Any port in a storm. . .
And other interesting nautical phrases to wrap up Monster May.
I’ve always been fascinated by the water and boats. I visited Boston once for a conference and decided I would sleep on a boat instead of in a hotel room. I booked a private berth on a big wooden schooner. The boat was beautiful, and massive. I loved it, right until I got to my room, and this odor hit me. I asked about it. Turns out the waste system in the boat had a broken pipe or sprung a leak. The hull was due to be inspected because it was wooden and they didn’t want to start digging into it unless they had to replace boards.
I’ve been camping. Smells happen. It wasn’t too bad as long as the port hatches and the room door were open Which they could do if it wasn’t raining. And then, on the second night a storm rolled in about about 2AM. I woke up at 5AM with a massive headache. Turns out whatever that smell was, really bothered my allergies and probably wasn’t all that good for humans to inhale.
Up until then, I was having the most wonderful sleep I’d ever experienced. Something about the water lapping at the sides of the boat and the gentle rocking lulled me in a way that didn’t often happen at home. Even in a minor storm, it wasn’t too bad.
But the storm had made matters worse and the smell went from meh to mighty. It clung to everything. I was supposed to spend three nights in that tall wooden schooner ship. Instead I abandoned ship, and checked into the Marriott that was located on the pier over.
Saved by my point status (earned from travel as a tech consultant), and it being mid-week, I managed to book a room via mobile app at 6 AM. At 7 AM I arrived at the front desk where the staff took pity on me when I explained the need for a very hot shower, laundry services and about five more hours of sleep.
Even though the stay itself was a disaster, the experience was absolutely lovely. If I could live on a boat, I would. To an extent. Maybe one semi-permanently docked in a port somewhere would do. Someday. Mostly a very distant pipe dream. Which is why I write books with characters that mostly live on boats, or in the water, or can fly on a whim.
And Now For Something Completely Different . . .
Here are a few places I’ll be in public and online between now and the end of June:
I’m a panel speaker at the WriteHive Annual Conference. You can check out more information about it here. It was the first free online writing conference and this is the second year. You can attend for free so be sure to check out the link if you are a writer, author, or interested in publishing.
I’ll also be selling books and swag at the Pflugerville Pride Festival on June 10th. If you’re around, stop at the booth with the Inclusive Romance Project signage and visit!
And if you haven’t checked out Kobo Plus as an alternative to Kindle Select/Unlimited, you should do that! I have a list of Queer Monster Romances you can find on Kobo Plus today!
If you haven’t read Prince’s Tide yet, this might be an incentive: