Cherie Priest's Blog: It's awards season, so here comes the shameless self-promotion, page 12

Here's recent progress on my rural gothic monster story about small-town secrets, old family lies, accidental legend-tripping, and a missing newlywed in the Okefenokee swamp - where you can drive SR 177 from west to east and cross six bridges...or take it from east to west, and you might hit seven. (But you’d better hope not.)
Project: The Seventh Bridge
Deadline: January 15, 2016
New words written: 1551
Present total word count: 5547



Things Accomplished in Fiction: Got tunnel vision; didn't exactly crash; didn't exactly land; didn't exactly stop; woke up alone.

Things Accomplished in Real Life: [since yesterday] Neighborhood jaunt with dog; lunch with my cousin; ice cream with my cousin; shopping with my cousin; yet more laundry because it never ends; went to post office; grabbed lunch today; had an hour-long phone call with my marvelous agent, but can't talk about that just yet.

Other: I will have good news to report, I promise! One of these days! But today is not that day; today is a day of trying to get this story back on track - and this evening will go to yet more writing and/or revising of another project or two, depending. You see, I have good reason to suspect that the shit is about to hit the fan...so I need to get a jump on things while I still have the luxury of doing so. If one can call that a "luxury."

Bonus! Awesome Other: OKAY YOU GUYS GUESS WHAT - I Am Princess X [June, from Scholastic] has nabbed a starred Booklist review! [:: throws confetti ::] [:: the crowd goes wild ::] I can't link to it from here so everyone can see it, but I did grab an excerpt for my "Reviews" page if you're curious.

Bonus! Bonus: It looks like the School Library Journal liked it too , though I don't yet have an official version of that review to excerpt :)

Number of fiction words so far this year: 29,735

* * *

This is my cousin's cat, Frederick - and I love him, for he is fluffy and ridiculous.

Here's recent progress on my rural gothic monster story about small-town secrets, old family lies, accidental legend-tripping, and a missing newlywed in the Okefenokee swamp - where you can drive SR 177 from west to east and cross six bridges...or take it from east to west, and you might hit seven. (But you’d better hope not.)
Project: The Seventh Bridge
Deadline: January 15, 2016
New words written: 1481
Present total word count: 3996



Things Accomplished in Fiction: Confronted a very strange bridge that shouldn't be strange at all, but somehow manages.

Things Accomplished in Real Life: [since last week/last post] Neighborhood jaunts with dog; visits with friends (who mostly came to visit the dog, I think :) ); blurbed FOUR books in a bit of a marathon; went back and forth with agent and/or editors via email; went back and forth with reps from a couple of impending events; mainlined the Twelve Monkeys tv show, which is actually pretty awesome; visited the CPA and handed in all our stuff for him to do our taxes; made an appointment for the kitty's vaccination updates and/or Little Old Lady Cat Checkup (she goes every six months); arranged a lunch date with my cousin; cleaned the whole house; started sorting wardrobe for spring; gathered up a bunch of stuff to donate; went to liquor store; went grocery shopping; went to the bank; went to the post office; went to Walgreens; did a crap-ton of laundry.

Other: Seriously, if you'd told me that I'd end up wildly enjoying a TV show based on a movie I found frankly mediocre, I would've been like, NOPE. But Twelve Monkeys is killing it. HEY SYFY CHANNEL: MORE TWELVE MONKEYS, LESS CHUPACABRA VS. THE ALAMO.

Other, Redux: Yes, this is the first proper writing I've done in awhile. I've been tied up with other things - see above. I'm also getting ready to start a short story for an upcoming anthology, so depending on how well I can get that to gel (and how soon) I may have to put this down again and work on the other thing for a bit. If so, that's fine. As long as I'm working. My word count for the year is just pitiful.

TV-Related Other: Twelve Monkeys, Last Man on Earth. Both new to me, and both quite enjoyable.

