From the house of plague
Dear friends,
I write this intermittently, with breaks to go lie down for a while, because I have Covid for the first time, and it is not fun. I always said that we wanted to take our risks so that if we did get it, it was doing something worthwhile, and spending time with family to celebrate a beloved young person's achievements is definitely in that category. However, I say again: no fun.
The curious thing I find is that a great many people do not have room for it to be no fun. It either has to be a disaster worthy of hospitalization or--and they will supply this information for me: "but you're not very sick, right? You feel basically fine, right?" Yesterday was the first time in days that I was well enough to have my supper downstairs at the kitchen table, so no, I do not feel basically fine, right. Also, I am not very sick in the sense that at no point have I thought, gosh, I should probably think about the hospital now. I strongly suspect that this strange reluctance to admit for a genuine middle ground, where people really are sick but also really are not at death's door this very minute, is the root of a great deal of trouble. Still, that's where I am now. Resting a lot, taking a lot of breaks. My fortnightly book post on my blog is going to be an absolute beast because I read a lot while traveling, and I read a lot while sick in bed, and that's by my standards of what's reading a lot.
In any case, publishing marches on, and I have two new stories for you to read this month! First up is A Pilgrimage to the God of High Places in Beneath Ceaseless Skies. A disabled archivist makes a pilgrimage for a cure--but who will be the answer to whose prayers?
Meanwhile in Lightspeed, there's And the Dreams That You Dare to Dream, a portal fantasy about finding your magic and finding your own place in the world--or another world. It's not set in Oz, but its heroine is as stubbornly inspired by the better parts of the Oz stories as I was.
I hope that you can enjoy both of those, and I'm going to get myself a mango juice popsicle and head back to the couch with a book, so that I can rest up and feel better, and be fully energized to tell you about the fun things happening next month. I still expect to be at Fourth Street Fantasy Convention in the middle of the month, moderating a panel and having a special one-on-one conversation with one of the giants of the field (who is also a good friend). I'm just going to give myself some thorough rest days first to do my best to enjoy it when I get there.
Excelsior, as best we can,
Marissa