I have a new post at the Ruby-Slippered Sisterhood today talking about developments in my life and my writing. Let’s just say that 2011 was not at all the year I expected. Still, Kismet and Mother Fate seem to be looking out for me. ;-)

There’s a new short story on the way, too. (Or at least I hope it’s just going to be a short story. As I mentioned in the comments there, it’s being ornery and keeps trying to grow!)

Now that I’m back from Dragon*Con in Atlanta, I thought I’d offer up some fun stats about my trip, mwa ha ha.

Number of correct answers by moi during the team trivia hour of the Anne McCaffrey’s Worlds track: 1 out of 1. Yay for The White Dragon! Though I’m sorry to admit it had been waaaaaay too long since I’d read her non-Pern stories, so I wasn’t as much help there. (I’m currently on a Pern streak. I’m re-reading them all, starting with Dragonflight. I always read them in a certain order, and I’m now on the 16th in that order—All the Weyrs of Pern. Yes, it’s practically a second job, only it’s one that makes you reeeeeally happy.)

Number of Michael Whelan’s Pern cover art posters purchased: 2. They’re going to look awesome on my office wall.

Number of times I ate at Chick-Fil-A: 5. Yes, that was deliberate. The nearest location to my home is more than two hours (and quite a bit of altitude) away, so I made good use of my temporary proximity.

Number of awesome roommates: 1 out of 1. Check out Shawntelle Madison, whose funny urban fantasy Coveted is going to make a big splash this coming spring. (Our other roommate, the amazing Jeannie Lin, whose short stories and books have rocked my romance-lovin’ heart, was unable to come and was sorely missed.)

Number of, er, nipular areas (thank you for the handy terminology, Chandler Bing) unwillingly viewed during nightly promenades around the hotels’ atriums: 12. Yes, there was some eyebleach involved afterward.

Other fails: Poor picture-taking by the new smartphone owner (moi), who couldn’t figure out how to turn on the flash. And of course, no Anne McCaffrey in person at Dragon*Con. :-( She was very much missed, but I’m sure all of her fans are wishing her well and would rather have her stay healthy (and working on another Pern novel!!!). And…there may be a Pern FILM TRILOGY in the works. W00T!

Other wins: I figured out how to tether my cell phone to get Internet on my netbook, heh. I also thoroughly enjoyed the Weyrfest track, got to meet Anne’s son Todd (a Pern author himself, of course, and a very funny man), and was able to sign a card for Anne expressing my gratitude for her words and her worlds…both of which helped me follow my own life’s dream and become an author.

Interesting little coincidence: Todd was on the first leg of my flight back home, just one row ahead of me. Unfortunately, he was tuckered out (and ill from “con crud”). I figured he was due for some down time, so I decided not to be a total fangirl. It was a near thing, however.

Bottom line: Dragon*Con 2011 was a VERY well-run con and a fab time was had by all!

Yep, the sequel to The Source of Magic and the second prequel to Kismet’s Kiss. (I know, you want Kuramos’s wives’ stories out. Me too! But sales are brisk indeed, so getting the link between the two published books into place makes sense.)

The working title is The Soul of Magic, and it’s the story of Princess Qiara (daughter of Jilian and Alvarr) and Rokad (former mage). I initially wrote 3/4 of a draft of this story back in 2002. Let’s just say that I’m a better writer now, and that when I reread the draft, most of it was unusable. In fact, it’s a total rewrite. But I’m enjoying seeing these two spar on the page and learn their lessons. And yes, Kuramos plays a role, as you may have surmised from the opening of Kismet’s Kiss. In fact, he’s the enemy in Soul, mwa ha ha. And oh yes, he shall be redeemed. :D

By the way, you might have seen mention of Jen Rashidi in the acknowledgments of Kismet’s Kiss. She read bits of Source back in 2001 and pushed me to write a sequel–which turned into Kiss. Life had intervened and I hadn’t seen or talked to Jen in almost a decade, but she got in touch on Facebook just a couple of weeks ago. YAY for renewed friendships! Facebook: so evil and yet so beloved.

The Source of Magic is progressing very well! I should have the polishes done this weekend. It will be up for sale in early May–or earlier, if Fate be kind. My surgery is scheduled for the second half of April, though, so I’m not going to make promises. Except that Source is on its way soon. :)

Psst: if you’re looking for the answer to the question at The Romance Reviews, scroll down.

First, the bad (I’ll save the good for a minute because I always think it helps to have something to look forward to):

The Source of Magic won’t be ready by the end of this month.

I know. I’m disappointed, too, and truly sorry I can’t fulfill my promise to you.

(Get out your violin right now and let’s give it a workout.) I’ve been dealing with some health issues, including a newly diagnosed tumor. It’s non-cancerous, but it’s also been around for a long time—and nearly killed me in 2007, as it turns out. Fortunately, I’ll be getting it removed by specialists in a few weeks, and that should bring about a full cure.

(Wait, don’t pause the violin—I’m still going.) I’ve been spending too much time at the computer working on Source lately, and my wrists are starting to hurt. I have an ergonomic setup, but still have wrist pain—a bad sign, especially for a writer. Carpal tunnel trouble can wreck an author, and I can’t let it get that far.

