Next!... or: where'd he go?

One would think that after setting off on an exciting journey half way across the world's smallest continent/largest island to attend WorldCon 68/AussieCon 4, that a certain person who for today's purposes shall remain nameless, might return to immediately post an enthusiastic rant about how much fun it was, how baffling it was, how great it was to be taken care of by Chris and Ed and Dim and Brie and all the writers of the (what I have dubbed them) Melbourne Writers Conventicle; what a delight it was to meet one determined E.K. Vollmer all the way from a town called (would you believe it) Sebastipole!; how cool it was to receive encouragement and honest critique from Kit (and by extension Patience St.James - there are two Herbroulesse in the Sundergird: the one we find in Lamplighter was named after the much older one you find on the "BIG" map, honest); how exciting and rewarding each panel - with such lights as Kate Forsyth, Shaun Tan, Ian Irvine, Juliet Marillier, Lara Morgan, Richard Harland, Russell Kirkpatrick, to name(drop) only some - I was on actually was... but apparently no.

Apparently said nameless soul has waited 2 - maybe even 3! - weeks to post something.

Why is that? you may not actually be asking yourself (if indeed you are still even visiting this barely-a-blog).

Well, not sure actually: I think maybe it is a great tumbling collapsing relief that after so long above person has actually produced what they were tasked to produce (both by their original publisher and ultimately by themselves); also it is the great wilderness that it seems often comes after a writer has completed a long project (I cite here the great talent, Michael Pryor , who said at the con that, having this very moment finished his own 6(!) book series, he now feels bereft

So here he sits, hiding in his room, playing too many computer games (and thus inviting judgement from all non-gamers), squeezing out a post to you all, actually very excited that MBT Book 3 is almost here. indeed that some folks might even have copies right now and that all the speculation and wait will (I most earnestly hope) be rewarded.

As to those projects mentioned in previous posts, the Next! of this blogs title - well, they are sitting there, waiting to be picked up soon: for, Lord willing, the penner of this post surely want to write more Half-Continent stories, but right now and just for a little bit finds it necessary to let the "field lie fallow" as it were.

As to why I spoke of myself in the third person for much of this post, I do not know either - Jung would have a field day, I am sure... T'was and interesting writing exercise never-the-less: I have been told that this is a good thing for a writer to do after finishing a big work, to write short things, try stuff out, keep your hand in but keep your goals small so you still feel like a writer who can achieve stuff. All very helpful - now it remains for me to put it in to practice...

BTW, you may not have noticed, but I LOVE ellipses...