Haven’t read it or The Chimera Coup, book 1 of the Heirs of Cataclysm yet? They’re post-magical apocalypse swords and sorcery with lots of action, intrigue, and great characters.
I’ve spent this week editing. I’ll be done with A Lake Most Deep next week. I’m mostly done with the initial pass, but I need to do a bediting pass. It’s much, much leaner and stronger.
I also did some editing on the stories for Bonds of Valor. I’m a bit behind this year because of events, but I’ll get half of them done next week.
I also spent a bunch of time cleaning up a number of housekeeping things and doing foundational work. I’m essentially re-booting my entire career in 2023, and I’m fixing as many small issues here and there. I’m excited about all.
One thing I’m going to start pushing is Twitter. I’m @Rhodri2112 there, and over the next couple of years I’m going to transition away from Facebook.
Speaking of excited, I will have a number of exciting items in next week’s update. I’ll have the website ready for the Firehall Sagas and an extra special sooper-sekret thing I’ve been working on.
This last bit is something I’ve wanted to do for a while, and it dovetails nicely with a lesson I learned at 20Books.
Meanwhile, I’m looking forward to seeing the parents for Christmas this weekend. I hope you all have a great time with your family and friends. Be well, everyone.
What I’m Listening To
The Jets vs. the Jaguars. It’s nights like this, cold and rainy in New York, that I’m glad I didn’t actually play football.
That being said, today had some interesting news. NFL Sunday Ticket will finally move from DirectTV, which was an awful provider, to YouTube TV, which isn’t my preference, but certainly a major step up. I’m curious what that will cost.
Quote of the Week
Today is the anniversary (or at least one possible one, there are questions) of the death of Emperor Vitellius. He was not a terribly notable emperor, ruling only about 8 months.
However, an antiquarian named Robert Bruce Cotton during Elizabethan times collected every ancient manuscript he could. He organized them on bookcases that each had a bust of a Roman Emperor. On the Vitellius bookcase, he put the Nowell Codex on the first shelf (A) and set it as the 15th (xv) manuscript on the shelf.
Hence, the Nowell Codex became known also by its catalog number as Cotton MS Vitellius A XV. It also happens to be one of four major extant collections of Old English poetry.
It includes the only copy of Beowulf to survive, and that was a close-run thing. In 1731, the repository for his library was Ashburnham House, and it had a fire that destroyed a number of manuscripts. The Nowell Codex was damaged, and there’s a burn mark of a poker that makes portions of the last few sections of Beowulf unreadable.
I don’t need much of a reason to celebrate the poem, so here’s my favorite line. And that’s why I’ll never forget Emperor Vitellius.
Deað bið sella
eorla gehwylcum
þonne edwitlif
Death is borne better
By every soul
Than a life of shame
We give our swan song in a truly dude-tastic show. We’re taking a break, though don’t be surprised we have episodes coming occasionally down the road. Also, I’ve developed a taste for podcasting, so who knows what will happen.
As I mentioned, we have Pandora’s Box from Christopher G. Nuttall. This is book 2 in his Heirs of Cataclysm series. You can get that one here: amazon.com/dp/B0BNPQ61DX.
Your pre-release this week is the 18th book in The Fallen World, The Guilted Cage. Post-apocalyptic mayhem by Casey Moores. Get it here: amazon.com/dp/B0BQRQYL86.
Tracked Items
Today’s Weight: 335.2
Updated Word Count: 427,484
Firehall Archives: 742 entries (I cleaned out a number of Eldros Legacy items, part of the housekeeping I mentioned up above).
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
This will be a longer email than normal with a whole bunch of $0.99 books and new releases. In part, it’s because we just have a whole bunch going on. In part, because next week I won’t be able to make a post so I’m slamming everything in this ahead of time.
The key thing is to watch for dates on sales and giveaways, because they’re not all the same time.
But wait, there’s more! Chris Kennedy is also having The Reluctant Druid (1st book in the Milesian Accords by Jon R. Osborne), Cherry Drop (1st book in the Abner Fortis, ISMC by P.A. Piatt, and the one that started the whole Four Horsemen Universe, Cartwright’s Cavaliers by Mark Wandrey on sale through Tuesday at $0.99 as well.
In fact, you can get the all four in one swell foop by clicking right here.
We’ll get to even more in a moment, but that’s a heck of a start. Four great books at less than a dollar and a hot new release.
I did a bunch of editing on the new Eldros Legacy novel, The Forgotten King by Mark Stallings. This is a fun, action-packed story that rocks. Expect this on the 12th of July.
