I’ve arrived at Woodthrush Woods and had a good time catching up with my parents. Just in case there were any doubts about the success of this workshop? Mom has made a poundcake.

I just logged on to update my blog and then saw that Kermit Love died last night.

From the NY Times obituary:

Although Mr. Love collaborated with luminaries of dance like George Balanchine, Agnes de Mille, Robert Joffrey, Jerome Robbins and Twyla Tharp, it was the 8-foot-2, yellow-feathered Big Bird and his 7-foot, woolly mammoth-like friend Mr. Snuffleupagus — both perennially 6 years old — that brought him global attention.

I only met him the one time but he was the nicest man. And genius. Oh, I am very sad. I feel like my best friend’s dad died, you know?

The flight from La Guardia was completely without incident. We sat on the runway for a while, but I just read one of the stories I’m supposed to critique for the workshop.

What?

Would you really have finished them all before you got there? I didn’t think so.

Plus! I finished the Giant Battle scene in the novel, which means that I have one chapter left. I’m only coming on line long enough to let you know that I’m not dead.

• 08:17 Packing to go to Chattanooga. #

I somehow forgot to tell you about this, I think. Codex Writer’s Group is an online group for neo-pro writers. To be a member, you have to have made a pro-sale or attended one of the big audition only workshops¹ which means that it’s chock-full of some very talented writers.

This year we wanted to do a retreat and we’re doing it at my parents’ house. I have good folks, you know? My grandmother, her sister’s and cousins all inherited adjoining property. To condense the story, Mom and Dad live in the house that he grew up in, Woodthrush Woods, and they’ve moved Robin’s Roost, a log house,² from another part of the property to theirs.

See! Pictures.

Woodthrush Woods

I’ve been saying for years that it would make the perfect retreat center. Thirteen wooded acres, a creek, wi-fi and — at least this time — everyone gets their own bedroom.

We’re starting with a four day workshop with Ellen Datlow on short stories plus a novel track. Then there’s another six days of retreat.

It should be fun.

1. Clarion, Odyssey, OSC’s BootCamp, etc. [↩]
2. not a cabin [↩]

Biology in Science Fiction did a write-up about some of my SF stories and the biology contained therein. That was a really nice thing.

But not half as nice as discovering that there’s a blog devoted to biology in SF. How cool is that?

(Thanks to Jeremy Tolbert for pointing it out¹ )

1. Yes, I have google alerts, but he got there first. [↩]