Queen’s Own The official Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon fan club

Queen’s Own newsletter — December 2004

Queen's Own

The Official Mercedes Lackey Fan Club

P.O. Box 749 Laguna Beach, CA 92652 USA

Series 3, Vol. 5, No. 12 December 1, 2004

Holiday Greetings from Danya and Moonstar

Heyla, Misty fans!

Happy Holidays, everyone! We hope this season of celebration finds you and yours well.

We currently have 69 active members and 24 members whose addresses have stopped working (See the list below. If you can help us find some of these folks, we'd really appreciate it!). We have at least 36 people we know about who are working on personae. To date, 590 people have approved personae with Queen's Own. The complete list is at Persona directory. If you know any of the people who don't realize we're online, could you have them contact us? We'd love to reactivate their memberships!

Danya has been busily trying to update the Misty section of the Dragonlords' Bookstore: http://www.dragonlordsnet.com/bkfanml.htm. We're trying to track Misty's short stories as well. If you know of any that we are missing from the list, please contact Danya at shashtah@gmail.com.

Holiday Greetings from Highflight:

"Hello to everyone from Highflight Towers.

"We've had a rather hectic month, which means that Misty's usual Christmas message has become rather delayed. Apologies for that. We've all had gastric flu, and with Sanctuary becoming precipitously due, Misty herself is working away furiously so you all have the finale to the trilogy to read ASAP!

"On behalf of Misty and Larry then, it falls to me, the captive Brit (as Misty nicknamed me), to write you all a short note. First up, and most important: A very happy holidays and a joyful New Year to each and every one of you. We here are very lucky to have a fan base that is so friendly, upbeat and a delight to be in touch with. Your good wishes keep our spirits up in the rough patches (e.g. the dreaded flu bug!).

"Misty and Larry are both looking into new projects, but continuations of previous series continue apace. Misty's The Fairy Godmother was just released into paperback, so she has been visiting the forums online at http://www.luna-books.com whenever she has a spare moment available. You may consider joining the luna-tics there! Luna does try to get the author of this month's released book to communicate with the fans there, and it seems to work well. We have to say, a big congratulations to Luna on their first successful year. May there be many more.

"Sanctuary is due out in March, and I personally am looking forward to it, having loved the previous two. Misty and James Mallory are already in cahoots over the third book in the Obsidian trilogy and quite possibly more in the same universe. This is all a little tentative, pending the completion of the first trilogy of course; but ideas are being bounced around. The third book in the Heirs of Alexandria series is in the pipeline, with Eric Flint and Dave Freer and of course, the delightful Rosemary Edghill is working with Misty on yet more bedlam for your delectation this summer.

"Speaking of bedlam, since the origin of that word was originally 'Bethlehem' (Go look it up!), the Christmas holiday season is fairly chaotic for everyone, and that's true for us, too. We all have loved ones across the nation or even around the world. We are very lucky that it is now possible to communicate across those vast distances easier than ever it was before. The fact you are reading this could be taken as an example. The fact you want me to quit rambling suggests I ought to stop, too!

"When more news becomes available, I'm sure Danya will be delighted to help it to your door. Thank you to the volunteers that work tirelessly to make the Queen's Own newsletter what it is. It's much appreciated from this end.

"Once again then, from everyone here have a wonderful holiday and may 2005 be stronger and better for all of us, as nations and as a world.

"Paul"

Chat List: Remember that if you are a member of QO, you are entitled to join the QO chatlist at Club chat guidance. This is the list where we announce upcoming online events, news flashes from Misty and other important information that comes up between newsletters. Do join so you can keep up-to-date with what's going on! (If you are not a QO member, you may join the QO Pending list for assistance in developing your persona.)

Delphi Forum: If you are a member of QO, you are also entitled to join our Delphi Forum. If you have lost your invitation, contact Danya, and she'll send you another one. (Remember to say that this is for QO and to include the name of your approved persona.) The Forum features message boards to discuss Misty's works as well as other things about which members want to trade information.

Publication News: This has been a busy year for Misty, and she plans to keep up the pace next year!

Di Tregarde fans rejoice! The first reissue of the series, Burning Water, is coming to a bookstore near you in January 2005! Look for a reissue of Children of the Night (Burning Water) in August 2005. If you haven't read this series yet, you are in for a real treat!

Stoned Souls (with Josepha Sherman) will be released in January 2005. Misty also has an offering appearing this month in C.J. Cherryh's The Sword of Knowledge.

The paperback edition of This Scepter'd Isle (with Roberta Gellis) will hit the bookstore shelves in February 2005.

