An Update On the Writer

Posted on by Sarah A. Hoyt

So, in addition to extended family turmoil, I figured out part of the issue with my writing.  As we all know something has been giving me allergic reactions (yes, could be the cats.  Monthly baths for Havey help.  OTOH I’ve had cats my whole life and only the last few years have been bad. I think it’s more household dust as the cutting down of physical books is helping) so I’ve been taking a benadryl a night to sleep.

I know that benadryl makes me woozy and weird and stops the writing, but I thought “just a four hour one at night…”  After being unable to write for a couple of weeks, I stopped it.  The writing came back.  Yes, it’s proceeding.

Zen, main character of Through Fire, is still the world’s hardest character for me personally to write, but my cheerreaders say you can’t tell.  Which is good.

After Through Fire gets delivered, please G-d, soon, I’ll finish Darkship Revenge.  Meanwhile, fully revised, The Musketeer’s Inheritance (formerly published as Dying By The Sword) is waiting my entering the changes into the electronic version so I can put it up.  I’d like to do so before the end of the month, since I’d like to do a promo on Death of a Musketeer.

Also being edited are the three books of the Magical British Empire, a subset of the world of Witchfinder.  It’s taking forever because they got “Political correctizized” in edits and it needs careful cleaning for the “author’s edition.”

All of that is taking back burner to books for Baen, and the YA fantasy — Shadow Gods — which is due at Wordfire press in exactly a month, give or take.  Some of you have seen the beginning.  It’s about blended families and Roman Gods with emotional issues.

Robert — #1 son — and I are working on a YA series that’s sort of Harry Potter space opera.  You’d have to be there, but… well, you’ll be there.

I’m also working on The Haunted Air, a short novel that falls between Witchfinder and Rogue Magic.

After I deliver the Space Operas to Baen, the most vital thing is getting Bowl of Red, the fourth shifter book, finished.

At some point here, I SWEAR A Fatal Paws, the first Orphan Kittens mystery will get finished.

Look, I KNOW I can write two novels a month.  I’ve done it in the past.  The price might be to wheeze and be stopped up, but that’s not the end of the universe.

Other projects which might or might not get done this year: The great Southern Gothic UF, Hell Bound (Also a UF), The Musketeer’s Confessor, Changeling (A space opera.  With Aliens.), Lucky (A space opera, with aliens.  Not the SAME space opera), The Brave And The Free, which is half done and might just be sent to Denver and, if they don’t want it, come out on its own.

I counted, and I have something like 42 things in the back burner.  And they’re all either novels or series.  And at some point here, we’re going to lose a big chunk of time as I move.  However, if we can find JUST the right place and set up for low maintenance, and if the hyper-extended family can stop having crisis, (or at least keep it down to a low roar), and if I can have just two “good years” (where the health issues are also down to a low roar) I could dig myself out from under the back log.

It’s a dream.  It could happen.  Don’t burst my bubble.

On the other hand by that time, I’ll have another five or six novels in the pipeline.

But that’s a different story.  Or several.

The Haunted Air

 

Sarah A. Hoyt

 

 

The problem with a wicked stepmother, Miss Albinia Blackley thought, suspended from her sheet-rope, between the sky and the distant Earth, was when the wicked stepmother was in fact your real mama.

It was all very well, after all, for Miss Albinia’s brothers – who always called her Al – because Mama was just the woman who had married papa when Geoffrey, the youngest, was seven, and was in fact no blood relation to them.

Oh, it had been terrible for them, probably, when papa had disappeared shortly after the marriage. Al couldn’t be sure, because she did not remember papa and wasn’t sure if he was like Mama or not.

But then when mama had done something and Al’s brothers had disappeared. And even if Mama was her real mama, Al was not going to stick around and have the full benefit of mama’s attention for the duration. Whatever the duration was.

She was going to run away and find her brothers, because Geoffrey needed someone to help him make himself understood when he started stuttering and Edmund was likely to lose everything, including his paints, and Aaron, Jeremy and Joshua would argue about everything, and William was likely to disappear into his music, and Samuel would just go all extremely disappointed…

It had all seemed so simple when she’d hid the sheets and crafted this tied-together rope ladder to escape from the room where Mama had locked her when Al had asked once too many what had happened to the boys.

