Friday, June 10, 2005
I had a good writing day yesterday. I did 1,630 words on Chapter Four and at last finished the chapter. It only took me 12,840 words to get there (and from here on out, I really need to work to keep these chapters under 10,000 words). Now I can get back to Emmie and Deacon. Perhaps my greatest worry about Daughter of Hounds is that, for the first six chapters or so (and there are probably only ten chapters, plus a long prologue and an epilogue), there are two stories moving and unfolding parallel to one another. There's Soldier's story, which is also the story of the hounds and the Children of the Cuckoo, and there's Emmie's story, which is also Deacon's story. There are very important points of contact between the two narratives, and in Chapter Seven, the two narratives will unite into a single thread. But people can be weird about stuff like this. I can already see some of the reader comments on Amazon, and maybe some actual reviewers, saying things like, "The greatest flaw in this novel is that it should have been two novels." But the very fact of the parallel narratives is at the heart of the book, and I can only hope that people will be patient and bear with me, and that each chapter is, in and of itself, engaging enough that readers will exist only in that moment, not fretting over what's come or what is to come.
So, today Spooky and I will read all the way through Chapter Four, and then we'll finish proofing the galleys for Frog Toes and Tentacles, which I should have done a couple of days back. So, today will be a day of reading aloud, and I will hopefully begin Chapter Five tomorrow.
And speaking of birthdays, Spooky's is only two weeks away, June 24th. She has a wishlist.
Last night, Spooky and I listened to Moby and New Order and did the first make-up test for my proposed drow costume. It went well. We may do the make-up for this one ourselves. I still have to get the red contacts. Afterwards, we watched Stephen T. Kay's less than admirable The Boogeyman. There's not really anything good to be said for this film, so I'll say very little. It had a small number of moments, but the number was small indeed and did not even begin to compensate for the whole. No script to speak of, bland acting, bad CGI, numerous plotholes, really bad CGI, no detectable pacing, non-existent characterization, really, really bad CGI, and so forth. But the worst of it was the sloppy, obvious way that the film borrowed heavily from a number of better efforts, notably They (2002) and Darkness Falls (2003). Not even worth a rental. I dozed three times.
Oh, yes, it looks like I will be doing Dragon*Con this year (September 2-5). This will be my twelfth consecutive Dragon*Con. And it's beginning to look as though I'll be doing it without Nar'eth, which will be very strange, indeed.
We've started up eBay again. If you take a look, you'll find the second ARC of To Charles Fort, With Love, the third copy of the "Alabaster" chapbook, as well as The Five of Cups, Silk for a mere $9.99, the hardback of Low Red Moon, In the Garden of Poisonous Flowers (signed by me and Dame Darcy), and From Weird and Distant Shores. Please and thank you. Now, it's time to read.
11:25 AM
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