The end-of-the-year book sale ends when 2009 does. So there's only a few days left to pick up signed hardcovers of INSIDE STRAIGHT, TUF VOYAGING, and WINDHAVEN at bargain prices.

(See my post of December 8 for details).









Going, going...

... meaningless and full of pain... but sometimes it gives you an unexpected gift.

The Giants game was a disgrace. Bill Sheridan has to go. How he could destroy the Giants defense in a single year, when he had all the players Steve Spagnuolo had and then some, is a mystery for the ages.

And the Jets... well, yeah, I'm glad they got the W, but really... call me old school, but I believe a team should play hard every week, no matter what. What Caldwell did was a disgrace. A nice late Xmas present for Gang Green, sure, but all the other teams contending for the AFC wild card must be steaming, and Peyton and the other Colts first-stringers looked none too happy on the sidelines either. I would not be the least surprised if the Happy Horseshoes make an early exit from the playoffs after this. Disgraceful.

Meanwhile, back in the Meadowlands, I can only hope that the final Jets home game in Giants Stadium has a happier result than the final Giants home game.

My drugs:
- One that's once a day
- One that is every four hours
- One that is three times a day
- One that is no more than every 12 hours
- One that is no more than every six hours. This one is the best drug and also interferes with driving and sleeping.

Don't even get me started on with food or without.

Have you ever noticed how memories change with distance? I recently wrote an essay for a friend about last New Year's Day and how blackholly made a group of us write out our dreams for the year. In this essay, I remembered starting out small, but then putting down some BIG dreams. In fact when I got the list out, this seemed to confirm that. But just now, I found my journal entry about that day, and I said I didn't dare to dream too big.

Weird.

I guess I am a big fat liar.

But either way, the lesson is there. That it's OK to reserve a tiny piece of paper to hold dreams that are just for you. It's a special secret between you and you. The you of January 1, 2010, and the you of January 1, 2011, when you look at the list again. Because you will be the same and different. You will be a whole year's worth of some of those dreams coming true, and some of them not. But just imagining them for a moment will make you smile, or sit a little taller. There will be a whole year of possibilities in front of you. Enjoy the moment of sitting and dreaming about them. Sometimes in order for good things to happen, we have to be brave enough to imagine them first.

And here's to dreams that are bigger than all of us, but that demand our participation nonetheless. Dreams for a more peaceful and caring world. It seems so far out of our control, especially after the year we just had. But it can come true if we all do our part. By sharing our light, by remembering it's there, by caring every day for each other and for our planet, we can make a difference.

But we have to care. That's the key. Care. I know you do.

Thanks so much to all of you for sharing your light with me. :-)

Happy New Year!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Make a list of your dreams on a piece of paper. Fold it up and put it somewhere safe until next year.

Accelerated Reader says it “guide[s] students to the right books.” It is “a ‘reading management’ software system that helps teachers track student reading through computerized comprehension tests and awards students points for books they read based on length and difficulty, as measured by a scientifically researched readability rating.”

Sounds good, right?

But one author who is also a mom looked closer. The fifth installment of the Gossip Girl series, I Like It Like That is given 8 points - which means it’s worth more than Hamlet (7 points). The author’s daughter pointed out that if students really wanted to get a lot of points, they should read Harry Potter. The Order of the Phoenix was worth 44 points. Another daughter, in an Advanced Placement class, was reading Frankenstein (17 points), The Remains of the Day (13 points), Heart of Darkness (10 points). Notice how together they don’t add up to the Order of the Phoenix?

Teacher says kids often won’t read books that aren’t on the list because they won’t get any points. And some say Accelerated Reader has increased reading among students, who like collecting points and getting prizes.

You can read the whole article here. If you are a teacher, I would be really curious to hear what you think about Accelerated Reader.

Curious after reading the article, I looked up Shock Point. 7 points. So not as that Gossip Girl (8 pts), but better than Hamlet (7).

Okay, so, I took pictures of my yard this afternoon. And stuff. Like you do. I don't know whether they really convey the way it looks in RL--some of the perspective of the absolute *waves* in the yards is lost because everything's white, and the sun wasn't out to cast shadows. Also, keep in mind that there was this much snow and drifting *on the roads* as well, and all of it has to be moved.

Behind the cut, to spare your flists.

( Snowmygawd we're all gonna die! Or at least be slightly inconvenienced for a few days! )
Really, it could be so much worse. Up in the Black Hills, they had 38" of snow in one spot, and near hurricane-force winds. But it's still pretty incredible, especially for so early in the winter. I told my niece she'd be telling this story to her kids some day...and it's already been dubbed the Christmas Blizzard.

Later tonight, I'm going to pull out and read The Long Winter. Perspective is good! :)

It's Sunday night, and I'm updating because honestly, I need a few minutes to focus on something other than dealing with my cranky toddler. The holidays make everyone a little tense, I know, but it seems---just based on my own personal experience---to be especially overwhelming for two year olds. Suffice to say that I THINK she broke her record for whining today, clocking in at over a half hour straight. I had to take myself outside and count to ten, and I wish I could say it was the first time over this long holiday weekend. Honestly, I know I have said this before, but I don't know how you full time stay at home moms and dads do this. I will be so happy to see my sitter tomorrow afternoon that I may just burst into tears at the sight of her. Hopefully not, as it would probably scare her. But you get the idea.

(I hesitated to even post the above paragraph, as I feel like it makes me look like a bad mom. It seems so effortless for a lot of people, or at least not this hard. But I look at parenting the way I do writing: I'm honest about how challenging it is for me. If it's not for you, I admire you greatly. And I wish I was you. But this is me, and I'm counting to ten, whether over whining or plotting frustrations. And that's okay. I hope.)

Tantrums and meltdowns aside, it really WAS a great Christmas. We had good food and good times with all our families (except those who couldn't be around my sick husband and child: we hope to catch up with them when we are germ free, if and when that ever happens). My husband bought me a kick-ass pair of cowboy boots, so I can totally channel Tammi Taylor and Lyla Garrity, and I got some gift cards to hopefully put towards a new desktop for my office sometime soon. My daughter LOVED Christmas and we now have even more plastic stuff than before. The craziest thing, though, is that for all I (and everyone else) spent on her---tent, blocks, tons of books, play camera---her favorite toy of all was this five dollar plastic tentacle ball I got at Target. She's obsessed with it. Second best? A ninety-nine cent Slinky. Gotta love that.

Now, there's four days until 2010 begins, so I'm thinking about my resolutions. First up: healthier living. Which means no popcorn or chips before bed, and trying to cut back on the desserts and maybe the red wine. (Note: I said MAYBE.) Also, I want to do more for my dogs, who I feel have been neglected for the past two years. Just more walks, more cuddle time, more pats on the head, that kind of thing. I also want to try and spend more time with my girlfriends, because every time I do I feel SO much better about everything. It's like a tonic, I swear, and I just need to make the effort to try to set things up more often, even if does mean sitters or NASA-level scheduling. What else? I want to stop sighing loudly so much (my husband tells me I do this constantly) and maybe lose that last seven pounds of my pregnancy weight I'm still carrying around. Oh, and I'd really like to see at least five movies, in the theater, with popcorn, this year. Which would be five more than I have in the last twelve months.

That's the start of my list, anyway. I've learned not to make resolutions that are too hard to do....which is probably why that six pounds won't make the final list. I guess my resolution, as always, is really just to try and be a better person all around. That's just vague enough to work. Not specific enough? Okay, I'll try to floss more and curse less. Done!

Have a great evening, everyone!

I am home! My brother came over this morning and plowed out enough of the driveway for me to get in. The main roads are pretty clear (though the intersections are problematic--again, not as many places to *put* the snow when you have several main roads coming together), and the side streets are...okay, if you know what you're doing. Driving on snow is its own skill. There are even sand trucks going down my street right now. The drifts are incredible--I'm going to have to take some pictures.

Like I told my dad, this is really why we live in Nebraska--so we have these stories to tell for years to come.

So, I think the archive is handling traffic a bit better today. I'm going to post links to the stories I received for right now--trying to decide what to do about a recs post, because there are some *fantastic* stories in some of the fandoms for which I wrote--stories which are not mine, I mean--and I don't want to give away what I wrote (or beta'd) before the reveal, lest it clue someone in, but I don't want to NOT rec these fantastic stories. *thinks* I'll probably just dump so many recs into one post that it'll confuse people. Or something!

The long story I mentioned in a previous post--the beautiful, gorgeous, amazing story--is a follow up to one of my favorite books (I hate choosing *a* favorite, but if I had to, it might be this one)--Connie Willis's The Doomsday Book. The Season of Grace takes a look at Kivrin, a few years after the end of the book, and it's...it's exactly the story I needed to read, after reading TDB so many times. I don't want to say a whole lot more than that, for fear of spoiling the story, but rest assured it is a head-on look at the effects of a time travel experience that didn't quite go as planned (do they ever?).

And some wonderful someone wrote me a treat! ASPCA is Early Editon Fic!!!!!!! (I do not have enough exclamation points, and must use some of tomorrow's allotment.) Very short, just click to read, but such a neat little snapshot of Gary--and CAT, yay Cat!--and exactly the kind of attitude we saw on the show.

For those of you who don't participate in Yuletide, the archive is now moving over to the Archive Of Our Own servers, so things are a bit different than they were in years past--but the stories are no less awesome! I believe that you can leave anonymous comments, even if you don't have an AO3 account, so please give them some love if you enjoy the stories! And look around at the Yuletide 2009 and Yuletide Madness collections for stories in fandoms you love, and read those, too. (Yuletide 2009 is stories over 1000 words; Yuletide Madness is stories under 1000 words.)

*hugsanonymousauthors* Thank you, kind people! My gifts have filled me with Glee and Joy, I tell you--GLEE AND JOY!

Oh, LJ.

So. I am still at my parents' house, where I have been since Thursday noon. We had our Snowmergency!Christmas Eve lunch and presentpalooza, went to Mass, and as we came out, were nearly eaten by the wind. That's what it felt like; the wind was driving snow pellets right through my jeans, and it felt like a cold monster chewing at my skin.

My brothers and sisters took their kids home and I stayed with my parents, as originally planned. And the snow came down and the wind blew, and by Christmas morning, it was a full-fledged blizzard, right out of The Long Winter. There were bare patches on the driveway, and a drift 6 feet high between the driveway and the front door. The neighbor's house has a drift that's at least 8 feet high up against the side of the house. The snow's carved bowls around the grove of pine trees in the nature preserve that backs up to the house. It's weirdly beautiful.

No one came over; no one in their right minds was leaving their house. So we had a quiet Christmas, which was fine. This storm is humungous; it's closed interstates everywhere, including I-29 from the Canadian border down into Iowa. Most churches around here (except for the Catholic ones, of course) cancelled services.

As did the synagogues, being as it was Friday and all. There was a closing notice that ran as part of the bottom-of-the-screen scroll on one tv station yesterday: "Temple Isreal: No Christmas Day Services".

I looked at my dad. "Um. Did you see that?"

"Yeah, that's not...right...is it?"

About ten minutes later, they changed it to: "Temple Isreal: No Friday Services". Geez.

It snowed and blew all through yesterday and last night, until sometime this afternoon. My brother, who is a freaking SAINT, has told me he'll go over to my house and try to snowblow a path from the street to my garage (I have a wide driveway that slopes up, and my house is at the top of a hill so I always get crazy drifting, even in a small amount of wind; my house also sits on a curve and there is little good street parking. I was thinking I'd have to park a few blocks away at the library and walk in so that I could shovel the driveway.) Of course, it took all day for him to get to a point where he could get out of his own neighborhood (they live on a circle) and then he has to work tonight and tomorrow, so it could be tomorrow evening sometime that I can actually get home. Or Monday.

It's...not as bad as it could be. I have my laptop, which has all my writing on it, so I've been editing a lot the past couple of days. There are Yuletide fics to read, when I can get into the archive, and I cooked dinner tonight just for something to do. Had a nice chat with amilyn this morning, and it was great to do some Yuletide squeeing with a fannish friend. And, unlike my brother, I don't *have* to get to work, or anywhere, really, as the week between the holidays is slow at both my jobs this year. There are Christmas cookies, and we are warm and safe, and things could be so, so much worse.

