Time flies when you're having fun

As they say.

This month has been a whirlwind of activity. Meetings! More meetings! Adult decisions about finances! Fun stuff! More fun stuff! So much that I can't believe it's actually fall. It's almost October, people. I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around that.

I've managed to get some writing done this month, though. Mostly on a secret project, but I'm diving into backstory and new outline for the WIP this week. I need to catch up on writing-business emails and work on a submission package for a publisher.

I'd like to get back into guitar lessons and take an improv class, but any time I spend doing those activities takes away from my writing, and that's a sacrifice I'm not willing to make right now. Experiencing life and writing make you a better writer; it's tough to know when to experience life and when to sit your ass in the chair and write.

Prophet of Bones by Ted Kosmatka--book review

For those of you who don't know Ted Kosmatka's work, he has a knack for making hard science concepts accessible through thoughtful blending with fictional elements. In Prophet of Bones, Kosmatka turns the evolution of man on its head; in this world, carbon dating and the study of DNA have proven the creationists were right and evolutionists such as Darwin were wrong. Science and religion are friends, not enemies. That is, until strange bones are discovered during an archaeological dig on the island of Flores. What are the implication of these strange, almost-human bones? When the bones are stolen and people with the dig start dying, the fearless hero Paul looks for answers on his own.

Admittedly, the book started off a bit slow; while there is plenty of mystery and intrigue early on, the plot didn't start to really rock and roll until half-way through. However, the slow beginning pays dividends at the end, and its well worth reading. The world Kosmatka creates is thought-provoking, the science is solid (the author includes a reference section in the back for those who want to delve into scientific papers), and the prose is clean and linear. Fans of science-thrillers shouldn't miss this book.

 

The dust has settled

Sort of.

The house is sold, the boxes are (mostly) unpacked, and we're officially relocated to Chicago. Ken and I are getting accustomed to living in the city. It's much different than being suburbanites. We don't have a yard, we barely drive, and our place is half the size of our old house. We don't cook as much because we have dozens of restaurants within walking distance. I've almost kicked my Massive Diet Coke habit because I never want to lug a 12-pack home from the store. I've found a local knitting group that meets at a pub once a month, a group of writers that meet once a week, and I'm searching for fellow geeks to hang out with. I'm hoping to pick up the cycling habit before it gets too cold to ride a bike. It's a different sort of pace, and I like it a lot. If you had told me five years ago I'd be living in the city of Chicago, I wouldn't have believed you. Just goes to show you how rewarding life can be when you open your mind to new experiences.

Now that life is settling down somewhat, I'm getting back into the writing groove. I'm working on a novella, shopping around my latest YA novel and working on its sequel, rewriting a short story, and rewriting a short story I wrote early in my career. I have a few pieces coming out later this year (a story in COINS OF CHAOS and an essay in CHICKS DIG GAMING). As always, my writing career isn't moving along as fast as I would like (impatient Kelly is impatient), but it certainly isn't stagnant.

Updatery

A little bit of this and a little bit of that. 

We've sold our house and will close--if everything goes well--on July 26th. We will then be official Chicagoans. I will be so happy to live in one place, I can't even tell you. 

I have a secret project due July 25th. 

I'm a little stressed but you know. It's a good stress. 

Once things die down, I'm going to start up guitar lessons again. And exercise a bit more regularly. And hang out with friends and read and write 1K a day again and explore our new city and and and. 

Basically still be busy by filling my life with enriching activities. 

Origins 2013!

How did it get to be mid-June already? That’s not a rhetorical question. I really want to know.

Anyhoo, since it’s mid-June, that means I’m at Origins Game Fair in Columbus. It’s my first time as a writing-program event planner, and while I’m a bit nervous, so far it’s going well. If you’re in the environs of the Convention Center and want to stalk me at some writing panels, here’s my schedule:

Thursday 10 a.m., room 223: Hey! I’ve got a day job!

Friday, 11 a.m., room 223: Women Writing Horror

Friday, noon, room 222: Sexism, How much is too much?

Saturday, 11 a.m., room 223: A writing group is not just a group of writers

Sunday, 11 a.m., room 222: Writing Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction

I’ll be in the Library area of the dealer hall most other times. When I’m not eating or playing games, that is. Origins is a gaming convention, so I expect I’ll be sleep-deprived and over-caffeinated by Sunday afternoon. Which is as it should be. 

My very first fiction editor credit!

So I'm able to share the cover and TOC from my very first anthology as an editor. I'm so excited for this to get into the hands of readers. It's available at Origins Game Fair and has a limited print run of 400 copies.

Heroes!

