Date:	2008-09-06 10:37
Subject:	WARNING ... politics ahoy. Kind of.
Security:	Public
Mood:	aggravated
Music:	"At Your Side" - Lionel Neykov

Okay, I'm not going to make a political speech on my blog. Most of my friends know I'm a lefty left liberal bleeding-heart pinko commie Democrat, so there's that said, but this isn't about that at all.

It's about FRUSTRATION.

Guys. Seriously. Why do we allow politics to be conducted this way in our country? Why do we accept omission, distortion, and outright to-our-face LYING? Why do we allow the most powerful positions in our country, which will influence the way millions (maybe billions) of people live their lives, become a circus like this?

You can stop it, just by refusing to play the games. By the games, I mean buying the bullcrap in a brown paper bag that people try to hand you as truth without FACT CHECKING.

Every time you get a feverish email claiming that Barack Obama keeps Osama's picture under his pillow, or Sarah Palin poses with guns in bikinis, take a step back before you (a) believe it, or (b) forward it on. WE ARE ALL RESPONSIBLE for our current dilemma, and part of it is simply not bothering to know the facts.

Demand more.

Implement your own voter education program. It's easy. There are two main -- and relatively unimpeachable -- sources for this: FactCheck.Org, and the venerable debunking site Snopes.Com. They are struggling to keep up with the flood of rumors, innuendo, and insanity, but they're doing a pretty darn good job. The St. Petersburg Times and Congressional Quarterly have a great site with visual "Truth-O-Meters" for each quote (from "True" to "False" to "Pants on Fire"). There's also a new "Flip-Flop Meter."

The candidates' sites also have debunking features you can use, but warning -- seek impartial third opinions where you can. Don't rely on your party's spin doctors, because right now, politics is in a blender, and we're all getting drunk.

If we end up with a terrible leader, and a continued slide from the greatness this country used to embrace, we have no one but ourselves to blame. If we decide to make our decisions based not on facts and records, but "narratives" and "image," we deserve what we get.

Vote for the person you think is most qualified to lead us as a nation. That's it. That's all there is to it. Don't base it on their TV presence, their speechmaking ability, their looks, their "cute family," their personal history unless it's directly relevant to how that person will unify and lead this country.

There'll be a test later. And if we're not very alert, we're all going to fail.

Date:	2008-09-05 11:05
Subject:	So much to catch up on!
Security:	Public
Mood:	bouncy
Music:	"Sour Cherry" - The Kills

Okay, so ... I'm back!

Dragon*Con was AMAZING. I met (and re-met) so many awesome people there, it practically reduced me to tears (certainly to mindless babbling). To those I failed to recognize (looking at YOU Laurie!) immediately, please forgive me -- I was on major facial recognition overload. Thanks to everyone who made me feel so welcomed and honored.

ETA IN BOLD ...
I have to say a SPECIAL thank you to two people, and naturally, in my frenzy, I forgot to write down their names! So hopefully someone (perhaps even them!) will recognize who I'm talking about so I can edit this entry and say it properly ... two lovely ladies came up to me andgetaway_machine and barbed_whispers, who gave me a custom Weather Warden t-shirt (photos later) that said "I believe Lewis can save the world!" on the back ... it is just beautiful, and I am so touched. They also gave me some road music, which really came in handy on the way back! Also, and I only forgot this because I was already USING it, mlevins gave me a beautiful hand-tatted bookmark. Thank you so much!

Speaking of the road ... we drove to Atlanta in the Smart Car. And then there was Hurricane Gustav cutting right across our planned route home, so we headed out on Monday from Atlanta to Memphis, then across to Little Rock, where we stayed at the Peabody Hotel (squeee, with the duck that march down every day!). All well and good until Tuesday morning, when we woke up to find that Gustav had already swept in, at least the outer edges. So we battled 40 mph winds in the Smart Car, as well as torrential rains, all the way back to Dallas. But you know what? SMART CAR WINS! It did great!

And last ... unexpectedly, I am back working full time again. It's a long story, but it was good timing all around, and although I'm sure this will be the start of a more stressful 2009 so far as scheduling and, well, stress, I'm kind of looking forward to it.