But of course, most of this week has been focused on wedding preparations. Did I mention that the wedding will be LiveStreamed at 7:30pm Central Time on Saturday the 18th? You can even bookmark the link here: youtube.com/watch?v=yJLHL9_IKZY.
You get to see me in funny clothes, with funny people, doing funny things. Going to be a hoot, I expect, and I am incredibly excited.
Oh, did I mention up above there’s more? There is!
As a wedding gift to you all, I’ve got both A Lake Most Deep and I Am a Wondrous Thing going on sale for $0.99 starting tomorrow, Friday the 17th, and running through Thursday the 23rd.
Again, they go on sale tomorrow through next Thursday.
And after you get done buying all that, there’s a huge list of stuff that’s
The event my sweetie and I will be getting married at is Calontir’s War of the Lilies. The event runs all week and while I’ll have phone access, I won’t have computer access. This means I won’t send out an email next Thursday. I’m including all that I’d put in next week’s in this week.
So…
While at the War of the Lilies, I’ll be selling books and doing a bunch of editing on Eldros Legacy projects. Hopefully, I’ll come back with a bunch less books and a bunch of stuff edited.
One great thing about these events is that I’m either making money, making progress on new stuff, or spending time with close friends. None of these are bad things.
This week has been busy and exhausting, so this afternoon I treated myself to a movie in the theater for the first time in over a decade. I’m not really a theater guy. Usually, I’d just rather watch the movie in my comfy chair at home, but I was told that the visuals of Top Gun: Maverick were worth seeing on the big screen.
Man, were those people right. The aerobatics alone were amazing, especially since they weren’t created with CGI, but actual pilots flying actual planes. Impressive stuff. The story was very good, nothing terribly surprising, just a good old-fashioned kick-ass film. Lots of fun, and I cried at several moments.
The Val Kilmer scene? Yeeesh. So powerful.
Anyway, I have things to pack, so let’s get to the rest of the stuff.
What I’m Listening To
Currently, I’m listening to Corvus Corax’s version of Cheiron Seikilos. Corvus Corax is one of those bands who play medieval songs on medieval instruments in a metal style. Fantastic stuff.
Quote of the Week
As I said, the Val Kilmer scene was something, especially since he can’t talk anymore and they had to recreate his voice for this. He’ll be my huckleberry this week with a quote every creator needs to hear.
“I saw the horizon. It’s out there. And though I may not ever be able to touch it, it’s worth reaching for.”
– Val Kilmer
The theme is Bonds of Valor, and you story must include deeds of valor centered around bonds between characters. This could be a romantic relationship, a buddy adventure, oaths to kings, or whatever you can come up with.
Deadline: November 30th, 2022
Word Count: 7-10,000 words
Specifics: Times New Roman, 12 point font, 1.5 line spaced.
It must also be a fantasy story. Any type is welcome, urban, epic, high, western, gothic, whatever, it just have to have magic. Finally, it cannot have been published anywhere else before.
I’m currently working on The Forgotten King, the next Eldros Legacy novel.
Giveaways
Three giveaways this week on top of the $0.99 stuff. If this doesn’t kickstart your summer reading, I don’t know what else I can do.
First, let’s get to Bestiarii, which is a new series from another new writer to CKP, James Tarr. You can get it here: amazon.com/gp/product/B0B44YM335.
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Overall, this week has been fairly leisurely. I’ve taken some time off to spend with my sweetie. Been doing some reading. Truth be told, it’s been my laziest week in months.
I did get a number of things done. I have finished the new read through on A Lake Most Deep and it’ll be renewed over the next week or so. I also started with my read through of The Eyes of a Doll. Overall, I’m aiming to refresh all of the Edward books by the end of the month. Those of you who’ve purchased it already will get the new version automatically.
I started Lord of the Rings again last night. I read through the initial foreword to the 50th anniversary edition and I had to laugh. Tolkien never stopped trying to fix all the errors he found that crept in from faulty work and decisions made by editors thinking they’d be “helping.”
Makes me feel a lot better about my progress as a book creator, which is different than a writer.
Anyway, I also did some more research on effective advertising techniques. If you’ve seen my name popping up here or there a little more often, it’s not an accident as I’m prowling through the best way to do things.
This, by the way, is one reason I’m updating A Lake Most Deep. I’ve got new tools to get it in front of people. Generally, to this point, I’ve relied on you all talking about my books. You’ve done a great job, and I thank all of you who’ve given me a review and pushed my stuff on your friends. Actually, I can’t thank you enough, but I’ll certainly try.
I did get some new words written on The Ravening of Wolves and I’ve thought through some of the blocks that have been holding me up. I really want to get it done quickly because I have another Edward book demanding to get written.
