Martha Wells's Blog, page 155
June 14, 2012
I've had to take Bella back to the vet. She stopped eatin...
I've had to take Bella back to the vet. She stopped eating in the last couple of days, and has actually lost a bit of weight since she was at the vet last week. (Even though she was eating up until now, including things like raw fish and canned tuna that we were mixing with her cat food.) So, yeah, I'm pretty sure it's cancer and that it's entered another phase. So that's not good.
My horoscope said this week would have highs and lows, so now I'm waiting for the highs. A million dollars and a house in the country would be nice.
Oh, and I went to the eye doctor yesterday to get a new prescription, and found out the doctor is not accepted as a provider by our insurance anymore. His office is next to Eyemasters, and the insurance company owns Lenscrafters.
My horoscope said this week would have highs and lows, so now I'm waiting for the highs. A million dollars and a house in the country would be nice.
Oh, and I went to the eye doctor yesterday to get a new prescription, and found out the doctor is not accepted as a provider by our insurance anymore. His office is next to Eyemasters, and the insurance company owns Lenscrafters.
June 13, 2012
Quickie Post
Author Saladin Ahmed (Throne of the Crescent Moon) could use some help with medical and other expenses, including eyeglasses. (If you have insurance, but no money for prescriptions and co-pays, insurance doesn't do you any good.) He's also posted a free short story at that link. This is one of those cases where if a lot of people give even a small amount, it could do a lot of good.
June 12, 2012
I've been trying to teach the land piranha/kitten that no...
I've been trying to teach the land piranha/kitten that no means no, and to not eat the other cats' food, and not to eat my food. This is going sort of the way you might expect, but it's got to be done.
I can see a distinct difference between Tasha, who we got as a kitten from a friend and who was born in their house and had already lived with other people and cats for a while, and this kitten, who was a stray and then was picked up by the animal shelter. Tasha already knew how houses worked, and understood bathtubs, showers, etc, and had good food manners. To this kitten, everything is something new, and all food belongs to him.
***
New music vid by Felicia Day! Gamer Girl, Country Boy - Felicia Day & Jason Charles Miller
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World SF Blog: The Western Cultural Imperialism Bingo Card
The Book Smugglers: Book Expo America and BEA Bloggers Conference 2012: A Recap
We have mixed feelings about this year’s BEA “Bloggers” Conference (on a side note, why are there quotation marks around “bloggers” in the logo for the conference? SO. WEIRD.). This is the third time we have attended the conference, but in many ways this year was a first as it was the first time that BEA officially organized and ran the con after purchasing it from the hardworking bloggers that founded and ran the show in prior years.
Michelle Harrison: Michelle Harrison: Five things I wish I had known before I was published
I always imagined that upon completing a novel there would be some kind of revelation, some secret I’d unlock that could make it easier the next time round. There’s no such thing.
A.E. Bogdan: Sweet Pains: Headaches, Fatigue and Brain Fog
In 2008 I started having bouts of fatigue and brain fog. The brain fog became so bad that I stopped reading and writing. I simply couldn’t maintain my thoughts from paragraph to paragraph. Sometimes I’d feel better for a while, but it never lasted.
The fatigue increased over the years, along with body aches and back pains. After a few years of this I started getting full-on dizzy spells. A few times on work gigs I felt so groggy and out-of-it I feared my clients would think I was stoned.
Beautiful sand paintings: Incredible Sand Drawings by Andres Amador If I can ever get logged in to my Pinterest again, I'm going to pin one of these.
I can see a distinct difference between Tasha, who we got as a kitten from a friend and who was born in their house and had already lived with other people and cats for a while, and this kitten, who was a stray and then was picked up by the animal shelter. Tasha already knew how houses worked, and understood bathtubs, showers, etc, and had good food manners. To this kitten, everything is something new, and all food belongs to him.
***
New music vid by Felicia Day! Gamer Girl, Country Boy - Felicia Day & Jason Charles Miller
***
World SF Blog: The Western Cultural Imperialism Bingo Card
The Book Smugglers: Book Expo America and BEA Bloggers Conference 2012: A Recap
We have mixed feelings about this year’s BEA “Bloggers” Conference (on a side note, why are there quotation marks around “bloggers” in the logo for the conference? SO. WEIRD.). This is the third time we have attended the conference, but in many ways this year was a first as it was the first time that BEA officially organized and ran the con after purchasing it from the hardworking bloggers that founded and ran the show in prior years.
Michelle Harrison: Michelle Harrison: Five things I wish I had known before I was published
I always imagined that upon completing a novel there would be some kind of revelation, some secret I’d unlock that could make it easier the next time round. There’s no such thing.
