She’s been on the back porch window since last night. Thanks to the Internet, we know she’s a common garden spider and not aggressive or dangerous. And today, she had lunch when we did. Kyra called her beautiful and decided to name her Caitlin.
Category: Misc
I don’t know art …
This statue is in the Yerba Buena Gardens, which is right next to the Metreon. The kids spent several minutes inspecting it, much to the amusement of passersby.
I’m sure this statue contains much symbolism about our post-modern life. I’m pretty sure the way Andrew and Miss B reacted was not what the artist anticipated. I am willing to bet, however, no two other people have inspected this statue quite so closely.
This is the carousel at the Yerba Buena Gardens. No. It wasn’t moving. Yes. He’s being a big goof.
Yeah. Some people went to Chinatown. Others strolled on over to the Museum of Modern Art. I decided it would be fun to climb all over the S.S. Jeremiah O’Brien. That’s Alcatraz in the background.
It’s like a train wreck. You can’t look away.
Found this via Esri Rose. Who knew cake was so funny?
Rooms with view
The view from my hotel window. Nice, no? You can’t really see it, but in the lower left of the photo, there’s a rooftop with a garden.
While waiting for that room with a view, we wandered over to the Metreon, which is right next door to the Marriott. This is Andrew in the arcade area of the Metreon. I think I’ve mentioned is claw machine affection, not to mention his mad claw machine skillz (he once won a Game-Boy). The arcade at the Metreon devotes one huge room to claw machines. Just how big?
Here’s one half of the room. There was more. A lot more.
Andrew’s comment: “Now I know what heaven looks like.”
In other views, Lee McKenzie posted a picture of the Noodlers at the Golden Network reception. I’m the geeky one (on the right) in front holding my “boot out” certificate (kind of like I’m not quite sure what to do with it). I’m totally rocking that farmer’s tan too.
Tea for two
In case anyone was wondering, I went with the English tea service at the Samovar Tea Lounge. It came with a three tiered serving platter with a shiitake mushroom quiche, fresh fruit, and a scone with preserves and clotted cream. This last is no doubt one of the worst things you can eat. Bad never tasted so good.
I was also served a side order of sunburn. Being clever, I made this worse by walking all the way down Market Street and then along the Wharf.
In what is absolutely perfect timing, our editor (!!!) sent us (that would be me and Darcy) a few minor edits on the Geek Girl’s Guide revision we turned in a few weeks back. A few as in we can deal with this in email few. So nice. And so far, doable. After this, the manuscript is official and goes to copy edits.
What’s funny is while–yes–we’ve cut some things, the story grew again, by the tune of 5,000 words! More, we want more seems to be the order of the day. When it comes to conventional wisdom about publishing and Geek Girl’s Guide, nothing is conventional.
What a difference a word makes
So it’s entirely possible I shouldn’t blog, since I saw the headline about Russia attacking Georgia and misread it as Russia attacking Germany. Now there’s a world event I didn’t see coming. I had a full-fledged 80s flashback to when I used to brief the intelligence portion of the V Corps general defense plan along with everyone’s favorite two words: Fulda Gap.
Anyway, like I said: I’m probably too tired to blog. (And possibly Fulda Gap are just two of my favorite words.)
I’m sure everyone is expecting all sorts of insights from my time at the conference. Or not. There were a lot of good workshops and Bill Stephens Productions will be offering some (or maybe all of the recorded sessions, although not all were recorded) for individual download on the web. The RWA National site has a PDF with all the recorded sessions, so you can browse and get your iPod ready.
Where was I? Oh, yes, insights. Did you ever know something only to have someone else put it into words for you?
During Dr. Eric Maisel’s session on Creativity for Life, he talked about “loving” the work (meaning writing). Someone later on asked about the love part–what do you do when you’re in full-on hate mode with your current project.
Dr. Maisel clarified what he meant. It isn’t discipline that brings us to the page when we hate everything we’ve written since 1997. It’s devotion.
One little word switch and I had a light bulb moment. Of course. For years, people have commented on my discipline with writing. I’ve always hemmed and hawed and tried well, no it’s not really discipline … but I didn’t have a word for what it was.
Or to put it in middle school terms: I always like writing, even when I don’t like like writing.
