Cherie Priest's Blog: It's awards season, so here comes the shameless self-promotion, page 68

She won't walk away but she won't look back

Tonight, I give you links. Important links! Useful links! Helpful links!*

Steampunk Summer 2011 – This spring, Teen Services Librarians will bring copies of Boneshaker by yours truly and Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld to Seattle middle and high schools … and they'll also HIDE some copies in secret locations around Seattle. Click that link for details!

Minions Wanted – Do you like the Greywalker series? Do you want to have a special place in Kat Richardson's heart? Then you want to be her minion. She needs minions to spread the word about her books … and of course, minions get cool minion-only stuff.

University Book Store event for the Steampunk Bible – To gank copy from The Stranger: "Beloved Northwest science fiction authors Cherie Priest and Jay Lake join Libby Bulloff for her new book, Steampunk Bible. It is unfortunately a book about behaving like a steampunk, as opposed to a retelling of the Bible with steampunk trappings."

Andy Griffith with a civics lesson – No, really. It's darling. Go watch and learn.

Steam Scholar argues against "Bustlepunk" – Interesting read, and so are the comments – if you'd like a study in civilized people strongly disagreeing in a civilized fashion, with the end result being that no one at all compares anyone else to Hitler.

* To paraphrase the bard, "Two out of three ain't bad."

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

When you're gone I'll tell them my religion's you

I am back now from Phoenix Comic Con – an event which was, I must say, a massive amount of fun. There were drinks, readings, panels, and shenanigans – not to mention one truly hilarious game show; and although I never got to squee stupidly at Elvira in person, this is probably just as well. It no doubt would've gone down in history as my Least Dignified Moment Ever.*

I did, however, get to hang with friends old and new. I've known and adored Scalzi and Wil for lo, these many years; and I was fortunate enough to meet and goof off with Wonderful People From The Internet, including Si Spurrier, Sam Sykes, and Paul Cornell. By their powers combined, the weekend went from "a hoot and a half" to "absolutely outstanding."

And now for a very few relevant highlights in bullet form, with links.

We know who owns us – Me, Wil, and Si … beneath our master's sigil, as Si put it.

Four dudes go drinking and/or gaming – Left to right: Sam, Paul, Scalzi, and Joel (from Hijinks Ensue).

Suvudu gets in on the action – Courtesy of the very kind Kevin Hearne, who I cannot recommend enough, for he is lovely.



All right, guys. That's all I've got for now. I still haven't finished unpacking yet, and there's work to do before I sit down for a conference call first thing in the morning, so I need to log off and take this holiday evening to be productive. No rest for the wicked, etc. etc. etc.

But seriously, thanks a million to everyone who made the convention such a blast – not just the marvelous handlers and organizers, but the fantastic people who were kind enough to let me hang out and bounce around the event with them. It was a great weekend, and I hope I get to do it again next year!

* I would've exploded all over her like a fistful of fangirl confetti. She'd have been picking pieces of me out of her cleavage for days. Blissful for me. Annoying for her.

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

Phoenix Comic Con – INCOMING

Tomorrow morning I'm heading out for Phoenix ComicCon – where I fully expect to have a monstrous good time for a few days. I'm scheduled all over the place, and I'd list those appearances here except that it feels like a waste of space … and also a waste of this perfectly swank page they set up for me. So cool! So helpful! So click that link if you want to stalk me around the event.

A few short notes on that schedule page, though:

1. Though I've been assigned a booth/table, I honestly have no idea when I'll find the time to park there. Don't go there expecting to find me. Check the schedule instead; you're more likely to hunt me down that way.

2. Friday night I'm also participating in the "Just A Minute" game, starting at 6:00 p.m. I only just got this settled yesterday, so it's not up there yet.

3. I no longer have blue hair, so I am now a bit less easy to pick out of a crowd. My apologies! These days I look more like this. (At least, when I've put some effort into looking presentable.) I might be wearing my glasses. Depends on how well my eyeballs feel like cooperating with the contacts.



Anyway! I'm in markedly better health than I was at this time last week, and I'm very much looking forward to this event. Come out and say hello; unless I'm stuffing my face or in the ladies room, I'm always happy to sign whatever you've brought – and happy to talk to you.

But now it's time to devote a few hours to day-job work, and then start packing. Thanks so much for reading, and I hope to see some of you in Phoenix this weekend!

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

May 23, 2011

I'm still alive over here, and in fact, I'm even improving. Huzzah for modern medicine! Huzzah also for my friend Kat, whose birthday was yesterday – though we're meeting up for choco-martinis this afternoon, instead. Furthermore huzzahs for having handed in the Ganymede edits; and subsequent huzzahs for Phoenix Comic Con this coming weekend.

