Should you and I ever be in the same place, and should you ever here me grumble about the editing life, remind me of this. First, I am incredibly lucky (and I know it). Second, there are two things that make all of it worthwhile. The first is the moment when, having thought up an idea and persuaded someone else that it’s a good one, you sell a book. There’s a real adrenalin rush to knowing that it worked, it was a good idea, and it was going to happen. The second, and by far the best thing, is the moment when a new story for a book arrives via post or email, you open it and read it, and it’s not only good, it’s so surprisingly, stunningly good that it makes you want to shout out loud, punch the air, and run around grinning like an idiot.

The reason I mention this is that I’m working on completing my first original anthology – all the others up till now have been reprint anthologies – and I’ve had at least four or five moments like that while working on the book. It’s been thrilling. The book, The Starry Rift, will finally be out in mid-2007 and I can’t wait to see what people think of it.