Sanctuary, the next installment in the Joust series, will be out in March 2005. Alta will appear in mass market paperback format at the same time. Also in March, look for the hardcover of Ill Met By Moonlight, the next installment in the SERRAted Edge series (this one coauthored with Roberta Gellis).

Mad Maudlin (with Rosemary Edghill) will be out in paperback in May 2005.

Thanks to all of you who have been supporting QO by making purchases through the Dragonlords' Bookstore (http://www.dragonlordsnet.com/bkstore.htm). I really appreciate the help with the club's expenses so that we can keep the memberships in QO free.

Chapter News: The Vanyel Fanclub (VFC; see their ad below) is our largest chapter, with 70 active members. Congrats, folks, on a job well done!

We haven't heard from a lot of our chapters and zine editors in a long time. Please drop us a line this holiday season; we'd love to hear from you!

The graphic accompanying this newsletter is our holiday gift to you. Members of QO have our permission to use it on your personal websites and/or your home computers. Happy holidays!

We wish you and yours a Blessed Yule, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, and Holiday Greetings! And Best Wishes for the New Year! See you in 2005!

Zhai'helleva,

Herald-Mage Adept Danya Winterborn and Healer Adept Moonstar

Ren Faires:

Here are the Faires we know about for December. Faires are indexed alphabetically by state. Have any information about any other Renaissance Faires in your area? Send it to us at shashtah@gmail.com.

Florida

PIRATES IN PARADISE. Website: http://www.piratesinparadise.com/. E-mail: info@piratesinparadise. Site Address: Historic Seaport, Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Museum and Key West Museum of Art & History at the Custom House, Key West, FL. Dates: 11/25/04 ' 12/5/04. Open/Close: 9 AM - 7 PM.

Louisiana

LOUISIANA RENAISSANCE FESTIVAL. Website: http://www.la-renfest.com/. E-mail: info@LA-Renfest.com. Site Address: 46468 River Road Hammond, Louisiana, 70401-4248. Dates: 11/6/04 ' 12/12/04. Open/Close: 10 AM - 5 PM.

Michigan

WASSAIL FEST II. Address: Historic Players Playhouse, 3321 E Jefferson Ave., Detroit MI 48207. Site Address: Historic Players Playhouse, Detroit, MI. Dates: 12/10/04 ' 12/11/04. Open/Close: 6:30 PM - 11 PM.

New Jersey

NEW JERSEY SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL. Website: http://www.shakespearenj.org. E-mail: info@shakespearenj.org. Address: The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey Box Office, 36 Madison Ave., Madison, NJ, 07940. Dates: 6/8/04 ' 12/26/04.

Texas

INGLESIDE RENAISSANCE FAIRE. Website: http://www.inglesidetxchamber.org/. E-mail: ingchamber1@cableone.net. Address: Cathy Hirschman, Ingleside Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 686, Ingleside, TX, 78362. Site Address: Live Oak Park, off South FM 1069, on Port Ave. and Sherry. Dates: 12/11/04 ' 12/12/04. Open/Close: 10AM - till dusk.

For additional Ren. Faire information, visit the Renaissance Faire Homepage at http://www.renfaire.com and the Renaissance Magazine site at http://www.renaissancemagazine.com.

Conventions:

These are the upcoming cons we know about. Have any information about conventions in your area? Send it to us at shashtah@gmail.com.

Pennsylvania

Philcon. Website: http://www.philcon.org. Email: info@philcon.org. Address: Marriott Center City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dates: 12/10/04 ' 12/12/04.

Virginia

Capital Associates. Website: http://www.capicons.com/. Email: comicshow@aol.com. Address: Tysons Westpark Hotel, McLean, Virginia. Dates: 12/12/04.

For additional Convention information, visit Convention Outpost by Jenga at http://www.geocities.com/jengacons/.

Changling by Cassandra Vuksa (image unavailable in archive)

Member News:

For definitions of our fannish jargon, read the 12-page booklet "Pros & Cons: An Introduction to Fandom" written by Elizabeth Barrette. Send $1.00 and a $0.37 stamp (or $1.00 and 2 IRCs) to Queen's Own, P.O. Box 749, Laguna Beach, CA, 92652. Make checks payable to "Linda Malcor" in US funds only.

Local chapters:

Zines and Newsletters:

Other Fandoms:

Markov by Cassandra Vuksa

Collegium News:

We have individual handouts for aspiring Heralds, Healers, Bards, Blues, Mercenaries, Tayledras, Shin'a'in, and White Winds Sorcerers/Sorceresses and instructions on how to work for Herald-Mage status if you are already a Herald or for a Kal'enedral if you are already a Shin'a'in. You can find these handouts online at Persona handouts and submission instructions.

