Yesterday was stressful. I went almost two days without sleep so I could finish revisions, and then when I went to mail them to my editor I missed the cut-off time at the post office. Which meant that I had to drive an hour and a half to a Fed-Ex station—during which I almost collided with three cars, a boat (don’t ask), a little old lady in a walker (again, don’t ask), and nearly ran out of gas. I arrived at the Fed-Ex/Kinkos, only to see the last delivery truck of the day sitting outside. AND HE WOULD NOT WAIT FOR ME. So I called Fed-Ex and they said there was another station open until four, and I high-tailed it over there – ONLY TO DISCOVER THAT THE OFFICE WAS CLOSED.
The station doors, however, were open. So, like a little trespassing devil I minced through the Fed-Ex transit station looking for people. The first guy I found told me that I was totally out of luck. My response was that I would drive all the way to Indianapolis if it meant finding an overnight service that could get my book to New York by Monday. At that point another guy emerged, and he—wonderful, wonderful man—told me that he had to go to Indy anyway, and that it would be ridiculous for me to drive up there when he could just open up the office and take my package. I think I almost swooned, he was so sweet.
So, it’s mailed. I hope I’m able to do more work on that book, but if not, at least I met my deadline. I must confess to being rather shaky after that experience, so I went to Barnes and Noble to relax. Here’s my new reading list:
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
At The Mountains of Madness by HP Lovecraft
The She by Carol Plum-Ucci
Rats by Robert Sullivan
The Darkness That Comes Before by R. Scott Bakker
Nectar in a Sieve by Kamala Markandaya
Pay the Piper by Jane Yolen and Adam Stempl
Hot and Heavy by Sandra Hill
In other news, I finally saw my RT review for A Taste of Crimson. It’s a 4 1/2 Star Top Pick for August: “Scorching-hot new talent Liu adds her special voice and style to the amazing Crimson City saga. Passionate, intense and gritty, this paranormal thriller is a truly enthralling read.”
Heehee. That’s a good feeling. Someone else who’s also feeling good is my Clarion Buddy, John, who sold a story to Strange Horizons. It’s called “Adventures in Dog-Walking in Downtown Philadelphia.” Yay!
In other news:
I’ll be at Worldcon in Glasgow from August 4 – 9, so if any of you have suggestions for things I ought to see while I’m there, or if you want to say hi, let me know.
Meljean’s saga of “The Very Naughty Batman” continues, and congrats to her on the new two book contract! Also, many thanks to Maili for appreciating the lizard. I, too, suffered from placement envy when I saw that picture.
Howie Day and Allison Krauss are having concerts in Indy next week ON THE SAME NIGHT. Am torn. Suggestions?
Also, Dear Frankie, starring Gerard Butler and Emily Mortimer, is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. I cried at the end, and I’m not the crying type. I highly recommend it, although I can promise that anyone who sees that film is going to come away in mighty lurve with Butler.