Roaches and truffles

Life is like a box of choklits . . .

AM confection: coconut crusted cricket crunch–or possibly a roach that crawled into the box.

In the shower my brain bubbled over with ideas for the WiP. So distracted was I that I couldn’t remember whether I’d brushed my teeth or not. Just-in-case brushing commenced. Dry and dressed (with minty-fresh teeth), I ran to my laptop . . . only to find that my inspiration seemed to have followed the toothpaste suds down the drain.

I tapped out a few halfhearted lines, and pondered how to waterproof my laptop.

Suddenly, my Outlook calender chimed, informing me that I had a follow-up appointment with my Pdoc . . . that I’m late for. Leaped into the car, sped down 400 and 285, sprint panting to the reception desk . . . and discover that my appointment was canceled. In January. Seems my Pdoc no longer has office hours on Wednesdays. However, my HMO had not deemed it necessary to alert me of that fact.

Now I ask you, does it seem clever to aggravate someone whom you know requires the services of a psychiatrist? Luckily for them, I restrained my urge to enter the ranks of psycho-killer and thereby earn the moniker “The Sporker.”

Drove back home, sat down to write, and realized I couldn’t remember if I took my Imuran. Unlike with dental hygiene, possible duplication is a Bad Thing. At which point, I was sorely tempted to crawl back into bed and call the day a complete loss.

PM sweet: Raspberry filled chocolate truffle, hand-dipped in heavy cream ganache

Fortunately, things Got Better.

The doorbell rang announcing a package. It’s surprise prezzies from britzkrieg! Amazon.com wishlist goodies: Ancient Egyptian Magic–an Egyptian sourcebook, at last!–and The Gathering of Spirits, by Carrie Newcomer–excellent music for the writing of folktales.

Thanks, Brit! You’re the absolute bestest!

   


Writing Stuff:
French chocolate lace, English toffee, vanilla caramel, and a gumball

Next up, I got word that Ellen Datlow is giving “The Bunny of Vengeance and the Bear of Death” an Honorable Mention in next year’s Best Fantasy and Horror. Squee! That’s one step closer to actually having a story there.

And also, it seems (via jaylake and nihilistic_kid) that the cat is now bagfree. *insert fanfare and trumpets* Herein the Best New Fantasy: 2005 Table of Contents:

1 “My Father’s Mask,” Joe Hill (20th Century Ghosts),
2 “Pip and the Fairies,” Theodora Goss (Strange Horizons),
3 “The Language of Moths,” Christopher Barzak (Realms of Fantasy),
4 “At the End of the Hall,” Nick Mamatas (Fantasy Magazine),
5 “Heads Down, Thumbs Up,” Gavin Grant (scifiction),
6 “Monster,” Kelly Link (Noisy Outlaws),
7 “The Dybbuk in Love,” Sonya Taaffe (The Dybbuk in Love),
8 “Gulls,” Tim Pratt, (Polyphony 5),
9 “Summer Ice,” Holly Phillips (In the Palace of Repose),
10 “The Maiden Tree,” Catherynne M. Valente (Cabinet des Fees),
11 “The Farmer’s Cat,” Jeff VanderMeer (Polyphony 5)
12 “A Little Madness Goes a Long Way,” M. Rickert (F&SF),
13 “Proboscis,” Laird Barron (F&SF),
14 “Dancing in the Light of Giants,” Jay Lake (Realms of Fantasy),
15 “Eating Hearts,” Yoon Ha Lee, (The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction),
16 “Returning My Sister’s Face,” Eugie Foster (Realms of Fantasy).

Is that a luscious line-up or what (if I do say so myself)?

Received:
Contract from Oceans of the Mind for “The Few, the Proud, the Leech Corps.”

New Words: 500 on “Honor is a Game Mortals Play.” And it ought to be done. But it’s not. It needs an epilogue. Urg. I hope that 6K maximum has some wiggle room.

Zokutou word meter
6,067 / 6,000
(101.1%)

Club 100 For Writers
      2

500/day
      6

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28 Responses to Roaches and truffles

  1. skeletal504 says:

    Ancient Egyptian Magic is awesome. What are you using it for?

    That’s funny about your teeth and the subsequent loss of inspiration. That happens to me a lot these days. I think I need something that will plug my brain into a laptop, perpetually… then I could just dictate words as they popped into my headskull.

    • Eugie Foster says:

      Ancient Egyptian Magic is awesome. What are you using it for?

      Inspiration, mostly. I’ve been wanting to write something Egyptian for a while now, but I’m not as familiar with Egyptian mythology and folklore as I am with other mythos.

      • basletum says:

        Ancient Egyptian folklore? I might be able to help with that. If you have any questions you need answered, send a couple my way.

        And the most powerful form of Egyptian magic is Hekau, the Magic of Names. Ohhh yeah. Reveal to me your true name and I could erase you from existence MWAHAHAHAHA!!!! Well, if I could actually use such magic, that is.

        But knowing you, you’d likely have more fun researching it all yourself.

        • Eugie Foster says:

          the most powerful form of Egyptian magic is Hekau, the Magic of Names

          Whoa. That’s so much like the Celtic/Irish Faerie folklore traditions. The more world mythos I submerge into, the more similarities I see in all of them across the board. Very cool. And slightly freaky. Jung may have been onto something there after all.