What I’m Listening To
It’s a great day for football! I actually got a 7-day free trial of Fubo in order to watch football this weekend.
Quote of the Week
Here’s the verse of Auld Lang Syne that seems apt this year.
“We twa hae run about the braes,
and pou’d the gowans fine;
But we’ve wander’d mony a weary fit,
sin’ auld lang syne.”
― Robert Burns, Auld Lang Syne
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Now that 2020 is in the mirror, it’s time for me to review my output for the year and give myself a grade.
I only published one novel, None Call Me Mother. It was an important novel and a big challenge as the third of a trilogy. I learned a ton of things writing that series and I’ll never do that the same way again.
I published another Foresters story. Actually, I published another Rick Blaine story. I think, long-term, that’s where my 4HU future really lies. I got 30k into The Ravening of Wolves and it will be as straightforward a novel as I’ve ever written. At this point, it’s about arming up too damn quickly to fight a desperate fight. The physics of the 4HU means that Blaine has to be separate.
There was another story in the We Dare series. It was a prequel to “The Chaos of Well-Seeming Forms.” I like where that universe is going and I might very well do something with it down the road. Hence, I’m calling those the “On Opportunity’s Trail” universe. There’s stuff there, once I get a chance to write in it.
I had the great honor of being the guest for the Scribblers Corner anthology Dragons and Dribbles. My first time as a “guest star.” Thanks to William Joseph Roberts for the opportunity.
I wrote several fantasy short stories in 2020. I wrote one in late 2019, “What’s in a Name,” that came out in When Valor Must Hold. I wrote another Edward-ish story for Songs of Valor. My story in Dragons and Dribbles was another Shijuren story. I also dabbled in something that’s specifically Conan-esque.
While much of the fantasy stuff I wrote will only come out in 2021, I was pleased to really start pushing more short fantasy. I’ll be doing more of that in Shijuren to fill in some of the blanks.
I did my second Nick Patara, PI story. That world is really coming into view, and I actually got about 1k written in next year’s story.
Overall, I published about 200k worth of fiction. This is lower than I want, as it only included 1 novel and 5 short stories. There were also three introductions/prefaces. I also have a couple short stories that are in upcoming anthologies. I also had about 70k on my blog, so all told I counted 268,072 words.
This isn’t enough. I’ll give myself a C here. Had I written another novel, I’d give myself an A. Missed it by 70k.
However, I will adjust my overall grade up a bit when I consider what else I’ve done. The way the schedule worked, I did most of the work for both When Valor MustHold and Songs of Valor in the 2020 calendar year.
So, while I only wrote about 20k words in those two total, they were two full-sized projects that I’m not counting in the above 200k. I’m not quite sure how to count editing work in my word count, so that’s something I’ll have to figure out.
I also had to rebuild the wiki for Shijuren in 2020. That ended up over 100k words of worldbuilding, record-keeping, and foundational work. This made it much easier to write my story for Songs of Valor, and is really pushing another Edward story.
Also, re-doing the wiki made it much easier for me to re-edit I Am a Wondrous Thing and Brief is My Flame. That took time too. I’m in the midst of re-editing the Edward books, and by the end of January, I expect them to be fresher and faster.
I did start learning how on-line publicity works. I’m still not doing it well, but making progress. It’s not something I’ve done a ton of, and I think I’m missing some opportunities there.
Actually, now that I think of it, I did quite a bit of research during the year to turn some instinctive things into known things that I can consciously call on instead of relying upon their appearance. I’m definitely getting better.
Overall, that extra work brings my grade up to a B-. I didn’t do awful, but I’m sure I could have done more. I’ll do another post next week about my goals and plans for 2021. Next year, I’ll try and do better.
Your Christmas gift, Under a Midnight Clear, will be in an email immediately following this one. It’s a 5.9Mb Zip file with the story in .pdf, .epub, and .mobi formats. That should cover most, if not all of you, but if you need it in another format, let me know. My e-book creation software can let me do just about anything.
Also, if you have any issues receiving that email, including not getting it at all, problems with a file that large, or anything else. Let me know, and I’ll make sure to help you. I’ll assume, by the way, that you’ve checked your Spam directory, which it might shunt to for a variety of reasons, of course.
My sweetie and I opened our presents last night and snuggled on the couch watching Youtube videos of Rowan Atkinson, Monty Python, and Victor Borge. We also tried the gluten-free low-carb pork rind panko breading on Buffalo strips. Delicious.
