A friend sent me this link http://tech.yahoo.com/news/nm/20090910/wr_nm/us_safrica_pigeon to an article about a South African company sending data by courier pigeon because it was faster than using the internet! When I came up with a drunk pelican to relay messages in the first Iron Elves book it was definitely done tongue in cheek, but now I’m starting to wonder if it might be more viable than I thought.

Talk about rekindling an old flame. My Dungeons and Dragons character was a knight errant named after Hotspur from Shakespeare’s Henry IV. As you can see he’s a handsome, martial little fellow and not the least bit squeamish about mixing it up when there are orcs to be sorted. This is from my B.G. period (before girls) although I do recall being aware of them (girls) at the time, but I think they scared me more than orcs. Come to think of it, they still do…

So at the risk of setting off a D&D nostalgia-fest, any former (or current) players out there?

So I live and work in New York City, but the publishing house I edit for, Stackpole Books – http://www.stackpolebooks.com – is located in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, about three and a half hours by train or a little less than three by car. I just got back to NYC after a three day visit at company HQ. The weather was brilliant as were all my meetings. What was most encouraging is that we’re seeing a marked increase in sales across the lines of books we publish as we go into the Fall. I hope that’s a trend that catches on in the economy as a whole.

I also had a chance to meet our new national accounts manager and chat about the coming Spring 2010 line as we drove back to the city. Things are definitely looking up (fingers crossed!) It was an intense and fulfilling three days and now I have the long weekend with which to decompress and get back into my writing. At the moment, however, I am going to head out for a run!

The contracts are signed and the writing is underway on Ashes Of A Black Frost. It’s due to publish summer/fall 2010 in North America. As I get information on other markets I’ll let you know. Usually the UK and Australian/NZ editions come out about a month later.

Yes, I saw District 9 tonight, and yes, I’m a fan. If you haven’t seen a trailer for it yet you can view one here (it’s rated R):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6PDlMggROA

There are some terrific special effects in the movie, but it’s really more about the story. The juxtaposition of an alien slum in South Africa with its history of apartheid adds layers of complexity to an already intricate story. If you’re looking for a science fiction movie with good effects and even better plot you should definitely check this one out.

Cheers,

Chris