We have survived the great beast 2012! Hooray and stuff! So here is my post-game commentary.

First, the bad, since there was actually less of it by weight, but what there was colored a lot of things. I did not move to Seattle in 2012. I'm trying really hard. Banks are difficult, and my day job is difficult, and it's all still a work in progress. This doesn't change the fact that by the end of the year, "so when are you moving?" became a question that was guaranteed to make me start a) yelling or b) crying. Sometimes it's really hard to live in a fishbowl, and when I don't have something I really, really want, and people keep asking about it...that's one of those times. So until I say "this is a thing that is happening, it has worked out with the bank and with my current housemate and with my job," please don't ask.

I developed a severe issue with my left foot in 2012. It's called "plantar fasciitis," and it basically means "screaming pain every time I put my foot down." This is a problem, especially since I walk both for exercise and for recreation, which has had to be cut way, way back, due to the whole "screaming pain" thing. This is negatively impacting my fitness, which I don't like. I'm doing what my doctor tells me and I don't need help, but it's bad, and it means that sometimes, I walk on a cane or not at all.

Now, the good. I went to Disneyland twice! I saw the largest intact Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton in the world! I went to Maine! Basically, through these things combined, it was a damn good year. I got Vixy into pin collecting, which gave me someone to collect pins with (always good). I saw amazing movies and watched a lot of TV, and I don't even know how many books I read. So many books. Truly we live in a magical time.

Oh, and I won a Hugo for never shutting up. I make a wish on it every night. (Yes, sometimes I wish on my Hugo to win a Hugo for Blackout. I never said I was reasonable.)

Publishing-wise, I couldn't tell you how much I wrote in 2012, because I seriously lost count, but I released five books: Discount Armageddon, Blackout, Ashes of Honor, Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots, and When Will You Rise. I had my first reprint, "Lost", and my first reprint-in-a-book, "Crystal Halloway and the Forgotten Passage." It was a pretty slow year for me with short fiction, but there were some pieces I'm really proud of, like "San Diego 2014: The Last Stand of the California Browncoats", and "In Sea-Salt Tears." I finished nine Velveteen stories, which is three more than the six I promised in 2011. It was a good writing year.

I'm excited about 2013, in all the ways. I'm going to spend my birthday in Disneyland. Wreck-It Ralph is coming out on DVD. And we're spinning our way around the sun again.

Whee!

Four years ago today, Betsy and Dave Tinney welcomed their Wild West litter at Pinecoon Maine Coons. There were five kittens in the litter, two boys and three girls. One of the three girls was a blue classic tabby and white, whom they called "Ado Annie" as a baby-name.

Fast-forward a few weeks. I didn't go to Washington looking for a Maine Coon. I didn't want a Maine Coon. I was deeply embroiled in the search for a classic Siamese cattery that would fill my needs. Instead, I got handed a puddle of irritated blue and white fluff, and fell instantly, irrevocably in love.

Things were arranged. Discussions were had. And when Ado Annie was sixteen weeks old, her name officially became Alice, and she officially became mine.

Alice is one of the best cats I have ever had, if not the best cat I have ever had. She's sweet, loving, and affectionate, while being sassy and determined to do her own thing, regardless of my opinions on the matter. She's talkative and friendly to my guests, while retaining her natural feline arrogance. She's beautiful and healthy and I adore her beyond words.

So happy fourth birthday to Pinecoon's Alice Price-Healy Little Liddel Abernathy McGuire, the best cat I could ever hope to have.

I love my puffy girl.

My darlingest dearest Paul Cornell asked me to write a post about one of the twelve days of Christmas for his blog, and because he has a newborn son and thus gets to ask me for free content without being looked at sadly, I wrote a post about the hidden blackbirds that come on the fourth day. Four colly birds for all of you!

Jennifer Brozek had a lovely dream and I was in it and it was wonderful, and now you can see it in illustrated, murderous form. Happiness and joy.

This Etsy store has the best handmade catnip eyeballs in the world. There is no joy like watching a cat gleefully maul a giant human eye. NO JOY IN THIS WORLD. Plus we've sold out their stock like, twice since I discovered them. Let's do it again.

I have a Tumblr now. Tumblrs are cool. And while this won't be true for long, if you go there right now, you'll actually get a lovely graphic illustration of how many fucks I have left to give. Hint: not many.

In limited edition news, A Fantasy Medley 2 and When Will You Rise remain available from Subterranean Press, and Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots remains available from ISFIC Press. Velveteen is available in hardcover and ebook formats, the others are hardcover only.

Now, this is important: all three of the books listed above are limited edition, and the print runs are really small. So while they're available now, they won't be available forever. Please keep that in mind, because I will just look sad and shake my head if asked in six months whether I have any for sale. Also, you can get When Will You Rise and Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots signed and personalized for the holidays by contacting Borderlands Books.

And that's the news.

I'm still sick (but getting better), and so, in order to keep myself from dwelling on the frailty of the flesh, here is a review roundup. Yay.

Yeti Stomper has put me on notice with great aplomb. I am honored and afraid. And also amused.

Broad Universe has posted a review of Late Eclipses, and says, "This is an exciting book for fans of Seanan McGuire and the October Daye series. It hints at so much more to come and I can't wait to find out what's next." There's an interview with me attached to the review. Bonus!

The Word Zombie has posted a review of Deadline, and says, "With Feed, Mira Grant established herself as a major new voice in zombie fiction. With Deadline, she proves that 'zombie' is a superfluous addition to that accolade. Without the subtlety of her storytelling, the layers of conspiracy at the heart of this book would have ripped apart like so many sheets of rice paper. Instead, she parceled out the story with the literary timing of Stephen King at his best, while managing to do what King has suffered with so much in recent years—tying the story together in the end and leaving the reader with an emotional punch akin to being hit in the chest with a Taser." ...wow.

Apex has posted a review of One Salt Sea, and says, "This seamless expansion of the fae world in and around the story being told is one of my favorite things about McGuire's writings. She is a master at informing the reader without the dreaded info dump. One Salt Sea is a worthy addition to the marvelous October Daye series and one I will happily reread again." There's also an interview after the review. Yay!

Rie has posted a review of Rosemary and Rue, and says, "I really enjoyed Rosemary and Rue, though it took me a bit to get a handle on the new style after reading some of Seanan's other work first. It was an entirely new pacing and flow, and the switch was not an automatic one. I don't want to imply that the plot is slow moving—it isn't, it's a rich, complex plot that has an appropriate pace for its style and genre—it just wasn't as non-stop action as Mira's Feed." Since this is something I worry about a lot, this is reassuring to hear.

...and that is all for today. I'm tired, and need a nap.

First off, I just want you to know that I had to generate three random numbers to get one winner. Why? Because the first two were people volunteering to pay postage. Thank you all so much. I should be getting more author's copies soon; once they arrive, I'll see about pulling another winner out of that post.

Secondly, the winner of this copy of Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots is sylviamcivers. Sylvia, please drop me a line via my website contact page within the next twenty-four hours. If I don't hear from you inside that window, I will have to draw another winner.

Thank you again to everyone who participated, and offered to help out. Y'all are awesome.

I am home from Chicago (again), and fighting my way out from the massive piles of paperwork and detritus that built up while I was at Windycon. I had a fantastic time, and I got to rock the house with one of my favorite temporary backing bands, Dead Sexy, which consisted of Wild Mercy, the Suttons, and Dr. Mary Crowell. Seriously, I am the luckiest girl in the world.

As is the custom around here, I now present the Windycon set list, with arrangement notes. It was a great show, and our song choices went as follows:

1. "Counting Crows." (Seanan, vocals; Debbie, Brenda, vocals; Bill, Barry, guitar; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, Sally, Debbie, percussion; Jen, bass.)
2. "The Sealskin and the Story and the Sky." (Seanan, vocals; Debbie, Brenda, vocals; Bill, Barry, guitar; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, Sally, Debbie, percussion; Jen, bass.)
3. "How Much Salt?" (Seanan, Debbie, vocals; Barry, guitar; Mary, piano; Bill, mandolin; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, Sally, percussion; Jen, bass.)
4. "Ten Years." Talis Kimberley cover. (Seanan, vocals; Barry, Bill, guitar; Mary, piano; Jen, harp; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, Debbie, Sally, percussion.)
5. "Fly Little Bird." (Seanan, Barry, Debbie, Jen, Sally, vocals.)
6. "Mother of the Crows." (Seanan, vocals; Mary, piano; Bill, Barry, guitar; Sally, creepy thunder noises; Brenda, percussion.)
7. "Silent Hill." (Seanan, vocals; Mary, piano; Sally, creepy thunder noises.)
8. "Landslide." Fleetwood Mac cover. (Seanan, Mary, Brenda, Debbie, Jen, vocals; Bill, Barry, guitar; Amy, fiddle; Mary, piano; Brenda, Sally, Debbie, percussion; Jen, bass.)
9. "Dare to Dream." (Seanan, vocals; Bill, Barry, guitar; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, Sally, Debbie, percussion; Jen, bass.)
10. "Burn It Down." Vixy and Tony cover. (Seanan, vocals; Bill, Barry, guitar; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, Sally, Debbie, percussion; Jen, bass.)
9. "Wicked Girls Saving Ourselves." (Seanan, Jen, vocals; Bill, Barry, guitar; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, Sally, Debbie, percussion; Jen, bass.)
10. "My Story Is Not Done." (Seanan, vocals; Bill, Barry, guitar; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, Sally, Debbie, percussion; Jen, bass.)