I am trying to be positive, here. Do you see me being positive and not bouncing off the walls (yet)? I am very proud of myself! (Also, I have not had any caffeine today, so I am probably mellower than I would otherwise be.) But if anyone wants to stop by and say hi or entertain me or anything? I would love that very, very muchly. :) It's just. It just kept snowing. For forty-eight hours.

And it's only been 'official' winter for, what? Five or six days? Things could get desperate if this keeps up. I'm just sayin'.

Okay, back to editing. I've plowed through 40 pages so far this afternoon. Rock on, me.

- Tessalon pearls cough suppressant
- Mucinex DM
- Nyquil
- Sucrets Extra Strength
- Halls Lemon Cough Drops
- Fluconase
- Amxoicillin
- Hydrocodone cough syrup
- Generic DM cough syrup
- Bleph 10 eye drops
- Tylenol PM

Don't worry, I'm not using all of these now. Although if it would help me sleep, I would take them all. I haven't slept more than a few hours for five nights. I haven't been this sick for a long time.

Had my second visit to urgent care today. The first was on Christmas Eve. Not a great time of year to be sick. On the plus side, the most pressing deadline I have is a line edit due Jan 15, and I am 75 percent finished.

If you're healthy, enjoy it!

Because even the AO3 server has been shaken by the mighty wave of Yuletide, and I was lucky enough to read my "main" story (but not my treat--I have a treat! Eeee!) but don't want to tempt fate or the server by trying to leave a comment there tonight:

Yuletide writer, if you're reading this, I want you to know that "The Season of Grace" has left me in tears. Happy, dazed tears. I love it. It's so...complete. And beautiful and strong and full of amazing, amazing details and moments that just clutched at my heart and reminded me why I fell in love with that universe in the first place. I'm kind of exhausted right now, and I can't wait to go to sleep so I can wake up and read it again. Thank you, thank you so much for all the time and care you put into this. It really, really shows. And I love it.


(Treat writer, I am reading that they're not opening those stories yet, so I am going to save it for coffee and scones tomorrow morning. But thank you! I am smiling just thinking about what it could be!)

Here's hoping all my friends and readers have a merry Christmas.

And you other people too.

Hi all. Yes, I'm still around, reading if not posting.

Phoebe Kitanidis is asking people to respond to her post about a good cause. For every unique reply she gets, she'll donate a $1 to the charity. What a great way to spread Christmas cheer. Here's the link so you can add your comment.

All three children are home for the holidays. It's nice having children underfoot again, even grown ones. (I still have to bark at the boys for wrestling in the kitchen - some things never change, despite their size & age.) We've had one games night with more to come. I am still the family's Star Wars Trivial Pursuit champion, by a hair. I'm sure I'll soon to be knocked off the podium.

Here's wishing family (& friend) time for all of you, time that is joyful and relaxing, filled with love and laughter. Merry Christmas and all the best in 2010.

We've been warned about a winter storm all week. As of last night, they're using the "B" word, for the second time in two weeks.

Okay, there is a bit of ice on the streets, and the snow's just starting. They're saying we'll get a lot--more than we've had in this area on Christmas Eve/Day since 1941, which is the year my dad was born.

I'm waiting for the rest of my family to wake up, all around the city and in a couple points outside of it, and decide what we're going to do about the Traditional Christmas Eve Insanity--my thought is that, since the snow and wind and roads are only supposed to get worse from now until Saturday morning, we move the traditional "Dinner after early evening church services followed by present bacchanal" to a lunch and presentpalooza before services, so that everyone who wants to can get to services and then hopefully get back home in somewhat safer conditions for Christmas mornings at their respective houses. (That's if we must do it today. I'm not sure that's the case.)

I don't know if my mom will go for that. I'm pretty sure, from things she's said, that she's hoping for a giant slumber party at her house. Which just isn't going to work for most of my siblings, who have young kids who firmly believe that Santa finds you wherever you are, in any weather. And my siblings mostly want to have Christmas mornings at their own homes, which only makes sense. My youngest sister and her husband probably won't be able to make it in from eastern Iowa on Friday in any case; they're supposed to get hit even worse than we are.

No matter what, I know I will be expected to make my way to my parents' house. I am single, after all. How sad would it be if I slept in my own bed Christmas Eve??? (this is my mom's thinking--me, I like my bed) And if they can't drive to Mass? Oh, yeah, we'll be rocking Mass for Shut-Ins. Which is just about the worst way to get all spiritual ever invented.

(There are churches all over the state canceling services for tonight and tomorrow, but not ours! We're Catholic! If you die trying to get to Mass, well, at least you won't go to HELL afterwards.)

*headdesk*

At this point, I don't have a lot invested in what happens, or when (this weekend would be fine--I mean, if I get snowed in at my parents' house, it's going to be a pain to get home and find a place to put the car while I shovel the predicted 10-14"). I just don't want it to interfere with Yuletide Madness.

(Yes, I know some of you may roll your eyes at my Yuletide posts. This is the point at which you ROLL ON BY.)

My main story's been posted since Sunday; yesterday I wrote two short (short! Under 500 words each! So unlike me!) treats/stocking stuffers/whatever they're called, and drafted out another. Those three are absolutely getting posted, whether or not it interferes with the making of the spinach artichoke dip and the strawberry salad and the shoveling of the snow that's already on the driveway. Then...we'll see. Now that I can see all the prompts, and am on a roll, there are a couple I'd really, really like to try.

As my four-year-old nephew likes to say, "Hum-hum-hum! Hum-hum-hum!" This is the musical little hum he makes when he's doing something he's not supposed to, like walking past my brother carrying a step stool into the kitchen. Translation: "I am not up to anything, Dad! See how I am humming? Why would you doubt my innocence!"

So that is my plan for Christmas Eve (so much better than Christmas Day, IMHO). To write and post somehow, no matter what happens to the rest of the plans.

I hope that all of you who are celebrating this weekend are safe and happy and cared for.

"HUM HUM HUM!"

ETA: It's official: we're having a Snowmergency!Christmas Eve at my mom's at noon. I'm still spending the night there, and I have to run around like crazy now and cook and get stuff in my car, but the good news is everyone else will scatter for home by 5 or so, and that gives me about 6 hours to finish treat #3--and anything else I might want to write!! It's all good, baby!
I...may be a little wired up this morning. I blame COFFEE. OMG! Must take coffee to Mom's house, because otherwise will have to drink the coffee of satan, aka Folger's decaf.

