spring 2005

~Tuesday, May 3, 2005

Though I’m officially still on maternity leave, there’s still much going on. The big news is that The Lover’s Path and all of its components — book, journal, notecard set, and calendar — is now listed on Amazon.com! This makes publication seem all the closer to me.

Check out here. Here. Here. And, finally, here.

Cool, huh?

And I’ve just seen the first copies hot from the printer. Last week, my editor at Abrams sent me The Lover’s Path 2006 calendar and the notecard set . They look gorgeous, thanks to a stunning production job. I’m especially pleased with the rich gold typography on the cover.

As for the studio — well, the studio is in flux. I’m moving everything from the back studio (which is now Thea’s nursery) to the front studio. Boxes are everywhere. Disorder reigns. It’s taking a long time, since most of the work is done while my daughter sleeps — in other words, an hour here, an hour there. I’m also laying down a new tile floor in the sunroom next to it, which has been annexed as part of my work space. I want the floor to be bright and new for Thea to play on, when she is big enough.

Once I have my studio back in place, I’ll be able to send out Lover’s Path Tarot limited editions again. (My apologies to those of you who are waiting so patiently for me to be back in business.)

Also on the work front, I’ve also started revamping the book dummy for the new-and-improved edition of The Book of Goddesses, which Abrams will be publishing in 2006. The trim size will be more of a square shape, which I like. But it will present some design challenges — the original was taller in shape. It’s going to be fun!

~Tuesday, March 29, 2005

Quick check in to say that Thea Delphine Waldherr Miller (Thea Miller for everyday) was born March 16th, 2005 at 12:37pm in Brooklyn, NY. She arrived four weeks early, to avoid potential complications from preeclampsia. Fortunately, everything worked out beautifully and Thea was able to come home with us from the hospital without delay.

Thea has a full head of dark hair (like her father), blue eyes, and very expressive long hands (like me). Right now, she is snoring in her sling as I type away. As you can imagine, my husband and I overjoyed at her safe arrival!

Other news (which seems piddling compared to Thea’s birth): second and third proofs for The Lover’s Path came in and went back out with comments recently. We’re almost ready to go on press for the print run! Also, though I’m technically on maternity leave until mid/late June, I still have a little work to do on The Book of Goddesses expanded edition. I was supposed to get to it before the baby arrived, but fate intervened. Fortunately, it’s not a lot of work, and it’s the type of work I love to do: reworking the book dummy from 64 to 162 pages. Should take me a few days at most.

~Friday, February 18, 2005

This is probably going to be my last entry until after my baby arrives — I’ll post again when she is born. The way things are going, I suspect she may be showing up a little early. But here’s where I’m leaving things:

>The Lover’s Path Tarot has gone into its second printing in less than two months after publication!

>The Lover’s Path and its associated components (blank journal, 2006 calendar, notecard set) are on press. I’ll probably see second proofs soon.

>Once I’m back from maternity leave, I will be preparing for the publication of The Lover’s Path. Meaning that I’ll be updating this site to include information about my novel, working with Abrams’ publicity department to help sell the book, and more. Writing about this aspect of the publishing process will be interesting. With so much energy going toward simply creating the book, it’s easy to forget that there’s a whole other — and important — side to publishing: making sure your book gets out into the world!

>And the big news, which I’m very pleased to announce: A new, deluxe and expanded The Book of Goddesses is going to be published by Abrams Books! The timing of this edition will coincide with the tenth anniversary of its first publication. As soon as I return from maternity leave, I’ll be hard at work on creating new goddess art and new text to make the new BOG as gorgeous as possible.

For now, I won’t be sending out any limited or autographed editions until after my baby is born. But you can e-mail me to be notified when they’re available again — probably in mid-April.

In the meantime, I’ll “see” you in April!

~ Saturday, February 5, 2005

I may have been silent, but I have been busy on The Lover’s Path front. To be honest, I’m definitely slowing down these days due to pregnancy. The baby is getting very big, and I’m finding that it’s uncomfortable to sit for too long in one position. (Actually, I have a funny picture of my belly’s ripe profile in front of the Eiffel Tower from my trip to Paris last month. If I get brave, I may actually post it!)

Here’s what I’ve been up to:

Proofs came in for The Lover’s Path book, blank journal, notecard set, and 2006 calendar. In other words, the entire shebang. For the most part, the proofs looked lovely, with rich color and sharp detail. Abrams does a beauteous job with their print production, and are so careful with the details. But still, first proofs are first proofs — lots of details to pay attention to, and issues to rectify before everything can be safely printed. So I spent quite a bit of time last week attending to this last-but-not-least part of getting published.

I also needed to finish up mechanicals for the interactive graphics that will be tipped into the book interior. These include actual letters you can read, maps to fold out, and more. They really add to the mysterious beauty of the book, I think/hope.

I also had to design the case mechanical. (In book speak, the case for a hard-cover book means the actual boards-and-binding part of the book — in other words, the three pieces of cardboard that make up the front and back covers and the spine, along with the material used to cover it. This material is usually some sort of fabric or paper. A paper dust jacket may or may not wrap around the case. Most trade hardcover books usually feature some sort of dust jacket.)

For The Lover’s Path, the binding will be a faux leather paper, probably a deep red. For the front of the case, I’ve adapted an alchemical seal, which will be printed in gold foil. It’s going to look very romantic, I think!

