53. Travels with Myself and Another, Martha Gellhorn
52. A Night in the Lonesome October, Roger Zelazny (read aloud with Steve re-re-re-re-re-re-&c-read)
51. Bayou, Volume One, Jeremy Love (library book)
50. Bone: Out from Boneville, Jeff Smith (library book)
49. Saga, Volume One, Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples (library book)
48. This Rough Magic, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
47. Elizabeth and Her German Garden, Elizabeth von Arnim (read aloud with Steve)
46. Why Kill the Innocent, C.S. Harris
45. To Love and Be Wise, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
44. A Study in Scarlet Women, Sherry Thomas (e)
43. Shards of Hope, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
42. The Tightrope Walker, Dorothy Gilman
41. The Wisdom of the Beguines, Laura Swan
40. Miss Pym Disposes, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
39. Cinnamon Blade: A Knife in Shining Armor, Shira Glassman (e)
38. Hunter of Worlds, C.J. Cherryh (re-read; read aloud with Steve)
37. The Black Wolves of Boston, Wen Spencer (re-read) (e)
36. The Man in the Queue, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
35. Shield of Winter, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
34. Waiting on a Bright Moon, Jy Yang (e)
33. The Amazing Mrs. Pollifax, Dorothy Gilman (e)
32. The Daughter of Time, Josephine Tey (re-read for me; read aloud w/Steve)
31. Eight Million Gods, Wen Spencer (re-read) (e)
30. These Old Shades, Georgette Heyer (re-re-re-read; read aloud with Steve)
29. The Prince and the Dressmaker, Jen Wang
28. The Talisman Ring, Georgette Heyer (re-re-re-read; read aloud with Steve)
27. The Moon-spinners, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
26. The Cat Who Went Underground, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
25. Winterglass, Benjanun Sriduangkaew (e)
24. The Cat Who Sniffed Glue, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
23. The Tea Master and the Detective, Aliette de Bodard (e)
22. The Persian Boy, Mary Renault
21. Heart of Obsidian, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
20. Brat Farrar, Josephine Tey
19. Woman Without a Past, Phyllis A. Whitney (e)
18. The Mermaid’s Sister, Carrie Anne Noble (e)
17. All Systems Red, Martha Wells (e)
16. Burn Bright, Patricia Briggs (e)
15. The Ivy Tree, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
14. Kiss of Snow, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
13. Throne of Jade, Naomi Novik (e)
12. His Majesty’s Dragon, Naomi Novik (e)
11. The Cat Who Played Post Office, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
10. The Faded Sun: Kutath, CJ Cherryh (e)
9. Emergence, CJ Cherryh (read aloud with Steve)
8. The Faded Sun: Shon’jir, CJ Cherryh (re-read) (e)
7. The Faded Sun: Kesrith, CJ Cherryh (e)
6. My Brother Michael, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
5. The River Bank, Kij Johnson (read aloud with Steve)
4. Still Life, Louise Penny
3. Thick as Thieves, Megan Whalen Turner
2. The Furthest Station, Ben Aaronovitch (e)
1. Romancing the Werewolf, Gail Carriger (e)
Blog Without A Name
Sunny Sunday
Today dawned bright and blue and sunny after a subjective quarter-century of rain, which Trooper celebrated by running up and down the house shouting, “Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!” and jumping over any cat who got in his path.
He’s resting in a sun-puddle now, along with the rest of the feline household.
We humans, having breakfasted and taken on caffeine, are perhaps less wise. I, obviously, am updating my blog; Steve is building bookshelves. Yes, yes, you knew we’d figure out that we needed more bookshelves, despite the wealth of shelves built into the living room.
In fact, one of four we purchased has already gone into service as the Cookbook Bookshelf, sitting under the clock at the intersection of the living room and dining room. The ginormous kitchen at the Old Digs had room for its own bookshelf; there is no such “extra” space in the current galley kitchen.