This post from Jim Hines really resonated with me tonight, because I just got feedback from my editor on the novel I want to submit as my option book. Her feedback is wonderful. Spot on as always. It's also something like 7 pages, single spaced. I've got a lot of work ahead of me, and I'm not complaining. I believe in this project, and I'm grateful for the chance to make my book the best it can be.

But for all of those people out there who think writing is easy and those of us with book deals just got lucky? I'm with Jim when he says "bite me."

You want to get published  by a traditional house? You bettah WORK!

OK. I'm off to get started!








Uh, no... I don't know anybody who's self-publishing and spewing the kind of crap Mr. Hines describes in his post. What makes you think that? :-)

I was pretty balanced about the gift knitting this year ... I chose a few projects, started early, and made good progress ... until the end. There I was, basking in the glow of projects completed in a timely fashion, and what did I do? Cast on for another gift project. On December 18th.

Was I crazy? Possibly... but the project is now blocking on my bed, and will be delivered tomorrow (right before the recipient, one columella, leaves for a holiday in colder climes). (Yes, she already knows about it; I 'fessed up last night.)

I'm not insane. I RULE. ( See? )

E and I just got home from the very busy grocery store and I think *knocks wood* we are READY for the holidays. Here is our tree:


We are hoping Santa puts some good cat toys in Fred and George's stockings, as they have both gained THREE POUNDS since their last check up. Ugh. Beasts. They don't seem to notice their rotundity, and think they should still be able to fit in their basket (clearly they are mistaken):



Oh Fred. If only you would be INTERESTED in cat toys. *sigh*



Hope you're all enjoying the holiday season!

Peace and love,

Jo

It’s been a busy week and it’s just going to get busier, but that’s all part of the fun. Wishing you all a wonderful holiday, whatever you celebrate, filled with family and friends and good food!

And a special thank you to those who are giving GIVE UP THE GHOST under the tree (or however you do your gifting)! Even Cass appreciates a little holiday cheer.

Originally published at Megan Crewe - another world, not quite ours. You can comment here or there.

The Creature With Fangs Elfed yesterday.



My Beloved Husband Elfed yesterday.



Queen Louise Elfed yesterday.



And I did, too.



A most merry time, indeed!

Revision Tip #23

I rarely have the image systems of my books in mind when I start writing. But by the end of the first or second draft, some image (symbol for Eng lit majors) has cropped up and I realize that I can riff on that symbol throughout the book to tell the larger story. In a subtle way, I hope.

In SPEAK, it was the image of the tree. There was only one mention of it in the early drafts. When I realized the power of it, I wrote in all the art class scenes, and made the tree into a year-long project for her.

WINTERGIRLS was interesting. The first paragraph of the first draft of the book was this:

"The crows stalk me, wings folded neatly behind them, hungry yellow weighing my soft spots. They circle around me once, twice, three times, claws scarring the stone floor of the church.

I curl up on the frozen altar. They flutter close, black feathers filling my mouth and eyes and ears."

I really don't know where that came from; I just wrote it down, plus a bunch of other stuff. The reference to the "frozen altar" is what got me thinking about ancient religions and mythology, which in turn led me to ponder if there was a mythological story within Lia's story. Of course there was: the story of Persephone. That became a central image system for the book, with references to pomegranate seeds and the death that is winter, along with mother/goddess figure at her wits end, trying to pull her daughter back from the grasp of hell.

(For the record - that opening paragraph wound up migrating to page 264. It fits much better there.)

Is there a small detail in your draft that could be expanded into a central image system?

Teen had two friends over last night. At 6 a.m. I realized they were still awake. I had to insist they go to sleep. They were teaching themselves how to count cards. Yes, Teen has a future in Vegas.

Meanwhile, I am on day five of being sick. The days are tolerable, but at night I can't sleep. First it was my throat hurting, now it's a non-stop tickle cough. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm open. Last night I tried sleeping with a cough drop in my mouth, frequent drinks of water, tenting the blankets over my head, and sometime in the middle of the night, a stiff gin and tonic.

I got maybe a total of two hours of sleep, in increments of five or ten minutes.

It's the day before Christmas Eve, and I have to say that I feel like I am finally getting into the spirit. Sure, there's still a level of stress and craziness as I try to juggle everything to do and everyone we have to catch up with. Also, both my daughter and husband have come down with this wicked cold, so I am doing all I can to rally my immune system so I don't go down as well. I really thought we'd get a pass on being sick for Christmas this year, after the debacle that was last year, when we all came down with a throw-up bug on Christmas Eve. THAT was fun. If I have to pick, I'd much rather have a sniffle and a cough than that. Although not being sick at all would be, like, the best gift ever. I'm putting out extra cookies and milk for Santa in the hopes he'll deliver.

Meanwhile, last night I had two of my best girlfriends over for pigs in a blanket (tofu pups for Dana) spinach dip, pizza, wine and Love Actually. It was just what I needed to mark what I decided was the official beginning of my vacation. When you are self employed, and in the midst of a tricky novel, it's REALLY hard to just stop working, even when you know you should. And I should, because my house is so incredibly messy, and none of my gifts are wrapped, and I'm totally exhausted and surrounded by sick folk. Plus, holidays are supposed to be relaxing, right? Please say yes. Anyway, so after having two great work days in my new office---which is so great, I can't even tell you---I'm stepping back. Clocking out until at least next week, and hopefully the new year. It will be good for me, and hopefully for the book as well.

I know it will be good for my house and the clutter that is piled up everywhere. I'm about to grab a garbage bag, put my hair in a ponytail, and get down to it. But before I do, I just want to wish all of you, wherever you are and whatever you happen to believe in, the happiest and healthiest of holidays. It's been a crazy year, busy and fun and stressful (at times) but I would not change a thing. I'm so grateful for all your support, for the fact that you don't judge me too harshly for watching so much TV (hello, Jersey Shore!) and that you read this silly blog so faithfully. You are my co-workers, in a lot of ways, the folks around my water cooler, who make those sort of lonely work days so much more fun. Thank you for that. It means more than you know.

Okay, off to clean. Maybe I'll chug down an Emergen-C first, though.....

Have a great a safe holiday, everyone!

