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30.11.06 Grahame and Cybil

"Harold was somewhat taken aback. In the case of the pig, for instance, whose last outcry had now passed into stillness. he had considered the chapter as finally closed. Whatever innocent mirth the holidays might hold in store for Edward, that particular pig, at least, would not be a contributor. And now he was given to understand that the situation had not materially changed! He would have to revise his ideas, it seemed.

Sitting up on end, he looked towards the garden for assistance in the task. Thence, even as he gazed, a tiny column of smoke rose straight up into the still air. The gardener had been sweeping that afternoon, and now, an unconscious priest, was offering his sacrifice of autumn leaves to the calm-eyed goddess of changing hues and chill forebodings who was moving slowly about the land that golden afternoon. Harold was up and off in a moment, forgetting Nelson, forgetting the pig, the mole, the Larkin betrayal, and Selina's strange fever of conscience. Here was fire, real fire, to play with, and that was even better than messing with water, or remodelling the plastic surface of the earth. Of all the toys the world provides for right-minded persons, the original elements rank easily the first."

From Kenneth Grahame's wonderful Dream Days, a passage which reminds me of my friend Andrea. You can read most of Dream Days here.

I am back from a week's visit to America, to find that not one but BOTH of my Tokyopop kids' books have been nominated for Cybil awards, which are the Childrens' and Young Adults Bloggers' Literary Awards.

Kat & Mouse was nominated in the Graphic Novels category, and Agent Boo in the Fantasy/Sci-Fi category. There's a huge amount of competition (Edward Gorey! Ursula LeGuin!), and from here it goes to a shortlist in January then winners sometime in the Spring. Fingers crossed, and a huge thank you to any bloggers who supported the books. New volumes of each out in the first week of January, according to Amazon. (Yes, I don't know my own books' release schedules.)

Pitching two new series at present, each to publishers I haven't worked with before. One's a grown-up, David Lynch-esque noir, and has an artist attached. The other's a great big galloping adventure story for kids, and doesn't have an artist yet. More details and sneak previews as and when I can release them.

( 5:30 PM )

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