Two of the remaining bookshelves will replace one of the two bookshelves that my father built for my sixteenth birthday. They were long and low, meant to fit under the eaves, and they were never meant to travel nearly so far, nor so long, as they have done. The shelf that came to rest in my office is. . .’way too unsteady, given that its duty-list includes not only holding books but standing steady when a coon cat (or two) leaps to the top.
So! two nice folding bookshelves, to match the bookshelves that used to be under the windows in my office at the Old Digs will be replacing the old, unsteady bookshelf, which will find renewed purpose in the basement, where it will have a nice concrete wall to lean against.
Last week’s Writers’ Day Off was, of course, Friday, when we put on our Author Clothes and went downtown to the Children’s Book Cellar, to talk, and read, and sign books. We had a nice turnout of about 10 people on what was a rainy, cold, occasionally thunder-y evening — included in the crowd were two women who’d driven up from Mount Holyoke (no mean feat in good weather) to attend.
As advertised, we talked: about how we met, our first writing projects, how writing for newspapers ties in with what we do now, a bunch of other stuff, spinning off into the side-alleys and rejoining the main road down there — as one does.
We also read — switching off — the opening five pages and several other sections of Agent of Change, including the parts where Miri meets Val Con, and the part where Miri meets Edger.
We had fun; and I hope that was true for everyone who attended.
A note for those who ordered signed books: We await the delivery of a case of books, which had not arrived by Friday night. When that case arrives, we will sign and personalize books, and they will be cast onto the back of the wind. Or the Postal System, whichever bids low.
This week’s Writers’ Day Off will be Tuesday. The first item on the agenda is to vote, after which we will have breakfast out, and consider what else the weather will allow us to do on the thirty-eighth anniversary of Doing the Legal.
In writing news, I have deconstructed the manuscript into major narrative lines, in order to see the natural breaks more clearly. This is service of weaving those lines together smoothly. And also, yanno, finishing each line appropriately. I’m not sure if we’ll have cascading dénouements or just go for one big BANG! across all storylines. And they say writing a novel isn’t technical.
So, I think that’s it. After I hit send, I’ll be removing the books from the old bookshelf, and shifting it elsewhere so the new bookshelves can be placed. This will give the backbrain plenty of time — ahem! — to consider Weighty Matters of Fiction.
Everybody be good.
Books read in 2018
52. A Night in the Lonesome October, Roger Zelazny (read aloud with Steve re-re-re-re-re-re-&c-read)
51. Bayou, Volume One, Jeremy Love (library book)
50. Bone: Out from Boneville, Jeff Smith (library book)
49. Saga, Volume One, Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples (library book)
48. This Rough Magic, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
47. Elizabeth and Her German Garden, Elizabeth von Arnim (read aloud with Steve)
46. Why Kill the Innocent, C.S. Harris
45. To Love and Be Wise, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
44. A Study in Scarlet Women, Sherry Thomas (e)
43. Shards of Hope, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
42. The Tightrope Walker, Dorothy Gilman
41. The Wisdom of the Beguines, Laura Swan
40. Miss Pym Disposes, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
39. Cinnamon Blade: A Knife in Shining Armor, Shira Glassman (e)
38. Hunter of Worlds, C.J. Cherryh (re-read; read aloud with Steve)
37. The Black Wolves of Boston, Wen Spencer (re-read) (e)
36. The Man in the Queue, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
35. Shield of Winter, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
34. Waiting on a Bright Moon, Jy Yang (e)
33. The Amazing Mrs. Pollifax, Dorothy Gilman (e)
32. The Daughter of Time, Josephine Tey (re-read for me; read aloud w/Steve)
31. Eight Million Gods, Wen Spencer (re-read) (e)
