R. F. Long

The trees swallowed her brother whole. And Jenny was there to see it. Years later, when she returns to the woods where Tom was taken to say good-bye at last, she finds herself lured into a world where stunning beauty masks the most treacherous of evils, and strange and dangerous creatures await—creatures who seem to consider her the threat. Among them is Jack, mercurial and magnetic, with allegiances that shift as much as his moods. Determined to find her brother, with or without Jack’s help, Jenny struggles to navigate a faerie world where nothing is what it seems, no one is who they say, and she’s faced with a choice between salvation or sacrifice—and not just her own.

Better late than never in so many ways. First of all it has taken me all week to get around to posting this. Secondly WHY have I not been going to this coference for years???

I am, as with most writers, not the most extroverted of individuals. Never really had been, although I can do a good impression when I need to. I was determined to make it to my first RNA conference this year and I am so glad that I did. Had a bit of a stressy trip out to the airport between a late bus and heavy traffic, and a bit of a stressy time at the drop-off-your-bags points when I found a large group of Japanese tourists had arrived just before me and proceeded to re-pack their luggage in the queue! But Air France/City Jet were wonderful and the flight itself was a dream. When the air hostess asked if I wanted a drink I had a budget airline flashback and just asked for water, only to realise too late they were giving out wine as well. And sandwiches. And boiled sweets for take off (a trip back to childhood). And chocolates just before landing.

I should warn you, food will probably be a theme of this post.

The DLR was also wonderful and in no time at all I arrived at our accomodation in Greenwich. Yes, it was like being a student again. There was a party going on as I arrived and my lovely flatmates were drinking wine out of plastic cups. That didn’t stop the hugs and warm greetings.

Another theme of this post will be the friendliness and fun-filled nature of everyone I met at the conference. I couldn’t have asked for a better gang to hang around with than the ladies of flat 20, but everywhere we went people chatted, exchanged ideas, joked and generally had a wonderful time.

Read more…

But utterly braindead and exhausted. Learned lots, laughed lots, met some wonderful wonderful people and had a fantastic time.

In a while, when I have recovered a little and libraryland stops its total upheaval that has to happen (apparently) when I go away for a day or two, I will sort out photos and a blog post with some of the things covered – like Sarah Duncan’s fantastic tips on lifting a ms from good to great, Kate Walkers fab conflict workshop, and that wonderful “Oh my God, it’s 2am and we have to be at a session at 9am” moment!

But since all day today I had to struggle to say Connolly instead of Colony (and failed), I think I need a rest!

(plus I really really want to read Julie Cohen’s “Girl from Mars”)

There’s an interview with me up on Hell Or High Water today.

Come a find out all you could ever want to know.

Less than a week left to the wonderful Phoenix Convention (or P-con as it is affectionately known). I’m really looking forward to this one. P-con was the first con I attended as a writer (as an adult) and found an abundance of people with all the same interests as me.

This year I was invited as a guest and have panels. So exciting!

Saturday, 6th

10am Is it time for “Return of the Werewolves”?

Nick Harkaway, Brian J. Showers, Laura Anne Gilman, Maura McHugh, R. F. Long

And then all Saturday is mine to play with!

Sunday, 7th however is a different matter – I will be a busy girl.

12pm Keyboard or pen – Room for both?

R. F. Long, Oisín McGann, Maura McHugh

2pm Has the Internet become indespensible?

Cheryl Morgan, Bob Neilson, R. F. Long, Maura McHugh

4pm E-Books

R. F. Long, Nich Harkaway, Colin Smythe, Derek Gunn

So far I’ve got the following answers “Yes”, “Em”, “YES”, and “Yay!”

But we’ll see how that goes. I’m in with some pretty impressive individuals so … yeah… wow! This is going to be fun.

Like magic? Like UF?

Then you’ll LOVE Genny!

The wonderful Suzanne McLeod’s The Cold Kiss of Death officially releases today. Let excitement and bouncing elephants reign supreme.

I’m reading the first volume in this series The Sweet Scent of Blood (What? I’m a slow reader! Give me a break!) and its awesome.

