I'm down to 25 pages left in the rewrite! I keep making my chapters shorter and shorter, trying to end 'em on cliffhangers, but I keep ending up with more chapters left to revise as a result. It's a terrible catch-22, I know. Right now I have 3 chapters to go, but that number is prone to change. My last couple of chapters will probably be one paragraph long...

Seriously, I can see the end in sight. And even though I had a friendly rejection for the Blackbeard novel from an agent in today's mail, I wasn't too shook up about it -- she was very honest, and said she just wasn't grabbed by it. Fair enough. I'll send her the next novel, once it's written...

Of course, it helped that I got an email from an editor who wants to see all of The Last of the Hand! So I spent some time getting that all prettied up before sending that off, and I feel good about it. And I plan on sending out a raft of subs for the Wannoshay novel on Saturday, so I feel like I'm covering all my bases. I should have close to 30 queries out by that point, for three novels and a couple work-for-hire projects (Wizards of the Coast and White Wolf, along with another story to Marvel Comics, just for the hell of it).

In other news, I'm really digging my new subscription to New Yorker. They had an excellent article about Afganistan politics in there, followed by one about drag queens in Omaha, Nebraska. How's that for juxtaposition? And to think, all my time in Nebraska, and I never knew! It's fascinating to see these 2 articles side-by-side -- one dealing with people trying to survive in a war-torn country, another dealing with people trying to transform and express themselves in another.

We live in such a weird, fascinating world. I feel like I've got so much to learn about it. If I ever make any decent amount of money, I ain't spending it on a fancy house or car or boat -- I'm using it so Elizabeth and I can travel the world. I have so much to see, it's not even funny.

Speaking of traveling, I got to chat with my buddy Josh about his travels to the West Coast as well as his (mis)adventures in Amsterdam last night at the Hibernian, one of Raleigh's Irish pubs. Elizabeth and I met the gang there -- the "Craige Girls" (all of them met in Craige dorm at the University of North Carolina; Josh and I are honorary "Craige Girls").

I had me some Black and Tans, some shepherd's pie, and a couple Guinness while the six of us sat in our perfect booth that Lizzie and Holly secured for us (the place was packed). It was so loud that I couldn't hear what the girls were talking about, so Josh filled me in on hash bars in Amsterdam and Phish concerts and potent Rice Krispie treats. We had a great time. Everyone celebrated St. Pat's in style.

And speaking of, happy birthday, Dad, one day late! And yes, his name IS Patrick. :)

Now Playing:
"Lost Dogs," Pearl Jam

Today's Quote:
Trying not to move too much and risk waking Mitch, Ella looked at the island around her -- dew covered the wild grass lining the airstrips, flickering in the sun, which was turning the sky a deep blue. The mosquitoes began to buzz slowly around her, but they were still too drowsy to mount an effective attack.

How did I ever end up here? Ella wondered, inhaling the cool morning air and listening to the distant crash of the Atlantic off to the east.