Seattle!

As demanded by familial obligation, we are in Seattle this week visiting relatives. This means lots of interesting food; we've not been in the city twelve hours and already we've found amazing Thai food and gummi candy shaped like lips. 

I also got to hear Grandma Winter's story about how she poured water all over someone who was rude to her, a story that, while I've never heard it before, hardly surprises me. This is, after all, the same Grandma Winter who routinely intimidated entire police stations by knitting. (Yes, really. Go ahead and ask Robin Winter if you doubt me).

Weird thing about being this far north: the days are far longer than expected, and it is really green. As most of this spring has consisted of panic over fires, this is a welcome change. I regret on this trip that I cannot go and explore the city of Seattle proper....but all things in their time. In the present, there is Thai food. 

Even if I am a little scared to try the lips.

Also we have an awesome hotel room...

Summer! Finally!

I have emerged from the hell that was finals week--or, more precisely  the last month of the quarter. It could have been worse, as I wound up dropping Statistics out of sheer desperation, but there was still more than enough to keep me running, including the first few chapters of a new novel (I found an excuse to take a writing class) and moving out of the apartment. 

Which happened today and was far from conducive to peace of mind. Enough on that now. I doubt anyone wants to hear about what we found in the back of the fridge. 

Somewhere in there, Fanime happened. It was the first convention I've gone to with a large group of friends, and the results were both delightful (people to hang out with in the hotel room, dances) and disastrous (coordination, hoo boy...).  I shall post pictures as soon as I can get them off various people, as I left my camera in a drawer at home, and the tablet's camera wasn't quite up to the job.

I spent most of my time at Clockwork Alchemy. There, I finally purchased an Author Hat, which I am inordinately fond of. I had a wonderful time, and returned to school in a much better frame of mind for the explosion of excitement that was the ensuing month. 

Fieldwork has also picked up. I need to go in to lab tomorrow to finish processing the samples that we got yesterday. In the meantime, I'm going to appreciate being home with parents and cats and lots of good food... 

Post-Release update

 Conventions, novel releases, and surprise trips to Colorado have meant that I've gotten behind on my school, and am paying the price. I arrived home this week to a flurry of frantic activity: while I was off adventuring, the rest of the world had moved into the dread and terror that is Midterm Season. And the little part of that world that is my lab had shifted into We Have To Present Our Research HOW SOON? mode, so there was a lot of scrambling. On the plus side, there are now pictures of the research I've been doing for the last year. 

Isn't it adorable?!

So in between photographing urchin larvae and studying for statistics (at least that exam's over now--eeek, math), I am left with only one exam more before I need to start worrying about finals and posters for the grant. 

And then it will be summer. Tolerant Housemate and I had a brief argument about summer yesterday: he insists on not considering it summer until June 21st. I insist on calling it summer now because I've had to resort to hiding in the 15ºC room in lab from the heat. Yay environmental rooms. 

As for the novel? Well, if you go visit my website, you'll see that it's up at a variety of new and exciting places. If you've read it, do please leave a review! You shall make me a very happy author indeed. 

And as more people read the book, I can start posting more about said book, such as how to use a fan in combat...

Launch Day!

Weather is out today!

Julian and his world have been kicking around in my head for the last three years or so, and to finally get the little sneak out of the house and into the real world has always been my goal--while some of my projects were written with the express goal of leaving them to moulder under my bed when I was done, Weather was always intended for publication. At least, so I hoped.

And now I'm a day away from strangers (who aren't being paid to do it!) reading the book. I'm torn between hooting and hollering and having an (illegal) glass of champagne and hiding under the bed going "I hope no one notices the historical inaccuracy of the dirigibles/attitudes/Julian's left nostril, oh god I hope there's not someone ACTUALLY named Julian Lambert..." 

That aside, thank you to everyone who has helped and supported me, to my advisor, who's put up with me being completely scatterbrained over the last two quarters, to my parents, godparents and extended family for encouraging me to pursue both scientific and literary careers, to the various wonderful people I've lived with and been friends with, and to the older and more experienced authors who have been my inspirations and my mentors, whether over the course of years or an hour's conversation at a convention. Oh, and to my current housemates, who have had to put up with me playing the theme from a certain animated TV show on repeat for the last two weeks.


Now to go deal with the fact I can't get one of my marketing tools to work before I get in trouble with the publisher!

Nova Albion Steampunk Exhibition

This weekend I got to do my first convention as an author and it was wonderful. I cannot recommend the experience enough! The convention in question was the Nova Albion Steampunk Exhibition in Santa Clara.

I almost didn't go; my college is a good six hours away by car, seven and a bit by train, and neither I nor my companions had our drivers licenses yet (well, one did, but she had just driven up from San Diego the night before, and so it was less than kind to saddle her with yet another lengthily drive the next day). So we took the train.

I, a train noob, am now convinced that train is the most supremely civilized way to travel. It was quiet and surprisingly fast and, above all, comfortable. And you meet the nicest people. One of my companions wound up talking to her seat partner for the better part of the return trip, to our neglect. And, oh, yes, the views look like this.

Somewhere north of San Luis Obispo

Once we arrived, we had a bit of a scramble, as the registration desk had closed before our train had turned up! The convention staff were very kind, though, and we still managed to get our badges and attend the opening night ball.

Due to the vagaries of class and of trains, we were only able to stay one day. But it was more than worth it. It was my first purely steampunk convention, and a wonderful introduction to the steampunk community as a whole. I was able to talk to both the inestimable Gail Carriger and the brilliant J. Daniel Sawyer about marketing and other authorly issues, and somehow managed to avoid fangirling absurdly at the both of them (at least, I hope). Hopefully, I will one day be able to do for another young author what they have done for me. (In the meantime, I have an awful lot of internet work to do!)

Real world work, too. One of the bits of beaded trim fell apart on me in the middle of the convention!

Weather launches tomorrow. It seems a little unreal now, back in my little apartment with the vegetarian housemate rattling around in the kitchen and the entire place smelling of ant spray (guess what invaded over the weekend?) and a pile of very modern laundry on the bed. I can't wait until next year. Who knows, maybe I'll be marketing book two...

Weather Has a COVER!

Isn't it GLORIOUS?

I'm just going to sit here and squee a little. Terribly unprofessional, probably, but I can't help it. 

Weather releases May 1st!

Sponge cakes and cranky cars

I got my last round of edits for Weather in on Wednesday and then got the next few days off, which meant I finally had time to do the thing I had intended to at the beginning of spring break--work on getting my driver's license. (This endeavor is one that has spanned several years. I am clumsy and get right and left mixed up and the family car has a manual transmission...you can see where this is going, can't you?)

So I went and ran errands with Mom. Now, this would have turned out all fine and dandy, but our car, an aging pickup truck ten years my senior, decided to develop an issue. Namely, every time I put her into neutral, she stalled and the engine died. To those unfamiliar with cars, every time you come to a complete stop, you put the car in neutral by depressing the clutch. Otherwise, you guessed it, the engine dies.

The solution in this case was to race the engine while stopped. So I got a bit of a workout, and doubtless puzzled my fellow drivers. Long story short, the car is going to the mechanic on Monday, and I am looking forward to NEVER having to do that again! I hope.

And then I came home and made a sponge cake. I share this with you because there is nothing sillier than a cooling sponge cake. Observe: