Good morning!

I'm not feeling well this morning, but I went out to walk anyway. It was only 59F (15C), and I was cold in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. Everything was still wet from the rains.

I've cancelled my dinner plans for this evening. I think I'm getting a cold, but I'll test for covid in a little while just to be certain. Then I'm going to stay home and rest and read and maybe write a little if I can.

Have a good one, my friends, and keep on keeping on.
#Today

#WordWeavers Aug 21 - What's a trope you enjoy writing, even if it's unpopular?

Again with the tropes. As I've said numerous times, I don't think in tropes, I don't try to write or avoid or subvert tropes. I probably wouldn't recognize one if it bit me.

#WordWeavers 20 – If your story had a tagline, what would it be?

He's watching you.

#ScribesAndMakers 20, Poll describing two characters in your stories and one who isn't. Ask people to guess the one that isn't.

#WordWeavers 19. Which character has changed the most since your first draft?

I'm still on the first draft. But as the drafting has proceeded, I would say the character of Francis, Lord Bohun's cook. He started as a mere background character but has evolved into a larger role.

#ScribesAndMakers August 19. If paper books stopped being produced, how much would you miss them?

I would be devastated. I have floor-to-ceiling bookshelves throughout much of my house and I cannot resist a bookstore. It's true that I mostly read ebooks these days, partly because I don't have room for many more paper books, and partly because I mostly read for entertainment now.

But for serious reading and serious research, I need to be able to read pen in hand, annotating and bookmarking.

#ScribesAndMakers 18 What's the most important thing in a game for you?

Level of difficulty probably, although I'm not much of a gamer. I need it to be easy enough that I'm not too frustrated to enjoy it, and hard enough that it's a challenge.

#WordWeavers 18. What's your favourite line you've written this year?

My lines are the children of my mind. I love them all equally.

#WordWeavers Aug 17 - Which scene made you laugh while writing it?

The first scene where Rownt is teaching Lord Bohun's grandson to wield a sword. If you want to know why I thought it was funny, you'll need to read the book when it's finished.

#ScribesAndMakers August 17: To what extent do you think art can promote social change?

It can promote and support change, but I don't think it can cause it.

#WordWeavers 16 Aug
If one of your characters could ask you a question, what would they ask?

Who the hell are you?

#WordWeavers August 15: What's one writing habit you've developed that genuinely helps?

Keeping a handwritten list of notes on a legal pad next to my computer. It's easier to jot something down there without losing my flow than to switch files and back again.

#ScribesAndMakers 14.2

Speaking of sharing names, I was originally planning to write fiction under the pen name of Ellen Fremedon, which is, as I'm certain you all know, line 3b of Beowulf in Old English.

But it turns out there is more than person with that name already publishing books. Who would have thought there were that many Beowulf fans who wrote?

Good morning!

I woke up the deer on my walk again, even though this time they were sleeping in a different place. I don't think I frightened them: they didn't run, and one of them didn't even bother to stand up.

Theo is being a jerk this morning, swiping at me if I try to pet him, if I try to play with him, if I try to type, if I try to touch the computer mouse. If I hadn't gotten his claws clipped, I'd be bleeding in several places. As it is, he hits hard enough to cause a bruise. I wish I could get him to play with his toys to use up some of that energy.

He'll calm down eventually.

Have a good one, my friends, and keep on keeping on.
#Today

#WordWeavers August 14: Which fictional setting of yours would you most like to visit?

Medieval London. One reason I set the Cordwainer series in York was that a lot medieval York is still there. That's not true of London at all. I'd love to see how it really looked back then.

#ScribesAndMakers 14—Our next featured creator differentiates himself from his "name buddies" on his website. Do you share a name with anyone famous?

Not unless you want to count James Joyce.

#WordWeavers 8/13—What's the most unexpected source of inspiration you've ever had?

The Neo-Nazi Unite the Right march in Charlottesville, VA in 2017. I wrote my Cordwainer novel, Blood Libel, in a blind rage in the weeks afterward. I still think it's one of my best books.

#ScribesAndMakers 13 Our next featured creator turned a short story into a novel. Have you ever done that, or the reverse?

No. I don't write short stories. I tend to think in novel or novella-length stories.

#WordWeavers 12/8: If your main character had a comfort food, what would it be?

A round loaf of brown bread hollowed out to form a bowl, then filled with a stew of meat and vegetables.

#WordWeavers 11th Aug Which shelved project are you itching to get back to?

I'm currently working on a project that I shelved a couple of years ago. I don't have another that's calling to me right now.