Kim Harrison's Blog, page 74
March 29, 2013
It took a while . . .
It took a good hunt through my yard, but I found something blooming!
It’s closed right now, but when it warms up, it will open, and though I knew what it was when I planted it, I honestly can’t remember now.
Oh! And a crocus. I’ve got a single yellow crocus blooming as well, the rest are being stubborn. Or smart.
March 28, 2013
One-inch madness
Oh-h-h-h, it’s been a frustrating week of sun and cold. Inside the “greenhouse” which is what I’m going to call my office from here on out, it’s warm, sunny, and I’ve got three orchids blooming, two of which are rebloomers. Outside, everything is stuck at about one inch, but oh, how much more there is at that one inch height right now.
Last fall, I loosened the earth and supplemented the soil for a ring of daffodils I’ll be able to see from my office. They are coming up as promised, but it’s the crocus that I love the most. They keep coming back every year, better than the previous. Every house I’ve lived in and moved on from has them, my own personal legacy.
I’m listening to soundtracks to action movies today as I work on Peri. I’m a action movie junkie, and I’ll ditch a chick flick for one without a flick of an eyelash. Actually, I can’t remember the last chick flick I’ve gone to. The best have cracker-jack sound tracks, and I’m making a list as I work on Peri today and try to come up with a better name for the series. Everything I’m putting on paper sounds flat.
March 26, 2013
Where’s my easy button . . .
I am home. I am writing. That is all. — That is everything.
Well, and the laundry I was doing till ten last night.
And the catch-as-catch-can dinner from all the food we bought for Thing Two which he didn’t eat. (What did you eat for four days, dear? Eggs and tuna?)
And watering the greenhouse/office.
Restocking the bird feeder.
Walking the yard to see what new green things are coming up out of the ground. (Lots! but only an inch or so.)
Clearing out my email. (Which went from twenty to three.)
I am now writing “off contract” with a clear schedule and no deadlines until Christmas apart from the regular schedule stuff–which means I’m writing what ever I feel like.
Best. Day. Ever!
March 25, 2013
Virginia Festival of the Book/Richmond VA
Sunday at Virginia festival of the Book was a little chilly, but we warmed it up at the romance panel.
It was a palooza of fabulous questions ranging from the industry to the art of writing with emphasis on the paranormal and urban fantasy genres. Pictured from left to right are Jeaniene Frost, Kim Harrison, Pamela Palmer, and Vicki Pettersson, and yes, those are not our books we are holding . . . It was that kind of panel. Tons of fun! We pretty much filled the room, and the signing afterward was busy!
Then it was off to Richmond where we all spoke again at Fountain Bookstore.
If you ever get the chance to go to an event put on by Fountain Books, do so! They are well run and all of us left lots of signed books. I took a peek at a few of the copies of EVER AFTER I signed, and they appeared to still be the first editions, so if you’re looking to get one, they have them. www.fountainbookstore.com (I’m not sure where the direct link is to buy one signed. I’m hoping one pops up soon) and when they run out, Nicola’s has them as well. Nicola’s
Also, if you want to find out more about Jeaniene’s books, she was on Virginia this Morning, celebrating the release of her latest, Twice Tempted. Me? I’m finally home, ready to spend some serious butt-in-chair, mind-in-clouds time.
March 23, 2013
The fire marshal said “No More!” and shut the door
Yep, we closed them down last night at the library, with a full house at the science fiction and fantasy panel, and looking at the lineup, it was no surprise. Going from left to right in the picture below, we had Steve White (Sunset of the Gods) Hugh Howey (Wool) Kim Harrison (Hollows/urban fantasy) and Katherine Kurtz. (Deryni series)
It was an exceptional panel in that we had authors who started in this industry in three different decades all having different experiences in how we broke into print. Hugh’s comments were especially pertinent to the new writer breaking into print using non-traditional means. (I really need to talk to my agent now . . .) 
The library where we spoke is beautiful, and the festival extremely well run. If you have the opportunity to take part in it, do so. The shopping alone is worth coming for. (grin)
I’ll be at a panel today at 2:00, signing after at 3:00 with Pamela Palmer, Me, Jeaniene Frost, and Vicki Pettersson. More info at event’s page. http://www.kimharrison.net/Events.html
March 21, 2013
For A Few Demons More Tops B&N’s best Paranormal Fantasy of last decade.
Barnes and Noble has come out with their top twenty paranormal fantasy novels of the last decade, and FOR A FEW DEMONS MORE, the Hollows debut into hardcover in 2007, has made not only the list, but took the top spot! The list was compiled by Paul Goat Allen, one of the top reviewers of the genre, who had been keeping his pulse on the expanding, ever changing, wonderful oddness of what makes up urban fantasy for longer than I can remember. Being here is an honor.
Go on over and check out the list. It feels really good to be rubbing shoulders with the peers in my field, but there are a few titles there that I’ve not heard of, and I’m going to have to check them out. And drop in a comment while you’re there! Everyone likes to be appreciated, even reviewers.
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/the-20-best-paranormal-fantasy-novels-of-the-last-decade/
For a Few Demons More
For A Few Demons More
For a Few Demons More (Blood Song)
March 20, 2013
Muse and the music-and a little bit of signage!
