Lilith Saintcrow

So, tomorrow I start on the grand trek to the airport that will eventually lead me to DragonCon. I’m not sure about connectivity there in Atlanta, especially with Ernesto wandering up the coast. So I’ll leave you a few things to keep you company.

First of all, there’s my interview over at EvolutionWriters.com, done by the wonderful Nonny. Among other things, I talk about happy endings and the difference between small press and large press.

Dead Man Rising officially comes out September 1. For all who asked, early sales don’t hurt me at all. I believe they’re called “presales” and they count toward the total number of books sold, which is what publishers look at.

I mostly finished the revisions on Cloud Watcher. I will have to come back to it and give it a final booting when I get back from the con. I literally just got the revisions on Monday, so really it’s not my fault. I don’t know when the book is coming out now, but you can ask the publisher if you want a firm date.

I believe I will be taking Noam Chomsky’s Necessary Illusions to read, but other nominations for my book pile are yet to be broached. I’ll worry about packing my clothes first. And my camera. And…*stares blankly into space*

The DHM did manage to get me another car, since Babette the Mitsubishi blew out her main seal on the road while I was coming back on Sunday. Further bulletins as events warrant. But I do have to register that the DHM is a lovely man and deserves a big cookie. I told him we didn’t need another car until after I got back from the convention.

His response? “I didn’t want you to worry while you were gone.”

All together now. “Awwwwwww!”

And from the AP wire: Warren Jeffs is in custody! That’s a big Christmas present right there. For those of you unfamiliar with the story, Jeffs is the head of a fundamentalist polygamist Mormon cult, wanted for trafficking young girls across state lines to serve the lusts of his coterie.

When Trooper Eddie Dutchover walked up to the vehicle, something seemed amiss. Jeffs said the group had stayed in Las Vegas for a night, but they had too much luggage, Dutchover told The Associated Press. Jeffs also offered a contact lens receipt from Florida with the name John Findley as identification, the trooper said.

No weapons were found in the vehicle, but authorities said they found three wigs, 15 cell phones, letters to “President Warren Jeffs,” $54,000 in cash and $10,000 in gift cards. (Myrtle Beach Online)

Sometimes the world does work the way it should. Now let’s see if he can be held accountable for his crimes.

Last but not least: thanks to everyone who sent a “welcome back, and sorry about your car” email. The support REALLY helps. Big hugs!

Off I go to pack for the convention! *Ride of the Valkyries playing on kazoo*

I do read all the comments. Unfortunately, WordPress doesn’t send me comment notifications, so I can’t respond the way I’d like. I do see them all, I just sometimes can’t respond.

*sad face*

So tomorrow I’ll be devoting a whole day to packing for DragonCon. Today I have the last-minute revisions on Cloud Watcher to work on.

As for the Con, here’s the panels I know I’m scheduled for:

(more…)

So, I’m back from Bellingham. Bellingham is a totally awesome city. It’s bike-friendly, there are natural food stores and two AMAZING yarn stores, as well as Michael’s Books, a bookstore that makes me drool every time I think about the dusty old stacks. Mmmh. Drool, I tell you.

Highlights of the weekend spent with my sister include meeting her friends (and a weiner dog and several cats) and going out to lunch, breakfast, and dinner at amazing places (like Taco Lobo and the Old Town Cafe–more on that in a moment), shopping at Fairhaven (mmmh, yarn…and the amber rings…and the sunny day) and then knitting in Boulevard Park while my sister napped in the shade.

My last morning in Bellingham we went to the Old Town Cafe, which serves local food (grown locally, if possible) and where everyone does every job, from cook to host. They also have the “community table,” where if you don’t want to wait for a private table you sit and other people who feel similarly can be seated as well. We ate along with Merrill (who was surprised I knew China Mieville’s name) and Jim, who does amazing Japanese metalwork. Strangely enough, the conversational barrier was broken by my sister enquiring about a book Jim was reading–one of matociquala’s books, Worldwired–and everything went on from there. Merrill promised to read WFTD (don’t worry, M., I won’t hold it against you if you don’t. *grin*)

I bought all sorts of presents and am looking forward to giving them.

And then, Sunday, I started home.

It was a good thing I needed to stop to visit my youngest sister in Seattle. Because as I was going through Everett (traffic there is ALWAYS bad) my car threatened to overheat. Fortunately, the DHM was in Bellevue for the day, visiting kendo folk, so he came over the bridge and took a look at my car. The problem appeared to be a split hose, which he replaced with MacGyver-esque speed and deftness. We put more antifreeze and water in, and eventually started home with the DHM following me to make sure I was all right.

