Tour Eiffel and the Louvre (Day 3)

After a leisurely morning, we headed out towards the Seine to get passes for the Batobus, a river taxi relatively new to the city. We stopped by a boulangerie for a mid-morning snack, which we partook of while sitting in the large courtyard of the Hôtel de Ville. Our destination today was Tour Eiffel; rather than brave the Parisian Metro or walk the 2.5 miles, we opted for the river taxi which was a pleasant ride.

It’s hard to believe we were actually at the Tour Eiffel. If you couldn’t believe it, the multitude of souvenir sellers made sure you didn’t forget. With their wares dangling on large rings or spread out on blankets, they were EVERYWHERE. My wife remarked later that there was no “official” souvenir shop in the area, unlike in DC where the National Park Service has a shop at practically every single memorial and monument.

The Road to Reaving – Part IX

BOOM!; photo by Mark Maestas

As promised, another installment. You can catch up in the usual place; today we’ll look at layout ideas and beyond after a brief interlude.

Road to Reaving – Frequently Asked Questions

Partial of TOA Chapter art

As promised, answers (of a sort) to the questions everyone posted over the last several days. The blog will continue apace as well with another posting tomorrow.

And now…answers to your questions!

The Road to Reaving – Part VIII

We continue our journey through the pits and perils that is the Wars of Reaving. When last we left our intrepid hero, he’d just been told there would be no record sheets and saw the book gutted of 15-16 pages of material. Whatever would our writer do?

(Catch up on the saga here.)

Oh, and before we pick up our story thread, you still have time to ask a question (or two, or three) for the “FAQ” I’ll be posting on Wednesday.

Road to Reaving…Audience Participation!

I’ve still got some more blogs to post on the process of writing The Wars of Reaving, but I wanted to take a pause and give my (apparently 1000+) readers the chance to ask questions. I don’t participate in a lot of Herb’s BattleTech chats, so here’s your opportunity!

In the comments section, post your question. On Wednesday of next week (July 27) I’ll answer as many as I can and post it in “FAQ” style. There are a couple of caveats, however…

1. DON’T ask when the book is being released.
2. DON’T ask what Clans are destroyed.
3. DON’T ask what the airspeed of a coconut-laden swallow is.

I invite all other questions that pertain to this book, the Clans, their future (within reason), the creative process, and writing for the BattleTech line. Does it mean I’ll answer every single one? No, because I have to have a few secrets (and then there’s that whole NDA thing). But I do want to give you guys the chance to ask about anything regarding the project.

So – got a burning question? Post it below!

The Road to Reaving – Part VII

Lonely Clint IIC; photo by David Kerber

Continuing the colossal struggle that is the writing of Wars of Reaving… As always, catch up on all the other segments on the Wars of Reaving page on this website.

Paris – Notre Dame and Jardin des Tuileries (Day 2)

Continuing my personal journal entries from our October 2010 trip to Paris, France.

Paris – The Journey Begins (Day 1)

(In the fall of 2010, my wife and I made our first trip to Paris, France in celebration of our 15th wedding anniversary. What follows is an electronic version of the journal I wrote while on the trip, liberally sprinkled with photographs taken during our Parisian visit. For the full collection of links, stay tuned to this page as I post my thoughts on our excursion.)

Long flights are exhausting.

“Red-eye” flights across the Atlantic (or anywhere overseas, for that matter) seem to serve nothing more than to completely disrupt your body clock. In hindsight, of course, it’s a good thing.

There wasn’t anything really wrong with our Air France flight. I’d had a difficult time sitting comfortably since only a couple weeks before I’d bruised my back and hindquarters from a short fall down some stair s in our home. I ended up sleeping maybe a total of an hour during the 8 hour journey. My wife slept comfortably beside me.