But the soundtrack is the coolest. At least the beginnings of a soundtrack, over at Syntax Reviews.
This is a unique guest post — all about the music I listened to while working on BLACK DOG — and Saruuh, who is seriously into music, put together a handful of songs to capture the black dog / Pure dynamic of the story. Isn’t that cool? You really should click through and listen. The link is right at the end of the interview. It really makes me want to make a full CD soundtrack to go with the novel. If I can find the time, I should really do that.
Also, Saruuh became one of my favorite people ever by writing this: “I am so excited to be a part of the Black Dog blog tour. You have no idea. I may have been screaming into a pillow to vent my excitement. I’ve been in love with Black Dog ever since I read it. The world, the characters, the diversity, the complex and unique magic and ‘werewolves’. *swoons* Just read it already!”
Talk about flattering! I do love enthusiasm!
Saruuh’s review is here.
Also, check this out — Laura Florand is planning to read BLACK DOG next. That actually makes me nervous. But happy.
Laura says: “She [meaning me, of course] has said some really wonderful things about my own books, and a lot of reviewers who like my books love hers, too, and I know that probably seems shallow or self-centered but in my experience it’s often a really good sign that we just like the same kind of story and I’ll respond to hers as well.”
Which, are you kidding me? That doesn’t seem shallow at all; it seems thoroughly sensible. I often start following a new-to-me blogger because she raves about one of my books — thus establishing that she has excellent taste. Or, yes, I know, technically it just means that my taste is likely to overlap with hers. Hey, same thing.
PURE MAGIC update: Just sent the ms off to my editor. Woo hoo! I hope she likes it — I am pretty sure she will, since Caitlin did.
Now, if I take a week off to read before (finally) finishing that HOUSE OF SHADOWS sequel . . . what shall I read? I have a short list of candidates:
JINX by Sage Blackwood.
CHAMPION OF THE ROSE and BONES OF THE FAIR by Andrea Host.
STOLEN MAGIC by Stephanie Burgis
I will probably read all those. And more than likely the sequel to JINX. That will probably be enough for one week! But which shall I start with? Choices, choices…
Puppy update: Girl is fine. Today it was Boy 1’s turn to demonstrate that any puppy, no matter how fat, can stall out for no special reason. It felt weird to tube feed a little hippo like Boy 1, but I don’t like to see a puppy go from vigorous, aggressive nursing to barely bothering. I tube fed him 10 cc twice at three hour intervals and poof! Now he’s fine. He’s up to nearly 24 ounces, btw.
Boy 2 is no longer nursing at all, which is my doing and not an emergency. I got tired of watching him struggle, taking in only 2 cc of milk at a time, and started simply feeding him the full orphan amount. That killed his nursing instinct, which is not unexpected, since many puppies figure why bother going to all the effort of nursing when food just appears in their stomachs. I’m simply going to tube-feed him right through weaning, the way I might do with a puppy that had a minor cleft palate (I’ve never seen that — so far — but I know people do hand raise those puppies and they have essentially normal lives once they’re weaned).
I wish I thought Boy 2 would wean at three weeks the way books say puppies will, but in my experience Cavalier puppies are not that eager to try real food. Still, hopefully he will have at least started on solid food by four weeks and be weaned by five weeks or so. Usually I do not push weaning, just letting the mom dry up naturally. Boy 2 is going to get a lot more encouragement to be weaned and usual!
As soon as Boy 2 is weaned, I will start to seriously evaluate him in comparison with his sibs. By the time the puppies are six weeks old, I sure hope I will know for sure that he is actually a normal puppy — just too weak to nurse effectively at first, which snowballed into the situation he’s in now.
Sorry, we’ve had some cute moments, but my phone wasn’t handy, so no picture today. I’ll definitely post a picture on Tuesday — two weeks in this world, whew, I can’t wait for it to be MARCH and my puppies to be up, playful, and CUTE.
Oh, and btw, I did get Folly bred despite the uncertain weather — so sometime in early March, I’ll know whether she’s pregnant.
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