Today we’ll be doing some Zoom calls, like I suspect many will do. I’ll do some more re-editing on A Lake Most Deep as well. Then we’ll have steak and a fixings for dinner. Yeah, it’s not traditional, but even a small turkey and ham and all the rest is too much for me. At least now. There were days in the past, though…
This was not my most productive week, but I did stuff I needed to do. Stuff that consolidated and organized a bunch of things. I cleaned up my file structure on my computers, which needed straightening up. This has the benefit of double-checking all my backups. I did, of course, finish Under a Midnight Clear and get it ready to deliver.
Anyway, I hope you all have a fantastic day and holiday season.
What I’m Listening To
Wizards in Winter by Trans-Siberian Orchestra. I’m really a fan of Christmas music, especially hard rock and metal versions. TSO is the best of this, having made a living melding genres into something spectacular.
Quote of the Week
This seems like an appropriate quote after 2020. I think we all need a little extra, and that means we all need to try and do a little extra for each other.
“Christmas is doing a little something extra for someone.”
― Charles M. Schulz
News and Works in Progress
The Ravening of Wolves (29,784)
Rick Blaine (8,845)
CB (8,418)
Cynewulf (8,642)
Gato (2,312)
Recent Blog Posts and Wiki Additions
I spent the week cleaning up a few mistakes on the wiki. I did add one new page, though. Interestingly, research for that one page gave me a bunch of new ideas because I stumbled across a fable sunken city. Heck, yeah, I’m gonna use that someday.
This week’s spotlight is on Nick Steverson, who has jumped in with both feet. This week, he releases his second novel in the Salvage Title universe, Action. You can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08R7T6DP5.
Today’s Weight: 348.6 (Not a typo)
Updated Word Count: I’ve decided I need to keep track of wiki entries better. My new backup process allows me to track how many words I use on the wiki, but that is someone misleading because that includes a variety of things like “BOX(width=”250px” align=”left” float=”right” bg=”#1f2e52″ style=padding: 10px” which shouldn’t really count.
However, given some of the feedback I’ve gotten, the wiki *is* contributing to Shijuren’s readership so it should count for something, especially since part of the reason I keep these word counts is to reward myself when I do work. Hence, I’m going to start counting the Wiki word count at 1/4th. I did over 100k words, or a full novel of exposition that isn’t dragging down the stories.
Anyway, here’s the updated total: 293,605
Shijuren Wiki: 724 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
I hope your holiday season is going well. We’re not doing much this year, which is a bit of a holiday in its own right. We love decorating and that sort of thing, but I for one am going to appreciate not having to carry all the decorations back to their spot upstairs in January.
And that has meant more time to work on things.
Like releasing last year’s freebie for the mailing list on Amazon.Silent Knight, with new artwork from Cedar Sanderson, is now available for those who aren’t on the list on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QYWB7C9.
If you read it and liked it, please leave a review. Those always help, no matter the book.
Also, those of you on the mailing list will get Under a Midnight Clear on Christmas Day. I’ll send it out in .mobi, .epub, and .pdf formats. In this one, Alley, Nick’s intel guy, is trying to help a relation of someone he once fought alongside. Nick knows there a case there, but he’s struggling to figure out just what he can do and for whom.
I’ve been cleaning up a number of other projects as well. I arranged None Call Me Mother in a more streamlined fashioned than my previous books. I may have mentioned how I updated the electronic versions of I Am a Wondrous Thing and Brief Is My Flame prior to None Call Me Mother’s release. I just finished updating all the paperback setups as well, a process that involves a lot of futzing with Amazon.
I have started another edit in my copious spare time of A Lake Most Deep, with the intent to provide fresh versions of all the Edward books in early 2021. This includes fixing all the links in the e-versions. The wiki is now mostly current, though I keep finding things I should have put in from earlier books and finding fun world-building ideas. It was always meant as a work in progress anyway and it’s serving its purpose as a font of ideas for the next Edward novel.
My next release will probably be the second in the Libri Valoris series of fantasy anthologies. Songs of Valor is basically ready to go, once I write the preface. It’ll come out in mid-March.
I’m also working on The Ravening of Sorrows. I’m at about 28k and if that number seems low, it’s because I realized what I have are two separate stories, one centered around the Foresters and Stalkers, and one centered around Rick Blaine. Rick’s storyline simply takes too long because it requires a goodly number of Stargate trips, which in the 4HU are 170 hours gate to gate plus the time to get from gate to planetary orbit. The Foresters are going to be in battle within three months of the events on Maquon.
What it really means is that you’re going to get two novels! When I finish them, of course. Updates on timing on those when I know more.
I’m going to leave you with a teaser. There are a number of things coming together in January that will be fun to announce.
And now, have a great week and a happy holiday season.
