Gail Carriger

Gentle Reader, I am delighted to announce that Changeless, Book the Second in the Parasol Protectorate series, has been given a release date (well, release month). The word on the big bad streets of New York is April of 2010. Thank you to all who have so kindly asked. Orbit warns us all . . . this date subject to change with notice.

Also, I will be putting in an appearance at the Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Trade Show over the weekend of Soulless's official launch date, October 1. I am very much looking forward to this event, particularly the Author Feast (here's hoping I'm braised in a nice red wine sauce perhaps with a side of kale, I have an unreasoning love of kale). As you well know, Gentle Reader, I have a real soft spot for Independent Bookstores so this is very exciting for me. I now return you to your regularly scheduled blogosphere.


Gail's Daily Dose (all writing related this week)
Your Infusion of Cute:
More on the language of parasols
Your Tisane of Smart:
The first Europeans were cannibals
Your Writerly Tinctures:
All about urban fantasy heroines - chicks kicking arse.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Look for me to make an appearance in the Romantic Times Debutante Corner in the not too distance future. How cool is that?
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date currently April 2010.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"A person who publishes a book appears willfully in public eye with his pants down."
~ Edna St. Vincent Millay
(Given the recent Alice Hoffman debacle I thought this quote apt.)

I have finally returned from a peaceful jaunt out into the wilds of coastal California where I enjoyed a week of lumpy mattresses, tea, and much writing. I dragged Chris Lester of the Metamor City Podcast along with me, I thought a week of watching all 6 foot plus of him cope with a Tee Morris-sized (read: hobbit) living environment might keep me entertained. (Answer, yes it did. Fancy that.) But the real joy of lounging about with another writer for long hours on end is discussing world-building concepts. Ah the immense detail that never ever makes it into any book, but nevertheless simply must be figured out in its entirety, usually late at night after consumption of inebriatory beverages. Any author's sanity depends upon such all-inclusive understanding of their imaginary universe, and any book's consistency dissolves without it. The reader will know if the author doesn't know her own world, and so the author must know everything. Having to talk about, and defend, one's imaginary universe has the benefit of forcing one to face down any evil gaps or flaws. Much good has been done for my cohesiveness as a writer by a friend or fellow author who looked me straight on and uttered those fateful three words: "Yes, but how?"

I have just had seven days of "Yes, but how?"s and think I can faithfully say that I, if no one else, perfectly understand the order and chaos of my little corner of the Victorian universe. Within the story? Well, Alexia's not doing so well, and Lord Maccon, poor man, is entirely befuddled. Lyall may figure things out, and Lord Akeldama probably knows more about it than I do, but the point is, I know enough to make sense of it all, and (insert dramatic pause here) Book the Third has . . . an . . . ending.


Gail's Daily Dose (all writing related this week)
Your Infusion of Cute:
The Significant Other's Guide to Dating a Science Fiction/Fantasy Writer by Chloe Neill
Your Tisane of Smart:
A buyer discusses Random House's lists
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Wanna beat the odds? Well here they are Jack Barbosa discusses the statistics behind getting published.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: An embarrassingly awesome review, over on Rob Will Review. I'm humbled. I swear we have never met and we are not related.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date currently April 2010.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"Giving up creativity for immortality? I don't know if it's worth it."
"That would be the question."
"So what exactly is the soul in your world?"
"That would be the other question."
~ Self & Chris solving the problems of my universe

Warning, this post, may, or may not, be considered explicit. Judge for yourself, you poodle-faker!

I don't know what it says about me as an author, Gentle Reader, but as I move along through this series, I seem to find myself in need of more and more swear words. (And, before you ask, no that does not mean Alexia has suddenly taken to canoodling with the blowhards down dockside.) The fun of this is, of course, that the Victorians had such delicious profanity: like pea-brain, lack-wit, and ninny-hammer. (What exactly, one wonders idly, is a ninny-hammer? Perhaps better not to ask.) Or, if you are Miss Alexia Tarabotti, you might get overly enthusiastic and use all three at once: "You pea-brained lack-witted ninny-hammer!"

My research has shown (don't ask) that many of the slightly less common, but still repulsive, short-syllable expletives of the current day were in use during Victorian times as well. (Oh, all right, I'll tell you: court records from the seedier end of town faithfully record the sailor and soldier lingo as hurled at some poor bobby from the dock.) But what is fun, is finding the ones that will past muster in printed matter under the eagle eye of my editor, and, it-goes-without-saying, also not lower the tenor of the book – like poodle-faker. (Yes poodle-faker – a young man too much given to taking tea with ladies.)