I will be live-chatting in the next couple of weeks at the Knight Agency site, and also, heads up, Ohio-area peoples! I will be posting details about my upcoming trip to Youngstown and Cleveland soon!

Okay, now I need to get to work or something. But as always: THANK YOU. I am so tremendously amazed at the kindness of my readers.

-- R.

Date:	2008-08-28 22:23
Subject:	DragonCon!
Security:	Public
Mood:	exanimate
Music:	Joe Bonamassa - "Bridge to Better Days"

Hey, y'all, I'm in Atlanta at Dragon*Con! I've got loads of panels and autographings and stuff, so please, if you're roaming the halls, look for me. (Or, of course, avoid me: whatever works for you!)

We drove the Smart Car. From Dallas. Heh. It was FUN! And highly affordable. :)

We're holding our breath over Hurricane Gustav's projected path ... eeek.

I'm making an early night of it ... :yawn:

-- Rachel

Date:	2008-08-16 08:50
Subject:	RIP, Shelley ...
Security:	Public
Mood:	sad
Music:	None

I'm very sorry to say that Shelley the Leopard Tortoise passed away last night. I loved Shelley -- she was the highlight of my day, going to feed her, because she would race over (yes, really) to me and eat out of my hand, just so excited to see me.

Like most reptiles and amphibians, she didn't give us much warning something was wrong. Two days ago she was nipping at my toes as I cleaned the room, trying to get me to feed her; yesterday, she didn't want to eat at all. We were going to take her to the vet this morning, but she was gone when I went to check on her this morning.

I loved that l'il gal.



Shelley as a baby

Very sad around here this morning.

-- R.

Date:	2008-08-13 06:53
Subject:	And then there was one. One very tired writer.
Security:	Public
Mood:	relieved
Music:	"Silence" - Delerium & Sarah McLachlan

Important life lesson:

Never, EVER declare a cage match until you're absolutely sure that you're within easy striking distance of the end. EVER, people. This is my object lesson to you, so learn it well.

Of course, I thought I *was* at the end, and then the ending seemed off, and so I had to do some reconfiguring.

I wrote more than 100 pages yesterday, and yet my forward motion was only about, oh, 20, by the time I figured out where I was going.

However, after a hot bath and about four hours of sleep, I sailed fearlessly back to the fray, and I am pleased to report that the book has flown the flag of surrender.

CAPE STORM IS COMPLETED.



Well, the first draft, anyway.

I am late, late, late in turning this in -- 12 days late! -- but I feel fairly okay with it. This is always a difficult thing to judge, because you get so road-blind when you do this much work. I wrote the approximate equivalent of TWO novels for this one, because I kept reworking and refining my concept and moving the targets. I had an outline, but ultimately, the outline hurt me more than it helped, and I had to just blow past it and come out the other side.

So, today I must do everything I have NOT done since, oh, last Wednesday. Like, for instance, buy groceries. Do laundry. Mail packages (I'm looking at YOU, contest winners!). Cook. Brush my hair. (Okay, that last one was untrue. I've brushed my hair at least three or four times.)

I wish I could say that I'm going to kick back and relax, but obviously, as you can see from this list, NOT HAPPENING. Life must move along, and one must move with it or get dragged kicking and screaming.

I hear there's sunlight outside. And OUTSIDE outside.

Must go investigate.

-- R.

Date:	2008-08-10 08:19
Subject:	Thunderdome!
Security:	Public
Mood:	determined
Music:	Pocketful Of Sunshine - Natasha Bedingfield

Yep, it's cage match day. Me and the word count enter, one of us leaves.

Wish me luck. It's going to be a hard fight, and I'm not entirely sure I can make it, but I'll give it my very best shot.

Hooray for coffee ... lots and lots of coffee ...

:yawn:

Rachel

Date:	2008-08-09 13:43
Subject:	Ooooh, LAND HO!
Security:	Public
Mood:	amused
Music:	"Count to Ten" - Tina Dico

I know, I said "ho." I meant it in the nautical sense, as in, I can see the far horizon!

Of the book, that is. And it doesn't (for a change) look like I'm going to run up on the rocks, although of course there's still plenty of words left to go, so I won't get cocky quite yet.

