My January writing load was light and unusual – two stories in worlds that aren’t mine (and aren’t current-day USA). One was Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar, a grand and sweet fantasy world I’ve been lucky enough to be asked into for periodic anthologies of original stories set there.  I’ve done four or five Valdemar stories so far.  They take longer than my own, largely because to get the voice right, I usually read a book or two in the world before I even start the story, and then I read ONLY these while I’m crafting the story. Mind you, that’s a pleasure. The other world will remain sekrit until I sell the story, but it was even more work.  Hopefully, a future blog to come on that.   

I find it a fabulous exercise in voice to work in rich worlds that I didn’t make: it makes my worlds richer.