writing updates, all projects #2

What is better than the mile long post Writing Updates 2011?   MORE writing updates that pick up where it left off. And this one is important. A weight has lifted. I can now go on with the writing....because...

Yesterday was one of those days that starts with prolonged frustration and continues into headdesk confusion that sends me outside with a shovel to re-arrange the earth.

Then late in the evening it suddenly bloomed into 2000 words that are so right, so perfect, that it was worth the wait.  Sadima has made the decision.  Not the one I expected, but the one I hoped for. So. This changes everything for her, for me, for the city of  Limori.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

5/17/2011

Back from Rochester NY. Traveling is always interesting, and sometimes amazing, even though it interrupts my work. I took manuscript pages with me and read on the planes...and I think the 400 or so pages I have written is good. Maybe really good. So today I am going back to Limori.

The basics: Somiss and Franklin and Sadima and Hahp are all still alive.  So is Gerrard. Winter is ending now and Sadima has made the monstrous decision I thought she *wouldn't* make. The angry young men in South End are crossing the line into the city of Limori. Guards are everywhere. Hatred and blame and anger are everywhere, too.  The children of the wealthiest people have guards of their own, hired by their anxious  parents...and things are getting worse. Sadima is crossing Market Square, walking fast, hoping...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

5/19/2011

It is 7:30 am. I am rocking back and forth in my chair, wishing I knew what was going to happen today.  The boys inside the cliffs are facing something deep and true and lethal.  The ordeals they have lived through are enough, too much, really, for anyone to endure, but this will be the thing that defeats them. Maybe. They are almost at the point of not caring and that might save them.  Maybe.

The photo was taken from a plane window, flying at 37,000 ft. This is Iceland.  I was coming home from Dubai and Abu Dhabi school visits. Skin Hunger had just been published. A teacher at one of the schools was the first person to read it and tell me he loved it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hahp knows what he has to do and he knows what it is going to cost him. So do I.  Oh, man this is going to be a hard one to write. If I am still coherent by the end of the day, I will add to this and let you know how it went. Blood is involved--and fear.

This was taken from a train window, traveling north along the pacific coast.

This is where I want to be today. But I am not. I am in my office and scared to start writing. But I will.  NOW.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last night was a blind leap and now I need to read the pages again and see if it is as true as it seemed. I think it will be. I hope so. It is hard when you love the people in the book and you know that not all of them can possibly survive the shitstorm you know is coming. They know it, too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

May 23 2011

This Aloe bainesii tree is in the front yard ((that isn't a yard. really.))

Yesterday's  pages were deep and true and painful.  And today I have to get back to the task of tweaking time lines again before I can go on....Hope to be writing new words by about 2:00pm PDS.  The next scene is pretty tense...and sometimes that means it won't be anything like I imagined it would be.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

May 26th:

I want to start by thanking everyone who has written to me about my books. You can't imagine what it means to me. I try to answer at least some of the messages. Please know that I am just overwhelmed in projects right now, I appreciate every single word you write. I always have. You would be amazed how much your responses give me courage.

http://kathleenduey.blogspot.com/2011/02/unicorns-secret-new-covers.html
art copyright Omar Rayyan, from The Unicorns Secret:



WRITING UPDATE!
Today, in the troubled city of Limori,  something terrible will happen. Hahp won't know about it--he is inside the cliffs, trying to find a way out. Neither will Sadima. She is caught between what is right and what might save someone she loves.  But it is going to change both of their lives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hahp is facing a terrible choice this morning, if it is morning.  There is no daylight inside the cliffs except inside Jux's forest--if it is a forest. A wizard has pounded on the door, then walked away--so no classes today. Hahp can smell a faint scent of smoke in the stale, still air. That scares him.  It should.

This is a tree in the courtyard of the Alamo.
Where people who could have run away stayed and died.
Yes. All the images echo the book one way or another.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
5-26-2011

Yesterday's pages were painful to write. Reading them this morning...what happened makes sense, I can see it as I read it....and the emotional depth was there. I cried again.  So....back to work now.  I usually clean up the previous day's work, which also gives me a running start.

This epiphyllum didn't bloom last year.  I think the rain this winter made it happy enough to blossom.  The flowers last a couple days, tops, but they are spectacular, hanging downward at the end of long, flat, leaf-links. This one is about 8 inches across. Within a few days, the flower with shrivel and it will be a scruffy green succulent plant again, plagued by snails, drab and almost invisible to anyone walking past.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

June 1 2011
Inside the cliffs...two people have just been reunited, more or less. One of them is probably not going to live much longer. Outside the cliffs, the city of Limori is seething. And now I will go see what happens next.

