Do others have as hard a time as I do thinking of good first sentences? It's difficult with essays, definitely difficult with novels, and I've discovered it's a tad tricky with newsletters as well. So I'll just dive in without further ado... It's been a good month for The Sarantine Mosaic, which has been selected as a finalist for best novel for this year's Mythopoeic Awards. The winner will be announced at the banquet during Mythcon on August 5th. And speaking of awards, is it too soon to mention that there's a new category of award at the Hugo's next year? Not the ones coming up soon, but the 2002 Hugo Awards, are going to include an award for best website. I was honoured to see that the Emerald City ezine have put Bright Weavings on their list of sites they think should be nominated. Here's hoping that official nominators (is that a word?) agree with them!

What's New on Bright Weavings
**********************************************

I've been playing with graphics again, and there are five more hotbars for people to enjoy. These are not based on cover art like the first set, but are a combination of quotes from the books with relevant images. There's a hotbar of San Gimignano, which is the Italian town that inspired GGK with the towers of Avalle in Tigana, a hotbar of a medieval palace in Granada and a lion in the foreground (guess what the quote will be), one inspired by Rachel's Song, another by the traditional Fionavarrian proposal... you get the picture - now go get the pictures!

> Interview with Peter Halasz for NYRSF

This interview was given last year, and published in the New York Review of Science Fiction, and is one of the more detailed interviews to be found on the site. There's lots of great stuff in there, including what games an eight year old writer-to-be plays with his friends, the way GGK constructs his novels (sequential vs outlining), the importance of Freudian thought in myth and modern fantasy, and the structural and thematic differences between the two books of The Sarantine Mosaic. And needless to say, lots more...

> Reviews of The Sarantine Mosaic

Two new reviews on the site, a pair really; both by Joe Milicia for the NYRSF, one on Sailing to Sarantium, one on Lord of Emperors. They're detailed reviews, and the one on Lord of Emperors in particular discusses a few things that have been under discussion in the forums. Interesting reading.

Tidbits
************

Last newsletter I mentioned that GGK was a panelist on a couple of live chats during the Eoscon online convention last month. Well, the transcripts aren't going to go up on the site, but if anyone would like to read them, and have a high tolerance for authors being frivolous and typing badly, you can find them at http://www.scifi.com/transcripts/

Another little tidbit is something that I mentioned in the News section of the site a week or so ago - Danish reprint rights to Fionavar have recently been purchased by a large bookclub. The interesting bit is that the bookclub plans to deliberately reissue the trilogy at the same time as the release of the first part of the eagerly awaited Lord of the Rings film later this year. It seems that that film, for good or for bad, is going to be affecting more than just our view of Middle-Earth.

In the Forums
**********************

As always, there are some interesting discussions going on in the forums. I'll highlight a couple...

> Windows - great entrances, and at least one exit...

Introducing 'GWM's' - otherwise known as 'Great Window Moments.' Daisyjane started a thread about the fact that many seminal moments in GGK's books seem to involve windows. Here are some excerpts to get you thinking:

Daisyjane:
"My favourite "entrance" is that of Alessan at the window of the hunting lodge, (in fact my favourite chapter in my favourite book; if I had been taped while reading it - bizarre though that would have been - the transcript would have run "oh my god.....Oh My God....OH WOW" for the duration). But I digress. Another great entrance, Ammar in the window of Jehanne's father's house after the massacre early on in Lions. Both these entrances are great theatrically and also herald a dramatic twist in what we have learnt about the character so far, so a kind of window in the soul element: Alessan has so far been an enigmatic musician but we'll soon find out how much more he is, Ammar so far a straightforward "bad-guy"? just an assassin? and now we start to find how complex he is."

Deborah (& Caitlin):
"Possibly one could say that windows are portals (Morian's or otherwise) just as doors are - to transformation, moments of insight and change. The inside/outside dichotomy being straddled, if only briefly. On a physical level, things change radically - Ammar sweeps in from the outside like some dazzling force of nature, as does Diar; Devin sweeps out from the inside in an attempt to stop violence that would be as cataclysmic as a natural disaster, whereas Catriana is attempting to begin violence with her dramatic exit. Jehane looks up at a window and decides not to do something that would be wrong - but she's also admitting a truth to herself, not turning away from it - and this in turn allows Ammar to approach her. Sometimes these are overt connections to their personalities, other times I think it's a more subtle thing - who knows whether intentional or not - a window to the soul of the character, as I would say the appearance of Alessan at the window of the lodge is, and Devin 'revealing' himself through the window to hunt down someone who's been lurking - physically at the window, yes, but as a spy, generally, for who knows how long... "

There are more GWM's listed, by Phillippa and Francois Vincent. If you want to see more, or suggest your own...

> If Dream Came True...

Keltie caused quite a stir in one of her first posts on the forums. She left a question for GGK which she admitted she didn't expect to be answered - but it was! Keltie asked:

"One question, only one, and I think that if I were Mr. Kay I wouldn't answer it, but what the heck ... What in heaven's name did Alienor pick up from the floor after she tied Devin to the bed? I don't think I'm that much of an unimaginative prude, but I just have no idea!"

To read GGK's answer, click through here:

> Sexuality in GGK's Books

On a related note, there's an ongoing discussion in the forums about sex as portrayed in GGK's books.

Miriam writes:
"I find myself a little squeamish over the details of the characters sex acts. Yes I know, sometimes even there, is embedded an important part of the story puzzle. But I would appreciate a little less purple prose. My imagination can provide me with all the detail I need without it being written down. I tend to scan quickly over those parts which sometimes means I miss something, and then have to go back and hunt the page down and read it anyway."

Cartwheel responds:
"It's not just "And then they had sex. And it was good," but how and why the characters have sex… Alienor’s whatever-it-is on the floor by the bed; Zabira’s grief; Ines’ "admission" (the only sex scene I’ve EVER read that made me whoop with laughter, then pause and turn thoughtful in the space of about 5 seconds). It’s just another way Kay has of showing us how the most intimate parts of our lives are affected by seemingly unrelated events and truths. He doesn't spend more time on these scenes than he does on anything else. His prose is luxurious, but neither wasteful nor indulgent."

Too explicit? Unnecessary? Or relevant and tasteful, conveying important details and truths about characters and their inner worlds? Join in the discussion and share your opinions here:

> Haven't read that for a while?

Those who visit the forums regularly know that Francois Vincent is going through his first read of The Sarantine Mosaic and is posting his ongoing response to the books every few chapters or so. Daisyjane suggested that since everyone enjoys reading his responses so much, it might be a good idea to do group reads of some sort. After some discussion on the forums, we're leaning towards doing a group read of something we've all read before, but would enjoy reading again and discussing on the forums. The consensus seems to be starting with The Summer Tree and working our way forwards. I'm going to come up with a few ideas for themes to guide us in our reading, and then I'll post a guide of chapters/themes/time schemes so that those interested in participating can do so. Nothing's finalised yet, so if this appeals to you, please do contribute your suggestions for format and subject to the thread:

And that, finally, is it from me! Next month I hope to get some new music and an faq up on the site. I'm also working to relaunch the site in time for it's one year birthday! Bright Weavings went live to the public on June 15th 2000. I can hardly believe it's almost a year. I've been working on a redesign which will give the site a bit of a facelift, make the graphics and navigation smoother and more attractive, while keeping the same basic design. I like the new look a lot; I hope you will too.

Till then,

Deborah