About my sudden return to the world of blogging...

I haven't posted much at all in the past two months... this blog almost made it to the 100 post mark and then I petered out. I blame Israeli summers. It's really hard to do anything while melting. (Speaking of which, 41 degrees-- CELSIUS-- in October?? Really??)

I've been busy in part because of a writing project that actually propelled me BACK into blogging this week. The first paragraph of my novel-in-progress was selected as one of the ten finalists (out of 2500 entries!!) in a contest over on literary agent Nathan Bransford's blog. I didn't want to post about the contest while the voting was going on because we weren't supposed to campaign for our paragraphs (other finalists did seem to campaign... not that I'm bitter or anything), but I figured there might be some new hits to this blog from the contest, and I didn't want them to be greeted by tumbleweed... or whatever tumbleweed's Israeli equivalent would be. (I'm guessing roaming jukim. They'll totally outlive us.)

I also discovered that blogger lets me write posts in advance and automatically post them later! (Yes, I'm sometimes a little slow to catch on. Bear with me.) So I can absolutely guarantee that there will be a post here tomorrow. And the day after that. AND the day after that!

Anyway, if you're stopping by for the first time, welcome! Everyone needs a little more "Israeli" in their lives. (Well... ok... many would disagree. But let's not talk politics.) If any former blog readers are still out there... please... comment. I know that I broke your trust by walking out on you at the beginning of the summer, but maybe we can still be friends?

If you're curious, here's the first paragraph from my novel--

The pomegranate seeds burst between my teeth, releasing tart-sweet juice. Wind licked my eyelids, and the orchard rustled and creaked. I relaxed into the fork of the tree. In that moment, nothing mattered-- not marriage, not exile, not my mother's pursed lips. Persia became smaller than the nub of bark digging into the back of my leg.

It's historical fiction, so while I don't have all that much written yet (about 15,000 words), I've done a lot of research and now know more about... well... a certain time period than I ever thought I would need to know. Can anyone guess when and where this novel takes place? Double bonus points if you can guess the city!

Hint: the next line is this:

“Naara! Nehemiah! Get out of there, now!” Ah, our little chaperone.

It feels good to be back. Hope you're still out there!