Number of fiction words so far this year: 28,184

* * *

Bonus soulful-eyed puppy:

Another few days of duck-nibbling over here, and it looks like the whole week is basically a wash from a writing standpoint. The husband and I are, respectively, in something of a holding pattern re: a number of things at the moment - which is both liberating (free time! sort of!) and anxiety-inducing (what next?!). We're trying to make the best of it.

Today I signed a bunch of bookplates for Scholastic (WRT I Am Princess X), and got those all packed up to ship tomorrow; I tried to take care of some last-minute tax stuff, but hit a dead end and will have to go to the bank tomorrow and sort it out; I walked the dog twice, since his first morning walk was brief due to crappy weather; and I had a word with a Terminix inspector.

It wasn't an altogether friendly word.

Long story short, about a year ago we had our house "excluded" vis-a-vis rodents and bats and whatever else might find an unfinished attic and/or cellar appealing. Honestly, I had my doubts that such an exclusion was even remotely possible; the house is old, and the spaces in question are plenty drafty and appealing to four-footed and web-winged critters.

But oooooohhhhh, yes, said Chattanooga's local Terminix affiliate - totally doable. No big deal. Just give us money. 100% satisfaction/money back/wank wank wank wank.

We've called them back out here probably 8-10 times in the intervening year, due to (a). half-assed work, and (b). the Sisyphean task of evicting very determined rats from under the house - which like I said, I figured was an exercise in futility...but Terminix took my money and made some promises, so by God, I'm going to hold them to it or collect my refund.

[As an aside, I have an agreement with the rats. I live on a mountain in the Appalachian foothills, where -surprise, surprise - there are a veritable host of little brown wood rats. I don't actually have a problem with rats; they have a place in the universe, and I am at peace with that ... just as long as they don't try to get INSIDE my house. I don't even get too mad about them kicking it underneath the place, but when they start chewing up into the walls, that's when they get their wee tiny eviction notices.]

Anyway. It was time for our "annual inspection" of the wildlife exclusion service. This was conducted by a very nice fellow I'd never met before, and I may have hypothetically given him an earful. He's allegedly sending out his manager, etc. etc. etc.

I don't know. We'll see. But hey, if our house gets egged or firebombed or whatever, my money's on a disgruntled Terminix employee who's been hollered at by his boss. Let the record reflect this.

Hm. What else?

Well, in other news, the cat threw up on the bathmat again so I'm washing it. This is a chore because it is a large, heavy mat, and it *technically* fits in our washer ... but the washer chokes on it, and I have to run it a couple of times to get it through the final spin. Such is the glamour of my life.

However! She's been more or less sleeping through the night, courtesy of her Kitty Valium, and she seems to be doing generally well - knock on wood. So there's that.

Speaking of the cat - she adorably crashed a video interview the other day. You see, I was talking with the marvelous Lauren over at the Lytherus Book Club</b> about Maplecroft ... and some-furry-one decided it was laptime. Right now, dammit.

The interview is long, and the interview is spoilery - and in this interview, I look perfectly dorky, which is perfectly normal. Check out that screenshot, would you? But here it is, for your viewing pleasure, if you're so inclined to give it a go.




And I guess that's all I've got for now. Tomorrow we suck it up and get our taxes done, though I'm missing a couple of pieces of documentation which really should've arrived weeks ago. This is the curse of a freelance contractor, as some of you know all too well.

It's okay. I keep pretty good records. I have to, and that's something I learned the hard way.

So...good night, everyone. I'll see if I can blog again this weekend, but don't hold me to it. I may give up and go play video games and swill hot butter rums until Monday comes around again. It's a boozy first-person crap shoot over here. Not that I'm complaining.

So it's been a week and I've been busy. These things happen. Mostly, it's been a case of "nibbled to death by ducks" over here - why, today alone I've done one hour-long video interview, printed out three sets of Very Important Paperwork to sign and mail, exchanged no fewer than half a dozen Very Important Emails, paid the first round of monthly bills, rescheduled two appointments, and arranged for lunch with my cousin. And the day ain't over yet.

