Jane Lindskold's Blog, page 65
July 19, 2019
FF: Is It Okay To Remind You?
Kel Contemplates The Empires
Wolf’s Search is officially released. I’m mentioning this because I know that many of you show up on Friday to see which adorable member of my non-human family is posing with what book. If you want to know more about Wolf’s Search, here’s a link to my announcement.
For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week. Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.
The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list. If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.
Once again, this is not a book review column. It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.
I enjoy hearing what you’re reading, by the way…
Recently Completed:
The Crown of Dalemark by Diana Wynne Jones. Final book in the Dalemark Quartet. If you’re willing to try a series that’s going to break a lot of your expectations but pay off in the end, then I really, really recommend this series. Diana Wynne Jones shows another side of her talent in this excellent series.
In Progress:
Caesar and Christ by Will Durant. Audiobook. The Roman republic is beginning to slide. We’ve left politics to look at art and drama.
Also:
“Buffalo Dogs” by Lawrence M. Schoen. Short story. If you like stories about con men, space stations, weird aliens, and even weirder alien animals, you can try this tale as a free e-book. Not as sophisticated or thoughtful as his Barsk, but still fun.
July 17, 2019
Search No More: Wolf’s Search Is Available!
Take Flight!
That’s right! Wolf’s Search, the seventh book in the Firekeeper Saga, is now available as both e-book and trade paperback. You can acquire the ebook at the following on-line retailers: Amazon; Barnes and Noble (Nook); Kobo; Google Play, and iTunes. The trade paperback is also available at Amazon.
As of this moment, Wolf’s Search will not be available in most bookstores. Eventually, I will have copies of the trade paperback available directly from me, but I’m not set up for retail by mail of this title at this time. On the other hand, you can still get hardcover copies of most of the earlier books in the series through my website bookshop.
Important note! Wolf’s Search begins about six months after Wolf’s Blood. However, it is not necessary to read the previous six books to follow the events in this one. Readers new to the series will, of course, experience some spoilers, but Wolf’s Search does not require detailed knowledge of prior events in order to enjoy the story. In other words: No Homework Necessary!
Still with me? Want to know what Wolf’s Search is about? The best spoiler-free option I can offer you is the cover blurb:
Transformative Journey
Blind Seer has run at Firekeeper’s side since the wolf-woman first crossed the Iron Mountains into human-held lands. Now it’s her turn to run alongside the blue-eyed wolf as he sets out in search of someone who can teach him how to use his magical gift—on his own unique terms.
The pair’s search will take them to the far side of the world in the company of allies who include a young woman scarred by war, a falcon who believes himself a traitor, and an old friend… or possibly enemy. Together they will fight battles from before they were born, climb mountains, cross badlands, eventually unveiling a threat that will reshape not only Blind Seer, but his belief in what he most desires.
Wolf’s Search’s cover art is by Julie Bell. You can purchase a print of her original art here. Her “Andre” doesn’t have Blind Seer’s blue eyes, but is still gorgeous.
If you’d like a little backstory about why the publishing format of Wolf’s Search differs in some ways from the earlier books in the series, you might want to read this post I wrote back in January.
I guess that covers the basics. Feel free to ask questions. I ask you to be considerate about asking questions that contain spoilers.
Wait! I can anticipate one question at least. Yes. There will be another Firekeeper novel. Its working title is Wolf’s Soul. I often slip progress reports into my Wednesday Wanderings and Friday Fragments posts, so keep checking in to be among the first to know what’s going on.
July 12, 2019
FF: The Proof Is With Persephone
Persephone Is Proud To Protect the Proof
The photo above is of my cat Persephone with the print proof of Wolf’s Search. That proof is one of the things I’ll be reading over the next few days. Fingers crossed but, at a quick look, it seems to be in good shape.
For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week. Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.
The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list. If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.
Once again, this is not a book review column. It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.
I enjoy hearing what you’re reading, by the way…
Recently Completed:
The Spellcoats by Diana Wynne Jones. Third of her Dalemark Quartet. This is a very odd series. This book takes place so far in the past from events in the first two books that it’s not even a prequel. The mood of this one was folktale/mythic, rather than the high fantasy adventure of the prior two books.
