Q. When is your next book coming out? The fourth Julia Grey book—Dark Road to Darjeeling—will be out in October 2010.

Q. Will there be more books in the series? Absolutely! I love writing the Julia Grey books, and would be perfectly happy to work on the series for a long time to come. I also love the challenge of writing something different, and I’m also fortunate that my publisher wants to bring out some stand-alone titles for me. Either way, I get to write, which makes me happy.

Q. Will you be coming to my town? Maybe! You can follow my appearance schedule on my website—just go to the Tours page. It should always have the most current and accurate information. You can also get up-do-date information via my newsletter, Facebook, or Twitter.

Q. Can I get e-mail updates? Of course! You can sign up for e-mail updates by entering my monthly contest or directly by sending a blank e-mail to deannaraybourn-join@authorlists.com. (Of course, either method will add you to my mailing list, but you can only enter my contest by filling out the form on the contest page.)

Q. Have the film rights been sold? Not yet. A few production companies have expressed interest, and we will see what develops (extremely bad pun not intended). At present, I still hold the rights.

Q. Who would you like to see cast if there is a film of the Julia Grey books? I know this sounds improbable, but I actually don’t care. My feeling—no doubt honed from years of watching my husband mount theatre productions—is that once I sell the rights it is someone else’s story to tell. I’ve had my chance, and it would be silly and ungracious for me to interfere with someone else’s creative work. All I ask is unlimited access to Gerard Butler if he’s cast.

Q. Why does the book look like . . .? Any questions regarding the physical production of the books—format, cover, etc.—are best referred to the publisher. If I ran them off in my basement, I would know more about the actual production side of the business, but alas, once I turn a book over to my editor, I don’t see it for months. Decisions made regarding the physical appearance of the book are the responsibility of the publisher.

Q. Will you speak to my book club? I am happy to phone into book clubs for discussion, calendar permitting. Just e-mail me at deanna@deannaraybourn.com, and we’ll work out the details.

Q. Do you answer your own mail? I do, and with great pleasure. I love hearing from readers! Very, very rarely I will have to refer correspondence to my team, but I try very hard to respond to everyone, even if it’s just a line.