It's less than a month away that the new Black Carbon series starts. I was supposed to be packing for a cruise to Alaska, but we've moved it to the fall. Probably a good thing, since June is packed tight this year with book releases and more.
Years ago, my sister and I decided that my motto was "Walking the Edge of Reality" (this was followed by a close second on "Knocking Michael Crichton off that Pedestal"... but then he died and we didn't want to use that one...) When Resonance came out, I was afraid the poles would actually trade places before the book released (that would have been a bummer for so many reasons!) And now, with Black Carbon, things are hitting too close again. I didn't mean to! This is another series that knocked around in my brain for for-ever. (The Camelot Gambit was in there for over a decade, and so was this one.) But as I'm writing, I'm realizing I'm blurring the line between reality and fiction more than I intended. The avalanches are real. The sinkholes and supercell hurricanes are, too. And I guess if everything comes to fruition you can use this one as a manual! ha.
The fun part of this book has been Joule and Cage. They are modeled on my own smartass kids. As I write this, I'm wearing my Mother's Day gift: a t-shirt featuring a Rosie The Riveter pose and the phrase "Proud Mom of a Few Dumbass Kids." The kids helped name the characters. My daughter did that frown-and-shake-her-head thing at me when I told her their middle names. (It's MY face that she makes back at me!) And my Son named Cage outright. He thought it was funny. So that gives you an idea of what I deal with on a daily basis.
I can't wait to get more books into this series. I'm still writing NightShade, but it has an endgame on it now. (I've known how it ends since I wrote book three... but there are still a good handful more coming.)
I'll see you when I'm out and about. And I'm off to finish up the final touches on this Black Carbon launch.
A.J. O.o