The bridge for "Wicked Girls":

Brenda beats bodhrans and Vixy's run off with the fairies,
And Debbie will pour you red wine pressed from sweet poisoned berries.
Jen poses riddles and Mary plays tricks,
While Sally makes music by banging with sticks,
And the rules that we live by are simple and clear...

As always: "Counting Crows," "How Much Salt?" "Mother of the Crows," "My Story Is Not Done," and "Wicked Girls Saving Ourselves" are on Wicked Girls. "Silent Hill" is on Red Roses and Dead Things. "Fly Little Bird" is on Pretty Little Dead Girl (out of print).

"Ten Years" has not yet been recorded, but you should check out Talis Kimberley's latest album, Queen of Spindles. "Burn It Down" has not yet been recorded, but you should check out Vixy and Tony's latest album, Thirteen.

"The Seal Skin and the Story and the Sky" and "Dare to Dream" have not yet been recorded.

Huge thanks to the sound crew, to the Windycon filk programming department, and to all my wonderful musicians, who uplift me to a level I could never reach without them. I am honored, I am grateful, and I am going back to bed.

We here on the internet are a lot like intersecting flocks of crows: constantly chasing the shiny things, and then bringing them back to the nest to be pecked at, admired, and envied. These are some things I've been brought recently.

1. Singing mice. Yes! Mice can sing. I know this, and am delighted by it.

2. Mark Reads is doing Feed. Actually, Mark Reads is doing the whole series. I drew him a nun. We have a close friend in common, so I'm pretty well-informed.

3. Many people are making many types of horrifyingly flavored candy corn, including caramel, sour apple, and worse. None of these are The One True Corn. Only candy corn, flavored like candy corn, is The One True Corn. Chocolate candy corn is acceptable in Autumn Mix, and no other time.

4. Community is awesome and I should be watching it. Well, I listened, and I'm now most of the way through season two. Y'all were right. I salute you.

5. Amy Mebberson drew Disney Princesses as the various Doctors. I have dispatched people to try and get me a print at NYCC, since I'm not attending the convention this year.

6. The Bay features tongue-eating isopods eating an entire small community. I am so excited for this movie!

7. Steampunk Disney pins, coming this November.

8. That video of a bulldog puppy whining for five minutes. Adorable.

9. There is no new Glee until November. I hate the mid-season hiatus with a burning passion, but I did notice that it was happening.

10. The Monster High dance class dolls have been released. Yes! But they're not showing up in California yet. Boo.

And those are the things I know, because I have been told about them multiple times in the last week. I hope the world is as relevant to your interests as it is to mine!

At last it is October, the month I spend the rest of the year yearning for. When it's October, everything is wonderful, even when it's not. When it's not October, I'm wishing that it were October again. There's a reason that Marnie Piper and the Cromwell witches are some of my favorite Disney (semi) icons.

After a weird two-day heatwave, we've settled into sweet fall, with foggy skies and color-changing leaves and everything. The Maine Coons are growing their winter coats, and thumping around the house like the tiny yeti that they secretly are. (Okay, local definition of "tiny." Thomas has hit the size where even I can't pretend that he's anything but massive. It's just that he still has kitten-face, and I fear what this says about his next growth spurt. He's going to eat me.)

The season's first treat has already been mentioned: Feed is still $1.99, and will be for the next two weeks. Yay! We're currently hovering in the Kindle 600s, which isn't bad for a book that's been out for two years. More treats will be forthcoming, once I know what they are. And of course, at the end of the month, When Will You Rise comes out from Subterranean, and that's sort of the ultimate treat. I cannot wait to see this book with my own eyes!

I'm hosting the SFWA Pacific Northwest Readings for this month, and I'm going to Disneyland with my fairy tale girls immediately afterward, so it's going to be a busy October, and that's just fine. I have a lot of work to do and a lot of experience at doing it, so I'm going to rock it.

Welcome to the month of my heart!

The ebook of Feed is on sale for the next two weeks: $1.99 from any major retailer. Orbit says this is to celebrate their fifth anniversary, but I know what it's really about: it's to celebrate HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I mean, this is like, the best trick-or-treat prize anyone could possibly ask for. "What'd you get?" "Candy corn. You?" "Feed, by Mira Grant." WIN! And also, if you buy it while it's cheap, you can afford more actual candy for the holiest of days, Halloween.

Tell your friends, warn your neighbors, and acquire Feed while it's cheap.

(Yes, this is more blatantly "buy my book" than I tend to be, but c'mon, two bucks? That's like, less than an Egg McMuffin. I want to see us crack the Kindle Top 100 with a book that's been out for over two years, because it would be funny, and I'm perverse like that.)

Happy Halloween!

My friend Michael is a roller derby referee. Women's flat track derby, to be specific (so if you're thinking Whip It right now, you have the wrong form of the right sport). This past weekend was the Bay of Reckoning West Region play-offs, right here in the Bay Area, and he was up from Southern California to cheer his girls (the Angel City Derby Girls) on. After a great deal of polite wheedling on his part, I agreed to come out for part of Saturday, if I could make word count.

I made word count.

The Bay of Reckoning was being held in Richmond, which is a reasonable drive from my house. I put on a green Wicked Girls shirt and a metric ass-ton of spray glitter (YAY SPRAY GLITTER), grabbed my cane, and hitched a ride over with Mom, who elected not to stay for the fun. Then I went hobbling over (ankle still) to the door, to see if they had the wristband that Michael had promised me.

They did not. But they did have a notation that I was supposed to receive one, and as Michael's team was on the track at the time, they got me all signed in, wristbanded, and ready to go. One of the girls at the door actually recognized my name, and got very excited, because she loved the Toby books (this will matter later). With distant cheers and the sound of skates rattling over tile to lure me on, I dove into the cavernous depths of the warehouse-like building.

Michael called as I was reaching the bleachers. The bout had reached halftime, and he was heading for the door to meet me. "I'm under the bleachers."

"Stay there."

He found me, after a bit of comedic misinterpretation, and we made our way to where Rachel from Australia was saving our seats. Yay, Rachel! Rachel had Tim-Tams, and wasn't too dismayed when I informed her that I was the Princess of the Kingdom of Poison and Flame. Rachel is awesome.

It's difficult to describe what makes roller derby so awesome, beyond the fact that it's not only a great community, but it's a real, vibrant, athletic, female-dominated sport. You can't watch derby girls slamming around the track and think that it's faked; they're too obviously working their asses off. Angel City lost their bout, but not until after they'd managed some amazing skating. They were followed by Rat City vs. Sacred City (Seattle vs. Sacramento), which might have been a friendly bout, had one of the Rat City jammers not been knocked down, hard, in the very first jam. She hit her head on the floor, and sat out most of the half. And Rat City was pissed. They handed Sacred City their asses on a plate. It was awesome.

(If you skate for Sacred City, please don't kill me. It was a great match. But bouncing Ohno's head off the floor sort of pissed Rat City off, and anger is fun to watch.)

The headline bout of the night was B.A.D. Girls vs. the Denver Mile-High Club. At the end of the first half, B.A.D. was leading, to the point that people were predicting a B.A.D. Girls/Oly Rollers final. By the end of the second half, a few power jams (mostly by Francie Pants, who used to be an Olympic-level ice hockey player) had put Denver in the winner's circle. There was screaming, there was flailing, there was some incredible skating, and I loved every minute.

Roller derby is a world unto itself. There was a merchandise hall set up, with strange, lovely stalls (I bought a T-shirt) and a few food vendors (I bought a dozen cupcakes for our section of the stands. Favorite moment:

"Do you want a cupcake?"
"I'm gluten-free."
"So are the chocolate ones."

Bliss.)

People in giant felt vagina costumes danced up and down the aisles, as did someone in a giant felt shocker costume (if you don't know what the shocker is, don't Google it at work). There was a pseudo-flash mob of referee dance moves. Skaters were everywhere, and the rules said that if you got a derby girl in your lap, you had to throw her back.

It was awesome.

