It’s been a couple of good weeks for me, short fiction wise. Along with my novelette sale of “Dreams of a Thousand Young” to Jazz Age Cthulhu (Innsmouth Free Press), I sold two more short stories. The first is “For the Love of a Troll on a Mid-Winter’s Night” to Night Terrors III (Blood Bound Books). The second is “The Bathory Clinic Deal” to Future Embodied (Simian Publishing).

I’m very pleased by the sales and even more pleased by the different genres each story is in. “Dreams of a Thousand Young” is a Lovecraftian horror story set in 1920’s Assam, India. “For the Love of a Troll on a Mid-Winter’s Night”  is a dark urban fantasy story set in modern day Seattle. “The Bathory Clinic Deal” is a dark sci-fi story set in a nameless future city.

I also want to remind everyone that I do have a Karen Wilson Chronicles short story in the kickstarter anthology What Fates Impose (Alliteration Ink) that is in its last week. I really want to see this story published as well as the anthology. Please take a look and see if you’d like it. Also, one of the $40 donation levels includes the first three Karen Wilson Chronicles books.

Just a reminder. Me, Kat Richardson and Lillian Cohen-Moore are reading at University Book Store tomorrow night! 7pm. It's Lily's first reading. It's in celebration of the second Karen Wilson Chronicles book release. Kat's got a Clockwork Fairytale Story to read.

Right now, a lot of my writing is long form writing. I’ve been working on my Shadowrun novella for a bit but I keep being interrupted by edits or proofing of short fiction. It messes with the way I write sometimes.

The Nellus Academy Incident, Book Four, my Battletech YA webseries, is now running on Battlecorps.com. I just turned in the revisions on Book Five, the final section of the series (episodes 21-25). I was happy that I was still pleased with most of the writing.

I also just proofed my story, Dust Angels, for Beyond the Sun anthology. Bryan Thomas Schmidt’s sci-fi anthology due out from Fairwood Press very soon. Again, I didn’t hate the writing. I’m slowly getting better. I feel like I’ve leveled up a bit.

Also, two Kickstarter anthologies, Time-Traveled Tales and What Fates Impose, are running right now. TTT is funded already and that makes me happy dance. I have one of my weird west Mowry stories in that anthology. WFI is half funded and I’m really hoping for a successful kickstarter on it. I have a Karen Wilson Chronicles story in it set between books 3 and 4. Also, one of the limited levels is to get the third Karen Wilson Chronicles book, Keystones, before the rest of the world does.

I’ve just sold my novelette, Dreams of a Thousand Young, to Innsmouth Free Press for their Jazz Age Cthulhu anthology. It’s got a Summer/Fall 2014 release. I’m very pleased about this one. It was a story I thought about writing for years. It’s nice to get a good Lovecraft story out there.

Right now, I’m in the process of reading stories for my Baen anthology, Shattered Shields, co-edited with Bryan Thomas Schmidt. Some of the stories we’re getting are just amazing. It pleases me to no end. The full ToC won’t be revealed for a while but, I love working with pro-authors. They always give such good story.

Finally, I do have three other anthologies I edited coming out later this year. Coins of Chaos is due out in October. Chicks Dig Gaming, edited with the marvelous Jean Rabe, is due out in November. Beast Within 4: Gears & Growls is due out in December (I think).

Sale: I just signed the contract for “A Nightmare for Anna” for a forthcoming anthology “By Faerie Light.” Sounds like it’s going to be a fabulous anthology.

Interview: Designer’s Diary: Savage Mojo – Shanghai Vampocalypse (Suzerain) - http://roleplayerschronicle.com/?p=35173

Publication: Happy new book to me! I'm very pleased with CHILDREN OF ANU, the second book in the Karen Wilson Chronicles. It was edited by the awesome John Helfers and the cover image is by Amber Clark of Stopped Motion Photography. The girl on the cover of the book is a representation of one of the villains in the book, 14 year old Victoria Mordecai.
 
Health: I started using Fitbit just over a month ago. Numerous authors talk about how a healthy mind contributes to a healthy body. I believe it. Thus, Fitbit. There's something in the awareness of movement and steps taken that make me want to do more. To improve. It's kind of like having a word count makes me want to write more. I've made a concerted effort to move more - number of steps taken and number of flights climbed. It feels good.
 
Freelance Gig: I've been working on a quiet freelance gig for a while. Now I can talk about it. Along with writing for the Shadowrun Returns kickstarter anthology with a story called "Lock and Key," I've been writing and editing on the Shadowrun Returns videogame. I'm loving the work even though it's hard and sometimes the hours are long. I really think those of you who like videogames will really enjoy it. I'm really happy to be working on it with such fabulous people at Harebrained Schemes.
 
Sale: Also in the Shadowrun universe, I've signed a contract to write a Shadowrun novella focused around a High Threat Response Team Doc Wagon team. Tentatively titled: A Day in the Life of a Lifesaver.
 
Convention: From June 12-16, I will be at Origins Game Fair as part of their Library. I will be appearing on panels and manning a table selling my books. Please come by and say hello. Get a book signed. There's a no shyness zone around me. Here's my list of panels:

• Thursday, 11am – Crafting the Love Scene
• Thursday, 12noon – Writing the Other
• Friday, 11am – Women Writing Horror
• Saturday, 10am – Good Guys Wear Black Hats
• Sunday, 10am – The Art of the Short Story
• Sunday, 12noon – Avoiding Pitfalls
• Sunday, 1pm – Writing Your First Novel

I have a new interview up at Roleplayers Chronicle. Lots about Colonial Gothic and Shanghai Vampocalypse.