Current count for Weather Warden #8, CAPE STORM:




And just for grins, one more time with the Special Jack Sparrow STM flag:



Because yarrrrr, matey, I'm writing PIRATES! And no, I will not explain why. BECAUSE.

-- R.

P.S. -- I added a cool new feature to my website ... the lovely Jeri Smith-Ready (who shall always be my first Author Speed Dating partner!) recommended Playlist.com for creating jukeboxes, and I took it to heart. So on the entry page, there's now a jukebox where you can hear what I'm listening to as I'm writing -- I love new music, so it'll be an adventure.

Also, I'm going to work on creating jukeboxes for each of the book playlists on the music page, so you can stream the music real-time to listen to as you're reading, if you're into that sort of thing.

Also, I've purchased a BMI web license, so yay, it's even legal and such, and the artists get royalties.

Recommendations for new music always gratefully considered!

Date:	2008-08-08 07:51
Subject:	Superwasp 2: Return of the Superwasp!
Security:	Public
Mood:	blank
Music:	"Count to Ten" - Tina Dico

Well, not *the* Superwasp, but a bigger, deadlier cousin.

My Waspy Turret O' Paranoia is continuing to try to prevent me from surrendering the manuscript for Weather Warden #8 (CAPE STORM) by producing buzzy intruders on a daily basis. One a day, just about every day.

It's gotten so predictable that the first thing my husband asks when he wanders in (usually around noon) is "Did you get the wasp yet?" Mainly because he won't come in if I haven't. The second question is, "You didn't use that spray by the coffee maker, right?"

Ah, the sympathy. It burns.

So, yesterday, I'm cranking away (giving myself a Book Headache, in fact, I'm writing so hard) when I see the tell-tale black shadow out of the corner of my eye. Yep, that's a flying wasp-shaped thing. It obligingly flies to one of the turret's 10 windows (I KNOW OMG) and sits on the blinds, planning its attack run.

Not one of the non-aggressive mud dauber wasps this time, oh no. This one looks like an upgrade, something out of my nightmares, frankly, with spindly long legs and a huge-ass stinger that I swear you could see from the windows of the Space Shuttle.

I felt NO guilt spraying that one. It was coming for me, I tell you, I saw the look in its -- many-faceted eyes. And it was FAST, too.

And yes, I've put up filters on my vents now. No dice. I've tried the trap. Ditto.

It's just me, my trusty wasp spray, and the bug vacuum that I've ordered.

Wish me luck.


Oh, and yes, progress:



I think I'll break out the SPECIAL flag for this one:



Counting today, three more days to meet the goal. I feel strangely unpanicked. It'll come, though.

-- R.

Date:	2008-08-06 10:05
Subject:	CHECK YOUR EMAIL!
Security:	Public
Mood:	bouncy
Music:	"Salute Your Solution" - The Racounteurs

If you entered the GALE FORCE release day contest, winners have been chosen -- I was extra generous, and picked five runners-up instead of four. So five people have emails awaiting them announcing their runner-up status, and one more has a Grand Prize winner alert!

I'll get their permission before posting names, though.

If you're a winner, don't forget to send me your snail mail address! Unfortunately, attaching *actual* things to email doesn't work so well. Yet. And my Djinn are, as usual, on strike.

Here's a preview picture for you from the upcoming GALE FORCE music video, by the way:



It's gonna be fun.

-- R.

Date:	2008-08-05 13:57
Subject:	HAPPY RELEASE DAY!
Security:	Public
Mood:	bouncy
Music:	"Don't Trust Me" - 3OH!3

Happy official GALE FORCE release day, everybody!

And thanks, poutyshorty, for the reminder. :)


Don't forget the giveaway contest closes at midnight CT tonight!

Rachel

Date:	2008-08-05 06:52
Subject:	And here's one Ter would have appreciated.
Security:	Public
Mood:	nervous
Music:	"My Mistakes Were Made For You" - The Age of Understatement

It was tough sledding yesterday, because I kept thinking about Ter, but I made significant progress on CAPE STORM. I felt tempted to just blow everything off and spend the day remembering my lovely friend, possibly with crying, but I could just feel her impatience with that self-indulgence. She loved writing and reading more than just about anything, and I could just hear her telling me not to use her as my excuse to malinger.

