Jealous of Stars

Every Tuesday and Thursday, I meet Libby Webber at Starbuck and we write.

We also talk and tweet, but mostly we write. We brainstorm with one another when things need brainstorming and it's all very nice, because sometimes writing gets lonely. We're usually writing from about 9am - 1pm, at which point we pack up because it's time for us to go pick up our daughters from daycare.

Since today is the Thursday before Valentine's Day, I thought I'd surprise her with a little gift. She already knew about the candy part -- last night she was near death due to lack of chocolate, and I admitted I had some for her. She didn't know about the rest...

The Starbucks bag is kind of obvious. I got her a gift card when I arrived, and the barista was nice enough to do an amazing wrapping job.

The bigger bag had all the big goodies -- journals, pens, chocolate and a pair of hand knitted gloves. Not the ones I originally wanted to make for her (I wanted to knit her a pair of green ones), but ones I had on hand since it was painfully obvious I couldn't knit a new pair in time.

Thankfully, she loves them and is currently wearing them. I did tell her I'd probably gift her a second pair next month when I finish them. ;)

In non-gift giving related news, Dream Walker is starting to come along really well.

The newest opening is the one that's working the best, and my elven sarakasi just got a whole lot more intricate in terms of the hierarchy of the performers. Guys, I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about this book.

While I'm behind where I want to be (I originally wanted to have 30K written on it by the end of the month) deleting the other beginnings and starting fresh with a more YA tone is just making everything click into place so beautifully.

So because I'm so excited about this story, here's another little snippet, this time showcasing Nadia's ability to send messages on the wind.

As Miriam disappeared into the kitchen, Nadia went to the window and opened it. Closing her eyes, she called a thread of air. She opened her eyes in time to see the air shimmer. A sheer, silvery ribbon-like strand danced in front of her like a wisp of smoke from a freshly extinguished candle. Cupping the thread of air carefully in her palms, she whispered a message to Cedwyn, asking him to come visit if he could. With a deep breath, she blew the thread away and watched it dance on the breeze until it disappeared into the sky.