Rats and Frogs and Demons and Monsters of the Earth

August 31

Hiya. Long time, no me, huh?

At work a couple of days ago I was in the basement, organizing galleys, trying to ignore the pervasive bad smell. I figured it was just basement-smell, until I got on a stepladder to move the books on the very top shelf.

I found a dead rat. Pretty long-dead, but moving, due to the insect life thriving in its remains. Trés disgusting. I had to clean it up, too. Now I'm all nervous down there, thinking that rats are going to come pouring out of the shelves at any moment... Sigh. Pretty gross, yo. Tom Sawyer may have quite enjoyed having a dead rat and a string to swing it with, but my tastes in toys are more refined.

I don't mind mice; mice are all named Oglethorpe, and they're welcome to eat any cheetos I drop on the floor, no hard feelings whatsoever, unless they become too numerous. But rats are bigger, with those creepy naked tails... I don't dig them.

Well, I dig them in fiction, but I'd rather not have to interact with them, dead or alive, on any kind of regular basis.

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I have an idea for a story featuring this guy:

Doesn't he look like a total superhero-suave-spy type? He's an inch-high. He's the most toxic living organism. He has enough poison in his inch-long body to kill 1,000 adult humans. He (and several hundred of his brethren and sistren) is going to appear a Marla Mason story (Marla is the heroine of my as-yet-unpublished stories "Haruspex" and "Pride is an Engine"). It'll be a fun one-- banter, San Francisco, capes. Good stuff.

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My novel-binge begins tomorrow. Be you not afraid. I'm quite excited. The alarm is set for 9 a.m.; if I can make it up by 9:30, make tea, and be well-into writing by 10 a.m., I'll be most pleased.

When I write novels, the short story ideas start to build up-- usually some of my best ideas. I guess my mind is just in creative overdrive, kicking out all sorts of strange connections... it's nice. I make notes. I'll have lots of stories to write post-novel, or else I'll take a week or so in the middle of the book to do short stories.

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Diablo update: John Shorne is now level 24. Look upon him and tremble. I'm right outside the portal to Diablo's lair, yo. I'm gonna go down there and kick some ass in a little while. Then the game will be done, and I'll be okay... until I get Diablo II. But I can resist that indefinitely.

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Work is good. I'm getting less nervous about calling people and demanding stuff, which is a big part of the job. :) There are some nice people in this business. Nobody's been really mean to me yet, though I'm told those meanies are lurking...

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I made lasagna (which I always, for some reason, want to spell "lasagne") last night, for Heather and Susan. Very yum-- I made a veggie one and a meatful one. We had wine and lovely talk and Family Business (Susan is lethal). Very pleasant.

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Tonight I wrote the non-fiction bit for the Brainbox II anthology. It was really fun-- I like riffing on where my stories came from, and there are some interesting details regarding the genesis of "Behemoth." Of course, I can't tell you about that fascinating stuff here-- You'll just have to buy the anthology. I'll give you the information you need to buy it once it's available...

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And that's all he wrote.