It's been a week of days like that, is what I'm saying - except for this most recent weekend, whereupon I had a houseguest in the dog-snuggling, treat-bearing form of Sara Harvey . For you see, it was ConNooga weekend...and although I was a bit too busy to attend and participate, I was not too busy to keep a friend from shelling out dough on a hotel room.

[BTW - Sara joined Greyson and me on our morning walks. If you'd like extra Morning Walk shots of Greyson (and his four-footed friends) you may want to go scrolling through her Twitter feed. ]

Anyway, apart from that, there's only one major thing I neglected to comment upon during my blogging absence - and it is this: Chapelwood has an official cover! BEHOLD.



Of course, if you are so inclined...you can preorder this book in all the usual places. [Via the publisher] [Amazon.com] [Barnes & Noble] [Find an Indie Bookseller near you]

So, that's pretty much it. Well, that...and it snowed some more. Oh, it's all gone NOW - but while it lasted, it was basically the Best. Thing. Ever. Just ask Greyson.



AND IN CONCLUSION. Don't forget, everyone - time is SERIOUSLY RUNNING OUT on that Humble Bundle of DRM-free, pay-what-you-want ebooks. Go on and get some! Get 'em while they're hot! Get 'em while they're buttered! Get 'em while they're here, because they won't be for very much longer.

Right. Well. Thanks for reading, folks.
I'll try to keep up with things a little better this week.

You guys...you guys. Hey, you guys. DON'T FORGET: The Humble Bundle is still live! Featuring yours truly along with a whole HOST of others - including such fine citizens as Joe Lansdale, Caitlin Kiernan, Robert McCammon, and Clive Barker. EBOOKS ON THE CHEAP. AWESOME CHARITY SUPPORTED. Everybody wins! Especially YOU, oh discerning fan of books in digital format!

* * *

Here's today's progress on my rural gothic monster story about small-town secrets, old family lies, accidental legend-tripping, and a missing newlywed in the Okefenokee swamp - where you can drive SR 177 from west to east and cross six bridges...or take it from east to west, and you might hit seven. (But you’d better hope not.)
Project: The Seventh Bridge
Deadline: January 15, 2016
New words written: 1403
Present total word count: 2515



Things Accomplished in Fiction: Bickering, bitching, and idle threats - interrupted by a peculiar one-lane bridge.

Things Accomplished in Real Life: Neighborhood jaunt with dog; not much else - as I got a late start today.

Other: I spent much of yesterday quite sick, from God knows what. Felt almost like the flu, but not quite ... and it might've been as simple as the fact that I barely slept the night before, courtesy of a bad allergy attack. I don't know. I ate a little, settled in early, took a couple of Benedryl ... and slept in until almost 10:00. It feels lazy of me, but I really, really needed it. Today I feel much better.

Other, Redux: So... Hell and Half of Georgia. Got a lot of thumbs-up feedback on that sadly now-discarded title. I don't know. Maybe I'll ask my editor about it again later on. As I mentioned, the deadline isn't until January of next year - so there's no great rush.

TV-Related Other: I HATE Tuesday night TV, because I have to choose between Face Off/Agent Carter, and Person Of Interest/Justified. Yes, we record the "losers" and watch them later, but I hate having to do that. Can't we spread out some of the good TV across the rest of the week? What about Thursday? Except for Archer, Thursday's kind of a wasteland, these days...?

Number of fiction words so far this year: 26,703

* * *

Allegedly we're getting more snow this afternoon/evening - maybe as much as 3-6 inches - but I'm not holding my breath. More often than not if we DO get snow, it sneaks up on us, un-predicted. As a point of note, right now the radar says the storm system is sitting right on top of us ... and we've got jack squat to show for it. Not even rain.

Of course, the skies are welcome to prove me wrong. Not because I'm a huge fan of snow or anything ... but because THIS GUY loves the hell out of it.

[Edited to add: Literally the moment I posted this entry, we got our first flurries. That'll show me, eh?]

As I've complained many a time before, starting a new project is hard. Working on a new project is great! But actually getting one underway ... UGH. Such a shift in gears. Such a tactical decision that can go wrong in so many ways, and will probably have to be thrown out eventually, so it's probably a total waste of time. Or not, but there's no telling. Not yet.