SUICIDE KINGS is out in hardcover (see below) and BUSTED FLUSH has been released in mass market. Meanwhile, I've delivered the additional content -- three new stories -- for the first volume of this storied series, WILD CARDS itself, which Tor will be reissuing later in the year. Since the first volume was historical in nature, telling the story of the wild card from 1946 to 1985, adding some original material to cover some of the "lost years" seemed like a natural.

The three new tales:
-- "Captain Cathode and the Secret Ace," by Michael Cassutt,
-- "Powers," by David D. Levine,
-- "Ghost Girl Takes Manhattan," by Carrie Vaughn.

No publication date yet. You'll know when I do.

As for FORT FREAK, the twenty-first volume in the series that WILD CARDS began, first drafts are all in, I've given the usual editorial note, and the writers are all off revising. This one looks to be a lot of fun. The Class of 2009 is doing some great work, and the old-timers ain't half bad either.

On other fronts, Gardner Dozois and I are very close to delivering our original cross-genre anthology STAR-CROSSED LOVERS, to Pocket Books. We're waiting for some minor revisions from one writer. Once those are in hand, the book will be delivered. Only it's not STAR-CROSSED LOVERS any longer. Pocket's sales force did not like that title, so the anthology has now been rechristened SONGS OF LOVE AND DEATH. Got a great line up of writers for that one, including Diana Gabaldon, Jim Butcher, M.L.N. Hanover, Peter S. Beagle, Marjorie Liu, Jacqueline Carey, Carrie Vaughn, Robin Hobb, Neil Gaiman, and many more.

Everybody's talking about AVATAR, which I haven't seen yet... but I have been going to movies. While the crowds queue up for Cameron, I've been catching up on some of the other films now in release. I enjoyed THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG, and liked INVICTUS as well, but the one that really impressed me was ME AND ORSON WELLES. The guy who plays Welles should get an Oscar nomination for that performance.

As usual, I am way behind on my Xmas shopping.

Where does the time go?

Today was the official publication day for the latest Wild Cards book, SUICIDE KINGS.

Run, don't walk, to your favorite bookstore and getcha copy now. And hell, while you're there, get copies for all your friends as well. All you Xmas shopping in one swell foop.

A couple of years back, all the kids I knew used Myspace. Now they live on Facebook and would never go on Myspace.

I'm curious - what are teens doing where you live?
Poll #1502163 Myspace Vs. Facebook
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 20

What do teens where you live use: Myspace or Facebook?

All work in the Forest today will grind to a halt as we enjoy the ceremonial viewing of Elf. And we might even make spaghetti with maple syrup.






I got to thinking about my family's tradition of setting out rice pudding for the julenisse. Nisse have been around long before Christmas celebrations. English words that describe them as elves, or gnomes; I've seen "pixie," too. If properly cared for, nisse will watch out for your farm animals, your house, and your barn. If you don't take care of them, they will cause all kinds of mischief on your property.

Nisse are low-maintenance creatures. All they require is a bowl of rice pudding (risengrød) set outside your door or in your barn on Christmas Eve. We've always done this faithfully and I think our nisse appreciate it.

But as the sun was setting yesterday and I was lighting candles in honor of the solstice I realized that the nisse have been around a lot longer than Christmas celebrations. Ack! Have I been disrespecting the nisse all these years? They are ancient creatures... do they wait, forlorn, on the night of the winter solstice, their tummies grumbling, while the Big People go about their ignorant business? And when the pudding FINALLY shows up on Christmas Eve, do they call up the other nisse and complain?

So last night I put out rice pudding for them. And I will again on Christmas Eve. You can't be too careful with nisse.


Revision Tip #22

Are you sure that you've chosen the right point of view for your novel?

Take your favorite chapter and rewrite from a different POV; shift from third to first, or first to third, or if you are bold and way smarter than me, experiment with the second person POV.

Or.... (and.....) fool around with the tense structure. If your story is told in present tense, rewrite that favorite chapter in past tense. If you've written the whole thing in past tense, try out that chapter in present tense.

What's the point of all this mucking around? It helps you see your characters and the Story from a slightly altered perspective.

Well, that was fun. If only every game was like this...

(Maybe it is, if you're a Colts fan).

These were the Giants I remember. The swarming aggressive D, the sacks, the knockdowns, the hurries, the interceptions, runners tackled at the line of scrimmage. And on offense, long time-consuming drives ending in touchdowns. Eli looked terrific, spreading the ball around. Nicks, Smith, Manningham, and Boss all had big catches, and even Derek Hagan scored a touchdown. The running game was back, especially when Ahmad Bradshaw had the ball. The O line opened gaping holes, and the D line was so relentless that our wafer-thin secondary was never threatened.

Yeah, these were the real G-Men.

I have no idea who those clowns in the Redskins uniforms were.

That fake field goal the Skins tried at the end of the first half had to be one of the most bizarre plays I've ever seen. Watching Steve Young talk about it in the postgame was hilarious.

I do feel sorry for Jim Zorn, whose postgame press conference was... well, obviously, no one ever taught the guy Coachspeak. Poor guy is not long for D.C.

But it was a great win.

Now we need two more like it, coupled with a Cowboys loss.

(Or a Packers loss, maybe... but while I know the G-Men have the tiebreaker over Dallas, no one has ever mentioned who wins a tie between New York and Green Bay).

Next week, the Panthers. Who beat the Vikings yesterday. Let's hope the real G-Men show up.

Here's what I do when I want to hear clunky passages, take note of missing words, and in general make my writing better. I add my ears to my eyes. To try this at home, you can:
- Read your work aloud
- If you have a kid you can get to sit still or even a cat or a dog, read to them
- Tape record yourself reading your work and then listen.
- Have someone else read your work aloud and listen (you can also tape record)
- If you have a newer computer, have it read to you. My new Mac can read to me! (full disclosure: okay, it sounds like a robot, but still)

When we were little, one of our Christmas traditions was going to the Kellerhaus to pick out an ornament. The Kellerhaus (owned by my dad's step-uncle) was this very fancy store that had all kinds of beautiful ornaments, candies and an ice cream parlor where you could make your own sundaes. It also had incredible toys you never saw anywhere else. There was one room that had just ornaments and we three kids would stand there and turn in circles, studying each one before we made a choice.

