[Gary Wassner]

Congratulations for making the best reads list for 2005:

http://www.sfsite.com/columns/best06.htm

[Miriamele]

**claps enthusiastically**

A well-deserved accolade Caitlin, congratulations! :)

[Caitlin]

Thanks!! It's been a dizzy couple of days. One of the regular posters at my website forum told me about the SFSite list, and since then there's been a steady stream of emails congratulating me. This is an enormously timely thing. I've been fretting a lot, recently, about how overlooked Silences seemed to have been (i.e. it didn't make the Locus 2005 list, whereas my first book made the Locus best-of list for its year). But that's what happens. Whine, whine, whine, worry - and suddenly something excellent happens.

Phew. And enough with the whining, already! ;)

[KatG]

It may have been partly because it's a prequel to "Telling." Hate the prejudices, but these things happen. Glad to see that the book is getting some recognition.

And have you settled on the new one yet? :)

[alison]

Woohoo! Kudos, Caitlin - that's brilliant!

[Caitlin]

"Woo-hoo" just about sums it up! Thanks, Alison.

And as for the next one, KatG...I dunno. I'm 60,000 words in, battling with a synopsis, insecure about a variety of things - but for now I'm sticking with it. The ancient-Mediterranean-inspired work, that is. Other ideas are simmering, but with lids firmly on!

[alison]

That's great news, Caitlin, glad to hear it. Just keep those insecurities silent until they're useful (later, later). I really like the sound of that novel, it's a fascinating premise.

Ah yes. I'm not very good at keeping the lid on other bubbling pots, myself. I have so many hats at present that I'm toppling over...you might be interested in one of them, if you'll permit a little self advertisement - an ezine called Masthead (http://masthead.net.au) - I just uploaded Issue 10 and am quite proud. And relieved to have finished at least that. Now onto the next thing...which, I believe, is tidying up the house.

[Caitlin]

you might be interested in one of them, if you'll permit a little self advertisement - an ezine called Masthead (http://masthead.net.au) - I just uploaded Issue 10 and am quite proud. And relieved to have finished at least that. Congratulations on finishing Issue 10, Alison! I've just visited the ezine site; what an amazing piece of scholarly, creative, topical work. I've just sent in a subscription message, too.

In intertextual, small world terms: I was excited to see Doug Barbour's name in an earlier issue of the 'zine. He wrote a wonderful review of Telling a few years ago, for a Canadian newspaper, and I've felt beholden to him ever since!

Now onto the next thing...which, I believe, is tidying up the house. House-tidying doesn't, unfortunately, count as one of my simmering pots. Or if it does, it's long boiled over and been scalded on the bottom. (Ouch!)

[alison]

Thanks, Caitlin. I've "known" Doug for years, in that cyberway, and he's such a sweet man. A fine poet, too... in fact, now I think of it, he's mentioned your books on the poetry we list we both hang around in. The world is quite small in some ways.

I can't pretend that I'm hugely good at housework. I am a dreadful failure as any kind of traditional wife, although in the mood I find cleaning is quite meditative. My thoughts on housework kind of coincide with Germaine Greer's (that it's a con to keep women busy). The children say they like it better when I'm a "bad mother", so I guess that's something...