Mirror of MY Soul

What I'm writing: I'm continuing research for the sequel to Spinning Coins, Mirror of Souls. Spinning Coins took place in an imaginary village in 1526 Denmark, so I was able to create the location, buildings, geography etc. to fit the needs of my story. Mirror of Souls, however, takes place in France, in real places that still exist today. I've spent far too much time on the internet trying to find out if the Cathédrale St-Jean in Lyon, France still has a side chapel with statues of sleeping soldiers. And better yet, if there are any cathedrals with sleeping soldiers closer to the main action of my book (between Paris and Orléans). I went to a very educational break-out session at the regional SCBWI (Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) conference in Westminster, MD this weekend where author/illustrator Lita Judge suggested contacting local archivists to ask questions. Oddly, this never occurred to me. I'll try contacting the cathedral directly. What I'd really love to do is go to France myself, but with two kids in college that's not happening -- at least until I sell the first book. :)

I've also been musing about a middle-grade time travel series to take place in Ocean City, Maryland in 1902, when the hotel owners got together to create the first boardwalk, which they would roll up at night or high tide and store on their porches.
The boardwalk was destroyed by a hurricane in 1903. The advantage of a story taking place in Ocean City is that I can drive there in less than four hours, and they even have a historical museum right on the boardwalk. And by having it take place in the near past I should be able to find photographs, newspaper articles, etc. to do more direct research. Amy is excited about this one, because the main character would be about eleven and she can give me input and ideas.

What I'm reading: The SCBWI conference had a book table filled with volumes by the conference speakers. On Saturday I picked up Siobhan Vivian's Same Difference, read the jacket flap, and recognized my daughter Carrie in her main character Emily. I immediately bought it, got it autographed for Carrie by Siobhan, and took it home. When I left for the conference Sunday morning, Carrie was already well in to the book. She loved it. I read it last night, staying up until 3AM to finish it. Wow! Siobhan has her teen voice spot on. In fact one dialogue passage between Emily and her mom could have been overheard in my house.

What I'm knitting: I'm taking a short break from Doug's afghan to knit a garter stitch elephant for Amy. She found the perfect yarn to match her new pre-teen-green room color at Large Marge's Yarn Shop, and picked out a pattern on Ravelry. In the meantime, Carrie has started another hat, and Amy is inspired to pick up knitting again herself. Time for a review lesson for my 9-year-old.

How I'm feeling: The migraine diet is still going well. I was actually migraine-free on Saturday for the first day of the conference, and thanks to an Imitrex shot made it through Sunday too. I slept most of the day Monday, but I'm up and around today with a manageable migraine and no meds.