My Twitter World Tour

It’s entirely possible I am the only person on earth amused by this… but I have recently gone on a massive world tour sponsored by Twitter.

About two months ago Twitter decided it was the boss of me and kept nudging me to allow it to “get my location.”  Ok, I’m a team player.  Knock yourself out, weenie blue bird.  When my actual location is correct it reads GREEN HARBOR / CEDARVIEW, MA. 

But it rarely reads GREEN HARBOR / CEDARVIEW, MA.   In fact, it almost never reads GREEN HARBOR / CEDARVIEW, MA.  If it read Marshfield, or Duxbury, or even Boston?  I’d get that.  But Twitter is determined to send me on a far-ranging world tour that is, frankly, way more exciting than my actual travels.  So I’m in—consider me embarked.  Here are my concert dates from the past few days:

Framingham—at least it’s the same state.  I’ve been there.

Sand Lake, NY.  Never been there, but doesn’t it sound pretty?

Today I’m in Pittsgrove, NJ. 

ARE YOU READY TO RAWK, PITTSGROVE???

Keep checking back and stay tuned for grungy t-shirts with my entire tour down the back.  I can’t wait to see where I turn up next!

Crawling Back Out of the Hole

My sabbatical is continuing, but I am slowly, steadily crawling out of the hole.  I’m also trying really hard to keep my publication date on schedule… among other things.

I survived surgery, and found a few other issues to fix.  Sue me, I’m a work in progress.

I had an inbox full of stuff when I logged on for the first time in a few weeks Saturday.  If you were lost in the shuffle or the spam box I apologize. I’m still slow.

I used to love summer… and really, to be fair, I guess I still do.  Today is Litha, or the Solstice marking the end of Spring and Summer’s sunny launch.  JUST before 11:00 pm tonight the moon will be void-of-course.  For what it’s worth—perfect time to raise a dead body and create a zombie.  Just sayin’.  If you have spare parts laying around, or if… well… Uncle Abernathy has been asleep in that chair a bit too long but he hasn’t gone manky yet.

Something to think about.

Taking a Sabbatical

Over the next few weeks, probably until some time at the end of June or beginning of July, I will be on sabbatical.  I hope everyone stays busy (keep writing!) and enjoys some down time, too.

Big changes have decided to come my way.  I’ll be taking care of some medical issues, getting a bit of rest (stop laughing), doing a little work around the house, and finishing up Cry Uncle for release later this summer.

See you at the beach!

Breaking the Fourth Wall

Yeah, reader, I’m talkin’ to YOU.

I’ve always been fond of well-crafted breaks in the fourth wall.  I suppose that’s how my current work in progress happened.  It’s first person, with break-out meta-reference throughout.  I love the style—it flows off my fingers and onto the page very naturally.  But done wrong?  Yeah… beyond bad.

That said, I am letting my small crew of beta-readers (who will all go to heaven and get brownies) tear it apart this month before I put my head down, bite the bullet, and do my own ripping and cutting.

Terrified?  Who, me?

Let’s face it, this kind of device is easy for authors to love; but it’s also perilous for us to over-use.  It must-must-MUST be done with a delicate hand.  So I am trolling around for any good examples of the style.  I figure if I read it done brilliantly that rhythm will infiltrate my brain before I pick up the proverbial red pen.  The best examples I can recall on the fly? Jane Eyre, of course, has that famous “reader, I married him!”  Lemony Snicket, too, but I’m yearning for more adult books at the moment.  I’ve picked up Philip Reeve's Larklight

Suggestions welcome and deeply appreciated!

Get This ^%$ing Book

Adam Mansbach is an evil genius and I am in love with him... ok, just his book, but still...

If you know a:

1. new parent
2. old parent
3. person who has a sense of humor

you MUST purchase this book, Go the F*** to Sleep.*

*WARNING: This book is NOT a children's book. It can be found in the HUMOR section, unless the twerps at BN and Borders screwed up... again. Seriously, if you read this shit to your kid DYS is coming to take them away.