This Is My Secret: The Blog and Website of Writer Kristin Cashore

In the past five weeks, I've been in Alaska, Western Mass, Vermont, New York, and Pittsburgh, all while continuing to orchestrate a house and office move here in Boston and gear up for a book release. Next week, I go to ALA in Chicago. Meanwhile, the news continues along in its horrible way. Somehow I've managed to protect my writing time, more or less... but I'm tired.

So yesterday, I took the day off from writing. I finalized some things in the old apartment; I mended some clothes; I listened to the podcast Buffering the Vampire Slayer (in which Jenny Owen Youngs and Kristin Russo rewatch, and talk about, every episode, and then at the end of each episode, Jenny releases her recording of a wonderful song about each episode! It's THE BEST). And then I went to Sofra and read Tamora's Pierce's upcoming Tempests and Slaughter while outside the windows, it poured.


I hope you are finding moments of peace.

It's birthday month on the blog and things are looking up with my revision. \o/\o/

Also, my nieces just turned 7... my father will shortly turn 75... and next week, I turn 40!

I'm certain it never occurred to me when I was a kid that someday I would be glowing with happiness to be turning 40. It makes me feel like a kickass archer in a skintight bodysuit (?), surfing through life. (-----> That's my Indonesian cover for Graceling, published by Gramedia Pustaka Utama ^_^.)

Some nice things: Vicki Lee's, the bakery/café in my new neighborhood, has a breakfast muffin with a soft-boiled egg inside. I meant to take a nicer picture of it, but I accidentally ate it first.


Also, I continue to enjoy the Summer of Darkness app.


Also, one month in, I think it's safe to say that my many plants have survived the move. Moving is really hard on plants. On the one hand, they don't run around the new home freaking out and peeing on everything the way pets do, but on the othe…

An alternative title to this post is "France is Yummy: Miscellany."

These are not all my meals. My companions -- fellow authors, publishing folk and interpreters -- became accustomed to me leaning over their shoulders with my iPhone.

Please forgive me for the fact that in some cases, I can't remember what these dishes were, and also for the fact that I don't have time tonight to identify the ones I do remember!  In some cases, it should be obvious what they are – tea, pizza, salad, souffle, fish and chips, cheese. I discovered one day that my belly has a cheese limit; beyond this limit, cheesebellyachus sets in. This is a nonfatal condition that leaves one with the genuine quandary of whether it is worth it to continue eating cheese. There are things you might never discover about yourself unless you visit France.

Click on them to make them big and beautiful. A few notes: No, the raw stuff was not mine – it was Gail Carriger's — she's a much more adventurous …