You need a release form (online at Release form instructions) if you write a story set in Misty's worlds or using any of her characters. You do not need a release for a character sketch, poem or filk. All Misty wants to do is protect her characters and her worlds. Send the release form (you do NOT need to include the story) to Misty c/o High Flight Arts and Letters, P.O. Box 2970, Claremore, OK 74017. Do NOT include the original of the release form with your persona material; send it to Misty. Send a copy to us.

All personae materials should be sent to the QO address or submitted by e-mail to shashtah@gmail.com and healermoon@gmail.com.

If you were working on a persona who is no longer listed at Club chat guidance that means we have not heard from you in over a year. To revive your persona, simply message Danya at shashtah@gmail.com and tell her that your persona is in "Deep Storage." She will pull it out for you and reactivate your submission.

If you are a returning member who has recently activated your membership in Queen's Own and we have forgotten to list you, message Danya at shashtah@gmail.com, and she'll make sure you are greeted in the next newsletter.

Lost …

One of the challenges running an online club is that people don't always leave a forwarding address when they move <g>. We are missing current e-mail addresses for the following members:

If you know any of these folks, please have them contact Danya at shashtah@gmail.com with a current e-mail address.

From Herald-Mage Adept Danya Winterborn:

Holiday greetings to one and all!

This is my family's first holiday season in our new home, so we're busy trying to figure out how to make our old decorations work in our new space and what we need to add. It's a lot of work, but it's also tons of fun.

We're hoping to add a canine member to the family in the next few weeks, a collie <g>! My first collie, Sir Lancelot of Starwood (Lance), died 17 years ago this October, and I've been without pets since. We finally have the space, time and money to bring a pet back into the household, and I'm very excited. I've missed having a dog around, and my daughter has been badgering me mercilessly for a pet for well over a year now (My boys aren't so sure, but I think they are going to adapt well once we actually get a puppy.). There's a litter with two mahogany sable males that I'll be checking out soon, and hopefully one of the little guys will work with our family.

December 19th is my 17th wedding anniversary. Hardly seems possible! But considering that I've gotten a doctorate, published a book (along with numerous smaller works), had three kids, bought a starter home that we traded for a permanent home, acquired a timeshare, and otherwise kept myself and my husband ridiculously busy over the better part of two decades, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised <g>. We hope to be able to remodel our kitchen and downstairs bath (Both have serious problems that need to be addressed sooner rather than later.) in 2005, but we'll have to see what happens with the finances after taxes.

Next year is promising to be eventful. I may be making another trip to Italy, this time in June. Don't know if the family will be able to go with me, though that would be cool (I really missed them the last time.). I'm hoping to get at least one more book out, though I'm not holding my breath, the way I know the publishing world works. (I have four in progress.) My publishing schedule is already crowded with many smaller works, and I know that I will be attending at least one conference (in San Diego in March). I'm hoping to get more stuff up on the QO website (Thanks to all the folks who have been helping with data entry and proofreading!), and I'd really like to overhaul the main portion of the Dragonlords site in my copious free time <g>.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season, and I wish everyone well in the coming year!

Zha'helleva,

Danya

Personals:

Queen's Own is the official Mercedes Lackey Appreciation Society. Our purpose is to share our enjoyment of Misty's worlds. We are a fan-run not-for-profit organization, not a business. Our address of publication: P.O. Box 749, Laguna Beach, CA 92652 USA. This newsletter is published solely to inform and entertain the club's membership; no infringement of anyone's copyrights is intended.

Newsletters are published on (or near) the first of each month.

Co-Editor/Co-President Herald-Mage Master Danya Winterborn (L.A. Malcor; AOL-IM SN Shashtah; shashtah@gmail.com)

Co-Editor/Co-President Healer Adept Moonstar (Kendra Renaud; AOL-IM SN healermoon; healermoon@gmail.com)

The featured artists for this newsletter are L.A. Malcor and Cassandra Vuksa All drawings in this newsletter are © to the credited artist. All rights reserved. If you would like your art to be featured in the online version of the QO newsletter, send .gifs or .jpgs to shashtah@gmail.com or hardcopy to Queen's Own, P.O. Box 749, Laguna Beach, CA 92652.

Mercedes Lackey does not receive mail at the Queen's Own address. Fanmail to Mercedes Lackey and releases for fan fiction should be sent to:

Mercedes Lackey c/o High Flight Arts and Letters P.O. Box 2970 Claremore, OK 74017

Zhai'helleva,

Herald-Mage Master Danya Winterborn and

Healer Adept Moonstar