My literary agent mentioned to me that my editor told her there should be bound copies of The Lover’s Path by the time my daughter is born. Theresa seemed very pleased at the happy synchronicity — two different types of fruition. I can’t believe that the book will already be off press by then. Nor can I believe that I’m already well into my third trimester of pregnancy. I have so much to do before my baby arrives.

I also was interviewed by Tarot for Life, a newsletter. Click here to read an interview with me about The Lover’s Path Tarot and The Lover’s Path.

BTW, I only have ten Lover’s Path Tarot sets in stock at this time. I’ll be getting in more sets soon, but not before Valentine’s Day. Probably the last day to ship for US Priority Mail delivery by February 14th would be Tuesday morning, February 8th; I suspect it may be too late for international order, though the USPS claims that delivery should be within four to six business days. So all Valentine’s Day orders should be received before 9am Tuesday.

I hope this makes sense!

~Friday, January 21, 2005

New year, new season, new journal page. The bottom line is that I’m back from Paris, and finally over my jetlag for the most part. Though I suspect my jetlag may be due to the fact that I’m seven months pregnant — I am definitely moving more slowly these days, and get tired far more easily.

We had a wonderful time in Paris! The apartment swap was very cute but minimal and about 1/3rd the size of our overstuffed Victorian-style apartment. Which was actually a good thing — I think my husband and myself were in serious need of some spartan zen in our overstimulated life. Nice long bathtub, lovely large picture windows which looked out onto open sky and courtyard. Small walk-in closet of a kitchen, European in style. It was restful to be in an apartment where the emphasis was on living, not working.

We managed to do a lot, considering how pregnant I am. We bought too many things (the dollar is very weak against the euro) for our baby, who now has an adorable wardrobe of 100% cotton onesies from Monoprix (the French equivalent of Target), along with a fleece sleeper and caps; several handpuppets, whom my husband refers to as the “not ready for bedtime players”; several books in French, including a Babar; and other goodies. Our apartment was located about 1/3 of a mile from the Metro (normally no biggie for this city dweller), but too much when heavy with child. So some days we sprung for a taxi to save energy, or grabbed the bus to the metro. We also spent a lot of time just catching up on sleep. It felt wonderful to be able to rest without feeling concerned about deadlines.

We spent a lot of time meandering and exploring. Paris is just a breathtakingly beautiful city! Went to a few museums but not too many — felt like work, and the whole idea of this vacation was to get away from anything work-related. Mainly shopping, cafe loitering, leisurely teas at Salon de Thes, and walking about quartiers we hadn’t seen in previous trips, such as Montparnasse, le Marais, and Butte aux Caixe, an important location for the Paris Commune in 1871. We also indulged in several V.O. English-language movies (version originale, meaning the films had french subtitles but were otherwise the same as in the states). Saw Ocean’s Twelve , which was fun and very, very light; that Lemony Snickett film, entitled in French The Disasterous Adventures of the Baudelaire Orphans, which was good but intensely nightmarish. Best of all, I got to finally see Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind in this little art house cinema in the Latin Quarter, which totally blew me and T. away. Easily the best film I saw from 2004. It really spoke to me of so many eternal truths about love relationships.

The dollar was so weak against the euro that we couldn’t really indulge in fancy meals. I mean, a simple bistro dinner was easily $60. But we did have eat very well, especially this one dinner at a Provencial-style restaurant. Had the best duck ever with this incredible zuccini gratin, and delish terrine de fois grai and wild mushroom soup. Most exotic meal was a lunch in a Madagasgar cuisine/little hole in the wall with five tables, which my husband suspected would be good. He was right too, and the proprietor charming and attentive.

Oh, and the Parisians were really nice to us. We got into many conversations with people. People seemed surprised that we were American, I gues since we spoke French (though mine is minimal at best). One commonality: once people realized we were from the US, a puzzled look would come over their face before they would ask, “But tell me: why did you elect Bush?” We learned to anticipate this reaction with a quick “We’re from NYC and we didn’t vote for him. Many Americans don’t support the war.” Then we were often asked why he got elected. So we ended up explaining a lot about the American political system, the fear-mongering involved, etc. Very interesting to get their perspectives and to share our’s.

On the Lover’s Path front, the tarot sets are out and about! I have been very touched by the wonderful reviews the set has received so far. I also appreciate the patience of all who ordered while I was out of the country, and will be sending these orders out in the next day or so. From here on, I will be available to send out any sets, limited edition or regular, on a timely basis until late March/early April, which is around the time I anticipate giving birth. After this, I plan to be on maternity leave for three months. It will be strange not to be actively involved in some huge publishing project during this time, but I look forward to getting to know and taking care of our new daughter.

Here’s something completely different: I heard from US Games that the Goddess Tarot was featured on Queer Eye for the Straight Girl, on the Bravo network. One of the Fab Five (I’m assuming that it’s the same format at Queer Eye for the Straight Guy) used my deck to give a reading. I’m thrilled that they thought highly enough of my work to use it, but wish I’d known! Alas, they did not credit us, or send us a tape of the show. So if anyone has seen it, or has access to a videotape of the program, which aired on January 19th in the NYC area, I’d appreciate your help.

I hope all of your new years are off to a good start!

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