Or yesterday . . .

Got Tiopa back from the publisher for a going over. I’m nearly done with that, but won’t finish until tomorrow.

Down the hall is a two bedroom apartment that’s opening up. We’ve already signed a year lease for the one we’re in, though. The wife spoke with the manager yesterday. We’re now schedule for a ‘transfer inspection’ sometime tomorrow or Friday. They’ll come in, check for holes in the walls, battered doors, and ripped up carpet. About the only thing they’ll find is the tub drain is kind of clogged.

If we pass the inspection, chances are good we’ll be moving over the fourth. Bigger place, cooler side of the building. Currently, we get full sunlight from eleven AM until sundown. Less privacy since we’ll be overlooking the courtyard (and all the neighbors’ balconies) but more security for the same reason. (Do you know how easy it is to scale to the second floor of a building?) All in all, it’ll be better. Wish us luck.

In any event, that means the bathroom cleaning really needs to be done before tomorrow. And the kitchen floor is a mess. So, my chores have overlapped today’s writing times.

Though not many. Just updated the pages for Tiopa Ki Lakota and Warlord Metal to include the really damned COOL covers Steph Solomon-Lopez did! Damn, these thing ROCK! Go to the menu bar on the left and check them out!

Miles, that is. I’ve written Lainey out of Shaktoolik, through a six hour break at Koyuk, and on her way to Elim. Hopefully the end of this chapter will see her out of Elim and on toward Golovin.

The next stretch after that will be short and sweet with only a mandatory 8 hour break in White Mountain. I think I’ll be done in three more chapters. Whew!

Then this mess will be off to three content beta readers and I’ll dump it onto my mailing list for a month. After that, the first draft will be removed from list archives and I’ll begin rewrites.

Not sure what’s next as far as projects go. Orphan Maker calls, as does Born of Silence rewrites. Or maybe I should do a full rewrite of CyberEpic for publication. I’ll take a week off and see what slaps me upside the head most.

Steph Solomon-Lopez has been working on the cover for Warlord Metal. Good gods, this woman rocks! I liked the original cover from Fortitude, but this one . . . flabbergasted. Yep. That’s me. Once it goes through the publisher and we get an okay, I’ll post it.

And someone asked me about the ‘3rd’ edition of Tiopa Ki Lakota. This book will not be appreciably different from the 2nd edition published by Fortitude. The same goes for Warlord Metal, I think. Those of you who already have a copy of the 2nd edition do not need to buy the 3rd in the hopes you’ve missed something!

P.D. Publishing is proud to announce that we will be re-releasing the stories of D. Jordan Redhawk, Tiopa Ki Lakota, 3rd edition and Warlord Metal, 2nd edition. Both books will be available in the Fall of 2005.

I’ve received contracts and signed contracts. Just have to get them back to the publisher. I also spent all day yesterday reading through Tiopa Ki Lakota. Not much in the way of repairs, since it’s gone through a total professional editing (thank you, Cindy!) so it was an easy read.

Ya know . . . I think I like it. That’s saying something.

Today I’m going to slog through Warlord Metal. Maybe I’ll like it, too, once I’ve done a final run through . . . I’m not holding my breath, though.

I had planned to finish the next Iditarod chapter today, and possibly start the following one. Circumstances have changed, however.

I’ve been negotiating two publishing contracts and have come to an agreement. I’ll give more details when the things are actually signed and official. Until then, suffice it to say that Tiopa Ki Lakota will see the light of day as a book again. Hopefully soon!

Today, I’m plodding through the last revised edition of it before sending it on to its new home.

Regardless of there being no takers. I’ve brainstormed eleven new scenes to take place immediately after chapter eleven. I’m betting on a minimum of three new chapters, maybe four if I can stretch it long enough. That’ll give our heroines a bit more emotional angst as they fall for each other.

I got a hellacious compliment from an Indian about Tiopa Ki Lakota. My command of the Lakota language was decent enough for the person to email me and remark upon it. High praise indeed!

More to come on the Redhawk Land Cruise in the next couple of days. But first, an announcement from my publisher!
——-

We’re pleased to announce 3 New Releases from Fortitude Press! And you can get Free Shipping!

