greenlady
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
I was pre-ordering "Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen" and discovered I had somehow missed a new novella. What a wonderful treat! Are you planning to release more short works? It's a different type of story telling and I'd love to see more of it. I'd think that Aral and Cordelia's time on Sergyar would be a great place to explore via short stories and novellas.
Lois McMaster Bujold
I'm glad you found "Penric's Demon", however inadvertently!
I'm not planning anything at this stage, though I'm open to possibilities. Part of the reason for the Penric tale is that I wanted to explore direct e-placement, which, among other things, has far fewer constraints on length or topic than other modes of publication. I'm certainly counting the experiment a success.
But, really, Penric's tale happened because I wasn't trying to write at all, but rather, had relaxed and kicked back. With my brain less busy, there was space to listen to myself think. (The internet, I observe, is quite willing to keep one's brain frantically busy 24/7.) Also, an idea needs to be of the right weight and length for a novella; too little and there's nothing to say, too long and it turns into a novel, which is not the point of the exercise. I will say, finishing something in a mere three months was a real treat. So, we'll just have to see.
Ta, L.
I'm not planning anything at this stage, though I'm open to possibilities. Part of the reason for the Penric tale is that I wanted to explore direct e-placement, which, among other things, has far fewer constraints on length or topic than other modes of publication. I'm certainly counting the experiment a success.
But, really, Penric's tale happened because I wasn't trying to write at all, but rather, had relaxed and kicked back. With my brain less busy, there was space to listen to myself think. (The internet, I observe, is quite willing to keep one's brain frantically busy 24/7.) Also, an idea needs to be of the right weight and length for a novella; too little and there's nothing to say, too long and it turns into a novel, which is not the point of the exercise. I will say, finishing something in a mere three months was a real treat. So, we'll just have to see.
Ta, L.
More Answered Questions
Mitali
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
I recently read Captain Vorpatril's Alliance (loved it, btw!) in which it's mentioned almost as an aside that Komarr's gravity is less than that of Barrayar. That set me thinking about Barrayar's gravity. Is it the same as that of Earth? And what about other major planets in the Nexus - where do they stand on the gravitational scale? Do spaceships and space stations set their gravity at Earth level?
Theresa Anna
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Since you enjoy and recommend the anime Mushi-shi, I'm curious if there are other anime you enjoy. Do you have any other favorites? Some recent fantasy series like "Yona of the Dawn" (2014), "The Heroic Legend of Arslan" (2015) and "Snow White with the Red Hair" (2015) I found particularly enjoyable.
Judy R.
asked
Lois McMaster Bujold:
Not a question, but a comment? In Captain Vorpatril's Alliance, the engineer stated that the expressed water from the ImpSec sponge was shooting 25' straight out from the cliff before falling into the water. I see the book was published in 2012, as I checked just now. In 2014, a Red Cross briefing after the Oso Mudslide Disaster north of Seattle said that's what happened there, too -- a horizontal jet of water.
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