The thing is (and there's always a thing) the English language is peculiarly rich with luscious words: like kafuffle, tatterdemalion, curdle, spelunking, frippet, pollock, macerate, waddle, shenanigans, plonker, booby, and kumquat. I wonder often about other linguistic cultures: do they have equally satisfying words? Do they enjoying saying them the way we do? Or is it just us, with our eccentric enthusiasm for alliteration and ruthless penchant for scrumping words from other cultures, who can take satisfaction from the mere word itself? (Speaking of which, whoever could possibly have thought "vacuum" a good idea?) Or am I being linguistically superior and speaking nothing more than preposterous twaddle?

Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
1930's fashion that look remarkably similar to certain Oscar dresses of recent times.

Your Tisane of Smart:
Car Talk's green car buying guide.
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Sherwood Smith rackets into the Paranormal argument.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Nothing new today.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless: Yeah, I know, I didn't write yesterday. There was unavoidable, uh, stuff.

Quote of the Day:
"For your born writer, nothing is so healing as the realization that he has come upon the right word."
~ Catherine Drinker Bowen

I'm off for a writing retreat for the next week, I will be mostly offline but this is a good thing!

Supper for Today, 1876, in a London Townhouse

• Asparagus soup - asparagus tips in jelly broth.
• Veal Cutlets en Papillottes - thin cutlets in a souse of parsley, green onions, shallots, lemon juice, and mushrooms broiled with thin slice of ham and udder
• Cabinet Pudding - a bread pudding with raisins, lemon peel, cinnamon, Madeira, and brandy.

Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
Fancy Man Enjoys Tea
Your Tisane of Smart:
Alice's Tea Cup in New York city not only looks like a lovely place to visit but also has an informative (if slightly cumbersome) website with an extensive section about tea.
Your Writerly Tinctures:
All about author bios and how to market a writer. I would just like to point out that, on the basis of my bio alone, I was approached by an editor of a major house. So it's true, write a good one, boys and girls!

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Look, Soulless available through . . . uh, Target?
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"There is a great deal of poetry and fine sentiment in a chest of tea."
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

I recently pulled out my 1891 Baedeker's Northern Italy, as Alexia and cohorts are currently traipsing about Florence. Unfortunately, I don't have an earlier version, and a lot changed in Italy over the 20 years between Alexia's time and this edition of the travel guide (a complete rail system magically appeared, for example). Nevertheless, a 1891 Baedeker's is still better than my unreliable memories of the city (from when I was excavating near there some ten or more years ago). As I was reading along, in the wee hours of the night, muttering to myself about all the things I would now have to go back and adjust in Blameless, I encountered an unintentionally hilarious section. Essentially, intended as a food guide, it was really Italian cuisine as defined by the Victorian British pallet. Here are a few choice morsels for your amusement:

• Antipasti: relishes taken as whets
• Risotto: a kind of rice pudding (rich)
• Salami: banger
• Potaggio di pollo: chicken-fricassee
• Funghi: mushrooms (often too rich)
• Polenta: boiled maize
• Gnocchi: small puddings

That last is my personal favorite. I can just see Alexia, wafting into some Italian cafe and demanding a dish of those "delightful green covered tiny puddings." You see how easily I amuse myself? This is one of the great pleasures of writing alternative history, I get to expound on the absurdity of the Victorian British abroad, but also use them as a vehicle through which I can expound on the absurdity of other cultures as well. As bad as Alexia can be about alien cuisine (she has much to say on the vileness of coffee, I must point out) you should see how she describes foreign mannerisms. The Italian language, for example, she cannot help but notice seems to be mainly comprised of "extravagant hand gestures." And, with that, I had best get back to it.



Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:

Your Tisane of Smart:
Go librarians, go, rah rah rah!
Your Writerly Tinctures:
One of my favorite talks from BEA was Becoming an Agent of Trust: Publisher and Retailer Strategies for Harnessing New Social Media Tools to Grow Communities, it doesn't sound like it is aimed at authors but BOY was it interesting.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Still getting some lovely initial reviews but none of these will be posted until September or so.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"Heaven is where the police are British, the chefs Italian, the mechanics German, the lovers French, and it's all organized by the Swiss. Hell is where the police are German, the chefs are British, the mechanics French, the lovers Swiss, and it is all organized by the Italians."
~ An oldie but a goodie

Well, Gentle Reader, I was at the doctor's yesterday. No this is not going to be one of those blogs. But we did get on to the subject of carpel tunnel and what I was doing to prevent the "hack & slashers" of the world (AKA practitioners of Western medicine) from cutting me open. Well I have my mitties (after trying almost all the ones on the market these are my favorite) which I was wearing all the time and now wear only when I sleep, type, or work in the field, and I have my workstation (a combination of raised lap top – a use for old review books, wireless mouse and keyboard, ergonomic seat support – stolen form the Armenian lover's car, and raised feet – a use for all the compiled information from the Great Binder of Agents and Editors Hunt 1999-2005. But I also stop every 20-30 minutes and engage in the following:

• Set of stretches designed form computer users
• Sun Salutations
• Arm stretches
• Arm exercises from my Chiropractor
• Breathing (yes I need to be reminded sometimes)
• Neck stretches
• Floor yoga stretches
• Drink water (yes I forget to do this also)
• Looking out the window and focusing on something a long distance away to keep my eyes from dieing slow death by computer screen
• Little rubber band finger exercises from my other chiropractor
• Posture correction

No wonder it takes me four hours to write 2000 words! I direct you to Short Cummings Audio on the subject of doctor visits, most amusing.


Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:

Your Tisane of Smart:
Slides and info from the Twitter Boot camp just the first slide show is really worth a click through. I know a lot of twitter users who could profit from this information. It certainly has affected the way I use and interact with twitter.
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Sherrilyn Kenyon tells her twitter horror story and on the flip side Michael Gruen talks Twitter for (book industry) Dummies: Strategies and Apps for Enhancing Business Communication and Networking. Oh and here's a marketing take Why Twitter? The Real Question Is… Why Not Twitter? And last, but not least, a great slide show from the Twitter Boot Camp.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Gabrielle Faust gives me a shout out on Eternal Vigilance
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"I am dying from the treatment of too many physicians."
~ Alexander The Great

I have been battling Twitter all morning, Gentle Reader. This is very frustrating for an OCD former QA tester super-organizer with delusions of someday defeating entropy. I can only imagine Jane Austen on the subject: Twitter is a party of inferior refinement, wherein people of little consequence say things of no consequence despite the accepted fact that no one is listening, and even if they were, they would not respond. As you may have determined, I am disinclined to pursue any further avenues of social media today. Thus I give you only the Obligatory Parasol Photo and the Daily Dose.

Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
Ascot Lady's Day has been and gone, an event most Americans tend to overlook. But, since I adore hats, I couldn't let it pass me by without a mention. Attending Ascot is one of my life goals. Some day I too will be supercilious, elitist, and cranially adorned.

Your Tisane of Smart:
The Maya were big on tubers, manioc (yuca or cassava) in particular. Turns out they may be on to something, this member of the spurge family (yes, I said SPURGE - how Invader Zim is that?) is reputed to make the best French fries in existence.

Your Writerly Tinctures:
The Swivet's hilarious BEA wrap up

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: still basking in the library glow.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"I always like to know everything about my new friends, and nothing about my old ones."
~ Oscar Wilde
I thought this particularly social media apt.

Well, Gentle Reader, I have been getting some of my first book reviews in email and online. Some of these are from libraries, some from bloggers, and some from brick & mortar independents. These are the folks who got the first round of ARCs or picked one up at BEA. I'm not going to talk about the reviews themselves, because what I am finding most intriguing at the moment is how different they are from each other, and much each review tells me about the reviewer's focus and interests.

Those whose interest is largely fantasy orientated tend to write more about the world building process and manipulation of the Victorian era to accommodate the supernatural elements. Those who are fans of urban fantasy focus on the way Soulless deviates from other paranormals with regards to treatment of vampires and werewolves and any major aberrations from the pack. This, in Soulless's case is the idea of excess or absent soul. Those coming out of the romance field go into detailed analysis of the hero/heroine dynamic, flavor of the dialogue, and other personal interactions. Those who read widely and do not associate with any particular genre tend to talk a lot about characterization. I have yet to be reviewed within the steampunk community but I am looking forward to seeing how those folks lend their own personality to the opinion rooster.

With this book, my main worry was that I had my fingers in too many pies. I was concerned I might have the equivalent of a dinner party full of picky eaters, and serving up a meal with too many exoteric components. Fortunately, what I am finding is quite the reverse. It is more like a buffet, and so far, even the pickiest of eaters seem to be finding something to chew on.

So, Gentle Readers, this is my moment of gratitude. Not only am I grateful for the reviews, but I am grateful that by writing them you reviewers are sharing with me a little bit of yourself, which is a remarkable gift indeed.



Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
The World Beard and Mustache Championships 2009 in Anchorage, Alaska

Your Tisane of Smart:
Great quote about the Assassins guild c. 1193 (yes, the Assassins guild did really exist). "Henry [VI, Holy Roman Emperor] even made a new alliance with the Assassins. The Old Man of the Mountains celebrated it in spectacular fashion: he invited Henry to a meeting on a cliff-top, where his followers demonstrated their fidelity by leaping, one by one, to their deaths in the abyss below, until Henry begged for the display to end. The Templars had little time for such frivolities." ~ Stephen Howarth (Then Knights Templar)
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Dave goes to bat over genre politics

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Basking in the glow of compliments from librarians, some of the most important people in my life have been librarians.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless: No progress due to brief invasion of Western Coast by the Uber Nemesis of Podcasting Himself. You may, of course, blame him.

