Magick 4 Terri

Hi, Reader. Sorry I haven't been blogging much. I wonder if it's pretty typical this time of year. Many people do NaNoWriMO and then get swept up in holiday chaosity (new word: chaos + jollity, of course). Maybe I'm no different.

Also, everything has felt hard this week. I'm pretty sure I'm fighting some sort of cold/ virus/ whatever. I'm sort of happy because for the past five years after I had Mono, there was no such thing as fighting. I would simply get sick, for at least two weeks. Fighting wasn't an option. So in that sense, fighting makes me happy but in another, I'm constantly irritated with myself for not getting more done. The return of my old friend Insomnia hasn't helped either. I need to be a more productive insomniac, rather than one who huddles on the couch watching old movies. Anyone else have that problem?

This was my first full week as an admissions reader. I like it a lot. I'm probably not giving myself enough credit for the amount of energy it requires to learn something new with new people. It also requires me to be away from a computer for long stretches of time.

The big news this week is that friends of Terri Windling have organized an auction to help her and her family. Terri is constantly fighting a battle with chronic illness and this struggle has put major strain on her finances during these difficult times. I love Terri, would love her even if I had never met her. But since I have met her, I love her even more.

Terri has had an incredible impact on the Fantasy community. You might even say she created the community herself. That community is now coming together to help her. You can bid on all manner of wondrous things from authors, artists, and fans at Magick 4 Terri.

You can donate something to the auction too. I didn't think I had anything to offer. I'm not published (yet), I make cute stick figures but nothing like what Melissa can create (real art). I can write silly rhyming poems and song parodies but I wasn't convinced that would be of interest. So I decided to offer up a batch of my Ginger Jack cookies. Well, guess what? The current bid is at $85!!!! I am stunned. It just goes to show that even when you don't think you can help, you can.

I'm staring down a wall in my novel right now. It's not going to be easy but I guess I'm going to have to take it one word at a time. Wishing you all a weekend of love and laughter!