Wednesday, January 20th signifies another of many firsts for me: My first reading at KGB! The bar has a venerable (or at least widely-known) tradition for literary reading series, and the Fantastic Fiction series hosted by Ellen Datlow and Matthew Kressel is a staple of the New York science fiction and fantasy scene. I’ll be reading together with the very accomplished and brilliant Delia Sherman, an honor in itself.

Another first: I plan to read from the novel-in-progress, the sequel to Last Song Before Night. Though it is very much in progress, after years of work I am starting to feel as if it is coming together.

Someday I may talk about the grim battle that went into the first year of shaping this book, and how our health is something for which we–and especially women–must be vigilant and proactive advocates in the medical system, but really…that is all too grim to talk about now and perhaps ever. Suffice to say that the book is starting to feel like a real book, drawing me to it late at night just to re-read and edit passages again, keeping me awake in bed plotting out new ideas, and that’s pretty much the most marvelous state of mind for a writer that I know of. I’m excited to share a little piece of it on Wednesday for the first time.