30. These Old Shades, Georgette Heyer (re-re-re-read; read aloud with Steve)
29. The Prince and the Dressmaker, Jen Wang
28. The Talisman Ring, Georgette Heyer (re-re-re-read; read aloud with Steve)
27. The Moon-spinners, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
26. The Cat Who Went Underground, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
25. Winterglass, Benjanun Sriduangkaew (e)
24. The Cat Who Sniffed Glue, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
23. The Tea Master and the Detective, Aliette de Bodard (e)
22. The Persian Boy, Mary Renault
21. Heart of Obsidian, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
20. Brat Farrar, Josephine Tey
19. Woman Without a Past, Phyllis A. Whitney (e)
18. The Mermaid’s Sister, Carrie Anne Noble (e)
17. All Systems Red, Martha Wells (e)
16. Burn Bright, Patricia Briggs (e)
15. The Ivy Tree, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
14. Kiss of Snow, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
13. Throne of Jade, Naomi Novik (e)
12. His Majesty’s Dragon, Naomi Novik (e)
11. The Cat Who Played Post Office, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
10. The Faded Sun: Kutath, CJ Cherryh (e)
9. Emergence, CJ Cherryh (read aloud with Steve)
8. The Faded Sun: Shon’jir, CJ Cherryh (re-read) (e)
7. The Faded Sun: Kesrith, CJ Cherryh (e)
6. My Brother Michael, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
5. The River Bank, Kij Johnson (read aloud with Steve)
4. Still Life, Louise Penny
3. Thick as Thieves, Megan Whalen Turner
2. The Furthest Station, Ben Aaronovitch (e)
1. Romancing the Werewolf, Gail Carriger (e)
Reading and Book Signing Tonight!
Tonight, Friday, November 2, from 7 to 10 pm! Sharon Lee and Steve Miller will be reading from and signing copies of the thirtieth anniversary edition of our very first novel; space opera classic AGENT OF CHANGE, at the Children’s Book Cellar in Waterville. Looking forward to seeing you there!
Val Con and Miri’s 30th Anniversary News!
Sharon Lee and Steve Miller will be signing, reading, and talking (you just try to stop us from talking) about the Thirtieth Anniversary Edition of Agent of Change, at the Children’s Book Cellar, 52 Main Street, Waterville, Maine from 7-10 pm on Friday, November 2 — Hey! That’s this Friday!
Everybody — that means you in the back, there, too! — Everybody is invited to this gala event. It’s free — so, come help us, Miri, Val Con, Edger, and the entire cast of characters from the Very First Liaden Universe® novel ever published — celebrate this important science fictional anniversary!
Procrastinators Take Note!
If you are unable to attend the November 2 event, but you want a signed copy of the anniversary edition of Agent of Change, with the awesome Sam Kennedy cover, you may send an email before November 2 (that is BEFORE this Friday) to Ellen Richmond at kidsbookscellarATmyfairpointDOTnet, with “Lee and Miller” in the subject line. In the body of the letter let Ellen know how many books you want, your snail address, and any personalization request you may have. She will contact you for further necessary information.
So, everybody has this important date inked-in on the calendar, right? Right!
See you soon.
Half a year, here
Today is the semi-anniversary of Steve, me, the cats, and a large cast of characters taking up residence here in the city, at the new! headquarters of the Cat Farm and Confusion Factory.
We are extremely fortunate to have found this house, and very fortunate indeed that the series of tightly-reasoned and risky moves that we brought to the board were not derailed by circumstance; that bureaucracy was able to flex with us, rather than against us; and that the Guy Who Knows A Guy Network decided that we Needed Them, and extended the patronage of its members.
We’re pretty much settled, here, though naturally still learning the quirks of a new house (and unlearning the quirks of a house we lived in for a quarter-century).
And, today, in celebration of a milestone — or at least a six-month-stone — There Will Be Pizza, but, mostly, we’ll be writing, and playing with cats, doing chores , and. . .just, yanno, doing what we do.
Everybody have a good weekend.
Sunday morning round-up
All righty, then!
