Where Have I Been? Summer 2019 Edition

Novels, a French Game of Thrones… and maybe a bit of basketball

Unfortunately, a fairly regular occurrence on this site is some variation on the “Where have I been?” post. This usually means I’ve been very busy with writing and/or procrastinating (they’re often the same thing!)

I actually have been writing this time! Hopefully some of it might even come out soon…


Sometimes, I am a writer

I’m pleased to report that Book 2 of Aelita’s War, title as yet undecided, has a completed first draft!

I’ve also outlined Book 3. But while I await the dreaded feedback for my first round of edits, I’ve put the whole series on pause while I tinker away at a new fantasy series. I hope to tease more about that once Aelita’s War nears completion.

I watch TV for research

I haven’t totally neglected the blog either. In the wake of needing a replacement for my Game of Thrones fix/waiting on The Winds of Winter, I’ve picked up The Accursed Kings series, h/t to one of my favourite internet columns, Mike Vago’s Wiki Wormhole @ The A.V. Club, for alerting me to it. The Accursed Kings is a series of seven French historical-fiction novels by Maurice Druon. These medieval epics deal with the lead up and early part of the Hundred Years War. In his preface to the English translation, George R.R. Martin is full of praise for their influence on his work, going so far as to call it, “the original Game of Thrones.” With the whole series completed nearly fifty years ago, no wonder they’re a panacea for eager readers who’ve been left pining for plotting deeper than “Dany kind of forgot about the Iron Fleet“.

So expect a series of blog posts, not just about the books, but the visually striking French miniseries from 2005. Here’s a taste:

[WARNING: Do your best to ignore the terrible 80’s Direct-to-Home Video narration in the trailer!]

We the Champs

If I’m being truly honest, though, I’ve mostly been busy basking in the warm and fuzzy feelings of the Toronto Raptors NBA Championship!! Careful readers of this website (basically, my mother) will have noticed my love of basketball (watching, that is, I suck as a player) and my hometown. So it’s no surprise I’ve been a little sidetracked. With all the attention I was giving it, I thought about being mildly productive by making an entire post about the lovable eccentricities of this championship team. I held off, though, not sure if it made sense to blog about it on this site. But then I thought, this is my blog, why the hell not? By then, the disappointing end to the Kawhi drama made me reconsider. [SIDE NOTE: If you’re wondering where I stand on that, build a statue of the left-handed dunk on Giannis, give him a standing O when he returns, but no need to retire number ‘2’]

The warm and fuzzy feelings linger, though. I’ll probably do something with that idea at the start of the new season, when my optimism is once again at its peak. In any case, all this basketball talk allows me to plug for a worthy book by great local basketball writers:

Hope to be back soon with more updates!

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