This is the earliest choice I can remember:



She's pretty faded and not very fancy-looking now, but I remember loving her the moment I saw her. I have other ornaments from those years hanging on our tree, too. And each year when I hang them up, I think about those days when my mom took us on that special annual excursion. I can smell the store—scented candles and newly made fudge and ribbon candy. I can feel the excitement as we got closer to the ornament room, and the longing as we browsed the toys we couldn't afford but loved dreaming about anyway. And getting a sample of fudge from our uncle Seth if he was there. And the box of ribbon candy my mom always bought, that we'd have to wait to eat at our Christmas Eve party as we tried to stay up until midnight to hear the animals talk. So many memories. So many.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Write about a holiday tradition you remember from your childhood. If you have a photo, share! :-)

Good morning from my kitchen, where I am sitting literally four feet away from not one but TWO leftover half cakes: one amazing red velvet, and one double chocolate. And don't even get me started on the cheese straws, coffee ring, and Whole Foods chocolate cake in the fridge. Give me strength. I just got off the treadmill, but I think it might take a miracle for me not to dive headfirst into them while I drink my coffee.

Our party was great, but crazy hectic as always. This is, like, the twentieth year we've done this party, in various incarnations, and it's always changing. Used to be everyone came late and stayed later. Now, the announced time is 6 but people show up, babies in tow, as early as 5:30. Then it's total mayhem, toddlers and kids running wild while my husband and I try to be good hosts and get a huge amount of food onto the table for everyone. At eight sharp, half the room has cleared. By ten, the only ones left are our friends who are in their twenties, who probably don't even go OUT until that hour in their normal lives. I tried to rally, staying up until 12:30, then was really hating it when my daughter got up at 5:30. Whoa. All I want for Christmas is sleep, sleep and more sleep. Are you listening, Santa?

One of my favorite parts of the party, though, is the night after. That's when I get to put on my pajamas and eat leftovers, and this year we did it while watching equal opportunity television: football, followed by Love, Actually. Oh, man. Nothing like eating leftover lasagna, beans and rice and chicken casserole while watching Hugh Grant dance to the Pointer Sisters. Good times.

With the party behind us, I can move onto the actual holiday. I've done most of my shopping---although there's always a few more things to pick up---and with my office done (yay!) I can spend the time I'm not checking things off my list geeking out by labeling folders and organizing boxes. It is nerd heaven, I am telling you. All I need to do is get the internet working over there, and I'll be all set to officially move over. Although really, what I SHOULD do is not hook up the DSL, because I'd probably get a done more work done without the distractions of Twitter, and Ebay, and reading the comments on this blog. But let's be realistic here. Me with no internet is about as likely as me actually managing to resist that red velvet cake. Well intentioned, yes, but not going to happen.

Just one, small piece. A sliver! Because it's Christmas....

Have a great day, everyone!

Good Solstice, everyone!

I feel like calling your main character Rudolph today. (Humor me.)


Revision Tip #20


Don’t make it too easy on Rudolph.

Your story should not be a tale of the desires of Rudolph. It should be the thwarted desires of Rudolph up until the very end, when finally, FINALLY, things go right, tho' not in the way he originally thought they would.

For every desire, there should be an obstacle. Every step on the path leads to another detour.

Review your manuscript and make sure that poor Rudolph runs into obstacles over and over again. You fiend.


Revision Tip #21

1. Record yourself reading your manuscript aloud. The whole thing.

2. Listen to it with your manuscript in front of you (I am most comfortable with the printed-out version at this point.)

3. Pause whenever necessary to make notes on what needs fixing. This is when I find repeated words, awkward phrases and dropped plot points.

4. After a marathon listening session, go back in and finish all the repair work.

So I stepped away from blogging for a day or so, and returned to find that the unofficial editor appreciation day has come and gone. I don't want to miss this one, though, so I'm joining the party late.

My editor is Erica Sussman at Harper Collins, and she is wonderful!!

Erica sort of adopted RIVAL and helped me shape it into something that her colleagues at Harper would want to buy. She saw something in the story and believed in me enough to provide in-depth feedback. Her comments were so right-on that I don't think I could have helped coming out on the other side with an excellent book. She shepherded RIVAL through the acquisitions process and is now shepherding it toward publication. Every time I see her name in my email in-box I feel fortunate to work with someone who *gets* my book and, I believe, gets me as an author.

So hey, Erica, thanks! Here's a little bit of editor-appreciation-day love coming your way. And if you want to see what other authors have said about their editors, go here. (I saw at least one other person raving about Erica as well...)

Life is meaningless and full of pain.

I saw this one coming. Three missed field goals will always come back and bite you in the ass.

Great D, but Mark still has a lot of maturing to do.

With the Colts and the Bengals yet to come, I think we can kiss the playoffs goodbye.

And I'm not feeling good about the Giants game tomorrow either.

In RL, tomorrow is going to suck beyond the telling of it.

But in Yuletide land, all is beyond awesome.

My story is beta'd and uploaded to the new archive! I have a title that is either completely awesome or entirely failtastic, and I do not care which it is. I have beta'd two incredibly wonderful stories for other peoples! I can move on to writing stocking stuffers/treats/whatevers!

But first, I have to finish making gifts, wrapping gifts, putting up my tree and lights (my niece and nephews are coming over Tuesday to put on the ornaments), cleaning my house, getting tax info together, prepping for a meeting, prepping for a science workshop (I'm doing a birthday party for twin 9-year-old boys--pray for me!)...

Okay. Okay. In 24 hours the worst will be over, whatever it is, and Yuletide will still be here to make me happy.

In the meantime, I think I have a hard cider around here somewhere. Mine.

This is the first year I've kept a list of all the books I read. I finished 58, and will probably finish at least three more by the end of the year. I also started about as many books as I finished. At my age, life's too short for meh books.

To get really anal-retentive about it, I read 18 novels for adults, 20 nonfiction books for adults, 17 young adult novels, and three middle grade novels.

My ten favorites are:

THE POST-BIRTHDAY WORLD by Lionel Shriver. A woman thinks about cheating on her boyfriend. In alternating chapters, the novel shows how her life would unfold if she did or did not have the affair. It's fascinating-- literary but fast-paced-- and explores the world of snooker, which is like billiards in England.

ADMISSION by Jean Hanff Korelitz. A novel about a college admissions officer written by a former college admissions officer. I loved looking at the admissions process, and the characters and plot hold up really well on their own.