I'd go on, but I need to make some lunch so I can take those aforementioned antibiotics. So I'll sign off with some links:

Divine Goth/Lolita/Steampunk bling – So my pal and co-conspirator Sam (the exceptional designer Blasphemina) is having a run of shit-tastic luck. Her home was damaged/flooded yesterday in the storms that sent tornadoes careening around the midwest – but much of her stock is still intact, and she's hoping to sell some goodies to help with repairs. Go take a peek at her Etsy shop and see if anything strikes your fancy. I'll vouch for her products! I own some of them myself.

Thackeray T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities makes the L.A. Times summer reading list – This is relevant to my interests because I am one of the contributers, and I am very, very excited about seeing this book in print. I admit, it took me a minute to spot it in the L.A. Times page, but it's there – under "Page Turners" as it damn well ought to be.

Clementine gets a great quick-and-dirty review – Speaking of this book, there's been a slight delay with regards to the paperback edition, but it is still coming. And at present, you can find it in a number of digital formats including Nook, Kindle, and others – plus an audiobook.

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

Rapture Cat is outta here, y'all.

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

Just a holy fool

I did, in fact, go to the doctor – and now I have meds to combat not only the allergies, but also the resulting sinus infection and the ear infection that has been creeping up in its wake. It's never just one thing, you know? Hey – when I get sick, I don't half-ass it.

I will survive, but of course this excessive grossness is landing in the middle of lots of work and travel. The work is never-ending (and presently includes not just day-job work and Inexplicables composition, but also Ganymede edits) … but there's an end in sight for the travel. Next week I'm flying out to Phoenix for the comic-con, and after that, I've got nada out-of-town between here and September.*

I am psyched about Phoenix, but I am also relieved at the prospect of staying home for awhile on the other side of it. I've been careful to keep my schedule mostly clear from summer onward this year, partly for personal reasons that I don't feel like putting in public quite yet – but largely it breaks down to, "After the last year and a half of being on the GO GO GO, I need some serious decompression time in order to write and work." I have designated the second half of 2011 as this decompression time.

Anyway.

Just a quick note on an upcoming project, and then I'll log off to return to the aforementioned writing and working. This project, in fact:

Now please pardon me while I make wazzy magical hand gestures in order to direct your attention to this wicked-awesome cover. That-there is Leo, my retiring NYC detective from Manhattan's Fifth Precinct, AKA "Fort Freak" in the Wild Cards universe.

It is impossible for me to overstate how squeeful I am about this book. Did I write the whole thing? No. Hell-to-the-no.

But I wrote the interstitial – the frame story that both bookends the whole and laces the other stories together – and it was one of the toughest (but most fantastic) experiences I've ever had in the world of writing. I am ludicrously proud of this book – proud to have been part of the franchise, and thrilled to have worked with such amazing people.

Fort Freak will be released June 21st, so look for it then at fine booksellers (and internet retailers) everywhere. If you would like to see a sneak-peak sample, you can click right here to visit George's website, where the first segment is live and free for the reading. And I wrote it! Eeeee!!!**

For a few more details on this book and for the future of the Wild Cards in general, check out George's blog where he posts on the subject, preemptively answering the sorts of questions you are likely to ask if this series is near and/or dear to your hearts.

So go on! Get clicking! And I hope that when this hits the shelves, you'll take a chance on it. We worked our asses off, and had a hell of a lot of fun with this thing. And I do believe it shows.






* Nada except for another few rounds of bopping to San Francisco, but as this is (a). day-job face-time work-related and (b). not nearly so tough as when I have to leave my time zone and be "on" as Cherie In Public for 3-4 days. Don't get me wrong, it's fun being "on" at events – otherwise I wouldn't do them – but when a lot of events are packed close together like the last couple of months, it gets pretty exhausting.

** [:: Insert happydances here ::]

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

Hi everybody!

I'm home again – for the next week and a half, anyway; and it's just as well, for I am outrageously sick. I honestly can't tell if this is allergies (quite severe for me out here on the West Coast) or some illness that has arisen in the wake of those catastrophic allergies, combined with copious jet lag. It doesn't matter much. I'm popping the same fistfuls of antihistamines and decongestants, regardless.

Not that anything really seems to work.

To those of you who might, at this point, be tempted to chime in offering helpful suggestions or remedies … I'd ask you to lift your hands from the keyboard immediately and back slowly away. Trust me when I tell you that I've had allergies of some variety or another my entire life, I've been tested and treated multiple times in multiple fashions, and I've tried almost everything from hardcore prescriptions to my-grandma-used-to-use-this-folk-cure. But because no matter how much I assert or insist that I'm not trawling for advice when I post such things, and someone always suggests it: Yes I have a neti pot. Yes I use it. Yes it helps, about as much as anything else (read: minimally).

Kindly trust me to have explored a vast variety of venues and options, thanks.