So, after about 8 hours of writing, I decided to lay down for a while in the heat of the day (10 day forecast shows only one day where we won't break 100) and all seemed quiet.

And then I looked over at my writing turret, and by jingo, there was a wasp. It was buzzing right around my computer, which was sitting open on my chair.

Thus began the Battle for The Laptop. It involved screaming, jumping up and down, wasp spray, and my husband Cat mocking me. Not that HE'S not afraid of wasps, oh no. He was just using me as a human shield and retreating to his field command position any time an air raid came close.

After dousing most of my room in spray, I finally landed a solid hit on the wasp. No problem, I thought. The can says KILLS INSTANTLY ON CONTACT.

Apparently their definition of "instantly" is "eventually, possibly hours later, maybe, and good luck with not getting stung to death in the meantime." Either that, or this wasp was the Superwoman of wasps, with a little red cape and an S on her chest. She buzzed menacingly around the room for at least two more hours. I checked in periodically, only to find her banging aggressively into walls, furniture, ceilings and light fixtures.

This morning, finally, I have declared victory. Superwasp is dead. I come not to bury Superwasp, but to dispose of her in the nearest available trash receptacle, and

OMG SHE WAS STILL ALIVE.

She was playing possum, trying to fool me into letting my guard down before she lunged for me. I grabbed my HANDY WEATHER ANSWER BOOK (it's a tome, believe me) and ended the conflict.

It was self defense, I swear.

So. A new day dawns.

And there will be wasps. Oh yes, my friends, there will be wasps.

I will NOT let them stop me, Ter. I swear.

Grrrrrr.

-- R.

Date:	2008-08-03 20:54
Subject:	Blessed be your journey, Ter.
Security:	Public
Mood:	sad

For months now, I've been dreading this day, and here it is. My dear friend ter369 has left us.

I left her a voicemail a few days ago -- the day she went into hospice care in the end stages of her life, although I didn't know it then. I told her that I was looking forward to talking to her. What I didn't tell her was that if I never got to talk to her again, I valued every single moment that I ever had with her, and she made my life better and brighter for knowing her. I wish I'd said that, because it's the deepest truth I can imagine.

Ter loved opera. She loved snark. She loved Harry Potter. She stayed at my house in 2005 during the Great Houston Exodus of Hurricane Rita, and I wish that I'd been able to be close to her these last few months. Many miles divided us, but I thought of her often and with love.

I have a package in my car that I was mailing to her tomorrow. The gift that's in it is a lovely little Japanese plaque of the symbol for peace.

I will keep it for her, but I hope that peace is something that she took with her when she left.

A lovely quote from Ter, via elspethsheir: "Most people can't draw well or sing on pitch, but anyone can Snoopy dance."

And I snoopy dance for you tonight, Ter, through my tears, because I know that you'd want me to. I've been blessed to know you, my friend, and richer for every moment I spent talking, laughing, and living in your company.

I will again quote elspethsheir to say: "Please, no flowers. If you are so inclined, you may want to consider two organizations that were dear to Ter: the LA Opera, and the Yellowstone Park Foundation's Wolf Project fund."

And to all of my many and varied friends: I may not say it often enough, but I value you, your time, and your company as we travel the path.

Ter, I'll see you when I get there.

Please save me a good seat.

Date:	2008-08-03 12:32
Subject:	Caffeine O.D., and more progress
Security:	Public
Mood:	cheerful
Music:	"Violet Hill" - Coldplay

Yep, slamming back two giant double-sized cups of Emeril's Big Easy Bold will give you a headache like the morning-after from Mardi Gras. Especially if you do that in, ah, two hours.

:ow:

But! Progress! Yes, morning came OMG early, but luckily, I talked myself out of bed and into the writing chair.

CAPE STORM:



MORE THAN HALFWAY, PEOPLES.

Yay.

I shall go celebrate with a microwave pizza, or something.

-- R.

Seriously, it should still be July. WHY ISN'T IT STILL JULY?

