In the raw.

Vinny has never really been interested in my writing, but he still manages to ask me a few times a week when I'm going to be done. Last night we were watching a movie and he reached over to my desk and grabbed one of my composition notebooks. This particular one had notes for a very raw version of Eleven. Now don't get me wrong, I'd love it if he'd read TFI or even TiC. But something about him looking at something so unediting and well…bad… that really got to me. Needless to say I grabbed it out of his hand after five straight minutes of him keeping it from me.

He asked me what had gotten into me. I didn't really have an answer for him at the time. But thinking back, I realize why I did that. Yes, I want him to read TFI, because it's done. Because I'm ready for my baby to go out into the world. If I still had reservations about someone reading it, it wouldn't be ready. But Eleven is still an infant. I can't just dress it in a suit and tie, strap a briefcase to its wrist and turn it loose on the world. Blimey!

It makes me wonder if anyone else feels that way.

Book Review: Storm Thief

As a new thing for the blog, I'm going to be doing book reviews. It will be a combination of ARCs, newly published and some older books. I decided to start this off with Storm Thief by Chris Wooding, a British author. Many of you may have not heard of him. This is a book I bought a few years ago and read. I recently read it again and decided to review it.

I have to admit that I'm a sucker for a good cover. I'm really biased when it comes to the cover. For example, I have an aversion to any book that has those drawn neutral colored wooded/mountain scenes with the hero and his maiden/sword/horse/a dragon. You know what I'm talking about. But I saw the cover of Storm Thief and loved it. Then I read the inside cover (hardcover also a plus).

"Anything can happen…at any time.

Rail and Moa are thieves in a city of chaos. For as long as anyone can remember, Orokos has been lashed by probability storms – violent tempests that change whatever they touch. When a probability storm hits, streets are rearranged, children are turned to glass, rivers break from their banks, and life suddenly becomes death. Nothing is stable. Everyone is vulnerable.

Rail has struggled with the effects of one such storm for years; when he was hit, he lost the ability to breathe freely. Moa has also seen her share of struggle – as the daughter of dead rebels, as an outcast, as a criminal…."

And it goes on from there. I was hooked. I took it home and read it immediately. I liked it enough to read it twice. I'll probably read it again.

First of all, this is one of those books I read and thought, "Damn, why didn't I think of that?" For example, early on we are introduced to the Mozgas, one of the byproducts of a probability storm. They are humanlike, but they are out of sync with time. They can move super fast, but in an instant be going so slowly that they seem to be at a standstill. Cool, right? I certainly think so. The concepts in this book are way cool, including probability storms themselves.

As the story goes, it's easy to follow. It's pretty straightforward. You won't be getting lost. It follows Rail and Moa and a golem named Vago as they run from the city guards and Revenants, manta-ray like spirits who kill people with a touch. (Think the Final Fantasy: Spirits Within minus the lameness.)

I hated the villains, felt sympathy for the good guys…the only problem for me was that I cared about Vago way more than Rail and Moa. It was hard for me to connect with them. By the end, Vago was definitely my favorite.

The story is great, the character connection is lacking when it comes to Rail and Moa, but Vago makes up for it.

I really recommend it for anyone who likes fantasy, even if it is YA.

Grape Juice

I'm alive! Yes, that's right. I am, in fact, not dead. Had you going there, didn't I? Consider it my March/April/part of May Fool's joke.

But seriously, it's been hectic. Other than keeping up with the 2YN stuff, I have done almost no writing at all. Shocked? Me too. But just because I haven't written anything doesn't mean that I haven't been working! No dears, I've gotten some great ideas. It's been crazy over here with trying to get ready to move again. Sigh. What can you do, though?

I've also been rather out of touch with JM and Vic. L

I looked back at my last query version yesterday, and…yikes. This is why you should always leave what you write to sit and ferment before you drink it. I mean, do you want grape juice or wine? That's what it comes down to. If you pop the cork and send out your query/ms/short a week after you've "finished" it, your dinner guests are getting the grape juice. I'm not saying you should let it age for twelve years. But give it enough time. Set it aside and let it sit. Forget about it. Work on something else. Then come back to it. I promise, you'll see the difference.