A.E. Bogdan: Sweet Pains: Headaches, Fatigue and Brain Fog
In 2008 I started having bouts of fatigue and brain fog. The brain fog became so bad that I stopped reading and writing. I simply couldn’t maintain my thoughts from paragraph to paragraph. Sometimes I’d feel better for a while, but it never lasted.
The fatigue increased over the years, along with body aches and back pains. After a few years of this I started getting full-on dizzy spells. A few times on work gigs I felt so groggy and out-of-it I feared my clients would think I was stoned.
Beautiful sand paintings: Incredible Sand Drawings by Andres Amador If I can ever get logged in to my Pinterest again, I'm going to pin one of these.
June 10, 2012
The College Station Library event went really well, yeste...
The College Station Library event went really well, yesterday. A bunch of friends showed up, and I read from the first chapter of The Siren Depths and answered some questions. The local Barnes and Noble was there with books, and they now have signed copies of The Cloud Roads and The Serpent Sea. Afterwards I was rewarded with a cupcake.
Today I've been mostly cleaning house and doing laundry. The kitten is getting more used to the other cats and vice verse. There hasn't been any physical contact (except for playing with Bella's tail a little) but there has been sitting and sleeping in the same room and almost not-hostile staring. Kitten is still sneezing from a cold he picked up in the shelter (he was at the vet on Thursday and I know what to look for if it gets worse, plus he has to go back for the rest of his shots next week) and I am getting used to being sneezed on a lot by a tiny cat.
***
My next appearance is at ApolloCon 2012 in Houston, TX. I'll be on programming and also be one of the people doing the writers' workshop.
Book rec: I've just started reading Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders by Gyles Brandreth and like it very much. I've enjoyed the whole series, but I like this one especially because the narrator this time is Arthur Conan Doyle.
***
For new people:
First, hi new people! Second, these are the things people are normally looking for on my site:
* Publishing Information Sites for Beginning Authors This is a list of links to articles and resources for writers who are just starting out.
* Excerpts and Free Short Stories This is the list of all the novel excerpts and free short stories I have on my site.
* Three Worlds Compendium Stories, missing scenes, fan art, and other extras for the Books of the Raksura
* Buy Books Online Links to bunches of places that sell my books in paperback, ebook, and audiobook. Includes the updated info for all the places that have The Siren Depths up for preorder.
Today I've been mostly cleaning house and doing laundry. The kitten is getting more used to the other cats and vice verse. There hasn't been any physical contact (except for playing with Bella's tail a little) but there has been sitting and sleeping in the same room and almost not-hostile staring. Kitten is still sneezing from a cold he picked up in the shelter (he was at the vet on Thursday and I know what to look for if it gets worse, plus he has to go back for the rest of his shots next week) and I am getting used to being sneezed on a lot by a tiny cat.
***
My next appearance is at ApolloCon 2012 in Houston, TX. I'll be on programming and also be one of the people doing the writers' workshop.
Book rec: I've just started reading Oscar Wilde and the Vatican Murders by Gyles Brandreth and like it very much. I've enjoyed the whole series, but I like this one especially because the narrator this time is Arthur Conan Doyle.
***
For new people:
First, hi new people! Second, these are the things people are normally looking for on my site:
* Publishing Information Sites for Beginning Authors This is a list of links to articles and resources for writers who are just starting out.
* Excerpts and Free Short Stories This is the list of all the novel excerpts and free short stories I have on my site.
* Three Worlds Compendium Stories, missing scenes, fan art, and other extras for the Books of the Raksura
* Buy Books Online Links to bunches of places that sell my books in paperback, ebook, and audiobook. Includes the updated info for all the places that have The Siren Depths up for preorder.
June 9, 2012
Warning: tap water may contain cats.
Warning: tap water may contain cats.
June 8, 2012
Book rec: Just finished The Killing Moon by N.K. Jemisin,...
Book rec: Just finished The Killing Moon by N.K. Jemisin, and really enjoyed it. It's a secondary world fantasy set in a world modeled on Ancient Egypt, with where a Gatherer-priest of the Dreaming Moon begins to suspect that something terrible is stalking the city. (I've always been a fan of anything set in Ancient Egypt or influenced by it. Thanks to National Geographic, as a kid I went straight from dinosaurs to Ancient Egypt. Two of my favorite books by Andre Norton were Wraiths of Time, set in an alt-universe SF version of Meroe and Shadow Hawk, set in Egypt under the Hyksos.) I don't want to talk too much about what happens because I don't want to spoil it, but did want to note that even though there is a second book in the set, The Shadowed Sun, out this month, that The Killing Moon was a complete story and didn't end on a cliffhanger.