Okay, anyway, my brain is ignoring dates in order to keep me calm and focused on my deadline. That's great, but it causes me to miss stuff, like this:

I will be signing books tomorrow at the Barnes & Noble Parks Mall in Arlington, Texas, from 1 to 3 p.m.! And lo, it will be fun.

It's a fabulous store, so come on down, have cheesecake from the coffee bar, etc. I'm looking forward to it!

Who's going to the Breaking Dawn proms tonight? Anybody?

R.

Date:	2008-08-01 09:53
Subject:	Comedy is easy, writing is hard
Security:	Public
Mood:	cheerful
Music:	"Kill, Kill, Kill" - The Pierces

I wish I'd though to get a picture of this, but I expect it will happen every single day, so I'll post it soon.

My tortoise, Shelley (a leopard tortoise) is an eating machine. She LOVES her food. She gets very disappointed when there isn't a mountain of fresh grass and greens for her to munch. Now, mind you, she's a DESERT tortoise. I can't imagine she gets anywhere near this much food in the wild, but she's a manipulative little turtle, and gives me pathetic looks with her big brown eyes until I give in.

So yesterday, I went out to bring her and the iguanas food, and I found her standing over her metal food bowl, staring mournfully at her own reflection.

Seriously.

After I stopped laughing, I patted her on the head and fed her, but still, it was priceless. I mean, she's a TURTLE. She really shouldn't be that easy to read.

... okay, now on to the "writing is hard." Well, surprisingly, not THAT hard, 'cause I'm making great progress. Will I make my August 1 deadline? Er, no, because I decided not to destroy myself in the process, and instead sensibly asked if I could please take another few days. So the new deadline is August 7, much more reasonable, and the current stats are:



Considering I nuked about 20,000 words on Monday and rewrote, I'm really rather pleased. It's flowing well, things seem to be making sense, it has a pacing (I think) and plot (I think). I'm fixing myself a cup of Emeril's Big Easy Bold coffee and celebrating. I can easily make it to 50k today, and that's pretty great.

As soon as I get CAPE STORM off my radar, I will be talking about the *other* things that I need to be promoting right now, including the Border's anthology IMMORTAL, which is out (gasp) August 2 ... and has a new Shane story in it.

Also, the charity anthology RIPPLE EFFECT, a project I absolutely adore.

Okay, back to work for me. Hugs, y'all!

-- R.

Date:	2008-07-31 08:41
Subject:	CONGRATULATIONS, Pat!
Security:	Public
Mood:	cheerful
Music:	"Salute Your Solution" - The Racounteurs

( You are about to view content that may not be appropriate for minors. )

Date:	2008-07-30 10:58
Subject:	This is why I like to write at Starbucks.
Security:	Public
Mood:	anxious
Music:	Bzzzzzzzz.

My lovely turret writing room has a tendency to manufacture wasps.

I have been over the place thoroughly, had Orkin go over it too, I can't find where they're coming in. I've closed the vents, even (at least, for as long as I can stand it). And yet for two days in a row, I've been innocently working and gotten dive-bombed by invading air patrols. Now I can't concentrate because I'm totally paranoid.

At least they're the mud dauber wasps, and not the vicious red hornets of last year. I guess that's an improvement, because mud daubers are actually quite pretty and they don't sting, but still, I do NOT like to be deep in my work and suddenly hear the critter buzzing ON MY SHOULDER. Honestly. It was a girly scream moment. I was lucky the laptop survived me hurtling out of my chair. They should be OUTSIDE, living la vida waspa, not reading my work in process.

This is why there is a can of Spectracide beside my chair, although I hate to kill mud daubers. They really aren't vicious, but they're in the wrong place at the wrong time, and I don't know any other way to evict them other than, y'know, terminally.

Okay, my pulse has mostly returned to normal, wasp no longer an issue, and now I am going back to work.

Except I keep seeing flying things out of the corners of my eyes. Dammit.

-- R.

Date:	2008-07-30 08:46
Subject:	GALE FORCE - Early purchase tip!
Security:	Public
Mood:	cheerful
Music:	"The Best Revenge" - Fischerspooner

After calling around myself, I have determined that you're more likely to find GALE FORCE out early at Borders than at Barnes & Noble this week.

