I've got an idea for a modern day faerie tale that I think would made a great short novel. But I just don't have the time to work on it right now. I'm way too busy with the 'Kingkiller Chronicles' and being a new dad.

My dad was a master butcher and I trained to be a butcher when I left school. I didn't enjoy it at the time but I love cooking now so perhaps I would have been a chef.

My dad was the baby. When he was born they were already successful. They sent him to business school - he probably would have loved to have been a poet or a writer or something and he was very creative.

My dad has always been very proud of me but I think I have exceeded his expectations. When I told him I wanted to be an actor and moved to New York City I think he assumed I would be playing the guitar on the subway and collecting spare change in my guitar case. The fact that I'm not doing that means that I'm a huge success.

I went and took golf lessons so Dad would let me play with him. I was just terrible... but I was able to have a wonderful time just walking around with Dad. I can see the real pleasure of that game.

I didn't want to play a lawyer. I didn't want to play a doctor. I didn't want to play a single dad. I wanted to do something I felt I could learn from something that would be a challenge and something that would not dry up.

When I was a kid I wanted to walk with my dad's limp - my dad was my hero - but that infuriated him and he would make me walk back and forth in the living room until I walked without it.

But although Australia was also involved in the Vietnam conflict I can remember my dad telling us that if we were in Australia we wouldn't be drafted until we were 20.

I would ask my dad what he did and he'd say 'I listen to people's problems.' In some way what he did for a living is in my genes.

I wasn't sure how my dad would react. There was an agent sitting behind them and he told me he was embarrassed to watch the scenes. My parents have always been very open. They trust my decisions.