Some reaction to the anthology news in my last post goes along the lines of ‘but you don’t do steampunk, do you?’ To which the reply is rather, I haven’t done steampunk before now. The same is true of urban fantasy. No, I’ve not done it before and when I’ve been asked, I’ve said I would need a new and original idea since I have nothing to add to the current pack of werewolf/vampire stories.

That’s what I said when Joshua Palmatier and Patricia Bray invited me to contribute to this anthology. Ah but, they said, you might have an idea. You never know. Just see if something turns up. Well, it did, and there’s not a fang nor any fur involved, just so you know. My story, ‘The Roots of Aston Quercus’ will be there alongside tales from –

Seanan McGuire
Susan Jett
Kari Sperring
Avery Shade
Kristine Smith
Barbara Ashford
April Steenburgh
Anton Strout
S.C. Butler
Jean Marie Ward
Shannon Page & Jay Lake
Elizabeth Bear
Jim C. Hines

Stellar company to be in and all graced with this cover art. Pre-order your copy now or mark your diaries for March 2012

Okay, here’s the plan

– review page proofs for Darkening Skies
– write catalogue/cover copy for Defiant Peaks (Hadrumal Crisis Book 3)
– finalise my steampunk story for ‘Resurrection Engines – 16 Extraordinary Tales of Scientific Romance’
– write and post Christmas/holiday season cards
– teach an aikido class (Tuesday)
– go to school concert to cheer on Junior Son (Wednesday)
– continue with the Arthur C Clarke Award reading

Then Friday’s the end of term and we get to start doing Christmas preparations.

So, overall, not the best Monday to wake up with a surprise new headcold. Sigh.