But once she’d crept over the stone ledge of her room window, she’d found herself in a world she couldn’t recognize.

Gone was the tower of the mannor house on the cliff, overlooking the ocean and the familiar marshes. In its place, Al found herself hanging from a building that seemed entirely composed of blue glass.

Beneath her, there were flashes of moving things that she couldn’t understand and the sound of klaxons superimposed on a low roar as of a million voices.

She had no idea where she was, dangling here, between Earth and sky, on her fragile ladder of sheets.

All she knew was that the ladder ended far short of the ground.

Far above, a window opened in the wall of glass, roughly where Al’s room would have been, if this were still the tower from which she’d left. Mama’s silhouette appeared, and Mama’s voice called, “Al, how dare you.”

And Al let go of the ladder.

She let go before she could think. She let go, knowing only she couldn’t stand to go back in and explain herself to Mama.

She tumbled downwards, head over heels, wondering how it felt to hit.

And then she stopped. Middair. Someone was approaching on a rowboat, slicing through the air and the clouds.

 

UPDATE: You should read Amanda’s blog.

 

 

120 thoughts on “An Update On the Writer”

    1. No, I think it’s the Swan Princes. ( I hope that’s the right title…the one where all the brother’s get turned into swans, and the sister can change them back if she undergoes a seven year ordeal, if I remember right, making a shirt for each of them out of nettles, and not talking the entire time.)

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      1. That’s the problem with retelling any fairy tales. Because of the motifs, people leap to thinking it’s one of the Top Twenty tales because they aren’t familiar with anything else.

        I have read a BLURB in which Patricia McKillip’s retelling to “The Singing, Springing Lark” was labeled a retelling of “Beauty and the Beast.”

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          1. It gets complex easily.

            I’m working on a fairy-tale-mashup story. My first rule was nothing from the Top Twenty. Yet, no doubt, most readers will think “Cinderella” because there are three balls, even though it’s from “Kate Crackernuts” including the purpose of the ball, how the hero and heroine end up attending, and what consequences ensue.

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        2. I grew up reading the (Insert color here) Fairytale books, found stuffed in a back corner of the library. I may not remember all the stories, but it sure broadened my fairytale horizons. Also made me feel like Disney’s versions were for REALLY little kids who couldn’t handle the full version :)

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            2. Just a comment: the Andrew Lang books are available on Gutenberg. Don’t know if the complete series is there, but there are over 30 of them (Kipling’s there, too, if you haven’t already downloaded it somewhere else).

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            3. Victorian children were exposed to some rather gruesome material, particularly in the form of moral tales.

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          2. My head really got twisted a bit when I finally realized that the modern fad for retelling fairy tales started with Disney! *grin* (Probably earlier, really, but Disney made it big money. Imagine some of the oh-so-serious folks hitting that about their “dark, realistic” push-back on the Disney Princess crowd….)

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          1. You might like The Seventh Swan by Nicholas Stuart Gray. It asks what happened to the last brother, the one who didn’t completely transform? A beautiful book.

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  6. I had a cat without any problems until my mid 30s when I became severely allergic to our new kitten, can’t stand them at all since.

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    1. I didn’t become sensitive to poison oak until I was in my 20s. After that, come to find there are almost innumerable ways to get in contact with the Evile Oil(tm).

      At least it doesn’t grow around here. :}

      Anyone know how to ID poison ivy and poison sumac?…

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        1. And where the three leaves meet there is a redish spot.

          The Daughter taught me to identify it, for until this year I never had had the slightest alergic reaction. If you are like The Spouse, never get near enough to see the red spot…

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            2. My brother is highly allergic to poison ivy and poison oak. I used to make ropes out of the vines, and had no reaction to it at all. Haven’t been around it in 20 years, though — things might have changed.

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                1. Yep. The leaves secrete an oil that is an irritant to most, but not all, people. If you suspect you have been in contact with Poison Ivy, Oak, or Sumac, wash with Dawn, or some other grease-cutting soap. It may not prevent an irritation, but usually it will minimize it.

