Water is life. So say plants, at least.…We grow. The sensation is pleasurable, in fact jubilant.… Spring is the most impatient, exciting, exultant season. We celebrate life.… We have rain, we have peace, we have life. We grow. — From Semiosis, page 282 hardcover

My next novel, Dual Memory, comes out May 16. The publisher has posted Chapter 1 on its blog. It’s short, 1200 words, and ready for you to read here. Find out how Antonio Moro came to have no job, no friends, no family, no money, no clothes, and an incomplete idea of where he was … Continue reading Here’s where you can read Chapter 1 of “Dual Memory”

My husband jokes that my fiction often has a high body count. It’s true, and I’m sorry about all the people I kill. One particular death made me cry as I wrote it. Right now, I’m drafting Usurpation, the third book in the Semiosis trilogy, and like the others in the series, there’s a lot … Continue reading A high body count

Photo by Sue Burke In the novel Semiosis, Chapter 3 ends as Higgins says: “I would go out to share some truffle with Pitman soon, and I would sing him a sad song about fear and hope, failure and healing, about sweet and fresh sap in leaves evergreen with grief. Maybe I could teach the … Continue reading The lyrics to Higgins’ song, “Grief Evergreen”

Here’s the cover for my next novel, Dual Memory, available May 16 (but you can pre-order now). I love the art by Mike Heath—the combination of organic and inorganic minds tells you a lot about the novel. The colors and motif suggest a frigid island with waves whipped by stormy winds. Under the stars, someone … Continue reading At last! Cover art for “Dual Memory”

I’ll be at Capricon, a Chicago science fiction convention that’s been held annually for the past 43 years. This year it will be downtown from February 2 to 5 in the Sheraton Grand Chicago. The theme is “Eternity Awaits…” “For centuries, writers and artists have speculated on What Comes After; some with smug anticipation, others … Continue reading Where to find me at Capricon

From January 25 to 27, Barnes & Noble is taking 25% off the price of all pre-orders: dead-tree books, audiobooks, and ebooks. This includes my next novel, Dual Memory, available May 16. The coupon code for checkout is PREORDER25 Soon, my novel will have cover art. I’ll explain the delay later. Meanwhile, it’s a good … Continue reading Barnes & Noble pre-order sale, 25% off

Among the many arguments against eating meat, one seems undeniable: Animals don’t want to be eaten. What about plants? Sometimes, plants do want you to eat certain parts of them. Most fruits — apples, watermelons, and avocados — depend on animals to take the fruit, eat it, and deposit the seeds in a place where … Continue reading What do plants think of vegetarianism?

In Defense of Plants: An Exploration into the Wonder of Plants by Matt Candeias My rating: 4 of 5 stars “Plants are nothing like us, which is part of the reason why I like them so much.” That quote comes from Chapter 5, The Fight for Survival, in which author Matt Candeias describes how plants … Continue reading My Goodreads review: “In Defense of Plants”

Because I live in a small apartment crammed with books and plants, I have very little room for holiday decorations, so each year one of the houseplants volunteers to play the role of Christmas tree. This year the Dracaena sanderiana saw it as an opportunity to live out its secret aspiration to be a real … Continue reading Behold the tree!