The Word-Hoard: Meatified

Meatified: Corpulent [early 1600s] (Sir James Murray's New English Dictionary, 1908)

The Word-Hoard: Swacker

Swacker: Something huge; a bulky and robust person. Figuratively, a great lie. (Rev. Robert Forby's Vocabulary of East Anglia, 1830)

A Two-fer!

First, check out Catrina Horsfield's amazing watercolors. She is so talented, it scares me.

Speaking of talented... chapter 23 of The Soldier of Raetia is now posted.

Chapter 22 of Heather Domin's The Soldier of Raetia has now been posted. The Ingvirii are in for it!

The Word-Hoard: Cephaleonomancy

Cephaleonomancy: Divination by a broiled asse's head. (Elisha Coles' English Dictionary, 1713); Cephaleonomancy, or the art of divination by an ass' head, is a species of art magic which still flourishes in England. (Robert Southey's Letters from England, 1807).

PW Review

Part of the deal with being a quarterfinalist in the ABNA contest is you get a Publisher's Weekly review. I'm really pleased with mine.

From Publishers Weekly
Combining religious and secular elements, history with mystery, and plenty of internal conflict, this agreeably suspenseful story centers on the Romanesque Basilica of St. Mary Magdelene in the quaint French village of Vezelay, once a major medieval pilgrimage site. Eight hundred years later, Abbot Michel Dubay has uncovered a jewel-like stained glass depiction of Mary Magdelene, which must be repaired in time for the millennial celebrations for her feast day just weeks away. Jonas Flycatcher, an expert in stained glass repair but as damaged as the medieval artifact, embodies the oft-merited stereotype of an earthy, foul-mouthed American in contrast to the elegant French Abbot and retired medieval academic Marie-Laure. Meanwhile, Meredith, a US expatriate with plenty of mental scars of her own, has returned to the town and remains guiltily immersed in her past, heightened by strange unrecognizable visions. All four suffer the revelations of a beautiful woman whose connection to the glass forces them to face their demons. Throughout the manuscript, a consistent smattering of French and vivid descriptions of the architecture heighten the authenticity of the setting and together with the fast pace creates a highly enjoyable French mystery.

The Pilgrim Glass interview and reading

Special podcast: THE PILGRIM GLASS on KFJC.

As I mentioned in my last post, I read an excerpt of THE PILGRIM GLASS on KFJC this morning - and I got the news that it advanced to the ABNA semifinals, on-air! It's a rather long file - about 30 minutes - and I sound like a total dork :)

Ann asked me to bring in a CD with a music bed, so I thought I'd share that info with you here. They're all Robin Guthrie and Harold Budd from After Night Falls.

1. How Distant Your Heart
2. Avenue of Shapes
3. She Is My Strength
4. Open Book
5. And Then I Turned Away
6. The Girl With Colorful Thoughts

Last, I must emphasize that the broadcast and this recording are copyright KFJC.

The Pilgrim Glass advances to ABNA Semifinals!

Wow, I'm still shaking. I just got back from reading my excerpt on KJFC here in the Bay Area (on "Unbedtime Stories") and when I was done, the host (Ann) had a big ole grin on her face - and she told me THE PILGRIM GLASS has made to to the semifinals in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards - only 100 MS were chosen.

I'm just thrilled. Finalists are announced on May 15.

[Updated 12/13/10: The Pilgrim Glass is now available! Check out the link in the right sidebar, where you can also listen to this KFJC reading.]

The Word-Hoard: Corsned

Corsned: In Old English law, the "morsel of trial," a piece of bread of about an ounce weight consecrated by exorcism which an accused person was required to swallow as a trial of his guilt or innocence. (Sir James Murray's New English Dictionary, 1893); The words of consecration were, "May this morsel cause convulsions and find no passage if the accused is guilty, but turn to wholesome nourishment if he is innocent." Corned, the "cursed mouthful," [is from] Saxon corse, curse; snaed, mouthful. (Ebenezer Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, 1898).

Myths, folklore & symbolism

"This is a sign from the Scandinavian clog almanacs day of Tiburtius, April 13, the beginning of the summer half year."

Get the full story at symbols.com.

Soldier of Raetia, chapter 21? Smoking hot.

Seriously? If you're not reading The Soldier of Raetia, you're really missing out. Chapter 20 is newly posted, and fantastic.

Uh oh. The badasses of Legio XXIV are exacting some vengeance ... check it out: The Soldier of Raetia, chapter 19 is posted!

The Word-Hoard: Cacography

Cacography: Bad spelling (John Ogilvie's Comprehensive English Dictionary, 1865); Ill writing, or writing of an evil thing (Thomas Blount's Glossographia, 1656)

Chapter 18 of Heather Domin's The Soldier of Raetia is now posted. Go! Check it out! You'll thank me.

Interview About The Pilgrim Glass

As I've mentioned before, The Pilgrim Glass (my first novel) is a quarterfinalist in this year's Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition. Heather Domin (she of the fantastic Valerian's Legion: The Soldier of Raetia) interviewed me about the book and the process of writing it. The interview was a ton of fun to do - check it out!