I got an e-mail from the daughter with a link to her LiveJournal where she put up a little picture dictionary of her 3-year-old’s vocabulary. We are very excited he has a vocabulary–he didn’t even babble when he was 2. Anyway, it’s very cute, and you are invited to go visit.
And I got a call from the older son today, that he’d gone into a bookstore, and was looking round for my book because he thought it was out now (which it is–The Barbed Rose is), but when he asked at the service desk, they’d sold out and re-ordered five more copies. We both thought that was pretty cool.
I have not yet moved any plants, but I have pulled ten books out from under the table and put them in their stacks. (Of course, I have probably 20 more under there.) (Or more.)
I also mailed my Luna option book to the agent, and started the re-write on the dragon story. So it’s been a somewhat productive day. And I can still move plants. Probably ought to water them first, huh…
I just finished The Barbed Rose–great work! I was impressed that you reintroduced the large cast of characters and past events so effectively without resorting to pages and pages of boring recap. This makes me feel a bit better about having to wait a year for book 3. I also thought you did a great job developing the interpersonal relationships in a realistic, believable manner. Furthermore, I appreciate your tasteful, mature approach in illustrating the non-traditional family. The popularity of crossover genres have given a lot of new authors room to explore speculative fiction, but not everyone seems to grasp that it is the speculative element of F/SF that has allowed explorations of gender, society, sex, etc. to flourish in these genres. Without good world building, sex is just sex in an alterative setting. Your work has the structure–world building, character development, etc.–to support such speculative explorations. Keep up the good work!
Thanks so much for your comments. I enjoyed writing these books and it just tickles me to know that others enjoy reading them.