First up, a reminder: Sharon Lee and Steve Miller will be reading from and signing copies of the Thirtieth Anniversary Edition of Agent of Change at Children’s Book Cellar, 52 Main Street, Waterville, Maine 04901, on Friday, November 2, from 7:30-9 pm. Looking forward to seeing you — yes, you! — there.
If you are unable to attend the November 2 event, and you want a signed copy of the anniversary Agent of Change, with the awesome Sam Kennedy cover, you may send an email before November 2 to Ellen Richmond at kidsbookscellarATmyfairpointDOTnet, with “Lee and Miller” in the subject line. In the body of the letter let Ellen know how many books you want, your snail address, and any personalization request you may have. She will contact you for further necessary information.
So, we attended the Community Health Needs Assessment as our Floating Day Off, on Thursday. It was interesting, and even informative. I had been under the impression that the event was hosted by one of the area hospitals; in fact it is an on-going collaborative effort of about eight different hospitals, clinics and health associations. The meant that there were a lot of professionals present, which was fine; one of the problems identified by our table (all civilians, saving the facilitator and the note-taker) was a lack of access to care, including a lack of doctors, a lack of transportation to get to doctors, and a lack of those activities supportive of good health.
Unfortunately, the lack of access which was so obvious to the public eye was invisible to the professional eye, as we found when it came time to rank the most pressing needs in our community. The vote went along, dare I say, party lines, with the professionals pushing for programmatic solutions to things like the opoid crisis and self-harm. That was a little disappointing. Our facilitator thanked our table for our real-world perspective, but I’m not completely certain that she has any high-level ears available to her.
One of the things that seems obvious to me (warning) is that, if this is about COMMUNITY Health Needs, then the COMMUNITY needs to get involved. The city needs to get on-board with providing, say, a real bus service, so people can get to their appointments on time. The clinics need to coordinate; health and exercise classes in the city need to be expanded, supported, and advertised.
The whole community aspect was pointed up when the meeting was breaking up and one of our table’s participants handed the facilitator a card. She shook her head, and said, “The hospital does all its printing in house.” “That’s right,” came the answer, “and they put the guy who used to do their printing out of business.”
If we’re all in this together, we can’t solve our problems by working separately.
So, that.
We haven’t quite settled on the upcoming week’s Floating Day Off; much depends on the outcome of phone calls that need to be made tomorrow. For today, I need to vacuum the house, and then get to work.
Oh! I keep meaning to show y’all this. . .The Carousel Corner in my bookshelf.
Writers’ Day Off
Where was I?
Ah. Last Friday was our Floating Day Off, and we went to the ocean to observe the storm tide. Once that was accomplished, we of course turned right around and went home to go back to work.
Ahem.
In actual reality, we went to Scarborough Beach State Park, as Steve had seen a sign (by which I mean a road sign, not A Sign), and we used our new-found superpowers as Elders of the State to pass through the gate and walk down the road through the marsh, which was filled to the gills with Canada geese, to the weed-strewn beach.
From there, we more or less retraced our path of a couple weeks ago, this time driving back into the upscale housing development around Two Lights (no access to the lighthouses), and then down through Fort Williams Park, ’til we hit the ocean, sort of, and Portland Head Light.
Also visible from Portland Head is Ram Island Ledge Light.
There is a third lighthouse visible from this position to those with Really Good Eyes, or Steve’s camera, called Halfway Light. My camera is not long-sighted, so you’re spared a picture of that light.
I offer instead my Lighthouse Passport, now with five stamps! The docent at the museum at Portland Head Light, keeper of the stamps, is empowered to bestow stamps for Portland Head Light, Ram Island Ledge, Halfway Light, and Two Lights.
So, that’s what we did on our last day off.
This week, our Floating Day Off is — today. We will be attending a Community Health Needs Assessment sponsored by one of the local hospitals at mid-afternoon. This is in keeping with our goal of becoming an active part of the new community.
So! That’s all I’ve got, except the weather, which has been Quite Windy. We lost two trees down near the Forest Gate, and the gate next to the house (which, to be fair, was not particularly well-tied-down).