Thank God he was. My car nearly blew up in Kent.

To the people in the convertible in the lane I veered into: please don’t blame me. You were going ninety in a sixty zone and I didn’t see you, and the only reason I had my cell phone to my ear was because I was freaking out over MY CAR BLOWING UP and the DHM was talking me into the next exit, where he had seen a gas station.

So. At the Shell station, after my car stops working. AAA was called, and the car towed to a local mechanic (thank you, Sam from A-US Towing, you are a very nice man and deserve a BIG kudo.) I was in such a state that Sam the tow truck guy said, “Just go on now. I’ll take care of this. I’ll call your cell phone when I’ve dropped the car off and put the key in the night drop. You just go on now, dear.”

So then it was finding dinner for the kidlets, who were very excited by this chain of events (life is indeed an adventure) and the long drive back home. We rolled in around midnight, or slightly thereafter, and after I got everything out of the van I settled down to read a bit, being in somewhat of an excited state myself.

I’m not even going to worry about the car until after DragonCon. I just can’t. Unfortunately that means I won’t get into the bookstore before I head out to Atlanta. *sad face* I have a present for the Kiwi and a present for the Selkie, and I can’t wait to give them. *another sad face*

But…I made it home. My car didn’t get unsteady until after the weekend was over. The DHM was right there, and everything was taken care of. So if it had to happen, it happened in the best way possible. I think the Dear Husband Muffin deserves a medal.

Or a brownie button.

So. I’m home for a few days, and damn happy to be here. There’s just something about one’s own bed.

Off I go to weed through my inbox…

First of all, it rained last night. Thank God. But that’s not as cool as this: Johnny Depp is playing Sweeney Todd. Yes. And Tim Burton is directing, precioussssss. It’s enough to make any self-respecting girl swoon. The only way this could be better is if Angela Lansbury was still young enough to do Mrs. Lovett. (It’s…priest. Try a little priest…)

This makes me so happy I could cry.

I’m about to leave tomorrow to visit my sister in Bellingham. I’m going to enjoy the break and be back just in time to wash my clothes and pack for DragonCon, which I am also going to enjoy. My lovely assistant, Christina Radish, will be meeting Nina Merrill and me there. Christina is the lovely lady who has taken it upon herself to answer some fan questions so I can devote more time to writing. *waves vigorously* Hi, Christina! Who says I never mention you? *wink*

Several of you have written and commented to ask me about Danny’s necklace in DMR. Yes, the silver-dipped baculum are what you think they are when you google “baculum.” I got the idea mostly from the Vavamojos, (I have a pair of Vavamojo earrings) but I’d been aware that baculums have been used in magic and shamanism (especially fertility or sex magic) for quite some time. The baculum in Danny’s necklace were bought from antique and occult stores in the Tank District. Jace worked for a long time over that necklace.

*blanks out for a moment*

There I go again, talking about imaginary people. In any case, the necklace is important for future events. And it looks good on Danny. She’s just as vain as any–femina laudem vult, you know.

Talking about imaginary people again.

In any case, I’ve started stressing over the flight there and back. I don’t like flying. It’s not the actual flying I have a problem with, though any rational person should have a little bit of a problem with doing something humans were not intended to do so casually. (Icarus, anyone?) My problem exists during takeoff and landing, and at the airport itself. So many people crammed together, excited and nervous and what-have-you, makes for a very nervous Lili. Plus there’s a whole rant I could go into about how airline “security” is left in the hands of subcontracted company where people aren’t paid or treated well enough to care if something is going to go wrong. If the screeners are really what’s saving my plane from being blown up, I want them paid well. But then, I also want nurses, teachers, and daycare operators paid top dollar, since these are the people educating our future or taking care of me when I (God forbid) need the hospital. It doesn’t seem likely to happen (the majority of nurses, teachers, and daycare operators are women, and that seems to preclude them being paid for what conservatives trumpet as the most important jobs around but suddenly develop amnesia over when budget time comes…

…and let’s not even talk about the price women pay for motherhood.

In any case, I’ll have Nina with me to help me through the takeoff and landing. And she’s so good at organizing and herding (which I am dismal at) that I really have very little qualm about setting my lines to her tug and following her out to sea. If the harbar can be reached, we’ll reach it.

Of course, if there are pirates on the high seas, my own talents come into play. *grin*

All right. I might not write for a while, so I’ll leave you with two things–Dead Man Rising is already shipping from Amazon, which is exciting and nerve-wracking at once.

Here’s the second thing, from our very own green Jedi Master.

Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter.

Namaste.