random Pennsic pics

A small selection of the cool stuff at the war. First, labyrinths of various designs appeared by the barn, in the food market, and along the paved pathways. Every morning they were drawn fresh. You can imagine how happy I was to discover them on my early morning walks, and to take the time to walk or run them on my way.



Another new thing: parchment makers in the market. The Meyer family has been making parchment since the 1500s, reportedly, but this is the first time they've come to Pennsic. Next year they hope to have a proper tent, but I suspect no one really noticed anything past the OMG PARCHMENT!!!eleventy.



Another thing that might almost have been chosen to make me personally happy: Alexander, apprentice to Arab Boy, is making Aldrovani-style enamelled beakers. These are the very objects that caused me to fall in love with enamelled glassware in the first place, and to work on faking them up with thriftshop glassware and low-fire enamels. Alexander is doing them for real. When I found out there would be a demo of the process on Saturday, I was all bouncy.



By the food market we met the labyrinth maker, who had just finished a gnomen sundial nearby, and was adding another classic labyrinth to the path.

I wanted to add a video of Dru and Osprey playing cigar-box and cookie-tin banjo, but there isn't room on this post, so it will have to wait.

random trip pics

These are still from the drive to Pennsylvania. Pics from the war itself next post.


More Montana geology. On the return trip we went through Wyoming and Nebraska and Utah, where I took more photos of landscape than of geology.


The rest area at Moorhead. Elisa and I recognised it as one we'd slept at two years ago, and very nice it was, too. Grass, trees, recycling, all good things. Do feel free to make your own Bewitched joke at this point.



In the restaurant (Brigid's Pub) at the hotel in South Bend that was our last night's stop before the war. I'm not sure why there's a callbox in the corner, but there it is.

briefly present

Am home.
Am tired.
Am driving out to pick Mark up from airport about midnight.
Am working tomorrow.

for you the war is over

Was ritually said to prisoners of war in WWII, to discourage them from escape attempts. In this case, it's simple fact, as I'm on my way home from the Pennsic war. South Bend last night, rolling in about 3 am, Cheyenne tonight just before midnight. Tomorrow is Baker City. Then home.
Typing from Springhill Suites, Marriott hotel in Cheyenne. This little suite is so nice that I harbour thoughts of just staying here for a few days instead of going home. It has not just the usual desk, but a mini sitting room with couch, chair, and coffee tables. Two closets, the microwave & coffee set in a sort of mini kitchenette so they're separate - the layout makes very effective use of space.
And as you know, I don't stay in hotels that often, so it's always a bit special.

Pics of Pennsic when I'm not asleep on my feet (well, on my bum, since I'm sitting down, but you know what I mean).

promised pics

Just some from the Montana leg of the trip, a rest stop under a hill, with a terrific view from the top. I climbed it because I needed a stretch after a few hours driving. Forgot to photograph or note the informative sign naming which rest stop it was, sigh.
Took a fair number of photos, but I don't want to strain my available upload time.

One side of the rock formation at the top. I do love the geology in Montana. We did North Dakota in the dark, so I don't have any clever observations to make about it.


I took a few more photos of the plants as I walked back down. I don't know the names of any, so I should try to bring a wild plants book and a bird book the next time I make this trip.



And while I forgot to photograph the actual place sign, I couldn't resist this one. If you're wondering, no, I didn't see any snakes of any sort as I walked up the narrow asphalt trail to the top of the hill. Would I have stood about like a nitwit and attempted to photograph a rattlesnake if I saw one? Hm. Hope not.



If I can make this all work again (or rather, if my wonderful husband can make it work, since this is done on his laptop) I'll post some Pennsic War photos next time.

promissory post

I'm in Pennsylvania, at the Pennsic War, very temporarily online with borrowed equipment. I have some cool photos from Montana that I can't post yet because the thumb-drive won't show up on this machine, and I have a pre-written post about the trip that is stuck on my EEE, so much will have to wait for free wifi.
Things have been purchased (books, linen, ink-making supplies, parchment). Classes have been circled in the schedule. Sweat has been sweated. Wine and cider have been drunk. People have been hugged. And so on. I have even gone for a brisk walk in the early cool and done some writing on Not a Fairy Princess (working title). Haven't worked on Maenads at Band Camp yet.
More later.

amoeba book reproduces by fission

A strange and sudden freedom has fallen on me. As you may recall, I've been
struggling along with the ever-expanding expansion of Cost of Silver,
occasionally despairing of it ever being completely filled in, and repeatedly
extending my self-imposed deadlines. Well!
Over the last few weeks, I'd been comparing the almost-completely-filled-in
first 'half' with the much-left-to-go second 'half' and realising that if I did the
English Civil War justice, I was going to have a novel of at least 180k,
probably more.
Also that, although I had tightened the timeline considerably, there was
still a natural break between part one: fen-draining and vampires, and
part two: war and witchfinders.

As part one crept up past 90k, I began to believe that either I had two books
on my hands or I needed to stop expanding and start trimming. Yikes! But this
is what's great about having an agent who started as an editor. I emailed her
and asked 'how about I send you part one and
you can give me an opinion as to which way I should handle this?'
She said 'great, send it to me.'

After some Adventures in Formatting, followed by Adventures in Printing,
The Cost of Silver part one: The Astrologer's Death, 94k,* is on its way to
my agent for her considered advice.

And its author is on her way to Pennsylvania for two weeks of mostly-offline life.
I've brought actual paper notebooks and pens, so I'll still be writing. I'm planning
to mess around with a YA story idea riffing on the YA paranormal romance genre,
most easily summarised as 'Maenads at Band Camp". I think it will be fun.

Posting from Missoula Montana - goodnight!

*part two stands at 55k, which is a little under where the sketched-out first draft
stood when I started expanding it in January. So I must have written about 90k in
7 months. Maybe I really am a 'book a year' writer!