Coming Together

Firefly Avatar

Tons to tell you about today, so I better get started!

gaming-in-the-verseThe preview for the Firefly RPG line, Gaming in the ‘Verse: Gen Con 2013 Exclusive, will no longer be available at the end of this month. You can order print copies from www.margaretweis.com and a digital version from DriveThruRPG.com.

I just had a fantastic meeting with our Systems Lead, Mark Diaz Truman, to wrap up the corebook. We were talking about the overwhelmingly positive response to the Exclusive and how some folk’d be happy just with that. I said that the Exclusive sets expectations by giving them what they need, but the corebook? Gives them what they didn’t even know they needed. Will there be new material? How ’bout over 100,000 words worth?

Today, I’m developing the Episode for the corebook, which was written by Jack Norris. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I’m incredibly sensitive to sound. Sometimes, I can’t listen to anything with words in it when I need to concentrate because it slows my progress down considerably. Other projects, I go the opposite route and have an audiobook on in the background (I happen to adore the Terry Pratchett’s Discworld performances) or I have a movie on that I’ve seen a 1,000 times so I can tune it out. Music with words, though? Can’t do it. Not sure if the fresh air and open windows have something to do with it. Guess I’m just weird that way.

I try to stick to a theme when I’m listening to instrumental music and, for Firefly, it’s all about the Chinese traditional compositions — which is great because it’s something I’d listen to anyway. Lately, I’ve been putting the theme song for a fun, very relaxing puzzle game called Entanglement on in the background on repeat. I’m putting dueling banjos and old west-inspired fiddles on my list of tunes to research.

Sugar Skull_Liz MieraNot sure if I mentioned this yet or not, but I’m modifying a dress I already own (it’s a pink A-line) for Halloween with this patch and some beadwork. So, Etsy can yield some pretty awesome things and I have to say: Liz Miera Embroidery is phenomenal. The quality is great and the design is spot on. It can be REALLY hard to find sugar skull designs that aren’t…well, awful. Here’s a link to her Etsy store if you want to check out her inventory.

Heading out to my salon and will be asking for recommendations on hair. (They’re used to my crazy-ass requests by now. Hah.) I got a black wedding sash to take care of the girly bow problem. I may design jewelry for the overall costume, too, but if I do it’ll likely be a bracelet of some sort. Already have the rest of it. Now, if I can just get back into painting I’ll be shiny. I have a few I need to work on, but have to finish converting my office into a studio. Let’s just say moving our extraordinarily spoiled frog required some shifting — in a good way.

In domestic news, we watched The Gift last night with Cate Blanchett. What a fantastic film. ‘Course, I get Ryan Gosling confused with Giovanni Ribisi (BAD WRITER) but one of the things that I really loved about this, is the very realistic way certain townsfolk got addicted to Annabelle’s readings. She used what are known as “zener cards” which are cards scientists use to test psychic abilities. (You can follow that link to test yourself.) Anyway, I really dug this one because the psychic aspect, when combined with the small town aspect, added a lot of conflict to an already unique and very memorable cast of characters.

Making a buffalo chicken pizza today. Figured you might be interested in the recipe, because it’s SUPER EASY. And this is where I’ll leave you… With the NOM NOM NOMs…

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

(1) tube refrigerator pizza dough
4-5 Frozen buffalo chicken tenders
1-2 Carrots
1-2 stalks Celery
1/4 to 1/2 cup Bleu Cheese dressing
1 cup cheddar cheese
Fresh cilantro, chives, or parsley for garnish

Cook buffalo chicken tenders according to instructions and set aside. When cool, cut up into smaller pieces. Roll out the pizza dough. Spread bleu cheese dressing across the bottom of it. Add the chicken pieces and scatter cheese across the top. Bake according to the crust’s directions. While the pizza’s in the oven, chop up the celery and use a potato peeler to make ribbons of carrots. When the pizza is done, top with your veggies and garnish.

Voila! A tasty pizza!

    Mood: I am a grasshopper who is focusing.
    Caffeinated Beverages Consumed: Hit it really hard yesterday. Tired.
    Work-Out Minutes Logged Yesterday: Walked!
    In My Ears: Entanglement soundtrack
    Game Last Played: Dragon Age II
    Book Last Read: Amphigorey
    Movie Last Viewed: The Gift
    Latest Artistic Project: *Still* *still* *still* need to take pictures… It’s on the list!
    Latest Fiction/Comic Release: Last Man Zombie Standing
    Latest Game Release: Serenity Crew, Wedding Planners Cortex Plus, and Shooting Fish
    What I’m Working On: Primarily tie-in games work and novels. Added an online writing workshop, too!




Monica Valentinelli is an author, artist, and narrative designer who writes about magic, mystery, and mayhem. Her portfolio includes stories, games, comics, essays, and pop culture books.

In addition to her own worlds, she has worked on a number of different properties including Vampire: the Masquerade, Shadowrun, Hunter: the Vigil, Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn, and Robert E. Howard’s Conan.

Looking for Monica’s books and games that are still in print? Visit Monica Valentinelli on Amazon’s Author Central or a bookstore near you.

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