Green Room-Aaron Allston
Hero's Final Walk-Timothy Zahn
The Raven-Maxwell Alexander Drake
He Was A Marvelous Man-Janine K. Spendlove
A Blank Canvas-Patrick S. Thomlinson
Waking Up-Dylan Birtolo
Fellow Traveler-Donald J. Bingle
By the Seat of Your Pants-Sheryl Nantus
Invincible-Sarah Hans
Blue Boy-Daniel Myers
Bloom-Bradley P. Beaulieu
Memories Like Crystal Shards-Jennifer Brozek
The Caretaker of Mire-Gregory A. Wilson
The Commodore-Bryan Young
Sunny Acres Home of the Specialized Care of the Elderly-Addie J. King
A Fixed State-Aaron Rosenberg
Interview-R. T. Kaelin
By Blood and Fang and Song, We Call You-Jaym Gates
Bindings-Steven Saus
Cheshire Moon-Tracy Chowdhury
The One Where the Dad Dies-Kelly Swails
Field Trip-Michael A. Stackpole

I'm back!

I'm resurrecting the blogger blog for a few reasons.

1. Google is my master now.
2. I'm tired of LJ hijinks, and I never used it anyway. (I'm not deleting, though--if you wanna peruse the archives, use the linky over there.)
3. I might actually cross-post my writing group blog over to here, and subsequently cross-post this content to my website and goodreads and such. You know. For exposure and shit.
4. I kinda want to get into the personal blogging game again. We'll see how long that lasts.

Thus endeth the run ...

Sort of.

Fine. Livejournal wins. I'm going to blog mostly at livejournal now--the "Copyright infringement" linky is on the left. Or, you can access the blog from my webpage at www.kellyswails.com. Or go straight there at kelly_swails.livejournal.com.

I'm not going to delete this blog, because there's some cool stuff in the archives. And you never know, someday if I become a writer full time I might want to upkeep two blogs again.

Why the change, you ask?

Well, LJ has lots of cool features, and I feel like more people read that blog, anyway. Also, I've had a hard time separating my "writing" self from the rest of my life. Keeping two blogs for different aspects of my life has become increasingly cumbersome.

So, goodbye, blogger. It's been a good run. And we can still totally be friends.

Politics -R- Us

Watched the VP debate tonight. While I feel Palin redeemed herself a bit, I don't know that this debate changed any minds. The Obama supporters will love Biden; the McCain supporters will love Palin; and who knows what the undecideds will do. Almost a month away from the elections, and I think it's still a coin toss.

Interesting article by Glenn Beck. Something to think about. Politicians are so busy being partisan that democracy itself is in peril. It's crap like this that almost--almost!--makes me want to run for public office.

WARNING: DON'T VOTE (Jennifer Aniston, Leonardo Dicaprio, Halle Berry, Sarah Silverman, ...)

Busy Weekend

Friday: Me and Ken's 10th wedding anniversary. We celebrated by making a big flowerbed (brick edging, fill in with topsoil) and scattering sand around our backyard to help alleviate our drainage problems. Afterwards, we ate an unsatisfying dinner at Outback Steakhouse. We then commenced to ... lounge ... at home.



Saturday: We finished up the yard work and then headed to Chicagoland to visit Ken's college friends. One of them had been named on of the "top 40 Illinois attorneys under 40", so we attended a nice dinner party complete with wine, appetizers, and dessert. We pretend this is our anniversary dinner instead of the fiasco from the night before.



Sunday: Traveled home only slightly worse for wear. Ken is watching sports while procrastinating on schoolwork; I am doing laundry, cleaning, and contemplating a walk. I also foresee a trip to the grocery store. Later I will polish a flash fiction piece and send it off.



All in all, quite productive. I'll sleep well tonight, I think.

Soggy Sunday

The remnants of Hurricane Ike came through Central Illinois today. I have no idea how many inches we got. I heard predictions of 6 to 8, and that would probably be about right. Earlier I tried to drive to McDonald's to get breakfast and the highway had standing water. I probably could have made it through, but why risk it for an iced coffee? I didn't want to do laundry because I didn't want to overtax the sump pump (which has been working overtime to keep our basement dry, thankyouverymuch). So what have I accomplished today? Nothing, and it's been wonderful. I read a book and knitted and slept. There is something so decadent and marvelous about a Sunday-afternoon nap.

The rain has no passed and so I must try to get some laundry done. A girl's gotta have clean underwear, don't ya know.

Ah, fall.

Fall is my favorite time of year. Yesterday was 75 and sunny and perfect. Today is drizzly and 75; tomorrow will be rainy and a bit colder, I suspect. I love love love when the trees start to turn and the weather turns chilly and it's jeans-and-sweatshirt weather. I love when it's too cold to sleep with the windows open but not cold enough to turn on the heat. I love the mums and the high school football games and the pumpkins. I love pulling out fall and Halloween decorations. I love baking oatmeal cookies and buying candy "for Halloween" a month in advance.

This is the time of year I feel most alive.

