Release day: Risky Maneuvers is out

Today, Barbara Sheridan's and my "Risky Maneuvers" is out from Loose Id. It's classed as a GLBT sci-fi, so, yeah, that's what you can expect.

I read it this morning on my mobile phone (and promptly boarded the wrong train, doofus) and it definitely shortened *my* commute - even if it was longer than normal. I skimmed some bits, but overall, I'm really happy with it. Good little story. Happy to write the sequel if people want it.

Job still kicks my ass in fifteen ways, but all of them good. I haven't been so engaged and alert at a desk for a pay cheque in a long time (granted, when the markets went to hell over the last 18 months, there was very little to report on). I'm learning my stuff, beginning to network, and overall I really enjoy this. The German sense of "law and order" has already reasserted itself. My desk is the only one in this area that's not strewn with papers, and I've just used a moment to throw away a couple geological layers of paper cluttering up our printer. I think over the next weeks I'll begin spreading my influence and order, doubtlessly recycling a medium-sized rainforest in the process.

I'm currently teaching creative writing (it's an on-off thing, three times per year for a few weeks), so I'm spending a fair bit of my writing time explaining some basics to some people. For money, yeah, but it does get in the way of the writing right now. I'm still thinking stuff through and I'm getting a handle on a couple projects. What I'd like now is a month off or on part-time for my fingers to catch up with the writing I've done in my head.

Landlord paid some of our deposit back. I'm glad to be gone from the clutches of that greedy a$$hole, but we won't fight the guy over the money. A waste of energy, even though he's making me want to warn everybody away from signing up to rent anything from that greedy super-rich bastard. Here's a real life vampire, no mistaking. Makes me wish his buy-to-let-and-then-bleed-tenants-dry empire would have come crashing down, but it didn't.

Still, the deposit is still a nice boost in a month where I'm incredibly tight with cash. So, yeah, the income from teaching writing will be good, and who knows, there might even be some royalties coming my way, since June is the end of the quarter. All good.

No writing at all since yesterday. I was planning to get up early today and write for an hour before heading to work, but my partner came home well past midnight, somewhat hung-over after a huge x-course work dinner, and there's no way he can sleep through me typing in the next room. The walls/doors aren't that thick, the study is right next to the bedroom. There went the writing.

I could do some writing on the netbook - if the Acer Aspire's battery pack hadn't been blown (I didn't use if for a while, so now it refuses to hold a charge). There's an expense that's not in the budget this month.

I've seen the final cover for "First Blood" and Paul Richmond did an amazing job, as usual. The theme of the series seems to be "red". One of my favourite colours. The other's teal. I'll have to do some "promo" for "First Blood" and update the website - all tonight once I get home (can't reasonably do that from work).

And now back to US regulation. Btw - that Wall Street Bill? Wobbly piece of wobbly wobble you can drive a truck through. I'm not a lawyer, but even I can see it (after having read a fair bit of it). Next financial crisis is just around the corner - funny when you let the "goat do the gardening", as we say in German.

But yeah, big news - Risky Maneuvers is out!