What I’m Listening To
Cygnus X-1 by Rush. I’ve been listening to Rush almost exclusively of late and probably will for a couple more weeks. I’ve set it to not shuffle, by the way, and I’m having fun listening to the albums in album order.
Quote of the Week
If you ever wondered, this is why my cars are always named Rocinante.
“I set a course just east of Lyra
And northwest of Pegasus
Flew into the light of Deneb
Sailed across the Milky Way
On my ship, the Rocinante
Wheeling through the galaxies,
Headed for the heart of Cygnus
Headlong into mystery”
– Rush, Cygnus X-1
News and Works in Progress
The Ravening of Wolves (27,982)
Rick Blaine (8,845)
CB (8,418)
Cynewulf (8,642)
Gato (2,312)
Recent Blog Posts and Wiki Additions
Not much this week except a bit of playing around on the wiki.
This week’s spotlight is on Barbara V. Evers, who is showing us all how to do a trilogy right. The first book in her trilogy,
, comes out today. I believe all three of the books are in the can and they’ll come out monthly. Not stupid slow, like the way I did it. Anyway, you can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QRJTHHC.
Today’s Weight: 351.2
Updated Word Count: 262,221
Shijuren Wiki: 723 entries
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
Sorry about not getting out an update last week. I should just plan for that weekend to be empty, because the NFL Draft is one of my favorite events of the year. This year I actually got to wallow in it more than normal, which was a lot of fun for me.
Building a team, whatever the sport, is fascinating to me. It’s like multi-dimensional tetris with amorphous, changing parts. The best players don’t always fit, and this is especially true in football. More than any sport, football is a team sport, and fit is incredibly important for players.
It’s one reason why the hit rate on draft picks is so low. If the fit isn’t right, and you can’t always know until the attempt is made, then the player may never succeed. Conversely, if the fit is right, then that same player may become a Hall of Famer. It’s that much of a tightrope.
I love that sort of puzzle. It’s why I love tracking minor-league prospects as well.
Anyway, back to my work. I’ve spent this week hammering on a project that’s a bit of a change for me. It’s for a publisher I’ve not worked with before, and it’s a task with a number of interesting constraints. I have to match the editor’s specifics, which is making me work extra hard. Kinda neat, actually.
It’s sort of like writing certain kinds of poetry. Drottkvaet, for example, requires a slew of things including specific syllable counts, alliteration, and rhymes (preferably interior half-rhymes).
This particular project is something I’m having a lot of fun working on, but with the restrictions and the desire to impress a new editor, it’s been interesting.
In the end, though. I think you’ll like this story when I can tell you about it.
Speaking of stories, I had a new release this week. Gates of Hell, the newest Four Horsemen anthology, hit the virtual shelves yesterday. My story is “Fire from Fire Quickened,” and it’s a follow-up from The Feeding of Sorrows.
This is the 50th book in the Four Horsemen series. I am so proud to have contributed the Queen Elizabeth’s Own Foresters to that universe, and will be writing the sequel to The Feeding of Sorrows as soon as I finish None Call Me Mother.
it’s a tough day to work, as it’s beautiful outside, but gotta get words on the page. Have a great day.
What I’m Listening To
“Schism” by Tool. Tool is such a great band to write to. They are intricate, powerful, and get my mind going.
Quote of the Week
“A man, a horse, and a vicious kidnapping and murder saved me.”
– A Lake Most Deep, by me.
Why this as my quote? A Lake Most Deep turned 5 this week and this is the first line. I love that story, though I wince at times at my writing. I am so much better now than I was back then. I’m supposed to be, of course, but I wouldn’t have gotten here without A Lake Most Deep.
So glad I took the risk and dived into the deep end.
News and Works in Progress
None Call Me Mother (PAGES)
CB (8,418)
TSK (7,563)
Recent Blog Posts and Wiki Additions
Been working on the Wiki. Finally overcame a number of weird issues and I’m making good progress now.
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
I’ve rewarded myself with work in the shop, though I haven’t done a ton with None Call Me Mother. Ran into another snag that I’ve spent the week clearing up.
And that’s what I’m working on this weekend as I’m mostly packed for Pennsic.
Current Playlist Song
Rush’s The Weapon. The things that we fear are weapons to be used against us.
Quote of the Week
There’s only one possible choice for a quote this week.
“That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
– Neil Armstrong
Let me know if you have any suggestions on the website, this email, or cool story ideas at rob@robhowell.org. Especially let me know of suggestions you have for the Spotlight section.
This week’s interview is with Mia Hansson. I first met Mia when she and her husband came over from England to do a Vikings re-enactment event. A few years later, they graciously allowed me to use their house as a base as I roamed around to places like York, Shrewsbury, Portsmouth, and wherever else the train decided to take me.