I was standing on top of a sea cliff in Hawaii when I took this, looking straight down at the ocean--which is never, ever, still.










~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

6  3 2011

Sitting here trying to summarize yesterday's writing without a spoiler and this is the best I can do.  All this training, all the magic, all the brutality it takes to learn it...changes people forever. It has to.  So it is spring in Limori but the flowers are not blooming this year.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have started to write this update three or four times, then delete it because the story is entering the last third of the book and anything I say will be a spoiler. So, just the basics:  Hahp and Gerrard are alive. Sadima is alive. Everything is changing, partly because of things happening outside the cliffs. As always, it is hard for the boys to tell what is real and what isn't.  And there's this:  I cried for a long time last night because of the chapter I had just written.

Small World!

Another thanks to all the people reading my books here at home and outside the US.

A young man from Russia contacted me last week for information for a class presentation. I hope it went well.  If you know Anton, tell him hello for me!  Anyone can contact me through my website:  http://www.kathleenduey.com


visitors: 
May 23 2011:

United States, United Kingdom, Israel, Russia, Slovenia ,Taiwan, Canada, Australia, Germany, Georgia, Malaysia, Japan, Australia, Philippines, Arab Emirates, Turkey, Ukraine, Brazil, Poland, South Africa, Romania, Hungary, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, France, China, Switzerland!!!  Ireland...hello!  My great grandparents left there to come here.   

Hello to everyone...I wish you all peace, prosperity, and happiness. 

A Resurrection of Magic: Balance.

 In my trilogy, A Resurrection of Magic, students are required to do the impossible. Random videos sometimes help me imagine the kind of disciplines learning real magic would include. The line between skill and magic is astonishingly thin. 

video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knowhnbCV-E

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

updates on my writing, all projects 2011

4/20/11
People are asking me to do a writing log again. I am grateful for the suggestion, because these logs help me organize my own days. When I know I have to write it down, I work harder. (really? I am that childish? )


You can scroll to the end of this post and comment or ask me anything. If you are referring to a specific entry, please make it clear which one---including the date is the easiest way to do that. 
The only rule: I won't post spoilers.


Here's the current pile of projects, in order of importance, immediacy, current timesuck and whim:


1. Book Three of A Resurrection of Magic is running my life. It has already taken a full year longer than I thought it would to write. There are reasons for the delay that have nothing to with the book itself, but it is complex, massively detailed and intertwined.  There are two stories that go back and forth, every other chapter. They are two hundred years apart in book #1 and gradually close the gap in the second book. They are now about 1 year apart. The first story causes the second one.  Book #1: Skin Hunger was a National Book Award Finalist.  Excerpts are here: http://kathleenduey.com/ya.html




2. Zeep  A book for 7-10 year olds. I have written it twice and am now, I think, on the right track. and am writing it in little bursts when I can fit it in. It's FUNNY, which is SUCH a relief from the politics and pain in the Resurrection of Magic books.


3. Free Rat:  YA/adult A boy who won't tell me his name living  in a near-future timeframe. I am beginning to think he doesn't have a name. He is in a facility where the nights are sometimes endless.


4. A Virgin's Blood: a medieval medical/political  YA/adult thriller. Probably next up. Or maybe Free Rat.


5. Dickens and Fob an animation project--or maybe a book idea? All hot air and a detailed proposal at this point but I LOVE the premise and the characters and early responses are encouraging.


6. Faerie Creek Ranch, a historical fantasy for 7-10 year old readers. It is set in Estes Park, Colorado, a place I spent a lot of time growing up.  It is with an educational book company now--waiting for judgement. Mainsteam publishers are down on historicals just now.... #cycles


7. Oddlets;  a funny and oddly structured  little story intended as an ebook series, with enhanced reading stuff built in.  It is with someone now who will tell me whether or not I should keep fiddling with it.


8. http://russet-one-wing.blogspot.com/ a free, twitter-format online novel that I haven't added to in well over a  year. But I AM adding to it at home and will post a monster chunk ASAP. Paying work has to come first for now...!!!


9. Limori short stories, for YA/adults, will be listed during the production-wait for Book three.


Daily reports begin tomorrow!!! Or tonight!! Probably tonight!  If you comment (please do!) on anything here, date it so I know which post you are talking about...


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 


4/21/11
I worked late last night, so am just now writing the first new update. It 7:15 am Pacific standard time, California, USA.  

Resurrection of Magic ate up the whole day yesterday. Sadima's story stalled so I reread (and revised) about 20 of Hahp's chapters. Now, today, after a long time in Sadima's story, I am ready to switch back to Hahp's. I will likely write his half of the story until it falters, then switch back to Sadima. This has been the pattern since the first book. It will be interesting to see if it changes as the time lines become concurrent. The stories were about 200 years apart in Skin Hunger. That narrowed to about fifteen years apart in Sacred Scars. Now, the stories are only a few years apart. 


In the fourth chapter of book #1 Skin Hunger, Hahp is being taken to the academy, flying over the city in a carriage, looking down at his father's amazing Malek Park, the copper roof on the Eridian meeting house, etc.  What he saw was the city and the time that Sadima is living in now. 


So today, I come back to Hahp's story. The students' isolation from the city of Limori and all that is happening there is complete. They are not aware of the unrest. They can't even guess the season. They can only estimate how long they have been in the cliffs by gaging their own physical growth. Hahp knows they can't even be sure of that, really, because the wizards can and do distort...everything. 


So, that's where I start today. If I stall out, I will move on to Zeep. It's always a leap, emotionally, to suddenly be attending third grade with a girl who celebrates Grander Mander Dilla Day with her family. And a relief, sometimes. 


 But for now, back into the tunnels where Hahp is shivering, waiting for the sound of a pebble thrown at his chamber door so that he will know it's time....






~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2/22/11


ZEEP
The morning went to Zeep.  I love her. She says things like this: 


"Ok, ok, I know it isn't polite to stare, but what IS polite, really.  Even if you are talking quietly and nicely, once in a while you will burp in the middle of it. Or worse.  Everyone does. Even our principal. I know that because I heard her once. She pretended it was a cough, but it wasn't. That's kind of like lying, isn't it? " 




A RESURRECTION OF MAGIC Book #3
From about noon on, I worked on A Resurrection of Magic #3. 


I began the day with Hahp's strand, then, hours later, opened all of the existing 55 files. I make one for each chapter, each with a title summarizing what's inside. This directory and its skeletal reminder of story points saves me a million hours of rereading.


Staring at the directory, thinking about all the things that are upcoming,it seems like the   time line can converge earlier than I thought. So that's where I will begin today, making sure I can do that before I go on.  Skin Hunger was 64 chapters long.  Sacred Scars was 71. All I can say is that the third book is at 55 chapters and there are no endings in sight. 


So, back to Limori where the story keeps getting longer....
Sadima is still standing alone in the dark when she hears the voices. 


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
4/23/11
10:25 pm PST and I am going to bed after a fabulous, amazing day of writing. 


I began the day with Dickens and Fob and learned a great deal about a Roman building that is buried beneath a theatre in London.  The cast for this story is really interesting to me.  Some are kids, the rest are all kinds of things. 


Then at noon, I hit the Big Book--#3 in A Resurrectuion of Magic. 
I went through  20 chapters, condensing them into 17. Yay!  Tomorrow I ought to be able to fly straight ahead again.  Rewriting, I heard the all the voices more clearly,too. I think I have been trying to interfere with them lately, trying harder to add pages than  I am trying to hear the story. This is a revelation I have had, like, a hundred times and will have again. It's always a mistake for me, to actually write the story instead of listening for it. 


I am so ready for tomorrow now, really looking forward to see what happens. The whole city of Limori is uneasy. If you have read the books and remember Thomas Marsham's angry, fiery speeches condemning magic to the Eridians....


...there are other people in Market Square now, speaking to crowds, referring to the magistrates as "The Ferrinidies magistrates" which is true, most of them ARE the descendants of the old kings--but that reminder is stirring up the old hatreds. 


 Sadima and Hahp are both alive. Sadima has lost something that anchored her...and that worries me.  Hahp is trying to recover his hope. 


And I am going to bed! 


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
April 24 writing update


Good morning everyone! I hope all is well with you and your beloveds.