In Progress:
The Crown of Dalemark by Diana Wynne Jones. Mitt from Drowned Ammet and Moril from Cart and Cwidder. Then came a girl name Maewen who seems to be from the Twentieth Century? I know I read a couple of these earlier, but I think I missed this one and maybe even The Spellcoats.
Caesar and Christ by Will Durant. Audiobook. We’ve taken a look at the Etruscans, and Rome has just solidified its hold on the Italian peninsula.
Also:
Wolf’s Search in various forms.
July 10, 2019
Take Flight With Wolf’s Search
Back and Front Cover!
As you’ve probably guessed, the image accompanying this post is the official cover for Wolf’s Search. The art is by Julie Bell, who gave her talents to the art for the first six books, and let me use her “Andre” for the cover of Wolf’s Search.
Many readers of Fantasy and SF are already familiar with Julie Bell’s art, but did you know that doing the covers for the Firekeeper books brought her to doing wildlife art as well? You can read all about her journey—including the ups and downs along the way—here.
If you’re interested in seeing the original of “Andre,” here’s a link to the proper page on Julie Bell’s site. You’ll see that her image is just a little different from the one on the cover, but it’s still magnificent. Even more fascinating, Julie Bell’s painting actually perfectly fit something I’d planned for the book long before I started looking for art. There is such a thing as serendipity.
Wondering what Wolf’s Search is about? Let me spare you trying to read off the photo and give you the blurb here!
Transformative Journey
Blind Seer has run at Firekeeper’s side since the wolf-woman first crossed the Iron Mountains into human-held lands. Now it’s her turn to run alongside the blue-eyed wolf as he sets out in search of someone who can teach him how to use his magical gift—on his own unique terms.
The pair’s search will take them to the far side of the world in the company of allies who include a young woman scarred by war, a falcon who believes himself a traitor, and an old friend… or possibly enemy. Together they will fight battles from before they were born, climb mountains, cross badlands, eventually unveiling a threat that will reshape not only Blind Seer, but his belief in what he most desires.
As I write this, I’m waiting for the print proof for Wolf’s Search to arrive. It’s scheduled to get here tomorrow. Proofing that is the final Big Step before the book is ready for release. Depending on whether any new errors cropped up in printing, Wolf’s Search could be available as both e-book and trade paperback within a few weeks.
I’ll announce when Wolf’s Search is available as a Wednesday Wandering. If you can’t wait even a moment, sign up for my Mailing List, since I’ll post the information there as soon as it becomes available. You can find a link to the mailing list at my website. My mailing list is only used for important announcements, and I never share the list, so you don’t need to worry about being inundated except by the sort of news you want!
Now, off to see if the proof has arrived. I know it’s a day early, but I’m very excited!
July 5, 2019
FF: A Fifth of July
Drowsy Keladry
July is here and I hope to have a lot more time to read!
For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week. Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.
The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list. If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.
Once again, this is not a book review column. It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.
Let me know what you’re reading!
Recently Completed:
Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome by Robert Harris. The best parts were Cicero’s speeches.
The Life of Greece by Will Durant. Audiobook. We finished with philosophy, then a concluding summary. Excellent.
Drowned Ammet by Diana Wynne Jones. Second of her Dalemark Quartet. A little harder to get into because her protagonists are confused and angry. The ending is quite interesting, though.
In Progress:
The Spellcoats by Diana Wynne Jones. Third of her Dalemark Quartet. Just started.
Caesar and Christ by Will Durant. Audiobook. Just started.
Also:
Various magazines that arrived with the beginning of the month reminded me I have a backlog, so doing a fair amount of reading there.
July 3, 2019
Blue Sky Writing
Blue Sky With Hawk and Clouds
I’m going to start this post by saying that I know I’m wrong, and by thanking James, Emily, and Paola for making statements that converged in this Wandering.
Not long ago, I saw a series of posts where an author was providing step-by-step instructions to his readership how to buy his forthcoming release so as to put it on the bestseller lists. Something in me cringed. Not because he was wrong, but because I have a lot of trouble doing that sort of thing.
Last weekend, I had an e-mail from a very nice reader asking me why she couldn’t pre-order Wolf’s Search. I explained that I was still in the last stages of polishing, so it wasn’t up for pre-order. When it was done, I’d simply post it for sale. The fan was very nice about that.
