Round two

I’ve just finished the second round of revisions for my urban fantasy novel. Deep breath. Although it’s looking better, much better, it’s far from being where I want it to be. The plot still needs a lot of tweaking and tightening. A few characters need more development as well. In short, I’m looking at another round of revisions. *g* This has to be the most difficult story I’ve written so far.

Ursus

With The King’s Daughters coming out shortly, I’ve decided to write a short series of posts about some of the themes explored in the book. I’ve chosen the bear as my first subject because, well, there’s one on the cover. So I thought it was as good a place as any to start.

I’m not surprised that bears found their way into one of my stories. I started writing when I lived in the city of Kitimat, B.C., and anyone who spends a bit of time there always ends up meeting a bear at some point. I had my first meeting with one those mighty creatures only eight days after I had moved to that town. A black bear popped up out of the ditch beside me while I was taking a walk. We looked at each other for a few seconds, and then we both went our separate ways—thank goodness. During the four years I lived in Kitimat, I saw dozens of bears, grizzlies and blacks alike. We even had a black bear sleeping under our deck for a little while.


In any case, the animal in my story belongs to the brown bear species (ursus arctos), a well know Russian symbol. And as the story has a Russian-inspired backdrop, it’s only fitting that bears play a role in it—after all the Nordic folklore is filled with tales involving bears.
There is the Russian fairy tale "Morozko", “The Old Man and the Bear” and the "The Brown Bear of Norway" to name a few. Alright that last one is Scottish, but you get the idea. I won’t tell you what role the bear on the cover plays in my story, though, because that would spoil the surprise. ;)

It’s coming…

It’s now official; The King’s Daughters finally has a definite release date. Night Shade Books posted the announcement on their site. The second book in the Prince Amir Mystery series will hit the shelves April 5, 2009. Needless to say, I am over the moon! You can check up their entire 2009 release schedule here.

SF and Fantasy Creatives

On February 11 at 7:00 p.m., Lynda Williams and I will be hosting another fun-filled evening of readings and discussion at Café Voltaire in Books and Company. Fans of genre fiction, of any sort, are invited to come spend a bit of time with us.

Star Wars-an a capella tribute to John Williams

WOOOW!

Oscar night

Every year, my friend Judith and I host a small get-together on Oscar night…nothing too fancy (drinks, finger food, and a big screen). In preparation for the event, we try our best to see as many nominated movies as possible—not always easy when you live in a Northern city. Independent films are often ignored by our Cineplex. Anyway, today we’re going to see Slumdog Millionaire. I hope it's as good as they're saying.

Small victory

I’ve just completed my first round of revisions on my UF this morning. (I was up at 2:30—couldn’t sleep, so I worked.) Yawn! I’m taking the rest of the day off as a reward. I’ll start round two tomorrow.