Allyson, I like it that you know Tim, because when I hang out at boards you post on and "hear" you mention him, that makes TIM MINEAR THE FABULOUS WRITER just another human being, Allyson's friend Tim who has beagles and also happens to be a fabulous writer. Does that make any sense? A writer (or actor, or musician, or anyone who does work you love) can become almost as fictionalized as their writing, because like their characters, they're just names on a page and a brief description on the back cover. I think that's why some fantasy-prone people can so easily make up relationships with them that don't exist: they've fictionalized the person. But if you know that person, or know someone who does, then they become more than words-on-a-page; they're real people. Which makes the stories even more interesting, to me, because then I can imagine - or even hear about - what it was like for that person to be in the process of creating it.

Deb! I just woke up from a DayQuil dream, and I was handing out paperback copies of your first Kincaid book, which had an excerpt from your 2nd Kincaid book in the back, and I was SO namedropping you!

"Look! My friend Deb's book! She's an author! Read her books! Isn't this cool!"

I was a total gushy fangeek BookPimp in my dream.

Cold medicine is FUN.

Cold medicine is FUN.

envious because all it does is wire me, damn it

makes me feverish and headachy.

Sorry. Been away meeting commitments. Publisher: Jim Baen. Which, among a great many other things, means I shall have to put off buying ... I was going to say "that private jet", but reality calls for "lean meat" ... until next year.

The title is still up for grabs. They can dig the rest of it, but those few words have to get by Homeland Security and the Baptist Council. At this time, all I am authorized to tell you is that the number of zeros on the paycheck are "few", even though a better word might be "seldom".

I am thinking that decimal points are somewhat "often", in fact.

All that fiduciary shiznit off to one side, the thing seems to be going forward.

There are persons who represent themselves as "agents" who are now haunting my answering machine. I have to ask myself ... "What kind of agent stalks a Baen buy?"

Gus, so it's scifi/fantasy?

I'm trying to remember who I know who's been published by Baen.

deb, it is "romance-fi", Gawd help me.

Baen is going into a branch, if you takes me meaning. If you had a "Scouts" novel in mind, it might fit.

It may not make you rich, Gus, but you're in good company at Baen. For one, Baen accepted the first Lois McMaster Bujold book after multiple rejections. I'm looking forward to the book to be named later.

Me too.

So, that's two buyers right here.

I'm looking forward to the day when there is a buffista books section in all local bookshops.