2012 Rainbow Awards, Writing, Publishers, Giveaways and Herbs.

[misslj_author]

It's Round Four of voting on covers for the 2012 Rainbow Awards. I am humbled and thrilled that the cover for No Quarter is still in the race.

So if you'd like to help out and vote, and I'd love it if you did, please go here and cast your ballot.

* If you don't have a Live Journal, don't fret - you can log in using your Facebook or Twitter and vote accordingly. :D

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In writing and publishing news, book three, No Shadows Fall has a release date of the 29th October. And to celebrate all October releases, Dreamspinner Press is having what is, I think, the most awesome giveaways - the tweetaway! If you don't have a twitter but still want to participate and bag yourself free books, bookmark the DSP twitter, right here.

Less Than Three Press has closed submissions for the Rockstar Anthology Collection, in which I have a story called >Capsicum Head. It's about an Aussie punk rock band in the 80s and their highs and lows on tour to the town of Port Pirie and the city of Melbourne. LT3 does have two open calls which, if I may say, look pretty awesome, and I'm planning to have something for the vampire call. If you're reading this..." Message In A Bottle call and Vampire call info.

I am currently at 65K words on City of Jade, the novel sequel to my short story, City of Gold. I am actually amazed at myself right now, I seem to be averaging 5K words a day and this story is practically writing itself. When I picked it up again, I had 30K words down, and now I'm powering along like a writing machine. With a very sore wrist. Ow. I'm really enjoying writing this, I get a lot of joy out of looking at blogs and photos and scholarly and academic research about where this book takes place, which is the Silk Road from Constantinople to Chang'an and then to Li'nan. (Istanbul - Xi'an - Hangzhou). It's set in 1141-42, and is the story of Gallienus of Constantinople and Misahuen of Gyeongju and their trip to find a new home in the Song Dynasty's capital, Li'nan. I would love to follow their journey as a tourist. It's on my bucket list.

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I have gone on a herb growing kick, and my little herb garden in pots is going great guns. My mint is, I'm convinced, related to triffids. If I'm attacked by sentient mint, you all know what happened. Avenge me and honour my memory, friends.

Ahem. Anyhoo, I have mint, parsley, rosemary, lavender, chilli and thyme. (My landlady gave me the thyme. How awesome is that?) I plan to get some perenial corriander (cilatro to my US friends) and some basil, and that should tide me over for the time being. Until I spy something else I must try my hand at growing. Fresh herbs, though, omg. SO GOOD. So very, very good.

Comments

[angharad-gam.livejournal.com]

Yeah, mint will do that. We have a herb garden that is about a square metre in the middle of a paved area in our back yard. I planted one small mint in there and now it is all through the whole herb garden and coming up through the cracks in the pavers too. It is insidious. Oregano is nearly as bad.

[misslj-author.livejournal.com]

It smells so good, though, I'm glad it's shooting up like that. I think the basil will be just as good. It's so fragrant out there now, I love it.

[angharad-gam.livejournal.com]

It does. I love to walk past the thyme on a warm day.

[misslj-author.livejournal.com]

I've decided I'm melting some of my 80% cocoa solid dark chocolate with some of my mint to pour over savioriade biscuits on the weekend. It will be delicious.

[angharad-gam.livejournal.com]

I mostly use our mint to make raita. Chop up a heap and mix it with some plain yoghurt... then dip your pappadums in...yum!

[misslj-author.livejournal.com]

No cucumber in the raita? I think I've gone a bit cucumber mad, I want to put them in everything, just about!

[angharad-gam.livejournal.com]

I'm not really fond of cucumber. I can tolerate it in smallish doses where it's not a predominant flavour, but I prefer my raita sans cucumber.

[misslj-author.livejournal.com]

And check this out - I love her research and recipes, I'm so happy it's online, not just in the book. http://www.silkroadgourmet.com/

[ali-wilde.livejournal.com]

My daughter convinced me to buy mint and chocolate mint. We have them in a pot on the patio. They're growing brilliantly. Next we shall get some thyme - maybe lemon thyme or pizza thyme. And basil, oregano and parsley are on the list. I like growing herbs, they're so hard to kill.

[misslj-author.livejournal.com]

I love my herbs. I've got them in pots in front of my living room window. I am so amazed at how well they're doing, I've never been that good with growing plants before! What's the chocolate mint like? I've read about it, and I'm quite curious to know more.

[ali-wilde.livejournal.com]

When you rub the leaves of the chocolate mint, it smells like after dinner mints. I have no idea what to use it in or how. Some Googling and reading will be required. I've put them out in the rain this afternoon, it'll do them good, better than tap water.

[misslj-author.livejournal.com]

Oh yum. I bet you could put it in hot chocolate or iced chocolate or something.

Ha! I just did that too. Yay for a bit of rain!

[jana-denardo.livejournal.com]

wow you're really doing great in the writing arena.

and for the record my mint must be related to yours. It's eating the greenhouse

[misslj-author.livejournal.com]

I really feel "in the zone" as they say. I hope it lasts, because it feels awesome.

Mint does seem to be an eager little herb!

[jana-denardo.livejournal.com]

here's to the zone