In Translation (also, baking)

So, Nightwatch on the Hinterlands got picked up for Turkish foreign rights, and lo, this arrived in my mailbox this week. 

I love the cover art. It's kind of strange/cool to see your story in words you can't read, except for the proper names. While this isn't my first foreign rights sale, it is the first time I've gotten a copy. Pretty cool.

I would love to have more to report, but it is February. It's not even an especially dark month here (it should be raining. It isn't. That will change at the end of the week.), but it's a drag on the spirit. Nothing major, just many littles coming together to make a much. 

Thank the gods for steady D&D games and the friends that make them possible. 

And because I am (not so) low-key D&D obsessed, I took yesterday, Presidents' Day, to spend mostly in the kitchen, making D&D associated recipies. I've made Lord Eshteross's Maple Ginger Cookies with Turmeric (from Exquisite Exandria: The Official Cookbook of Critical Role) before, and they turned out splendidly this time as well. I don't actually own that cookbook yet, mind, so I can't speak to the rest. 

I do own Heroes' Feast, the official D&D cookbook (Shan, who is not Icelandic in any way, practices the Icelandic tradition of giving books as gifts on Christmas Eve. She figures cookbook and gaming is just doubling up on the awesome, and she is not wrong.) I did a test run of the vedbread (the D&D name in the book, and I have no idea what its real name might be).  It's a sort of savory not-at-all-cinnamon roll, where the dough is instead rolled around a combination of mushrooms, shallots, and cheese, and the dough itself has a fair bit of cheese worked into it as well. Tasty. A little more substantial  than "bread that accompanies soup" and more like "light lunch." They seem like a thing that may come with me to events where someone says "bring something savory, not a main dish, not a salad."  

And because I spent the day making dishes for my long-suffering husband to wash up, I feel better about the multiverse today. Also, I have tasty things to eat for lunches and snacks. 

And February is almost over.

Ashland Public Library Event!

 I was fortunate enough to participate in a virtual panel about women in SciFi with Julie Czerneda, Lena Nguyen, and Mur Lafferty, hosted by the Ashland Public Library. You can watch it here. 

Those of you who make a DC 10 perception check may note yours truly held up Nightwatch on the Hinterlands instead of Nightwatch Over Windscar and utterly failed to, like, describe the books. Let us attribute this to end of quarter brain. Yes. 

And instead, please enjoy this beautiful animation of the most recent book, Nightwatch Over Windscar, which follows templar Iari and the Five Tribes vakari ambassador Gaer as they try to figure out wtf is going on in Windscar, where the separatists are hiding, and wait, what is that noise...?

a suggestion

Do you know what would make an excellent gift for whatever holiday or holidays you celebrate? I will give you one guess. Here. While you think about it, watch this video.

Books and Cats: WINDSCAR edition

My copies of Nightwatch Over Windscar have arrived, and y'all, they are beautiful. 

But do not simply take my word for it. Here are photos of cats reacting to these gorgeous books invading their space. (Not present: Murdercat, which is ironic, since he's the one who gets a cameo in the book.)

Tinycat attempts here to ignore both the book and me, but she's secretly impressed. 

The Patchwork Terror is super impressed with the cover art. The colors are amazing. 

And if you want your very own copy, well, it's available for preorder in all the usual places, and it will arrive in your happy hands on Nov. 8. 

On the Bones of Gods

 The On the Bones of Gods reissue is here! 

Almost. The e-books will be out on July 12. The print versions, and the audio books, will take a little longer: February 14, 2023, because everyone wants a little revolution for Valentine's Day. 

The covers, though, are definitely here, and...here they are! The (original, just for this project) artwork is by Deborah L. Wright and the graphic design is by The Rat, Tan Grimes-Sackett. It is a grand thing to know artists and designers, and to be able to work with them on your projects. 

Watch this space

 In anticipation of events on the Bird Site, I will be (finally) getting a newsletter going, and attempt (valiantly) to be more regular about blog updates. LOOK! There on the right! You can sign up! 

I promise to produce actual useful content when I am not staring down a day of student conferences, editor revisions on Windscar, and galleys for the reissue of Enemy and Outlaw.

In the meantime, proof of concept: here I am, with Nous, having ventured out to the Renaissance Pleasure Faire for the first time in two years. 

Introducing... NIGHTWATCH OVER WINDSCAR

 Coming October 2022, NIGHTWATCH OVER WINDSCAR

Please join me in admiring this cover: 

...in which Iari, Gaer, and Corso investigate mysterious ruins in Windscar province. They're looking for answers. They find some. And more questions. 

And monsters, hiding in the dark.

Preorders are available from all the usual places! 

