i am sure you are all delighted to hear that number 17 is broken and i am in minor agony. i suspect that root canal 15 is nigh.

i am spending this glorious holiday weekend here. yay bristol! the moon is huge outside.

what have you been up to?

file this one under "i don't get it." maybe you can explain it to me.

why do people like to give others unsolicited advice about how to think, what to do, how to live?

i cannot imagine anyone who likes being on the receiving end. then again, i am pretty oppositional (and i am sure you are reeling in shock, hearing this). thus i am genuinely curious.

actually, recommendations.

one i would like to try some new and different kinds of candy (that are good, not evil joke candies). thoughts? i do not mind ordering them online from a faraway place.

two what is a good book for the layperson (i.e., me) who would like to learn about a child's psychological development from birth onward?

thanks in advance.

here's my question of the moment, sparked by a weekend of online reading:

do you blog/twitter/facebook the various daily details of your life? how about promoting yourself and your work? how often? if you do, why? if you don't, why not? have you ever considered going "off the grid," so to speak?

i posted this one on facebook and decided to crosspost here.

what do you consider your personal super power?

you can answer here or there.

edited to add: mine is asking questions people want to answer. also, directness.

the only thought i have about "racefail '09" is this, and i'm really interested in your answers:

what would "racewin" look like? can you point to any specific examples that currently exist?

edited to add: i meant books in particular. but this other stuff is good to see also.

happy 48th anniversary of freedom 7, first of all.

teeth
am going to the dentist tonight in order to perform a pre-emptive cavity-filling strike on numbers 8 and 9.

wiscon
a poll, as below.

Poll #1395395 wiscon 2009
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

are you going to wiscon?

i ask this question every few years because i like it so much.

please tell me a story about yourself as a child that sheds light on the person you have become.

(i'll tell mine eventually, as usual)

eta: these are awesome answers. and now, as promised ...

when i was eight, the down-the-street neighbor wouldn't let her daughter near me because i cursed all the time.

having recently obtained an advance copy of this book, i thought i would poll you guys.

Poll #1379697 geek nerd dork &c
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

do you consider yourself

checking to see who else will be in houston for tla this week.

i am especially excited because i will finally meet an illustrator i've been working with for the past few years.

for the record, here is my dental future.

1. two new crowns
2. two extractions
3. three implants
4. veneers or something on the front

i don't even want to think about how much money and time this will involve. please, if you have good teeth, take a moment to be grateful.

in a related story, i have just ordered from here and i am very excited! so is the dentist!

i don't know if i'll do this, but i'd love your opinion.

Poll #1349735 kindle
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

should i get a kindle?

heads up: next weekend i'm at boskone.

below is my tentative programming -- note that i have struck out what i've told them i don't want to be on.

Friday 8pm Harbor 1:
YA Matters More

Expanding on a remark by Cory Doctorow, Scott Westerfeld recently said: "The teen years are a time of irrevocable first experiences. Not just your first drink or sexual experience, but the first time you tell a significant lie, stand up to a bully, or betray a friend. The consequences of our actions are huge in those years—or at least feel that way—so it's not surprising that YA lit reflects that intensity. A fantasy where a protagonist has to save the world is fundamentally more believable to a teen. Adults don't think they can save the world anymore, and they rarely feel their setbacks as acutely." Discuss, with feeling.

Ellen Asher, Suzy McKee Charnas, Bruce Coville (m), Ann Downer, Christopher Golden, Sharyn November

Saturday 11am Harbor 3:
Why Adults Read YA

Isn't YA literature for kids? Why, then, do adults read and enjoy it? Simplicity? Solace? Familiarity? Is it more than just second childhood? What makes YA distinctive and is that distinctiveness what attracts adult readers?

Ellen Asher, Bruce Coville, Paul Melko, Sharyn November (m), Adam Stemple

Saturday 12noon Galleria:
Kaffeeklatsch

Katherine Macdonald, Sharyn November

Saturday 2pm Burroughs:
Why Did They Do That to the Cover?

Does great art always make a great cover? Must it always both tell and sell? What (if any) do the best covers share? How do you make a decision, as an artist, editor, art director (etc.) what really belongs on a cover? Talk about truly outstanding (and/or horrific) covers that have adorned science fiction, fantasy, and horror books. Can a once-great cover go out of fashion?

Irene Gallo, Stephan Martiniere, Sharyn November, Joel Shepherd, Jerry Weist (m)

Sunday 12noon Harbor 1:
Twilight? Huh??

Stephenie Meyer has created a teen phenomenon, cute fuzzy vampires that hunt wild animals instead of humans. Why is her vampire romance so appealing to teenagers? How come adults don't get it (we liked Harry Potter. ) How has the "Twilight" phenomenon changed the way the culture looks at vampires? Or—how publishers look at the YA audience?

Suzy McKee Charnas, John Langan, Sarah Langan (m), Sharyn November, Faye Ringel

Sunday 1pm Harbor 3:
When Editors Vent

Crazy writers. Weird artists. Demands from above and below. What do you really want to say about all this?

Peter J. Heck, Sharyn November (m), Patrick Nielsen Hayden

i stopped making new year's resolutions a long time ago; i think they are a set-up for guilt and failure.

however, it occurred to me today that we could all post fake resolutions to let ourselves off our own particular hooks.

so here's mine.

in 2009 i will quit smoking and ride my bicycle every day. i also plan to blog a lot about my personal and professional lives.

how about you?

yep, went to the dentist for a cleaning and 18 (in other words, a full set of) x-rays. my long-term future will contain:

- one root canal
- at least one filling
- two teeth extracted
- three implants

i feel like the dental version of sisyphus. (but i'm not in any pain, so no worries.)

I LOVE THE HOLIDAYS

today is my birthday.

this year i'm doing something a little different. tell me something interesting and useful and thoughtful -- use your best judgment. could be a recipe, could be a cool local place to visit, a piece of advice, something about me that will make me smile or think, whatever. i read these birthday posts all year and they are inspiring to have around.

note: i am screening entries so you can say whatever you want.

have fun.

i reappear briefly to ask a few questions.

one americans: how did you celebrate thanksgiving? was it okay?

two everyone: what are you thankful for right now?

three also everyone: what are you reading? would you recommend it to others?

okay, so who is going to calgary? i already know about some folks, but it'd be great to have an overall snapshot.

in other news, dental work will proceed after i return and is fine so far.

Poll #1285996 wfc
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

i am going to world fantasy.

as you know, i am posting primarily about dental work. unfortunately, i have something to post.

number 10 has broken in half vertically. i am in no pain yet, but obviously it's time for root canal 14.

and yeah, i have a call in to the dentist. whoopee!