Friday Morning Newszine

A*. As many of you know, Larry Smith, known variously as Larry!; Larry Smith, Bookseller; and "the guy in the corner of the dealers room with allllllll the books" -- Larry Smith was in an auto accident on his way home from DragonCon; the van rolled, and needs Major Repairs, or perhaps a replacement.  Larry, and Joni Dashoff, who was also in the van, were very lucky, due to a combination of seatbelts and canny packing of books and display shelves.  Larry did have to spend some time in the hospital, but he was eventually released, and went home to inventory, and take, stock.

The news now is that, while -- again, due to canny packing -- the loss of stock was minimal, Larry -- is back in the hospital.  Con-going fans are aware that this is Archon weekend, and Sally -- Larry's wife, and businessmate -- was, last heard, seriously wondering if she should even try to get to the con.

So, what we have here is:  A van to repair or replace; unexpected hospital bills; loss of expected income.  Not a good roll, on anybody's dice.

Immediately after the accident, Marcia Kelly Illingsworth set up a GoFundMe page for Larry and Sally and the poor, abused van.  Here's your link.  If you can donate, that's super.  If you can spread the word, that will help immensely.

Thanks for listening.

B.  We are approaching the end of the seventh and last! week of the Do It Like A Delm Challenge.  Entries must be received by midnight, Eastern Daylight Time (aka New York Time), on Saturday (tomorrow!) October 3.  The last winner will be chosen and posted on korval.com Monday morning, October 5.  The winning challenger will also receive a coupon for a free Baen ebook of their choice.  Full rules here.

If you've been thinking about entering your challenge pic, you are right down to the wire.  Summon your inner delm -- or always wonder if you could have.

C. Submissions are now open for The Year’s Best Military and Adventure Science Fiction series from Baen Books.  Full guidelines here.

D. I was going to write something about Writers Fugue, and Process and All.  Maybe later.  Right now, I have to balance the checkbook.

E. Y'all have a nice weekend.  If you're in the storm path, stay safe.  Even if you're not in the storm path, stay safe.

F. Here's a picture of Sprite, resting after her labors**:

Sprite, recuperating from her latest nap.

____________

*WordPress has decided to be helpful, and format every numbered list into a squinched-up, impossible to read, "standard" format.  Lists-by-letter don't seem to be on its radar.  And, so. . .

**I often post pictures at the bottom of my blog posts to make the announcement of the post prettier for Facebook, which, left to its own devices, usually posts a GINORMOUS (and ugly) G+ graphic.  For those who dislike, or are tired of, photos of cats, spare a little empathy for the Facebook peeps, and avert your eyes.  Thank you.

Books read in 2015

36.  The Paper Doll Museum, Abigail Padgett (e)
35.  The Princess Bride, William Goldman (re-re-read; and--it's official--I definitely prefer the movie)
34.  The Goblin Emperor, Katherine Addison
33.  Cooking the Books, Kerry Greenwood (e)
32.  Forbidden Fruit, Kerry Greenwood (e)
31.  Maisie Dobbs, Jacqueline Winspear
30. Trick or Treat, Kerry Greenwood (e)
29.  The Golden Hawk, Frank Yerby (reread; six pages fell out at various spots during this reading; it was reread many times, when I was 14)
28. The Wave in the Mind, Ursula K. Le Guin
27.  The Boy from the Burren, Sheila Gilluly (e)
26.  Dead Heat, Patricia Briggs (e)
25.  Girl Genius: The Beast of the Rails, Kaja and Phil Foglio
24.  A Bollywood Affair, Sonali Dev
23.  Who Buries the Dead, C.S. Harris
22. Killer Instinct, Zoe Sharpe (e)
21. Devil's Food, Kerry Greenwood (e)
20. The Making of a Marchioness, Frances Hodgson Burnett (e)
19.  A Little Princess, Frances Hodgson Burnett (e)
18. Geekomancy, Michael R. Underwood (e)
17.  The Perfect Rake, Anne Gracie
16.  The Martian, Andy Weir
15.  Blaze of Memory, Nalini Singh
14. Tracker, C.J. Cherryh (read out loud with Steve)
13.  Chanur's Legacy, C.J. Cherryh (re-read, read out loud with Steve)
12.  Chanur's Homecoming, C.J. Cherryh  (re-read, read out loud with Steve)
11.  The Kif Strike Back, C.J. Cherryh (re-read, read out loud with Steve)
10.  Why Kings Confess, C.S. Harris
9.  Chanur's Venture, C.J. Cherryh (re-read, read out loud with Steve) (Note:  the publisher's note at the end of the book states that the next-in-series is Chanur's Revenge. This is false. The next-in-series is The Kif Strike Back.)
8.  Angels' Blood, Nalini Singh (read out loud with Steve)
7.  The Pride of Chanur, C.J. Cherryh (re-read, read out loud with Steve)
6.  What Darkness Brings, C.S. Harris
5. When Maidens Mourn, C.S. Harris
4.  Where Shadows Dance, C.S. Harris
3.  What Remains of Heaven, C.S. Harris
2.  Where Serpents Sleep, C.S. Harris
1.  When Gods Die, C.S. Harris