However, a lot of current publishing lore, both traditional and independent, would tell me that I am wrong. My job is not to write the best book I can and then get it to my readers pretty much as soon as it’s ready. My job is to hold onto the manuscript, build up “buzz,” then release the manuscript at the optimal time to maximize initial sales.
In case you hadn’t heard, initial sales—or in some cases orders or pre-orders—are what “bestseller” lists measure. Most bestseller lists don’t measure actual sales. Most don’t measure reader excitement. Most don’t measure reviews. What they measure is hype.
Once upon a time, for the majority of books and authors, this was not the case. Books did not need to hit the bestseller list to be considered worth reading or successful. Yes. There were exceptions. Ever wait to buy the hardcover of your favorite Big Name until it was deep-discounted at the local Big Box Book Store? Those books were part of making that book a bestseller—books that were pre-ordered but never bought.
I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve been told I’m wrong and old-fashioned in my approach to publishing. I was late getting into social media because I’m basically shy. I’m not comfortable itemizing every minute of my life. I’d feel funny posting eight or ten pictures a day of my cats or the birds in the yard or the toad that was heading off to bed this morning as I got up.
This isn’t to say those people are wrong or crass or anything. I actually enjoy some of those sort of posts, even if I can’t post that way myself. Time I spend thinking about shouting out or worrying about the latest marketing trend is not only time I don’t spend writing, it’s also time I spend being anxious, upset, and afraid. And when I feel that way, I don’t write.
I found this definition of blue sky thinking on-line: “Blue sky thinking sessions are open to all creative ideas regardless of practical constraints.” I guess that makes me a blue sky writer. I look to the mountains east of Albuquerque (the Sandias) and end up putting dragons there. This makes for an interesting life. Perhaps more important to you, it makes for the stories you read. (The dragon in the Sandias was featured in my short story “Spellsword” in the anthology Spell Fantastic.)
Once upon a time, a writer’s job was to create, now many view writing as just one part of the job. I know I’m wrong. I get that the world has changed. But writing is what I do. Am I wrong not to cultivate the lists, to try to be a bestseller, to build my fan base through something other than writing the best stories I can? Maybe. But if I want to write, for me, I’m right.
June 28, 2019
FF: Not For Lack Of Trying
Kel Admires How This Cover Goes With Her Eyes
If you missed my happy dancing earlier in the week, the other writer in the family, my husband, Jim, has just had a paper on which he was the lead author accepted to American Antiquity. This is a star in his already stellar archeological career.
For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week. Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.
The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list. If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.
Once again, this is not a book review column. It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.
I enjoy hearing what you’re reading, by the way…
Recently Completed:
I Sing the Body Electric by Ray Bradbury. Very much a product of their time in some ways, but the writing remains magnificent.
An Eva Ibbotson Collection (Which Witch; The Secret of Platform 13; Island of the Aunts) by Eva Ibbotson. Middle grade Fantasy novels. I enjoyed all of them quite a bit.
In Progress:
Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome by Robert Harris. After reading Will Durant, I have this urge to tell the editor the subtitle should be “Of Late Republic Rome.” Cicero is not “ancient.”
The Life of Greece by Will Durant. Audiobook. The topic is books. How very many popular authors have vanished is humbling.
Also:
I have been proofing. Am resigning myself to the fact that I will miss something, but by heaven it won’t be for lack of trying!
June 26, 2019
Background Noise
Frippery Stalled At the Fence
In the background as I type this, I hear the steady sound of Jim putting up a rabbit fence. Despite our best efforts to close gaps in our aging fence, Frippery Wigglenose Scamperbutt, the rapidly growing baby bunny keeps coming in to eat our bean plants, as well as whatever else he fancies. Most recently, he tried some exotic Shock-o-Lat sunflowers, nipping them off where they won’t be able to grow back. Given that he ignored wild sunflower plants of the same size, I admit to being a bit irate.
We actually have a new fence for the west side of our yard on order, but it won’t go up until sometime in July. Until then, we’re learning what Frippery likes. Bean plants are definitely on the top of his list. Variety doesn’t seem to matter. He’s sampled three varieties of teppary beans, Rattlesnakes, and Purple Queen. He’s tried sunflowers. He’s nibbled Swiss chard. So far he doesn’t like tomato plants or squash plants. He hasn’t tried the basil, which is a blessing, because he could mow down the row of seedlings in about three minutes.