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                2. As I said, I never have had a reaction to poison ivy before this year. Both The Spouse and The Daughter do have reactions. The Spouse is particularly sensitive. So I am the one who goes into the yard to get rid of it. Just as a precaution I wear rubber gloves and use plastic shopping bags to grasp, pull and contain the plant for disposal.

                  What got me for the first time was a root stripped of its outer layer.

                  I have heard of someone having a reaction to smoke from burning poison ivy, but that could have just been urban legend.

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                  1. If the oil is in the smoke, you can get a reaction. I saw it happen to a neighbor, otherwise I’d also have thought it was a legend. (When I lived in the upper Midwest.)

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                  2. Those innocent and fun loving natives of the American region used to burn poison ivy as a sort of biowarfare. The results were about as pleasant as your worst nightmares might suggest– something like mustard gas. Somehow, when it’s burned, things get *worse*.

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      2. It’s probably Havey. On my dream slate is “when finances uncoil a bit after house sells and boys are out of college, have him professionally washed once a week.” He’s a turkish van, so…

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      3. Additionally, Re: Poison Ivy. We keep Fels Naptha. The Daughter has profited from using Tecnu. A friend swears by banana peel.

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      4. Poison ivy is (supposedly) a substance that 100% of people will react to – eventually. A person needs to be exposed to allergens before an allergic reaction occurs. Can be exposed 100 times, and the 101st time react.
        And you definitely can have a reaction from burning the leaves. Pretty nasty too, since the fumes can get into the lungs and cause a reaction there.

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    2. My wife had a cat growing up, never any problems. Now, she has problems with cat allergies, but it’s really only bad once a month. No idea why her cycle might affect it, but there you go.

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  9. Sweetie you need a minder, someone to supervise your health and prioritize your tasks to make the most effective use of your time.
    Not going to happen of course. Being you, you’d spend even more time trying to get around their instructions.
    Your health is the most important thing. When that fails all else falls by the wayside. Family comes next with friends (the extended family) right on their heels. Everything else is just stuff.
    Now from my knothole seems like half your troubles would go away and the rest would at least become more manageable once your finances improve. You are certainly working diligently on that, completing scheduled book deliveries, and feeding product to indie. My concern is that you are spread too thin and your efforts are get scattered and diluted.
    Just call me captain obvious.

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  10. But………Where are the dragons (whimper) You promised us dragons. You did…. You said
    At a loss for what else to do with it, I’ll be posting probably two/three chapters here a week, as I finish Through Fire.

    To The Dragons……..

    And we’re waiting.

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    1. They are snugly ensconced in their caves, eying their gold and their jewels, and if they get the least hint of you, they will come snuffling along the stone to smell you out.

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        1. Most of the dragons in that world are NASTY
          Really, let me try to kill Through Fire — I need to because it’s a difficult book that’s messing everything else — and I’ll go back to that.

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              1. Well, if I could I would have indicated that I had delived that as a small child with eyes shimmering and a slight quiver in my voice.

                More dragon stories? I like your dragon stories. Yeah! (If only I had more time to read…)

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                    1. The technical, specialized word for that is “Nommed.” Dragons often wear bibs on the way to such occasions, and the bibs say “hooman, om nom nom, nom.” (I now want a t-shirt with that!)

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                    14. I’m — unsure what impact a glaring crotch might have.

                      Glaring at a crotch, on the other hand, I’m sure would result in impact. Multiples thereof.

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                    17. Well, I doubt I’d have reason to glare at yours, since the only time I’m likely to be glaring at a man’s crotch is when a fool decides to expose his shortcomings to me hoping that I’ll be shocked and offended. I mean, why waste my time with something that so unimpressive, it’s the only way that it’ll even be remotely paid attention to?

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                    23. *comically speculative expression*

                      …see on one hand it’d probably be hilarious. On the other, I’ll accuse the blokes of a number of mischiefs and plots but not that particular indignity.

                      But if they are happy to put on a Full Monty remake I’m game to watch and be appreciative. ^^

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  11. Well, I can see why you haven’t gotten around to submitting a short story to Liberty Island! You’ve mentioned before that you keep meaning to. Not only do you have less than no spare time, but also, when you’re already succeeding so well at getting your writing out there (partly through self-publishing), I suppose you don’t really need Liberty Island’s help?