I'm just sayin'. And thank you, Borders folks, for being so helpful and kind! I BOUGHT EARLY! :)

I need some feedback from you guys: is the early purchase contest requirement to send in a receipt too restrictive? Would that keep you from entering, if you had to go scan a paper receipt or attach an electronic one, if buying online?

It hasn't stopped quite a few people, but I'm just curious, for future efforts.

-- R.

Date:	2008-07-30 08:29
Subject:	Surrender the manuscript, part OMG
Security:	Public
Mood:	creative
Music:	"Better Brother" - Madita

Okay, it's going well. I'll tell you that, although it seems counterproductive progress has been made ...



The reason I'm so happy with this is that I was deeply uncomfortable with my opening and the first 100 pages, and finally, after pushing on painfully, I realized that I wasn't going to get anywhere until I addressed that concern. So I sucked it up and cut all the first 100 pages, was able to repurpose most of the important scenes, and have come up with something that I like, finally, with lots of things cut and new stuff added in.

I finally had to kick myself and remind myself that it's called CAPE STORM, and by God, there had better be STORMS. So yeah. The calm, sunny Miami stuff I had really wasn't working. Better now.

It's odd, but I find that once I find the groove of the story and feel good about what's behind me, the writing goes ten times faster than slogging on with that weight hanging over me, knowing I have to go back and fix something.

I complained and whimpered, though. LOTS.

Interesting stuff I looked up this morning:

1) How many people work on the larger cruise ships? What are they called -- staff? Crew? Is there a difference?

2) What's the highest wind speed ever recorded at the eyewall of a hurricane?

3) What's the maximum height of the clouds in a hurricane?

4) What's the transition point between gas and liquid phases, and what defines it?

... and that's just in the past two hours, the instant research stuff that I didn't know I needed to know until I needed to know it.

Okay, back to work for me. And I hope a lovely, productive day for all my flist out there! Happy Wednesday!

-- R.

Date:	2008-07-28 07:50
Subject:	Thank you, Conestoga peoples!
Security:	Public
Mood:	cheerful
Music:	What the hell is that song? Oh, yeah: The Bomb - Sitem

Wow, guys, Conestoga was fun! The fangs_fur_fey mini-con was rockin', and I saw several of you from LJ, and lo, you were all amazingly fun people.

I also would like to give a heartfelt thank you to the staff and regular guests of Conestoga, who got descended upon by hordes of urban fantasy and paranormal authors and fans who were new to the area and sometimes to the whole science fiction experience. You guys made everyone feel so welcome, and made the whole thing so enjoyable.

I also want to thank the regular SF/F fans who were so welcoming and kind to the newcomers. I really think that these types of alliances and get-togethers can strengthen both sides of the bookstore aisle.

I understand that the FF&F community will be putting up actual VIDEO of sections of the panels. Hopefully, sections that make us look less like babblers and more like scholars, but hey. I am in my usual state of semi-frantic dishevelment, naturally. Even AFTER I know I'm going to be on camera. (Keepin' it real, y'all. Also, lazy and almost always running late.)

I got to meet so many great authors, and I'm all fangirly now. I wish I'd gotten to spend a few more moments with Gena Showalter and P.C. and Kristin Cast, but I had a bunch of programming and not so much free time. I never got to see Diana Gabaldon (sob). But I DID spend time with Melissa Marr, Jennifer Lynn Barnes, Tiffany Trent, Jeri Smith-Ready, Mark del Franco, Rachel Vincent, Ilona Andrews, Devon Monk, Jeanine Frost, Sarah Brennan, Marie Brennan, Justin Gustainis ... gah, I know I'm leaving out tons of great people that I've been wanting to meet and finally got to.

Jeri Smith-Ready and I did the author speed dating as a team, racing from table to table to table to tell people about our books. Fifteen tables in an hour. And we had so much fun! Man, that was a blast.

Okay, I'll chat later, must go pile up words on this big glowy screen.

I look forward to seeing more folks at DragonCon in Atlanta in late August/early September!!!

Cheers,

Rachel