mariness

Three entirely unrelated bits of news:

1) I take on the most controversial of the Narnia books, The Last Battle, over at Tor.com

2) Just in case you didn't hear yet (although I'm pretty sure most of you have) George RR Martin has announced a publication date for Dance of Dragons.

I'm with you all in saying I'll believe it when I see it, and probably on my own of feeling a little sad that now that both Patrick Rothfuss and George RR Martin are delivering/have delivered their long awaited novels, I can't exactly point to them as excuses for not getting my own fiction work done, gulp, gulp.

3) I have a washer/dryer again.

Unfortunately, the first thing that entered the dryer was a black and white cat. I took his squeaks during the removal process as a sign of approval. For the curious, he was less helpful than he thought he was during the installation process, failing to understand that the Lowe's delivery guys were there to plug in the washer and hook up the dryer vents, not scratch a cat. I suppose from the cat point of view that's an understandable mistake.

I am tired, achy, a bit cranky, and have a very large hole in the bathroom ceiling. A hole that should - should - soon be fixed and filled with a large metal object that is intended to serve as a heater/fan, which is currently on the floor looking tremendously unlike anything other than something intended to trip people up and send them flying into the bathtub, which is, last I checked, not the intended use of a ceiling heater/fan.

Many of you will be shocked to hear that the services of a small black and white cat who would love to explore the attic and various holes in the ceiling and be of General Use have been firmly declined, doubtless greatly slowing the entire installation.

In other, better news the latest Narnia post is up at Tor.com, and I have either - or both - chocolate and lemon ice cream on hand. (The new Haagen-Daas Lemon Five flavor. It explained, in what I could only call an honest and frank fashion, that it was afraid to be left in the grocery store next to all of the old flavours that would unquestionably eye it with resentment, so, I freed it. I'm kindly like that.) So, the evening has a few hopes for improvement.

Tor, or more specifically, Narnia blogging, continues with Prince Caspian today. This is my least favorite of the Narnia books and I'm glad the post for it is over.

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In somewhat related news, I am slowly beginning to feel like a writer again. I didn't, for awhile there. Various things happened in August and September, and then October and November were filled with moving and renovating, and December with holiday stuff, and although I had some non fiction stuff to work on during that period, I was dry of creative words, beginning to wonder if I would ever write again. I've felt that way before, of course, but each time it still feels new, terrifying, uncertain: this time, the well of dead words will remain dead and dry.

But living words are creeping back, bit by bit: a poem here and there (although my poetry never really marches in step with the rest of my writing in any case, and I have a sad feeling that some of you will not think that one of my recent poems is a poem at all), a paragraph here and there, reopening the various novels in various states of disarray and seeing what might be done with them.

Not promising anything, but hoping for more words to come in February.