We’re back!
Oh. Hi. We’re back. More later. After we recover.
Blogging live from San Francisco
We are here and we’re having fun. Well, I can only assume the kids still are, over at my sister’s. Ditto for hoping my sister still has her sanity. I told the kids, oh about a thousand tines, how they HAD to be good.
Andrew did not understand with Louis Sachar or Jerry Spinelli were not signing at the literacy signing yesterday and why the on-site bookstore had NO boy books.
I do have my first sale ribbon and it is both pink and wonderful. When I was registering, the nice woman on the RWA staff also process my PAN (Published Author Network) status, so now I’m all official and stuff.
I had exactly the same thing for dinner as I did for breakfast this morning: A Starbucks Vivanno and zucchini bread. I would kill for a bowl of oatmeal and some soy yogurt. Yeah. I need to get out more. I will. Tonight.
More later. With luck, I may have something interesting to write about.
Take a YA vacation
Not going anywhere this summer? Need a good summer read? Have I got the books for you:
Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes
Here’s the deal: Aunt Peg, the New York artist and the person Ginny Blackstone depended on to make her life interesting, took off to Europe without a word three years ago. Aside from a few postcards, Ginny hasn’t heard much. Then she gets a horrible phone call that changes everything.
But the story is only beginning. Soon after, Ginny receives one little blue envelope from Aunt Peg containing a thousand dollars and some very strange instructions…
Maureen really captures what it’s like to be young, American, and in Europe–exciting, scary, and lonely.
This is the summer Clio has waited for her whole life. School is out. She’s gotten a great job. And she’s just met the guy of her dreams. Things could not be better.
It’s about time something remotely normal happened to her. Named after the muse of history, quasi-famous at eleven for making a board game with her father, touring the world in questionable style at twelve… it’s been an odd journey so far. Some of it sounds good on paper. Lots of things sound good on paper. It doesn’t mean they actually are…
Another travel story, only this time, mostly on a boat–with jellyfish (well, technically, the jellyfish aren’t on the boat). Anyway, this books is nominated for a Rita this year (and how excited am I that the YA category received enough entries to be viable–very).
The Hopewell Hotel is small Art Deco “jewelbox” in New York City. The hotel has a grand past, but a somewhat dusty and broken present, with pigeons breaking into the rooms, chandeliers with more cobweb than glass, and constantly exploding toilets. Guests are rare, but it does have one constant set of inhabitants… the Martin family.
Scarlett Marin is the third of the four Martins. Scarlett is fifteen, blonde, and broke. Her friends are gone for the summer. And she’s got this one curl that exists just to stab her in the eye and blind her. Welcome to her life…
No traveling for the main character this time, but home is in New York, in a hotel, so it’s like a vacation for you. This one is the start of a series. Maureen did a great job bringing the story to a conclusion while still leaving enough threads open for the sequel.
* * *
As for me, I’ve been pondering my wardrobe dilemma. The recommended conference wear is “business casual.” Okay, I work for a software company. Most days, I wear jeans and my Chuck Taylors to work. Any business casual I might own is several years old–and looks it.
I do have some cute capris I can wear that I can dress up with some cute jackets. Thing is, I hate sandals. I never get pedicures (yeah, I know, you’re surprised). I don’t want to pack extra shoes, so I’m thinking …. I’m thinking … of just wearing the Chucks. Anyone asks, I’ll tell them I got a foot condition.
Actually, I’ll tell them I hate sandals and see no point in ruining my feet.
And then we took a nap
We’re done–done, I tell you–with the edit. I sent the manuscript to our editor (!!!) this morning, which means no editing this weekend. It might mean I’ll have a few spare words for the blog. Seriously, I didn’t want to accidentally use some words here that we might need in the manuscript. I was in word conservation mode.
So now we keep our fingers crossed, hold our breath, and all the rest. In the meantime, I have plenty of items on my “Big List of Things to Do before the Conference” list. The only thing marked off so far?
The first sale ribbon.
Sure, my conference wardrobe is half virtual at the moment (as in, I don’t physically possess half the items I plan to wear). Who needs a blouse when you have a first sale ribbon.
Priorities, people. It’s all about priorities.
Writing Wrongs 