NIGHTWATCH-related links, plus jack o' lanterns

 Y'all, it is already in the 90s here this AM, in mid-November, which is not old-normal but may be new-normal and anyway, it's hot, which does not segue naturally into hey here are some interviews I did about NIGHTWATCH ON THE HINTERLANDS, but we post with the segues we have, not the segues we want. 

An Interview with Nerd Daily

An Interview with Paul Semel

I have turned in the NIGHTWATCH sequel (heretofore referred to as WINDSCAR) to my long-suffering agent, who will probably tell me it needs an ending because it kinda just stops, and...well, that is fair. But it just stops at 115K, so there can't be too much more. I hope. 

And I hope even more that November remembers it's the month of rain and chill, or at least grey skies. If this nonsense continues, I'm gonna start looking for sandworms.

And because I missed Halloween (well, I didn't miss it, but I missed posting), here are the Eason Collective jack o'lanterns of 2021. I am not sure why it took us so long to go full D&D, but I, for one, am not turning back. The beholder is Nous's creation. He does one seriously artistic thing every year, and it is his jack o'lantern. I favor simple shapes, but I am a sucker for dragons, so... dragon. Red, of course. 

Nightwatch on the Hinterlands is here!

Nightwatch on the Hinterlands is loose in the world.  You can acquire it in all the usual places, and you should, because Tinycat said so. Do you want to argue with Tinycat? 

(Spoiler: you do not. She is more obstinate than either of the kaiju boy-cats. She will wear you down.) 

=

As many times as this happens--and this is #6--a book release day is a rush. So much goes into producing a novel--I wrote it, yeah, but my amazing agent, Lisa Rodgers, and the incredible team at DAW, are the ones who make sure the story is dressed polished and ready to go outside. So thanks to all of them for getting the story to you. 

I had fun writing this one (which is not always the case), and I hope you enjoy reading it, too. 

The Golden Cowbell

Back in June I received notice from a librarian at the K. Weldon Library (International School of Geneva, La Châtaigneraie Campus) that How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse was the winner of a Golden Cowbell award. Which--cool! I am delighted to win awards, and delighted that Rory is a hit with a) kids at all and b) kids who don't necessarily speak English as a first language. So yay! 

After a very long journey, with a stop off at JABberwocky, it arrived. 

I was expecting a cute little tourist-sized cowbell, the kind my mother has hanging on her wall from the trip we took to Switzerland was I was...10? I think. This, however, is not that cowbell. 

On that trip to Switzerland, I remember waking up in the hotel to the sound of cows being driven up the actual street outside to their mountain pastures. They wore bells, and those bells were very loud and distinctive. Functional bells

This is one of those bells. It is also quite lovely. I smelled the leather strap when I opened the box. The bell itself is heavy and shiny. The brass fittings on the strap are very shiny (the astute observer may see me reflected in the cow as I took this photo). I was delighted to receive the award and now I am doubly, triply, extremely delighted to receive the bell itself. 

Thank you, students who voted for Rory!

New Book Announcement: NIGHTWATCH ON THE HINTERLANDS

 Y'all! I am super excited to announce, reveal, shout from the rooftops my new, upcoming novel, Nightwatch on the Hinterlands, coming October 19, 2021.

LOOK AT THIS COVER. 

I pitched this book to my agent as "HALO meets D&D meets a mystery".  Its working title was Tin Can Fun Fur. And it was a blast to write. 

While it's set in the same world (multiverse?) as THE THORNE CHRONICLES, it has a different narrative vibe (and it's, like, 100 years in the future).  No princesses here. This is dirtside, street-level mystery-solving, with a cast of xenos and plenty of small-p politics.

If you're a fan of arithmancy in action, or want to see more tenju, alwar, and/or vakari, or just think OMG this cover! Is the inside as cool as the outside? (yes)--well you are in luck, because...

Preorders are happening now at all the usual places. 

See you in October... 

I podcasted! And wrote some guest posts. And am late to all the parties.

Okay. Finally, now that my grading is done (though not finalized), and the quarter is mostly wrapped... the long delayed list of publicity and posts related to HOW THE MULTIVERSE GOT ITS REVENGE (which, for the record, would make a fantastic holiday gift. Audio book, ebook, paper. All three!)

• The Worldshapers Podcast in which yours truly talks alot.
• Fresh Fiction:  Guest Post
• Tor.com: Guest Post
• The Nerd Daily:  Interview
• PaulSemel.com: Interview
• YA Books Central: Spotlight & Guest Post

And if you are tired of me, here are a lot of other people saying very nice things about REVENGE. 

