She's Swamped

My fantasy author is attempting to do too many things at once. What I find frustrating is how few of those things involve finishing my corrections for the sequel to the fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods. You know, if she's going to get this second book in the trilogy out by the end of the year, she needs to get it turned in to her publisher...Anyone want to help me make that happen?

In the meantime, please enjoy these images from Sandy Lender's time at DragonCon last weekend. The first image is Sandy in the room with an archangel in the background taking her picture. The second picture is her and fantasy author M.B. Weston, who has a novel called A Prophecy Forgotten available at Amazon.com and ArcheBooks.com.

All my best,
Nigel

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, Sandy Lender, M.B. Weston, A Prophecy Forgotten

She's Back

And still crazy. As you can see, my fantasy author, Sandy Lender, had a great time at DragonCon over Labor Day weekend. She met this thing called the Great Flying Spaghetti Monster (or at least someone dressed as it). She tried explaining it to me, and I was so distracted by the people walking around in their undergarments that I just couldn't grasp all the details of the Spaghetti Monster religion, so I can't really explain it here. But I understand you can search for it in Google and get quite an education...

Anyway, Sandy is back home, as am I, and she's back to work at her day job where they're frantically trying to send five magazines to the printer over the next couple of weeks. It looks insane to me and I've recommended she quit and just work on the new magazine she and some of her colleagues are starting. Seems there's something comforting about having an income and buying food that she'd rather not let go of...And that's the writer's life for today.

I'll put together something lovely to tell you all about DragonCon, because it really was an interesting experience. The parade was surreal. We have pictures that Sandy is sending with her article to www.fantasybookspot.com that you'll be able to see at some point later today. The administrators there will have that live shortly. She doesn't mention much about the book sales because they were fairly slow. When you're stuck in the back corner of the basement of the hotel where none of the celebrities are selling a $25 hardback book that no one's ever heard of, moving half a dozen is something to cheer over. Now everyone who didn't elect to lug it back in their suitcase will have to pay the cover price over at Amazon...at least they won't have to pay shipping.

All my best, everyone.
Nigel

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, Sandy Lender, DragonCon

She Has Clothes Everywhere

The house looks like a tornado ripped through. You all should see this. I'm not sure if she's packing to go to DragonCon or if she's had some sort of seizure that involved throwing the contents of her closet across all flat surfaces... This is almost as bad as when she's planning to go to a Duran Duran concert somewhere. (I said almost; there was a qualifier...oooh, she's also fussy...)

So my fantasy author, Sandy Lender, is preparing to leave town for DragonCon, and, as her spokesperson, I thought it fitting I should tell the world what promotional and marketing ramifications this has on the sales of her epic fantasy novel Choices Meant for Gods.

None. She's wasting her money going to a four-day party. (I've just been assaulted.)

All right. I'll be a bit more charitable. Sandy Lender will be promoting her novel while at this event, but, because she's not speaking on any panels or doing any readings, she feels that the trip is going to be very expensive (financially speaking) for the gain she'll get out of it. No one knows who she is yet, and she's not sure how much that fact will change during the show. What she's excited about is the after-the-show press. You see, she's working with the administrators of www.fantasybookspot.com to cover the event (and when you ask her about that she starts prattling about journalism and news reporting and things I barely grasp, so it's best not to ask too many questions along that thread of thought) and she has a couple of web sites that wish to carry stories about her experience at the convention afterward, so she sees potential for exposure after-the-show. This makes her feel somewhat better about the outlay of cash upfront.

And she really is looking forward to carrying a sword around for four days. (I keep telling you it's not all fun and excitement. Do you even know how to swing...) I would like to suggest that no one stand within four feet of her if she's got it out. And if you'd like to read an interview about her level of sanity, just to reinforce my point here, you can visit http://www.mindunbound.com/blog/2007/08/interview_with_sandy_lender_an.html. That went live Monday.

And if you want to pick up a copy of Choices Meant for Gods prior to the convention, Amazon.com only has three copies in stock at the moment, although we understand they've ordered more. You can get a copy from her publisher's site at http://www.archebooks.com/BookIDX/Indexes/Fantasy/CMG/CMGDesc.htm pretty easily. Or if you'll be at DragonCon this weekend, you can pick up a copy more cheaply and without shipping fees from her dealer table, A98.

Have a lovely holiday weekend.
Nigel

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, Sandy Lender, fantasy author, fantasy novel, DragonCon, Duran Duran

She's Cured me of Sleeping on Her Couch

I was jarred awake by the ear-splitting screech of the spider scream this morning. Just because I know what the particular pitch of that scream indicates doesn't make it any easier to be ripped from deep sleep with. It was a particularly large wolf spider. And my fantasy author, Sandy Lender, was particularly close to it when she noticed it. Hence the healthy-lung volume...

So now she has a dilemma. See, the carcass is curled up, still wet with bug spray...in her shower. This amuses me because she has this "thing" about leaving the carcasses for at least 24 hours (yes, she's OCD) to be sure it's completely dead before she gathers it up and throws it in the trash. But she can't use the shower until she gets rid of this thing. I've already suggested she use the guest shower, where her former significant other used to bathe, but she wrinkled her nose up at that. And she can't just rinse this thing down the drain. (I'm sure I've mentioned that the wolf spiders out here in the swamp get quite large? Oh, and she's adding in that this thing is enormous.)

Anyway, she's figuring out what to do with the body and I'm figuring out where I'll sleep from now on that won't be within scream-range. My nerves are shot for the day.

And speaking of the day, I'll be spending it coming up with marketing ideas for her DragonCon expedition at the end of the week. Those of you attending can meet her at the Dealer Room just about any time of day. She'll be pretty much chained to a table there pushing the fantasy novel, Choices Meant for Gods. If you're not attending, you can pick up the book at Amazon, where they're running low of copies at the moment, or at her publisher's site at http://www.archebooks.com/BookIDX/Indexes/Fantasy/CMG/CMGDesc.htm.

Tags: Choices Meant for Gods, Sandy Lender, DragonCon, fantasy author, fantasy novel