Back from California, going to France next year, and working on final edits...
and some more photos from Portugal
Hello, everyone! Hope this thing finds you well and about to enjoy a bit of a winter break. It’s the end of the year, and while for some that’s a cool thing, for others it means struggling with seasonal depression. If you belong to that last group, know that my email and Twitter DMs are always open. If you’re fighting the darkness alone and feel like you need a hand or a joke or to focus on something else, don’t hesitate to reach out. Now let’s get to business!
CALIFORNIA WAS AWESOME
As the title says, I’m back from California. I was there from December 1st to December 10th. In case you missed the news, I joined UCR’s low res MFA in Creative Writing back in October and this was my first residency with them. I had a great time. I love the freedom of teaching at MFA programs, but meeting everyone and spending some quality face-to-face time with students is awesome. We had some great workshops, I taught my violence workshop and interviewed my friend Stephen Graham Jones in front of a packed room, and even managed to get some writing done while I was there. I look forward to the next term and then to going back and doing it all over again next December. I’m happy to have joined them as faculty and hope to keep working with cool students working on the books of the future.
I’M GOING TO FRANCE!
Next year I’ll be in France twice if all goes well. The first trip will be in April for Quais du Polar, which takes place in Lyon. Zero Saints and Coyote Songs were published in France by Sonatina Editions and The Devil Takes You Home will be published on February 1st, so this is part of the promotional stuff they lined up for that. Zero Saints did well when it came out in France, and the plan was to make Coyote Songs even bigger, so I was invited to the festival in early 2020. About five days before I was supposed to jump on a plane and head to France, covid shut everything down, killed the trip, and the festival was canceled. It was rough for me because, at the time, that invitation was one of the biggest things that had happened to my writing career. The week after, I lost my job at IDEA Montopolis, which left me broke, unemployed, and uninsured as the pandemic started raging. Not a fun time. In any case, I’m going now, and that’s what matters. Hah. More info on the second trip when I can share it.
MORE PHOTOS FROM PORTUGAL
I came back from Portugal and a few days later left for California, but even being away from home couldn’t keep me from missing that beautiful country. I can’t wait to go back. Here are some more photos from that trip:
FINAL EDITS
The novel has been turned in, edited, returned, edited again, returned again, and accepted. This means we’re now at the stage where we’re doing the last few line edits and continuity stuff, which is great. Next up, a PDF of it and sending it out for blurbs. I’m eager to share House of Bone and Rain with everyone. Stay tuned for a cover reveal in early 2024…
I hope the last month of the year is treating you all well. I will write a recap soon. Until then, stay awesome and, as always, thank you for reading.
Thank you for the DM offer at the start of this one. I think SAD or whatever you want to call it is something I deal with in minor ways and its always nice to see it recognised
Amazing journey, Gabino! What a great example of consistancy and resilience. Well done! I hope you have a well deserved break.