Ceallaigh's Blog
Greetings Everyone,
Welcome to Issue #8 of my quarterly newsletter, posted to csmaccath.com and e-mailed to subscribers on Lughnasadh 2013.
For those of you who've asked, my short story and poetry collection The Ruin of Beltany Ring: A Collection of Pagan Poems and Tales is now available for Kobo. You can download it here.
And if you prefer, you can also download an excerpt of the collection on Goodreads. You know, to whet your appetite. =)
I'm always hesitant to say 'this is the way it is' when I speak or write of Gàidhlig and the community; I don't believe I have that authority yet and might never have it. So this blog entry is only about a recent experience of mine, one that means a great deal to me.
I've just finished a brilliant week at Colaisde na Gàidhlig, where I received expert instruction in tin whistle, pipe chanter, Gàidhlig song and Gàidhlig language. Sean and Beth very much enjoyed their fiddle classes together as well.
I met many good Gaels this week and came to know a few more a little better. I also had the pleasure of coming to know my niece/foster daughter (in the old definition of Gaelic fosterage) much better, which is priceless to me.
Sean and I have come away from our experience even more committed to Gàidhlig, which needs every one of her champions. We're also excited to be practicing new instruments together, and I am resolved to dedicate more time to Gàidhlig song (quite a bit more, in fact, though I'm not yet certain what shape that learning will take).
Two new reviews for Scheherazade’s Façade are up, and both have positively mentioned my short story, 'The Daemons of Tairdean Town'.
Lokifan writes:
"The Daemons of Tairdean Town by C. S. MacCath is charming and heartbreaking and full of the unexpected."
and Andrea Blythe writes:
"As the title suggests, this anthology features fantasy stories with characters that exist outside the gender binary. Various characters in these stories shift genders at whim, have secret selves of the opposite gender, cross dress to hide their identity, are transgender, or perform other acts of gender bending. Through the book, the stories are consistently good with strong writing, interesting multi-dimensional characters, and fascinating worlds. Here are a few of my favorites:
I don't quite know why I haven't posted an update about my writing life lately. I've been busy, though! TWSP is still out looking for a home, six reprints are out looking for new homes, and two new stories and a poem are out doing the same.
I've also been worldbuilding like crazy, which has been loads of fun. Yesterday it was the effect of far-future climate change on plant and animal species, and today it was Tuvan throat singing (Tuva is a minority language spoken in Mongolia and southern Siberia).
And in two weeks, I'll be at Harbour Con-Fusion in St. John, doing the guest-writer-panelist thing, which promises to be full of awesome and delicious win.
Anyway, sin sin, as my Gaelic teacher used to say. That's that!
And here's some Tuvan throat music for you, from Huun Huur Tu:
#writing #worldbuilding #tuvanthroatsinging
We had the considerable misfortune to rent a home through VDL Property Management (www.letsrent.ca) upon first coming to Canada on working visas.
When Stella Van der Lugt showed the home to me, she withheld information about a serious mouse infestation and outright lied about the basement, porch and attic full of personal items the owner was storing in the home long-term. When my husband and I arrived from the States to take possession of the home a month later, she insinuated that we might be inclined to steal the owner's items and told my husband (while I was away at the bank) that I had approved their storage there. As we signed the lease and asked her whether or not we might move to a month-to-month contract at the end of our term (because we would be looking to buy a house), she told us this wasn't possible (and it is, under Nova Scotia tenant law).
Friend and author Deborah Blake shares her very witchy blog space with me today so that I can natter on about 'The Ruin of Beltany Ring'.
Barbara J. King, Chancellor Professor of Anthropology at the College of William & Mary, presents an elegant survey of a difficult topic in How Animals Grieve. In a tone both measured and sympathetic, King asserts that animal grief is a strong indicator of animal love, that 'animals grieve when they have loved'. Evidence for this assertion ranges from accounts of dolphin mothers mourning their deceased infants to captive bear murder/suicides, and in each case she demonstrates that while their expressions of grief might vary, animals do respond emotionally to loss.
Last night, I picked up an orphaned squirrel baby who had lost her mum and litter mate to a cat. She was a bit dehydrated, so I was up a couple of times through the night to rehydrate her, and now I'm starting her on a hydration/formula mix. Tomorrow I'll make the usual relay run to the causeway and leave her with another Hope for Wildlife volunteer, but for now, I thought I'd offer my customary blog entry on orphaned animal care, this time for squirrel babies: