I found out on Wednesday that ‘The Silver Wind’ came joint first in the Interzone Reader’s Poll for 2011, sharing the top spot with Suzanne Palmer’s very excellent ‘The Ceiling is Sky’. I was astonished, so much so that when I opened the email in question my first thought was that it was a stray one from last year! Anyway, it’s a huge honour, and huge thanks to everyone who voted for the story. I really am still taking this in.
Eastercon saw the launch of Dark Currents, the latest title from NewCon Press, a mixed anthology of SF/F/H which includes my story ‘The Barricade’. There are some excellent things in there – stories by Tricia Sullivan and Lavie Tidhar, for a start – and I am of course extremely happy to be a part of it.
Just as we were leaving for Eastercon, I had an email from Michael Kelly of Undertow Books, bringing me the good news that issue 3 of Shadows and Tall Trees is now shipping – and that is the issue that contains my story ‘The Elephant Girl’.
And then on top of all that I had a story acceptance this morning from Black Static. I am especially pleased about this one, because ‘Sunshine’ was one of those very rare stories that was actually fun to write. The story behind the story is also amusing – but more of that nearer the time.
It is deeply gratifying to know that a story is making its way in the world. I always find it difficult to read a piece of mine when it’s first published because I am all too aware that it is less than I intended. I’m also terrified of finding monstrous, glaring errors in the text. Generally I prefer to wait awhile before I look at it, to let the story bed down.
Once a piece is finished I prefer to let it go, because in a way it is no longer my business.
I began work on the second draft of my novel this week. It’s hard to talk about, because the work now is so concentrated, so intense, like swimming a long distance underwater. It’s also the best part of writing anything – I now know what the book should be about, and can concentrate on how it should be.
Something that really gives me pleasure at any time is seeing other writers getting excited about their own stories. I found this post from Livia Llewellyn just now, and it made me so happy, not least because ‘Take Your Daughters to Work’ is a marvellously accomplished and marvellously terrifying piece of writing, the kind of writing that inspires you to find the best you have inside you and drag it out.
This job is never easy but there’s nothing to beat it.