(Nope, not yet—keep fiddling.) A brilliant critique partner has been suffering for three weeks now with a migraine cluster and one of my beta readers hasn’t had a chance to read any part of Source. I’m just not going to publish something that isn’t ready, and these ladies make sure my books are. So I’m going to have to pull back for a bit until life returns to something approximating normal for all of us.

Again, I apologize.

Okay, at ease with the violin! Here’s the good news:

Kismet’s Kiss has been nominated for both Best Fantasy Romance and Best Debut of 2010 by TheRomanceReviews.com. Yes, I’m thrilled! :D I believed in this book from the beginning, and I’m so glad I followed my vision for it, despite the pit stops and detours along its wiggly path to success.

If you enjoyed Kiss, I would greatly appreciate it if you take a few moments to vote for it in its two categories. (You can vote for more than one book in each, by the way.) Thank you!

It’s the smug satisfaction that comes after working out, isn’t it?

I haz it. I also have sore legs.

First time going to the gym. Is this the start of a new habit for me?

Well, if my history of exercise is any indication, perhaps not. I can’t even get excited about skiing this season, which is unusual.

All the same, being on a treadmill was more fun than I expected, and then I topped it off with two hours of salsa dancing. Not bad for this lazybutt.

Best of both worlds: a treadmill desk. Heck, even this would be great. Of course, I’d have to buy a treadmill first…

Woohoo, I’m nearly finished formatting the print version of Kismet’s Kiss! I hope to have it up in a couple of weeks, and it’s looking excellent that I’ll be able to sell it for an amazing $7.99.

I’ve done the formatting in Microsoft Word, thanks in part to the guidance of Perfect Pages, but I’m also drooling over an Adobe InDesign CS5 offering at eBay. InDesign is the industry standard for page layout. I’m a perfectionist and want everything to be just right, and I naturally want all the right tools. (Sadly, the particular tool of InDesign would cost almost $400–still a bargain, since it’s almost $700 from my drug dealer, Amazon, but still beyond what I’m willing to pay right now.)

Either way, though, spending time perfecting things is a problem of mine. If I put all my time into fixing what I’ve already done, when do I have time to create new things–and how much more time will it take to perfect them and get them to market?

I’m the kind of person who will spend a day (or a week) tweaking something from 99.9% to 99.91% perfection. Is that a good use of my time? Probably not, since 100% perfection isn’t attainable anyway. (I know that intellectually, but getting myself to act on it still takes some effort…)

And not only do I lose time I could use to create, I also lose time I could invest in introducing people to my books. (But I want my books to be perfect when people read them, the Inner Perfectionist whines.) *headdesk*

Well, at least the new cover will be gorgeous, thanks to Robin Ludwig. :) I look forward to sharing it.

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I’m going Indie and I couldn’t be more thrilled!

KISMET’S KISS will be coming out by the end of this month on the Amazon Kindle ebook platform, so the book will be available for any PC, Mac, smartphone, or iPad, as well as on a Kindle itself. (And psst…the third-generation Kindle will be coming out around the same time!)

2010 has been a bit odd for me. I got an offer from a respected small press to publish KISMET’S KISS and thought things were going to work out, but the publisher and I parted ways and I needed to decide what do with this novel. It didn’t take me long to know.

KISMET’S KISS had three agent offers, two publishing contract offers, two Golden Heart nominations, eight contest finals total, and three wins. And I’ve been eager to try publishing on the Kindle platform. I’ve had a Kindle since early 2008, and it has shifted my perspective on many things.

I am completely excited about going DIY with this book!

I’m not making any decisions about my other novels just yet, but meanwhile readers will be able to actually read my work. (That’s quite a concept, after a decade of waiting, LOL.) And I have the joy of creating the cover art and being responsible for the final look and feel of this book. As the author who has lived with this story and its characters for more than four years AND as a perfectionist, I love that!

Life is good. :)

2009 was a very weird year for me. My hubby and I (and the felines) moved across the state twice in five months due to his job. No other way to say it except That Sucked.

And yet, I also got my first contract offer. That Did Not Suck. In the end, I turned down the contract due to a sticky clause in the contract that the publisher wouldn’t negotiate. That was a tough call, but I know I have to be smart and keep an eye on the future.

Now it looks like I’ll have an offer from another publisher. This pub has a good reputation and may be a very nice fit for this book.

My mother has a saying: “It’s not real until it’s real.” She was referring to real estate deals where things could fall apart at the last minute. Nothing was real until the contracts were signed. I think I’ll be patient and follow her lead.

But given the suckage of 2009, I’d like to think that no matter what, 2010 will be a better year. And that’s what we all want at the beginning of a shiny new year.

So I hope that no matter how 2009 treated you, 2010 will rock your house in fantastic ways.

Onward!

Ever fantasize about a fantastic writing office / reading area / home office? Me too. I’m blogging about what would make the perfect space at NobodyWritesItBetter.com today, so come visit. :-)