[KatG]

I have been respectfully silent because I know that you are busy. But, since it's been awhile, how goes the third novel? :)

[Miriamele]

I've been wondering the same thing...:)

[Caitlin]

Where to start...?

First: I've missed you all!!

Second: my absence this time was due to chaos in my private life. Which ties in with the disintegration of my third novel (my second attempt at a third novel, even!). I'm now living on my own (with my daughters for nearly half the week) in an apartment, with a 9-5 government admin. job. Apartment and job arrived together in the last week of August.

The good news is that I'm doing very, very well, all things considered. And I AM writing again, after months of stasis - though not what I was expecting to be writing. I'll have to remain coy about this for superstitious reasons!

I taught another fantasy writing course at the university in the summer, and will be starting a fall one in exactly a week. I officially love teaching.

And now I must go to bed (it's 1:20 a.m. here).

Perhaps my next attempt at a post will be about the interplay between creativity and the "real job"...

[Miriamele]

I'm very sorry to hear that you've been experiencing problems in your personal life Caitlin, but it does sound like you're doing a pretty good job of rolling with the punches. :)

You're a strong person if you can keep writing at such a time. I look forward to hearing what you're working on now, when (and if) the superstitious conditions are lifted. :)

Regardless, it's nice to see you back here again, if only for one post. :D

[Caitlin]

Thanks for your message, Miriamele. The "one post" reference with which you ended it felt amost provocative, though...which is exactly what I need right now!

While the third novel continues to be entirely up in the air, my first two books will soon be out in Germany. Soon enough that they're for sale on amazon.de. Check out these links, and my first foreign covers ever! While they're cheesy, in a girly-fantasy kind of way (oooh - speaking of provocative...), I like them a lot.

So maybe I'll be huge in Germany. Like, Hasselhof huge. And I won't even NEED the U.S. ;)

http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/images/3442465524/sr=8-1/qid=1191121543/ref=dp_image_0/302-7710925-0958453?ie=UTF8&n=299956&s=books&qid=1191121543&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/images/3442465710/sr=8-2/qid=1191121543/ref=dp_image_0/302-7710925-0958453?ie=UTF8&n=299956&s=books&qid=1191121543&sr=8-2

[KatG]

Congrats on the German editions -- funky covers. Don't see them as too girly -- kind of ancient tome ominous, which I think plays well.

Sorry about the rest of it. Or maybe not entirely if things are going better for you and the admin job is a positive if big change. Sounds like you are working out a civilized arrangement, in any case, but that doesn't make it less difficult.

If it helps any, there are a bunch of us out here very willing to read whatever sort of story you might want to throw at us, whenever you feel it is ready to go. And in the meantime, you have this forum to come and kvetch in and tell us good news and anecdotes about your writing classes. Good luck to you and your wee ones.

[Caitlin]

Time for an almost-Christmas check-in!

1. My latest course wrapped up three weeks ago and was possibly the best yet. So it's official: I LIKE this teaching thing (though it doesn't really feel much like teaching - more like moderating, which I know is the point of workshops).

2. My latest attempt at a third novel is proceeding into cautiously-optimistic territory. I now write on my way in to work every morning, on the streetcar (250-350 words per 25 minute trip. Not enough, but a good start, and the thing's 17,000 words long now). Perhaps I need to get a job that's further away...

3. A couple of months ago I wrote a piece for John Howe, which went up on his website earlier today. His request for this piece came at a very, very appropriate time: I was just giving up on my latest epic fantasy project, and trying to remember how I wrote my other two books. A bit of a pep talk to myself - and here's the link:

http://www.john-howe.com/news/more.php?id=211_0_1_0_M2

4. All's well in my Brave New Life.

[Radthorne]

Keep up the good work, Caitlin! We're all rooting for your success!

[KatG]

Nice to hear a progress report. Sounds like things are a bit better. Good luck to you and we're crossing our fingers for you.

I only got a chance to skim the article; will try to read it more thoroughly later, but if I may make one suggestion: stop saying that A Telling of Stars has little plot. :) It has quite a lot of plot, and a large amount of action. Painting it as purely a cerebreal meditation doesn't do the book full justice as an adventure tale about grief and vengeance.

[Caitlin]

if I may make one suggestion: stop saying that A Telling of Stars has little plot. :) It has quite a lot of plot, and a large amount of action. Painting it as purely a cerebreal meditation doesn't do the book full justice as an adventure tale about grief and vengeance.
I did qualify things just a little by referring to "capital-P Plot"...but you're right, and I thank you for the suggestion! It's a bit unsettling how quickly and apparently irrevocably you can fall into a certain kind of self-stereotyping. "Telling isn't plot-driven and Silences is" - I say it all the time. I guess it's hard not to oversimplify when I'm always being asked to compare the books in a sentence or two.

Too bad all my answers can't be as long and careful as the ones I gave you in that interview, a couple of years ago... ;)