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    1. No, but I’d like to help Liberty Island.
      I’m writing short stories, mind, but usually for Baen (and other) anthologies, at the rate of one a month. Some are favors I owe. Makes it hard to find the time.

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  13. Hmph. I want the rest of The Haunted Air.

    Tease.

    (Which, since you’re a writer, is also known as “Good Marketing.” Dammit.)

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  14. Have you tried Loratadine (the generic name for Claritin)?
    I swear by the stuff, especially the 24 hour version. It doesn’t make you drowsy, it doesn’t make you hyper, it just makes the eyes stop itching and the nose stop leaking.

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    1. This is what I was going to suggest. Claritin, Zyrtec, Allegra are the benadryl equivalents that don’t cause drowsiness (or in some people irritability). Zyrtec causes more than the others, but only slightly, and all MUCH less than benadryl.

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  16. When do you start writing those engineering textbooks so you can have a money pool like Scrooge McDuck?

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      1. I’m sure that could be fixed with better character development through the problem sets and perhaps some adult content.

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                1. R&D reports it is ready to deploy “Smart CARP*” for field testing. You can run but you can’t hide.

                  *Cybernetic Airborne Radar-guided Piscene.

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                  1. Oh, is that like the EPA warden that underwent cybernetic augmentation to help him catch illegal dumping into Lake Ontario? You know – Robo-CARP.

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            2. First guess is like writing an engineering textbook, except for a fictional universe’s tech. In other words, if you have what it takes to do a quality job, one could probably make more money off of a real world engineering text. If you are going to work out a set of problems and examples that do not have errors and do reflect engineering practice, it seems a shame to do so for an audience that might not be interested in solving them.

              The Undocumented Features crew claims to be in the middle of producing something close to this. Specifically, a general audience book documenting an aerospace project from a in universe perspective.

              The next alternative is rewriting someone else’s textbook. Modern material, 1950’s style, or just removing all the AGW material.

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                1. “The undocumented features crew”… I’d like to hear from them, too… they certainly don’t write enough documentation, nor do they generally bother. But fanfic of said crew would be even more entertaining, and read like the script of a lively obfuscated C competition. Imagine spies who are also programmers playing games with code like wargames. Only the more inexplicable AND clever you are, the better. Trump, confuse and embarrass your enemies by pure gonzo nerdiness.

                  Nope, I don’t see Hoytsons loving that AT ALL. /sarc

                  Now somehow toss in elephants, redacted, medicine and Catholicism and shake real well… may want to run before the thing goes off.

                  *retires to her well hidden and shielded observation deck*

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                  1. Undocumented Features is the big name project of the Eyrie Productions stable of fanfiction writers. It is an old multicross fanfic that still has material being produced for it.

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  17. With regards to dust, there are a number of forced air filters that might help (HEPA, I think they’re called). They do wonders for my brother.

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    1. Yep, HEPA filters and air purifiers. Used by woodworkers a lot, especially when working with MDF and other high-dust-producing materials.

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    2. It sounds silly, but I got a cheap wall unit that looks like a glorified air freshener on steroids and I notice my husband is sneezing a lot less of late.

      Sometimes spitting at the fire helps, I guess.

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  18. For me, Claratin (or the generic) sort of works (I don’t get hit with sneeze after sneeze after sneeze…) but I still have a bit of eye irritation and nose weeping. The requirement to take it prophylactic (every day, whether having symptoms or not) is another downside.

    What I’ve found is the Allegra (or, again, the OTC generic) works well for me. I don’t take it until symptoms crop up, even though this usually means I sneeze a lot for 20-45 minutes. When it does kick in I’m good for 24-30 hours. Many times, the allergen has cleared out before a second pill is needed. The only downside is that it does tend to dry out my eyes, but eyedrops every 4 or 5 hours takes care of that.

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  19. I completely understand what it’s like to have chronic health issues (no, not me, it’s a… uh… close relative) and wish you the best of luck.

    And, 2 novels in a month? Sheesh!

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  20. A sidebar to, “The price might be to wheeze and be stopped up, but that’s not the end of the universe. . . ” I turned my Wonder Woman on to nasal irrigation after Jerry Pournelle recommended it. Have you given that a try?

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