As Michael and I were heading out, I spotted the girl from the front desk who'd recognized my name, and managed to catch up to her to ask which books she liked best. She confirmed Toby. When Michael took me home, I grabbed and signed a couple of Toby books for her, since he was going back Sunday and I wasn't.* And then I fell into bed, and dreamed of derby.

Women's flat track roller derby is fabulous. If there's a league near you, you should try to catch a match or two. There are definitely worse ways to spend a Saturday night than watching an athlete in her prime make an apex jump during a power jam, after running on roller skates.

Life is good.

(*Yes, she got her books, because Michael is awesome.)

Psst. C'mere.

So it's no secret that I love the covers DAW gives me, and that showing them off is one of my true pure joys in life. And this one is really pretty, guys. I mean it's really, really pretty. I could not be happier if I tried.

Go ahead. Take a peek.

( Cut-tagged for the protection of your friends' list, which really doesn't need something this huge suddenly showing up without warning. But trust me, you should totally click.Collapse )

I am...really, I am overjoyed, and staggered, and a little bit dizzy over this:

Ashes of Honor is #16 on the New York Times Bestseller List for September 23rd, 2012.

This is the first time I have appeared on the print list (i.e., "the top twenty") under my own name. Late Eclipses and Discount Armageddon both made the list, but they were in the 30s, not the teens.

I am on the print list.

I am a New York Times Bestseller.

I am having real trouble not informing everyone I meet of that fact, including the guy at Starbucks who fixed my pumpkin spice latte. This isn't bragging. It's shock and delight and bafflement and awe.

Thank you all.

Thank you all so much.

Wow.

You guys.

You guys, you guys.

I am absolutely stupid with delight that I get to announce this now. STUPID WITH DELIGHT. Guess what I'm announcing. Go on, guess.

Have you guessed yet?

On November 9th, 2012, ISFiC Press will be publishing Velveteen vs. The Junior Super Patriots, volume one in the ongoing adventures of Velma "Velveteen" Martinez.

That's right. A print edition.

ARE YOU EXCITED YET?!

The book will be printed as a limited hardcover edition of 1,000 copies, with cover art by the incomparable Dave Dorman. If you're coming to WindyCon, you'll be able to pick up your copy on the spot. If not, you can order through their website above. The anticipated cover price is $25.00, although we won't know for sure until we get the quote back from the printer.

For those of you who don't do physical books anymore, there will also be an eBook edition, priced at $9.99.

(Please don't complain to me about the eBook price. All the stories remain freely available for your reading pleasure. Buying the eBook just means you're helping to feed my cats, and for that, I thank you.)

According to my contact at ISFiC, the book will be...

"Available through the ISFiC Press website for both hardcover and e-book. Also available through Amazon.com for hardcover, but their ordering and shipping arrangements are Byzantine for small publishers, so you will get it cheaper from them and faster from ISFiC Press.

"E-book edition should be available also from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple iBookStore, Reader Store, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker & Taylor, and eBookPie."

This volume collects "Velveteen vs. The Isley Crawfish Festival" through "Velveteen vs. The Blind Date," with all new supplemental files on Vel and her allies, an introduction by Jim "Captain Escher" Hines, and an afterward by Carrie "Goblin Shark" Vaughn. All the stories have been revised and rewritten to bring them into full alignment.

I am, like, super-excited about this book, and I'm probably going to wind up buying like ten copies just for myself. So you should totally get yours before they're all up, up, and away.

Velveteen in print.

Eeeeeeeeeeee.

...but this song ain't country. It's just another folk song about a train.

I am pleased as punch to announce that Rose Marshall—everybody's favorite hitchhiking ghost, although she's not likely to randomly follow you home from Disneyland—will be stepping out on another adventure. The story is called "Train Yard Blues," and it will be appearing in the anthology Coins of Chaos, out October 2013.

The nice thing about Rose is that there are huge gaps in her story, years and even decades where nothing has yet been written...and since she's basically impossible to kill, I can throw anything the ghostroads have to offer at her during those, ahem, dead spaces.

In "Train Yard Blues," we get our first clear look at another of the twilight ecologies: the ghostrails, where once the trainspotters ruled the world, before the rise of the roads to their current place of power. New ghosts, new dangers, and new rules are waiting, as Rose does her best to navigate a place she doesn't belong without finding herself in a world of hurt.

Coins of Chaos. Because my poor dead girl's life wasn't chaotic enough.

It is with great pleasure that I remind you all that the latest iteration of the Traveling Circus and Snake-Handling Show will be assembling this Saturday at San Francisco's own Borderlands Books. We'll be getting underway at 6pm, and rocking the roof until closing time comes and they kick us all out! Why are we partying?

To celebrate the release of Ashes of Honor, naturally.

There will be cupcakes! There will be music and a raffle and reading and some Q&A, and it will be a hootenanny of a good time, with a whole lotta hoot AND a whole lotta nanny! Bring your kids! Bring your siblings! Bring your slime monsters! We totally hope to see you there.

Oh, and: Richard Kadrey, who is so awesome that they had to invent new swear words to describe him, will be at the bookstore before the Circus comes to town! His event starts at three. Come early, and make a day of it!

Remember that Borderlands does take telephone and email orders, and would be happy to send you books signed by any of the lovely authors who will be haunting the store that day. Get a book already touched by pure awesome. Or, you know. Ink. The party starts Saturday at 6pm!

Cheese! And! Cake!

I am home.

I am recovered.

I am well-rested.

I am the proud owner of the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Fancast.

YES. YES, I WON A FUCKING HUGO AND IT'S IN MY HOUSE AND IT'S BEAUTIFUL AND IT HAS MY NAME ON IT AND I THINK IT STARTED OUT AS CAT'S (I'M PRETTY SURE WE TRADED AT LEAST ONCE) AND I DON'T CARE BECAUSE IT'S MY HUGO!!!! I HAVE A HUGO!!!! I AM A HUGO-AWARD WINNER!!!!!!!!

...be really glad you can't see my uncoordinated geek dance. You might go blind.

Thank you thank you thank you to everyone who voted. This truly means the world to me. Y'all gave me a Hugo for never shutting up.

Message received.

I'm a little under the weather (and totally exhausted) following Chicon 7, the 2012 World Science Fiction Convention, but that doesn't mean that I get to neglect everything forever. More's the pity. I had a wonderful time, when I wasn't a giant vibrating ball of stress, and I am remain honored and delighted by all the great things people said and did in my presence.

As is the custom around here, I now present the Chicon set list, with arrangement notes. It was a great show, and our song choices went as follows:

1. "The Sealskin and the Story and the Sky." (Seanan, vocals; Vixy Dockrey, vocals; Tony Fabris, guitar; Mary Crowell, piano; Betsy Tinney, cello; Amy McNally, fiddle; Brenda Sutton, bodhran.)
2. "Counting Crows." (Seanan, vocals; Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Mary, piano; Betsy, cello; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, bodhran.)
3. "Mama Said." (Seanan, vocals; Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Mary, piano; Betsy, cello; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, coconut shells.)
4. "The Ghost of Lilly Kane." (Seanan, vocals; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle.)
5. "Dear Gina." (Seanan, creepy vocals; Vixy, extra creepy vocals; Mary, creepy piano; Betsy, creepy cello; Amy, creepy fiddle.)
6. "Still Catch the Tide." Talis Kimberley cover. (Seanan, vocals; Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Mary, piano; Betsy, cello; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, bodhran.)
7. "Dare to Dream." (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Mary, piano; Betsy, cello; Amy, fiddle.)
8. "Tanglewood Tree." Dave Carter cover. (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Betsy, cello; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, bodhran.)
9. "Wicked Girls Saving Ourselves." (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Mary, piano; Betsy, cello; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, bodhran.)
10. "My Story Is Not Done." (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Mary, piano; Betsy, cello; Amy, fiddle; Brenda, bodhran.)

ENCORE:

1. "The Seal Skin and the Story and the Sky." Arrangement as above; we did it again for Cat Valente, who had missed the start of the set.
2. "Archetype Cafe." Talis Kimberley cover. (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Mary, piano; Betsy, cello; Amy, fiddle.)

I did not actually get a written copy of the "Wicked Girls" bridge. I'm sorry! But I'm sure it was lovely.

As always: "Counting Crows," "Mama Said," "The Ghost of Lilly Kane," "Tanglewood Tree," "My Story Is Not Done," and "Wicked Girls Saving Ourselves" are on Wicked Girls. "Still Catch the Tide" is on Stars Fall Home (out of print). "Dear Gina" is on Red Roses and Dead Things.

"Archetype Cafe" appears on Talis Kimberley's album of the same name, currently available on CD Baby. "Tanglewood Tree" also appears on the Dave Carter and Tracy Grammar album of the same name, currently available from retailers everywhere.

"The Seal Skin and the Story and the Sky" and "Dare to Dream" have not yet been recorded.

