cough cough *wheeeeze* cough cough

Yep, it’s finally happened. The Big Ol’ Coof has paid me a visit. I guess it was bound to happen. That anime convention I attended is probably where I got it. You know how disease-ridden the average anime fan is.

Honestly, though, as far as illnesses go, COVID isn’t that bad. I’ve been self-quarantining for the past five days as per my office’s guidelines, drinking plenty of hot tea, and watching Oney Plays on YouTube mostly. I still have my sense of taste and smell, which is nice, because if I couldn’t taste my Marmite-and-cheese sandwiches, I would be one sad, sick little boy. Compared to the summer cold I seem to contract every damn July, COVID feels like a very, very mild flu.

I’ve also taken this time to go through another round of edits for my forthcoming novel, She Calls Me Cinnamon. I’m getting pretty excited about this one. Not only will this be my first proper novel, but the press I’m publishing through, Pski’s Porch, is one of those small presses I’ve admired from afar for several years before finally mustering the courage to submit a manuscript to them. I’m trying to get word out about Cinnamon currently (soliciting reviews, blurbs, etc.), and I also mentioned it on my author bio at McSweeney’s.

I’ve also taken this sick time to catch up on my reading. I’ve been reading a lot of Jon Ronson lately for research purposes (The Psychopath Test is really useful for someone looking to understand both empathy and the state of psychiatry), and in addition to that I’ve been reading the latest novel from Jokes Review, Meth Pirate Town. It’s part of a series called Egregious Pulp, and as you can imagine, it’s raunchy, violent, and fun as hell.

What else? Oh yeah, the winnow released a new chapbook not too long ago. As with all of their chapbooks, it’s pay-what-you-want, so you really have no reason not to check it out.