There is, in fact, a chance that I might be able to visit a proper allergist sometime in the semi-near future – and yes, I am interested in the vaccination system that so many people find effective (if tedious). But I can't do that on my present health insurance, which is roughly the equivalent of having nothing but liability coverage on a car. So that's gotta wait.

Anyway. Like I said I'm back in town through the middle of next week, when I'll head to Phoenix … and after that, I have no plans to go anyplace at all until September.* No one is happier about this than me, I tell you what.

Well, actually, that might not be true. The kitty has been obsessively co-dependent ever since I returned. Case in point: I woke up around dawn with the ferocious sneezes, so I wandered into the bathroom to take a nice hot steamy shower and see if that'd loosen up the goop in my head. When I emerged, I found rolled-up sock balls all over the hallway. Apparently Spain the Cat had been sitting outside the bathroom door, howling her head off … until Aric the Husband decided he couldn't take it anymore and started hurtling projectiles at her.**

(Rolled-up sock balls are our traditional weapons of choice against ill-behaved felines. I'm clinically blind and couldn't hit a nearby lion, much less a distant housecat; but I can startle the heck out of her and chase her off. And as for the husband, his aim is no better than mine. Though he's capable of throwing harder than I can – he wakes up more slowly, and it balances out.)

So now it's Sunday afternoon, and never mind all the work I needed to catch up on this weekend. I didn't get a damn thing done, as I have spent the majority of my time back (from SF on Friday evening) lying around moaning, slurping NyQuil, testing different forms of Breathe-Rite strips, and soaking slug-like in the bathtub – not hearing the objections of adjacent kitties.

Tomorrow I have a day-job thing that absolutely can't be put off, but after that, I'm going to hunker down with Red Bull and the decongestants people use to make meth and barrel through the edits on Ganymede. Which are late. But such is life.

I suppose that catches you up on just about everything.

Now I'm going to log off, grab a glass of wine and another round of pills, and watch TV until I pass out. Wee!

* Will likely end up back in California for the day-job face-time, but that's the sort of travel I don't mind half so much. The flight is short, the work is interesting, and it's in my own time zone and everything!

** Under ordinary circumstances, she'll push at the bathroom door – and if it's not shut good, she'll let herself inside to see what you're up to. But she lives in fear and loathing of running water, and if you turn on the faucet or the tub, she contents herself to wait quietly outside until you emerge.

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

May 10, 2011

Hey everyone! I'm back from D.C., but tomorrow morning I'm heading to San Francisco for some day-job face-time. Then, the last weekend of this month, I'm going to Phoenix for the very fine ComicCon they hold there – and after that … virtually nothing for a while. Oh, there's a chance I'll be back in San Fran a time or two (or three or four) in the next few months, but that's the least onerous sort of travel: brief flight, and within my own time zone.

In short, the end is in sight with regards to all this cross-country jaunting around. And no one is happier about that than yours truly.

But for now, I must still be quick with this internet/blogging thing, for there are too many other activities eating my time and attention. I have to be at the airport tomorrow around dawn, and I have edits on Ganymede to perform, and there are people in California to impress, and there's just … gawd. So much to do.

I just have to survive until June. I just have to survive until June. I just have to survive until June. Then I can stay at home and be productive without all this added distraction.

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

Major Congratulations

…To my little brother, Alex Priest. For he is a graduate. Of a bunch of things. And also he is the recipient of many awards. Truly, he's an epic overachiever – and merely his graduation weekend has worn me the hell out. But of course, we are very, very proud of him.

Click below for a couple more shots. You might as well!

Read the rest of this entry »

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]

Pseudo-Sanity Breaks

Yesterday I attended to some business in the morning, and then took a break for lunch with Kat – followed by a little shopping around Ballard. I picked up a new dress to wear to my brother's graduation (lavender, simple, stretchy knit), plus a new bucky-stuffed travel pillow (left my old one in OKC, dammit), and a few other odds and ends. Then I headed home where more business-stuff awaited (it never ends, really), and today I'm starting it all over again … with the added fun of laundry, a trip to the bank, and packing for Washington D.C. (I leave in the morning, before dawn).

But to answer a FAQ – no, just this once it's not a business trip; and no I won't be signing or doing any events. This jaunt to the East Coast is strictly a family visit, to watch my baby brother launch out of college. And also to feel old.*

So! Today there is much to do, not least of all catch up on some idea-slinging and brain-wringing for the day-job so I can send off a fat batch of potentially useful material before dashing off to the other side of the continent. Therefore, I shall cut off my internet time thusly … and if I don't see you over on the Twitters (or the Facebooks, to which the Twitters cross-post), then I'll catch up to you sometime this weekend. If the jet-lag doesn't get me first!

* Yes, I'm quite a lot older than him. My own college graduation was in 1998, if that tells you anything.

[Crossposted from my website. If you'd like to comment, you can do so either here or there.]