So it’s Christmas Eve already. I honestly didn’t realize it had been so long since I’d written here, but I suppose that’s the holiday season for you. I’ve no particular thing in mind to blog about today, so this is likely to be something of a stream-of-consciousness entry…and I warn you, my consciousness can get a little weird. On the plus side, I haven’t just consumed an entire box of chocolate-covered espresso beans. (THAT resulted in some interesting writing, let me tell you. I wonder if I still have that? Maybe I should post it here just for people’s general amusement/horror.)
Side note: There’s a line in Legacy of Memory where Felix makes reference to a similar situation for no particular reason other than he’s Felix. (I was going to put it up here, but, oddly, to it would require a rather lengthy lead-up, so I’ll hold off on that for now.)
I think Mike’s Focus Pendulum(tm) has now swung back the other way, toward writing the second book and away from marketing A Shadow in the Flames. I’ve said it before and I like to repeat myself: marketing is draining and not very much fun. On the plus side, I’ve heard from numerous people now (some of whom I’ve never even met, which is even more cool) that they’re enjoying/enjoyed the book. Some have even ordered more copies to give to friends as gifts, which frankly is a great compliment to me.
Random tidbit about the cover of ASITF: though the city of Northgate is fictional, there IS a location in the book that is actually visible on the cover. The Aristarchus crater, in which a small part of the book takes place, is visible and actually prominent on the image of the moon. See that light spot in the dark grey a little above the nine o’clock position? That’s Aristarchus. I honestly had forgotten exactly where the crater was since I looked it up a long time ago and needed a crater name, so I thought that was kind of neat. I’ve actually no idea where those buildings actually exist, though. (I can tell you that they don’t exist so close together like that, though. It’s an image composited from a larger skyline. Each building, wherever it stands in the real world, is actually at least a few blocks from the others.)
I suppose I should get back to working on LoM–not to mention some final preparations for Christmas with my family tomorrow–so I’ll leave you with a piece of music that someone made me recall last night. It’s from the Children of Dune miniseries from the Sci-Fi Channel, and apparently written in the fictional Fremen language. The hearing the lyrics but not understanding their direct meaning has the effect of turning the vocals into another instrument in the mix, and just creates, as someone put it, a more pure and personal feeling in the listener. (It’s also used to pretty good effect in the miniseries itself.) It’s on YouTube (paired up with a fan-created montage) at www.youtube.com/watch?v=znJdaWzoRYw.
So that’s it for now. Thanks again to all who’ve read the novel so far, and Merry Christmas! (Or, at least, have a festive holiday celebration of your cultural and/or personal preference! There. Now everyone can be happy.) đŸ˜‰
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