"Hi!  Welcome to my world of magic!

"Fantasy, whether to read or to write it, has that wonderful feeling of getting away from it all - like taking a holiday in some exotic location, with deserted sandy beaches, rolling seas and evenings, with the old vino flowing, against a sky aglow with sunset.

"If you're like me, it's an exciting experience to come across a new fantasy you really enjoy.  You are thrilled to enter a strange new world you can lose yourself in for a while.  Yours is the pleasure of getting to know the characters really well so you can identify with them and their struggles.  If it's really imaginative and well written, you won't ever want it to end.  This is what epic fantasy should be about.  It's what makes it the most demanding of fiction to write, and the most exhilarating to read.  This is what I set out to create for you in The Snowmelt River - a wonderland, both magical and perilous, that you can drop into, like Alice, for a while.  Alan, Kate, Mark and Mo are waiting for you to join them there..."

To sail The Snowmelt River, grab hold of the Fir Bolg battleaxe...  May your voyage be eventful!