Quote of the Day:
"I got to thinking about the point in every freelancer's life where he has to decide whether he wants to A, have a social life, and do art in his spare time, or B, do art, and have a social life in his spare time. It has always seemed to me that if you have any hope of making a living as an artist – writer, musician, whatever – you absolutely must learn to tell people to leave you alone, and to mean it, and to eject them from your life if they don't respect that. This is necessary not because your job is more important than anyone else's – it isn't – but because a great many people will think of you as not having a job. 'Oh, how wonderful – you can work whenever you want to!' Well, yes, to a point, but generally 'whenever you want to' had better be most of the time, or else you won't have a roof over your head."
~ Poppy Z. Brite
(Considering Tee and I's discussion over the collapse of the Survivor Guide, I thought this quote apt.)

Otherwise know as: the graph of coffee shop visits and writing competency

Today, Gentle Reader I have made for you a histogram charting the average author's progress through a book. This, of course, is based on an entirely representative sample of one.

• 0-20% complete - Thrill of a New Adventure, during which phase your hardy author stays home and is Very Diligent
• 20-40% complete - Nose to the Grindstone, during which phase your terrified author is driven to productivity by the sheer weight of deadline
• 40-60% complete - Struggle With Progress, your long-suffering author has achieve the half way point, only to realize she must do the same again
• 60-80% complete - I Suck, Why Bother?, during this phase your depressive author is convinced everything she writes is rubbish, no one will buy the book, the editor will want a massive rewrite, and she should take up manufacturing shoes for earthworms or something equally useful
• 80-100% complete - Victory is Mine, during this phase the light appears at the end of the tunnel, the betas are clamoring for the next book, and your triumphant author has decided once more she is brilliant.

Supper for Today, 1876, in a London Townhouse

• Flounders - fish cooked in brine served with parsley and butter sauce
  
• Green Goose - stuffed with sage, onion, bread-crumbs, pepper, and salt served with a gravy, apple sauce, and mustard (green means young)
• Arrowroot Pudding - (actually a custard) made with bitter almond, lemon-peel

Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
Screen caps from Young Victoria still not in the USA, why?
Your Tisane of Smart:
Star Trek Reboot in 47 seconds - love the red balloon.
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Recently uncovered evidence of Khwarismian (Turkish) vampires from AD 1244 (post 4th Crusade): "Thirsting for and drinking blood, they butchered the bodies of dogs and humans, and eat them. The wear bulls' horns, that are armed with iron; they are short and squat, with compact bodies; they are invincible in war, and blood to them is a delicious drink." From templar records. Curiously indicative, no?

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Reworking back cover tag.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"As for butter versus margarine, I trust cows more than chemists."
~ Joan Gussow

Recently, Gentle Reader, I had my first encounter with a Fan Girl. I do not mean to imply I have never met such a creature before, indeed, I may have been one myself on more than one occasion (of the breathy variety and in the presence of a certain YA author). No, what made the encounter memorable was that this was my Fan Girl. She was excited to meet me in a manner that made itself known via mild bouncing and several intermittent squeaks that, once lowered into a decibel level appropriate to the human ear, could be translated as euphoric rhapsodies over Soulless. It was, to put it mildly, highly disconcerting. And I was not prepared.

First, and most importantly, I was not dressed appropriately. I was wearing my regular everyday clothing and not one of my nicer vintage dresses and stilettos. Please believe me when I tell you, Gentle Reader, that coping with unexpected social encounters is always best met wearing stilettos. Secondly, as my book is not yet out to the general public, I was not anticipating fan-girlishness in any form. I was under the impression that I still had a good four more months to prepare, and even then one cannot depend upon Fan Girls, one can only hope to engender such zeal.

And yet there I stood, wide-eyed and mute, confronted by gyrating squeals, with an acute sense that I ought to have some other response than "I'm so glad you liked it." So, in the end, this is the question: How does one respond to such adoration and enthusiasm for one's little book? I am rather coming down to the idea of replying with a "Who's your favorite character?" or some similar question. Because, quite frankly, I am interested in knowing the answer and, in addition, I am considering coming up with a personality evaluation scale based on which character a given reader finds most appealing.

Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
I'm delighted to see lady-like knits for the masses. Some are even turning out sweaters that are short enough for a real retro look. For example here are some 1950's influenced ladylike items from Tulle, a favorite designer of mine.Want to buy something? "luckybreaks3" will get you 35% off everything at check out.
Your Tisane of Smart:
Star Trek Movie Flow Chart

Your Writerly Tinctures:
Penguin Group's new Screening Room features a Project Paranormal Channel.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Given a little shout out over on Suburban Vampire
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"The test of any good fiction is that you should care something for the characters; the good to succeed, the bad to fail. The trouble with most fiction is that you want them all to land in hell, together, as quickly as possible."
~ Mark Twain

I have to come up with a speech, Gentle Reader, for a possible event in a couple of months. It occurred to me that I use all of my best material online these days. Perhaps I should be a tad more reticent? I am hoping I will be given some guidelines on what to talk about – this always improves matters. Luckily, I am not one of those authors terrified of public speaking. That stage fright not cured by docenting for two years, was later cured by teaching for two years too long. At least with guest author appearances one hopes the audience is there because they want to be there, unlike most college students.

The ideal speech contains something relevant to the venue, that incorporates the book, and amuses the audience – a rather tall order, in the end. And of coarse, rather like writing, one cannot hope to please everyone. I have to be careful, my base line is flippancy, which most people find offensive, so it helps if I at least come up with some species of short outline beforehand. I always think back to Emma Thompson's Golden Globes speech back in 1996 from the screenplay of Sense & Sensibility.

For some reason I was watching this award show at the time (let me think, ah yes undergraduate – I was much less discriminating in my television viewing) and have always remembered this particular speech. I would hold it up as the best acceptance speech ever given. Now, I myself am not receiving an award, but if I could only do something half as good I should be quite happy.


Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:Images originally posted on lamodeillustree
Your Tisane of Smart:
An FAQ on everyone's favorite – Marmite!

Your Writerly Tinctures:
Dave discusses his jaunt into San Francisco

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: Appearing on Amazon UK despite the fact that, to the best of my knowledge, we haven't sold UK rights.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"Thankfully there were no dogs and no children."
~ Emma Thomson doing Jane Austen's opinion of the Golden Globes

Recently, Gentle Reader, Ken Scholes and I were corresponding on the subject of multiple POVs. Also the subject came up at David J. Williams's question & answer session on Saturday at Borderlands as well.

Dave has six POV's in his most recent book and Ken just keeps adding more and more. I find the very idea of so many impossible to fathom. I write, at most, two POVs in the Parasol Protectorate series, and I have to go through and write my primary (Alexia) first, jotting down the action to take place secondarily. Then I write Lyall. I've tried writing back and forth but it just doesn't seem to work for me. In one of my other series, I actually wrote two separate novellas, then literally cut the printed out documents apart and pasted them back together. I thought it worked well and it allowed me to progressively shorten the alternating POV chapters up to the point when they meet, and then lengthen when they separated again. Ken says he isn't sure how he does it, but he writes all POVs at once, one after the other. They all simply live in his head and he "listens for their voice when it's their turn on stage."

Dave writes without chapters, in present tense, with very short back-and-forthing between his characters. To me it reads like he writes them all at once, but I'll have to ask him next time he is in town what his actual technique is. All three of us write third person. It makes me wonder about those who write first person multiple POVs. How does that work?

Recently, I've also become interested in other writers' revision techniques. I do a lot of editing and at least three drafts before I send it in to my editor then at least two after. Ken does very little revising. It makes me wonder about other authors. I know a number of them hate editing (looks at Mur Lafferty) but I adore it and I find my betas markedly improve the finished product (without mucking up my voice). I wonder if that is one of the reasons I do so many edits.

Now I'm just rambling. I suppose I should get back to it.



Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
Corsets go uber geek.
Your Tisane of Smart:
1946 American (!) instructional video on how to serve tea.

Your Writerly Tinctures:
The Digital Age and RWA: A Call for Change

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: "Spent weekend reading Soulless, by Gail Carriger, about a Victorian London in which vampires and werewolves are integrated uneasily into the general population. It's great." ~ Time
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"What a writer wants to do is not what he does."
~ Jorge Luis Borges

So this weekend I poodled into the City (AKA San Francisco) for David J. Williams's reading and question & answer session at Borderlands. Coincidentally, it was also worldwide Knit In Public Day. No I don't knit but there, listening to Dave's excellent dramatic reading from his second book, was a young lady with one of the Borderland's naked cats on her lap, knitting. Funny how cats gravitate to knitters.

Borderlands was, as always, a gracious venue and a splendid time. After, a group of us went across the street to the Phoenix to do what writers do best (no, not write) drink and eat. Dave has some excellent West Coast friends (all involved in a concerted effort to get him to move to this side of the world) and it was an interesting mix of techies and writers, fellows from Clarion West, ex-co-workers, college roommates, and even high school alumni.

After that, it was off to Writers with Drinks, which was not at all what I was expecting. I was thinking some kind of Inside the Actor's Studio with multiple authors. (Perhaps this is a result of my Victorian salon mentality.) It was, in fact, more of a poetry-slam style variety show wherein each writer read from his or her book. There was even a stand-up comedian. I drank a very large screwdriver and don't remember much, although there was some very good Ethiopian food involved. All-in-all a most enjoyable evening.

Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
These days it's all about layered knits and cardigans. Missoni's fall runway showed a lot of layering of multiple shades, I like it, but it feels a little Lawrence of Arabia.

What I love is all the 1950's influenced cardigans, some with bows and some with military details.Your Tisane of Smart:
A Harvard Psychiatrist Explains Zombie Neurobiology
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Steampunk literature as pastiche over on Steampunk Scholar.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: A full and honest review up on Janicu's book blog. As a result of this review, I extend the mild raspberry of "I told you so" to a certain person who made me modernize the nookie - pttttt. As to the caricatures, wha ha ha, oh the shilly-shallying that will occur in Book the Second. The great fun of caricatures is mucking them about once you have set them up all prim and proper.
Steampunk short: Troublesome beastie is about an adventure of its own.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections. Release date unknown.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"Reading usually precedes writing and the impulse to write is almost always fired by reading. Reading, the love of reading, is what makes you dream of becoming a writer."
~ Susan Sontag

It's that time of year, Gentle Reader. No I don't mean Book the Third deadline looming, Peru excavation season on the horizon, and teaching just around the corner. I mean the flowers are in bloom and the Victory garden is beginning to produce. We had eight snap peas and a tomato this morning, not to mention all the herbs. Amazing how exciting one can find the advent of one single tomato.

This may be the best reason to have a garden, the great anticipation that is afforded and the equally exciting discovery of some new flower or tiny vegetable. And, as a writer, it has the added bonus of dragging me out of the house once in a while.



Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
Because in Japan they think of everything. Feeling lonely? You can rent a cat by the hour at a Cat Cafe.
One young lady youtubes the experience.

Your Tisane of Smart:
Peru finds human sacrifices from Inca civilization, nearly 3 dozen, mostly female, several cut along the neck or collarbone.
Your Writerly Tinctures:
New online literary rag.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: "As a whole, it was witty and interesting and the action was paced well. I highly recommend it. It made me want to drink tea and carry a parasol around. No one ever explains the octopuses, but that's part of it's charm." ~ smartygirl more here
Steampunk short: Troublesome beastie is about an adventure of its own.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self."
~ Cyril Connolly

Supper for Today, 1876, in a London Townhouse

• Fillet of Sole in butter, lemon, cayenne and parsley sauce
• Boiled Leg of Lamb serves with cauliflower on a "verdant" bed of spinach
• Corner Dish* of asparagus and Windsor beans (AKA fava bean or broad bean)
• Buttermilk Curd Pudding made with lemon and rose water

* Corner dish is the Victorian term for a side dish, so called because the dish occupied a corner position on the table, as opposed to being displayed in the center main area.


Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
Goths In Hot Weather
Your Tisane of Smart:
Emily Post Instructional Video from the 1950s on Table Manners.

Your Writerly Tinctures:
Poor Author's Pudding

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: "I've read about 80 pages into this ARC. The setting is Victorian London, but there are supernatural creatures mixed in with High Society. The heroine is amusing me - she smacks a vampire with a parasol, and then screams and fakes a faint (somehow landing on a pillow of course). And the hero is both a Lord and a grouchy werewolf! It. is. AWESOME. You want this book. You do." ~ janicu (Also check out this awesome review from the lovely Donna. Of course, she's not biased!)
Steampunk short: Troublesome beastie is about an adventure of its own.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"As a child my family's menu consisted of two choices: take it or leave it."
~ Buddy Hackett

Periodically, as you may well know by now, Gentle Reader, I am distracted by my own research. Often, as my characters are in motion, such research has to do with transport and distances. Yesterday's detour into Victoriana involved the relative differences between a hansom cab (AKA a hansom) a kind of fly (or 2 seat 2 wheel conveyance for-hire drawn by 1 horse - think Victorian chariot); versus a hackney carriage (AKA a hack) that could refer to any rental horse-drawn carriage that was not a hansom; versus a hackney coach (a jarvey) which is a hirable vehicle with 4 wheels, 2 horses and 6 seats, driven by a jarvey (to confuse matters the whole coach was also referred to as a jarvey).

A hansom as seen from front & side and an open top hack

So far as I can determine, in Alexia's day (mid 1870s), most cabs around London and Europe would be hansoms, except those used by elegant ladies, for whom a hansom was considered a trifle risqué. Ladies, in general, would not hire public transport at all, but if they had to, it would have been a hack - a proper carriage, enclosed cab (here's a nice little explanation on how to drive one. The highest-end privately owned upper-class conveyances were coaches (usually a landau or Berlin style) with 2 or 4 matched horses. Middle class or more modern families would own a barouche that seated 4 people but was drawn by 1 or 2 horses. If you're getting confused, that's nowhere near what I became. I had no idea there were so many different kinds of carriages, for example the Britzka was the motor-home if its day.

