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Okay, there are some big movies out now: Master and Commander (for the record, I liked it, and thought Russell Crowe was once again, just awesome), and The Return of the King is coming, but if you want to see the absolute best film of the year, go and see this little gem: Spellbound. (US viewers might have already seen it earlier this year - and if you haven't, get it on DVD or video.)

In short, this film rocks! It's a documentary set in and around the US National Spelling Bee and it follows eight kids from a variety of backgrounds as they go from their local spelling championships to the heady heights of the National Spelling Bee, where the lights and cameras of ESPN await them...as well as some of the hardest words in the world.

For Americans in particular, I believe this is a must-see film. Why? Because this is the most honest portrayal of American life that I've ever seen. It shows the best and the worst of America: its wonderful sense of opportunity, its ruthless sense of competition (only the winner of the Bee is celebrated), and worst of all, America's often insular knowledge base.

But, my American friends, trust me: this is how the world perceives you (and I'm very pro-American!). Look at the way the teachers in this film talk about other countries in the most outrageously superficial ways (especially when they talk about India - ouch!).

There is a lot of anti-American sentiment in the world right now, and part of that - I believe - is because Americans need to learn a bit more about the rest of the world. I know Australians who get annoyed at Americans who can't tell the difference between Australia (kangaroos, beaches, boardshorts) with Austria (European country, great skiing, cool castles). And again, I'm pro-American. I even went on TV down here a few weeks ago and said that America is a great place with great people and a wonderful ethos of "opportunity for those prepared to put in the work". But I'm often a lonely voice. Every American should see this film, because it is a mirror.

The serious stuff aside, one moment in the movie was very funny for me as an Australian: the rather stern "Pronouncer" of the words (and there are some really obscure words here, folks) has to say the Australian-Aboriginal name for the famous Australian bird, the "kookaburra", and he woefully - woefully - mis-pronounces it! He says "koooo-kaburra", elongating the first syllable, when everyone in Australia knows it has a short sharp syllable. Carn, mate, get it right!

Despite this, this film is just awesome. It was actually beaten by Bowling for Columbine in the Oscars earlier in the year...but God, it must have been beaten by a whisker.

My secret project for 2004 is starting to take shape. If you haven't already joined it, click on the DO YOU RACE? button on the "home" page of matthewreilly.com, because then you'll be the first to know about the secret project.

First, it is not in any way a sequel to Temple, where the hero's name was William Race.

Second, it is a brand-new story, about a superfast variety of racing. And when I say "superfast", I really really mean it!

So, if you think you can handle the pace, jump on the DO YOU RACE? mailing list, because the first email to its members will be going out later this week, and those on the list will be the first the see the secret project when it is unveiled early next year...

I have been getting HEAPS of emails lately from people trying to write novels. Questions range from "How do I start?" to "How do you find the time?" to "How do you gather together all the action scenes?" to "How do you motivate yourself?" and finally, to the big one, "Can I send you my work?"

I have no problem giving real practical writing advice. I model this on Ridley Scott, the film director, who once said in a DVD commentary: "I don't mind telling people my secrets, because I've got 20 years of film-making experience behind me. If you can use my secrets, then good luck to you." I feel the same way. I have no qualms about telling would-be writers about my methods, because I have 10 years' experience as a novelist backing that up. If the following helps, then use it!

I get the whole story in my head before I even type a word. I even get the ending in my head, so I know where I'm going. But to those people who have asked me to give them ideas, I'm sorry! That's the bit you have to do yourself, I'm afraid!!!

My view on this is kind of harsh: if you can't find the time to write your book, then you're not passionate enough about it. Whether you have kids or a stressful job, you just have to make the time. I started out writing in between a bar job and my Law studies, writing on Thursday nights and weekends. Whenever I could.

Remember, too, that writing a novel takes a long time. It won't happen in a week, or a month. It simply takes a lot of time to type a 500-page book. You just have to keep plugging away and watch that stack of pages build up.

Some people write to me saying they have a bunch of cool scenes in their heads, but can't put them all together into a finite novel. The key here, to me, is actually discarding the scenes that don't work. I have heaps of ideas for cool scenes, too, but I don't necessarily put them all in the one book. For example, I was going to have an aircraft carrier blow up in Temple...but by the time it came to include that scene, the book already had enough action. So I filed the scene away in my head, and used it two books later, in Scarecrow.

For me, a book is ultimately about characters and plot, not action. Action is fun, but without characters you love (the Mothers, the Schofields, the William Races), and a decent purpose, action is meaningless. Gather those action scenes together by concentrating on the characters and what they have to do.

Please don't. It's not that I don't want to read your stuff, it's that I can't. I am always researching new topics for future books, and I don't want to even put myself in the position where someone might think I pinched their idea. If you send me stuff, I have a policy of not reading it. I just skip to the next email and don't even look at your work. This is to protect myself, not because I don't want to help.

But think of it another way: why should my opinion on your work be any better than your best friend's opinion or your sister's, or better still, your own opinion? Trust yourself. Trust your gut. You don't need Matthew Reilly's good words to propel you onwards. That motivation should be inside you already. Which brings me to:

This is the kicker. The "it" factor. This is what separates the sheep from the goats, the boys from the men, the girls from the women. Motivation is everything - but it will be different for different people. I can't tell you what will motivate you. You have to discover that for yourself.

It is this: the unbridled desire to improve on my last effort, to tell a better story, to make the next story better than the last one, and better than every other adventure novel and action movie out there. This is what drives me out of bed every single morning of the year. You have to ask yourself: what drives you?

Write what you yourself would like to read. I write thrillers because I love thrillers. I love the genre, and I love a book that gets me on the edge of my seat and burning through the pages. So that's what I write.

I also know a lot about thrillers (both books and movies) and from that knowledge, I know the state of the genre. I know what has been done, I know where the genre is going, and so I know how I can do it better. And that, you will recall, is my main motivation: to do it better than anyone else.

Ultimately, if you love what you're doing, readers will sense that "on the page". I firmly believe that my readers sense my enthusiasm when they are reading my stuff.

Well, I'm done. If you are a writer, I hope the above has been of some help. For those who think they can handle the pace of my style of racing, click on the DO YOU RACE? button on the site. To those who have read it already, hope you liked Scarecrow!

And to everyone who comes to MR.com and reads these "Thoughts" columns regularly, have very safe and very happy Christmas!

Saturday, Dec 13
12 noon: Pages & Pages, Mosman
2:30 pm Humphrey's Newsagency, The Corso, Manly