News and content updates from JVJ.com - the web site of award winning Sci-Fi/Fantasy novelist, J.V. Jones. http://jvj.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Thu, 20 Jan 2011 00:50:46 +0100 Thu, 20 Jan 2011 00:50:46 +0100 Venerable text editor Notepad http://jvj.com/images/jvjfeed.jpg http://jvj.com 133 64 This was the sign on the door of the lodge I stayed at over the Holidays. It was in the Wasatch Mountains in Utah. There was so much snow overnight I had to evacuate my room. http://jvj.com/journal0111.html#jan19 Journal Wed, 19 Jan 2011 16:50:46 +0000 Kitteh wuz minding kitteh’z own bizness on front stepz wen da BIG doggie came and chazed kitteh up da treez. http://jvj.com/journal1110.html#nov07 Journal Sun, 07 Nov 2010 22:32:46 +0000 I'm in Washington, DC for a couple of days. It's my second visit to the city and I absolutely love it. I've never been to a place where there is so much to do for free. http://jvj.com/journal1010.html#oct20 Journal Wed, 20 Oct 2010 23:05:30 +0000 It does have running water and a bridge. http://jvj.com/journal1010.html#oct04 Journal Mon, 04 Oct 2010 17:25:13 +0000 Here I am a couple of weeks ago in the yard, getting a soaking from the sprinkler sytem that had gone rogue. http://jvj.com/journal1010.html#oct01 Journal Fri, 01 Oct 2010 00:40:46 +0000 We’ve given away the signed books and they’re winging their way to the winners... http://jvj.com/journal0910.html#sep03 Journal Fri, 03 Sep 2010 22:32:36 +0000 Ta da! We have spent the past 48 hours in deep deliberation. It was tough. http://jvj.com/journal0810.html#aug30 Journal Mon, 30 Aug 2010 21:57:41 +0000 We’ve had lot of entries for the “I deserve that signed book” contest. Thank you for taking the time to enter. http://jvj.com/journal0810.html#aug27 Journal Fri, 27 Aug 2010 23:10:29 +0000 We’ve been running the 'Win One of Three Signed Copies of Watcher Contest' for a couple of weeks now and the entries are coming in. http://jvj.com/journal0810.html#aug04 Journal Wed, 04 Aug 2010 22:15:43 +0000 This was what was happening in my living room last night. Biggie and Mystery Raccoon were having a face off through the French doors. http://jvj.com/journal0710.html#jul21 Journal Wed, 21 Jul 2010 19:08:43 +0000 As it’s high time we had another contest at jvj, we hereby present the Win One of Three Signed Hardbacks of Watcher Contest. http://jvj.com/journal0710.html#jul14 Journal Wed, 14 Jul 2010 17:32:10 +0000 This was what was going on in my place last night. A cat and a rodent were partying in the bedroom. http://jvj.com/journal0710.html#jul11 Journal Sun, 11 Jul 2010 23:52:05 +0000 Here I am last night in my local park, listening to a free jazz concert courtesy of the city of Carlsbad. http://jvj.com/journal0710.html#jul09 Journal Fri, 09 Jul 2010 21:45:42 +0000 Here’s the map of the Northern territories from the French edition of A Sword of Shadows. http://jvj.com/journal0710.html#jul05 Journal Mon, 05 Jul 2010 19:20:04 +0000 A waterfall shot, of course. Here I am in June at the Cohoes Falls on the Mohawk River. http://jvj.com/journal0710.html#jul03 Journal Sat, 03 Jul 2010 18:34:32 +0000 Here's a really interesting video from Marc Simonetti, the illustrator for the French edition of A Sword From Red Ice. http://jvj.com/journal0710.html#jul02 Journal Fri, 02 Jul 2010 19:41:44 +0000 Here I am a couple of weeks ago, sitting precariously on the ledge of Castle Rock, overlooking Blue Mountain Lake. http://jvj.com/journal0710.html#jul01 Journal Thu, 01 Jul 2010 00:04:18 +0000 I’m back in San Diego. The signing at Mysterious Galaxy was a lot of fun, and we had a good turnout considering it was scheduled at the same time as the Word Cup match between the US and Ghana. http://jvj.com/journal0610.html#jun29 Journal Tue, 29 Jun 2010 19:46:22 +0000 I’ll be at Mysterious Galaxy bookstore in San Diego on Saturday June 26th at 2pm, chatting, signing books and reading. http://jvj.com/journal0610.html#jun08 Journal Tue, 08 Jun 2010 14:34:18 +0000 I hope you had a good weekend? I drove north to the Adirondacks and went canoeing, climbed a mountain and discovered a new waterfall. http://jvj.com/journal0610.html#jun01 Journal Tue, 01 Jun 2010 16:54:58 +0000 In an attempt to breath new light into the untimely death of Eggplant #1, Detective JV Jones returned to the crime scene this morning. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may20 Journal Thu, 20 May 2010 19:55:53 +0000 Reviews for Watcher of the Dead have been coming in. Here are links to a few of them. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may18 Journal Tue, 18 May 2010 17:03:28 +0000 Here’s a detail from Marc Simonetti’s wonderful illustration for A Sword From Red Ice. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may17 Journal Mon, 17 May 2010 16:26:45 +0000 Here I am this morning, heading for the woods. As you can see it’s a beautiful day here, gently warm and green. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may16 Journal Sun, 16 May 2010 14:51:37 +0000 Here’s what my work surface (aka “the couch”) looks like this morning. I’m working on Book V, which doesn’t have a title yet but may--if the evidence is to be believed--feature ships. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may14 Journal Fri, 14 May 2010 12:23:17 +0000 You-know-who is plotting to getz ur crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may12 Journal Wed, 12 May 2010 16:15:06 +0000 I’m a huge fan of Marc Simonetti and consider myself lucky to have such a wonderful artist illustrating the French edition of Sword of Shadows. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may11 Journal Tue, 11 May 2010 14:48:47 +0000 CA, DC, NY: best chance of crunchies? http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may10 Journal Mon, 10 May 2010 13:22:16 +0000 My trip to DC is winding down. I’ve really enjoyed the couple of weeks I spent here. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may07 Journal Fri, 07 May 2010 16:53:09 +0000 I’m glad you asked. As you can see from these two paintings, the answer is: Pretty darn amazing. First off, like many of the museums and art galleries in DC it’s free. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may06 Journal Thu, 06 May 2010 16:48:44 +0000 Yesterday I visited the Folger Shakespeare Library here in Washington DC. The library is famous for having the most copies of Shakespeare’s First Folio. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may05 Journal Wed, 05 May 2010 18:20:49 +0000 Here’s what the Supreme Court looked like today as I walked past on my way to the Folger’s Library. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may04 Journal Tue, 04 May 2010 18:19:06 +0000 I took this photograph yesterday as I walked between the White House and the National Mall. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may03 Journal Mon, 03 May 2010 11:33:37 +0000 You’re looking at a tiny, magnified glass vial containing minuscule diamonds suspended in alcohol. http://jvj.com/journal0510.html#may01 Journal Sat, 01 May 2010 07:09:14 +0000 So I give you the dinosaur exhibit at the Smithsonian instead. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr29 Journal Thu, 29 Apr 2010 23:20:20 +0000 I had a wonderful day at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in DC. There are so many wonders on display you can’t help but feel inspired. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr28 Journal Wed, 28 Apr 2010 22:56:23 +0000 In an unexpectedly bold move, Watcher has sailed across the Mediterranean and taken Spain. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr27 Journal Tue, 27 Apr 2010 22:37:19 +0000 I’m still I DC, enjoying the sights of the capitol. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr26 Journal Mon, 26 Apr 2010 21:15:37 +0000 This most excellent photo was sent to us by Becz in Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr25 Journal Sun, 25 Apr 2010 17:48:31 +0000 Send some airmail--nowz. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr23 Journal Fri, 23 Apr 2010 16:52:54 +0000 As you can see from this photo taken yesterday, I’m in DC. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr22 Journal Thu, 22 Apr 2010 14:20:46 +0000 Our Secret Plan For World Domination is coming along nicely. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr20 Journal Tue, 20 Apr 2010 10:50:35 +0000 And teh crunchies came right to teh door and knocked. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr19 Journal Mon, 19 Apr 2010 11:40:57 +0000 Without further ado let’s get straight to the links. First up is Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist where you can read Chapter 3 of Watcher of the Dead in its entirety. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr17 Journal Sat, 17 Apr 2010 11:45:05 +0000 If you’re visiting from France: Bonjour. Thanks for stopping by and thanks for reading the books. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr16 Journal Fri, 16 Apr 2010 12:45:06 +0000 For instance this photograph, taken on Tuesday. I’m about to taste the world’s worst cocktail. Even before I tried it, you can tell I was skeptical. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr15 Journal Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:18:34 +0000 Watcher of the Dead is finally out in the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr14 Journal Wed, 14 Apr 2010 09:57:58 +0000 Doesn't he wantz to be frendz? http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr13 Journal Tue, 13 Apr 2010 11:12:02 +0000 Watcher of the Dead has been spotted in three states over the weekend: New York, North Carolina and Texas. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr12 Journal Mon, 12 Apr 2010 09:41:35 +0000 Watcher has begun hitting the shelves in the US. It was spotted in Poughkeepsie, NY, on Friday evening. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr11 Journal Sun, 11 Apr 2010 07:50:59 +0000 These arrived in the post today, my author’s copies of the UK editions of Watcher of the Dead. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr10 Journal Sat, 10 Apr 2010 07:40:05 +0000 C'mon guyz teh bowlz bin empty 2 longz. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr09 Journal Fri, 09 Apr 2010 09:46:32 +0000 Still no US sighting of Watcher of the Dead, but it should hit stores soon. Very soon. The fine folks over at Fantasy Literature have managed to snag an early copy and have posted a review... http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr08 Journal Thu, 08 Apr 2010 07:48:41 +0000 I use a cropped version of this photograph as my calender shot some months ago... http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr07 Journal Wed, 07 Apr 2010 06:20:48 +0000 Unless I getz teh crunchies first. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr06 Journal Tue, 06 Apr 2010 06:37:47 +0000 It’s been an interesting weekend. My author copies of Watcher of the Dead arrived in the post, so that means the book should be at a store near you this week. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr05 Journal Mon, 05 Apr 2010 07:24:19 +0000 So iz reddy fur teh crunchie revolution. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr04 Journal Sun, 04 Apr 2010 10:05:43 +0000 I was the only one left alive. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr03 Journal Sat, 03 Apr 2010 06:43:45 +0000 Here’s J.P. Targete’s wonderful preliminary sketch for the US cover of A Cavern of Black Ice. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr02 Journal Fri, 02 Apr 2010 14:47:48 +0000 On March 19th, two days before the historic Health Care vote, President Obama summoned Vice President Joe Biden, Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and other trusted advisers to the Oval Office for an emergency closed door meeting. http://jvj.com/journal0410.html#apr01 Journal Thu, 01 Apr 2010 00:01:01 +0000 And this is what it looks like. Here I am a couple of years ago in Lake Tahoe, California. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar31 Journal Wed, 31 Mar 2010 12:40:44 +0000 Just a reminder that you can follow me on twitter. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar30 Journal Tue, 30 Mar 2010 11:05:54 +0000 You’re looking at a box of Russian chocolates cleverly disguised as a book. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar29 Journal Mon, 29 Mar 2010 11:17:39 +0000 Here it is, the first official documented sighting of Watcher of the Dead. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar27 Journal Sat, 27 Mar 2010 13:44:40 +0000 Bring it on, mutant dinosaur. Your crunchies will be mine! http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar26 Journal Fri, 26 Mar 2010 12:36:53 +0000 With less than three weeks to go to the official publication date of Watcher of the Dead, we have our first official sighting. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar25 Journal Thu, 25 Mar 2010 12:37:19 +0000 Here I am in the mountains east of San Diego, on a rare haze free day. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar24 Journal Wed, 24 Mar 2010 12:00:51 +0000 Spying on ur yards, scheming to getz ur crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar23 Journal Tue, 23 Mar 2010 11:52:24 +0000 The Barbed Coil has gone through its fair number of covers. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar22 Journal Mon, 22 Mar 2010 11:40:33 +0000 Deep snow near the creek. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar20 Journal Sat, 20 Mar 2010 10:50:44 +0000 One of the places I stayed in Costa Rica. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar19 Journal Fri, 19 Mar 2010 11:16:59 +0000 Cos the eleventh dimension might have crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar18 Journal Thu, 18 Mar 2010 10:58:32 +0000 Less than a month before Watcher of the Dead hits the bookshelves. As soon as you spot it let me know. Better still send a photo. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar17 Journal Wed, 17 Mar 2010 10:52:17 +0000 Here I am yesterday, leaning in sheer relief against the car as it idled in the garage while the battery recharged. The car hadn’t been driven in several months so the battery was flat. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar16 Journal Tue, 16 Mar 2010 10:49:13 +0000 Here’s another photo from a couple of weeks back. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar15 Journal Mon, 15 Mar 2010 08:52:39 +0000 Car battery dead and incapable of taking a charge, Lawn has had name legally changed to “Weedsville”... http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar14 Journal Sun, 14 Mar 2010 14:14:28 +0000 Here I am a couple of weekend’s back, in foot deep snow during a snowfall. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar12 Journal Fri, 12 Mar 2010 08:20:41 +0000 Am I the only one who’s noticed the trend for “the mysterious hooded figure” on the cover of fantasy epics? http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar11 Journal Thu, 11 Mar 2010 12:54:34 +0000 I have an idea. I’d really like to see all three books in the Book of Words series printed in a single volume. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar10 Journal Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:26:22 +0000 This is one of the the beaches near Tulum, Mexico. The water was the warmest, gentlest water I have ever swam in. The sand was like flour. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar09 Journal Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:22:50 +0000 More reviews of the French edition of The Barbed Coil are coming in as bloggers across that fine nation weigh in with what they think about “The Golden Bramble” (that’s what the book is called in France). http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar08 Journal Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:12:19 +0000 Was it only three months ago I was here, in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica? http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar07 Journal Sun, 07 Mar 2010 16:49:25 +0000 Local belief held that it was good luck to enter the city of Morning Star during the few seconds of sunrise... http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar06 Journal Sat, 06 Mar 2010 07:28:01 +0000 Part 2 of The Barbed Coil has just been reissued in France and that means reviews are coming in. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar05 Journal Fri, 05 Mar 2010 07:08:04 +0000 A lot of people have been waiting to hear what became of Angus after he returned to the farmhouse. Watcher tells that story. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar03 Journal Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:05:02 +0000 I expect to spot Watcher of the Dead sometime in the second half of the month, even though it has a due date of April 15th. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar02 Journal Tue, 02 Mar 2010 13:55:53 +0000 Last August I spent a week in Laramie, Wyoming, attending a workshop run by writer and astrophysicist Mike Brotherton and funded by NASA. http://jvj.com/journal0310.html#mar01 Journal Mon, 01 Mar 2010 17:34:11 +0000 Based on the evidence you’d have to say, “Yes.” http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb26 Journal Fri, 26 Feb 2010 18:30:29 +0000 Go have some fun. Wade into the water with your clothes on (or off for that matter). http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb25 Journal Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:54:14 +0000 So yesterday it snowed all day. Today it’s forecast to snow all day too. This wasn’t just any snow, mind. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb24 Journal Wed, 24 Feb 2010 15:40:45 +0000 Watcher of the Dead isn’t due to be published until April 15th, but it may have been spotted here. So early hardbacks may be on the loose. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb23 Journal Tue, 23 Feb 2010 18:10:09 +0000 Here are my feet, resting on a Mayan stone crocodile at sunset, high above the Pacific. I’m taking a break from walking a trail. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb22 Journal Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:58:53 +0000 Here I am the base of small, nameless falls in the rainforest in central Cost Rica. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb18 Journal Thu, 18 Feb 2010 17:22:43 +0000 Lot of snow here today, the pretty kind that sticks to tree limbs and turns everyday landscapes into postcard-worthy photo oppertunities. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb17 Journal Wed, 17 Feb 2010 14:39:29 +0000 And finds it lacking in crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb16 Journal Tue, 16 Feb 2010 17:11:20 +0000 Here’s a shot at one of the bus stops in Costa Rica. There were a couple of cafes where you could buy empanadas, cafe au lait, beer and flan. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb12 Journal Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:18:55 +0000 I nominate this guy for the coolest dude ever to grace a book cover. Eat your heart out Fabio (not that I’ve got anything against Fabio. He seems like a nice guy. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb11 Journal Thu, 11 Feb 2010 12:44:55 +0000 There has been controversy. People have taken offence. National pride is at stake. In my post of a couple of days ago, I threw down the fact that the world’s oldest tree is not in California (my home state) but in Dalarna Province, Sweden. Could I have been more controversial or more wrong? Let’s see. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb10 Journal Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:14:16 +0000 One of the problems with writing a long series over the course of a decade is the difficulty of asking reviewers to review the latest book in your series. Book reviewers do a lot of reading. They usually have several books on their docket at any given time and deadlines are always looming. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb09 Journal Tue, 09 Feb 2010 12:45:29 +0000 Things appear to be back to normal here. If you visited the website last Friday you found yourself transported back to April 2008 (back in the days when the world’s oldest tree was in California, not Sweden, and no one knew for sure whether or not there was ice on Mars). http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb08 Journal Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:32:10 +0000 What do you do when when your website has time-warped back to April 2008 and a major online retailer isn’t selling your books? You make cake. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb07 Journal Sun, 07 Feb 2010 09:33:04 +0000 Here I am at WIRO, the Wyoming Infrared Observatory at 9,656 ft, twenty-five miles from Laramie, Wyoming. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb06 Journal Sat, 06 Feb 2010 12:02:56 +0000 Thanks to the behind-the-scenes machinations of Paul, Watcher now has its own webpage. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb04 Journal Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:39:14 +0000 Here I am by one of the passageways that riddle the ruins at Coba. At its peak, this city may have had 50,000 inhabitants. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb03 Journal Wed, 03 Feb 2010 09:14:00 +0000 Here I am last month, in the Pacific off the western coast of Costa Rica, getting stung by jellyfish. You might not be able to see the jellyfish but they’re there, just under the water, all tendrilly and quick to take offense. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb02 Journal Tue, 02 Feb 2010 06:28:50 +0000 As Watcher of the Dead will be published in the US and UK/Australia on April 14th, I’m doing a series of posts I call Watcher Watch. So without further fanfare here are more Watcher facts. http://jvj.com/journal0210.html#feb01 Journal Mon, 01 Feb 2010 06:34:48 +0000 Strange weather happening here this week. On Tuesday it was 54F and all the snow melted in a couple of hours. Lawns were uncovered. Creeks rose. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan30 Journal Sat, 30 Jan 2010 08:05:24 +0000 Dogs the world over love to be told they’re smelly. I know it. You know it. They know it. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan29 Journal Fri, 29 Jan 2010 06:09:55 +0000 My current gaming obsession is PixelJunk’s Monsters. It’s simple (you only need to use two button on the controller), yet deeply satisfying. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan28 Journal Thu, 28 Jan 2010 06:02:48 +0000 Here they are, the fierce women of Sword of Shadows. Don’t mess with them. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan27 Journal Wed, 27 Jan 2010 06:05:19 +0000 Here’s the first look at the UK cover art for Watcher of the Dead. It depicts the same setting and the same two main characters as the US covert art. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan26 Journal Tue, 26 Jan 2010 06:14:17 +0000 And just think and rest for awhile. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan24 Journal Sun, 24 Jan 2010 22:18:14 +0000 A cenote (pronounced sen-OTAY) is a sinkhole filled with groundwater. The word is Mayan for well. The land surrounding Tulum, Mexico is pockmarked with them. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan23 Journal Sat, 23 Jan 2010 19:35:46 +0000 As there’s only a couple of months before the publication of Book IV in the Sword of Shadows series, I thought we’d better get started with some information. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan22 Journal Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:40:08 +0000 Here’s the snow falling yesterday in the back woods, great big flakes as pretty as can be. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan21 Journal Thu, 21 Jan 2010 17:06:21 +0000 Get yourself a good, large-scale map of the Adirondack Park in Upstate New York and you may, if you look hard enough and long enough, see a tiny street marked “Everton Road”. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan20 Journal Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:24:56 +0000 Here I am in November in the rainforest. Costa Rica has wonderful national parks. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan19 Journal Tue, 19 Jan 2010 17:52:57 +0000 This lovely creature is Tessa from The Barbed Coil as shown on the new French edition of La Peinture de Sang (The Painting of Blood). http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan17 Journal Sun, 17 Jan 2010 13:29:58 +0000 Raif Sevrance returned from the deerhunt to find the lamb brothers breaking up camp. A sharp wind cutting from the east pushed the men’s dark robes against their longbones. The rising sun shone along the same path as the wind, creating shadows that blew from the brothers like sand off dunes. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan16 Journal Sat, 16 Jan 2010 14:43:08 +0000 I admit it, this is just a flimsy excuse for another waterfall shot. Here I am by an unnamed falls deep in the Costa Rican rainforest. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan15 Journal Fri, 15 Jan 2010 14:33:49 +0000 “They built the doorways low,” says Antonio, our guide, as we approach a Mayan ruin in the middle of the mangrove, “to force us to bow as we enter.” I bend at the waist and enter the center door of the temple. It’s cool and dim. Bats are roosting in the inner chamber. “It is a place of power,” Antonio murmurs. “Can you feel it?” I nod my head softly. I’m in Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve, one of the largest protected areas in Mexico, and suddenly I believe in ghosts. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan14 Journal Thu, 14 Jan 2010 13:34:43 +0000 Here’s a detail of illustration that was originally intended to be the US cover to Fortress of Gray Ice. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan13b Journal Wed, 13 Jan 2010 18:34:33 +0000 Here’s a detail from the second of Marc Simonett’s illustrations for Fortress of Grey Ice. Here we see Raif in the Great Want at the ruined gate of the fortress, the Forsworn sword in one hand, the Sull recurve in the other. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan13 Journal Wed, 13 Jan 2010 13:07:16 +0000 Feast your eyes upon this beauty. The first cake I have ever baked. Really. It’s a pineapple upside down cake, baked in a skillet. The pineapple came first. I saw one last week in the market and, as it seemed a reasonable price (three bucks), I bought it. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan12 Journal Tue, 12 Jan 2010 12:48:55 +0000 The scene. I was strolling down the beach in Manuel Antonio at 1200 hrs on November 26, 2009, admiring the green water and gray sand, when I spotted this fellow on a piece of driftwood. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan11 Journal Mon, 11 Jan 2010 17:51:09 +0000 Watcher will published in mid-April in the US, UK and Australia. So far, I haven’t seen the UK cover, but here is a detail of the US one to feast your eyes upon. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan10 Journal Sun, 10 Jan 2010 17:21:52 +0000 Here’s the final two shots from Costa Rica: the La Fortuna Days. As I mentioned earlier, this small town northwest of the capital is a great base for viewing volcanoes, birds and waterfalls. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan09 Journal Sat, 09 Jan 2010 17:16:25 +0000 Put the French name of The Barbed Coil into a translation engine and it spits out the magnificent title The Golden Bramble. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan08 Journal Fri, 08 Jan 2010 20:04:53 +0000 I only got a couple of shots of the hotsprings. When you’re wearing a bikini and soaking in hot water where do you put your camera? http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan07 Journal Thu, 07 Jan 2010 16:58:23 +0000 Yes, we wired up the electrodes and shocked the Journal back to life. Chief scientist, Paul, worked overnight in the lab. He got the generator running, filled the tubes with CO2, and cranked the capacitors. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan06 Journal Wed, 06 Jan 2010 19:10:45 +0000 Hail and well met. It’s been a while, I have no excuses. I was playing pirate over at Twitter (my alter ego is named after a cookie), busy finishing Watcher of the Dead, and traveling to places both hot and cold. http://jvj.com/journal0110.html#jan05 Journal Tue, 05 Jan 2010 23:20:24 +0000 It's been a while. I've been working furiously on Watcher of the Dead(Book IV). http://jvj.com/journal0409.html#apr21 Journal Tue, 21 Apr 2009 14:48:24 +0000 1. I leg press two hundred pounds. http://jvj.com/journal0209.html#feb25 Journal Wed, 25 Feb 2009 11:10:01 +0000 I’ve been away for a while, quietly working on Book IV, Watcher of the Dead. I hope to have it done by Summer. http://jvj.com/journal0209.html#feb24 Journal Tue, 24 Feb 2009 20:39:10 +0000 At last, we have a decision. The judging ended in a brutal smackdown that left my ears ringing. We have four winners and we’ll be contacting you to confirm your shipping addresses. http://jvj.com/journal0109.html#jan11 Journal Sun, 11 Jan 2009 16:50:57 +0000 Here I am a couple of days ago, working off the excesses of the Holiday season. http://jvj.com/journal0109.html#jan05 Journal Mon, 05 Jan 2009 16:14:48 +0000 The photo won't get any clearer. That's smoke your trusty reporter is swathed in. http://jvj.com/journal0109.html#jan04 Journal Sun, 04 Jan 2009 21:52:15 +0000 It's the start of a new year. A time for reflection and new beginnings. I wish you much happiness and fulfillment in 2009. http://jvj.com/journal0109.html#jan02 Journal Fri, 02 Jan 2009 06:25:36 +0000 It’s the second-to-last day of 2008. A mixed year. Sometimes good, sometimes sad. I wish you much happiness and joy in 2009. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec30 Journal Tue, 30 Dec 2008 19:50:30 +0000 Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Bountiful Kwanzaa and a terrific holiday season to all. It's been a busy year at jvj.com and I'm thoughtful as the year comes to a close. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec24 Journal Wed, 24 Dec 2008 12:07:39 +0000 Send crunchies so I can take off hideous, itchy bow. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec22 Journal Mon, 22 Dec 2008 11:09:06 +0000 Put down book and send me some! http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec19 Journal Fri, 19 Dec 2008 09:25:37 +0000 Merry Christmas from Buste. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec17 Journal Wed, 17 Dec 2008 13:23:37 +0000 Then I'll begin. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec15 Journal Mon, 15 Dec 2008 10:36:49 +0000 Marley pulls herself together and calls the cops. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec14 Journal Sun, 14 Dec 2008 11:50:17 +0000 Spot the book http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec11 Journal Thu, 11 Dec 2008 10:44:27 +0000 To get some crunchies? http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec10 Journal Wed, 10 Dec 2008 06:32:42 +0000 Don't even think about taking my book. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec09 Journal Tue, 09 Dec 2008 08:05:01 +0000 After being swept overboard on an ocean liner, Sword floated raft-like across the Pacific for seven days and seven nights. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec08 Journal Mon, 08 Dec 2008 13:14:40 +0000 The sexy and undead read Sword. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec07 Journal Sun, 07 Dec 2008 22:56:50 +0000 A letter arrives the next day in the post. Sword is being held hostage. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec06 Journal Sat, 06 Dec 2008 17:12:11 +0000 She spent twenty-five years behind the bar, serving ale. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec05 Journal Fri, 05 Dec 2008 19:43:22 +0000 Here's Kay's entry for the Big Contest, proving that we have splendidly stylish visitors to jvj. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec04 Journal Thu, 04 Dec 2008 07:12:27 +0000 Where's a book set in extreme northern climes to go on its vacation? Why Yosemite, of course. Giant sequoias, waterfalls, bears, granite domes: it's a home away from home. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec03 Journal Wed, 03 Dec 2008 20:24:36 +0000 To kick start December’s leg of the Big Contest, here’s my latest entry (we established earlier I can enter my own contest but Paul, as co-judge, warns that I’ve got “no chance in hell of winning”). http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec02 Journal Tue, 02 Dec 2008 11:02:53 +0000 Here I am at Thanksgiving, furiously whisking the gravy. I'm not a big fan of light-colored gravies so I always use gravy browning and red wine to darken the juices. http://jvj.com/journal1208.html#dec01b Journal Mon, 01 Dec 2008 10:52:49 +0000 This might not end well. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov28 Journal Fri, 28 Nov 2008 18:46:54 +0000 Buy this book or you'll be forced to wear a neon green headband! http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov27 Journal Thu, 27 Nov 2008 11:49:37 +0000 A graphic short story by Angela and Sylvia. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov26b Journal Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:43:55 +0000 You're looking at our latest brave knight, the Magnificent Mike. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov26a Journal Wed, 26 Nov 2008 09:04:17 +0000 This is the fabulous Sister Junipa Melliandra Melicusa Aura Anima, catching up on her reading before heading out to join her fellow Sisters of the Order of Perpetual Indulgence. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov25 Journal Tue, 25 Nov 2008 08:49:34 +0000 Quick! While owner is reading. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov24 Journal Mon, 24 Nov 2008 11:48:25 +0000 Here we have the beautiful Sara, bundled up for the frigid cold of Chapter 14. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov23 Journal Sun, 23 Nov 2008 12:11:02 +0000 Aliana and Gino: So adorable it should be illegal. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov22 Journal Sat, 22 Nov 2008 12:32:15 +0000 We have a plan: to form the Knights of the Red Ice. Here's our second recruit, Guy the Good. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov21b Journal Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:23:14 +0000 This is photo of Biggie. Not some other kitteh named Sunami. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov21a Journal Fri, 21 Nov 2008 07:25:22 +0000 After a relatively brisk eight hours in flight, I'm back in San Diego. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov20 Journal Thu, 20 Nov 2008 10:53:35 +0000 Here is the lovely Brittany, baring her shoulders and her poetic tattoo. The words come from an Anglo-Saxon poem, The Wanderer, and can be loosely translated as “Fated is wholly decided.” http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov19 Journal Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:10:31 +0000 Ayame enters the library. The boy she likes is across the room in PHILOSOPHY. Ayame makes a left into FICTION. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov18b Journal Tue, 18 Nov 2008 09:05:54 +0000 Clad in tin foil armor and Burger King crown, our brave knight rides his trusty steed into the dark and uncharted territory of Basementland. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov18a Journal Tue, 18 Nov 2008 07:52:07 +0000 Here’s the lovely Sylvia R, doing an excellent job of book placement. Sylvia also sent in photos of her kitty Sunani--which have gone mysteriously missing from my laptop. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov17 Journal Mon, 17 Nov 2008 06:21:45 +0000 Pour yourself a cocktail, put a 45 on the turntable and join the groove. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov14b Journal Fri, 14 Nov 2008 20:43:49 +0000 What's a family of seven to do when sitting on a giant bed with a grass mattress? Read books by J.V. Jones of course. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov14a Journal Fri, 14 Nov 2008 06:04:22 +0000 It's midnight down under and Christi, the good and lovely witch, is ready to enchant you. Step into her garden at your peril. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov12 Journal Wed, 12 Nov 2008 18:56:04 +0000 And Biggie's not very happy about it. Here are two photos from the wonderful Angela W. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov11 Journal Tue, 11 Nov 2008 13:32:33 +0000 Finally we have the answer to the question “What tops reading a book by J.V.Jones?” Being kissed by a bobcat should do it. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov10 Journal Mon, 10 Nov 2008 06:08:13 +0000 As there’s nothing in the Big Contest rules about me entering my own contest, here’s my entry. I’m in the hallway, wearing my favorite penguin t-shirt. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov07b Journal Fri, 07 Nov 2008 17:20:10 +0000 Sell collectibles on ebay for crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov07a Journal Fri, 07 Nov 2008 16:14:39 +0000 The Big Contest is under way. We'll be posting photos on a regular basis and setting up a special page for them. In the meantime here are a couple of the first entries. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov05 Journal Wed, 05 Nov 2008 15:51:27 +0000 Here it is, the chance to win all sorts of goodies: a complete set of signed J.V. Jones books (seven and counting), artwork, cover flats, collectible (and extremely rare) galley copies, etc. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov04 Journal Tue, 04 Nov 2008 05:15:36 +0000 Our mystery location of the month is pictured above. I was there yesterday and if ever a sign demanded to have its photo taken it’s this one. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov03 Journal Mon, 03 Nov 2008 17:04:31 +0000 Halloween marked the return of ghost deer, this year decked out in poncho and top hat. http://jvj.com/journal1108.html#nov02 Journal Sun, 02 Nov 2008 15:52:14 +0000 Here I am three winters back in Central Park, Manhattan, doing my best to blend in with the art installation The Gates. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct31 Journal Fri, 31 Oct 2008 14:30:01 +0000 Froazies on toesies. Send socks...and crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct30 Journal Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:50:24 +0000 Here are a couple of photos I took on Saturday while I was out and about in Mystic. The drawbridge is neat. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct29 Journal Wed, 29 Oct 2008 11:21:46 +0000 Could they be reading this humble blog...er journal...at that esteemed publication? Last week I wrote about Yaddo. This week they write about Yaddo. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct28b Journal Tue, 28 Oct 2008 11:25:27 +0000 I visited Rhode Island briefly on Saturday, taking the short drive from Mystic up the coast to Misquamicut State Beach. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct28a Journal Tue, 28 Oct 2008 09:53:47 +0000 I visited Connecticut at the weekend, my first ever time in the Constitution State. It’s also known as The Land of Steady Habits; I’m not sure why. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct27 Journal Mon, 27 Oct 2008 12:58:56 +0000 Or just another flippin' leaf? http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct25 Journal Sat, 25 Oct 2008 13:02:36 +0000 What do you use to write with? -Len W http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct24 Journal Fri, 24 Oct 2008 11:24:30 +0000 If no one's looking I'm going in. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct23 Journal Thu, 23 Oct 2008 07:14:55 +0000 It's that time of year: Book Season. The U.K. paperback edition of Sword From Red Ice should be hitting the shops next week. To mark this epic event I'm toying with the idea of a contest. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct22 Journal Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:10:54 +0000 Sunday’s excursion was a thirty mile drive north to the outskirts of Saratoga Springs where you’ll find the Yaddo mansion nestled in forty acres of parkland. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct21 Journal Tue, 21 Oct 2008 06:32:36 +0100 http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct20 Journal Mon, 20 Oct 2008 06:18:03 +0100 To leave gift http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct17 Journal Fri, 17 Oct 2008 20:50:07 +0100 3:42 pm, Upstate NY. Police were lead on a dramatic rooftop chase earlier today by Eggplant #2, who is wanted for questioning in connection with the death of Eggplant #1. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct16 Journal Thu, 16 Oct 2008 06:24:41 +0100 About crunchies under the table? http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct15 Journal Wed, 15 Oct 2008 06:05:51 +0100 Here I am standing at the site of the American river fortifications at Saratoga, the position that changed a war. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct14 Journal Tue, 14 Oct 2008 06:21:35 +0100 On Saturday I drove twenty miles north to Saratoga Battlefield. You feel it straightway, sadness and respect for the men who fought and died here. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct13 Journal Mon, 13 Oct 2008 06:14:54 +0100 Should have said “Yes” to crunchies http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct10 Journal Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:03:46 +0100 Where do you get your ideas from? -Andre S http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct09 Journal Thu, 09 Oct 2008 19:52:38 +0100 A couple of Sundays back, I drove to Bolton Landing (not to be confused with Bolton England--not far from where I grew up) and went to play at Adirondack Extreme Adventures. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct08 Journal Wed, 08 Oct 2008 17:40:16 +0100 Alibi for crunchies? http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct07 Journal Tue, 07 Oct 2008 21:02:16 +0100 Here's a shot from two years ago at the highest waterfall in Massachusetts, Bish Bash Falls. It's a 200 feet multi-drop fall, its highest cascade being eighty feet. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct06 Journal Mon, 06 Oct 2008 14:56:37 +0100 Police have just released this digitally enhanced image from the CCTV security footage filmed on Sunday at the kitchen where Eggplant #1 met a sudden and hideous death. Technicians worked through the night to process the image. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct04 Journal Sat, 04 Oct 2008 15:33:27 +0100 Police have just released this image, believed to be CCTV footage from a security camera mounted in the kitchen where last Sunday Eggplant #1 met an untimely end. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct02b Journal Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:42:35 +0100 What I am looking for is a complete readers list of your books with a recommended reading order. -Linda W http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct02a Journal Thu, 02 Oct 2008 13:36:47 +0100 On Sunday evening, somewhere between 1700hrs and 1900hrs (aka “dinner time”), Eggplant #1 met an untimely end. Police were called to the scene after the alarm was raised by a homeless individual who gave her name as “Biggie”. http://jvj.com/journal1008.html#oct01 Journal Wed, 01 Oct 2008 09:46:17 +0100 Eggplant #1 is in the house. Small but exquisitely purple, he never managed to outgrow his “Prince” stage and has struggled to meet weight requirements to qualify for the title Eggplant King. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep29 Journal Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:17:04 +0100 You know the drill. The first photo is the final shot from Letchworth Park, land of a million waterfalls (okay 50). http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep27 Journal Sat, 27 Sep 2008 10:44:17 +0100 What religion did the concept of the guidestone come from? -Phil A http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep26 Journal Fri, 26 Sep 2008 10:52:15 +0100 Well let's just see about that. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep25 Journal Thu, 25 Sep 2008 06:18:39 +0100 Want a glimpse into how things are done around here? Check out the three images below. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep24 Journal Wed, 24 Sep 2008 07:22:15 +0100 What I did on Sunday... http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep23 Journal Tue, 23 Sep 2008 07:04:23 +0100 Looks like its days are numbered. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep22 Journal Mon, 22 Sep 2008 06:46:07 +0100 And we all know what that means: another waterfall. Here I am at the top of the splendidly-named, triple-drop Bastion Falls. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep21 Journal Sun, 21 Sep 2008 06:28:17 +0100 Vaylo whistled for his dogs. Plucking a wad of chewing curd from his belt pouch, he made himself comfortable for the watch. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep19 Journal Fri, 19 Sep 2008 22:40:47 +0100 Leaner and meaner. Crunchies owners be afraid. Be very afraid. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep18 Journal Thu, 18 Sep 2008 21:58:04 +0100 When will A Sword From Red Ice be published in Germany? -Anna G http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep17 Journal Wed, 17 Sep 2008 17:41:14 +0100 The latest missive from the bug homeworld has been received. After perusing the evidence I’m sure you’ll agree. We’re looking at object NGC2266, an ancient and unstudied “open cluster” located in the galactic anticenter. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep16 Journal Tue, 16 Sep 2008 18:24:00 +0100 I am the Waterfall Hunter. Your fearless reporter at jvj.com will stop at nothing to reach the tallest, widest, most beautiful and most dangerous waterfalls in the US. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep15 Journal Mon, 15 Sep 2008 21:14:16 +0100 Waterfalls make me happy. Above is the tallest single drop waterfall east of the Rockies. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep14 Journal Sun, 14 Sep 2008 11:09:49 +0100 Not two feet away from perfect and glossy Eggplant #1 resides its hard-to-love sibling, Eggplant #2. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep12 Journal Fri, 12 Sep 2008 16:20:50 +0100 In A Cavern of Black Ice why didn’t the Dog Lord kill Raif when he had the chance in the Ganmiddich tower? -Steph T http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep11b Journal Thu, 11 Sep 2008 16:34:06 +0100 Uh oh http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep11a Journal Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:28:53 +0100 Does that mean there'll be crunchies down there too? http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep10 Journal Wed, 10 Sep 2008 14:01:15 +0100 What ever happened to Bodger & Grift? -Carol J http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep09 Journal Tue, 09 Sep 2008 13:53:28 +0100 Last week I told you about Watkins Glen State Park in N.Y. I mentioned in the post that it was like visiting Rivendell, the home of the Elves in Lord of the Rings. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep08 Journal Mon, 08 Sep 2008 13:42:06 +0100 Here's one of the fifty waterfalls in Letchworth Park. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep07 Journal Sun, 07 Sep 2008 14:45:17 +0100 Got crunchies? http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep06 Journal Sat, 06 Sep 2008 12:05:05 +0100 For those who are wondering (and I'm not supposing that's many) I present the latest eggplant update. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep05 Journal Fri, 05 Sep 2008 13:49:23 +0100 How do you manage to write such realistic male characters? -George T http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep04b Journal Thu, 04 Sep 2008 13:03:20 +0100 As promised, here is the East Coast's best impression of the West Coast. Dry, cracked riverbed? Check. Red rocks? Check. Blistering sun? Check. Tumbleweed? http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep04a Journal Thu, 04 Sep 2008 12:09:21 +0100 Here’s the “Grand Canyon of the East” located in Letchworth Park, N.Y. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep03 Journal Wed, 03 Sep 2008 12:54:12 +0100 No, Watkins Glen. The world famous race track, once site of Formula One racing and now a stop on the NASCAR and Craftsman Truck circuits, sits next door to a truly stunning state park. http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep02 Journal Tue, 02 Sep 2008 13:36:30 +0100 If the aliens landed then took off... http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep01b Journal Mon, 01 Sep 2008 13:10:27 +0100 Owner stopped feeding me. Reduced to eating weeds... http://jvj.com/journal0908.html#sep01a Journal Mon, 01 Sep 2008 10:20:52 +0100 Neighbor with shopping bag. Crunchies alert! http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug29 Journal Fri, 29 Aug 2008 08:10:16 +0100 Our final photo from last weekend features Long Lake which, at fourteen miles long, is technically a widening of the Raquette River. Mount Marcy, whose lower slopes can be glimpsed in the distance, was the site of the great presidential drama of 1901. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug28 Journal Thu, 28 Aug 2008 06:44:24 +0100 Long and lonely road ahead http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug27 Journal Wed, 27 Aug 2008 06:51:10 +0100 Feast your eyes on this beauty, product of our Advanced Tomato Systems Laboratory. At the lab, our goal is to reposition the tomato in the fruit-vegetable continuum with an eye to broadening its relevance to society. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug26 Journal Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:35:15 +0100 Cos it's important to pace yourself http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug25 Journal Mon, 25 Aug 2008 06:01:45 +0100 Is it just me, or do things look scary out there? http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug23 Journal Sat, 23 Aug 2008 16:32:19 +0100 What are your favorite fantasy novels? http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug22b Journal Fri, 22 Aug 2008 20:07:47 +0100 Here's Sue and me, back in the day. This photo was taken in an after hours club in downtown Liverpool called the Night Owl. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug22a Journal Fri, 22 Aug 2008 19:46:12 +0100 After a long, hot day on the trail, shin-deep in mud, irradiated with DEET, hair plastered with sweat, leg muscles singing in pain, sunscreen burning my eyeballs, I have only one thing to say: This is my chocolate milkshake. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug21 Journal Thu, 21 Aug 2008 20:16:09 +0100 My trusty hikers deliver me safely to yet another wilderness lake. Across quagmires, over slippery rocks and through cold mountain streams, they never fail. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug20 Journal Wed, 20 Aug 2008 20:05:39 +0100 Here I am on Sunday on Forked Lake, paddling my canoe against the wind in the heart of the Adirondacks. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug19 Journal Tue, 19 Aug 2008 20:55:36 +0100 Having communicated the position of their homeworld (located equidistance between the constellations of Ursa Minor and Cassiopeia), bugs are now issuing a warning. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug15 Journal Fri, 15 Aug 2008 16:45:52 +0100 This would be a really good time to send crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug14 Journal Thu, 14 Aug 2008 19:37:39 +0100 Will there be a sequel to The Barbed Coil? http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug13b Journal Wed, 13 Aug 2008 15:26:11 +0100 Does this canvas look waterproof to you? http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug13a Journal Wed, 13 Aug 2008 13:27:50 +0100 This month’s “Sunset of the Month” comes to us courtesy of Blue Mountain Lake, NY. A Blue Mountain Sunset spokesman spoke off-the-record about sunset strategy. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug12 Journal Tue, 12 Aug 2008 17:52:15 +0100 Important work on string theory. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug11 Journal Mon, 11 Aug 2008 16:03:46 +0100 Go-karting on Saturday. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug10 Journal Sun, 10 Aug 2008 14:41:39 +0100 SNAKE! http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug08 Journal Fri, 08 Aug 2008 14:33:21 +0100 Will Ash and Raif ever get back together? http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug07 Journal Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:12:55 +0100 Well just one of them really. At the weekend I climbed Mt Goodnow which bills itself (apparently mountains have PR departments these days) as "the biggest bang for the buck in the Adirondacks". http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug06b Journal Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:44:29 +0100 Cats don't eat eggplant. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug06a Journal Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:08:40 +0100 I photographed these on Saturday morning in the Adirondacks. I've never seen anything quite like them before. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug05b Journal Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:45:05 +0100 An Adirondack chair in the Adirondacks. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug05a Journal Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:25:25 +0100 This week's waterfall comes to us courtesy of Long Lake, NY. The Raquette River flows through a series of lakes in the Adirondacks before draining into the St. Lawrence. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug04 Journal Mon, 04 Aug 2008 13:02:10 +0100 Last Friday I went to see Journey to the Center of the Earth in 3D. These are the glasses the cinema gave me to wear. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug03 Journal Sun, 03 Aug 2008 15:00:32 +0100 For those who are following the continuing adventures of the eggplants, I offer this update. http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug02 Journal Sat, 02 Aug 2008 14:24:23 +0100 How many books will there be in the Sword of Shadows series? http://jvj.com/journal0808.html#aug01 Journal Fri, 01 Aug 2008 08:20:59 +0100 The tiny creek at the bottom of the yard? This was it on Sunday during the hailstorm. Not surprisingly this water ends up in the Hudson River. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul30 Journal Wed, 30 Jul 2008 09:52:29 +0100 Hailstones the size of postage stamps bombarded the car on the drive back from Hadley Luzerne on Sunday. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul29 Journal Tue, 29 Jul 2008 07:02:50 +0100 On the weekend I drove up to Hadley Luzerne which is located on the southern tip of the Adirondack Park. That's the Hudson River you're looking at. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul28 Journal Mon, 28 Jul 2008 07:28:36 +0100 Reduced to eating boogers. Bike-messenger crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul26 Journal Sat, 26 Jul 2008 22:51:43 +0100 It's been raining so much here that the East Coast is beginning to look decidedly West Coast. Cascades, rainforests, redwoods? http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul25 Journal Fri, 25 Jul 2008 19:54:25 +0100 Not only have bugs learned astronomy, they are now using it as a medium of communication. This evidence comes from my pasty, bug-bitten right arm. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul24b Journal Thu, 24 Jul 2008 22:18:50 +0100 This is a photo I took on self-timer last week by Crow Lake, with some text laid over it in Photoshop. The photo itself hasn’t been modified--that’s how it turned out. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul24a Journal Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:35:01 +0100 My US publisher Tor has just unveiled their fab new website. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul22 Journal Tue, 22 Jul 2008 07:44:00 +0100 Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed there's a lot of bumblebees around this year? http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul21 Journal Mon, 21 Jul 2008 17:28:05 +0100 Can I get a hardback edition of The Baker's Boy? -Brent M http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul18 Journal Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:25:52 +0100 Another day another snake in the house. Biggie brings ‘em in. I take ‘em out. Finally I have the answer to that time-honored question: "What can I use my fireplace tools for in summer when it’s too hot for a fire?" http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul17 Journal Thu, 17 Jul 2008 00:27:24 +0100 This month’s Sunset of the Month comes to us courtesy of Ontario, Canada. In a hotly contested field of sunflares, up-lit clouds and golden light, Ontario pulled out all the stops. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul16 Journal Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:05:41 +0100 I give you this, the eggplant flower as photographed this morning. Ugly name, ugly bud thing, pretty bloom. Now we can see why Jefferson grew them for ornamental value. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul15 Journal Tue, 15 Jul 2008 00:21:17 +0100 After getting soaked on my bike ride yesterday morning, I warmed up with a little TV. As luck would have it, two of my favorite movies were playing back-to-back on Spike TV: Predator and First Blood. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul14 Journal Mon, 14 Jul 2008 00:02:06 +0100 What is this thing? Medieval torture device? Deep sea anemone? Alien pod thing? No, no and no. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul12 Journal Sat, 12 Jul 2008 19:18:33 +0100 This fetching lady is on the cover of Part 2 of the French edition of The Barbed Coil (La Peinture De Sang) which will be published in September. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul11 Journal Fri, 11 Jul 2008 21:22:45 +0100 Here I am staring at the lake. It was like looking through glass. After a few minutes fish began to gather beneath me, and as I walked along the dock they followed, very much looking as if they were begging for snacks. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul10 Journal Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:53:53 +0100 Keen fans of SF will note the nod to Terry Bisson in this post's title. Bisson's short story Bears Discover Fire is a classic. If you haven't read it, search it out. It's well worth your time. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul09 Journal Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:18:14 +0100 You have to go through that to get to this... http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul08 Journal Tue, 08 Jul 2008 21:03:28 +0100 This is what I was doing early Sunday morning. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul07 Journal Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:07:06 +0100 I'm heading North for the weekend, up to central Ontario lake country. Looking forward to it. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul04 Journal Fri, 04 Jul 2008 17:24:03 +0100 Behind you, Schwarzy! http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul03b Journal Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:41:04 +0100 Not much of a green thumb. I like gardens, but I've long since given up on gardening. Lawncare is a problem. It never ends. Same with weeding. And pruning. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul03a Journal Thu, 03 Jul 2008 20:12:45 +0100 On Sunday I stopped by Saratoga's Jazz Festival. It was hot and muggy but it didn't rain--despite dire predictions from gleeful weather forecasters. I arrived in time to see the wonderful Diane Reeves, before hopping over to the gazebo to hear the final tune by the Brubeck Quartet. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul01b Journal Tue, 01 Jul 2008 22:05:55 +0100 Snake was succesfully wrangled from building by nervous author. http://jvj.com/journal0708.html#jul01a Journal Tue, 01 Jul 2008 21:07:04 +0100 I caught his guy hanging around the bushes yesterday. Rain had driven him off the ground and into the yew. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun30 Journal Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:52:02 +0100 Too weak to stand. FedEx crunchies. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun29 Journal Sun, 29 Jun 2008 07:01:58 +0100 While walking the Taconic Crest trail on Saturday I ran across something I'd never encountered before: fern meadows. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun27 Journal Fri, 27 Jun 2008 00:08:59 +0100 Six feet away from squirrel buffet. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun26 Journal Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:02:16 +0100 I never promised you a rose garden. But here's one anyway, in NY state's lesser known Central Park (Schenectady) on the longest day of the year--Sunday. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun25 Journal Wed, 25 Jun 2008 06:34:35 +0100 On Friday evening I attended the 1st Annual Schenectady Celtic Festival. Scottish bagpipers, Irish bands and Welsh cookies were all all present and accounted for (if a cookie can be said to be present, that is). http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun23 Journal Mon, 23 Jun 2008 22:10:52 +0100 Here I am yesterday on the Taconic Crest trail on the MA/NY border. The trail also enters nearby Vermont so I visited three states in all. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun22 Journal Sun, 22 Jun 2008 23:32:36 +0100 Smells like chicken, tastes like... http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun20 Journal Fri, 20 Jun 2008 20:56:09 +0100 SFX Magazine have published the results of their "Best SF and Fantasy writers of all time" poll. Terry Pratchett, J.R.R .Tolkien and Neil Gaiman top the list. It’s interesting reading and, with all such lists, a little frustrating too. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun19 Journal Thu, 19 Jun 2008 20:22:56 +0100 Armed with field glasses, camera and super still sitting stance, I wait for the deer to come. It's 5pm and there's tasty grazing on the other side of the creek. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun18 Journal Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:03:48 +0100 Last month I told you about Rainhill and the invention of float glass. The firm that owns the patent is Pilkington. Their main glass-manufacturing plant is in St. Helens, a couple of miles from where I grew up. Dad worked for Pilkington in the 70s. As a kid I was fascinated by the length of the St. Helens Canal that runs alongside the Pilkington plant and is known as "The Hotties". http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun17 Journal Tue, 17 Jun 2008 11:54:34 +0100 I’d forgotten what summers on the East Coast are like. Humidity, thunder storms and things that bite. The West Coast mosquito is a laid back "catch you later" kinda dude. On a scale of 1-10 (10 being highest) her bites produce Level 1 discomfort. Her East Coast compadres, by contrast, are lean, mean and hungry. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun16 Journal Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:14:21 +0100 Things are buzzing here. Wild turkeys, deer, chipmunks, woodpeckers, robins, bluebirds, wood thrushes, finches. It's a birders paradise. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun14 Journal Sat, 14 Jun 2008 11:10:54 +0100 Beginning writers can be nervous about copyright. It's a common misconception that work must be submitted to some official body or stamped with a copyright symbol in order to be protected. This is not true. Copyright is simple: you write it, and whatever it is you've written is automatically copyrighted until 70 years after your death. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun13 Journal Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:00:26 +0100 A quick half an hour walk in the woods yesterday evening and I spotted three deer. Two were just on the other side of the path, concealed by bushes and when I got too close they spooked and ran. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun12 Journal Thu, 12 Jun 2008 09:54:05 +0100 I'm back on the East Coast, just in time to enjoy the last hours of the heatwave and its spectacular, thunder-and-lightning fueled end. Here's a photo I snapped as the plane was cruising north above the Hudson at 5:30 last night. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun11 Journal Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:09:30 +0100 Flying East today, but thought I'd leave you with this, a photo I took yesterday. It only blooms for a short time each year, and it does so stealthily, in the dark. By day its tiny buds are curled up so tightly you wouldn't know they were there. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun10 Journal Tue, 10 Jun 2008 19:27:19 +0100 Gardening. Here it is, photographic proof that Biggie and I were out gardening on Sunday. The grass has been weed-whacked (it was too long for mowing) and the dueling bushes have been trimmed. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun09 Journal Mon, 09 Jun 2008 01:41:39 +0100 After a long hard day at the bench wearing itchy robes and a lambswool wig, I am ready to pass sentence...er...make my pronouncement. It was a tough job, presenting a difficult dilemma: how to pick just two winners from a field of darn good entries. Ireland, South Africa, Namibia, Australia, Germany and Canada were just some of the countries we heard from (I’m using the judicial "we" now). http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun07 Journal Sat, 07 Jun 2008 00:05:19 +0100 Here's the cover flat for the US paperback edition of A Sword From Red Ice. The book itself should be out in late October. If you can't wait that long, the hardback is still available. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun06 Journal Fri, 06 Jun 2008 00:04:18 +0100 In addition to modeling the new and eye-catching British judicial robe (yes, they updated it in 2008--apparently the wig is shorter), I'm preparing to judge the home town contest. The contest ends midnight tonight so if you haven't already entered, hurry up. I have a gavel and know how to use it. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun05 Journal Thu, 05 Jun 2008 00:16:25 +0100 First of all, I can’t help myself. I must repost the official police sketch of the flying saucer that landed in my home town. Come on, cut me some slack--the name Rainhill’s on the sketch. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun04 Journal Wed, 04 Jun 2008 00:02:56 +0100 As we’ve been talking about spooky occurrences (the flying saucer landing in Rainhill) now seems a good time to mention one of my current interests: quantum entanglement. First, I don’t claim to understand it, but I do think it’s pretty neat. http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun03 Journal Tue, 03 Jun 2008 00:08:01 +0100 Send crunchies... http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun02 Journal Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:14:06 +0100 A Japanese TV show from the 1970s. The Water Margin was shown in the UK between 1976-78. It had a great theme tune, an epic scale, and fabulously accoutered warriors and bandits (it was based on a classic Chinese novel from the thirteenth century). http://jvj.com/journal0608.html#jun01 Journal Sun, 01 Jun 2008 00:04:55 +0100 I've received a cover flat of the UK paperback edition of A Sword From Red Ice. The paperback will be published in November so those of you who are waiting now know just how long you have to wait. Six months, two days to be precise. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may28 Journal Wed, 28 May 2008 16:51:46 +0100 I’ve been saving the final claim to fame of my home town Rainhill for last--because it’s the best. On January 11th, 1978, a UFO landed in a field in Rainhill. Robert Bennet, a foundry maintenance worker, sat for five hours in his living room with three policemen as he tracked the alien craft across the region. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may27b Journal Tue, 27 May 2008 13:28:33 +0100 Know your market. Doesn’t sound much like writing advice, does it? As writers we’re supposed to be above marketing. That’s what other people do, business people, MBAs, directors of marketing. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may27a Journal Tue, 27 May 2008 12:33:21 +0100 Yesterday I played softball, my first time ever. In school I played a game called rounders, which is pretty similar and may be what baseball is based on (four bases, pitcher, batter etc). http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may26 Journal Mon, 26 May 2008 13:25:37 +0100 Yesterday's sunset. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may23 Journal Fri, 23 May 2008 11:36:27 +0100 A cabin in the woods. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may22 Journal Thu, 22 May 2008 08:45:33 +0100 "I write as if I was talking. If you just talk away, that's where you're nearest the truth, nearest yourself. I write as if I was telling a story to a friend." --Maeve Binchy http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may21 Journal Wed, 21 May 2008 06:41:13 +0100 On Saturday I posted a photo taken nearly ten years ago of me riding a quarter horse at a ranch close to the Mexico-California border. Upon hearing that I hadn't ridden since I was a teenager, Lonnie, the ranch owner, insisted I take one of his horses into the ring. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may20 Journal Tue, 20 May 2008 07:05:31 +0100 Here's the first in a series of outdoor photographs I'm working on. It's titled "I really need to mow the lawn". http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may19 Journal Mon, 19 May 2008 12:03:29 +0100 I once had a Brazilian company offer to buy jvj.com. Three letter dot com addresses are relatively rare (there are a possible 17,576 to choose from) and the only reason I have jvj is that I nabbed it early on. For a while I owned jvjones.com too, but as I never did anything with it I let it go. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may17 Journal Sat, 17 May 2008 11:15:59 +0100 It's time for a contest. I have two signed copies of A Sword From Red Ice to give away, one US and one UK edition. Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to tell me your home town's claim to fame. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may16 Journal Fri, 16 May 2008 00:04:44 +0100 We may have another book cover mystery on our hands. Those who've visited jvj over the years have heard tell of Melli's mysterious mid-Atlantic disappearance. Ten years ago, while traveling from the US to the UK she went missing, and apart from one unconfirmed sighting in Germany she hasn't been seen since. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may14 Journal Wed, 14 May 2008 19:42:50 +0100 When Biggie attacks she grabs, bites and kicks all at the same time. Strangely, it doesn't hurt. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may13 Journal Tue, 13 May 2008 18:08:28 +0100 Here's the next installment of noteable--and increasinlgy harder to verify--facts about the village where I grew up. Oliver Cromwell, the man who signed a king's death warrant and turned England from a monarchy into a repubic for ten astounding years, is not buried in Rainhill. But his horse is. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may12 Journal Mon, 12 May 2008 21:33:28 +0100 Yesterday I stopped by Mysterious Galaxy to wish them Happy Birthday. They've been selling SF, fantasy, mystery, horror and thrillers in San Diego for fifteen years--no small feat for an independent book seller. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may11 Journal Sun, 11 May 2008 13:10:40 +0100 The story is purely apocryphal, but it was told to me by Mr. Davenport who was our headmaster (school principal) at the time. Mr. Davenport was not a man given to error. So, in addition to being famous for the Rainhill Trials, Rainhill is also the place where modern plate glass was invented. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may10 Journal Sat, 10 May 2008 09:06:41 +0100 If you're in San Diego on Saturday stop by Mysterious Galaxy and wish them Happy Fifteenth Birthday. They're having a bash, with lots of events, book signings, special deals and prizes. The celebration kicks off at 10:30 am and continues to late. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may09 Journal Fri, 09 May 2008 12:48:00 +0100 I grew up in the small village of Rainhill, which is famous in railway history as being the site of the Rainhill Trials. It was here in 1829 where Stephenson's Rocket won the competition for a locomotive to run a 3 mile round trip 10 times carrying a load three times its weight. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may08b Journal Thu, 08 May 2008 13:33:46 +0100 Anyone who reads this journal regularly knows I like Winter. Ice sheets, glaciers, frozen tundra. It's that time of year in the western hemisphere, though: May. Time to give it up. I hereby promise to show no more photos of snowy woods, frozen lakes, mist-shrouded mountains and icy roads. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may08a Journal Thu, 08 May 2008 10:51:24 +0100 I always get a window seat on plane. If you ever sit next to me, it won't take you long to learn why. I like taking aerial photos. Yes, the airplane window is dingy, the field of view restricted, and the subject distorted by the thickness of the glass...but you get to capture a perspective that you can't normally see. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may07 Journal Wed, 07 May 2008 11:12:52 +0100 Paul and I learned today of the death of Ashley Wynn. Ashley was a frequent visitor to this website and posted regularly on the messageboard under the name polijn. She won one of the three galley copies of A Sword From Red Ice and we emailed back and forth. She was a writer herself, a bright, lovely and funny young woman. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may06b Journal Tue, 06 May 2008 18:02:02 +0100 The older the model the more maintenance it needs. This is as true for websites as it is for buying cars. JVJ is fourteen years old now (older than amazon.com) and although it has a shiny new paint job, rust lurks under the hood. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may06a Journal Tue, 06 May 2008 10:42:00 +0100 After our foray into frequency analysis I think we’re ready for some statistics. Currently we average 910 visitors a day at jvj, that’s 27,000 visitors a month, 332,000 a year. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may05 Journal Mon, 05 May 2008 13:25:01 +0100 E is the most frequently used letter in English, French, Dutch, Spanish, Swedish and German. In English, it has an average letter frequency of 12.072% which means that in a random block of text the letter E will constitute twelve percent of its content. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may02 Journal Fri, 02 May 2008 14:50:12 +0100 It’s official, I’m a guilty pleasure in New Orleans. Which is fine by me, as I’ve indulged in several guilty pleasures in that fine city in my time (drinking beer while walking down the street at midday being one of them, half a dozen beignets from Cafe du Monde scarfed in a single sitting being another). http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may01b Journal Thu, 01 May 2008 09:57:52 +0100 This was taken in September in British Columbia. I was camping on the shore of Summit Lake. http://jvj.com/journal0508.html#may01a Journal Thu, 01 May 2008 08:34:26 +0100 After four days of record temperatures the heatwave is finally abating. I was at the beach on Sunday. The air temperature was 86F and the water was 60F: quite a differential. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr30 Journal Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:25:14 +0100 This photo was taken two weeks ago in the woods. It reminds me of the Birchway in A Sword From Red Ice. The trees look like bars...and I might not be able to escape. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr29 Journal Tue, 29 Apr 2008 07:27:31 +0100 We had a heatwave yesterday. It was 95F at 1pm. I finally have my camera lead so I’m posting a photo I took last week as my plane was landing in San Diego. To your right you’ll find a link to an interview with SF agent Simon Kavanagh whose clients include Iain M.Banks and China Mieville. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr28 Journal Mon, 28 Apr 2008 07:30:38 +0100 A few years back I posted an epic fantasy quiz online. It’s been pretty popular so I thought I’d do another one--in two installments this time because I’m slower than I used to be. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr25 Journal Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:15:22 +0100 I’ve been getting quite a bit of email asking about Angus Lok. As a writer, you’re never quite sure which of your characters will capture readers imaginations. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr24 Journal Thu, 24 Apr 2008 12:07:04 +0100 The man who had lost his soul approached the house. Timbers framing the doorway were black and shiny. Creosote deposited during the burning gave them the oily iridescence of ravens wings. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr22 Journal Tue, 22 Apr 2008 20:18:00 +0100 The UK edition of A Cavern of Black Ice has now gone back to press for the 7th time. This means that previous printing runs of the book have sold out and the publisher needs to print more. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr21 Journal Mon, 21 Apr 2008 21:19:13 +0100 If only dogs could vote. I’ve never met a dog I didn’t want my picture taken with. I met these two goofballs while camping last year in East San Diego County, on Mt. Laguna. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr20 Journal Sun, 20 Apr 2008 17:54:11 +0100 When Harlan Ellison was asked where he got his ideas from, his answer was Schenectady. He was commenting on the elusiveness of ideas, and the absurdity of trying to pin them down. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr18b Journal Fri, 18 Apr 2008 19:00:23 +0100 We never sleep at jvj. Bedtime in California is sunrise in Liverpool: one of the Joneses is always on the job. Which is strange really, as we’re a pretty lazy lot. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr18a Journal Fri, 18 Apr 2008 00:03:58 +0100 The French edition of The Barbed Coil is being published this month by Calmann Levy. It’s titled La Ronce d'Or, which translates as The Gold Thorn. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr17 Journal Thu, 17 Apr 2008 00:27:11 +0100 Still pretty tired after the flight yesterday. 12 hours on the road, awake at 2:45 am. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr16 Journal Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:11:47 +0100 I’m back in San Diego, following a long and tiring flight. Biggie rode shotgun, if you can call being crammed in the space under the seat in front of me while mildly drugged on kitty-tranquilizers and confined to a small brown bag riding shotgun. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr15 Journal Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:50:05 +0100 Locus is the trade magazine for SF and Fantasy. They are currently running a poll for the best SF and Fantasy published in 2007. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr11 Journal Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:27:50 +0100 SF and fantasy names can be tricky. A writer makes up a world, including all the attending details of history, geography, culture, religion, economics and so on, and designs a nomenclature (naming scheme) around it. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr10 Journal Thu, 10 Apr 2008 18:20:14 +0100 It’s turning into animal month at jvj. This is the doggie I took walking on Sunday on the banks of the St. Lawrence. As you can see he was a very bad boy. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr09 Journal Wed, 09 Apr 2008 17:18:09 +0100 This weekend I drove up to Canada, to Kingston Ontario, which is located on Lake Ontario where it runs into the St. Lawrence. Kingston was once Canada’s capital and has been settled since 1673. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr08 Journal Tue, 08 Apr 2008 17:35:56 +0100 It’s good to see folk are reacting favorably to Book IV’s title, Watcher of the Dead. It took a while percolating. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr04 Journal Fri, 04 Apr 2008 16:50:17 +0100 So the derby was played on Sunday. Liverpool vs Everton. Liverpool won, 1-0. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr03 Journal Thu, 03 Apr 2008 19:41:55 +0100 The journal in its current form is officially a year old. In a previous form, as JVJ News, it went from 1998-2003, so in another sense it’s ten years old. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr02 Journal Wed, 02 Apr 2008 22:20:23 +0100 Sunday was lovely here, sunny and crisp and just above freezing. Fresh snow made the woods sparkle. http://jvj.com/journal0408.html#apr01 Journal Tue, 01 Apr 2008 06:15:01 +0100 The Great Gatsby, Scrooge, Heathcliff, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Huckleberry Finn, Gandalf, Bertie Wooster and Jeeves, Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett Butler: these are names that tell us something about their owners. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar27 Journal Thu, 27 Mar 2008 22:34:35 +0100 Every tent and studio at Concordia has a guestbook. The eco tent guestbook is a work of art. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar25 Journal Tue, 25 Mar 2008 22:51:49 +0100 To mark the knighting of the title for Book IV, Watcher of the Dead, here’s a sneak peak at the book itself. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar22 Journal Sat, 22 Mar 2008 23:15:59 +0100 Book IV now has a title, Watcher of the Dead. This has been one of Raif’s names from the beginning, referring to the raven lore he wears around his neck. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar20 Journal Thu, 20 Mar 2008 10:39:50 +0100 Arthur C. Clarke died yesterday. He was one of my favorite SF writers and one of Dad’s favorites too. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar19b Journal Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:28:20 +0100 You can spend a lot of time waiting for the bus on St. John. The ViTran comes once an hour, except when it comes every two hours. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar19a Journal Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:31:02 +0100 Charlotte Amalie is the largest town on St. Thomas. It’s where the big cruise ships come to dock, offloading passengers by the thousand daily. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar18 Journal Tue, 18 Mar 2008 10:14:52 +0100 Cruz Bay is the main town on St. John. The beach and ferry dock are right there, only a block from the post office. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar17 Journal Mon, 17 Mar 2008 09:45:31 +0100 Your fearless reporter at jvj.com isn't afraid to get her feet wet in search of wildlife. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar16 Journal Sun, 16 Mar 2008 17:56:45 +0100 One day I stayed (you can hardly call it camping) at the windiest spot on St. John, Rams Head Point, where the Caribbean and Atlantic meet. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar14 Journal Fri, 14 Mar 2008 12:09:19 +0100 Blue skies, turquoise water, sea turtles, two buck Presidentes, shrimp Creole, palm trees and warm tradewinds: these are just part of being in the US Virgin Isles. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar13 Journal Thu, 13 Mar 2008 10:24:13 +0100 Tomorrow I head south, to St. John in the US Virgin Islands, for a few days camping. The campground I’m staying at is eco-friendly. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar06 Journal Thu, 06 Mar 2008 14:04:12 +0100 You may have noticed that the first update of the month was a little late, that’s because Paul has been working behind the scenes, building a better website. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar04 Journal Tue, 04 Mar 2008 19:56:30 +0100 Last month I introduced you to our old cellar, complete with secret tunnels and tombs from the 1600’s. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar03 Journal Mon, 03 Mar 2008 15:08:08 +0100 I’m glad you asked: -4F. That’s minus twenty Celsius, a record low here. Just standing outside for a few seconds was enough to make my hands ache. http://jvj.com/journal0308.html#mar01 Journal Sat, 01 Mar 2008 23:43:25 +0100 It’s cold so I’m reminiscing about warmer climes. Last Summer I camped at Big Sur. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb28 Journal Thu, 28 Feb 2008 16:49:48 +0100 It snowed some more, all day yesterday, tiny damp flecks that stuck to tree branches. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb27 Journal Wed, 27 Feb 2008 11:47:17 +0100 So of course it snowed--it always snows. Here I am following fresh deer tracks down toward the creek on Sunday. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb25 Journal Mon, 25 Feb 2008 16:49:56 +0100 Paul and I appreciate everyone’s comments. We heard you, and for the most part folk seem to be taking the advertising in their stride. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb23 Journal Sat, 23 Feb 2008 21:26:32 +0100 I’m now on the East Coast. It’s twenty degrees out, frosty but not snowy. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb21 Journal Thu, 21 Feb 2008 11:39:59 +0100 Tomorrow I fly east to spend some time in Upstate, NY. It’s a good place to work as I’m away from house and friends, and it’s often too cold to go outside. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb19 Journal Tue, 19 Feb 2008 15:26:34 +0100 Okay that was a trick. There are no possums in N. America. It’s spot the opossum. It’s really there, honest. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb18 Journal Mon, 18 Feb 2008 09:58:26 +0100 In case you don’t generally stop by the message board, here’s a copy of my latest post outlining our current dilemma. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb16 Journal Sat, 16 Feb 2008 07:15:24 +0100 And the wildflowers are blooming. For most of the year, the hiking trails in San Diego are brown and dusty, but right now, after long (and much-needed) weeks of rain, plants are flowering. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb15 Journal Fri, 15 Feb 2008 01:12:02 +0100 In case you’re wondering about the inscription on the floor of the cellar. It’s a tombstone. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb13 Journal Wed, 13 Feb 2008 14:23:29 +0100 Growing up, one of my nicknames was Pothole Jones. Whenever I smiled two big cavities opened up in my cheeks. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb12 Journal Tue, 12 Feb 2008 23:27:49 +0100 At last, readers questions answered. We’ve put up a new page containing answers to some of the most popular questions about the books, writing, and other stuff. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb11 Journal Mon, 11 Feb 2008 11:46:26 +0100 It was only a matter of time before I started reminiscing. Here is part of the cellar Paul, Mark and I used to rummage around in as kids. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb08 Journal Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:48:21 +0100 One of the best ways to improve your dialog is to read it out loud. We know how normal speech sounds and our ears can pick up a clunker a mile away. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb07 Journal Thu, 07 Feb 2008 20:58:30 +0100 Here’s my latest birding dilemma. I was reviewing photos I took in June at Big Sur when I found these. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb06 Journal Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:56:33 +0100 The egrets have returned to my local lagoon. This is the time of year when they pair and mate. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb05 Journal Tue, 05 Feb 2008 12:38:38 +0100 San Diego’s starting to look like England. All the years I’ve been here I’ve never known such a rainy season. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb04 Journal Mon, 04 Feb 2008 10:30:35 +0100 In 2006 I visited the Everglades. The best birdwatching ever--you could drive down any highway and see the most spectacular displays of plumage. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb01b Journal Fri, 01 Feb 2008 18:24:20 +0100 Bald eagles mate for life. So do swans, Canadian geese, barn owls, some waterfowl, and some tropical birds. http://jvj.com/journal0208.html#feb01a Journal Fri, 01 Feb 2008 01:07:18 +0100 Here's another photo from my walk yesterday. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan29 Journal Tue, 29 Jan 2008 18:57:17 +0100 Yesterday I went for a walk at my local lagoon. After all the rain we've been having, everything is green and lush. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan28 Journal Mon, 28 Jan 2008 07:32:26 +0100 There be eels in Blue Dhoone Lake. In Fortress of Grey Ice the Dog Lord eats one, teeth and all. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan26 Journal Sat, 26 Jan 2008 15:18:00 +0100 Paul has been busy behind the scenes. His latest project has been revamping The Barbed Coil pages. They’re looking cool, all black and shiny. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan24 Journal Thu, 24 Jan 2008 13:22:39 +0100 “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again." “The sky above the port was the color of television tuned to a dead channel.” http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan23 Journal Wed, 23 Jan 2008 10:24:19 +0100 Been a little under the weather since I returned to San Diego, but feeling a bit better today. Tea, honey and toast are my standbys. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan22 Journal Tue, 22 Jan 2008 10:56:16 +0100 And now a word from our sponsor...that’s...er...me. My earlier books are now available for download from Mobipocket. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan19 Journal Sat, 19 Jan 2008 20:14:05 +0100 I may be back in San Diego but the memories of the northern woods are strong. I think we all have places for which we feel a special affinity, places that touch our soul. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan17b Journal Thu, 17 Jan 2008 10:23:45 +0100 Yesterday I headed home from NY to San Diego. Flying west at dawn is a magical experience. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan17a Journal Thu, 17 Jan 2008 01:05:20 +0100 Quietly, behind the scenes, we’ve been doing some maintenance at jvj. Well, Paul has. I went for a walk in the woods. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan16 Journal Wed, 16 Jan 2008 01:12:11 +0100 I like words, I just do. Coming across a new one pleases me. Especially when it’s as good as hillingar. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan15 Journal Tue, 15 Jan 2008 01:27:46 +0100 Robert Thompson over at Fantasy Book Critic has put together a list of writers favorite books from 2007. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan14 Journal Mon, 14 Jan 2008 07:32:07 +0100 How does one convey a sense of place in as few words as possible? http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan12 Journal Sat, 12 Jan 2008 15:43:45 +0100 About five years ago I wrote a small piece on the foods of my childhood. I posted it in an obscure corner of the website and promptly forgot about it. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan11 Journal Fri, 11 Jan 2008 10:33:47 +0100 Taking photographs--snow-laden branches, mountains shrouded in mist, frozen lakes etc--helps with my writing. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan10 Journal Thu, 10 Jan 2008 14:55:41 +0100 This time when I visited Lake Placid I went there to ski (badly). Whiteface, the ski hill, is owned and run by the State of New York. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan09 Journal Wed, 09 Jan 2008 09:39:57 +0100 I spent Sunday at Lake Placid, a small town in the heart of the Adirondacks. The 1932 and 1980 Winter olympics were held there. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan08 Journal Tue, 08 Jan 2008 21:48:32 +0100 Here’s a couple more shots from my trip last week which included a drive through Aamish/windmill country. Windmills are neat. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan03 Journal Thu, 03 Jan 2008 12:13:03 +0100 The Mohawk River flows east through Upstate New York. Yesterday I went for a walk along its southern shore. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan02 Journal Wed, 02 Jan 2008 01:05:47 +0100 The last day of 2007 was a snowy one here, with a foot of powdery snow falling in the night. I awoke in the morning to a changed world. http://jvj.com/journal0108.html#jan01 Journal Tue, 01 Jan 2008 02:01:37 +0100 Yesterday I drove through Lowville in Upstate New York. It’s an interesting part of the world. One hundred and twenty windmills, each 320 feet high, dominate the landscape. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec28 Journal Fri, 28 Dec 2007 12:21:38 +0100 Happy Holidays from me and my brother, Paul. We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and a fine New Year. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec23 Journal Sun, 23 Dec 2007 10:30:56 +0100 I landed in NY state late last night in the snow. Ice crystals were strafing past the plane window, glittering in the wing lights. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec21 Journal Fri, 21 Dec 2007 10:28:00 +0100 I’m off to NY state this week for the Holidays. I’ll be taking my laptop and working. Hopefully I’ll be able to get to the mountains. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec18 Journal Tue, 18 Dec 2007 10:15:50 +0100 The French fantasy site elbakin.net has translated the interview I did with Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec13 Journal Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:28:42 +0100 People have been commenting that I wear a lot of goofy hats. No way, not me, must be confusing me with someone else. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec11 Journal Tue, 11 Dec 2007 13:59:38 +0100 The book signing at Mysterious Galaxy on Friday night was a lot of fun. Even though it was raining we had a good turn out. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec09 Journal Sun, 09 Dec 2007 11:30:20 +0100 The highest surf in a year is currently hitting San Diego shores so the fearless reporter at jvj.com decided to head to the beach to check it out. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec07 Journal Fri, 07 Dec 2007 09:04:27 +0100 I attend a couple of writers groups, one of which is for aspiring writers. One of the recurring issues is technical stuff: sentence structure, grammar, word usage, punctuation, etc. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec06 Journal Thu, 06 Dec 2007 01:03:42 +0100 I was working on my laptop about 4pm when I looked up and noticed that the light in the house had turned a deep, brilliant red. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec04 Journal Tue, 04 Dec 2007 01:42:15 +0100 We actually got some rain on Friday. Quite a lot of rain, two inches in all. It helped bring down the fire danger. http://jvj.com/journal1207.html#dec02 Journal Sun, 02 Dec 2007 23:53:21 +0100 If you're close to San Diego, stop by and see me next Friday, Dec 7th at 7pm. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov29b Journal Thu, 29 Nov 2007 01:05:36 +0100 Fire season continues in San Diego. The conditions for wildfires are just about perfect: low humidity, bush that’s as dry as hay, no significant rain in 9 months and desert winds. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov29a Journal Thu, 29 Nov 2007 01:02:50 +0100 Pat over at Fantasy Hotlist has posted an interview about the Sword of Shadows series. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov27 Journal Tue, 27 Nov 2007 20:31:39 +0100 As promised here is the photo of the tiny green bird I spotted while on Catalina Island. I believe this is the erroneously named orange-crested warbler. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov26 Journal Mon, 26 Nov 2007 17:18:58 +0100 For Thanksgiving I went to Catalina Island. It’s an hour-and-a-half ferry ride across the Pacific. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov25 Journal Sun, 25 Nov 2007 22:06:29 +0100 Readers have been emailing me requesting a place to leave feedback, ask questions, rant, praise, and discuss the books. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov21b Journal Wed, 21 Nov 2007 18:42:34 +0100 I live for stuffing--not turkey, just the stuffing. There’s a brand of stuffing in England called Paxo. Comes from a box, the “flavor” is sage and onion. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov29a Journal Wed, 21 Nov 2007 12:45:22 +0100 The universe is infinitely big and strange, but don’t take my word for it. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov19 Journal Mon, 19 Nov 2007 12:54:00 +0100 When I returned to San Diego I discovered the house was covered with a fine film of black ash. Inside, the skylights had acted like chimneys, drawing the smoke. Perfect squares of ash lay beneath each of them. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov18 Journal Sun, 18 Nov 2007 16:58:22 +0100 Last week I attended the World Fantasy Convention in Saratoga. 1,200 writers, publishers, booksellers and editors in one place over four days. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov16 Journal Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:17:19 +0100 While I was in Upstate NY I took a short trip to Lake Placid. Lake Placid is surrounded by the High Peaks of the Adirondacks. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov13 Journal Tue, 13 Nov 2007 15:11:21 +0100 Saratoga Springs is famous for thoroughbred racing, and sculptures of horses line Broadway, its main street. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov08 Journal Thu, 08 Nov 2007 11:20:24 +0100 The World Fantasy Convention was held in Saratoga Springs this year. 1,200 writers, booksellers, agents, editors and publishers attended, making it the biggest Fantasy Con ever. http://jvj.com/journal1107.html#nov06 Journal Tue, 06 Nov 2007 18:32:06 +0100 Caught in a bind for Halloween? Inflatable tombstone blown away? Squirrel ate your pumpkin? I may have the answer for you. Ghost deer. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct28 Journal Sun, 28 Oct 2007 10:19:04 +0100 Be specific. That’s one of the most important pieces of advice writers receive, and one of the easiest ones to accomplish. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct24b Journal Wed, 24 Oct 2007 19:03:16 +0100 The local fire threat is receding. The mandatory evacuation of the area adjacent to where I live has now been canceled. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct24a Journal Wed, 24 Oct 2007 09:50:15 +0100 The car's packed and I'm ready to go at a moment's notice. According to the official Carlsbad City website the voluntary evacuation is due to the air quality, not imminent fire danger. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct22e Journal Mon, 22 Oct 2007 17:57:30 +0100 The police have just driven past with a speakerphone. Voluntary evacuations are now under way in my part of Carlsbad (southeast). http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct22d Journal Mon, 22 Oct 2007 15:17:19 +0100 The air is hot and stinking. It's eighty degrees and the wind is gusting up to 50 mph. Part of my fence has blown down. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct22c Journal Mon, 22 Oct 2007 15:05:48 +0100 The wildfires are tearing through San Diego. The winds are high and ash is sailing through the air. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct22b Journal Mon, 22 Oct 2007 13:20:43 +0100 The Santa Anas are hot seasonal winds that blow in from the desert. They started up yesterday, blowing into bone dry Southern California. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct22a Journal Mon, 22 Oct 2007 10:15:32 +0100 Fantasy Book Critic interviewed me at the weekend. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct18 Journal Thu, 18 Oct 2007 10:02:15 +0100 Bookplates are self-adhesive. You peel off the backing and stick them on the inside title page of the book. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct17 Journal Wed, 17 Oct 2007 10:30:19 +0100 I’m a dog person, I really am. We had a dog growing up, Winston. Mum didn’t like cats. Still doesn’t. So how did I end up with a cat? http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct16 Journal Tue, 16 Oct 2007 15:20:54 +0100 I went boating on Sunday, in the Pacific out of San Diego Bay. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct15 Journal Mon, 15 Oct 2007 00:03:44 +0100 Bonjour, mes lecteurs francais. Je suis desole que je ne puisse pas comunicate avec vous en votre langue maternelle. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct13 Journal Sat, 13 Oct 2007 20:46:43 +0100 A couple of people have emailed me asking how they can order A Sword From Red Ice online. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct12 Journal Fri, 12 Oct 2007 23:39:58 +0100 The post today brought my author’s copies of A Sword From Red Ice. Two boxes of them. The book looks wonderful. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct09 Journal Tue, 09 Oct 2007 17:46:00 +0100 I was at the California/Arizona border at the weekend. The Colorado River has been dammed at Picacho Peak to create a series of lakes and washes. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct08 Journal Mon, 08 Oct 2007 11:49:50 +0100 For those awaiting the publication of A Sword From Red Ice in the UK here’s a shot of the British cover art. I think it’s pretty cool. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct06 Journal Sat, 06 Oct 2007 00:28:10 +0100 Not to be confused with its US namesake, Canadian Glacier National Park is in British Columbia, west of Banff. http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct04 Journal Thu, 04 Oct 2007 11:31:50 +0100 October is finally here. A Sword from Red Ice will be out on the 16th in the US, and it's my birthday ten days later. Is this the best month of the year, or what? http://jvj.com/journal1007.html#oct01 Journal Mon, 01 Oct 2007 00:01:00 +0100 Here are some more photos of Kootenay. I camped on the edge of the park one night and watched as the Milky Way slowly revealed itself above me. http://jvj.com/journal0907.html#sep26 Journal Wed, 26 Sep 2007 14:44:37 +0100 Here I am in Yoho National Park, doing my best impression of Vanna White. http://jvj.com/journal0907.html#sep24 Journal Mon, 24 Sep 2007 10:45:30 +0100 The first national park I visited was Kootenay. It was here we saw two bighorn sheep by the road. This one stayed put and inspected us while we took photographs. http://jvj.com/journal0907.html#sep22 Journal Sat, 22 Sep 2007 09:51:14 +0100 I had a wonderful time in Alberta and British Columbia. It’s a spectacular part of the world. Soaring limestone peaks, glaciers, alpine lakes, dense forest, milky rivers: nine days isn’t nearly enough to take it all in. http://jvj.com/journal0907.html#sep19 Journal Wed, 19 Sep 2007 21:37:29 +0100 I got Biggie from the Helen Woodward animal shelter six years ago. Her mother was a feral cat and Biggie's always been a little gun shy. If the doorbell goes you won't see her for hours. http://jvj.com/journal0907.html#sep05 Journal Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:05:05 +0100 Dictionaries define the word edit as "to prepare for publication" and "to cut or eliminate". In order to edit one's own work one must learn to do both. http://jvj.com/journal0907.html#sep01 Journal Sat, 01 Sep 2007 15:51:02 +0100 The three fine people who won galley copies of A Sword From Red Ice are: Kevin A of Moses Lake, WA; Ashley W of Hot Springs, AR; and Paul K of Anchorage, AK. Sorry if you entered and didn’t win... http://jvj.com/journal0807.html#aug26 Journal Sun, 26 Aug 2007 13:06:31 +0100 I’ve received lots of emails about the galley copy. Thank you. Too many to respond to in person, but I read them all. People have made very good cases for why they should receive a galley. There’s some persuasive readers out there. http://jvj.com/journal0807.html#aug15 Journal Wed, 15 Aug 2007 13:31:56 +0100 Galleys are bound promotional copies of books that are produced to enable buyers, reviewers, sales teams and writers to read the book before it’s published. Generally, galleys haven’t been copy-edited so there’ll be typos and other errors. http://jvj.com/journal0807.html#aug10 Journal Fri, 10 Aug 2007 13:03:04 +0100 My dad, William Jones, passed away when I was a teenager. He loved Science Fiction. Paperback editions of Heinlein, Clarke, Herbert, Pohl, Bester and others were always lying around the house. http://jvj.com/journal0807.html#aug01 Journal Wed, 01 Aug 2007 16:50:12 +0100 Beginning writers often ask me for advice, and the best and most basic advice I can give is: write every day. Even if you’re busy, uninspired, or feeling under-the-weather: write. Do not wait for inspiration. http://jvj.com/journal0707.html#jul25 Journal Wed, 25 Jul 2007 11:41:44 +0100 Cover art is commissioned by a publisher’s art department, which works closely with the book’s editor. Often the manuscript hasn’t been finished so the artist must work from a brief description or rough draft. http://jvj.com/journal0707.html#jul09 Journal Mon, 09 Jul 2007 23:27:03 +0100 I've been very lucky to have wonderful artists illustrate my books. Both the UK and US editions of Sword From Red Ice have fantastic covers. http://jvj.com/journal0707.html#jul04 Journal Wed, 04 Jul 2007 19:22:28 +0100 Some of you may know that my brother Paul helps me out with this website. He’s in Liverpool, England. http://jvj.com/journal0707.html#jul03 Journal Tue, 3 Jul 2007 18:50:05 +0100 Most writers I know are pretty particular about how and where they write. We like our familiar and comfortable surroundings. We also like our familiar, comfortable and usually very ratty reference books. http://jvj.com/journal0607.html#jun27 Journal Wed, 27 Jun 2007 16:06:25 +0100 People often ask where my ideas come from. It’s a hard process to pin down, but I believe that spending time outside and experiencing nature contributes in a variety of ways. http://jvj.com/journal0607.html#jun15 Journal Sat, 16 Jun 2007 10:23:50 +0100 I've busy working on the new book this week. It doesn't have a title yet, but I'm considering breaking with tradition. 'Something of Something Ice' has been the model for the past three books; it might be time for a change. http://jvj.com/journal0607.html#jun11 Journal Tue, 12 Jun 2007 09:17:39 +0100 Last week I went camping in Big Sur. It was beautiful. Redwoods, groves, craggy sea cliffs, windblown hills. Walking amongst the redwoods is like stepping back in time. http://jvj.com/journal0607.html#jun05 Journal Wed, 6 Jun 2007 03:35:39 +0100 Hello everyone. I now have an actual galley copy of Sword From Red Ice in my hot little hands. I'm very excited about the book coming out. http://jvj.com News Sat, 26 May 2007 19:09:14 +0100 I thought I’d begin this online journal with some information. The next book in the series, A Sword From Red Ice, will be out in both the US and UK in October. The book was completed in December 05. October 2007 was the earliest it could be scheduled for release. http://jvj.com/journal0507.html#may23 Journal Wed, 23 May 2007 19:09:15 +0100 Read this exclusive pre-release sample chapter from book III in the Sword of Shadows series. http://jvj.com/sfripro.html Sample Chapters Wed, 23 May 2007 19:09:16 +0100