SNOWBALL by Alice Schroeder. A very long but never dull biography of Warren Buffet, who is both brilliant and very odd.

SAVE THE CAT by Blake Snyder. A screenwriting how-to book that I found really useful for novel writing, particularly pacing and plotting. And best-selling author/pal Alyson Noel swears by it, so it's got to be great!

BAD MOTHER by Ayelet Waldman. Essays about motherhood, mostly. She's incredibly honest, writing some things that many mothers probably think but never say out loud.

THE LAST LECTURE by Randy Pausch. He had such a positive attitude. He made me appreciate life more and try harder.

OFFICIAL BOOK CLUB SELECTION by Kathy Griffin. She's hilarious and very open about her life, sometimes heartbreakingly so.

COLUMBINE by Dave Cullen. Incredibly well researched and fascinating. Though I was kind of depressed the entire time I read it.

WINTERGIRLS by Laurie Halse Anderson. A young adult novel about an anorexic teenager. The characters seem very real, the prose is gorgeous, and the writing style is innovative.

WHEN YOU REACH ME by Rebecca Stead. I haven't been this excited by a children's novel since I read HOLES. It's got great characters, an interesting setting, and a gripping plot.

I can haz AO3 account!

I can haz 5000 words!

I cannot haz title!

I cannot haz coherency!

I cannot haz sanity!

Must be Yuletide.

*stares at countdown clock in fascinated horror*

Despite the annual panic, I am having SO MUCH FUN right now. I can't even tell you. I just hope my recipient likes the story. And that a title shows up soonish. *fingers crossed*

ETA: One of the freebies on iTunes right now is Bob Dylan singing "Must Be Santa". I have heard snippets of that album, and omg, this is like a pinnacle of holiday cheestastic awfulness. (remainder of comment redacted, to avoid revealing my Yuletide assignment, which has taken over my brain)

Pat's Fantasy Hotlist is doing one of their famous contests, for two Advanced Reading Copies of SUICIDE KINGS signed by all of the contributors.

For details as to how to enter, go to

http://fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com/2009/12/win-autographed-advance-reading-copy-of.html

Good luck to all.

Yesterday I ran the fastest five miles I have run all year. By the time I went to bed last night, I was starting to wonder if I was getting sick.

I have spent 13 of the last 15 hours in bed. I would have spent all of them in bed, but Teen was afraid I had died.

I'm thinking it's just a cold. I hope so. I have a history of pneumonia, but I'm not running fever. Just weak and foggy, and a little bit of a sore throat.

Beware of echoes and doppelgängers!

Maybe I am the only writer in the world who suffers from this bad habit. It makes me crazy. I do it in every blasted book, no matter how hard I try to be aware of it early in the process and avoid it.

I always create characters that are identical, both in their core characteristics and the purpose they serve in the book.

(I may have mentioned this earlier this month, but it is such a big pain in my writing butt, I must rant about it again.)

I spent all day yesterday and the wee hours of this morning extracting one of those characters from my book, and turning over many of his scenes to a different fellow who – I can now see with the blazing clarity of humiliating hindsight – should have been driving those scenes in the first place.

It was a bloodbath, I tell you.

How can you perform this radical surgery in your manuscript?

1. List all the characters.

2. Define – using only a few words – that character’s relationship to the main character.

Examples: comic foil, trusted friend, villain, complication, love interest.

3. If (like me) you have two or more characters that serve the same purpose, get out a magnifying glass and sharpen your scythe. Is it possible to have one of the characters take over scenes from the others?

Example: in the early draft of SPEAK, the character who is now called Heather was two separate girls. Each girl was a “sort of” friend of Melinda for a few months. Each friendship died. Their personalities were a bit different, but not in a strong enough way to affect Melinda’s interactions with them. By melding them together, the story was cleaner.

I am crossing my fingers that the work I am doing this weekend will have the same effect.

I'm typing this up for one of the ladies I work with, and figured I'd post it here too. These are awesome, although they take a while to make. I'm having a little of the leftovers for breakfast this morning.

Dough
6-7 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
2 packages (1/4ounce each) active dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup water
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Filling
3/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons maple syrup
5 cups ground walnuts
(we also added 1-2 cups golden raisins)


In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt. In a small saucepan, heat sour cream, butter and water to 120-130 degrees, then add to dry ingredients. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add eggs and 1/2 cup flour; beat 2 minutes longer. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl; turn once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled , about 1 1/4 hours. Punch down dough; divide into four even portions. Roll each portion into a 14" x 12" rectangle.

In a large bowl, combine the butter, sugar, and syrup; stir in walnuts. Sprinkle 1 cup over each rectangle, adding a little extra as needed to cover the surface. Roll up each, jelly-roll style, starting with a long side; pinch seams to seal. Place seam side down on greased baking sheets. Cover; let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

Yield: 4 rolls (approximately 14 slices each)

RIP Dan O'Bannon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5Og_YsaXt4&feature=related

He'll be best remembered for ALIEN, but DARK STAR has a fond place in my heart as well. I hope somewhere he's surfing down like a meteor as "Benson, Arizona" plays on the cosmic soundtrack.

Because it’s the season of holidays and gifting.

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman – The alethiometer the Master gives to Lyra guides her on an adventure more treacherous than she ever imagined.

Lost It by Kristen Tracy – Tess hoped her Christmas present for her boyfriend would keep her on his mind, but instead it reveals an inadvertent lie.

The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner – An unwanted gift of a pair of earrings becomes the key to deciding two wars — one of politics, the other of the heart.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins – The burnt loaf of bread Peeta offered kept Katniss’s family from starving, and ties her to him even when she tries to stand alone.

Nation by Terry Pratchett – It was meant as an act of self-defense, but the gun Daphne holds out and Mau accepts becomes the beginning of tragedy-defying bond.

Originally published at Megan Crewe - another world, not quite ours. You can comment here or there.

# of queries read this week: 56
# of partials/manuscripts requested: 0

As I mentioned last week, I am currently closed to new queries until January 15th.

However, I am still continuing to review, albeit somewhat slowly with my sprained wrist and reduced typing speed, those that were already in the queue. I've appreciated people's support and will, no doubt, continue to be thankful for their patience.