Fortitude Press is proud to introduce a new action/adventure story from a brand new author: The Star of Kaleel by C.J. Burch. A pair of female gladiators must race against a madman in search of an ancient relic that has the power to destroy all of humankind.

We’re also pleased to offer Jordan Redhawk’s new, thoroughly revised edition of Tiopa Ki Lakota. Staying true to the original story of Anpo and Kathleen, the revised edition also explores the unique culture and customs of the Lakota people.

And an old favorite is now back in print! The first book in the hysterical, acerbic Devils series from K. Simpson: Several Devils. See where it all began for Devlin and Cassandra and their personal demons.

Order your favorite titles and get free shipping! We offer free domestic shipping with any order of $25 or more!

Visit us at www.fortitudepress.com to place your order today.

Thank you for supporting Fortitude and our authors!

FP
——-

Gakked from bearblue

White bison born near Flagstaff

‘1-in-10 million’ occurrence is expected to draw a crowd

Bob Golfen
The Arizona Republic
May. 24, 2004 12:00 AM

The owners of a small bison herd near Flagstaff were surprised Saturday morning to find one of their rare white buffaloes had given birth to something even rarer: a white calf.

A white calf is a one-in-10 million occurrence, said Keith Davis, a spokesman for Spirit Mountain Ranch.

My Mac Classic (OS9) won't accept it. My Dreamweaver program is OS9, so I have to type everything I want on a web page in a separate text document in order to cut and paste. What a pain. I guess I'll have to go in to OS9 somehow and see if I can change it there, too.

But, I found out that my Palm keyboard driver has Dvorak! I'm picking up some black and white inks next Thursday to do some creative artwork on my keyboard.

Finished jrosestar’s short story request. It’s called To The River, and has been uploaded to my site. Thanks again, Jean! You kept the fingers moving, and that’s what counts.

f you pre-order a copy of Tiopa Ki Lakota, contact me at my website with your mailing address and what you liked about the book. I’ll send you a signed bookplate.

(And to the cousins in England . . . remember, you need multiple copies or someone needs to stay AWAY from the bathtub. You know who you are!)

For those folks who will be attending Orlando Bardcon, Fortitude Press is now accepting pre-orders. This link is ONLY for Bardcon pre-orders. Your books will be waiting for you at the Fortitude Press table at Bardcon.

In addition to our other titles, we will have three new releases at the con. These new titles will be available for general ordering immediately after Bardcon.

Fortitude Press is proud to introduce a new action/adventure story from a brand new author: The Star of Kaleel by C.J. Burch.

A pair of female gladiators must race against a madman in search of an ancient relic that has the power to destroy all of humankind.

We’re also pleased to offer Jordan Redhawk’s new, thoroughly revised edition of Tiopa Ki Lakota. Staying true to the original story of Anpo and Kathleen, the revised edition also explores the unique culture and customs of the Lakota people.

And an old favorite is now back in print! The first book in the hysterical, acerbic Devils series from K. Simpson: Several Devils.

See where it all began for Devlin and Cassandra and their personal demons.

To pre-order these – or any of our titles – visit our pre-order page:

http://www.fortitudepress.com/store/presale.html

We will be accepting pre-orders until Sunday, May 23. We will have books for sale at the con, but pre-ordering insures that you get the titles you want before they are sold out!

Additionally, Fortitude authors Linda Crist, SX Meagher, and Blayne Cooper are scheduled to attend the con and will be available to sign books.

We look forward to seeing you all in Orlando!

I have been remiss in keeping up to date here. My main excuse is the switch to the Dvorak keyboard layout. I got out of the habit of messaging, emailing, and posting when I couldn’t freakin’ type!

Regardless of the slowness (which I have to admit is improving,) the Iditarod story is plodding along. I think I’m going to toss the outline out the window, however. Writing SF or mainstream or some other genre with an outline is well worth the minor level of constriction involved. But, writing lesbian romance is another matter entirely. I think I need to be open to a more organic approach, as I did in the beginning. A rough outline, yes, but not an extensively detailed one. I’ve realized the rough and tumble emotions are lacking when I follow an outline; not good for romance.

