I've been here and am going there

the big news is the big move

The big news is that I’m leaving Los Angeles.

I think I’ve been quiet about it because I’m overwhelmed with all that I have to do before I leave at the end of the month. I’ve been in this house for 28 years and I love it and there is a lot of grief and sadness about leaving. My friend, author Andrea Kleine, put it best. “You’re losing your nest.”

I’m mostly going to be based in Montreal. But I’ll be traipsing about Europe this Fall as I go and teach again in Viborg and hang out overseas in my new found rootlessness. I’ve been pretty much doing that for the past eight years, but now with no nest. I’m excited about going back to Montreal because it’s such a great city. I mean, except for Winter. (Am avail to house sit in sunnier climes for those dark dreary months hit me up!) Also, truth be told, I’m a little worried about November and the election and the direction of what’s going on stateside, so maybe being up north will turn out to be a good thing in the end?

Please make sure that you are registered to vote wherever you might live!

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Art Stuff

If you’re wondering, the I AM THE COMIC BOOK project has begun! You can follow along over on Instagram. I’m just wrapping up chapter two which has art by Allison Conway whom I met when I was in Residency at Ragdale. Next up on my arm is artist Nate Powell.

In art news, I did a workshop of House on Fire, a new opera by me and Andre Ristic in London this past May. It will be part of an open workshop in Montreal with Marie-Annick Béliveau and Chants Libres. You can come and see a little excerpt. So if you’re in Montreal or near abouts please come! I’m not sure which date we are but here’s the info.

Saturday August 24, 2024, 7:30 pm
Sunday August 25, 2024, 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm
Espace Bleu, Édifice Wilder
1435, Bleury Street, Montreal

General Admission : 10 $

I also went to do more research on my World War I novel including a visit to the Royal Archives. I presented myself to the castle and dove deep into the visit that King George V did to the front in Flanders in 1915.

Current Books

In book news, STAR WARS HYPERSPACE STORIES V.3 LIGHT AND SHADOW by me, Amanda Deibert and Michael Morcei was collected. I just went to ALA to sign books and as always it was fun to see librarians and colleagues. I’ll see you again for a day at SDCC. Upcoming I’ll be in a lot of anthologies due out in the Fall. More on that when it’s closer to release. Also, art has begun on my newest creator owned graphic novel. I can’t wait to see the pages by my collaborator Shazleen Khan.

What I’m crushing on…

I’m enjoying My Lady Jane on Amazon Prime and just finished Dark Matter on Apple which i liked a lot. And I just re-read The Lord of the Rings. I’d forgotten all about Tom Bombadil.

I’m sure I’ll have more to wax poetic about when I finally land in Montreal. But that’s all I have to say for now. Except I guess that if you’re a pal of mine and you think I’m doing great and advancing brilliantly on this whole move thing, I’m not! I’m overwhelmed. I’m alone. I’m small. I just broke my toe. I have stuff to give away. Please come and help me with this move. If you’re not LA Based you can also help by buying something off of my Ko-Fi shop so I can have one less thing to worry about packing.

Keep cool out there in this heated world.

Cecil