Kristin Cashore's Blog, page 79

My assignment was to memorize the names of the stars."

"Which stars?"

"All of them."

"You mean all the stars, in all the galaxies?"

"Yes. If he calls for one of them, someone has to know which one he means. Anyhow, they like it; there aren't many who know them all by name, and if your name isn't known, then it's a very lonely feeling."

-A conversation between Meg and Proginoskes in A Wind in the Door, by Madeleine L'Engle

I wonder if my characters feel lonely until I've named them? How patient the characters must be whose names I keep changing! Som...

Reminder: I love Finland. (And SYTYCD, too!)

It's been a while since I've shown you a brand new cover for Graceling. Behold!


This is the Finnish cover. What do you think? I love it to pieces, and nothing you say will stop me from loving it to pieces, so do your worst. In particular, I love finally seeing a short-haired Katsa, and -- the mountains and castles in the background -- *flops* -- ! Maria Lyytinen, who is the translator, tells me that the back cover shows a scene of mountains at sunset/sunrise. She also explained that the wo...

Tu Publishing; Stuff and Things; and, Our Books Are Watching Us Jealously

Via Deborah: Stacy Whitman, freelance editor and Simmons Center for the Study of Children's Literature grad, is trying to start a new publishing company. Tu Publishing will be "a small, independent multicultural SFF press for children and YA." A small press devoted to multicultural fantasy/SF -- good idea! But -- it will only get off the ground if it gets enough funding. Care to help? There are benefits to pledging, and you'll only pay your pledge amount if the project actually launches. G...

Spike versus Beethoven: a Poll

This is a long post. Don't feel pressure to read everything. But at the very least, I encourage you to listen, watch, and vote!

My FAQ post the other day lent itself to some Buffy discussion in the comments -- Spike quote-sharing, favorite and least favorite characters, etc. -- if you've seen Buffy, feel free to contribute. And I've started Season 5 and couldn't be happier. I'm thinking way too much about it, really, and want to talk about this show more here someday. And maybe particular...

Thing 1 and Thing 2; or, Photos from the Tour

At Sirens, in Vail, Colorado, I learned how to wear chain mail and intimidate people. AARRRR! I WILL CRUSH YOU!!!


Thanks to Artemis for the photo :o)

Moving on, at stop three in the tour -- Seattle -- my dear friend, secret codename: T. Lovely R., took me to meet the Troll Who Lives Under the Bridge.


A tip to anyone going on tour: It will boost your morale if around stop nine you can arrange to wake up to the following:


And then it helps to bring thousands of family members to your bookstore ev...

Fill in the Blank, and a Promise

I don't _______________ enough anymore.

Fill in the blank. And here's a suggestion: whatever the thing is -- if it's possible -- make a plan to do it sometime soon.

My answer: I don't bake bread enough anymore, which makes me sad, because I love to bake bread from scratch, do all that kneading, and have the house smelling yummy all day. But I promise to try to make time for it sometime in the next few weeks.

You?

(A friendly reminder that I don't see comments on LiveJournal, Amazon, etc.... I o...

Some FAQs for a Chilly Monday

Hi everyone! As I write this, it's Sunday night, it's snowing (yAt!), I'm curled up drinking hot cider, and I'm writing a dramatic scene in which two people are screaming at each other. (double yAt!)

Some answers to some questions.

1. I missed your signings. How can I get signed copies of your books?
Good timing -- I've just set up an arrangement with my local indie. To purchase signed/personalized books, please place an online order at Harvard Bookstore. Before you finish your order, a Comm...

In Which the Writer Returns Home

Yesterday morning I set out for the Mall in Washington DC, planning to walk the whole thing, end up at the Library of Congress or the Folger Shakespeare Library, and sit there soaking up the booky goodness. But then, just past the White House, I got distracted by the Corcoran Gallery of Art, which was intriguing not only because workpeople were laying a new coppery roof but because they had an exhibit running called "Sargent and the Sea." I happen to love John Singer Sargent. So I went ins...

Not Dead Yet

So, am I insane if after traveling from Vail to Denver to Seattle to Palo Alto to San Jose to Austin to Houston to Miami to Jacksonville all in one week and doing lots of events and not getting enough sleep, I'm ecstatic that today I'll be spending the day in a very small house with my sisters (secret codenames: Cordelia and Apocalyptica), my brother-in-law (scn: Joe), my newborn twin nieces (scn: Phoenix and Isis), my mother, my father, two cats, and one flying squirrel?

In other words, it is...

Singing My Way Across the Country

Here are some song lyrics a friend emailed me on the day my tour began:

I never wanted to be a star, I never wanted to travel far
I only wanted a little bit of love
So I could put a little love in my heart
I never wanted to be la-de-da, go to parties avec le bourgeois
I only wanted to sing my song well,
So I could ring a small bell in your heart.

- from "I Never Wanted" by Cat Stevens

I've been carrying that around in the copy of Fire I read from. I like being reminded of the little love and the sma...