Yeah, that.

But today I sat down with all my notes and all my Force Of Will and I managed to get a new thing underway! [:: throws confetti ::] [:: waves pompoms ::] It's another book for Tor, slated for next year - so I actually have plenty of time on this one, but I wanted to get a jump on it. I have half a dozen other Things What Might Pan Out floating around out there, and if any given ONE manages to happen ... this will be a busier year than I'd expected.

Which is fine, really. I'd rather be busy. These days I've even learned how to be strategically busy, and part of that strategy is KEEP SWIMMING LITTLE FISHIE and also GET STARTED NOW - because if I get interrupted by something else, at least I have some content/progress to return to. Like I said, I hate beginnings. Diving into something that's already in process is much, much easier. For me, personally. Your mileage may vary.

SO I SAY ALL THAT TO SAY THIS:

Here's today's progress on my rural gothic monster story about small-town secrets, old family lies, accidental legend-tripping, and a missing newlywed in the Okefenokee swamp - where you can drive SR 177 from west to east and cross six bridges...or take it from east to west, and you might hit seven. (But you’d better hope not.)
Project: The Seventh Bridge
Deadline: January 15, 2016
New words written: 1112
Present total word count: 1112



Things Accomplished in Fiction: Started chapter one with a pair of ill-suited newlyweds who maybe should've broken up instead of getting married, but they had their reasons.

Things Accomplished in Real Life: Neighborhood jaunt with dog; went to Petsmart and stocked up on pet things; went to lunch with husband; called the cat's vet to get her (dwindling) supply of kitty Valium renewed; got my inbox down to zero.

Other: This project was originally called Hell and Half of Georgia - which I still think is a great title, but not everybody agrees with me. Apparently. [:: sulks a bit ::]

Number of fiction words so far this year: 25,300

* * *

BY THE WAY, FOLKS. I know I've been nattering on quite a bit about Jacaranda and its Big Fat Release and the awesome Humble Bundle of which it is a part ...but yeah, no. I'm not going to shut up just quite yet. I can't! Because look what landed on my doorstep today, courtesy of one moaning and groaning UPS guy who totally did NOT wipe out on the old brick steps leading to the porch, thank God.



So go and get yourself a shiny hardcover copy of your very own while that's still an option. (Hint: It won't be, for very much longer.) Or, check out the Humble Bundle and pick it up digitally (along with a bunch of other really amazing books).

* * *

BONUS DOG. Today we had a hawk flying around the neighborhood, which is something that Greyson takes SUPER personally - ever since one nabbed a mockingbird out of our yard and ate it RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIM. (From a tree limb, at a safe distance. But RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIM. The INSULT of it all, I tell you.)

Come spring, the back yard will be well and truly hopping with fledgling mockingbirds, robins, cardinals, finches, et. al., but for now it's mostly just the mockingbirds and robins. NO MATTER TO THIS DOG. Anything in his yard is UNDER HIS PROTECTION.

By which I mean, he will pace around the yard and bark at the sky like an old man yelling at clouds - and then camp out on the patio and keep watch. It's both charming and hilarious. And probably reassuring, if you're one of the birds who more or less lives in our yard.

It's been a few days since I last posted, but there hasn't been much to report. The weather has been godawful, with highs in the teens and/or rain/snow/sleet/slush ... so we've been more or less housebound until today. But I'd be lying if I said I'd gotten much work done.

Mostly, I did some odds-and-ends spring cleaning - stuff like emptying and sorting both of my closets, and bagging up stuff to donate. Also, I culled a couple of boxes of books and will drag them off to sell them when the weather lets up; did a whole bunch of laundry (bedding, sweaters, all the not-every-week stuff); got my inbox down to zero; made an appointment to get our taxes done; and sorted out the last of our receipts to make that appointment go more smoothly.

* * *

Speaking of taxes, a friend of mine posted this article about filing while freelancing . It's got some good info in it, but I think it over-complicates part of it a tad - especially for those of us whose income may vary wildly from quarter to quarter.

