Today is either “Write a Book Description Day” or it’s “Stay Under the Covers and Feel Miserable Day.” One or the other, I haven’t decided which. Maybe it will wind up being both, but I sorta suspect that they are mutually exclusive. If I succeed in writing a book description, I won’t be miserable, and if I’m overly miserable, I probably won’t succeed in writing a book description. Chicken and egg, I think.
Anyway, my allergies have gone insane, which is making me pretty sad. I strongly suspect I need to completely eliminate dairy from my diet, which is not at all fun. I would like to somehow blame my state of being on gluten, but I can’t come up with any risk factors at all, so… well, it is what it is. Maybe I’m just sick.
Yesterday, Zelda hurt her paw. She is a stoic dog — a vet once said, “Even for her breed, this is a tough little dog,” as she patiently let herself be tortured — but she was in serious distress yesterday. Not whimpering, but holding her paw up as high as possible, not letting it touch the ground. She let me examine it pretty closely, pulling away a little but not resisting too much, and eventually I concluded that it was a fire ant bite right under her pad. I would so much rather it had been a burr. I gave her some benadryl, put some baking soda paste on it, and eventually, she mostly fell asleep but even in her sleep she was lifting her paw, trying to find a position where it wouldn’t hurt. It was not fun. I would rather be bitten by a fire ant myself than watch my dog suffer. Today should really be “Find the Fire Ant Mound and Kill Them All Dead Day” but the mere thought of that quest pushes “Stay Under the Covers” back up to the top of the list.
Last night, I was writing the book description as I fell asleep. I promised myself I would remember all the brilliant words I was writing. I don’t, of course. But I do know that I’m confronting the question of how much to explain about the Sia Mara in the description. Usually, I like very people-focused book descriptions. It’s Fen’s story, so what matters is who she is, what she’s faced with. But without the context of the Sia Mara, I’m not sure how to explain that. I’m also reminding myself that the purpose of the book description is to sell the book, not tell the story. But so far my two options for the opening lines are:
Missing, presumed… just fine?
Followed by something about Fen struggling to manage life in a magical underwater city until Gaelith disappears and Fen decides to run away to rescue her. (Basically, this is what happens in the first three chapters of the book.)
Or
For millennia, the Sia Mara hid from humanity in magic underwater refuges. They used to have seven of them. Now they have six.
Followed by, um… something that probably gives away the plot twists of A Lonely Magic. A dilemma. But the central concern of A Precarious Magic actually is both what happened to Wai Pa (the city that fell) and whether Val Kyr (another city) will fall. Mostly it’s just fun, though. I think, anyway.
Hmm, and I guess I’m working on my book description. Go, me! But if you have thoughts on those options, or opinions about what you like and dislike in a book description, particularly what motivates you to read on, please share!
Um…I liked the spoiler one the seven tribes now six. Being nosy but, I’ve wondered what breed of dog is Zelda?
Zelda is a Jack Russell terrier! But she’s rough-coated, which is a more unusual kind of JRT. Most of them have very smooth, short hair. Also, traditionally, people dock the tails of JRT puppies, which NO. I understand that if my dog was going to be fighting badgers, it would be better for her not to have a tail, but since she’s not, there will be no cutting off of her tail. Horrible idea. So she has a long fluffy tail, which is completely not typical of JRTs.
Thank you for indulging my curiosity . She is the only rough coat Jack Russell I’very ever seen.. I’m with you on the ears and tail mutilation .
I like the second description best but mostly I’m just excited to get to read the story! One copy sold, just saying..
As for the fire ants, I react horribly to their bites. For years I’ve tried every remedy to relieve the pain and awful swelling. I’m miserable for days. A few years ago I read an old text on healing remedies, particularly insect bites/stings. It said if baking soda doesn’t work well, try vinegar. Next time I got bit, I put my whole foot in a bowl of vinegar (I had several bites, bad news). Twenty minutes and you couldn’t hardly tell, by evening I was fine. A cotton ball soaked in it with saran wrap to keep it on works fine on single bites. You’d think I’d learn to avoid them better, I swear they hunt me…
I hope you and Zelda both feel better soon!
Thank you for the suggestion! I will definitely give it a try — I don’t think the baking soda paste did anything. In my past experience, chlorinated water works really well. The first time I was bitten I was right next to a swimming pool. I stuck my feet in immediately and it really wasn’t that bad. I decided that people were exaggerating the pain. The next time I was bitten, I was nowhere near a swimming pool, and I discovered that people were not exaggerating. Fortunately, Z seems to be okay now, but if we spend much more time in FL, I suspect we’ll have another chance to test your remedy.
Poor baby… fire ants are baaad. Thanks to your other reader for the idea about using vinegar on a bite. Vinegar is so useful for lots of things!
She was miserable. So clearly hurting and so clearly wanting me to do something. She came to me almost immediately, holding out her paw, but I really couldn’t fix it. So sad. But she’s better today!
I developed an allergy to wheat in my mid 40s. You may very well have a problem with dairy, but it could also be something else. You might want to try working with a nutritionist or a specialist in food allergies. Good luck!
Thanks for the suggestion! I have celiac’s and actually did the auto-immune protocol diet a few years back, so I know I have problems with other foods, too. My dairy allergy was minor enough that I mostly ignored it — I’d get congested but not so uncomfortable that I was really suffering. I’m just thinking the reaction may have gotten worse.