Christine DeWees is a kindly, white-haired grandmother who rides a Harley and wants to be a writer. Lynn and I have been criticizing her efforts for some time and have repeatedly encouraged her to submit something to an editor. So far, she has resisted our proddings, insisting that she would be embarrassed to show her work to a professional editor. I decide to kill two birds with one stone.
In my most disarming 'nothing can go wrong' tones, I give my spiel to Christine and pass her a Thieves' World package. Three hours later, my phone rings. Christine loves the character ofMyrtis, the madam of the Aphrodisia House and is ready to do a story centring around her. I stammer politely and point out that Myrtis is one of Marion's characters and that she might object to someone else writing her characters. Christine cackles and tells me she's already cleared it with Marion (don't ask me how she got the phone number!), and everything is effervescent. Two days later, she hands me the story, and I still haven't gotten around to looking up 'effervescent' in the dictionary.
With seven stories now in hand, I declare Thieves' World I to be complete and begin writing my 'fun fun' essay. The stories from Marion and Phil can wait until the second book.
Then Marion's story arrives.
Marion's story interfaces so nicely with Christine's that I decide to use them both in the first book. Rather than cut one of the • other stories, the volume is assembled with intros, maps, eight stories, and essay, crated, and shipped off to New York.
Endo volume one! Print it!
The whole whirlwind process of editing this monster child was only vaguely as I had imagined it would be. Still, in hindsight, I loved it. With all the worries and panics, the skyhigh phone bills and the higher bar bills, I loved every minute. I find myself actually looking forward to the next volume ... and that's what worries me!