• Publishers Weekly: Review 
• "This fantasy-space-opera hybrid provides no shortage of action, interstellar hijinks, and fuel for future installments. Series readers will be pleased."
• Fresh Fiction:  "Most Anticipated New Releases: Fall-Winter 2020!"
• Amazing Stories: "Science Fiction to Look for October 2020"
• Smart Bitches Trashy Books: Review 
• "Both the first and second book in this duology are excellent... I'd love to read more about Rory and her group of friends."
• Tor.com: Exclusive Excerpt
• The Quill to Live: Review
• "...A fun fusion of different science fiction and fantasy concepts that kept me engaged the entire time... How the Multiverse Got Its Revenge is a fantastic book that checks all of my boxes for something I highly recommend."
• Girl Who Reads: Review
• "This is a fascinating mix of magic and space opera... A great story."

I am happy that this book seems to be delighting people, because my god we need some delight about now. Did I mention it'd make a great gift?

The Patchwork Terror and Murdercat, BFFs

And because it is a lovely almost-winter day here, and the sun is warm, here are two house tigers, extra fluffy, catching a few rays.

HOW THE MULTIVERSE GOT ITS REVENGE

 What happens when happily ever after...isn't?

This was not an easy book to write for a variety of reasons, but I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out. I hope that you like it, too.

Get a preview of REVENGE

 ...which is out on Oct. 27. Holy shit, that's next Tuesday. 

(No, I am not being a smart-ass. I just, you know, calendars and time and teaching and all this.)

So! 

Tor.com has an excerpt posted, if you're curious. 

I've also got a guest post up on Fresh Fiction about world-building and genre-blending.

 And...just in time for Halloween, a live-actor read of one of my short stories, "Increased Tolerance," which was published by Crossed Genres in 2009, and performed here by "Nobody Reads Short Stories." There's even an interview with me at the end, which honestly gives me the vapors to admit to in public, but HEY. It's the times we live in.

And if you've made it this far, I will be reading at World Fantasy next weekend, and also participating on a panel about fairies on Halloween. More details upcoming!

How the Multiverse Got Its Revenge

Y'all! Here comes the sequel to How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse! Publication date is October 6.

What can I tell you about this book? The cover art is gorgeous, obviously, and you should go preorder it, obviously.

Oh, fine, you want more detail than that. Okay. The premise is this: I wanted to look at what happens in the so-called happily ever after--which is to say, I wanted to take the idea of happily ever after, set it on fire, and roast marshmallows over it. So here's what happens when our princess decides to go off and (try) not be a princess anymore and finds out that political ignorance is not only not bliss, it's also a liability.

Plus! New xenos! Space battles! A special guest appearance by the green fairy!

Preorder now at:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Indiebound
Book Depository

ghosting

Ha ha yes clearly doing well at this "post more regularly" business.

I have things I want to say, but prudence dictates otherwise, so I will instead tell you that:

a) the HS class of budding D&Ders survived their first dungeon, having bypassed one whole segment of it with a Clever Plan(tm) that would've gotten them killed if someone hadn't been a little free with the rules and also they hadn't had some crazy-amazing ideas. My ranger(s) got to kiss The Princess (like The Doctor, really). The wizard was reunited with her beloved Bryce. All ended reasonably well. Now they have to write their own adventures (collectively, in small groups) to run for another small group.

b) I have been invited to give a talk about gender, politics, and power in HOW RORY THORNE DESTROYED THE MULTIVERSE at UC-Riverside on April 9 to grad students in English (I am imagining these are mostly creative writers, because I am long past the days of writing and delivering academic papers on any subject, please and thank you). I am responsible for 90 minutes of content, and while I am sure I can read very slowly, I am reasonably sure I'll have to come up with Stuff(tm) to say to round out that time. Which I will. Somehow. Magically. Perhaps by sacrificing to the gods of academic discourse.

c) HOW THE MULTIVERSE GOT ITS REVENGE is scheduled to come out Oct. 6. Cover art forthcoming when it's finalized, but I can say--it's super awesome.

d) because my weekend isn't going to spent doing the thing I had set aside all the time to do, and I hope/pray/exhort the gods that I will be busy with it next weekend instead, I sent a last minute text to the Rat and said "let's game this weekend instead of next!" and she is currently moving heaven and earth to make that happen (she, and her patient and wonderful wife, on whom the burden of childcare falls when the Rat is down here slaying monsters). We're all kinda looking forward to this session--the end of the first major arc, the beginning of the second, and the time we acquire a new character (so that everyone's gonna be playing 2, but that is what happens with tiny groups and big-ass campaigns, and Nous and the Rat are pros) so that we survive what comes next. I feel a little like a cheat running pre-written adventures, but it frees up the bandwidth for book proposals, where I actually do have to know wtf is going to happen in advance.

e) Kaiju-kitten has matured enough that I can spin again without having him attacking the wheel and ransacking the fiber, and so this is happening. The bag of fiber is a bunch of different dye lots and fiber combos (wools only, all from the amazing dye pots of M. at Blarney Yarn) all torn up into little bits, to be spun at random, like a grab-bag of colorful goodness. The results are...double-ply hanks of colorful goodness, that will all probably end up being a throw rug.

