Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire
  • Mood: geeky
  • Music: Glee, "Red Solo Cup."

Quiet milestones.

Parasite is the first book I've written largely in secret. Not because I was ashamed of it, but because first it wasn't sold, so I couldn't say anything about it. Then it was sold but unannounced, so I couldn't say anything about it. Then, when it was finally announced, I was so far into the writing process that I couldn't force myself into the normal flow of word counts and benchmarks and all the other things I use for motivation.

Pro tip: I work better with word counts and benchmarks. I know this now.

Friday I wound up staying home from my day job, thanks to an inability to breathe that was only resolved when I had another of my amazing fire hose nosebleeds, or, as I like to call them, "blood vacations." (It's not high blood pressure, it's a weakness in one of the blood vessels that runs through my sinuses. My doctor and I have discussed it. So please, no medical advice.) And once I mopped up the blood and got some clean clothes on, I got to work, and quietly, without any real fanfare, passed 500 draft one pages.

It's not a perfect book, by any means; for one thing, it's missing about 8,000 words still, and for another, it hasn't had any editorial, which means that all the Mira Grant "tics"—repetition, over-explanation, Joss-y dialog—are in full display, with no mitigation. But I can see the shape of what will be a good book, once we finish kicking the crap out of it, and that's very reassuring to me.

It will be awesome.
Tags: being productive, good things, medical fu, parasite, writing
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vulpine137

June 11 2012, 17:43:41 UTC 5 years ago

Inspirational blood loss ? Yeah, that sounds like you. *grin* And yes, it will be awesome. You do awesome quite well :)

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:15:21 UTC 5 years ago

I surely hope so.

martianmooncrab

June 11 2012, 17:47:39 UTC 5 years ago

my amazing fire hose nosebleeds

you can be a chocolate type fountain for vampire parties with that trick!

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:15:34 UTC 5 years ago

Yes!

reedrover

June 11 2012, 17:48:17 UTC 5 years ago

a weakness in one of the blood vessels that runs through my sinuses

Ow? And ugh? And, um, admittedly kinda neat in a squinty I-don't-want-any kind of way.

So, any hint of what Parasite is all about? While I appreciate that you have to kick the crap out of it still, it's hard to visualize kicking a parasite, unless you count ::cough::ex-friend...

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:15:51 UTC 5 years ago

Parasites.

reedrover

5 years ago

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dostehseh

June 11 2012, 17:49:13 UTC 5 years ago

WAIT! I'm confused, is Joss-y dialog a bad thing? I'm being bad when, so long after the end of it, I still quote Buffy, aren't I? :(

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:16:08 UTC 5 years ago

Only when you have absolutely nothing else. Not every line needs to be pithy.

elialshadowpine

5 years ago

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spectralbovine

June 11 2012, 17:52:20 UTC 5 years ago

Yessss, crap-kicking and awesomeness!

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:16:18 UTC 5 years ago

One hopes.

Deleted comment

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:17:04 UTC 5 years ago

I'm glad, although I'm not sure which problems I described slogging through, other than "cannot do word count posts on a book I haven't announced selling yet"...

markbernstein

June 11 2012, 18:09:38 UTC 5 years ago

I'm looking forward to more parasites. :)

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:17:16 UTC 5 years ago

Lots of 'em.

dewline

June 11 2012, 18:18:41 UTC 5 years ago

*winces in sympathy re: the nose bleeds* Never fun.

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:17:24 UTC 5 years ago

Not really.

Deleted comment

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:17:36 UTC 5 years ago

Yay!

ladymondegreen

June 11 2012, 18:29:55 UTC 5 years ago

*hugs you*

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:17:45 UTC 5 years ago

Thanks.

anne_d

June 11 2012, 18:50:59 UTC 5 years ago

I'm sure it'll be all flavors of awesome, it's your book, and I trust you as a writer. Now I have something new to look forward to, in the fullness of time, and that's a Very Good Thing. :)

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:17:54 UTC 5 years ago

Yay!

hasufin

June 11 2012, 18:59:22 UTC 5 years ago

I have no medical advice on the nosebleeds. I do, however, sympathize - I've had that problem ever since my nose was broken. It can be very inconvenient. On the other hand, it's remarkable what you can get away with when your shirt is covered in blood.

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:18:04 UTC 5 years ago

Very true.

apocalypticbob

June 11 2012, 19:02:01 UTC 5 years ago

So incredibly eager to read this one, even if the very idea of parasites of any kind squicks the boyfriend out. Oh, wait, that's part of the fun!!!