So in addition to the advice above, here's a little simplifying trick I've been using for the last few years - and it seems to (a). keep Uncle Sam happy, and (b). keep me out of trouble:
Start a second checking account. Take 30% of EVERY CHECK YOU GET - no exceptions - and stick it into this secondary checking account. Pretend this money does not exist until quarterly taxes roll around.

Pay Uncle Sam from that account. When quarterly taxes come due, send the IRS a check for whatever has accumulated in there over the previous 3 months.
This "hack" (if you will) has saved me a LOT grief over the last few years. I'm not writing big fat checks from my usual checking account (shared with husband), I always make my 90% of taxes (against actual income - see article above) - and usually, after all relevant deductions and so forth, I've overpaid a little bit. So I get a refund! Refunds are better than the alternative, let me tell ya.

* * *

In other news, DON'T FORGET - Humble Bundle is LIVE and I'm in it! So are a whole bunch of other people, including (but not limited to) such diverse authors as Harlan Ellison, Kelley Armstrong, Connie Willis, Joe Lansdale, KJ Parker, and Tim Powers. And, as someone pointed out via Twitter - for some of these titles, this may be your ONLY OPPORTUNITY to pick them up digitally if you're outside the United States.

So. Click here to take a look at what's available. All the usual HB rules apply - pay what you want, no DRM, divvy up your payment however you like between authors/publishers/charity. A HUNDRED BUCKS WORTH OF BOOKS for whatever you find stuck between the sofa cushions, basically.

THIS IS A WIN-WIN, PEOPLE.
Win-win.

* * *

Apparently I never did post here about the cat's lab results, in the wake of her "what the hell is going on with this little old lady cat" bloodwork. In short, everything came up fine and dandy, which is both good and bad. Good, because yay, she is healthy for an elderly feline. Bad, because it means she's just getting old and weird - and there's no magic pill for that.

At present, we've got her on one of the aforementioned pheromone collars and a regimen of kitty Valium before bedtime. These things worked great for the first week, then everything kind of leveled off to a level which might best be described as Acceptable If Not Fantastic.

Most nights, she wakes up 2-3 times and howls her head off ... but only for maybe thirty seconds, and then she calms down and goes back to sleep without anyone "rescuing" her. Ideal? No. Vast improvement? Yes. We can live with it.

Since the weather's been so cold and awful, she's been spending most days camped out in my bathroom - where I leave the heated tiles turned on 24/7 for her creature comforts. Of course, she threw a sulking fit at me when I took away the bath-mat for laundering; but that's what she gets for puking on it.

"What am I supposed to do with THIS?
Lie on the naked warm tiles like some kind of ANIMAL?"



* * *

As for Greyson, he's a snow-dog at heart - and I'm glad he got a few days of the white stuff to frolicking purposes. Hell, I even took him out for a rare after-dark walk the other night, when the snow was fresh and dry. It was 25 degrees but every kid in the neighborhood was out, and so were half of the dogs. It was a very social evening, and it made for a very happy Greyson.

He's an excellent pooch.
He deserved it.

And he's the only reason I'm even remotely sad that last night's rainstorm washed it all away.

SO GET THIS: You know how yesterday I was all like, Jacaranda is shipping, yay!? Well today, I have YET FURTHER Jacaranda news for you and yours - starting TODAY you can pick it up as part of THIS-HERE HUMBLE BUNDLE PROMOTION on a pay-what-you-like basis.

Behold the glory of Subterranean Press's offerings! IN ADDITION TO Jacaranda - in this bundle, you'll also find a number of other fine folks INCLUDING but not limited to Peter V. Brett , Connie Willis , Dan Simmons , and Jack Vance !

But perhaps you're asking yourself, "Self, what on earth is a Humble Bundle, and do I want any part of it?" Well now, that's easy: (1). A Humble Bundle is a collection of fabulous ebooks, (2). HELL YES YOU DO. Here's how it works:

Humble Bundle rounds up some ebooks
You pay whatever you want for them
Your money supports an awesome charity

And that's the long and short of it, right there. The ebooks have NO DRM and are available in a VARIETY OF FORMATS, supported by all the usual readers - including iPad, Kobo, and Nook. You put up however much money you think is fair - AND you get to divvy it up however you like between the publishers/authors, the charities, or even the HB tip jar.

