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I once read through a collection of short stories by Issac Asimov. They all featured a wish granting demon named Azrael. However, each wish came with a cost and the cost was frequently much higher than the value of the wish. They were classic Monkey’s Paw type stories, but I found them entertaining. The one that has been coming to mind lately is the story of a writer who was constantly frustrated by the small delays in his life. He was always stuck in traffic, waiting for elevators, waiting to get into restaurants, etc. The writer was tired of all of these frustrations, and so when Azrael offered to take them away, the writer accepted with glee. At first the wish was a delight. Traffic magically cleared in front of him, cabs always stopped the moment he went to call one, all the traffic lights were green. But then the cost became apparent. The writer found his ideas had dried up. He could no longer write. Apparently all those delays and frustrations were necessary to his creative process. He begged Azrael to take back the wish, but naturally the demon would not.

Lately I feel like that writer. The spaces in my life that used to generate ideas have been filled other things. Drives where I used to ponder plot points, I now plan how to sort invoices, or what to make for dinner, or which merchandise should come next, or how we should proceed with marketing, or thinking ahead to how to run convention booths. This is not permanent. The writing will wait for me. I can see it ahead, probably later this Fall. The next six weeks are very busy, but then we are getting into a long space with no convention travel. There may be no convention travel for an entire year. That creates space for many things. Mostly it makes space for us to create more Schlock books, but I think there will be fiction from me as well.