I was going to just use this post to talk about some book stuff, which I've kind of neglected over the past year because talking about writing and publishing is boring for other people. Basically, I write two books a year: There are the Lynn Ashford mysteries about a lady sportscaster who has a bad habit of running into murders when she blows into town for the Olympics, the Women's World Cup, the NBA Finals, whatever, which I've been writing for almost as long as I've been Penny, and I've usually got some other, more fantastic series going on, generally pitched toward young adults and often involving identity and transformation to some extent, sometimes under a pseudonym (or a different one, considering what you think of "Penny Lincoln"). You may remember Annette liking the Pygmalion series; after winding that down I did something more science-fictional whose second of three volumes is due out in August, and I've been trying to work on a comedic high fantasy since then. It kind of started from a joke about how dragons don't hoard gold so much as they shit it out because they expand their cavern lairs by eating rocks that pass through their alchemical digestive systems, with the hero a princess who got swallowed whole and winds up a muscular Adonis after traversing the monster's intestines. As you might imagine, it's been kind of tough writing that one in my current situation, although I've had a ton of ideas for age-regression stories!
Anyway, this year's Lynn Ashford is World Cup of Murder, and while I think it's pretty good, the lead time on publishing novels is enough that I had to deliver the final draft for this story meant to tie into the 2026 World Cup being held in North America in late 2024, when we were pretty certain that Kamala Harris would be president, and everything even vaguely related to the border and boycotts and foreign relations has made my book with its international cast of characters look more and more like it takes place in some far more pleasant fantasy universe. It's not the first time this has happened, even recently - the publisher was insistent I not mention that Covid quarantines happened in my last one - but it means that the release and tie-ins got a little more low-key. Truth be told, that's been the case generally over the last few years - making less from writing is why I took the job as an English teacher in my daughter's middle school, and that makes it a bit harder to do publicity. It's kind of a self-reinforcing loop, but what can you do?
What that all means is that the release has been relatively quiet and the "book tour" has mostly been New England bookstores during April vacation, when schools of the region, or at least Massachusetts, take a week off around Patriot's Day. Without a lot of sports practice taking up my time that week, I'd been "assisting" Harmon on these stops. Part of it's the usual things that adults have their kids do to keep them busy at events like these - fetching water, having a fresh pen ready, getting books open to the title page and passing them over - but also interrupting in my best annoyed teenager when someone asks a question Harmon can't answer. Everyone laughs and finds the kid who remembers stuff better than her mom adorable as opposed to Harmon alienating fans by not having read my entire output.
Anyway, we were doing an event in Harvard Square when a couple of college students made it through the line to the card table, and I'm kind of half-zoned out making a little pile of hardcovers ready to be signed when I hear Harmon snort-laugh at something, which isn't necessarily bad reader interaction, before she shakes my shoulder. "Oh, Millicent, you've got to hear this - this guy says he saw new layers to my work after staying at a hotel in Maine!" I look up and see this boy of about twenty with an extraordinarily silly mustache sweating bullets mouthing something like "you call her Millicent?", his girlfriend standing behind him with her arms crossed, kind of keeping him from fleeing. My eyes go wide in realization and I shift into Mom Voice for the first time in months. "Oh, we've got to talk, young... man!" I slam the book he was getting autographed and drag it to the side, walking to the door, knowing that they're following me without seeing, vaguely hearing the rest of the line murmur in confusion. I pull the phone out of my back pocket and dial Ray's number on my way out the door, saying a curt "Millie's at the signing, get down here now!" when it goes to voice mail.
When we get to the sidewalk, I turn around and take them in. They both look even more nervous, and the knot in my gut tightens a bit as I see that the young woman is wearing a Northeastern University sweatshirt. At that second, they're looking over their shoulders at Harmon chuckling at the commotion in a way that's not very maternal before turning back to me. "Wait, are you-- Mom?"
I look up at him (her) in frustration. "Of course I'm your mother! What, did you think I was going to let just anyone step into your life and decide that they just might want to keep it for their own because you're so pretty and talented and have such a bright future? That your father and I would just trust some stranger with your well-being?"
I hadn't really meant to attack the other person, but she turned a deep crimson. "I'm sorry, I was under the impression that she had been communicating with you--"
I pointed vaguely down the street. "I will deal with you later! Right now I have things to discuss with my daughter!" The other person nodded and backed away, and I crossed my arms to await an explanation.
Millie was crying, and I felt bad about that - neither Ray nor I are big yellers and she probably hadn't been hit with this for the past year. "I don't know what I was thinking! I just heard you say you might not really be my mom and that it had something to do with that Inn so I figured I had to get to the bottom of it even though I didn't know what I was going to find there! And then it did this to me and I was still so mad that you'd kept something so important secret..." I kept staring. "Okay, I should have told you, but then it felt so good to be grown up and have people trust me..." She sniffled. "And then, every time I came to look at how the new me was doing, maybe offer some help, it freaked me out that she... you... that nobody would be able to tell that I was gone or different! You didn't seem to need me so I just threw myself into being Griff--"
Despite myself, I snickered. "Griff?"
"Yeah, Angelo Griffin; everybody calls him Griff, which I guess is better than 'Angelo'. He found a flyer for the place in his roommate's mail--"
Something clicked. "Ande. You're roomates with Ande."
Her eyes went wide. "You know Ande?"
"Yeah, he comes to this little thing Auntie Ashlyn does at the Changeling was a month for Inn people. He used to be his twin sister."
"That maybe explains something-- Wait, does that mean Auntie Ashlyn...?
"Used to be a guy too, yes."
"Is anyone we know who they're supposed to be?"
I gave it some thought. "I think that's it. Although, don't ever imply to Auntie Ashlyn that she's not who she's supposed to be!" And though I thought it went without saying. "And don't ever even think that I'm not supposed to be your mother!"
I guess she really needed to hear that because she grabbed me for a bear hug, which was kind of awkward because this Griff guy is taller than I am as Millie, but then, the other moms who aren't freakishly tall women say that's just part of having your kids grow up. We got a lot of concerned looks from people on the sidewalk, but fortunately that was when Ray showed up, panting a bit as he ran from wherever he'd parked the car. Millie still had her face buried in my hair when he said "is this...?" and I nodded, so he grabbed us both.
Millie turned to look at him. "Are you mad?"
"So mad. But more relieved. We love that you're stubborn and want to handle things yourself, but you have to ask for help with something this big!"
She nodded and said she had help, which is when we finally relented and waved "Griff's girlfriend" over. She seems nice, and has done what she could to keep Millie's head above water.
We considered going to grab something to eat and maybe invite Harmon along, but Millie decided she didn't want to see her looking like me more, that it's different seeing your own face or hearing your own voice, because she doesn't really spend that much time looking in the mirror, and I get it. We've at least been able to text and email recently, so that all the arrangements for turning back could be made.
It's been a tremendous load off our shoulders for the past week, though!
-Penny/Millie
1 comment:
Glad to hear your daughter's ok! Hopefully everyone will be back where they're supposed to be soon.
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