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:18:22 UTC 5 years ago

Oh, totally. The squick factor? Awesome.

deire

June 11 2012, 19:05:04 UTC 5 years ago

I understand about nose bleeds. From age 5, I had those nosebleeds where I'd soak bath towels. I'm still slightly phobic about being a patient; my pediatrician decided to cauterize the offending vessel with silver nitrate and no anesthetic. Why bother when the kid is little enough to hold down! And it didn't work. Yay. I love med sci. I hate having it used on me.

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:18:35 UTC 5 years ago

...ugh.

I am so sorry.

deire

5 years ago

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qnofhrt

June 11 2012, 19:12:11 UTC 5 years ago

New book = good!

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:19:47 UTC 5 years ago

Yay!

zombiefruit

June 11 2012, 19:24:49 UTC 5 years ago

Oh god, I used to get such amazing nosebleeds as a kid - it was especially bad in hot weather. Once upon a time, on holiday in France, the doctor had to shove a metric fucktonne of cotton up it and tape it shut because he couldn't make it stop! Awful. I hope they stop sometime. Ugghh.

Also: I just got my review copy of Blackout and I AM SO EXCITED! I've just finished reading a mosaic novel I'm in (it's not out yet; I'm doing some beta reading for the editor), so it's like winning the awesomeness lottery :D I actually got so impatient waiting for it I almost bought it myself ;)

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:20:17 UTC 5 years ago

Hooray! (And dude, you'll never hear an author object to "I bought it myself." We like paying the electric bill.)

zombiefruit

5 years ago

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zombiefruit

5 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

  • New comment

klwilliams

June 11 2012, 19:33:15 UTC 5 years ago

I'm afraid it really suits your persona that you don't sneeze, your nose explodes with large gouts of blood. And the book will be awesome. Of course.

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:20:32 UTC 5 years ago

It's a little disturbing for my coworkers, all the same.

peachtales

June 11 2012, 19:48:56 UTC 5 years ago

Way to go on the writing!
I hope you get to keep the rest of your blood for the time being. :)

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:20:40 UTC 5 years ago

Me, too.

liret

June 11 2012, 19:52:11 UTC 5 years ago

Hooray for book!

I used to get chronic nosebleeds. While they were nasty and led to unpleasant side effects, I kind of enjoyed watching people react to me being a walking biohazard.

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:20:53 UTC 5 years ago

Exactly. It's the fun part.

jacylrin

June 11 2012, 19:52:58 UTC 5 years ago

My only advice is passing on the advice of a paste of salt and cold water to get blood stains out. Not medical advice, just advice from my Mom, who used to be a lab tech in a hospital.

More importantly, though: Yay, more books!

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:21:02 UTC 5 years ago

Yay books!

donaithnen

June 11 2012, 19:58:13 UTC 5 years ago

Apropo of nothing, last week a friend said that she was in need of books to read, so i went by Barnes & Noble to get a real live physical copy of "Feed" to loan her, since i'd originally read the ebook version. But when i got there i couldn't find it! How could they not have Feed?!?!?! It's the first book in a multiple-Hugo nominated series whose finale just came out! Entirely unacceptable! This was an outrage! A travesty! An... oh wait, i need to be looking under "Grant", not "McGuire" don't i?

(Said friend did receive the book in good order, and i am informed started reading it last night at midnight, and finished the whole thing about 3:45, much to the detriment of her sleep schedule =)

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:21:18 UTC 5 years ago

That does help, I've found. I do that occasionally, too.

donaithnen

5 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

5 years ago

  • New comment

dornbeast

June 11 2012, 20:08:59 UTC 5 years ago

"...a good book, once we finish kicking the crap out of it..."

I'm imagining your Machete Squad in a group photo, preparing their editing tools of choice.

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:21:29 UTC 5 years ago

Hee.

Yes.

trektone

June 11 2012, 21:01:19 UTC 5 years ago Edited:  June 11 2012, 21:01:46 UTC

Boo for blood vacations. Yay for book! Since I don't know when I'll next see you I will ask here:

- Why the change from Parasitology to Parasite?

- Did the other book's title change from Symbiogenesis to something else?

- Oh, and did the duology become a trilogy?



seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:21:55 UTC 5 years ago

1. Because.

2. I don't know.

3. What in the world would give you that idea? No. Ugh. No.

Deleted comment

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:22:11 UTC 5 years ago

That would be awesome, but alas, it is not to be.

dragonsally

June 11 2012, 21:45:06 UTC 5 years ago

New words - that's happy making at this end!

seanan_mcguire

June 12 2012, 00:22:18 UTC 5 years ago

Yay!
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