***
Appearance: Tomorrow, on Saturday (June 9) I'll be doing a talk on SF/F and publishing at 1:30 at the College Station Public Library. I'll be signing books, and the local Barnes and Noble should be there with copies of The Cloud Roads and The Serpent Sea to sell. I'll also have some of my older books available.
***
This was on Twitter, and it's awesome: Mister Rogers Remixed: Garden of Your Mind
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Appearance: Tomorrow, on Saturday (June 9) I'll be doing a talk on SF/F and publishing at 1:30 at the College Station Public Library. I'll be signing books, and the local Barnes and Noble should be there with copies of The Cloud Roads and The Serpent Sea to sell. I'll also have some of my older books available.
***
This was on Twitter, and it's awesome: Mister Rogers Remixed: Garden of Your Mind
June 7, 2012
Meme!
The rules:
1. Go to page 77 (or 7th) of your current ms
2. Go to line 7
3. Copy down the next 7 lines – sentences or paragraphs – and post them as they’re written. No cheating.
This is from the fourth Books of the Raksura:
Stone said, "I couldn't find a camp."
Merit had spelled some moss and clumps of flowers to light the camp, and Stone's expression was hard to read. "What--" This was a setback, but not an insurmountable one. "We'll just have to help you search tomorrow--"
"Moon." Stone shook his head, weary, his shoulders hunched as if his back ached. "I couldn't find a camp, because there isn't one."
Moon just stood there. For a long moment, he couldn't understand what Stone was saying.
Stone stepped forward and put his hands on Moon's shoulders. "The camp yesterday was the last one."
Moon pulled away. Now he understood, but he didn't want to. "But... That camp wasn't disturbed. There was no sign of anything..."
"Whatever happened to them, it happened sometime after they left there."
***
I'll be doing the Clarion West Write-a-thon again this year and my page is here. Last year when I tried this, LJ came under a denial of service attack and I couldn't post snippets, and all these other things started to happen, and I probably got less writing done than at any other time of year, but I'm still trying it again. This time I'll get it right!
1. Go to page 77 (or 7th) of your current ms
2. Go to line 7
3. Copy down the next 7 lines – sentences or paragraphs – and post them as they’re written. No cheating.
This is from the fourth Books of the Raksura:
Stone said, "I couldn't find a camp."
Merit had spelled some moss and clumps of flowers to light the camp, and Stone's expression was hard to read. "What--" This was a setback, but not an insurmountable one. "We'll just have to help you search tomorrow--"
"Moon." Stone shook his head, weary, his shoulders hunched as if his back ached. "I couldn't find a camp, because there isn't one."
Moon just stood there. For a long moment, he couldn't understand what Stone was saying.
Stone stepped forward and put his hands on Moon's shoulders. "The camp yesterday was the last one."
Moon pulled away. Now he understood, but he didn't want to. "But... That camp wasn't disturbed. There was no sign of anything..."
"Whatever happened to them, it happened sometime after they left there."
***
I'll be doing the Clarion West Write-a-thon again this year and my page is here. Last year when I tried this, LJ came under a denial of service attack and I couldn't post snippets, and all these other things started to happen, and I probably got less writing done than at any other time of year, but I'm still trying it again. This time I'll get it right!
June 6, 2012
RIP Ray Bradbury
IO9 is reporting that Ray Bradbury has passed away
Ray Bradbury — author of The Martian Chronicles, Fahrenheit 451, Something Wicked this Way Comes, and many more literary classics — died this morning in Los Angeles, at the age of 91.
***
Quest for Kindness: The story of how Robert Downey Jr saved author Dana Reinhardt's grandmother.
Book to check out: Spellcast by Barbara Ashford
“There's a vast but little known overlap between fans of fantasy and fans of musical theater, and Barbara Ashford hits the sweet spot on both with Spellcast. It's warm, humorous, emotional, heartfelt, and full of magic. Curse you, Barbara, for making me cry! And for getting 'Some Enchanted Evening' stuck in my head all week.” Carrie Vaughn, New York Times bestselling author
Lifehacker: If You Respond Only to Ass-Hats, Your Life Will Soon Be Full of Ass-Hats by Nicole Sullivan.
Ray Bradbury — author of The Martian Chronicles, Fahrenheit 451, Something Wicked this Way Comes, and many more literary classics — died this morning in Los Angeles, at the age of 91.
***
Quest for Kindness: The story of how Robert Downey Jr saved author Dana Reinhardt's grandmother.