But she’s not simply a great person, she’s incredibly skilled too. She’s also, like so many doing re-enactment, an overachiever. The Bayeux Tapestry is not a small thing. It’s 20 inches by 230 feet! That’s like a receiver catching a 76 yard pass! No one would be brave enough to embroider a full-sized replica would they? Well, here’s Mia…
Interview: Mia Hansson
What is your quest?
I have given myself 10 years to make a full scale replica of the Bayeux tapestry, the way I believe it may have looked when it was first created, before any repair work was required. I was alerted to someone’s attempt to make a half scale version and decided that I wanted to make a tapestry too. However, if you are going to make something like this, it needs to be done properly. I’m now 2 years and 9 months into the project and I have completed over 17 m, which means I have less than 52 m left to embroider.
Mia’s replica stretched out
At a museum in Reading, UK is a replica made in the 1800s by the Leek Embroidery Society. That version was censored. Stallions turned into mares and nude men are wearing underpants. My tapestry will be true to the original, which can be seen at the Bayeux tapestry museum in northern France.
Alongside the embroidery, I’m writing a book in which I try to capture thoughts and ideas, as well as experiences that come with the project. I hope to publish it at the time of project completion.
What is your favorite color?
I love many colours, but if I have to pick one I would opt for red, the kind of red that goes towards blue, not yellow. Blue is a close second and a soft pink. There are both red and blue in the tapestry, which only contains seven shades: red, yellow, light and dark blue, light and dark green and a dark mixture of green and blue.
The basic images on the tapestry are horses, men, ships and buildings. Although ships take forever to embroidery, they make a real impact when they are done and so do the horses. Big blocks of colour and that’s satisfying to create. If someone was to pick one image from the Bayeux tapestry to embroidery, I would recommend a ship or a horse. Stay well clear of buildings with a tiled roof or bricked walls. They are frustrating to stitch, due to the bitty nature of many small details.
There are several different stitches used on the original tapestry and I try my best to use the same in the correct places. The couch stitch is the main one and it has become known as the Bayeux stitch. It is a very efficient way of covering a large area and I really enjoy it.
I find details important, even if they can be frustrating and for me it is a big deal to get the features of the people’s faces right. A hooked or pointy nose, big or small eyes and an upwards or downwards facing line marking a mouth can make a big different. At the very beginning of my project, I remember stitching King Edward’s face three times before being happy with it. I hate unpicking with a passion, but I’d rather do that than leave something I’m not pleased with. This is a project I want to be proud of.
What is the average flying speed of an unladen paint brush?
The flying speed of a paint brush is less than that of a swooping eagle, but more than that of a person not concentrating hard enough to get out of its path.
There are two different shades of blue on the original tapestry, a light and a dark shade, which are two of the main seven colours. As they were hand dyed, of course they differ, sometimes within the same hank of wool. That means a stitched outline can start out light and end up dark, with a mid blue in between. I have to make a choice which shade to use, as I only have light and dark. Even worse is when I can’t decide whether an infilled area is meant to be light blue, dark blue or perhaps a green-blue mixture. Occasionally I have involved other people to help make a decision and at times I have worked with other colours while I try to make my mind up. Sometimes I have changed my opinion after stitching and then had to decide if to unpick my work or not. Funnily enough it is only the blue shades causing major issues. The others tend to behave.
What are the powers of your personal Holy Hand Grenade?
I hold an awesome stabbing power when it comes to a small needle. Sometimes I stab so fast that I fail to move the hand holding the fabric and I have to make sure there are no blood stains on the item I’m working on. True story.
Neatness is my thing. From years and years and even more years of practice, I can keep my stitches neat, tidy and the same size. Even the back of the piece has passed the approving eye of many experienced needlewomen. I was taught by my nan at the age of 4 or 5 how to embroidery and her lessons included how to keep the backside tidy.
Before starting this tapestry project I was (and still am now and then) making Viking garments for reenactors and for museums. Some of those items featured embroidery. The person would give me an image and I would make it fit as if by magic. Perhaps that’s it, embroidery magic is my Holy Hand Grenade.
Mia with Tapestry
Lightning Round
Favorite Muppet? Miss Piggy, of course!
Best Thing From the 80s? Leg warmers and permed hair. I had both.
Your Wrestler Name? Magic Mia – Poof and she is gone…
And Signature Wrestling Move? Run and hide, preferably as far from the arena as possible.
Favorite Weird Color? Pear ice cream green. Not pistachio green, but pear ice cream green.
