Was my first time there, thanks to Titan. And thanks to my hero publicist there, Kabriya Coghlan, for making it all run so, so well. Guess I’ve been back nearly two weeks now? Something like that. Seems like I’ve done some trip since then, too. Anyway, talking this one, now. And what posts/pics I can still lay a mouse pointer on:
First was Cymera in Edinburgh, where I ran into Simon Spanton and Adrian Tchaikovsky:
Then it was the Saturday night event, which was a blast:
I’m thinking maybe Kabriya took these? They’re in my camera roll somehow, anyway:
And . . . one post I guess only some people can see? Sorry. Will leave it just a link, so it’s easier to scroll past:
https://bsky.app/profile/neilwilliamson.bsky.social/post/3mnowrglvp22u
And, I thought I had a good one with Dan Caxon (pretty sure it exists [and, Dan IS in that sort-of-hidden post right above]), but . . . can’t seem to find it. Anyway, Edinburgh wasn’t the most photographed event—that might be the last night of tour—but it’s the one that showed up on BlueSky the most, which is the only place I am.
Except for when I’m in Bath and Manchester and Newcastle and London:
And then it was three days to play in London with my wife, which was of course a dream—everything with her is. Caught The Producers at the Garrick Theater, Much Ado About Nothing at The Globe. Did a hop-on/hop-off bus tour. Went up the Shard (highly recommend that thoroughly windowed bathroom at the top of the British world). Did a walking Jack the Ripper tour with RipperVision™. Was going to ride the Eye, but everyone said it’s very slow, and I’d already been up high in the Shard, so: skipped it. Um, um, oh: hope to never eat fish & chips again. Good grief. When you can’t do dairy or anything alium, it’s fish & chips morning noon and night, pretty much. It was good (well, except that place that left the skin on), but it was a LOT. Well, except when I kept searching these up:
Seems we saw and did some other stuff, but I just ran out of energy to look at photos anymore. I think there’s some with V Castro, Gemma Amor, Ally Wilkes, my editor at Titan, George Sandison, and so many more. Just, who knows where. Not me.
Anyway, guess books have now taken me all through the UK, across Germany and Spain and France, and all the way to Dubai. Will probably end up in Italy before too long—got an invite. Kind of want to see the Mediterranean, and imagine when it was nearly dry, and people not that unlike us could maybe walk or wade across from Africa. And I especially want to see Gibraltar, the last holdout (so far as we know . . . ) of the Neanderthal. Maybe I’ll hit Eastern Europe someday? Have had a few invitations, but it’s never worked out. Same with South America: scheduling keeps being wrong, even though the time zone is very-very right. And, Australia? I know someone (now) who can make that happen. Question is: that forever-long flight? Maybe. I would like to see those big spiders, saltwater crocs, kangaroos, platypus and echidna (this isn’t a skipped Oxford comma. to me, platypus and echidna are kind of a compound term, a package deal). And, who knows, maybe I find the last breeding pair of thylacine, right? You never know. Or, to say it better: you can always hope. It’s the main thing that keeps me going places.
