Small joys past, present, and future
Dear friends,
New story last month was in Lightspeed! All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt is a story of a trade conference for space gift shops and the shenanigans that happen there. I got to come up with fun things that space gift shops might sell, make jokes that a few of you are well-placed to get, and maybe have a few more serious ideas to slip in about resource use along the way.
This is what I love about this job. That it gets to be multiple things at once, that I get to juggle with ideas and images and characters. Too richly varied to get boring, and whatever interests me in life can go in, and I'm not even sure what all of the elements are until an interviewer asks me and I have a minute to step back and say, oh, that, and also that. (Don't miss the author spotlight link at the top once you've read the story!)
I've sold two stories already this week, and it's only Tuesday morning. Exciting times, friends! I'd ascribe it to editors clearing their decks before Canada Day/Independence Day, but one of them is British. I guess it was just the right story on the right desk at the right time. That's what we all tell our workshop students, and it's lovely when it turns out to be true. The two stories couldn't be more different--for two short science fiction pieces, of course. But that just circles back to what I'm saying above: that I don't have to choose, I get to do both wry and heartfelt, depending on what comes out of the keyboard that day. Sometimes both.
And in other exciting news of things to come, those of you who are local can come see me at 6:00 p.m. on July 29 at Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Ave. in Minneapolis. (That's Minnehaha and Lake, for those who aren't familiar with it.) I'm going to be a conversation partner for my friend J.R. Dawson's book launch. Jen's second novel, The Lighthouse at the Edge of the World, is coming out that day, and we will have conversation and cupcakes and who knows what other surprises. Stay tuned. I've already gotten a chance to read this one--trust me, it's better if the person "in conversation with" has deeper conversation than "so...uh...what is your book about?" So you can also trust me that this book of Jen's is magical and heart-wrenching and full of many excellent dogs. We're going to have a great time talking about it. (You can even get a cool pin if you preorder Jen’s book, but that’s not required to come and have fun. Buuuut how often do I get a pin that has my favorite line from a book on it? Amazing.) Come join us if you can!
Best,
Marissa
PS June featured several picnics for which I made things I've told you about before, plus some weird hotel time, so no recipe this month. But the garden has started up with green beans, and the farmer's market will be back next week, so I hope to have some delicious experiments in the days to come!