          • basletum says:

            Jung might have been onto something, indeed. I know while Tolkien did a lot of his research into language history and origins he noticed the similarities in the old myths and folklore were so close that he theorized that they all must have originated from a single source. His research was more Euro-centric, but some of his Philology predecessors discovered the same connections in the myths of other cultures as well.

            A good book to read, especially for us SF/F-minded folk, is Forbidden History edited by J. Douglas Kenyon. The articles in that book can really get you thinking about what ancient civilizations may have been like in ways most of us never thought about before. I won’t go so far as to say the book is %100 scientific, but it’ll get you pondering theories of human origin beyond the usual Darwinism Vs. Creationism arguments, among other ideas.

  2. mroctober says:

    My, oh my, that is indeed a lot of terrific news. Well deserved too!

  3. mouseferatu says:

    “Ancient Egyptian Magic–an Egyptian sourcebook, at last!”

    Ooh, good call. I’m not much of a non-fiction reader, but that one grabbed me. I picked up for research when working on the Hamunaptra setting for D20, and it was absolutely fascinating.

    I should warn you, though. It was written a little while ago, so some of the comments and “insights” into modern Arabic culture are pretty left-field. If you can ignore those, though, the discussion of actual ancient stuff–and that’s what you got the book for anyway, right? ;-)–is just fine.

    • Eugie Foster says:

      Yepper! I had it on my wishlist in the first place ’cause of a suggestion you made. In flipping through it, I can already see it’s going to be excellent muse fodder.

      It was written a little while ago, so some of the comments and “insights” into modern Arabic culture are pretty left-field.

      Oo. Good to know.

  4. Congrats on making Best New Fantasy! Go you!

    (I suppose it shows how out of touch I am with New Fantasy that yours is the only name I recognize.)

  5. markdeniz says:

    Well that was a nice turnaround, I was reading the beginning thinking ‘how bad can your day get?’ and then after the mail it all seemed to get sunnier and brighter! 🙂

    Congrats again at appearing on the list and well done with the word count too!

  6. Congrats on being in the Best New… antho! Gorgeous cover on that book. I can imagine how psyched you are. I’m looking forward to checking the collection out when it’s released. :>

  7. basletum says:

    You and Jay Lake? “The Storyteller’s Wife” and “Dancing in the Light of Giants”? I…Must…Get…That…Antho!!!!

    Ok, emotional outburst finished. Congratulations! You definately deserve that honor.

  8. pleroma says:

    You know what’s funny? How if you were to miss an appointment with an HMO, they tend to charge about $50-$75 frequently.

    Maybe you should have billed them for the appointment since they didn’t communicate it to you.

    *wicked grin*

  9. jimhines says:

    Congrats on the HM and the Best reprint and … everything!!!

    And check your e-mail.

  10. aimeempayne says:

    Congratulations on the YBFH honorable mention and the inclusion in the Best New Fantasy anthology!

    I need to go back and read Bear & Bunny. I haven’t read it since it was in the Critters queue.

  11. keesa_renee says:

    Ooph–glad to hear that things improved!

  12. Best New Fantasy: 2005!!!! Yay, Eugie!!!!! 😀

  13. newroticgirl says:

    mmmmm… I’ve been having fudge for breakfast for a week now, thanks to who is my new hero.

    I get a lot of inspiration in the shower or on the drive to the radio station every morning… two places where a waterproof recorder thingy would be handy!!

    and *drool* I can’t wait for that book. that book plus fudge would be just divine. *grin*

  14. aliettedb says:

    I’m going to have to get that antho too 😉 Congrats, I’m sure that more than compensates for the aggravation with the psychiatrist.

    Hum, I might have to get that book on Egyptian magic myself, if I hope to write something set in Ancient Egypt one day. I’m strong on mythology and most of daily life, but weak on magic…Thanks for pointing it out (goes off to Amazon, checks out the book, and then checks out her bank statement…nope, I’ll have to wait for next month. I hate being a student sometimes…).

    And lol for the word count. I’m sure you’ll find a way to squeeze the epilogue in, and then prune the rest if you absolutely have to keep it under 6000 words.

  15. Anonymous says:

    Neato Cheetos on the Best of mention and the Best New!

    Lord, I hate it when I get a great idea in the shower or while drying my hair. Finally get the computer booted up and…buzzz…my brain has flatlined. Argh!

    Pat K.

  16. britzkrieg says:

    Thanks, Brit!

    You’re very welcome. 🙂

    Congratulations on the anthology! I remain in awe of how much you have been able to produce and accomplish.

  17. Repeat congrats on the Best of honor. And I’m delighted that you brush your teeth in the shower. I was starting to think I was the only one. I can always tell if I’ve brushed my teeth; it’s washing my hair four times when I’m distracted that makes me crazy. It flies around like your effervescent ideas! Maybe they’ll come back home to roost if you stare at a keyboard long enough?

  18. sruna says:

    I have some of my best inspirations in the shower… Fortunately, mine are film related and mostly conceptuatl vs. words which tend to be far more fleeting in my experience… 😉

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