Oh, and in the course of the cover discussion, both mentioned that the industry is moving back toward clinch covers, though they've been assured their upcoming books will be given "tasteful, artistic clinches." Both have occasionally hated or simply been bemused by a cover choice. I mentioned that if I sell my current book, the one thing that would most break my heart is if the art department puts Jack in a red coat. They said that was easily solved, because insofar as art departments want input, they like pictures/names of actors and such, so I should just send them a picture or two of Sean Bean as Sharpe. We agreed that even though Jack isn't meant to look especially like SB, there would be worse fates than having someone who looks like him on a cover...

I thought so, Victor. I'm totally taking it as testament to my awesome talents.

You so totally should.

Like I said, my "objective" voice is not completely dead then. Mostly, maybe, but I might not need it much, going to the mattresses on this culture war thing.ETA: And, yeah, still funny.

Deb, did you see this? [link]

Sort of an "everything I needed to know I learned from British folk ballads."

Avoid situations where the obvious rhyme-word is “maidenhead.”

If you look at the calendar and discover it’s May, stay home.

Going to sea to avoid marrying your sweetie is an option, but if she hangs herself after your departure (and it’s even money that she’s going to) her Doleful Ghost will arrive on board your ship and the last three stanzas of your life will purely suck.

You are justified in cherishing the direst suspicions of a suddenly and unexpectedly returned significant other who mentions a long journey, a far shore, or a narrow bed, or who’s oddly skittish about the imminent arrival of cockcrow.

the last three stanzas of your life will purely suck.

• snerk!*

Yep. One of McDonald's, and damned funny. If I survive tomorrow - which is questionable, every year at this date - I'll savour it at length.

I believe he left off the bit about not believing what your siblings tell you when you ask if they've seen your "lower social status than you are" lover. (Bruton Town)

Getting a last-minute rain drabble in. This one's been percolating all week and it's time I let the fucker out.

Hip Deep

I'm kneedeep in water.

It's amazing. Grey sky, apocalyptic, indistinguishable from where it meets a stormy sea.

The sane denizens of San Francisco are indoors, storm-watching from office windows, from kitchens, from the local Starbucks, sucking down chai lattes, impatient for the sun.

I'm on the sand at Ocean Beach. Wind at my back wants to push me out to sea: I'm tempted to let it. Rain, wash the pain away.

A gust takes me forward, up to my thighs. I think, childlike: one more push, I'll know, live or die.

The tide recedes, dancing away from me. And the rain comes down.

Very late, but new drabble time!

Challenge #73 (rain) is now closed.

Challenge #74 is, since we haven't done it for a while, pictures from the Look At Me website. Drabble as many as you like, and please include the link to the photo, so we can see the image that goes with the drabble.

One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Six.
Seven.
Eight.
Nine.
Ten.

Man, those are so great. Number Nine looks like an Ezra Jack Keats book.

Nobody minds if I beat the shit out of the Salon book reviewer that called the detective story "devoid of artistic merit," do they? Or maybe Deb should...it's not a road trip for DebG. I should carve him up and write "Dennis Lehane sent me" on the wall in blood. What a malaka Ok...we all(Well, those of us that love hard-boiled) love Raymond Chandler and his sexy metaphors, right? But to say it's all downhill since...snobbish much? Raymond Chandler would drink himself to death all over again to not be part of such a stupid argument. Those guys were geniuses, but dag. And he trashed some of my favorites, too(Nobody in here.) And for once, I think "Sir, what have you written lately?"