How Will You Conquer the World? I’m already the ruler of my own pink clouded world. I will stitch something so amazing that people will willingly enter my world to view it. They will realize how pleasant Mia Land is and before they know it, they will be trapped and made to see the world through my eyes. Me being crazy? Pffft, not in my world. You’ll see…. Mwoa-ha-ha!
What Cartoon Character Are You? Lilla My from the Moomins
Best Present You’ve Ever Received? A soft cuddly frog when I was a child. He was my companion for far too many years.
What Do You Secretly Plot? To make people see the world the way I do. (See above)
Brought to you by the letter ___? M, of course. M for marvelous, meticulous, merry, magical and mustard, sweet mustard that is.
Favorite Sports Team? I don’t do sports. I like watching ice dancing, but that’s not really a team sport.
Cake or Pie? Pie! Oh yes, I had a piece of amazing pecan pie in Michigan last year at a place famous for its cherry pie.
Lime or Lemon? Lime, because it is small, green and cute.
Favorite Musical Performer We’ve Never Heard Of? Abba! At least one of my US friends couldn’t name a single Abba song. However, if you know the phenomenon that is (was) Abba, I’ll pick Marianne Flynner, a Swedish country & western singer.
Whisky or Whiskey? Whiskey, I can spell…
Favorite Superhero? The Phantom. I even know a song about him… in Swedish. I’m singing it right now.
Steak Temperature? I don’t do temperature. I squish it when frying. It needs to have some squish to be rare.
Favorite 1970s TV show? I loved Happy Days
Winter, Spring, Summer, or Fall? Spring, when the trees are light and bright green, before the summer heat kicks in. I love when nature comes back to life and I can be barefoot again.
Favorite Pet? Our two dogs, the Princess and the Pirate or Buffy and Bruin, if you want their real names.
Best Game Ever? The King’s Circle
Coffee or Tea? Black coffee, of course.
Sci-Fi or Fantasy? Fantasy, although I do like a decent alien.
What question(s) would you like to ask me?
When will we get to see you again? It has been far too long. We still have the wooden piece of art you brought back from your travels.
Rob’s Answer: I don’t know, but I’d really like to come back. I had a great time both times I was in England, and I really want to do another walking tour. I’ve been reading a lot of Dick Francis lately, and I want to walk the Ridgeway Trail and then maybe time it so I can go to the Cheltenham Festival. I’ve never seen a real steeplechase, and I really want to.
When you write, how much of your own experiences do you include in the storyline? Are any of the characters based on you, however loosely? Do you plot the entire storyline before starting on a new book or does it take on a life of its own and take you on a journey during the process of writing?
Rob’s Answer: Wow, a number of questions there. Let’s start with how much me is in there. It’s hard to say, sometimes. My normal style is to create a character, put them into a situation, and role-play what they will do. I try to give the characters agency, but every part an actor plays comes at some point from his experiences.
I do base characters on people, but not much on me. I suppose I could fancy myself as Edward, but I’m probably closer to Ragnar if I’m being honest.
I’m a pantser, actually, which means I write by the seat of my pants. Plotting to me is a generalized where I want certain characters to end up. I suppose I’m doing a little more plotting in the sense I’m trying to pants barebones first drafts and then fill them out in the editing process. They serve as sort of a chapter plan.
I’ve found that short stories can sort of spring up wholly formed, like “Far Better to Dare,” my entry in the naval alternate history anthology Those in Peril and my most recent story, “The Chaos of Well-Seeming Forms,” which will come out in We Dare this summer. It doesn’t always happen like that, but it can.
However, novels always take a journey of their own for me. In A Lake Most Deep, I was writing the scene where we meet Katarina for the first time. I intended it that scene to be merely a placed Edward had to go, or it would be an obvious plot hole. Instead, Katarina grabbed me by the throat and changed the story completely, and in so doing, all of Shijuren. While it’s often not as dramatic as that scene, the truth is novels are too big with too much going on for them not to be shaped by characters at some point during the process.
Tell me again where we can find your stuff?
I run two Facebook groups, Mia’s Bayeux tapestry story, where you can follow my project:
If you check out the information section of the tapestry group above, there are several links to video clips and online articles about the project, such as these ones:
In Mia’s sewing & embroidery, I showcase Viking age garments and other items I have made. I take orders, if anyone is interested of a 100% hand stitched piece.
Every so often I take my tapestry out for a talk & display, fairly local to where we live. Most of the events are private bookings, but occasionally I organize something for the general public. Those will be advertised on Mia’s Bayeux tapestry story Facebook page.
Final question for you: What should I have asked but did not?
You should have asked if I use a frame for my embroidery. Everyone else asks this question, so why not you? No, I don’t. I have one, but don’t get along with it. Years or practice have taught me how to get the tension right without a frame.