After over a year of working with Peri, I found her soul yesterday. It’s going to be a hell of a series. At the end of the link here, you can click to listen. Banks-Before I Ever Met You. https://soundcloud.com/banksbanksbanks/banks-before-i-ever-met-you
Also, did you know the glow-in-the-dark HOLLOWS INSIDER is soon to become an extinct species? I signed like twenty of them last weekend in Florida, but that’s not going to last. They will becoming trade paperback this year, and the new copy will not glow in the dark. I think you can still get them, but they are becoming harder to find, and in a few months? (shrug) I don’t know if the Virginia Festival of the Book will have them onsite this next weekend when I sign there with Palmer, Pattersson, and Frost, (event schedule) but Nicola’s still has a few, and I’ll put my name on this first edition for you if you hustle. 
They have a bunch of my other titles, too. http://www.nicolasbooks.com/book/9780061974335
March 18, 2013
Green stuff coming up out of the cold, frozen ground
So last Friday, Guy finds me outside in the yard with the dogs. It’s cold, snow still on the ground, and he says, “What are you doing?” since I’m crouched down looking at stuff, and I look up at him and say, “looking for green things coming out of the ground.”
He shakes his head and walks away, but hey, there are green things coming out of the cold, frozen ground, and I wanted to see it. Now, if only we can keep the bunnies from finding it for a week or so more and much more tasty things are available. The dafs will be okay, but the crocus have a tendency to get nibbled in the early, cold spring.
Today I’ll be writing a new chapter with Peri. The new material will help break the momentum of the rewrite, slow me down and get me thinking. Yay! All day to write!
The Reading Festival was fab! I was again surprised at how many people were there to get books signed, and the dinner the night before I was able to sit with a table of readers, so that was fab-u-losa! Whoo-hoo! And the Florida warmth was really nice too. Actually got some sun!
I’ll be in Virginia next weekend for much of the same. Ah, minus the sun . . . http://www.kimharrison.net/Events.html
March 14, 2013
Packing for the weekend in Florida!
I’ll be in Florida this weekend at the South West Florida Reading Festival for a one-day event at Fort Myers. I can’t wait! The last time I was in Fort Myers I was on a sailboat in the middle of February, and I think I was writing Princess at Sea, actually, so it’s been a while. I’m sure things have changed. We’ve got a dusting of snow again, so I’ll be happy to be in sun and sand, my natural habitat, though I manage to be happy just about anywhere you plant me. Kind of like mint or dandelions.
If you’re going to be in the area, come on down to see me and Jeaniene Frost. We’ve got an hour to fill, and I honestly don’t know how to fill an hour without a moderator . . . There will be a chance to sign books afterward, and because I don’t expect the huge lines that a tour brings out, I should be able to relax and sign everything you bring!
Also, I’ve got to show you Harry the hedgehog. I finished him last weekend, my courage being bolstered by the smaller bunnies I made last month. I’ve never tried critters before these two projects, and I kind of like ‘em. Harry turned out sweet. That’s a hot water bottle he’s holding in the one hand. The book and sleeping cap I added on my own seeing as he’s ready for hibernation. He’s an Alan Dart pattern, for those in the know, and stands about a foot tall.
Right now I’m learning how to tunisian crochet, which is kind of tricky until you figure out how to hold the needle. It uses a really long crochet needle, and you do one row putting loops on it, and the return pass taking them off. I had to take out all my stitches I did Monday and Tuesday, but I think I have it figured out–for the moment. It is so easy, and I can imagine that this might be the next craft sensation to be rediscovered as it makes a nice, thick fabric that is versatile.
I’m thinking the hook is innocuous enough to take on the plane. Florida is a three hour flight.
March 11, 2013
East Coast stops
I’ve got a couple of stops in Florida and Virginia to finish out the EVER AFTER tour, and the best part is I’m doing it with some of my buds, Vicki Pettersson, Jeaniene Frost, and Pamela Palmer. I’ve got the full itinerary at the website: Tour Info but here’s the short and sweet:
March 16, Saturday: Southwest Florida Reading Festival
Fort Myers River District
Panel: Vampires, Witches, and Demons, Oh My!
(with Jeaniene Frost)
Saturday, 1:00
Harbor Event Center
1375 Monroe St, Room A-1
Booksigning following at the Galleria
March 22, Friday: Virginia Festival of the Book Charlottesville, VA
6:00-7:15 P.M. Science Fiction and Fantasy
Panel: with Hugh Howey, Katherine Kurtz, Steve White)
Central Jefferson Madison Library
201 E. Market St
Books will be available by Barnes and Noble onsite Venue Details
March 23, Saturday: Virginia Festival of the Book Charlottesville, VA
2:00-3:00 P.M.
Panel: Strange Brew, Paranormal Authors “Spell Out” Their Secrets
(with Jeaniene Frost, Pamela Palmer, Vicki Pettersson.)
City Space-Piedmont Council for the Arts
100 5th St. NE
Books will be available by Barnes and Noble onsite Venue Details
March 24, Sunday: Richmond VA
Book signing and event with
Vicki Pettersson, Jeaniene Frost, and Pamela Palmer
The Boat Room
1210 E. Cary St.
Richmond, VA 23219
One block from the Fountain Bookstore 1312 E. Cary St
