seanan_mcguire @ 2010-08-20T18:37:00

2010-08-21T01:37:56Z

maryrobinette is in town for this month's SF in SF—which I will regrettably be missing, due to having a prior engagement—and I managed to catch her on chat this morning and arrange for an afternoon meeting to hang out. This delighted me utterly, because I adore Mary, and don't get to see her often. (For those of you who need a footnote: Mary Robinette is the "voice" of the October Daye series, as she reads them in audio book form. She's also a puppeteer, an author, and the 2008 recipient of the Campbell Award. Girl's got game.)

Since the first thing I do with any out-of-town guest is take 'em for cupcakes, I arranged to have Mary meet me at Cups and Cakes Bakery. Yes, I am the devil. She was properly delighted by the palace of sugary delights, and consumed a peanut butter cup (chocolate cake, peanut butter frosting, dipped in chocolate ganache) and a red velvet, while I, being a pretty pink princess, ate a Pretty Pretty Princess (strawberry cake with strawberry frosting). Yum, all the way around.

You can't hang out in a bakery forever, so I asked Mary if she'd like to walk over to Borderlands. She was game for this adventure, and I've walked that route so many times now that I don't really need to pay attention anymore. Gleeful chattering and wandering ensued, culminating in our arrival at the bookstore, where we found Jude, Alan, and—eventually—Jeremy.

Jeremy had a box.

Inside the box was the new Night Shade Press anthology, The Living Dead 2. This is a big, handsome book, with a gorgeous cover, and a great table of contents. Said table of contents includes Kelley Armstrong, Max Brooks, David Wellington...and Mira Grant.

Oh, wait. That's me.

Oxygen is hard.

The story, "Everglades," is set on the U.C. Berkeley campus during the Rising. It's sad and wistful and tragic, and you should totally read it. I mean, you should totally buy this anthology if you like zombies, even a little, because it's gorgeous, but really? My story. In a book. With all these amazing people.

I managed a) not to break Jeremy's fingers snatching the book away, and b) to stay and keep talking for a while, because running cackling into the night would have been rude. We eventually shifted to the cafe, where I hugged Cole, hugged Mary goodbye, and departed for home, taking my book with me.

My book. You cannot have it. Get your own. MINE.

Damn, this was a surprisingly good day.

Rose-Owls and Pumpkin Girls

seanan_mcguire @ 2010-08-20T18:37:00