Which reminds me that, last week, the neighbor’s dog called in some guys to take down the Enormous Pine in their back yard, which had started dropping Large Limbs Too Near the House, and now my office gets the sun much later in the day. I hadn’t realized that the Big Tree had shaded the front right clerestory windows quite so much. Good job that I bought myself a Computer Cap a couple weeks ago.
I’m still trying to understand the dynamics of this house — how the heat moves from my large and sunny room to warm the kitchen and dining room — and how the living room fits into it all.
Well. I’ll be studying that all winter, I’m guessing.
Everybody have a good day.
Short stories and the author
So, I’m in receipt of several emails, and one crazily placed blog entry (read about it here, go over to a Whole ‘Nother Website, to a page that has nothing to do with the topic, and post the question. Why would you do that?). . .asking when the short stories Steve and I have recently placed with anthologies (not magazines), will be “available,” by which they mean, as a chapbook from Pinbeam Books. These folks don’t want to buy anthologies filled with stories by strange authors, just to get our new story, but they want the new stories Pretty Dern Quick.
Now, here’s the Thing. Actually, a couple of Things.
Writers, including Steve and me, write to earn money.
Anthology gigs pay money up front.
One of the things that anthologies purchase with their up-front money is publication exclusivity, anything from 6 months to 2 years (to forever, but we turn those down; there isn’t enough up-front money in the world).
The purpose of anthologies, besides making money for the publishing house, the editor, and, maybe, some more money for their contributing authors, is to (1) draw in readers of Author A with the promise of a new story, and (2) introduce the readers of Author A to other cool writers those readers may have missed. Anthologies are not inherently evil, honest.
Now, this is how the whole anthology publication works from the author side:
Invitation comes in –> Author rejects or accepts
If Author rejects, Author does not have to write a story to theme and deadline. Author also does not get paid.
If Author accepts, Author receives contract from publisher. Author writes story to theme and deadline, whereupon, sometime before publication of the anthology, a check will arrive in Author’s mailbox.
The contract issued by the publisher spells out things like rights purchased, desired word count, payment per word, how royalties will be computed, deadline for submission, deadline for publication, and! exclusivity periods.
Once more, in short form, here is that process:
Invitation–>Author Acceptance–>Contract Arrives–>Author writes and submits story to Anthology Editor –>Revision letter arrives–>Author revises, resubmits–>Story accepted–>Payment received–>Anthology published
Some of these bits can be switched around, but these are the steps to publication.
When the anthology is published — that is when the exclusivity period starts. Exclusivity is exactly what it sounds like — the anthology holds the exclusive right to publish Story A anywhere for: 6 months, 9 months, 1 year, 2 years (forever, but see above…)
After the exclusivity period is over, Author may sell the story to a reprint market, reprint the story Author’s self, or stick the story in a drawer and forget about it.
What we here at the Confusion Factory do is — After the exclusivity period is completed, we will cause Pinbeam Books to reprint Story A as an echapbook/paper chapbook. Sometimes, there’s a little extra time built in before we get around to that, due to other pressing business, and whether we have at least two stories available for reprint (or have spontaneously generated another, free-range, story in the interim) so that we give value to our readers.
We also collect those stories into a big pile, and lately Baen Books has been kind enough to print those collections in the Liaden Universe® Constellation series. So far, that is three volumes, with Constellation Four coming in Summer 2019*.
What all this means for the “availability” of the following stories: “Dark Secrets,” “Command Decision,” and “Vestals of Midnight,” is!
“Dark Secrets” will be published in Infinite Stars: Dark Frontiers, which is now scheduled to be published in September 2019. The exclusivity period for that story is 18 months. So, it will be “available,” sometime in mid-2021.
We have not yet been informed of the exclusivity period for “Decision,” and “Vestal,” but assume a year from publication (November 2018), since that’s an average period.
