In its more listless moments, 'Pharaoh's Army' seems a ramshackle collection of memories not overly concerned with telling a larger story.

Leaving New York and friends is tough, and there are things about it I still really miss. But Montana is a great place to write.

The conventional wisdom is that authors get only one chance in this world. If your first novel doesn't sell, publishers and bookstores lose interest, and your career stalls, barring an act of God or Oprah.

I know Peter Jackson a tiny-tiny bit from interviewing him about the 'Lord of the Rings' movies over the years. When I was visiting the set of 'The Return of the King,' he let me be an extra so I could see filmmaking from a different perspective. I was a Rohan soldier.