Today I finished the second draft of the Sulphur Springs book (the title of which is now uncertain.) I'm okay with where it's headed, but I'm not excited by it and it's been harder work than usual. Frankly, I decided to write this one for the money, though I've become very fond of the 82-year-old protagonist, Violet McAdams, who returns to a childhood haunt to solve a very old murder. It's a non-gay mystery, which could make it marketable, though I'm still toying with publishing it under a woman's pseudonym. With the payment I get for most of my books, it's the love of writing and my obsession with perfecting things that keep me going. And having finished LAKE ON THE MOUNTAIN in the fall, it will take a lot for me to get excited about anything again, as I know that one will be hard for me to better.
In any case, I'm going to leave it for now and return to work on THE HONEY LOCUST. If I go to Mexico this year, for the first time in more than eight years it will not be to the Pacific coast but to the Atlantic--to the Yucatan and south-west to Chiapas--which will help with some finishing touches in my research for that book. If all goes well there, I hope to be off to Bosnia in the spring for the rest of the research.
December 21, 2008
December 8, 2008
PROUST & COMPANY: I’m thrilled to report the inaugural night of Toronto’s newest literary salon was a great success! The series, hosted by Glad Day Books, Josh Bentley-Swan and me, was inspired by my recent trip to Paris as well as stories of Sylvia Beach’s famed SHAKESPEARE AND COMPANY. Michael Rowe read his delightful and intimate childhood portrait, MY LIFE AS A GIRL, from his 2008 Randy Shilts Award-winning essay collection, OTHER MEN’S SONS, while Beverley Stone read a selection of short passages from her stunning literary debut, NO BEAUTIFUL SHORE. The readings were memorable, moving and entertaining, as was the musical accompaniment by dynamic jazz duo Geri Aniceto and Omel Masalunga.
Join us for the next evening on Feb 7 from 8-10 PM, (above Glad Day Books at 598A Yonge St), featuring Nairne Holtz (THE SKIN BENEATH) and S. Bear Bergman (BUTCH IS A NOUN.)
www.proustandcompany.com.
The event is always free!