We have another reason for wanting to keep Frippery out of our backyard. Our two guinea pigs, Ziggy and Dandelion, have a hutch outside in the shade of the larger catalpa tree. We don’t know if wild rabbits carry anything that wouldn’t benefit guinea pigs, but we don’t want to find out. Ziggy, in particular, is a bit fragile. She loves grass, which we don’t have much of at the best of times, and in this very dry late spring, early summer, we have even less of. I don’t want Frippery to eat or contaminate Ziggy’s treat.
Still, at times I feel just a little like Farmer McGregor from the Peter Rabbit stories, although we’d never go so far as to have Frippery or PF in a pie.
On that cheerful note, I’m back to focusing on minutia and the like, as Wolf’s Search moves closer step by step to publication.
Take care!
June 21, 2019
FF: The Expanded Version
Persephone Guards A Precious Edition
Summer is taking me outside more, so I’m reading a bit less. However, I did transplant eighteen volunteer tomato plants, put in four new pepper plants, and plant hollyhocks for later in the season, so all is not lost…
For those of you just discovering this part of my blog, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week. Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines.
The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list. If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.
Once again, this is not a book review column. It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in.
I enjoy hearing what you’re reading, by the way…
Recently Completed:
Digger by Ursula Vernon. Graphic novel. Smart. Funny. Clever. Loved!
In Progress:
I Sing the Body Electric by Ray Bradbury. Turns out the edition Elizabeth Leggett loaned me has more stories than mine did, so I’m reading the extras…
The Life of Greece by Will Durant. Audiobook. We are now into the Hellenistic period, focusing on Alexandria.
Also:
Copy edit for Wolf’s Search finished. Dedication and Acknowledgments finished. E-book files already back to me and I’m proofing yet again. POD still to be proofed.
June 19, 2019
Frippery Wigglenose Scamperbutt (And Other Denizens)
Newly Hatched Baby Quail and Mom
This last week was particularly good for wildlife spotting in the nature preserve that is our not very large yard. For the first part of the week, we had a family of newly hatched quail chicks and their parents living in our front yard. Based on watching her herd the brood, Mama Quail was using the landscaping as a play pen to keep her youngsters from wandering too far.
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Frippery Wigglenose Scamperbutt Under Cedar
We also had a baby bunny show up. He was very visible for several days, and somehow acquired the name Frippery Wigglenose Scampbutt. The picture doesn’t really provide scale, but I could have easily held him on one hand.
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PF and Frippery
It’s unclear whether Frippery and PF—our more or less resident cottontail—are related. Certainly, PF did not seem unduly enchanted when Frippery came bounding up, wanting to play. Of course, since Frippery’s idea of a fun game is to run at someone with intent to pounce (something we saw him do to sparrows, doves, and even sharp-beaked Skinny the Thrasher), PF can’t exactly be blamed.
Skinny has continued to show up pretty much daily with a younger thrasher in tow. Last Sunday, I moved the fence around our front flowerbed so I could transplant some of the volunteer tomato plants that had come up. (Volunteer plants are a consequence of using grey water on some of our beds.) I left for a minute to carry some of the transplants around back. When I returned, Skinny and Skinny Junior were actively investigating the changed landscape.
Maybe because they don’t have wings, the rabbits are less delighted by alterations to their surroundings. When Jim left a coiled hose under the ash tree near the bird block, PF would not go near, not even after one of the white-winged doves had investigated the coils closely, up to and including stepping right into the middle of the largest coil.
PF was not to be fooled. That was a boa constrictor, for sure! Of course, if we’d put something interesting to eat on the inside of the coils, he probably would have let appetite overcome his apprehension. I mean, we’re now pretty sure he’s the one who squeezed into our backyard to have a go at the bean plants. This would have involved encounters with all sorts of new and potentially dangerous items.
Our annual tribe of toads is now making regular visits to the teeny-tiny pond in our backyard. Most nights, we fall asleep to the sound of their song. The lizards are very active and, based on the clipped tails I’ve seen, several have had encounters of the not quite deadly kind.
Even if we do need to occasionally replant something, it’s worth it for the fun we have watching our co-residents… I guess this just means we’re part of the circle of lunch.
