No news on the No Good Deed front. Just thought I'd get that out of the way. This (probably) means that an editor hasn't yet been assigned or that they are struggling to wade through my manuscript. Naturally, I hope it is the former. Unbound haven't contacted me, so I assume there is nothing to tell me, therefore I have nothing to tell you. Once the wading is done, I should receive an annotated copy of the manuscript pointing out that I have such-and-such a character dying on page 50 and miraculously alive 100 pages later or that there were no mobile phones in 1860s Louisiana. (Probably not that one, but the character one? I've done it before). If there aren't actually any faux pas of this magnitude, it will probably come down to etymology - nothing to do with beetles - but whether I've used any anachronisms. This will involve cordial exchanges and be resolved on the grounds of who has the biggest dictionary. I've got the OED computer-style-y at my disposal, so I would expect to win. Sometimes, however, the author is WRONG! This is not a disaster, it's good for us and magnanimous acceptance of defeat, accompanied by a resounding "Mea Culpa", are the appropriate response! (For younger readers, this is the Latin rendition of your own grammatically reprehensible "My Bad".)
In other news, today we're going to meet a rescue dog. If he finds us acceptable we'll be adopting him.
[We took this photo of Sam, unfortunately he wasn't for us, but I know he has a happy home now]