As always, I’ve waited too long between updates, so there’s a lot to catch up on.

• It’s only a few months before my fall book, Troubled Waters, hits the shelves! A copy of the cover and more information about the story can be found under the “Standalone Novels” link. I’m also posting a link to the first chapter, some of which I read last year at World Fantasy Convention.

Meanwhile, my Web designer Andy is setting up a microsite for the book, and he’ll also be organizing a fan Facebook page. One of the key elements of the book is that people go to temples whenever they need guidance, and they draw three “random blessings” from a barrel of stamped coins. The blessings correlate to the elemental influences of water, air, wood, earth, and fire; each elemental trait has eight blessings associated with it, plus there are three “extraordinary blessings” that don’t belong to any element. Andy is in the process of creating artwork to represent all forty-three blessings, which we’ll post on this site. We also hope to create a “random blessing generator” that will let readers seek guidance any time they need it. Should be awfully fun.

• Here’s something that could be really exciting. Last fall, I met with a couple of young filmmakers, Jason and Matt Shumway, who want to launch their own studio by making a movie out of my novel The Shape-Changer’s Wife. They’re in the process of writing the script and raising money, and they’ve put together a few nifty Web sites to talk about the project. Check them out on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/shapechangerswife, on the Web at http://www.shapechangerswife.com, and at Indiegogo at
https://www.indiegogo.com/ShapeChangersWife.

Meanwhile, I’m planning a couple of appearances in the near future:

• If you live in the St. Louis area, check out this event. On October 3, I’ll be participating in a kind of “speed-dating with writers” program called “Wine, Wit, and Lit:  Cocktails & Conversation with Area Authors.” It will be held from 3-5 p.m. at the Lone Wolf Coffee Company on 15480 Clayton Road, Suite 220, in Ballwin. It’s a combination wine-tasting/raffle/meet-the-authors afternoon that will feature Marilyn Brant (Friday Mornings at Nine), Jody Feldman (The Seventh Level), Angie Fox (A Tale of Two Demon Slayers), Jennifer Gauvain and Anne Milford (How Not to Marry the Wrong Guy), Susan McBride (The Cougar Club), Bobbi Smith (Captive Pride), and me. Books will be for sale through Puddn’ Head Books. Early registration is $10 and includes raffle tickets; registration at the door is $15. Proceeds benefit Casting for Recovery, a nonprofit post-treatment program for breast cancer survivors. To reserve your spot, email TheCougarClub@aol.com.

• I’m also planning to attend World Fantasy Convention in Columbus, Ohio, October 28-31. More details can be found at http://www.contextsf.org/WFC/. If you’re there, come find me and say hello.

And just to recap the very cool recent or ongoing bits of news:

• The five Samaria books are now available for download at audible.com. (So are the five Twelve Houses books, but the Samaria books were just completed.)

• I have an angel novella appearing in an anthology coming out in 2011 with co-authors Nalini Singh, Ilona Andrews, and Meljean Brook.

• The short story I wrote for The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance 2 will now be in The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories (since, it turned out, it was a ghost story…though it’s still a romance).

• I’ll have a piece appearing in Whedonistas, a collection of essays by people who love “Firefly.” (Sigh. I still miss it!)

• I’ll be 2011 Guest of Honor at COSine in Colorado Springs January 21-23. More information is on the Web site at http://firstfridayfandom.org/cosine/. If you live nearby, please come by!