to you for giving me the greatest gift a writer can ask for - to be read.