In last week’s post (titled “Bread and Cupcakes”) I talked about how businesses need to pick and choose their growth. In it, I discussed knowing when you have enough on your plate. I was talking on the macro level. Just because you can do something doesn’t necessary mean you should do something. This afternoon (Saturday April 14 as I write this), I got smacked with […]
Business Musings: Bread and Cupcakes
I’m allergic to dairy. It’s one of the many allergies that sent me to Vegas. In Lincoln City, restaurants didn’t understand that no dairy meant no butter, no milk products, no cheese. The restaurants would often scrap off the offending item if they accidentally mixed it into my food, not caring about cross-contamination. Between that and my perfume allergy, I was no longer able to […]
Business Musings: Why We Do What We Do
Well, I’m sitting in a breakfast nook, surrounded by sunshine, in a condo I hadn’t seen as of January 1, living a life that I hadn’t expected to be living on that day either. Dean and I are now going back and forth between Las Vegas and Lincoln City. In fact, he’s in Lincoln City right now, while I’m helping two traumatized cats adjust to […]
Business Musings: Settling In (A Process Blog)
I had forgotten how disruptive moving is. I am currently sitting on the new Elizabeth George hardcover that got delivered to our Vegas home last week, and typing on the Bluetooth keyboard on the kitchen table. The laptop sits on top of two Jill Shalvis books to get it at the right height as well, although I am looking down, so I probably need another […]
Business Musings: Research, The Internet, and Dated Books
As of this writing (Saturday, March 10, 2018), I have a gigantic research library. I started it in the 1980s, and much of what I buy is impulse. In other words, I see a book and my creative brain says, Ooooooo, yes!, and I listen. I know that book in come in handy one day. In 1986, I met Dean and we moved me from […]
Business Musings: Best Laid Plans of Mice and Kittens
I started into this year going gangbusters. I had a big Diving project, which I figured I would finish in early March, some research to do on my next big project, and I would finish something smaller in between. Those of you who support me on Patreon saw a flurry of blogs in the front of the year, and then I’ve been trickling the blogs […]
Recommended Reading List: February 2018
I’d like to say I had no time for leisure reading this month, and while that’s mostly true, it doesn’t feel true. I spent most of the month reading for the anthology workshop. 1.2 million words of really great fiction, some of which will appear in upcoming Fiction Rivers. I mentioned the Justice issue of Fiction River last month. This month, I line-edited another Fiction […]
Business Musings: Bestseller Lists Again (Or Chicken Little Is Wrong. Again.)
In the middle of February, I saw a tweet from Melville House, an independent publisher in Brooklyn, NY, linking to an article of theirs. I followed the link and saw this title: “Into the Bezosphere: The Washington Post will syndicate Amazon Charts.” I was surprised. I had heard nothing about the Post’s new bestseller list. Granted, I’ve been busy and preoccupied this year. Still coping […]
Business Musings: Editorial Encroachment
Before I get into the rant that I know this post will become, let me state my credentials. In addition to my work as a writer, I am a multiple-award-winning editor. I have edited short fiction and novels since 1986. I have trained copy editors, not just for the magazines I edited, but also for major publishing companies. I have saved books destroyed by line […]
Business Musings: Mentors, Inspiration, and The Future
At 57, I’m finding myself in a strange position in life. My mentors are dying. Last month, Ursula K. Le Guin left us. I’ve known Ursula personally for more than twenty-five years. I never knew her well. We sat on panels together in the Northwest, although never (to my recollection) at a convention. We’d done bookstore events side by side over the years, and whenever […]
A New Diving Novella
Remember Dix? I told you how he died. But I lied…Read an excerpt here.
A New Kris Nelscott Novel
My latest Kris Nelscott novel begins a new series, following the adventures of three strong women as they protect their world, one person at a time. A crime novel set in 1969. Available in ebook, trade paper, hardback, and limited edition. For more information, click here.
A New Diving Novel
The latest Diving book follows Boss on an adventure in the Boneyard. If you haven’t read the Diving novels yet, you can start with this one. Click here for more information.
Get Early Copies of the Thursday Business Blog and More!
Best Mystery Stories of The Year!
“The heroine of Kristine Kathryn Rusch’s ‘Christmas Eve at the Exit’ struggles to make the holiday meaningful for her 10-year-old daughter while the pair are on the run….There isn’t enough Xanax in anyone’s medicine cabinet to calm the jitters these 20 skillful stories will unleash on a worried world.” —Kirkus
Fiction River Readers Pick Their Favorites
Fiction River readers chose their favorite stories from the first four years, and those include my Kris Nelscott story, “Combat Medic.” Click here for lots of great reading!
The Year’s Best Novellas
I am honored to announce that Paula Guran chose my novella “Inhuman Garbage” as one of the best novellas of the year. To order some wonderful novellas, click on this sentence.
The Year’s Best Science Fiction
I am honored to announce that Gardner Dozois chose my novella “Inhuman Garbage” as one of the best science fiction stories of the year. To order the novella and some wonderful fiction, click on this sentence.