Don’t believe me? (How could you doubt me?!)

Kimberly at Darque Reviews has given The Cold Kiss of Death a starred read!

‘Ms. McLeod outdoes herself, and takes her fictional world to new levels. The Cold Kiss of Death is a refreshing escape that will keep readers glued to every page.’

‘Great writing, enough sass to make [Genny] believable and above all a tale that makes us all want to visit to see the “hidden” side of this ancient city. . . making [Suzanne] perhaps Britain’s premiere Urban Fantasy Author.‘

Lovevampires.com** has given The Cold Kiss of Death !

‘The Cold Kiss of Death [is] an exciting and satisfyingly complex read. Throw in an imaginatively realised fantasy London with demons, sorcerers, satyrs, vampires, necromancers and a wide variety of faery beings and it’s clear that this book is a sure-fire winner for fantasy fans.’

Go on, you know you want it! Make sure to hop over to Suzanne’s LJ and congratulation her!

which also doubles as a method to show off more pictures.

I mentioned a little while ago that Madrid inspired me. Many of the places I have visited have. Andalusia gave me much of the architecture of River Holt, which Mdina in Malta still epitomises Ithian in my mind, despite the fact it isn’t a port like Klathport. The forest walks nearby in Wicklow could easily be those in Soul Fire and the forests of the realm in my WIP May Queen. And of course Moy Tura Echoes (another infamous WIP) is mainly set in Dublin.

So I thought you might like to see the latest photos that have the plotbunnies leaping around the place. This is Kilruddery House and Gardens in Bray, Co. Wicklow.

And just for fun, a link to Anna Netrebko singing, for background music.

Enjoy…

I read two excellent blog posts recently. China Mieville’s one on Tolkien, and James Van Pelt’s one on George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones.

And, as good posts always do, they got me thinking. And that usually means a long post here, so be warned…

(It also means I will probably end up stating the obvious, or things that everyone else thought of ages ago, so bear with me, smile and nod etc. You can talk about me behind my back later on, ‘k?)
What I ended up thinking about is tragedy.

And whether we shy away from tragedy in our stories. We like our happily ever afters. Our neatly wrapped up Hollywood endings. Our final kiss.

And yet…

So many of the “bigger” stories, for want of a better word, don’t end up that way. Not better stories, I’ll hasten to add. But the sweeping tales, the ones which resonate with us and last. Many of them don’t have that pat ending, that neat wrap up where, as Miss Prism said, “The good ended happily, and the bad unhappily. That is what fiction means.” Or if they do, they get there by means of great tragedy and personal sacrifice.

Is it the case that we’re not as geared up for those sort of endings anymore? I don’t think that’s the case, as the end of Game of Thrones and its phenomenal popularity attests.

I’m in a bit of a weird situation in that I write both fantasy and romance. A happy ending is kind of a pre-requisite for a romance. But that to me doesn’t mean there shouldn’t be trials and tribulations in order to get there. On the contrary, the happy ending is all the more sweet if it has taken effort to reach it, if there has been a real sense of “there is no way this can be resolved” before somehow, it is.

Perhaps its coming from Ireland. Tragedy is a major player in Celtic legends, no matter what the source or derivation. Cuchullain, Diarmuid and Grainne, Deirdre and the sons of Usna, Bran and Branwen, Blodeuwedd and Tristan and Isolde. Even Arthur himself. Not a hint of a happy every after among the lot of them.

I like a story that brings me to tears. I like a story that brings me to tears and then makes me feel good again, so that even if the loss is very great indeed there is a small comfort in that it has been for a purpose.

What do you think?

In the midst of all the fun of Excerpt Monday, I found out that The Scroll Thief is available for pre-order on both Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk

Nearly deafened half the population of the western hemisphere alone.

Well, okay, Twitter anyway.

Here are the links:

The Scroll Thief (Amazon.com)

The Scroll Thief (Amazon.co.uk)

eta: AND The Book Depository!

It all looks very sparse right now, but OMG (here I go again!) SQUEEEEEEEEEEEE!

*a few deep breaths later*

You can pre-order. How exciting is that????