Which is not to say I’ll avoid an outline altogether. I simply won’t have every little step of the way planned ad nauseum.

I spent the day working on chapter five, and editing Tiopa Ki Lakota yet again. This was MY line by line edit, so I can safely consign the final proof to the publisher. I know, I know. I keep saying that this is the last round of edits, and another pops up. It’s all wishful thinking on my part. Sooner or later, I’ll receive my copies in the mail, and THEN I can breathe a sigh of relief that the project is complete. Why do I keep forgetting that?

And here’s a character sketch I found on one of those many days when I piddled about my documents file because typing was a horrid chore

He walks with the exaggerated swagger of a 1960’s street punk from Harlem, a sort of half limp, one shoulder dropped, one arm dragging slower than the other. The type of gait considered cool among African American men of my youth. He’s wiry, bone thin, and very pissed off. His mouth is in constant motion as he bitches at no one walking beside him, stopping occasionally to throw his hands down to his sides to stress his utter indignation. It’s odd how easy it is to watch him, yet discretely turn away as he turns in my direction. He’s across the street and I’m in a coffee shop. Even the distance of twenty-five feet isn’t safe enough from his madness. Will he vent his fury on whoever catches his eye, whoever sees him as a human being? Will he see me watching from my safe haven, and come over in his slouching Cool brand of walk to fill me in? I’d rather not risk it. My eyes drift down the street, as if I’m not seeing him at all. But you have to wonder . . . maybe if people truly saw him, he wouldn’t be venting his anger to an invisible companion.

Since finding the file, I’ve been meaning to add more. Just saw a man today that was interesting, as a matter of fact. Maybe I’ll type it up tomorrow.

As expected, now that I'm not forcing myself to work on the Sanguire, I busted out 1k worth of outline in an hour. (Of course, the Velvet Hammer at Coffee People didn't hurt!)

I'm now going to practice my Dvorak by typing the outline into Notetaker, and expanding it a bit.

Also went through Tiopa Ki Lakota this morning. From here it goes to technical editing. Almost finished!

Tiopa Ki Lakota is going through its line by line edits now. Once it’s done and back to me, I’ll scan through. If all is good, I send it back for technical edits. They’re still working on a cover concept. We’ll see how it goes. My previous two books with Fortitude Press were done by the CEO, and I think she has wonderful taste. This time, I’m working with an art director I haven’t spoken with before, so I’m kind of anxious about what’ll be brought to the table.

I’ve completely reread Born of Silence and Angels Deserve to Die. Am now beginning to read what I have on False Side of Shadow. So far, I think it’s a good series. Sometimes I forget.

I told my wife that I’ve been getting ‘lost’ as far as the Sanguire go. That’s probably why this last round of ‘middles’ is so hard to get over. When I outline, I make note of things I want to touch on in a scene. Prior to reaching that scene, I ponder how I’m going to insert the introspective aspects. By the time I’m actually writing, the things I want to put down are old hat. With three books, I’ve forgotten if I’ve really written this particular point in a previous book or scene, or if this is truly the first time.

For instance, I’ve talked often enough about Bertrada Nijmege wanting to kill Jenna Davis by her own hand, her idea of revenge for Elisibet’s killing of her lover. I don’t know how often I’ve referred to it here. In the second book, Angels Deserve to Die, Bertrada’s plan has come to light in Jenna’s camp. One of the symboulos is also aware of it, though he’s never been officially informed – it’s all speculation on his part.

By the time I’ve gotten to False Side of Shadow, I’ve talked about it so often, I don’t know who’s supposed to know of Betrada’s plan and who doesn’t.

Then there’s Jenna’s growing hatred for Elisibet, despite the memories of being Elisibet she carries. It can get confusing to keep all these characters on the same wavelength they were on to begin with, to follow the natural progression of growth per character, without it spilling over to others.

So, that’s my excuse for having such a time of it lately. I’m still kind of leery about the latest installment, since I haven’t read it. The first two seem to have remained on target throughout. I hope I haven’t slopped up too much in the final book.