Everybody wins!

By supporting this particular bundle, you'll be supporting Worldbuilders - Pat Rothfuss's amazing non-profit that partners with Heifer International. So that is just ONE MORE REASON to throw some dough into the hat and grab yourself a whole bunch of kickass reading material for the device of your choice.

Now get clicking, you maniacs! And by all means, feel free to spread the word :)

Finally! Jacaranda is live, and it is SHIPPING right to you kind folks who either (a). already pre-ordered it, or (b). plan to order it really, really soon. According to the publisher: "We already have more distributor orders for the trade hardcover than we can fill, so ordering now might be a good idea."

There are a few more copies of the limited signed edition on hand, so you collectors out there have a bigger window to grab yourself a copy; but if you want one of the hardcover trades, it's basically now or never.

Click right here to order directly from the publisher while copies are still available. Or, via that same link, pick up a signed limited jobbie at your relative leisure.

Alternately - you may nab yourself a digital version - available now for $4.99 via the usual suspects: Get Jacaranda for your Kindle
Grab Jacranda for your Nook
Pick up Jacaranda for your Kobo
Don't forget, Jacaranda is my FINAL FORAY into the Clockwork Century universe. This is the epilogue that puts it all to bed. Click here to see what PW, Locus, Romantic Times, and others thought about this last little adventure.

Here, have a quick bonus review, which the publisher caught but I somehow missed - wherein the San Francisco Book Review was very, very kind:
"While other novels in Priest's Clockwork Century series have dabbled in supernatural elements, Jacaranda is the first to go full bore and embrace the supernatural. It leaves behind much of the steampunk and pseudoscientific trappings that characterize the series, offering a cursed hotel and perils less tangible than sap-poisoned rotters and Civil War profiteers... A welcome new wrinkle in an established series, Jacaranda shows there's plenty of life left in the Clockwork Century universe."
Many thanks to the reviewer there, and to everyone else who's taken the time to chime in - though alas, as mentioned above ... there are no plans for further life in that particular universe at this time. Probably ever.

So! Jacaranda. Get it while it's hot! Get it while it's buttered! Get it while it's there to be gotten, because when these hardcover trades and limited editions are gone, they're gone for good.

* * *

Finally, on a closing note, thanks so much to everyone who has kept up with this weird, mad, world setting of mine over the years. It's been a pleasure and a privilege, and now it's both complete and concluded. It never would've happened without you.

<3

Here's today's progress on my southern noir about a woman whose memories and identity erode, only to reveal hints of another person entirely: a detective who vanished on the day she was born in 1959; now with BONUS moonshiners and revenuers, small-town governments with big-time crooks in office, cops both corrupt and courageous, and one hell of a paranormal twist:
Project: Shouting Distance
Deadline: March 1, 2015
New words written: 1839
Present total word count: 15,889



Things Accomplished in Fiction: Wrapped up Draft Zero of the sample content for this project. Wee!

Things Accomplished in Real Life: Neighborhood jaunt with dog; answered some emails; rewrote a bunch of yesterday's content, which took forever; made lunch; that's about it.

Other: Now to put this and the synopsis down for a week or two and work on other stuff - then come back and clean it up for the Agent of Wonder.

Cat Other: For only the second time in recent memory (say, the last year or so) she let us sleep through the night! [:: throws confetti ::] However, she seems to be struggling with a hairball today, so we're dosing her with the "cat lube" and keeping an eye on her. She's being her usual lazy self, but her pupils aren't huge and she's not in any apparent/immediate distress, so we'll watch the litter box and keep giving her the laxative goo for now.

Dog Other: Still fluffy and fabulous over here. No new pics, though. I've spent all day trying to wrestle this sample content into submission.

Number of fiction words so far this year: 24,188