Yesterday was a formative day. I spent hours following Sadima around and writing scenes that won't make the book--and I knew it when I was writing them. But everything she felt matters and will influence the story going forward. So writing those scenes, then summarizing them so that the reader can jump over important but slow emotional changes in her heart---allows me to begin with her decision.  Today's work starts like this:   


     Sadima spent the bright fall days that followed walking the streets of South End, staring down the crowded alleys, passing the guards as if she carried no secrets, no fear. She looked into every face, every shop window, and tried so hard not to hope--then cried when she stopped hoping. By the time the first snow fell, she had no excuse, no choice. It was time to go back. 


And now I can go on.....
This should be an exciting day of writing. Her decision is not the one I expected, but almost every kind of love scars the heart.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
4/24
I woke up this morning, like every morning now, to fan mail. I want to thank everyone who writes to me in the comments here, through FB, Twitter, Simon and Schuster, Penguin, my email box, my website http://kathleenduey.com/ and any other way. If I haven't answered you yet, please read this when you have time, it's a letter from me to YOU: http://bit.ly/e2tiW4 



The writing was slow yesterday. Sadima has made a hard, painful decision ONLY because what her heart wants most is almost certainly impossible.  But only almost....


As I wrote the scenes that followed her decision, I realized it is the same decision we ALL have to make. What matters?  What matters most to you, to the ones you love, and to the ones you will never meet?  


Limori is tense, scary, balancing on a knife edge as powerful people wrestle for more power. The men and women on their way to work, opening their shops, the elderly people stealing food and a blanket for the night, the children who live under the boardwalks in South End, the fortunate sons and daughters of Ferrin Hill, scared that they are not allowed to go into Market Square without hired bodyguards now...everyone is wary, waiting, hoping.  




So. Back to today's work. Sadima can't run away from any of this anymore... and neither can I.  


 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

4/27/2011
I spend some of each day rereading sections of the first two books...often at random. I almost never read any of my books once they are published, because I see too many things I would tweak a little, or re-write completely. But there are so many details in A Resurrection of Magic, so many tiny threads to weave, that I have to reread as I write.


This morning I reread Sacred Scars Chapter 25, which is Hahp trying to recover from a surreal test that leaves him unsure of...everything. Because I understand Somiss's intent with every test, I know why it is important for Hahp to lose--and then recover--himself. The physics and the psychology of real magic, the cost of learning how to break all the rules, how to do things that are impossible--fascinates me. 


People do lots of impossible things: 
Wingsuits: 
http://vimeo.com/1778399?utm_source=wordtwit&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=wordtwit

Parkour:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x98jCBnWO8w
((Warning: If you aren't an audioslave fan, you might want to turn down your speakers.))

More Parkour, which began in France, but has gone worldwide.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nviRpBf81M8&feature=related
playing tag in the city

And today Hahp begins to learn how to walk through stone. I basically understand what would be necessary  on a molecular level....it's the belief that it would work that will be the hardest part.  Magic (and wingsuits, and roof leaping) require belief, first and foremost. Belief that it can be done.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

April 28, 2011

Last night's session ended with this:

Sadima is on her knees in a forest, staring up at the cliffs.  She is crying, but beneath that, in her deepest, heart, she is relieved, glad--and ashamed.

Hahp is standing in a dark tunnel, watching the impossible. Gerrard's hands on his shoulders, pinning him, holding him back.

The timelines are within about 3 years now, and closing fast...really fast...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How did it get to be MAY? I feel like I am living in Limori, staggering out to eat and sleep, then coming back to the cliffs, down into the tunnels...

Late in the day yesterday, I wrote a scene in Sadima's story that rattled the windows. It went entirely differently than I thought it would. So today will begin with her strand of the book again, so that I can see if she meant it, if everything hereafter needs to be painted differently than I have been assuming it would be. I am almost positive she is not going to rethink this. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

May 3rd, 2011
Today is the second day of condensation...of Sadima's strand. Not cutting content, just saying it in less words...because she needs to catch up, to be in the right place at the right time.  Sometimes just being there...really matters. 


((thanks, readers from Germany, for visiting me here!!) 




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

May 5th 2011                                                      

I am still condensing, looking at the time lines and checking continuity issues. All of this rereading is generating a lot of character revelations. They are not so much talking to me as screaming at me.  


Sadima is torn between doing what she must and doing what she wants. 




Hahp has passed a tipping point. Fear is so familiar that he no longer recognizes it as fear, really. The wizards are so good at this... 












~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
5/7/2011
Late last night, I wrote a pivotal scene, one that made me cry.  The courage, the bonds  between the boys inside the cliffs--the trust they have managed to build in that insane place...just hit me. 