Much could be determined about a gentleman's character from his choice of conveyance. In Northanger Abbey Henry Tilney drives a curricle (a kind of chaise drawn by 2 horses, thus very fast and very light - notoriously accident prone) while John Thorpe drives a gig (chaise drawn by only 1 horse and considered more staid). Mabel Dair in Soulless drives a high-flyer, which is a kind of phaeton. As with Austen, this says a good deal about her personality.
The result of all this toil? You might well ask, Gentle reader. The result is three people crammed into a hansom cab racing along the French Rivera. And for any further detail, I must beg your patience in waiting to read Book the Third.


Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
Retroscape Fashion has parasols to suit all your needs.
Your Tisane of Smart:
Pimp My Satellite from the Drabble Cast - you can download it from their Outlet Center just find "Pimp" or read the lyrics here. Here's a sample of the genius:
We be pimpin the Hubble tonight
Put dem 20 inch rims on spinnin round right
Got da chrome on the dubs, got da subs thumpin bass
New spectrograph camera taking pictures of space
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Mark Sarvas discusses kindling.

CAKE in Space: With agent.
Soulless: "Will appeal to Lovers of Steampunk, Urban Fantasy and Romance. A fast paced novel filled with vampires, werewolves, tea and parasols, this book will appeal to a wide range of readers. The main character, Alexia Tarabotti, is feisty and fun reminding one of Buffy the Vampire Slayer at some times and Elizabeth Bennett at others. A clever reworking of the Victorian era."
~ Jessica Strider From my first online review!
Steampunk short: Troublesome beastie is about an adventure of its own.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"Too often travel, instead of broadening the mind, merely lengthens the conversation."
~ Elizabeth Drew

For no particularly good reason, Gentle Reader, today's blog is about my desk and what's on it and what this may say about my character.

On the right side of the computer we see...

• 1. Stacks of notebooks, one for each book. Each acts has a file for useful information to prevent continuity errors and contain laws of the world. This is to makes sure things like eye color don't inexplicably change. (This author is organized and slightly OCD, but not enough to have placed this information into an Excel spreadsheet. Do not leave this author alone with a disorganized bookcase, she will arrange all books by something utterly useless - like color or temporal setting.)
• 2. Purple wine glass, made by a friend, catches drip from leaky window. (This author is not very handy with installing things like AC units. Keep this author away from mechanical objects as much as possible.)
• 3. Pot of pens, binder clips, and scissors. (Unnecessary number of sharpies, speaks to author's need for permanence?)
• 4. Egg shaped egg timer, set to 20 minutes, at which point I must stop, stand up and stretch for carpel tunnel reasons. (Author will loose track of time and may damage herself as a result.)
• 5. AC. (Probably exists to prevent author form retreating to coffee shops and spending copiously on iced lattes on hot days.)
• 6. H2O. (Author requires presence of object in line-of-sight in order to engage in practical activities, such a drinking water.)
• 7. Processing stack: notes for blog, cuttings for Brass Needles, snail mail correspondences, and long term to-do list. (Author would forget her own head if it were not firmly attached.)
• 8. Currently reading review book. (Author's subconscious reminding her that there are reviews to write whether she likes it or not.)
• 9. Snacky bits. (Author is convinced only chocolate will get her over the rough parts.)
• 10. Notes for Blameless or current writing project. (Author is not as organized as she likes to think she is.)
• 11. Infamous Red Pen of Doom. (Author is overly fond of eviscerating her own work - possible indication of untapped self-critical inclinations?)

On the other side of the computer we see...

• A collection of scrap paper and notes on the current book. (Author commits dangerous and erratic acts of notation: leaping off treadmill, scribbling well into wee hours of the night, sticking out dripping arm from shower, and even, sometimes, writing while driving. Should author die unexpectedly, one of these notes is probably to blame.)

Note that there is no cup of tea present. I must go rectify this immediately!



Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
How did I not know about Star Trek: Odyssey. Yeah it's cheesy but surprisingly good for fan vid and it's more Star Trek.

Your Tisane of Smart:
Because sometimes the truth is, in fact, stranger than fiction.
Sonkajärvi hosts the Wife Carrying World Championships. Prizes include, among other things, the wife's weight in beer.
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Etiquette and International Protocol Expert who knew there was a job for this? I've missed my calling. This is still a good video for most authors of my acquaintance.


