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Good morning, readers!

Where the @#%$ have you been? I thought you were dead in a ditch!

Man, you’re dramatic. I didn’t mean to worry you, though. I’m fine. I’m just busy with stuff! Two kids is exponentially harder, especially when one needs a fair amount of therapy (Itsy Mr. E has hypotonia and is also lazy deviously efficient, so requires a lot of equally devious exercises. But he improves!).  The reality is I have only so many words per day in me, and I’ve been using as many as possible on my new book–

Wait, new book!?

Slow down, readers. This one’s a marathon, not a sprint. First draft is almost finished, and I feel good about a quick revision. I have a crack writing group and plans for moving forward. I promise as soon as there are things you should know, you will know them.

…like you’re a psionic now? 

Damn, I wish. No, you’ll still have to come over here or FB or Twitter.

Now, that out of the way, Gen Con 2017 is upon us, and this year I’m going to make it. So here’s my schedule for the convention! I will possibly add information to this between now and then, but you can find descriptions on gencon.com if I wind up giving all my words to the book.

Does the book have a name or is it like…The Book?

The working title is Hinterland, but I have no expectation that is going to stick. Still, now I guess I can just say “Hinterland” and instead of “the book I’m working on right now” so that’s more words for the draft! So thanks for asking!

Here’s the schedule:

Thursday 12:00 PM (Room: Caucus)
Story Craft: Building to the Climax

Thursday, 1:00 PM (Room: Chamber)
Writing 101: Dialogue—“Don’t mess it up,” he said

Thursday, 5:00 PM (Room: Cabinet)
Writer’s Life: Care and Feeding of a Great Writer’s Group
*Remember when I mentioned that crack writing group? Two of them are on this panel with me: Shanna Germain and Susan J. Morris. I fully expect this to be one of my best panels. You should come.

Thursday, 6:00 PM (Room: Chamber)
Worldbuilding: Gods and Religions

Friday: 10:00 AM (Room: Congress II)
WORKSHOP: Finding Work for Your Inner Critic: Self-Editing for Fiction Writers
*This is a workshop, so you need to have purchased tickets for it. 

Friday, 12:00 PM (Room: Causus)
Business of Writing: Success Without Agent

Friday, 3:00 PM (Room: Cabinet)
Character Craft: Writing Kids Right

Friday, 6:00 PM (Room: Capital I)
Writer’s Craft: Kick Ass Fight Scenes

Saturday, 11:00AM (Room: Chamber)
Writer’s Craft: What is the “Writer’s Voice”?

Saturday, 12:00 PM (Room: Congress I)
Reading: Erin M. Evans and Erik Scott de Bie
* I am still trying to decide what to read for this. There’s The Devil You Know (paperback out in September); “The Mark of a Mountain Poppy,” my short story in Hath No Fury (also out in September), and…Hinterland. Which…I’ve never read from a WIP so I’ll think about that.

Saturday 3:00-5:00 (Exhibit Hall)
Signing
*There will be a book seller at Gen Con, I hear. So you can get a thing to get signed from them. Or you can just come say hi. 

Looking into the future, I have two other cons lined up.

First up  is Gamehole Con! This is a gaming convention in Madison, WI this November, and everyone I know who’s gone loves it.  I will be running a game set in FR (specifically a game where you are a dragonborn teenager–or possibly human friend of dragonborn teenager–solving creepy murders in Djerad Kethendi and trying to get a good marriage contract.). If you miss Brimstone Angels, this is probably a good game for you! I will also be on a panel about writing and doing a couple of charity D&D games.

Next up is OrcaCon, a Seattle gaming convention next January. I don’t have a schedule for this one yet, so stay tuned!