Home Again . . .

And am I tired!    The flight back was wonderfully bland and unexciting with no bad weather, no canceled flights, no crying babies, and no VIPs messing everyone’s schedule up.  (grr)

I had a great time at ARCANA this year, and I have the pictures to prove it, but as usual, I’m glad to be home and back at my desk.  The forced inactivity for the last five days has given me the time to think about how I want to handle the last chapter in book nine, and there will be some adjustments.  They won’t be as far-reaching as I had originally intended when I left for MN on Thursday, but hopefully they will have a bigger punch.  I’m thinking two days . . . and then I can move on to the graphic novel.

The “editorial rewrite letter” came in just before I left, and I’ll be immersing myself back into that for a week.  Gosh, I hope it doesn’t take more than a week.  This is my first race, so to speak, and I’m still trying to find my pace.  If I’ve misjudged, I’ll be working my weekends, and I don’t want to do that.  It’s faire month!!!

ARCANA

I generally don’t update the blog on the weekend, but since it’s a workday for me, I thought I’d go ahead and bring you all up to speed. 

For those of you who don’t know, I’m spending the weekend in Minneapolis at a small convention called ARCANA, and I’m having a great time.  Yesterday was busy with panels, Q&A sessions, readings, pizza and a movie, and an auction.  (Where Guy and I gave up one of those signed, limited edition mugs and the last of the Outlaw Tour shirts.) I’ve got a shot here of the Q&A, but there are more pictures at the website.  Today is a panel on witches and another on urban fantasy (what is it and why is it different from other genres)  Can’t wait!

DreamHaven

OMGosh, I could have flown to the West Coast yesterday with the time I spent in airports yesterday!  I spent the day with Guy, so it was a good day, but between canciled flights and circling the airport because of VIPs needing the entire airport to take off, I didn’t get to my room until almost eleven that night.  Man, it was a long day.  I felt so bad for the people who were waitng for me at DreamHaven.  They looked so tired when I finally walked in and spent some time with them.    Thank you, guys, for coming out!

More pictures at the website.

–Kim

ARCANA

Today after waking up from a _very_  odd dream about being a vampire in high school . . . 

(which is another post entirely in itself.  There was no blood, there was no serious light restriction, and there was no outward sign you were a vamp besides wearing black.  It was almost exactly like my real highschool experience.  Ha, ha. What’s the point of being a vampire if you are ordinary? )

. . . I’m prepping for ARCANA this weekend.  I’m heading out a little early to do a signing at DreamHaven on Thursday from 6:30 to 7:30, so bring your books!  There will likely not be a whole lot of people there, so I may be able to dispense with my policy of personalize-two, sign-the-rest, and just personalize all of them if you like.   Going to have to play that by ear, though, and no promises until I get there and see what’s what.  I’ll sign the Dawn books, too.

Mud asked if I had a schedule.   I don’t have a full schedule, but I have some idea of where I’ll be.

Opening ceremonies on Friday, 7:30 to 8:25 where I’ll be interviewed.

Reading/ autographing Saturday 4:00 to 5:15

Auction on Saturday 8:00 to 11:00, where I’ll be donating several things, a signed, limited edition mug among them. 

Closing ceremonies on Sunday 4:00- 4:15

I’ll also be at a couple of panels and probably sneak down and watch a couple of movies.

So what does prepping mean for me?  Charge up camera and phone, assemble the freebies that I give away at signings, check out my signing clothes and be sure I can still fit in them.  Polish my boots.   Mess with my hair a good four hours (I got it cut.  I’m trying to go short hair again.  Can you imagine?!!  And I don’t know why I’m messing with it–it’s raining.  It’s not going to hold a curl.)  Go to the grocery store with my mom who is watching the puppies, the house, and Thing-Two (likely in that order)  Talk to NY to make sure they know I’m out of the office, my cell is on, and that my email might be slow.  Continue my Echinacea tea to prep for the airplane.  Go to the bank.  Pick up my last framed Princess Book covers from the framing place.  Wow.  I think that’s it.  Oh yeah.  Do my nails.  (rolls eyes)  Put stuff in the suitcase.  Must not forget that.

Hey!  I can do this!  And when I get back, I’ll have the info ready about my annual Halloween Costume Contest!  Whoo-hoo!  I can’t wait!  –Kim

Scary rides

I got a lot done yesterday in my semi-enforced holiday from the Internet.  (Ha!  Like I could really stay away completely!)  I’ve got the conference out in Minneapolis at the end of the week, and since I’m going out early for a signing at DreamHaven, my schedule is a little scrunched.  My rewrite for book nine is almost done, and I want it finished before I leave.

Not meant to be a teaser, but . . . I finally got to the end of it yesterday, and was surprised at how I ended it.  (Yes, I do tend to forget between rough draft and first-submission copy, especially if there’s twelve months in between.)  It looks like when I wrote it, I left it open so I could go one of three ways, and now I have to go back a chapter or two and trim out the possibilities to make it clear and unconfusing.  I went to sleep with this on my mind, giving my subconscious all night to mull it over.  Today should be interesting as I go back and spend eighty percent of my freaking day on six pages, tightening, tweaking, finding closure, and yet leaving enough open spaces to be excited about the next book.

OMGosh–I’m going to start book ten next month.  It’s like standing at the top of the line at the first car in the roller coaster when the people ahead of you are all buckled in, and you see the excitement on their faces, knowing you’re next.  And then they leave and your car pulls in, and you see the exhilarated exhaustion on the people you’ve never seen before.  And then it’s your turn, and you’re getting in the car and pulling the safety strap down, knowing you’re in for it?

Crap, I’ve got to do it again?  (grin)  Good thing I like the scary rides.

–Kim

If you live in Minneapolis . . .

I will be there in a few weeks.  I’m starting to gear up for ARCANA, which is a small conference run in Minneapolis, October 16th to 18th.  I’ll be there a day early for a signing at Dreamhaven on Thursday, October 15, from 6:30-7:30 p.m.  I’m really looking forward to it!  Hope to see some of you there.

There’s something in the air

And it’s not what you think.  (grin)  No, really, this morning when I took the puppies out, there was a breath, a hint, a whisper of cooler temps, less humidity, and the tang of leaf decay.  Summer isn’t over, but I tasted its death this morning.  If you can’t tell, I do like fall.  It’s not my favorite season, but I’m usually ready for it when it gets here.

Okay, so what does that have to do with the drama box?  Well, my thoughts turned to fall, and one last promotional fling before the end of the year.  I felt really bad about Minneapolis falling off the expected tour this year, so when the chance came to do a conference there, I gave it some serious thought.  Short story long, I will be GOH at ARCANA this year, October 16 to 18.  Hopefully we’ll get a signing out at Dream Haven, too.  I’ve not been there for years!  Fingers crossed!  There is a website for more info.  Arcana 2009.