Huge thanks to the sound crew, to the Chicon 7 filk programming department, and to all my wonderful musicians, who uplift me to a level I could never reach without them. I am honored, I am grateful, and I am going back to bed.

I am about to leave for Worldcon, which means my brain is like a mutant gerbil running on a wheel that powers a nuclear reactor. It's a little painful. Anyway, in an effort to keep the gerbil busy (and thus keep it from accidentally melting the West Coast), where is a file-clearing review roundup. (Hint: the file is not actually clear.)

Mike Jones, who has known me since I was fourteen, reviewed Deadline and Blackout for Tor.com, and says, " Bottom line: you're not going to find a better political thriller/science fiction/post zombie apocalypse adventure out there. If you do, tell me so I can read it!" Aw, yay.

Little Red Reviewer actually reviewed my short story, "Crystal Halloway and the Forgotten Passage," and said, "As I am quickly learning, Seanan McGuire is pure magic." I AM A UNICORN OF GOODNESS AND JOY. And zombies.

Journey vs. Destination has posted a review of the Newsflesh trilogy, and says, "The zombie book got me on the first page. It sucked me in so much that at the end of the first chapter of my free book, I went back to the first book in the trilogy, bought it, and devoured it. Then back to the Hugo packet to read the second. Then bought the third." Best recommendation ever.

Let's mix it up a little: Leigh Caroline has posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says many things, although there are no good pull quotes. Check it out.

Geek Speak Magazine (to which I am an occasional contributor) posted a review of Blackout, and says, "Mira Grant's finale to her trilogy is among the more satisfying conclusions to a series I have ever read, one where even the dreaded coda to the tale (and believe me, I usually hate anything smacking of an epilogue) does not detract from the overall feeling of triumphant, if a tad bittersweet, closure." I am well-pleased.

And finally for today, Read This Book Damnit has posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says, " In short Seanan McGuire has done it again. From fae in San Francisco, to a post-apocalyptic zombie future, and now a tango dancing cryptozoologist, she has entertained me with every book I've read to date. I hereby formally suspend any future disbelief in her choice of subject matter to write and will, instead, just shut up and read." VICTORY!

With that, I take the gerbil for a walk.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, there's some news about When Will You Rise?. Most specifically, Publishers Weekly has given When Will You Rise? a starred review!

Here's a link to the actual review.

Here's a quote from the actual review:

"Grant excels in humanizing her characters and surrounding them with believable science and circumstances. The surefooted storytelling is mesmerizing as all-too-plausible dilemmas snowball into desperation and catastrophe."

I AM THE DESTROYER OF ALL HAPPINESS AND JOY! TREMBLE BEFORE ME! I mean...ahem. Isn't that a nice review? Isn't it nice to get a starred review for a nice book like that one? If you haven't ordered your copy yet, you totally should.

I am happy.

You know the drill by now. This is me, trying in vain to clean up the file a little bit before the Ashes of Honor reviews start to appear in earnest. I will fail, but still, I will strive.

Carrie S. has posted a guest review of Discount Armageddon at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, and says, "There's nothing particularly new here. Thanks to my beloved Joss Whedon, the idea that a petite girl in cute clothes can take down monsters is pretty standard stuff. However, what the story lacks in originality it makes up for with wit, great descriptions, engaging characters, fast pace, and a whole lot of energy." Joss comparisons also aren't new, where this series is concerned. Great review, and I love the amount of "wait and see" that it allows me.

Dark Faerie Tales has also posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says, "Overall, Discount Armageddon is a fascinating take on a whole new Urban Fantasy series. If you don’t like books with quite a bit of info dumping and long expositions then you may not care for this book but if you like sarcastic women, sexy men and interesting creatures then I would say give this book a try. I can’t wait to see what is next for Verity Price and Dominic De Luca." Fortunately, I love books with quite a bit of info dumping.

Let's mix it up a little: The Midnight Garden has posted a review of Blackout, and says, "Blackout seamlessly combines medical thriller, political intrigue, and pulse-pounding action sequences with unforgettable human drama." Happiness, joy, and fluffy kittens for all! (Well. Not for Grignar, devourer of all flesh. He knows what he did.)

...and we're back to Discount Armageddon with The Book Bundle's lovely review of the book, which says, "Discount Armageddon is a really fun read. I was very quickly pulled into Verity's world, and I loved each new cryptid she met. I can't wait to see more of the world in the following books." I like it when people are excited about sequels.

Book Banter has posted a review of Blackout, and says, "Blackout is the perfect, satiating finish to the trilogy, making the three-book series feel like one long, epic story. No reader will be disappointed, with a worthwhile ending that will leave him or her sad that the wonderful journey is now over...but just like when the end of Harry Potter was reached, or the final page of Stephen King's Dark Tower series, how many of us turned back to the first book and started reading that first page once again. Having reread the first two books, this trilogy will be one I will continue to reread constantly throughout my lifetime." ...wow.

Finally for today, Reading After Midnight has posted a review of Blackout, and says, "You know what?...If you want to know how this all ends you’ll just have to read the story and find on your own. What you’re reading now is my heart bleeding all over my keyboard, because this is how it feels letting this story go." That may be the nicest thing anyone has ever said about my work. Thank you.

Thank you all.

Words: 2,125.
Total words: 65,130.
Reason for stopping: I need to shower and finish packing.
The cats: Alice, eating; Thomas, unknown; Lilly, currently on top of my foot.
Music: Florence and the Machine.

So it's later than I like to be up, and I would have stopped half an hour ago if I hadn't needed to make word count. Which begs the question of "why are you making word count so late?" I'm glad you asked! I actually finished "In Sea-Salt Tears," which is a short story giving a little more background on Elizabeth Ryan, the Selkie clan leader we met at the end of One Salt Sea (and yes, the title similarity is intentional).

I really like this story, and even more, I really like being able to go and fill in things that Toby doesn't know, and doesn't need to know, because they're not her stories. She's not the only person who's ever lived in Faerie and had a story worth telling.

I am happy.

Evil pie!

We open today with Paul Goat Allen's review of the entire Newflesh trilogy, which he calls "an instant classic." He also says, "The narrative supremacy of this trilogy is unquestionable: both Feed and Deadline were nominated for the Hugo Award (in 2011 and 2012, respectively)—and Blackout is arguably the strongest of the three!"

I do not have words for how happy this review makes me. It...if just one person feels this way, I did it right. And that's amazing.

Meanwhile, Calliope's Domain has posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says, "The writing of this book definitely had a lighter, funner tone than Ms. McGuire's October Daye series that, in my opinion, really let stand out. Heck, if not for her name on the cover, I never would have guessed the same author wrote both series; a true accomplishment, I think, for any author writing multiple series." That is a huge compliment. Thank you so much.

MiB Reviews has reviewed Blackout, and says, "One of the great assets that the Newsflesh trilogy has is the way that every book is a different type of story. Atop the overused backdrop of the zombie apocalypse, we have a novel about a conspiracy to sabotage a political campaign by a fanatic from the point of view of a calm, seasoned journalist; an action-packed romp against impossible odds where the villains just can't help but to blow everything up; and now we have a story where simply surviving and living in peace requires helping genetic experiments escape from labs and uncovering the biggest government conspiracy in US history. There might be another author who's blended zombies and one of these genres together so seamlessly, but I doubt that anyone else has done so as well, or done so three times." This is what winning looks like!

Sigrid Ellis has posted a review of Wicked Girls that calls the album "Hugo-Award-worthy" and says "This is the engagement that makes our beloved fantasy and science fiction world bigger, braver, and stronger for the future. And it’s a good album, besides. Making comparisons to other artists is tricky, because not everyone likes the same things I like. But I found—and this is high compliment—that the lyrics reminded me of a sort of cross between the poetry of John M. Ford and the lyrics of Stephen Sondheim. Bleak and cynical and stupid-stubbornly hopeful, my favorite kind of thing." I...oh my sweet Great Pumpkin. I am so touched.

Tom Knapp rounds out today's roundup with a review of When Will You Rise?, about which he says, "Grant, in just over a hundred pages, creates a fully realized disaster, and readers will understand the science behind it. It's a short, punchy book that makes you want to read more." Everybody dies!

That's it for right now. Thank you to all readers, and all reviewers, whether I find and link your review or not. I am so honored.

Life is good.

If you've heard any of my music, either on one of my finished CDs (perhaps Wicked Girls?), you've heard Amy McNally. If you've been to a filk convention in the last ten years, you've probably heard Amy McNally. If you've been sitting in a filk circle and seen a blue-haired girl with a wicked grin and a fiddle in her hand getting ready to set a reel on fire, that was Amy McNally. She is the fiddler who will be playing the Devil for my soul when that whole crossroad bargain thing comes due, in addition to being my best beloved and one of my favorite people in the world.