Last week when I drove past our local high school the lights were on over the football field and a pack of girls crossed the street in front of me, on their way to the game. Back when I was that age, the Friday Night Football Game was the place to be. My friends and I would pour wine coolers into 32-ounce "Hawk Mugs" the local Hardee's sold and sneak them into the game. We'd walk around the track while the game happened so we could See and Be Seen. The cool kids hung out behind the home goal posts. The stoners held court underneath the bleachers. Some kids lined the fence around the field and actually watched the game. The liquor made the lights brighter than they were and now makes some of my memories surreal. We'd wear green and white and sing the fight song and drink our drinks fast so we wouldn't actually get caught with the goods. Afterwards we'd drive around the back country roads and try to find the after-game party, or we'd hang out on the square and be obnoxious, or we'd drive to Jerseyville to get pizza. Anything to sober up before curfew.

This is the time of year I feel most nostalgic. It's weird, too, because I didn't really like high school all that much. I don't keep in contact with hardly anyone I went to high school with. All I wanted was to graduate, leave, and never go back. I have no intention of ever living there, but when I think about my hometown, this time of year especially, I get the warm fuzzies.

9/11

I remember. We all remember.

downtime

Ken and I carpooled into work today, and on the way home we went to Petsmart to check out the wall o' rescue kitties. So cute! We've talked about getting another girl kitty, but none at the store jumped out at us. The right one will find us when it's time.

I did a little bit of writing neepery tonight, but mostly I knitted and watched the movie Contact on TV. We recently (read: last week) ditched cable and got Direct TV, and I have to say I'm enjoying the upgrade.

And now I'm going to go read in bed. Ah, free time.

In the next few days I'm starting on a new writing project. I will try to be better about regular posting, though.

Public service announcements

You can buy the Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog soundtrack on iTunes. Go forth and enjoy all the Bad-Horse goodness.

Season 4 of How I Met Your Mother started September 22nd. Go forth and and enjoy all the story-telling goodness.

Yeah, I finished the draft of the WIP today. How could you tell?

I knew yardwork was a bad idea

This weekend Ken and I finally stopped talking about putting in a flowerbed and started working on it. We cleared weeds, we dug a trench, we poured sand, we moved bricks. Now all we need to do is get in a truckload of dirt and decorative rock to actually make the bed.

Oh, and yeah, we have to get a new sliding glass door, too.

I'm not saying who was operating the trimmer when a rock got thrown. I will say I heard the hit, looked at the house to find the dent in the siding, and saw the spiderweb cracks in the window.

Luckily it's a double-paned window so we're not imminent danger of getting a living room full of glass. Never fear, a call has been made to the insurance agent.

For your viewing pleasure:

I know, I know ...

... I've been remiss about posting lately. But! I've had my head down on the WIP. That's my excuse and I'm stickin' to it. If the planets align correctly, I could have a second draft done by 10 p.m. tonight. Fingers crossed! And then, my pretties, you will inundated with blog content from yours truly.

Frolicking in the snow

My niece just started her freshman year of college. On Saturday I visited her, took her to Wal-mart and out to dinner, and basically just hung out with her. It was a good time, and since she's attending college about 40 minutes away from my house, it's an experience that I'll repeat a few times a month.

Seeing her dorm room was an eye-opening experience. So tiny! It's hard to believe that my dorm room wasn't much bigger than hers. Back then it had seemed huge because it was something of mine that didn't belong to my parents. It represented freedom and Independence and potential. I laughed and cried and learned how to make new friends in that room. I stayed up late and stressed about classes and worried about failing and watched the walls spin from drinking too much free beer. Watching my niece go through that experience now is exciting.

L. is on the 8th floor, and so she's got a pretty kick-ass view. As soon as I saw the expanse of treetops I was back in St. Louis, watching the first snowfall of my freshman year. I could smell the freshness of the snow, see the ice form on the inside of the window, and hear a few floormates knock on the door, saying we should play outside. Myself and three others--people whom I haven't talked to in fifteen years--played in the falling snow at 2 a.m. We ran around the quad and made snow angels and had a snowball fight and built a snowman. We played so long that once I got inside, my body stayed cold for hours afterward. I smile when I remember hanging my wet clothes all around my half of the room, hoping my coat and glove would dry before class on Monday.

Movie Review--Tropic Thunder

Tropic Thunder is an action/comedy starring Ben Stiller, Robert Downy Jr., Jack Black, Brandon T. Jackson, and Jay Baruchel. Actors shooting a Veitnam War-era movie are accidently dropped into the middle of a baaaaaad situation and are forced to become the soldiers they are protraying. The acting is great. Robert Downy Jr. is especially good. The screenplay is awesome; the movie has an actual plot and all the humor, action, and emotion make sense. Jack Black plays a strung-out movie star, and he rocks as usual. Black never holds back, and his performance in TT is no exception. I'll definitely buy this movie once it comes out on DVD. Here's the thing, though: I'd pay full price to see this movie again because of Tom Cruise. He plays a pudgy studio head, and he's awesome. He's only in a few scenes, but they rocked. So, go! You'll laugh! You'll laugh harder!