I have managed to fail to correctly step off a bus — on a day when there was no snow, no ice, no rain, and the sidewalks were perfectly normal. Apparently I tripped over an invisible turtle on the way out. I landed on my left elbow and knee. This has, apparently, caused a compression fracture in the elbow — although it must be minor because I was sent home from the hospital with an all clear, and someone phoned me 2 days later with a less clear – which is to say a phone call from an orthopedic surgeon letting me know that the intern on duty Monday evening missed a small compression fracture in the elbow while looking at the X‑rays. Everything is therefore being done with one hand — and as I’ve not finished necessary revisions, … Continue reading
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I am, for the moment, done with the Writing Process posts, in part because they were an attempt to answer a question which has cropped up in different ways over the last few years. They were an enormous amount of fun for me. I do have one more post — about the evolution of process — but it’s half-finished, and it has been set aside in favour of taxes. Which is about as much fun as it sounds. Taxes are being done early this year because the annual writing retreat has been moved forward to the end of April. Which would mean I’d be in a different country at about the time Tax Panic sets in. So: early tax filing for me. Writing news: First, the next Cast … Continue reading
ETA: Firstborn will be available in ebook and hardcover on the 19th of February, 2019. This is a hectic release month, the first time I have ever had two books published at essentially the same time. No, this was not particularly smart on my part, but I didn’t want to push either book back a month. It’s been three and three quarter years since the last West novel was published, and in the main, as a reader, I don’t care if two books I want are published in the same month. My pocketbook might whine a little, but I am gleeful, because that’s just the way I am as a reader. Of other people’s books. Most authors can’t read their own books as if they’re readers, sadly. I posted the prologue last year … Continue reading
I’ve been going back and forth with myself (and possibly fretting at other people in my household who were foolish enough to vacate the room after the first sentence). About what, you ask? About posting a preview chapter – in this case, the prologue – of War. I haven’t had the revision discussion with my editor yet; I hope to do that after the holiday break. So the fretting is mostly whether or not what I post will survive in the published book. I mean, it’s not much of a preview if it doesn’t actually serve as a preview of the book itself. It’s kind of a hopeful preview, but uncertainty abounds. Since the book is very very long in its current state, there are words that might not survive to reach … Continue reading
To those who celebrate, Happy Holidays! I have been writing, but at the moment, have very little to show for it; my short Severn story is now 28k words and not finished. I hope to finish it before the New Year, but in the frenetic, panicked busy work of holiday preparations, I am not sure how feasible this is. Chapter one of Cast in Deception is here: Cast in Deception 01. Re: audiobook versions: there appears to be a physical box of 13 CDs, but the downloadable version doesn’t seem to be available on iTunes yet, or rather, the link to it doesn’t seem to be available there. I’ll update those links when we’re closer to pub date. So the audiobook links look slightly different: … Continue reading
