And we’re back. My apologies for missing last week; Clockwork Alchemy consumed the entire weekend, but in a good way. There’ll be a few photos after the cut, along with two other things of note. Before that, I do want to answer a comment left by H on Saturday in a bit more detail. They asked what the latest news was on the seventh Monkey Queen book.
Hopefully, it’ll be late this year. Part of the delay is due to my not being completely happy with the story I had planned for the seventh book. At this point, I need to either figure out how best to rework what’s been written, or scrap it and start over. I know where the overall storyline is going after that; I just need to get it to that point.
Another part is real life getting in the way. Getting the Monkey Queen books ready for print after they’re written requires covers and formatting. That has taken money and time, and though I may be looking into steps to cut those costs, it’s not like with the Peavley Manor and Skyblade Saga stories, where I’ve had help (thank you, Shei and Amber!). Also, Willow has been busy for most of the last year, both with her Yokai art book and her real life things. (She did pass the review and earn her Ph.D last year, and was immediately hired for a teaching and research position, all of which has eaten up a lot of her time.) I don’t want to ask her to commit time to do a cover until I know what the story is going to be.
And other writing projects have also come up. Skyblade’s Gambit took some writing time, and I still need to finish up Skyblade’s Claim for a release later this month. The Peavley Manor short stories begged to be written and were fun to do (and helped me get out of my writing lull). And I have another project, a steampunk/fantasy thing, that I want to finish by September. After that, I can take a long look at Michiko and Beth and try to get book seven going. But it will, sooner or later, get done!
More stuff after the cut! (WARNING: Lots of photos, may take a minute or three to load.)
Last week, the Doubleclicks released a video to go with a new acoustic version of their song “Wonder”, to celebrate the new Wonder Woman movie. They asked their fans to help, and I chipped in; you can see me at the 2:17 mark. (Or fast forward past it…) Do watch this; there are many remarkable people in this video, and I’m honored to be a small part of it.
I’ve mentioned Madame Askew and her Temporal Entourage before, and one of the members could use some help. Jasmine Gordon needs to raise funds to pay for training for a service dog to help her with medical difficulties, so she’s started a GoFundMe campaign. I know times are tight for many, but if you could help with a share or a donation, I’d be grateful and so would she. Many thanks.
All right, time for Clockwork Alchemy photos! First, me on Saturday. My hat was missing a key component at the time, but you’ll see that later. The outfit wasn’t quite steampunk standard, due to budgetary restrictions, but I’ll be working on it for future cons.
Madame Askew (a.k.a. Jocelynne Simone) in her Saturday splendor! She hosted three panels, including one about the history of tea and one about Victorian undergarments, both of which gave me ideas to work into stories.
Hide your citrus! The Lemon Pirate (a.k.a. Evie Betz) has arrived! She assisted Madame Askew on some of her panels when not plotting to steal everyone’s limes.
Strangely, a Seattle-area musician who put on quite a show on Saturday.
Me on Sunday, The goggles were a gift from the Lemon Pirate and Madame Askew, and the touch the hat sorely needed. Thank you two again!
Madame Askew had a new outfit to premiere on Sunday! She calls it “Pearl Grey”.
Nathaniel Johnstone, travelling songsmith, came down to serenade Madame Askew (and Steampunk Godzilla) on Sunday.
My haul of goodies from the con. The book is an anthology I look forward to reading, the envelope has download codes for Strangely’s albums, and the tea bag was a souvenir from Madame Askew’s first Saturday panel.
The tea bag has a new home…
It was my first steampunk convention, and I had an absolutely splendid time! I look forward to attending more steampunk conventions in the future! Thank you to Madame Askew, the Lemon Pirate, the staff and volunteers, and all the marvelous people I met there!
Until next time, cheers!