There have been classes of boys in that rat-maze of tunnels off and on over many centuries. The magicians of old often stole children from the streets, and sometimes from their homes. 


Somiss was the first to involve the sons of wealthy families, often families who were once royalty. He is building alliances, of course, and readying for a war he knows will come eventually.  The difference between Somiss and all the magicians who came before him is fundamental. They wanted to protect their knowledge, their libraries, and their influence for the use of those who would follow them--even those with grossly extended lives knew they would die one day.  Somiss has other plans. 

Hello, Aliscckka Fluturaşi

Yes, I am the writer! I am so thrilled to have my books translated into German!

South End

 This is a building that was  in San Antonio TX USA. It was being torn down when I photographed it.

It is now in South End, a slum where several people in my Resurrection of Magic books live. It  has also become the setting of some short stories I am writing.

Backstory:
Captive children broke all the windows on the first floor and many of the smallest ones escaped.  

The remainder were marched up steep stairs to the third floor-- and locked in without food for seven days as punishment.

On the first night, they found two stones and began chipping at the walls-- taking turns so that the stones were never idle.

On the fourth night, they tied together all of their clothing and descended safely, scattering like South End rats, then, without discussion or promises, they stopped running and reassembled, shivering in the cold, free, a family of sorts, bonded by misery and hope. The short stories will be built around their lives after that night....

HOBBIT!!!

The hobbit was my favorite part of the Lord of the Rings, so I am VERY excited about this:




                               video here:   http://www.thehobbitblog.com/

A Resurrection of Magic--the art of centering intent

Borrowing  vids from the amazing Michael Moschen to illustrate how I see what the wizards call  "a still point" held deep inside the body that preserves both some humanity and sanity. Hahp is juggling a lot more than balls, of course. He thinks of his own still point as the quiet place--the only place where he can sometimes believe that he is alive.

Snakes, Games...Sources...

Vintage boardgame from Oxford digital library collection shared online @ http://bit.ly/hQFLph.


I am borrowing the basic concept of this antique snake game for the Limori Academy--the idea is to navigate the course while avoiding the snake and other pitfalls.
But in the dark.
The Somiss version.

Book Signings

I got a note today from a woman thanking me (like, five times) for signing a book for her husband. She wanted me to know how much it meant to him to have my good wishes and signature on his 35th birthday.  




I don't know if most people realize what a joy it is to be asked to sign a book.  That little bit of ink confirms the transcendence the written word. It acknowledges the  bond between writer and reader, the connection of separate generations and complete strangers, the writer's effort and the almost unbelievable power of literacy.  So if you ever want a book signed, I would LOVE to.  I will feel honored and I always have 6-10 fine tip sharpies in the back pack.

THE FAERIES' PROMISE

For young readers (and all the adults who send me fan mail for this series and The Unicorn's Secret)... I love you! 

There is a shiny new addition to The Faeries Promise series today...
Book Two, Wishes and Wings .   


You can read excerpts from all four books  here : http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=books%20kathleen%20duey

                                                                book one in the series

REVIEWS:

This lovely, sincere faerie story tempers sadness with joy. Readers will eagerly return for the next volume.

-- Kirkus

"With its magical tone, sturdy characters, and satisfying plot, this simple fantasy will engage young readers and leave them eager to read the next book."

-- School Library Journal

"The opening portrayal of Alida's isolation is particularly compelling, and young readers will no doubt feel at first her despondency and then her hope and determination as the story progresses." The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

((I chose the name Alida because I have always loved the sound of it. A year after I wrote the books, I looked up the meaning. "small winged one". Really.))

real things in my books

For anyone who wonders what the coat/key rack in Sadima's hidden room above the warehouse looks like: This is it. It hung on the wall of my grandfather's flour mill  for as long as he lived.  I think he brought it with him from Tennesee, but I can't be sure. I was fascinated with it when I was little. I remember pulling a chair up so I could get closer to the dragons. If you click the picture, you can too.

The lantern on the right is an old miner's lantern I used when I lived in a tipi until I could afford a Coleman. It became Sadima's lantern. The copper kitchen tools are from a garage sale years ago. The scarf was bought in Dubai  when I was there to do school visits. The bag came from a discount store in Chelsea, NYC. All of these things belong to Sadima now.  The Hame-harness breast plate side-piece with the brass knobs came out of an abandoned and rotting/literally/ tilting barn I stumbled across hiking in Steamboat Springs CO. It isn't in the book yet but yesterday I remembered that I once picked it up to walk through a dark house to investigate an odd noise, thinking, I am ARMED....

