This arrived in the mail last week:

And today is the official release date! Woohoo!

Fearsome Journeys, edited by the lovely Jonathan Strahan, contains a story that I had simmering away in my mind for many years about a particular kind of parasitic magic. A couple of years ago, while I was weaving on my loom and letting my mind wander, the first line popped into my head out of nowhere and suddenly I knew how to write the entire story.

It often happens like that with me and short stories. The idea floats around for years until suddenly it’s ready to be written.

As you can see, my story enjoys some fine company:

“The Effigy Engine: A Tale of the Red Hats”, Scott Lynch

“Amethyst, Shadow, and Light”, Saladin Ahmed

“Camp Follower”, Trudi Canavan

“The Dragonslayer of Merebarton”, K J Parker

“leaf and branch and grass and vine”, Kate Eliot

“Spirits of Salt: A Tale of the Coral Heart”, Jeffrey Ford

“Forever People”, Robert V S Redick

“Sponda the Suet Girl and the Secret of the French Pearl”, Ellen Klages

“Shaggy Dog Bridge: A Black Company Story”, Glen Cook

“The Ghost Makers”, Elizabeth Bear

“One Last, Great Adventure”, Ellen Kushner & Ysabeau Wilce

“The High King Dreaming”, Daniel Abraham

I love that you can buy it from the publisher or follow the retailer links on that page. Easy peasy.