As some of you may have seen a couple of weeks ago, Orbit posted a sneak peek at the cover for DIRTY MAGIC over at Bookish. I would have posted about it there, then, but I have been out of town (more on that in a moment). Anyway, in case you missed all that hullaballoo, here is the gorgeous cover in all its glory. The photo by Shirley Green, illustration by Don Sipley, title type by Chad Roberts, art direction & design by the ridiculously cool Lauren Panepinto, who donated her own personal alchemy set to the photo shoot.
If you want some more info about the book, check out the post at Bookish. Find out there why I compare this book to, “spending a night in a magical dive bar.”
Yes, yes, I know! The book isn’t out until January ’14. Don’t yell at me. These things take time. Plus, the hope is that the longer wait now will mean you get new books in the series closer together. Hopefully the preorder buttons will be up soon so you can just click it and wait for it to arrive at your door or on your ereader like a gift from the publishing gods. Also, if you’re fretting because it’s such a long wait, remember that I have a story in the CARNIEPUNK anthology that’s coming out in July of this year. I also am hoping to have at least one novella published this years as well (hopefully two if I can pull it off).
Now, I mentioned I was out of town. Oh my goodness, people. I just had the best two trips ever. For once (or twice, I suppose) these had nothing to do with work and everything to do with fun. The first was a solo trip to Sedona, NM for a meditation retreat. Maybe it will surprise you to learn that I meditate. Maybe not. Regardless, it’s something I do fairly regularly to help stay balanced and not become a massive ball of seething stress and anxiety. In fact, I’d recommend meditation to every writer. The profession makes us spend way too much time in our heads and meditation, oddly, seems to help calm all that chaos. Meditation isn’t magic. It’s about being more mindful and in control of your thoughts. Something we can all use more of these days, hmm?
I’d never been to a meditation retreat before so I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was awesome and I found myself very happy with the experience. Basically, I meditated, did yoga, chanted and ate really healthy food for four days. Heaven. I also met several lovely, inspiring people. The woman who ran the retreat is Sarah McLean, and she is pretty awesome. Liek studied with Deepak Chopra and Gary Zukav awesome. Like bicycled through the Himalayas awesome. You can look her up here. She does retreats all over the place and has a book called SOUL CENTERED LIFE. Good stuff.
Okay, so the next trip was to Napa Valley and San Francisco with my boys for Spawn’s spring break. In addition to drinking wine and filling my belly with cured meats and delicious cheeses, this trip also had the bonus of letting me revisit some of Sabina’s old stomping grounds from RED-HEADED STEPCHILD. We visited Muir Woods, where Sabina and Maisie were born with the help of the faery, Briallen Pimpernel. We went to St. Helena, where the vampire vineyard was located. We also spent a lovely afternoon at the Palace of Fine Arts, where Sabina was picked up for her first meeting with Clovis. I have to admit, I got a little nostalgic. So I drank some more wine and everything was fine. 
Now I’m back home and focused on writing Kate Prospero’s second book, CURSED MOON. It’s due in June, so I’m freaking out a little. Which is why I’m going to cut this post off now and go write like the wind.
But wait, I almost forgot! Tonight I’m hosting a live chat for Savvy Authors. The topic is The Right Idea, how to choose the best idea for your next book. The chat starts at 9pm EST and you have to register for the site to join in. But if you’re an aspiring writer Savvy Authors is a great resource for chats with published authors and articles on writing and the business of publishing. So check it out!
Cheers!
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