Real people in my books

These cups belonged to my great aunt. I, who never played tea party or dolls,  somehow ended up with a cabinet full of her travel-treasures, many of them dishes and gravy boats and little painted tea pots. She died when I was six or seven, I think, so I don't have the stories to go with them. 


She had an automatic crank-up card shuffler, too, and cheated like crazy.  I loved her apartment in Denver, crowded with her collections, incense, furnished with expensive old stand-alone cabinets and divans with curved pecan wood feet. 


She was funny, adventurous, wry, elegant and nice to me. Really elegant, and really nice. This morning I wrote her into the third Resurrection of Magic book. It's a bit part, but I know she will like it.  

SKYPE is fun!!!

Another great library visit with teens and tweens, this one in Colorado. It was lovely. No airplanes were involved. 


Please get in touch, teachers, book clubs, librarians, writer's groups, bookstores... In person is better, I know, but this is POSSIBLE!!!


Contact me here, FB, @kdueykduey (twitter), kathleenduey at earthlink dot net (email) or through my website http://www.kathleenduey.com

Writing about writing....again.

   Writers:  I  have been writing about writing in my free time, here and there, for years. Someday it will be a book. What parts of writing are difficult for you? What stops you, confounds you.  Comment here, please, and help me spend the ink where it is most needed.

Thanks!

k   

WHY I TWEET

Twitter was made to fill a corporate need: a device that required short, hourly  updates from every member of a production team. If the brochure designer tweeted that he was waiting on something, the rest of the group could switch tasks or redirect energy efficiently. Brilliant time saver. Everyone on the same page, all the time.

Some people use it in almost the same way now.  They can tweet once and have it reach 20 (or 200 or ?) family or group members at once. It has massive potential as a disaster rescue tool, an aggregator of information from the ground up--and citizen communication.

There are journalists on twitter who retweet (gather and send out to their followers) a constant stream of  mobile and other tweets by citizens in the streets of the world, dealing with local crises. This week there is much news from Bahrain and Yemen and Egypt and elsewhere.

the # hashtag mark denotes topics and allows you to occupy a space filled with people who are addressing that topic, 140 characters at a time. They argue, they convince, they share solutions, they support each other, they make joyous human noise.  Free.

#writer
# Oscars
# knitting
#kidlit
# Egypt
# the band/actor/celebrity of your choice
#amwriting
Or, this morning,  # Wisconsin


Image taken in Rabat, Morocco

THE UNICORN'S SECRET NEW COVERS

art by the amazing Sandara Tang


CLICK art to enlarge image...










This series is based on dreams I had--night after night--in third/fourth grade. Lord Dunraven's lands were as real to me as my own life.There is a second series now, set in the same place: The Faeries Promise. 

Scene openings

Scene openings

I am writing the third book of this trilogy now. There are two protagonists and two timelines. In one story, about 8 years will pass. In the other, about 200 years go by. So it gets complicated at times. The chapters tend to be short overall, but I use chapter length as a way to brighten or dim the spotlight a little, guiding the reader back and forth when emphasis is needed on one thread or the other.


One of the constant concerns is pacing. Because the short chapters range from 5-9 pages the events have to be compressed to fit, and sometimes I realize I have made two--or even three--chapters out of something that really only needed one.


So I spent this morning turning twenty chapters in one of the storylines into fifteen chapters, by combining chapter content and changing the emphasis points--and re-polishing the little cliff-hangers at the end of each chapter. But more than anything, I eliminated re-descriptions of things the reader already knows I had used as set-ups to more compelling stuff.
The story rolls so much better now.


It can be useful for any writer to reread each chapter and see what it really brings to the story. If the event you are excited to write occurs in the middle of the night, after the protagonist comes home from spending time with someone that you know they are slowly going to come to love, it might be worth painting a full scene with that person, then letting the protagonist get ready for bed thinking about the evening...and then be awakened by whatever the midnight surprise scene is.