There is a SFWA Reading on Tuesday, the 23rd, in Kirkland.

I will be reading at Soul Food Books in Redmond on Wednesday, the 24th with Brenda Cooper, Keffy Kehrli, Cat Rambo, K.C. Ball, and Caren Gussoff. It starts at 7pm.

I sold "A Card Given" to the What Fates Impose anthology, edited by Nayad Monroe.

Here's the cover image of CHILDREN OF ANU. The character on the cover is a version Vicki. I love it! Cover photography by Amber Clark.

Just got back from visiting Mena at the vet. They need to keep her another night to make sure her pain is managed and to make sure the surgery wound is healing as expected. Mena is on serious drugs and is feeling no pain. At the same time, she really, really wanted to be with me but also wanted her box (aka the litter box—I can see why they leave so little litter in there and clean it immediately).

She knew me as soon as I came in and was both very meowy and purring. She couldn’t get comfortable but was happy to see me. She insisted on having me hold her from time to time and kept trying to rub her wound on me. This freaked me out. I mean, I’ve been dealing with an open leg wound since February and the idea of rubbing is just… not gonna think about it.

Mena will be on a pain patch for two weeks. I’m glad. That surgery wound looks awful to me. It’s open down the side of her face. The skin is suppose to close and the hair is suppose to camouflage the surgical scar. But, everything is reacting as expected.

How you can help.

This morning I dropped Mena off for the first of two surgeries she needs to fix her ears. She has congenital stenosis of the ear canal in both ears and I wrote about it here. I’m pretty freaked out about it all. My kitty’s in surgery. My pet insurance won’t cover it. The cost of this first surgery with its follow-up appointments is estimated at $2000. It could be more. It could be a little less.

As soon as I found out about this, I went into crisis problem solving mode. I wrangled more hours at my pays-the-bills job and we decided to sell our marble top bar (Seattle area). Then, unexpectedly, a patron stepped forward to help us out financially. I’m so grateful. Things aren’t nearly as dire as they first were and I can focus on Mena.

The Husband and I decided that we were going to do an Apocalypse Ink Productions book sale to supplement our funds, to say thank you to our fans, and to put CALLER UNKNOWN, the first book in the Karen Wilson Chronicles on sale since CHILDREN OF ANU, book two in the series comes out in about two months.

Apocalypse Ink Productions is having a 30% off sale for everything in the AIP store. Just use the code MENA. We also added a choose-your-own-level donation product if you just want to help out. We’ll keep the Mena page updated with pictures and progress.

If nothing else, good vibes and prayers for my broken kitty are appreciated.

Event - Monday, 18 March, from 6-9pm, I (Battletech, Shadowrun) will be joining James Sutter (Pathfinder) and Jak Koke (Shadowrun) for Games & Gizmos first ever book signing in Redmond, WA. Come join us to buy books, get your books signed, and kick it with three RPG authors. We'll be hanging out, playing boardgames, and answering all of your questions that we can. There will be mini-cupcakes and sandwiches to snack on. I suspect, since Paizo is local, there will be more Paizo people joining the fun in an unofficial capacity.


Review - Roleplayers Chronicle gave Colonial Gothic: Locations a very nice review.

Announcement - Cat Labs announced the Shadowrun Returns Anthology Reward For Kickstarter Backers and I'm one of the authors for it.

Announcement - I've been sitting on this for a while but now I can announce that I am co-editing an anthology with Jean Rabe for Mad Norwegian Press. It's called Chicks Dig Gaming and it is part of the "Chicks Dig" line of non-fiction essays by women in SFF. I absolutely adore this anthology we're creating. I'll get ya'll a link to stuff as soon as I have it. Chicks Dig Gaming is due out in November 2013

Cover art. While I was out at the Rainforest Village Writer Retreat, the cover for Writing Fantasy Heroes popped up. It has a fab line up of people.

Interview: MIND MELD: SF/F Reading And Buying Habits In A Digital World.

Review: Horror Novel Reviews likes DANGERS UNTOLD.

Sale: I have sold my Shadowrun story, "Locks and Keys", to the Shadowrun Returns kickstarter anthology edited by John Helfers. This anthology is based around a number of missions in the forthcoming game.

Cover: Final cover of BEYOND THE SUN anthology forthcoming from Fairwood Press. Isn't it awesome. I love seeing my name on book covers. It never gets old.

For my birthday, the Husband took me to the King Tut exhibit in Seattle. We took the audio tour which was well worth it. Having seen them with my own eyes, I now understand why men would kill for Egyptian artifacts. They are really amazing to see. Beautiful craftsmanship and gorgeous to gaze at. The history, the age, of the artifacts can be felt. Ryan told me that walking through the exhibit would give me story ideas. And he was right. If you get a chance to see the exhibit, take it.

After the exhibit, the iMax movie, and dinner, I came home to a whole passel  of good stuff. First was a confirmed pro story sale. Then was an interview request. Next came an email from the anthology committee verifying one of my anthologies was eligible for a Stoker—which means nothing more than someone nommed it and they have to make sure everything is all good—but I’m chuffed someone thought so well of Dangers Untold to nom it. Then another bit of awesome news dropped that isn’t finalized yet but soon. And finally, I had a about a bajillion Facebook birthday wishes to read. That was a really nice surprise.

Lastly, a reminder that Mastication is my birthday gift to you. Get it free on Apocalypse Ink Productions webstore.