Advertent readers will see that “Revolutionists” and “Excerpts from Two Lives,” will be collected in Constellation Four. Sometime after, Pinbeam Books will collect them into a chapbook. The reason for that timing is also exclusivity, the period for “Revolutionists” doesn’t go over until next July, scant weeks before we can expect to see the next Liaden collection.
I trust this answers everyone’s questions — and really! Try an anthology, why not? You might find some new favorite authors.
____________________
*A Liaden Universe® Constellation Volume Four, coming from Baen in Summer 2019. This reprints eight shorter works: 2 novellas, 4 novelettes, 2 short stories from 2016-2018. Titles included are: “Street Cred,” “Due Diligence,” “Friend of a Friend,” “Cutting Corners,” “Block Party,” “Degrees of Separation,” “Excerpts from Two Lives,” “Revolutionists.”
Books read in 2018
51. Bayou, Volume One, Jeremy Love (library book)
50. Bone: Out from Boneville, Jeff Smith (library book)
49. Saga, Volume One, Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples (library book)
48. This Rough Magic, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
47. Elizabeth and Her German Garden, Elizabeth von Arnim (read aloud with Steve)
46. Why Kill the Innocent, C.S. Harris
45. To Love and Be Wise, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
44. A Study in Scarlet Women, Sherry Thomas (e)
43. Shards of Hope, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
42. The Tightrope Walker, Dorothy Gilman
41. The Wisdom of the Beguines, Laura Swan
40. Miss Pym Disposes, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
39. Cinnamon Blade: A Knife in Shining Armor, Shira Glassman (e)
38. Hunter of Worlds, C.J. Cherryh (re-read; read aloud with Steve)
37. The Black Wolves of Boston, Wen Spencer (re-read) (e)
36. The Man in the Queue, Josephine Tey (read aloud with Steve)
35. Shield of Winter, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
34. Waiting on a Bright Moon, Jy Yang (e)
33. The Amazing Mrs. Pollifax, Dorothy Gilman (e)
32. The Daughter of Time, Josephine Tey (re-read for me; read aloud w/Steve)
31. Eight Million Gods, Wen Spencer (re-read) (e)
30. These Old Shades, Georgette Heyer (re-re-re-read; read aloud with Steve)
29. The Prince and the Dressmaker, Jen Wang
28. The Talisman Ring, Georgette Heyer (re-re-re-read; read aloud with Steve)
27. The Moon-spinners, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
26. The Cat Who Went Underground, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
25. Winterglass, Benjanun Sriduangkaew (e)
24. The Cat Who Sniffed Glue, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
23. The Tea Master and the Detective, Aliette de Bodard (e)
22. The Persian Boy, Mary Renault
21. Heart of Obsidian, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
20. Brat Farrar, Josephine Tey
19. Woman Without a Past, Phyllis A. Whitney (e)
18. The Mermaid’s Sister, Carrie Anne Noble (e)
17. All Systems Red, Martha Wells (e)
16. Burn Bright, Patricia Briggs (e)
15. The Ivy Tree, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
14. Kiss of Snow, Nalini Singh (read aloud with Steve)
13. Throne of Jade, Naomi Novik (e)
12. His Majesty’s Dragon, Naomi Novik (e)
11. The Cat Who Played Post Office, Lilian Jackson Braun (read aloud with Steve)
10. The Faded Sun: Kutath, CJ Cherryh (e)
9. Emergence, CJ Cherryh (read aloud with Steve)
8. The Faded Sun: Shon’jir, CJ Cherryh (re-read) (e)
7. The Faded Sun: Kesrith, CJ Cherryh (e)
6. My Brother Michael, Mary Stewart (re-read) (e)
5. The River Bank, Kij Johnson (read aloud with Steve)
4. Still Life, Louise Penny
3. Thick as Thieves, Megan Whalen Turner
2. The Furthest Station, Ben Aaronovitch (e)
1. Romancing the Werewolf, Gail Carriger (e)