But if the protagonist spends the evening with people less important in her/his life, and the reader already  knows what their roles are in the protagonist's world and is equally familiar with the physical layout of the apartment or house or campground (or whatever) consider a chapter opening that has almost no set up:


 quick example: ** (this is not from the book in progress, just examples I am making up now...)
       For a moment, Jenny thought the pounding was imagined, part of a dream. Then she thought it was coming from the street. She sat up in bed, confused and scared, tangled in the sheets, finally awake enough to understand that the banging was close, meant for her, and not muted by skin or flesh. Someone was pounding her door with something metal, someone was trying to break it down.


As opposed to:
    Jenny got home late and took a shower to relax after another long day at work. Gregory had been tedious as always and sometimes she wondered how she could stand to work there, but she knew she had to. Nothing had changed. She had to support herself now. It look a long time for her to go to sleep, then, in the middle of the night, someone pounded on the door.   For a moment....etc.

To everyone who has gotten in touch....

I woke up this morning trying to think of a way to say thank you....
....to everyone who has written to me through http://www.kathleenduey.com , facebook, twitter, etc. I have been trying to answer each one of you, and have to finally admit that I am probably too far behind to ever catch up.
Ever.

It’s amazing. YOU are amazing. I have heard from people all over the US and Canada, the UK, France, Germany, Poland, the Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Belize, Brazil, Mexico, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Morocco, Turkey, China, North Korea, Chile, …and all of you will get a link to this message soon. If you have written me from a place I have not mentioned, contact me, and I will add it.

If you want updates on my work once or twice a year, please email me:   kathleen duey at earthlink dot net. You will be the first to know what’s up next and how it’s going. I start almost every day by reading messages from readers. Your letters are a treasure. They make me write better (and sometimes faster). What you have written makes me smile and laugh and sometimes cry.

It’s always wonderful to hear someone say they love my books. People write to me asking questions about Sadima, Hahp, Gerrard, and all the others in ways that make me feel like they are people we both know and sometimes worry about. The city of Limori is very real to me, too, and yes, I do know more about it than I will ever fit into three books.

Thanks to everyone who thinks that a book about Eridies might be interesting. It might be. To everyone writing to ask about Russet: I am accumulating entries again will post them soon.  http://russet-one-wing.blogspot.com/

I love to hear from teens who say they hate reading but they liked my books anyway and stayed up late because they couldn’t stop reading.

Older Adults have written to tell me that even though the books are for Young Adults, they stay up too late reading them too.

LOTS of people have suggestions as to how Somiss needs to die. All I can say is, we'll see...

Librarians often say there are waiting lists for the books! School librarians write to say the added them to their collections and hope the censorship loving parents don’t notice.

One teen reader, recovering from a terrible accident, wrote to tell me that the books took her “out of the hospital, away from the pain". Another girl thanked me for the Eridians and said that her friends were like that, they carried as much of her sorrow as they could. Teen book clubs have written asking me really deep questions about the stories and the characters. I have recently gotten Skype and look forward to being part of book club and library discussions.

Some people write to ask WHERE TO BUY THE BOOKS.
In the US:
Most bookstores carry them and any bookstore can order them for you and have them in a few days.
Indiebound http://www.indiebound.org/ is a portal into the wonderful world of America’s independent booksellers. Type in the book title upper right and you can order it from a local bookstore in your area. All the online stores carry the books: Amazon, Barns&Noble, Borders, etc.

Internationally: Skin Hunger and Sacred Scars have been translated into:
German: http://bit.ly/h9w1S2
French: http://www.castelmore.fr/
Polish: (coming soon)
UK English (ok, not really translated, but some expressions and words changed)

If you want UK English versions of *any* book: http://www.bookdepository.com/
They have fair, low prices, and ship to most of the world... free.

Thanks for all the people who have written to tell me there are no ebook versions yet. I know. There will be, probably in 2013.

Everyone (almost) asks me when the third book will come out. After a LOT of interruptions (some of them self-inflicted) I am writing all day every day on book three. As soon as it tells me its name, I will tell YOU. I hope to finish it (including the revisions, etc, by the end of summer 2011. After that, it will take most of a year to produce the hardcover. I know. I apologize. I am trying hard to make it incredibly good.

Valid Excuses:
1. These are complex books and the details take time.
2. I have had to write other things, including books for younger kids, which I also love doing.

Whines:
1. I want the last one to be so good that I am afraid of it, a little. Which doesn’t sound like a very good excuse for taking so long, but it is, in an odd way.

Thank you ALL for writing to me, thank you for reading this. I send you all my very best wishes and may the coming new year bring you all good things.