… is where the heart is.
I didn’t win, which is fine. But it was an … interesting con. A lot of good, some ehh moments, a bit of ugly even. I wrote some notes on the plane but I’m still processing, now that I have the time and quiet to do so. But definitely a lot for me to think about re: the state of writing and publishing, the SFF community, and my own place in it.
Last night I was reminded of Peter Greenaway, an old, problematic fave, and I had strange dreams as a result, dreams I cannot remember now. I want to do a rewatch but I’m at that point in the Leviathan draft where I’m nervous about taking in too much modern stuff, or reading any writers with a strong style, lest I lose the rhythm. For those who care about such things, I’ve passed the 40% mark of my projected word count, but I have a sinking feeling that I’m going to overshoot, and then revision will be as much about trimming as expanding. But that’s down the line … right now it’s about just spitting out words, because first drafts are my least favorite part of this whole process. Once I can see the shape of the thing I can finally start to hone it, but I need to blurt out all the pieces first.
But that’s process. Here’s the news: these are the last few weeks for Harkworth Hall to be in Kindle Unlimited, so grab it before the end of October. I spoke a little as to my reasons why in my newsletter, so suffice to say we’ll be “going wide” on November 1, meaning the book will available at Kobo, iTunes, and B&N (though really I expect that eventually B&N will merge with someone else or just shutter Nook), with a direct copy also available through Gumroad.
Of course, a change-up like this seems a lovely time for a sale, and I’ll be at World Fantasy that weekend, so for the first few days of November Harkworth Hall will be 99 cents everywhere. Plus, if you’re going to San Antonio I’ll have actual physical copies, like we did back in the day when I walked uphill both ways to get to school and called my friends using tin cans and string. 😉 More on that as we get closer to November.
… and that is eight words together I never, ever thought I’d type.
I’m not sure I’ll ever tire of looking at this. I’m not sure if I actually believe it, still. Me myself and I, up there with all those folks … hey, let’s not set the bar too high or anything!
Thank you to everyone who believed in Vacui Magia, who reviewed it and foisted it on their friends and took the time to tell me how much you liked it. I wouldn’t be here without you.
And now to figure out how I’m going to get to San Antonio … !