Well, Amy has an album coming out Real Soon Now. Hazardous Fiddle, a mixture of traditional and original songs, all of them featuring her astonishing musicality, along with some of the other most talented musicians I know. She has like half the cast of Wicked Girls playing with her, and it's gorgeous.

She's taking pre-orders and sponsorships now, and you can click here to find out how.

I'm so excited for her, and so proud of her, and you should check it out. I promise you won't be sorry. Unless awesome music makes you sorry, and in that case, I'm sorry, too.

Amy's album!

You guys! Publishers Weekly has reviewed Ashes of Honor!

You can read the full, spoiler-free review by clicking this link, but I wanted to direct you to the following AWESOME quote:

"McGuire applies a hard-boiled mentality and a keen appreciation for mythology to a blend of politics, magic, and romance to make this the most entertaining series installment to date."

AWESOME!

This is the best review of a Toby book I've had from PW since Rosemary and Rue. I am basking. Basking, I tell you.

Glee.

(As a side note, there's a small factual error in the review, which implies that Toby can teleport. She can't teleport. Please don't email either me or Publishers Weekly going "ZOMG ERROR!!!!", because I know about it, and I'd rather not flood legitimate review outlets with fiddly comments. Not that this will actually prevent it, it's just, you know. Polite.)

For the last several months, a story titled "Rat-Catcher" has appeared on my inchworm girl lists, always under the "publication date unknown" header. Rumors have flown. Well. Rumors have sort of limped around and then napped under the table, because we're all pretty tired, so it's hard to get too excited over things that I keep promising to discuss later.

Later is here.

I am flat-out ecstatic to announce that "Rat-Catcher" will be appearing in A Fantasy Medley 2, to be published by Subterranean Press on November 30th, 2012. It's one of four stories in the book, joining original pieces by Tanya Huff, Amanda Downum, and Jasper Kent. A Fantasy Medley 2 will be available both as a signed hardcover, and as a trade edition. Both editions are extremely limited. Seriously. Order early.

Learn more about A Fantasy Medley 2, and place your orders here!

"Rat-Catcher" is the first story set in Toby's world but not featuring Toby at all. Instead, it focuses on Tybalt before he was Tybalt, back when he was Rand, a Prince of Cats living in the city of London. Meet his family, see him take the first steps toward becoming the man we know and love today, and see how the world looks through someone else's eyes!

I am so excited. Like, seriously, seriously excited. The cover is gorgeous, the authors involved in the project are top-notch, and I can't wait for you to read this story.

November!

Happy, happy day! Because guess what's coming to the United Kingdom? Well, according to Amazon.uk, that would be the Orbit Short Fiction Program. And feast your eyes on this lovely little snippet of internet-y goodness:

An order link for the UK edition of "Countdown."

This is just the Amazon.uk link, not any other platform, but still, this is a huge step forward, and means that soon, it will be a heck of a lot easier for non-US readers to get their hands on my Newsflesh novellas. According to Amazon.uk, the release date is July 2nd.

Hooray!

I am really, really happy about the fact that "Lost" has just been reprinted in Lightspeed Magazine. "Lost" was originally published in Ravens in the Library, and it was, through accident of timing, my very first physical publication (I had one story printed first, "Let's Pretend," but that was and has remained web-only). It's a story about pirates, and children, and running away, and what it costs to have everything you wanted, and how much of that cost is paid by the people you leave behind. I love it a lot. And you can read it again now, if you missed it the first time.

"Lost" at Lightspeed Magazine.

Lightspeed also did an author spotlight on me, to talk about the story:

Seanan McGuire author spotlight at Lightspeed Magazine.

Finally, for right now, I've published another poem, "Wounds," in the June issue of Apex. It's about wizards, and mermaids, and the price of magic, and how much we hurt each other.

"Wounds" at Apex Magazine.

And that's June!

Words: 2,211.
Total words: 4,089.
Reason for stopping: chapter one is finished! Time for So You Think You Can Dance.
Music: random shuffle, lots of Glee.
The cats: it's early yet, so they're off doing cat things.

Well, that's chapter one down. A little over 2,000 words for the night isn't awesome, but it's always slow-going in the beginning, when the story is just beginning to pick up steam and I'm still feeling my way into the situation. Honestly, just typing "chapter two" before closing the file made me want to weep for joy. I'm back. I'm in Toby's world, and I'm back. And more, I get to stay for at least three more books after this one, so I can unpack my things and really get comfortable.

There isn't too much I can say about what's going on, since Ashes of Honor isn't out yet and I try not to spoiler. But jam is involved, and also shirtlessness, coffee, and Toby not getting enough sleep. But isn't that always the way?

I'm back.

Like, seriously. How else do you explain Blackout being the first of my books to make the print New York Times list (in position #15 on the Mass Market Paperbacks sub-list) and now making NPR's list of the best science fiction and fantasy of the summer?

In other news, HOLY CORN MAZES, YOU GUYS, BLACKOUT IS ON THE NPR LIST OF THE BEST SCI-FI OF THE SUMMER!!!!!!!

Ahem.

I am very, very excited, as is only natural when INCREDIBLY AWESOME THINGS of INCREDIBLE AWESOMENESS decide to happen. This is so amazing. I am so amazed. Also, there have been confirmed sightings of the Newsflesh trilogy at WalMart, and no matter what you think of WalMart, that's a lot of eyes potentially falling on (and maybe even buying) my books. Dear world: please buy my books. I have a lot of cats to feed.

NPR! NYT! OMG!

Squee.

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.

It is with the utmost delight and no small amount of profound relief that I announce that the next three October Daye adventures have been acquired by DAW Books. That takes us all the way to ten, a benchmark I dreamt of but never thought I'd really reach.

The next three books are:

The Winter Long
A Red-Rose Chain
Once Broken Faith

(For the curious, the titles this time are from "A Winter's Tale," "Venus and Adonis," and "King Henry VI, Part iii.")

I am...I am over the moon. This gets us through some really major story beats that I've been patiently setting up since book one, and moves us very solidly into what I think of as "act two" of the whole series (act one concluded with One Salt Sea). There are two more books to come before I start on this new set, Ashes of Honor and Chimes at Midnight, and having the security of knowing the story will go on is just incredible.

Thank you, DAW, for having faith in me.

And thank you all, for reading.

Last night as I was trying to go to sleep—I'm a slow-sleep insomniac, which means that it can sometimes take me upwards of an hour to power all the way down—I found myself wondering, in that half-place that only exists when you're caught between consciousness and Neverland, whether I'm so reluctant to sleep right now because I'm half-convinced that I'm in the middle of the longest, most detailed linear dream I've ever experienced. And that one day, I'm going to open my eyes and it will be December of 2008 all over again, when I was lonely and scared and had no idea what I was going to do about my future.

Anxiety and mild "my series is over, what do I do now" depression aside, I sometimes look at my life and I'm just staggered by the unlikeliness of it all. I had a book come out on Tuesday. Tomorrow, I'm leaving for Disneyland with my mother, my sister, and my best friend. I have cats that can be charitably called large, and uncharitably called props from a horror movie. I have a movie option. I'm reprinting my fourth album, because it's almost sold out. I have some of the most amazing, interesting, articulate friends and fans and readers in the world. I have an agent who, frankly, could not be more perfect for me if I had been allowed to design my own agent in a lab.

Even the little details are too good to be true. There's an immensely popular line of fashion dolls modeled on famous monsters; Fringe got renewed; Doctor Who is back on the air; the X-Men are awesome again; James Gunn has a video game about a chainsaw-wielding blonde cheerleader who fights zombies with high kicks and snark. Basically, it's like the universe has been rearranging itself to suit my deepest desires, and if not everything is perfect, that's because too much perfection is unbelievable. The world is trying to add veracity to my dream.

This is why I don't like to sleep very much.

I'm too afraid of waking up.

10. If you read yesterday's post about ebook distribution around the world, you may want to go back and read it again; I made some pretty hefty edits after having a contract discussion with The Agent, and I think it's more accurate now.

9. While I will not say that Joss Whedon is my master now—I remain too critical for that, and still haven't forgiven him for several things—he has made my two favorite theatrical releases of this year, Cabin in the Woods and The Avengers.

8. Although if we don't get another female hero in the sequel, I am going to be one cranky kitty. I knew that would be an issue for me going in; I was not wrong.

7. We're down to three girls on this season of America's Next Top Model, and I don't hate any of them. What? How can this be? I think the world has been intrinsically damaged by the inanity of this season's "US v. UK" concept.

6. You know what's awesome? Disneyland, that's what's awesome. You know what's better? I'm going there in two weeks, with Vixy. Are we now planning to hit every Disney park in the world? Yes. Yes, we are. Next up, Disneyland Paris.