I'm seeing many of my colleagues mention that today is their last day officially at work until the New Year. Our agency is closed from December 24th until January 4th to celebrate the holidays (and probably get in some reading). In January there will be the now-annual query stats of the year, among other things.

Happy holidays.... And in the spirit of the season.....

Or at least I am legion. When I typed my name into peekyou.com, I found dozens of April Henrys. I had thought there were about 15 or 20, but there seem to be far more.

I liked it better when I thought I was more unique.

I love revising!!!

Here are what some of my notes on my editorial letter for PEARL look like:



And here's what my average manuscript page is looking like:


And here is what my inspiration for daring looks like, thanks to my awesome class who gave me this for an end-of-semester present:



:-)

Must stop now to attend my son's holiday party, where there will be more singing! Yup, it's still all holiday tunes all the time at chez Jo's.

Have a great weekend, everyone!!!

What would you do if you were kidnapped by your ex-boyfriend, bound with zip ties? And if confessed to you that he had committed several robberies and had been experimenting with bomb making?

One Oregon woman persuaded the guy that if he didn’t kill her, they would be like Bonnie and Clyde, on the lam together. He actually believed her, and she managed to escape.

You can read and hear more of her story here.

Sometimes people forget that I wrote PROM because it is not exactly a depressing book. In fact, it's pretty funny, if I do say so myself. (If I had dread, depression and death in all of my books, I would not be a healthy person!)

So it is with great joy that I announce that PROM has been nominated to the 2010 Popular Paperbacks List, in the "Change Your World or Live to Regret It" category!!

School Library Journal has posted their annual collection of Christmas Memories written by children's authors and illustrators. This year's essays were written by me, my buddy Deb Heiligman, Barbara McClintock, Lauren Myracle, and our National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, Jon Scieszka. Enjoy!

Revision Tip #18

Are you stuck?

Have you tried all my plotting tips and dialog wisdom and adverb scorn and still you are stuck?

Try this.

1. Make yourself some comfort food.

2. Put on music that relaxes you.

3. Snuggle up in a warm, cozy place with a pen and a pad of paper.

4. Write a letter to your main character. Tell her everything that is worrying you about the story in general.

5. Pause to eat a bit. Make some tea or hot chocolate.

6. Pick up pen and paper again. Tell your character why you are specifically worried about her. Ask her what is going on in her life, in her relationships that you don't understand. Ask her advice about how to help her move forward.

7. Write down what she tells you.

8. If you can't hear her voice, then it is time to put that manuscript away for a while and work on a different story. But I am pretty sure you will hear the voice, so be chill and write.

1. Okay, so it's one week until Christmas (I know!) and get this: they're calling for snow here today. Yes: snow. Can I tell you the last time I remember it snowing before Christmas around here? That would be NEVER. (Although my memory is not reliable, just as a disclaimer. I can barely remember my name or where I left my keys most days.) Anyway, I refuse to believe this until I actually see flakes falling and sticking, mostly because we are having a huge holiday party this weekend and I have already bought all the food. What will I do with three lasagnas and a vat of spinach artichoke dip if the roads are bad and nobody shows? (Remember, this is North Carolina: if there is even an inch of snow on the roads, people stay home. Yes, I hear you laughing in New England.) Don't get me wrong. I would love a light dusting, to help get into the holiday spirit. But more than that, not so much.

2. And do you want to know WHY it's going to snow? Because about a week ago, we had a thunderstorm. And according to Southern legend, if it thunders in winter, you'll see snow within nine days. Or something like that. My parents are from New York and Baltimore, respectively: I wasn't exactly schooled in the Farmer's Almanac growing up. Still, I have found that a lot of these things turn out to be true. Like you see cows laying down before it rains. Weird, right?

3. Speaking of the holiday spirit, I can't believe that with only seven days until Christmas I have not yet indulged in one of my steadfast holiday traditions: watching Love, Actually. Usually by now I would have watched it at least three times, and have it in the DVD on standby so I can revisit my favorite scenes whenever the mood hits. What is wrong with me this year? Well, there's this move to my office. And the little issue of this novel I'm writing. Oh, and the fact that I have a two year old who is not really a fan of Hugh Grant yet. Can I tell you how many times I have watched the Gabba Gabba Christmas special? No, I can't, because I don't even know. But I will say that it is on right now, as I write this. Sigh.

4. I really do want to get to the movies over the holiday. It's hard to believe, but I used to go to the movies at least once a week, if not more than that. Seriously! I loved to skip out on a writing day and hit a midday matinee with a small buttered popcorn and a bottled water I snuck in inside my purse. Ah, memories. Can I tell you the last movie I saw in an actual movie theater? I think it was Sex and the City. Yes, that was like a year and a half ago. How did this happen? Well, again, there's that issue of the novel. It's a lot harder to play hooky when I'm paying someone else so I can work. But maybe I'll do it over the holiday, as a present to myself. We'll see.

5. Finally, I just have to share this. My husband just came inside, shivering. "It's REALLY cold out there!" he said, and I turned, ready to offer sympathy. Then I saw what he was wearing:


(Yes, I documented it just for this entry. But I cut off his head at his request.)

I mean, honestly. Shorts and a t-shirt AND shoes with no socks? Of course you're cold! Then again, this is the same person who runs the thermostat at a crazy high temperature so he can wear shorts in the house all year round. I grew up in a house where if you were cold, you put on another sweater. Touch the thermostat and there were repercussions, big time. Marriage is all about compromise, I guess. If not about wearing socks and a jacket when it's below freezing.

(Oh, and before you ask, yes, those are tattoos. He's got a bunch of them. And no, I don't have a single one. I always say he's got more than enough ink for both of us.)

Have a great weekend, everyone!

One hundred tools to turn to when you have writer’s block - including music to listen to, title generators, story prompts, and more.

A recent article in the Oregonian begins, “Last year, artist and author Lawrence Rinder gave up on the antiquated business of traditional publishing. The former curator for the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York could easily have sought a big-time book deal but chose to get his recent novel, "Revenge of the Decorated Pigs," produced in "jank editions," photocopies bound in manila folders and printed on demand by the Publication Studio in downtown Portland.”

While I’m not sure I buy the premise - the man has never published a novel before, so while he could have sought a “big-time book deal” who knows if he would have found one - this is still an interesting story about decidedly non-traditional publishing.

You can read the whole story here.