CAKE in Space: Finished Draft 2, with agent.
Soulless: I may have turned EarlyWord to the biteside. "It’s got a great cover, an inventive series title (the first in the “Parasol Protectorate Series”) and the author nearly convinced us that vampires affected Victorian fashion (cravats are great for covering neck marks!) on her web site."
Steampunk short: Troublesome beastie is about an adventure of its own.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"There are many reasons why novelists write – but they all have one thing in common: a need to create an alternative world."
~ John Fowles

I love alternative art, you know the kind, Gentle Reader, mix-media monstrosities and massive installation pieces. Sometimes I think I may end up one of the champagne-swilling uber-rich rattling about an all white mansion big enough to hold an entire village just to satisfy my love affair with this particular medium.

Then again I can simply visit a museum and it's much less dusting.

One of the still rare materials used in this particular style of art is textile. It's beginning to attain some popularity, but I believe it still has some way to go. A San Francisco artist, Mary Corey March, is doing some wonderful things with interactive yarn and other textiles, but she's unusual, art galleries still seem a little slow on the uptake.
Interior designers, on the other hand, are stepping up to the pouf - shall we say? Hitting the mainstream markets recently was Kvadrat's wall hanging Clouds made of boiled wool, and Lana's massive poufs (yes, you can sit on them) made of laser-cut felt flowers.
So I guess I'm simply hoping to encourage you creative types to experiment with fiber as an artistic medium, or support it in others. The recycling opportunities alone are endless (make throw pillows out of your favorite logo t-shirts). Perhaps this is my love affair with clothing coming out in yet another form. Fiber art does have a long and glorious tradition, remember those splendid tapestries from the Middle Ages. They were beautiful and practical (used for noise reduction and added warmth). How could anyone not enjoy art that serves multiple purposes?



Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
How to make spats

Your Tisane of Smart:
Dinesh D'Souza Debates Peter Singer on Ethics - fascinating multi-part youtube presentation
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Yen Press is Hachette's small but mighty graphic novel and manga line. The publisher, Kurt, is brilliant, and they have a friendly submission page. So what are you waiting for?

CAKE in Space: Finished Draft 2, with agent.
Soulless: "Picked up Gail Carriger's "Soulless" as an ARC at BEA. Steam punk, vampires, werewolves, and parasols. Amazing! I couldn't put it down." ~ bakersmark tweet.
Steampunk short: Visiting the manga department.
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
16-year-old girl to friend: "Halfway through the date he took out a puppet and started singing."
Excited friend: "Really? Oh my god, he is husband material!"
~ Union Square overheardnyc 

Ron Hogan's interview of me wasn't as awkward as I thought. Such a relief, Gentle Reader, as I was quite overwhelmed at the time. It's not the most flattering video, but far less garbled than I remember.

You can catch the primary blog at mediabistro.com. Many thanks to Ron for the interview and support.

So, how do vampires affect Victorian fashion?

• Pale skin is in vogue and undead pallor much admired
• Cravats are universal, because they cover over neck marks in drones (who tend to be male)
• The clean shaven face is trendy in London - vampires, after all, can't grow beards (in France, on the other hand, where the supernatural is actively hunted - men are prone to wearing large moustaches)
• On the flip side, carved wooden hair sticks and silver cravat pins show a marked increase in popularity amongst those less enamored of the supernatural set
• As does snuff (werewolves hate snuff, it makes them sneeze) and Earl Grey Tea (Vampires dislike citrus oils). In London, as a result, both snuff and Earl Grey are considered very vulgar. (On a similar note, while Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey was clearly a progressive in favor of supernatural integration, he was known to dislike the vampire contingent due to a long standing association with the military and thus the werewolf packs. This explains why this particular tea was named after him.)
• Of course, gentlemen choose their clubs carefully based on association: Boodles (the country gentry) and Whites (the Corinthian set) still exist, but so do Sangria (catering to vampires), Clarets (for werewolves and their military associates), and, naturally, the Hypocras Club (particularly designed for the scientifically inclined gentleman, whomever his patron may be).

Gail's Daily Dose
Your Infusion of Cute:
Rachel Weisz does Retro Green

Your Tisane of Smart:
Creating Your Social Media Plan by Lisa Barone
Your Writerly Tinctures:
Orbit is looking for a summer intern, so if you live in New York and want to learn all about the SF/F publishing industry this is a great place to start. From the stories I've heard their office sounds like a whole lot of crazy fun, too.

CAKE in Space: Finished Draft 2, with agent.
Soulless: Deeply excited to learn Soulless made Reed's informal survey of the 9 top Buzz Books of BEA! The press release came through yesterday.
Steampunk short: Visiting the Orbit manga department...
Changeless: Gone poof. Starting to gather corrections.
Blameless:

Quote of the Day:
"You know, all writers are vampires and they'll look around and they watch you when you're not even thinking they're watching you and they'll slip stuff in."
~ James Gandolfini