5. Eleven days to Blackout! Who's excited? I'm excited!

4. If you somehow get an early copy, please don't tell me. There's nothing I can do about it, and it'll just raise my blood pressure. But feel free to post a review. Reviews are awesome.

3. You know what makes everything better? Poison dart frickens make everything better. Look at their tiny technicolor deadliness!

2. Jean Grey is still dead.

1. I'm seeing The Devil's Carnival tonight! Yay!

Hope you're all having a great Friday, and are looking forward to an even greater weekend.

I've spoken before about how much I read, and about how much I seek for representation in fiction, both for myself, and for the sake of the people that I care about. How much it hurts when you're the token, or invisible, or the person that doesn't exist. How hard it is to accept that somehow, often through no fault of your own, you're the sort of person who doesn't get to be the star of stories, or even a major supporting character. And about how wonderful it is when that somehow, against all odds, you open a book and see yourself, or your friends.

Yesterday, I read Silence, by Michelle Sagara. She's a fellow DAW author, a sweet, smart lady, and an all-around neat person whom I adore both personally and professionally. But before yesterday, I have never wanted to hug her for an hour and thank her forever.

Silence is a solid, interestingly-told YA novel that seems, superficially, to be just another wave in the current flood of YA supernatural. Being a wave isn't bad; I write urban fantasy, I am basically sponsoring a surfing competition. But there's something wonderful about diving into a wave and discovering infinitely more.

Emma, our protagonist, talks to dead people. She has several close female friends, including Allison, who would be a stereotypical geek in some stories, and Amy, who would be just as stereotypically a mean girl. Yet they work, and they make sense, because they are genuinely written as people. It's not presented as criminal to be smart, or to be pretty: it's just who you are. Emma's greatest asset is her niceness, a genuine generosity of spirit that is so very rare in heroines today. She reminded me of Vixy, and that's about the highest praise I have.

But really, where this book won me, and why I recommend it so readily, was when we met Michael. Michael, who is a high-functioning autistic who has been going to school with Emma and the others since kindergarten. Michael, who is in advanced math and science classes and doing just fine, thank you. Michael, whose friends care about him and look out for him, and who value his friendship and his place in their lives. He is presented with limitations, but so is every other character in the book. He's presented as a person, and for that alone, I will love Michelle forever.

Read Silence. Read it because it's awesome, and read it because any author who includes a complex, well-written, believable, believably autistic central character deserves our applause, and book sales are the best form of clapped hands, for an author.

My hat is off to her.

It is with extreme pleasure and with no small degree of squeaky joy that I announce that the next three InCryptid books have been acquired by DAW Books. I KNOW RIGHT?! The next three books are:

Half-Off Ragnarok
Pocket Apocalypse
Professional Gore-eography

Cryptids and cuckoos and field guides, oh my! Words really can't express how insanely happy I am right now. I'm going to be working with the same team at DAW, which means I know I will have great editorial, fantastic in-house support, and a whole lot of sheer bonus fun. I'm so excited that this story gets to continue; you get to meet more of the family, and see where things go next. You get to hang out with Alex! And go to Australia! And and and...

And now, in the words of the Aeslin mice...

CHEESE! AND! CAKE!

I'm trying not to be the all-Hugos, all-the-time channel right now (believe me, it's hard), but there is something I really wanted to talk about, and that's my nomination in the Best Related Works category. Wicked Girls, the CD I released in January 2011, has been nominated for the brass ring. This is the first time a single-artist filk CD has been nominated for the Hugo Awards...except for where it's not a single-artist CD. My name may be the only thing on the cover, but it's not the only name that was involved with the project. And that's what makes this so amazing. Because Wicked Girls is the thing I did with some of the people I love best in all this world, and I think that it shows. I really do.

This is the album where half the songs were written specifically so Vixy could sing them with me, or specifically for Amy's fiddle breaks. This is the album where my "I love you more than fairy tales" songs for my friends all got recorded, "Wicked Girls" and "Mother of the Crows" and "The True Story Here" and so many others. It was an amazing experience, recording this. And I credit that entirely to the people who recorded it with me.

Vixy, who sings with me on almost every track. Amy, whose screaming electric fiddle is the first primary instrumentation on the album. Kristoph, who tolerantly listened to me trying to explain what I wanted, and then gave me a hundred times more. Mary, and Betsy, and Sooj, who took the time to come to the studio and make things amazing. They put the heartbeat into the songs. Paul, who I loved first and best as a guitarist. Tony, who makes magic with strings. Margaret, who harps like it's going to be banned tomorrow. And others, and others, and others, forever.

Tara designed the cover; Beckett designed the liner notes. Mia made the pendants that inspired almost half the songs. Deborah listened, and loved, and helped in a thousand ways, as did Kate, and Cat, and all the members of my scattered family.

After more than thirty years, the filk community has representation on the Hugo ballot, and it's for an album that contains members of Southern filk, Midwest filk, Pacific Northwest filk, and California filk. And that is amazing. I am amazed.

I think I'm going to be amazed for a while.

The official notice of sale, ladies and gentlemen:

"Seanan McGuire writing as Mira Grant's Parasitology and Symbiogenesis, a duology of science fiction medical thrillers in the tradition of Frankenstein and Jurassic Park, in which parasites intended to bolster human immune systems rebel against their hosts, along with three novellas set in the universe of the Newsflesh series, to Tim Holman at Orbit, with Tom Bouman editing, by Diana Fox at Fox Literary (World English)."

I think of them as a bit more in the tradition of "The Only Really Neat Thing to Do" and Carnisaur, but that's why I don't write the announcements. The novellas included in this deal are...

"Countdown"
"San Diego 2014: The Last Stand of the California Browncoats"
"How Green This Land, How Blue This Sky"

I also sort of want to do "The Day the Dead Came to Show and Tell," which is the origin story of a character you haven't met yet, but that's not a part of this deal, which is to say, I have sold two more books as Mira, and three novellas (one of which has already been published), and I am very happy, and you should be, too.

Because nothing says "Seanan has a lot on her plate right now" like me deciding it's time for a project, I am going back to the printer for a second limited batch of "Wicked Girls" T-shirts. How limited? "The number of orders I receive, plus maybe a few extras, but I don't make any promises"-limited.

The design, thanks to the ever-lovely Tara:



This is a mock-up; the actual shirts will use that design, but will vary a little. We are using the same local shop that we used for the first batch, and they are remarkably flexible about everything. I love them so. Here are some real people wearing real shirts:

http://a.yfrog.com/img864/1994/wdmqi.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahandbrian/6879521872/
http://pics.livejournal.com/tithenai/pic/0005p48p
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/s720x720/402268_10100181507175304_34311648_43656648_461649944_n.jpg
https://twitter.com/#!/gienahghurab/status/183599757132955652/photo/1

We are offering four types of shirt, as follows:

The standard girl-cut T (click here to view the basic shirt) is available in small through 2XL. We can print with visible text on black, dark chocolate, dark gray, heather gray, indigo, kelly, light olive, midnight navy, plum, purple rush, red, royal, scarlet, shocking pink, or turquoise. We cannot promise visibility on any other color, as white text is hard to read on light-colored shirts.

The girl-cut T with a shallow V-neck (click here to view the basic shirt) is available in small through 2XL. We can print with visible text on black, dark gray, heather gray, indigo, kiwi, or plum. We cannot promise visibility on any other color, as white text is hard to read on light-colored shirts.

The larger girl-cut T (click here to view the basic shirt) is available in small through 4XL. We can print with visible text on athletic maroon, black, cardinal, charcoal, dark chocolate brown, dark green, kelly, navy, orange, purple, red, or royal. We cannot promise visibility on any other color, as white text is hard to read on light-colored shirts.

The unisex T (click here to view the basic shirt) is available in small through 6XL. We can print with visible text on athletic maroon, black, brown, cardinal, charcoal, dark chocolate brown, dark green, dark heather gray, deep marine, fiery red, forest green, kelly, navy, olive, orange, purple, red, rich red or royal. We cannot promise visibility on any other color, as white text is hard to read on light-colored shirts.

HOW THIS IS GOING TO WORK.

If you want to buy a shirt, comment here with:

a) how many shirts you want.
b) which size and style each shirt should be.
c) which color each shirt should be.
d) an alternate color, in case your first choice is out of stock.*
e) your email address.

(*Colors for which we receive fewer than three requests will be automatically considered "out of stock.")

I will add your information to our ongoing spreadsheet, and Deborah will contact you to arrange immediate payment. Shirts are $20 for sizes S through 2XL, and $25 for sizes 3XL through 6XL. Shipping outside of the United States is an additional $5 per two shirts. (So one size S would be $25, two would be $45, and three would be $70.)

Orders will close on May 18th; the goal is to have the order submitted to the printer by June 1st. Anyone who has not replied to three requests for payment will be deleted from the spreadsheet at that time.

ETA: I understand security concerns, but if you want a shirt, you must provide an email address. The actual spreadsheet is being generated by the lovely Deborah, who cannot access any more private mechanism you may decide to use for contacting me. No email address on the entry, no shirt.

1. First off, for those of you who may have missed it yesterday, the cover of Ashes of Honor has been posted for your viewing pleasure. Chris McGrath has done it again, and I am totally overjoyed by the ongoing evolution of Toby. (Also by the fact that I am now six books into an urban fantasy series, and the most sexualized my protagonist has been was on the cover to book five, where she had no pants on. She was also a fish at the time. I am overjoyed.)

2. I am home from Emerald City Comic Con! Yay! I am too tired to die, and there's a very good chance that I am going to bed without any supper tonight because I will be herded by the cats (to my doom), but it was a great weekend, I got many, many hugs, and I am now safely back in the Bay Area. Life is good.

3. Welcome to all the new people who got linked here via my post on diversity in fiction! I'm thrilled that you're here, and promise not to be upset when you realize that I'm rarely that intellectual and go off to do something more useful with your time. I hope you enjoy us while you're at the party. We are already enjoying you.

4. Speaking of not being intellectual all the time...If anyone out there is collecting the blind bag My Little Pony figures, I have all of them except for the basic, non-glittery Rainbow Dash. I have many doubles I can trade, including the special edition Twilight Sparkle. Inquire within. Please.

5. Shirt post coming this week.

That is all. Now I must nap.

Psst. C'mere. Wanna see something really pretty? I mean, really pretty? I'll give you a hint: if you're a Toby fan, it's something you've been waiting for ever since the cover to One Salt Sea was released. I think you'll be pleased. I know I'm pleased.

Go ahead. Take a peek.

( Cut-tagged for the protection of your friends' list, which really doesn't need something this huge suddenly showing up without warning. But trust me, you should totally click.Collapse )

First, the cool thing: I received my author's copies of Chicks Dig Comics last night, and they are genuinely gorgeous. Every essay in this book, even the ones that relate to properties I'm not emotionally invested in, makes me go "oh, my people, oh, we are growing every day." I have a copy in my bag to take to my comic book store tonight, and I will give it to Joe, the owner, and say thank you. And he will understand, because he is awesome, and also, he is used to me.

You can order Chicks Dig Comics on Amazon.com; it will be released, retail-wise, on April 10th. If you love comics, this is the book for you, regardless of gender. It says, very clearly, "you are not alone," both to men wondering what the female experience is like, and to women wondering if anyone else has ever had that female experience. I am so pleased to be a part of it. (Also, I am mentioned on the back cover. Great yayness.)

Now, the favor: I'm preparing for the second batch of "Wicked Girls" shirts, and I realized that I no longer need to use the mock-up from the original post, because there are actual shirts in the world now. So please, if you have a shirt from batch one, and you don't mind being shown as an example of a wicked girl, snap a picture and leave it here for me to maybe link in the shirt post. I'm hoping to put the post up within the next week, so time is of the essence, but I'd really love to see all of your awesomeness.

And that, for the moment, is all.

Now is the time on Sprockets where we continue trying to murder the link file, in part because the remains of this cold have left me cotton-headed and glassy-eyed. Now is not the time for deep thoughts. Now is the time for links and listlessness. And so...

Look! It's the Salon Futura interview I recorded immediately after winning the Campbell! Just in case you were starting to think I was exaggerating about the size of this file. Sniff. I miss my tiara...

And here's another interview, this time with Fantasy Faction. There were some interesting capitalization and punctuation choices made in the transcription of this interview. Read it, and marvel!

The Guilded Earlobe did seven questions with Mira Grant. Thrill as I defend zombies as being for everybody, not just for the boys, and explain why I should have a tank. You think I should have a tank, don't you?

The wonderful Kenda at Lurv ala Mode had me stop by to explain a bit about surviving Faerie; I may eventually use this format again, because it was disturbingly fun. Seriously. Best guest post ever.

Oh, right, I promised you some reviews. Here's Fantasy Faction's review of Feed, which says, "To be blunt, I find Feed to be one of the best novels about zombies that I have ever read." Moving on! To...

The Fantasy Faction review of Deadline, which says, "I don't think that Grant should have done anything differently with Deadline. This book was amazing, and an excellent continuation of the Newsflesh trilogy. I know that I will be reading this book, and Feed, again before Blackout releases next year. Probably a few times, if I'm to be honest. I'm looking forward to the conclusion of the story, but at the same time I'm so sad for it to come to an end."

I am, too.

And that ends this roundup.

VERITY PRICE!!!!!!

Ahem. Discount Armageddon has debuted on the New York Times Bestseller list, in position #35. This is otherwise known as "the best position," because it is mine, and I love it. I am...I am overjoyed. I am SO EXCITED I COULD DIE. This is my second time on the list (my first was with Late Eclipses), and to make it with my very first book in a brand new series is like a dream come true.

This is my crazy little book about a ballroom dancing cryptozoologist cocktail waitress with talking mice in her closet and nothing in her fridge, and it's on the New York Times Bestseller list. I can't believe it.

Thank you, thank you, a thousand times thank you to everyone who bought this book during release week. I am so glad, and so grateful, and so excited. Above everything else, I am so excited.

Discount Armageddon made the list.

It is with great pleasure that I remind you all that the latest iteration of the Traveling Circus and Snake-Handling Show will be assembling this Saturday at San Francisco's own Borderlands Books. We'll be getting underway at 6pm, and rocking the roof until closing time comes and they kick us all out! Why are we partying?

To celebrate the release of Discount Armageddon, naturally.

There will be cake! There will be cheese! There will be music and a raffle and reading and some Q&A, and it will be a hootenanny of a good time, with a whole lotta hoot AND a whole lotta nanny! Bring your kids! Bring your siblings! Bring your slime monsters! We totally hope to see you there.

Oh, and: Caitlin Kittredge and Ben Macallan, both of whom are made of hammered awesome, will be at the bookstore before the Circus comes to town! Their event starts at three. Come early, and make a day of it!

Remember that Borderlands does take telephone and email orders, and would be happy to send you books signed by any of the lovely authors who will be haunting the store that day. Get a book already touched by pure awesome. Or, you know. Ink. The party starts Saturday at 6pm!

Cheese! And! Cake!

First off, if you're interested, the spoiler-filled book discussion post is continuing to rage on over here, and you're welcome to join in. Read, and come to the party!

I've been blogging for Penguin* all this week, that being something they like to have authors do when they have new books out. So head over to hear my thoughts on cryptids as the fairy stories of the modern era, Toby vs. Verity, round one, fight, and the serious science of cryptozoology. It's fun!

catsittingstill wrote a song about the Aeslin mice. I can now die happy. I won't, because I have things to do, but I can.

I have a bunch of reviews to post, but those should probably go in their own roundup. So I will leave you with the reminder that my book release party, and the latest iteration of the Traveling Circus and Snake-Handling Show, will be on March 17th, at Borderlands Books. Hope to see you there!

(*DAW is my publisher, but DAW is distributed by Penguin, which makes it logical for me to blog at Penguin.)

I am fresh home from my appearance at Consonance, where I got to shake my money maker as their Ghostmistress, eat a lot of goat at the Indian buffet across the street—I mean a lot of goat—and generally have a wonderful time. I'll do a bit more of a proper con report later, although since I still haven't done my Disney World write-up, "later" may not be here for quite some time. Anyway, I thought I'd try posting the set list for my concert in a timely fashion for once, just to confuse people. My backing band was epic, and encompassed multitudes. I am so blessed.

I remain totally grateful to have been Consonance's Ghostmistress. It was an honor, and I had a fantastic time. The Consonance set list, with arrangement* notes, was as follows:

1. "The Sealskin and the Story and the Sky." (Seanan, vocals; Vixy Dockrey, Maya Bohnhoff, backing vocals; Tony Fabris, guitar; Brenda Sutton, bodhran; Teresa Powell, bass; Dr. Mary Crowell, piano; Amy McNally, fiddle.)
2. "The Ghost of Lilly Kane." (Seanan, vocals; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle.)
3. "Mama Said." (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Brenda, coconuts; Amy, fiddle; Mary, piano; Teresa, bass.)
4. "Dare to Dream." (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle.)
5. "Small Mended Corners" (Talis Kimberley cover). (Seanan, Mary, Vixy, vocals; Maya, backing vocals; Tony, guitar; Amy, fiddle.)
6. "Rain King/Still Catch the Tide" (Counting Crows/Talis Kimberley cover). (Seanan, vocals; Vixy, Mary, Maya, backing vocals; Jeff Bohnhoff, guitar; Brenda, bodhran; Teresa, bass; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle; Gwen Knighton, harp.)
7. "Landslide" (Fleetwood Mac cover). (Seanan, vocals; Mary, Vixy, Teresa, Maya, backing vocals; Teresa, bass; Jeff, guitar; Amy, fiddle.)
8. "Wicked Girls Saving Ourselves." (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Brenda, bodhran; Teresa, bass; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle.)
9. "My Story Is Not Done." (Seanan, Vixy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Brenda, bodhran; Teresa, bass; Mary, piano; Amy, fiddle.)