Book to check out: Spellcast by Barbara Ashford
“There's a vast but little known overlap between fans of fantasy and fans of musical theater, and Barbara Ashford hits the sweet spot on both with Spellcast. It's warm, humorous, emotional, heartfelt, and full of magic. Curse you, Barbara, for making me cry! And for getting 'Some Enchanted Evening' stuck in my head all week.” Carrie Vaughn, New York Times bestselling author
Lifehacker: If You Respond Only to Ass-Hats, Your Life Will Soon Be Full of Ass-Hats by Nicole Sullivan.
June 5, 2012
Still managing to get some work done, despite kittenly di...
Still managing to get some work done, despite kittenly distractions. We still haven't thought of a name yet.
***
Appearance:
On this Saturday, June 9, I'll be doing a talk on SF/F at 1:30 at the College Station Public Library. I'll be signing books, and the local Barnes and Noble should be there with copies of The Cloud Roads and The Serpent Sea to sell. I'll also have some of my older books available.
***
Links:
Damien G. Walter: Look after your brain. They don’t issue new ones.
There are a number of possible reasons why Bobby Fischer went mad. Genetics perhaps. An unbalanced upbringing. The pressures of celebrity. The possibility his paranoia regarding CIA and KGB plots to control him was less than 100% paranoid. But the idea I find most credible is put forward in the documentary film Bobby Fischer Against the World, that Fischer’s insanity was intrinsic to his greatness, both caused by diving too far in to the near infinite complexity of chess.
A Dribble of Ink, Aidan Moher: “It’s Amazing the Things We Know, That Are Actually Wrong” by Kate Elliott
The instant I say "diversity" what I mean, whether I want to or not, is that I’m writing to an audience in which the default mode lies in being male, white, and mostly straight. Or, to quote writer Aliette de Bodard, the [phrase] "'importance of diversity' boils down to 'why white people benefit from seeing POCs in fiction.'"
***
Appearance:
On this Saturday, June 9, I'll be doing a talk on SF/F at 1:30 at the College Station Public Library. I'll be signing books, and the local Barnes and Noble should be there with copies of The Cloud Roads and The Serpent Sea to sell. I'll also have some of my older books available.
***
Links:
Damien G. Walter: Look after your brain. They don’t issue new ones.
There are a number of possible reasons why Bobby Fischer went mad. Genetics perhaps. An unbalanced upbringing. The pressures of celebrity. The possibility his paranoia regarding CIA and KGB plots to control him was less than 100% paranoid. But the idea I find most credible is put forward in the documentary film Bobby Fischer Against the World, that Fischer’s insanity was intrinsic to his greatness, both caused by diving too far in to the near infinite complexity of chess.
A Dribble of Ink, Aidan Moher: “It’s Amazing the Things We Know, That Are Actually Wrong” by Kate Elliott
The instant I say "diversity" what I mean, whether I want to or not, is that I’m writing to an audience in which the default mode lies in being male, white, and mostly straight. Or, to quote writer Aliette de Bodard, the [phrase] "'importance of diversity' boils down to 'why white people benefit from seeing POCs in fiction.'"
June 3, 2012
Per my post yesterday, we got a kitten. I had seen that ...
Per my post yesterday, we got a kitten. I had seen that the Feral Cat rescue group was going to be at Petsmart yesterday, and I needed cat food anyway, so we went down there in the morning to see if they had kittens. The rescue group wasn't there yet, but in the Petsmart adoption area, there were two 8-week old kittens from the Brazos Valley Animal Shelter, one boy and one girl. We had already decided we needed a boy, because we think Tasha will accept a boy more readily than a girl. So that was that.
I really didn't expect to get a kitten yesterday, I thought we'd have to wonder around town a lot more and go more places and be disappointed, etc.
The kitten was picked up as a stray and not well socialized, but very much inclined to be socialized. Through the morning and early afternoon there was a lot of scampering away and playing, and then after some food and the second nap he discovered that being petted by your own personal human is a very good thing. Since then there's been lots of cuddling and purring.
The other cats are still angry and horrified, so that's going to take a while to settle down. But, yay, kitty!!!
Oh, and we haven't picked a name yet. It took a couple of weeks to name Tasha, so that's not unusual.
I really didn't expect to get a kitten yesterday, I thought we'd have to wonder around town a lot more and go more places and be disappointed, etc.
The kitten was picked up as a stray and not well socialized, but very much inclined to be socialized. Through the morning and early afternoon there was a lot of scampering away and playing, and then after some food and the second nap he discovered that being petted by your own personal human is a very good thing. Since then there's been lots of cuddling and purring.
The other cats are still angry and horrified, so that's going to take a while to settle down. But, yay, kitty!!!
Oh, and we haven't picked a name yet. It took a couple of weeks to name Tasha, so that's not unusual.