So yes. Happy Leap Year. I have a game to prep.

RORY THORNE and Kirkus and a podcast, oh my

So. Big news this morning. HOW RORY THORNE DESTROYED THE MULTIVERSE is on the Kirkus Best SF&F of 2019 list. 

This is... I mean... wow? Yeah. Wow. The other names and works on this list are some very fine company.

Also, here I am on The Great Big Beautiful Podcast, which was a lot of fun.

And since I'm here, blogging and all, I might as well catch you up.

October was obnoxiously busy but it's over now and hey, no matter how crammed full of stuff it was, last year we were moving, so by that metric this October was just fine. I went to my first convention, World Fantasy 2019, in which I met my editor and a bunch of cool folks with both my agency and my publisher, and also had a blood vessel burst in my eye (before meeting people! of course!). I didn't get to nearly enough panels and readings, because conventions seem to be scheduled at the worst moments of a teaching quarter, so that even if they are more or less local, one still cannot attend for the full time.

Now it is November. The holidays are thundering up on us, but for the moment: a respite.

Orion is happy in his sunbeam. May you all be similarly content.

How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse

So I have a book coming out next week. I'd like to introduce you. This is HOW RORY THORNE DESTROYED THE MULTIVERSE. It has perhaps the coolest cover in the history of covers, ever, and I love it. (Your cover probably won't move around like that. If it does, um. No judgment.)

I think it's a pretty darn good book, too, if I do say so myself (which I do). But don't just take my word for it.

Starred Reviews:
Kirkus
Library Journal
Booklist

Lists:
Kirkus Best of the Month for October
Library Journal Pick of the Month
Amazon's Best SFF Books of the Month
Barnes & Noble Best SFF Books of October

RORY is coming out on October 8, which is one week from now, so you still have time to preorder from the usual places:

Barnes and Noble 
Amazon
Indiebound

If you have a local bookstore, that works, too, and that's totally what you should do so that we continue to have local bookstores.

And, and, speaking of local bookstores, Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego will be hosting me for an event on October 13. If you're in the neighborhood, come on by!

How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse

Hey hey! Big news! I can now show you the freakin' amazing cover-art for my novel, How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse, coming from DAW on October 8, 2019.


And, and! You can even read the first chapter right here.

Rory Thorne is a princess with thirteen fairy blessings, the most important of which is to see through flattery and platitudes. As the eldest daughter, she always imagined she’d inherit her father’s throne and govern the interplanetary Thorne Consortium.

Then her father is assassinated, her mother gives birth to a son, and Rory is betrothed to the prince of a distant world.

When Rory arrives in her new home, she uncovers a treacherous plot to unseat her newly betrothed and usurp his throne. An unscrupulous minister has conspired to name himself Regent to the minor (and somewhat foolish) prince. With only her wits and a small team of allies, Rory must outmaneuver the Regent and rescue the prince.

How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse is a feminist reimagining of familiar fairytale tropes and a story of resistance and self-determination — how small acts of rebellion can lead a princess to not just save herself, but change the course of history.

Preorder available from... 

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Indiebound

Book Depository

Review of Michael Mammay's Planetside

Planetside by Michael Mammay

So: Planetside is military SF meets hardboiled detective novel. There's a missing lieutenant, son of an Important Person, and an almost-retired combat veteran, Colonel Butler, is sent to investigate. The general who sends him says "get it done." The blunt simplicity of that directive drives the narrative. There are not a lot of stylistic frills here, nor meditations on the meaning of life. Butler describes his environment and observations with a spare, dry wit and an understated sense of drama. Butler's cool makes the action in the book--the explosions, the surprises--that much more, well, dramatic. And surprising. You're walking along the narrative, thinking (like Butler) you know where it's going, and then bang.

I really can't talk about the plot much without giving things away, because it's a mystery as much (more than) it is about firefights and violence, even though the story has its share of both. There were moments where I saw echoes of Conrad's Heart of Darkness, and moments when I laughed out loud (not the same moments). The military is, of course, at the core of the story, but Mammay's military is composed of people--good and bad and venal and brave and scared--and not caricatures. (Confession: I grew up in a military family. Reading this book felt a lot like coming home.) Morality is grey, but also crystal clear. Mammay does a fantastic job of showing multiple perspectives (no easy feat with a first-person narrator!); the war itself feels like a character as much as the people walking around and fighting and dying. Mammay spools out the backstory slowly, in fragments, relying on the reader to put things together as much by what's not said as what is, and lets the reader--through Butler--figure out how to feel, and what course of action to take despite an increasingly muddy morality.

Don't look for heroics (although there are heroes). Don't look for drama (though there's that, too). Look for a smart, and smart-ass narrator who does his best to get it done, while never letting anyone--least of all himself--get too comfortable in their assumptions.