ENCORE: "Evil Laugh." (Seanan, Vixy, Amy, vocals; Tony, guitar; Teresa, bass; Mary, piano.)

The bridge for "Wicked Girls" was standard for a change, because we are unpredictable like that.

As always: "The Ghost of Lilly Kane," "Mama Said," "My Story Is Not Done," and "Wicked Girls Saving Ourselves" are on Wicked Girls. "Evil Laugh" and "Still Catch the Tide" are on Stars Fall Home (out of print). "Small Mended Corners" is on Talis Kimberley's amazing Archetype Cafe. "Rain King" is on August and Everything After by the Counting Crows.

"The Seal Skin and the Story and the Sky" and "Dare to Dream" have not yet been recorded.

Again, I am so very grateful to the Consonance concom for having me. I had a wonderful time, and I can't wait to go back.

(*It was a big band and a lot of skin-of-our-teeth arrangement, so I may get some of my instrumentation notes wrong. I will fix if this is pointed out to me, and mean absolutely no offense of any kind. I am simply a frazzled blonde.)

Psst. Guess where I'm going to be this weekend. If you guessed Consonance, Northern California's very own filk convention, you're right! Here is the website:

http://www.consonance.org/

I am their Ghostmistress! Or maybe their Toastmistress. Hmm. I'm not quite sure, but I guess I'll find out when I get there, since they'll either hand me a proton pack or a microphone (vote ghosts, ghosts are awesome). Regardless, I have a concert Friday night at 9:00 PM! I'm going to be performing with some of my favorite people: Vixy and Tony, Amy McNally, Dr. Mary Crowell, Jeff Bohnhoff, Brenda Sutton...it's going to be amazing. And you will not believe this set list. I barely believe it. It's like whoa.

It's a weekend packed with awesome. Brooke has a concert! And Amy! And the Three Weird Sisters, all four of them (it's a thing)! And I have a signing Saturday morning! You should totally try to be there. It's going to be amazing.

Yay, Consonance!

It's almost time for Discount Armageddon (which is why this blog, like my life, is currently the "all InCryptid, all the time" channel; while I am doing other things, they're just mostly intended to distract me, and thus involve port and Kingdom Hearts 2). And as is always the case during the final run-up to a new book, the reviews are starting to appear, like beautiful mushrooms on a pristine lawn! Are they delicious mushrooms, full of woodland goodness? Or are they the dreaded amanita, so lovely to behold, so deadly to touch? There's only one way to find out!

Travels Through Iest has posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says, "It is early days, but Discount Armageddon is one of the most amusing urban fantasies I’ve ever read, packed with fresh ideas and plenty of scope to expand. Hopefully sales will be strong and we readers will get to see a lot more of Verity, the Price family and the cryptids. Cheese! And Cake!" Awesome!

Travels Through Iest also reviewed Westward Weird, an anthology which contains the chronologically earliest InCryptid story currently extant (it's the story of how Alice's parents met). This review says, "The standouts for me were Seanan's story (I'm sure that's a huge surprise), but I'm a sucker for anything that features the Aeslin Mice and 'The Flower of Arizona' does that." I shall build my future on the backs of talking mice. Hey, it was good enough for Disney...

Un:Bound has posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says, "Discount Armageddon is top notch urban fantasy treated with a sense of humor and lightness that manages to enhance rather than undermine the sense of adventure and investigation." Also: "An unusual treatment of some well trodden tropes, lots of really original ideas and an explosive start to a new urban fantasy series I am really excited about." No poisonous mushrooms here!

Lurv ala Mode has posted a lovely review of Discount Armageddon, with some call-outs that had me giggling. How can you not love a review that cites the heroine's love of jumping off tall buildings as a selling point? She says: "People. People, listen. Look, this is a really good book. I'm just going to say that I just about loved it to pieces, like the kinds of pieces one gets when they hug something breakable with super human strength and, oh, oops, there I went and broke that awesome thing. Guess it's a good thing this wasn't on the Kindle, then. Paperbacks are actually pretty forgiving when it comes to ridiculously overzealous hugs." Hee hee hee. Also, and more seriously: "As much as I moan and groan sometimes about yet another series to keep up with, I feel no such qualms about the InCryptid books and will gladly add them to the few I even bother to pre-order. If you're a fan of urban fantasy looking for something different, I can't recommend this one enough." So much glee.

Scribbles From an Abstract Mind has posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says, "This is an enjoyable beginning to what promises to be an enjoyable series, and is to be looked forward to by all fans." Works for me.

Fantasy and Sci-Fi Lovin' News and Reviews has posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says, "If you're a fan of urban fantasy that is light on the angst and drama and strong on action and fun then I can easily recommend Discount Armageddon." Hooray!

Finally for right now, Alice at Tales of an Intrepid Pantser has posted a review of Discount Armageddon, and says, "I loved it. I have refrained in the past from declaring any authors my favorite, because it depends on my mood, or what they've recently published, or what I feel like reading. With this book, though, Seanan McGuire cements herself as my favorite author."

...let's just leave it at that, shall we? Mushroom stew for everybody, and not a drop of poison in sight!

Glee.

My "to be read" pile is notoriously huge, to the point that I will not allow myself to configure the Kindle that The Agent gave me for our anniversary until the stack of physical books waiting to be read weighs less than I do (this might happen faster if I stopped buying books). I have no system for going through it; I basically dig until I find something that looks interesting and fits what I want to read right now, and then go.

Yesterday morning, I decided to go for some YA fiction, and grabbed Giving Up the Ghost by Megan Crewe, a contemporary paranormal about bullying, loss, grief, true friendship, and a girl who can talk to dead people. I enjoyed it quite a bit; enough that I looked up the author to see if she had anything else I could buy (like maybe a sequel). What I discovered was that her second book, The Way We Fall, had just been released. I made a note to look for it...

...and then last night, when I found it displayed on the "New Releases" shelf at Barnes and Noble, I picked it up. I am weak. And I am glad to be weak, because this book is awesome.

Told in diary entry format, The Way We Fall is the story of Kaelyn, a sixteen year old girl living in an unidentified island community somewhere off the coast of Canada. She's writing a journal of letters to her best friend, Leo, first because she wants to reestablish their friendship, and then because she wants him to know what happened while he was gone. She wants him to know how they all died.

Because see, a strange disease hits the island. Airborne, with a long latency, and a period of increased sociability during what should be considered the most infectious stage. So when you're at your sickest, that's when you want to hug the neighbors and tell them how much you've always appreciated them. And then you die. It starts slow, and gets steadily worse, as diseases of this type usually do.

Kaelyn is not a doctor; not a scientist; not a virologist; she's a teenage girl, and her view on the outbreak is both moving and unique. She just wants to protect her family, herself, and her friends. She wants answers. She doesn't get them—not all of them, not enough of them. Crewe has done enough research to put together a plausible progression and set of symptoms, without actually needing to pin down her virus and walk herself into bad science territory. Instead, she has real people, in a bad place, and she lets them deal with their circumstances as best they can.

Kaelyn is a strong, smart, believable female protagonist in an tense YA novel that focuses on character and situation, rather than romance. Her losses are genuine, and painful. Better yet, there is an excellent level of diversity in the characters. Kaelyn and her older brother are mixed-race, with a black mother and a white father, both of whom appear quite a bit. Kaelyn's niece, who is central to the story, is black. Her best friend was born in Korea. And her brother is gay without being a stereotype or defined purely by his sexuality.

I really can't recommend this highly enough. I'm excited to know that there's a sequel coming, because not everything was answered at the end...but then again, not everything needed to be. It's a beautiful book.

You should check it out.

One thing I've tried to make very clear about InCryptid is that it's not the story of Verity Price and how she did lots of neat stuff and maybe saved the world a few times. It's the story of the Price family, and the Healy family, and how they did lots of neat stuff and maybe saved the world a few times. There are lots of stories, many of which happened before the books begin.

Never let it be said that I missed the chance to tell a story.

The InCryptid short fiction page is now live, and features the brand new Jonathan and Frances adventure, "One Hell of a Ride." The story is available for free download in three formats. I'll add information on "The Flower of Arizona" as soon as we have a finalized cover (and will include purchase data for that one, since it's in an anthology).

Welcome to the family tree, and I hope this helps to keep you excited for the upcoming release of Discount Armageddon!