What am I going to do with the tapestry once all 69 m have been completed? Hopefully I’ll find someone with deep pockets who is willing to take over ownership. If not, I have had 10 years of enjoyment out of it and it will live out its days as a giant roll of linen and wool in my hobby room.
Rob’s Note: Y’all need to buy a lot of books, because I really want to have deep pockets when the time comes.
Thanks to Mia for taking the time to answer my questions.
If you have any suggestions or comments about this interview format, let me know so I can keep tweaking it.
Also, thanks to you for reading. If you’re interested in any of the other interviews I’ve done, you can find them all here: https://robhowell.org/blog/?cat=326. If you are a creator, especially an independent creator, and you want to be spotlighted in a future interview, email me at rob@robhowell.org.
Finally, if you want to join my mailing list, where I’ll announce every interview, as well as what’s going on in my life, go to www.robhowell.org and fill out the form (Name and Email Address) or drop me an email and I’ll add you.
I am at the Southern Charm Restaurant in Blue Ridge, GA on my way to FantaSci in Raleigh, NC next weekend. It’s a lovely day to drive around Appalachia, sunny and comfortable.
Gulf Wars 2019 booth
Comfortable is a good way to describe this year’s Gulf Wars weather. It was the best weather I’ve ever seen at Gulf Wars. We had major rain one night, but nothing huge during any day. It got warmish one day. There were a few days that got to the cool side of things, but nothing like the cold of the past few years. It was great.
For the first time, I had my own booth at a major war. I was located across from the Gode Bakery along a major road, so I had people coming by my booth constantly. I was a little worried that my traffic would drop off dramatically by not being in Calontir Trim, but the location worked out well.
The setup also worked well. I had my books and the CDs I carry on one side of the front. The other side held Lobster Rose Pottery. It was a nice combination, actually. Gwen’s stuff drew in some eyes my books didn’t, and vice versa.
Overall, sales for me continued the trend of rising each year. I did real well on A Lake Most Deep, which is nice because I get a lot of return readers, so hopefully that means even more business next year. I was actually surprised how few sales with multiple items happened. Usually, I have about a third of my total sales from people buying two or more at once. This year, I only had about one in five or so. I’m not at all sure what that means, only that it was striking.
CDs continue to add a touch extra. I broke even on CDs this year because I added Wolgemut’s latest and three of Vince Conaways. It’s a nice sideline that’s easy and continues to add a little here, a little there.
I managed to fulfill my responsibilities as Their Majesties’ herald, though it wasn’t always easy. I caught the cold/cough/allergies that seemed to be going around and it slowed me down. I made it through court, if only barely, on Thursday. Then I fell down, go boom. Friday, I felt much better, though.
I mentioned yesterday that I have a bunch of people to thank. I surely can’t remember everyone, because there’s so many, but here are some that come to mind.
I’ll start with Master Andrixos for helping me along the path of SCA merchanting. He also brought over Master Blackhawk, merchant-o-crat of Ragnarok, Dagorhir’s version of Pennsic. I may go this year. Drix has been a major boon to me, and I can’t thank him enough.
Seraphima, the Gulf Merchant coordinator, for putting up with my questions and helping me. I’ll also include her staff, who made things much easier. Thanks guys, I appreciate it.
Gwen for making the pottery in the first place, but more importantly, Ulf for handling the pottery setup and take down. Thanks very much. I didn’t break anything, which was a huge concern on my part.
I learned how hard it is to run a booth by oneself. Thanks to Kierstie and Catin for taking time out of their schedules to watch the booth. Also to Nest and Dissa, who dropped by a number of times to see if I needed anything. There were also a number of people who hung around for five minutes while I went to the bathroom or across the street to the Gode Bakery. Thanks guys, I couldn’t have made it through the war without you.
I want to thank Their Majesties for being patient and accommodating with my work schedule. They adapted and overcame when I wasn’t around as things changed and they needed a herald on the spur of the moment. Also, I really appreciate you allowing me to tag in Dawi to serve as stunt herald for opening ceremonies.
And guess what, I’d like to thank Dawi for handling opening ceremonies. It’s a fun gig, but it’s a lot of hurry up and wait, and by doing the job, it meant I had that much more time to work.
I had a ton of customers during the week. If I’m accounting correctly, I sold books, CDs, and pottery to over 60 different customers this past week. That seems like a lot to me. I don’t have most of your names, but thanks for coming by, I really appreciate it
To count off on the final results. I liked my location. I sold more than ever. Gwen liked the results. I learned a ton about what I need in my own booth, too. If they let me, I’ll be right there again next year.
