Posts Tagged ‘Gail Sanders’
Still Here, Still Trying
Folks, I realized I hadn’t blogged in a bit, so I figured I should come here and say something — anything — to let you know I’m still here, still trying, still fighting to do whatever I can, as I can, with whatever health and time I’ve got left to me.
I know that sounds like an overly dramatic way to put things. But it feels right, considering all the various things that I’ve dealt with in the past twenty-plus years. Every day is a struggle. I wake up without my husband Michael, and because my timesense is so wonky — I swear, it feels like he was just here yesterday, even though I know realistically it’s been over twenty years — I have to face that before I can get to doing anything else.
Writing without him is different. Living without him is definitely different, and not nearly as much fun.
But I do the best that I can.
The stuff on the agenda this weekend includes talking with my cowriter, Gail Sanders, about a story we’re writing for an upcoming anthology (more details later), hopefully going over the first of the two Elfy books so I can get it back up for sale next week, and then finishing up an edit or two. (I can pretty much guarantee one. Can’t guarantee the second, as that one has proven elusive and slippery throughout. I wish I could explain this better, but…when you listen to music, there are some pieces that just resonate with you, right? That feel absolutely correct for whatever mood you’re in, and that perfectly encapsulate whatever they’re trying to convey? And how some things are much harder to understand, far more difficult even though they seem like they should just fall in line in the same way the music that you gravitate toward? That’s what’s going on with this second edit.)
And if I’m very, very lucky, I’ll be able to do a little fiction writing. I’ve got a story in a friend’s universe — a novel-length story — that’s been stalled now at about 75K. I can almost see the next part, but am not there yet, and it’s been in this place for weeks, probably because my personal life remains a work-in-progress. (My kind way of saying “not what I want it to be.”)
I’ll of course do the regular stuff, like grocery shopping, helping my family member as much as I can, playing with the dog…these things are a given.
I hope to be back soon with some sort of positive progress report (hopefully, one that includes “my book is back out and available for sale”). Until then, thanks for checking in.
#Updated# There’s a New Peter Welmsley Story…in a New #MilSF Anthology from Henchman Press
Folks, I should’ve been able to find some time to blog about this last week, when the anthology Tales of the E4 Mafia came out, but I was hip-deep in an edit and the bit I was able to carve out for writing I used on the “super-secret” project.
#Update: Here’s a banner for you that my friend Kayelle Allen, herself a proud U.S. Navy veteran, made for the new anthology. Use it widely, not to mention wisely…
Anyway, I am very proud to let you know that I have a new story, featuring Peter Welmsley as a secondary character, in the above anthology. The story’s called “Into the Night,” and was co-written by my good friend Gail Sanders. Gail is a Specialist in the Army Reserves, and as every story in the Tales of the E4 Mafia anthology must feature someone of that rank, Gail had the verisimilitude I needed, along with the experience, to fully flesh out this story.
In other words, her help was invaluable.
Anyway, for those of you who’ve wanted another story with Peter Welmsley, here is just a bit of that story in the hopes it’ll whet your interest:
“Please state your name, rank, and ship for the court record,” requested the JAG officer.
“Peter Thomas Zachariah Welmsley, Master Sargeant, of the HMS Wendigo, seconded to the HMS Hyperion for the duration of this crisis,” he said. “And by that, I don’t mean this inquiry.”
The room erupted in laughter yet again. The judge, looking most put upon, banged her large gavel again. “Order must be maintained,” she said, “even though I agree with Master Sergeant Welmsley’s sentiments.”
“And what is your role on the HMS Hyperion? How long have you been there?” Ryder asked.
“I’ve been with the Hyperion now for the last nine months, as Wendigo needed significant repairs after the last fight with the Bryan pirates. I’ve been told it will be at least six more months before the Wendigo will be fully repaired, and I can go back to my regular ship.” His face, usually merry, scowled.
So, do you want to know more? Such as, what is Peter doing there? Who is he helping? (I’ll give you a small hint; he is helping a Lance Corporal, AKA someone of the E4 rank.)
I can tell you that this is a younger version of Peter Welmsley, perhaps as much as fifteen years younger than the man we meet in the short novella “To Survive the Maelstrom.” I enjoyed seeing Peter in slightly less emotionally fraught days, and hope there will be many more stories ahead as time goes on.
Anyway, this is the first story I’ve written with someone else in my late husband Michael B. Caffrey’s Atlantean Union Universe, and I’m quite proud of it. I think Michael would like it. I also think he’d enjoy the humor of it, and of the anthology overall (as most of these stories are funny).
Mind you, it does feel weird to write in Michael’s universe with him being dead. But that hasn’t stopped me before, and I don’t think it’s going to stop me now either. (Picture me emphatically nodding, here.)
So, do go check out the story, will you? I hope you will enjoy it in the spirit intended, and the rest of the E4 Mafia anthology as well.
#Update: Kayelle also sent along some sample Tweets, and my favorite was this one:
Think you know the military? Think again. 11 E-4 Mafia stories mix sci-fi, humor, and mischief for a reading adventure that’ll keep you on your toes 🤖📚 #SciFi #MilSF #Military #PlotTwist
So, now you’ve got some help if you can’t think up a good Tweet. (And I’ll admit it; I couldn’t think up something this good, much less this pithy. But Kayelle could and I appreciate it.)
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