Secrets and Spoilers

I made my writing goal again yesterday, so I'm on target. I'm trying to take advantage of the early enthusiasm because I know there will be a time in the middle when I'm stuck or distracted or just don't want to do anything. There may be a nice day when I just want to go for a long walk. So I'm trying to get as much done as possible now when I want to do it.

I'm having fun getting to use some of my research in this part of the book, something that really did exist and was used that's coming in handy for me now. See, all that reading I did leading up to this book wasn't wasted.

There are four big secrets that are still secret in the Rebel Mechanics books. A lot of people have guessed one of them. One or two people have guessed another. I haven't heard of anyone having the slightest inkling about the other two. I've put in only subtle hints of the sort that could have a totally different meaning for one of them. The other exists only in my head, and I'm still not sure if I'm going to use it. It was there when I started writing, and it was something that came out of my research, but I'm not sure now if I want to have it be that way, and it wouldn't contradict any text if I change my mind.

I suspect that three of the secrets will have to come out in this book, all for plot reasons, though I figure one of them shouldn't be dragged out any longer because it's becoming obvious enough that if the characters don't do the math, they look pretty dumb.

It's funny when people pull me aside at conventions to whisper questions about what they've guessed. I've only confirmed any of the answers with my former editor (mostly because I had to make my case for keeping some things in the first book, pointing out that clever readers might notice something in that scene that will be important later). Otherwise, it's fun singing out, "Spoilers!"

Meanwhile, I've designated today as a Procrastination Conquering Day, in which I set aside time to tackle a bunch of little things I've been putting off. Either it will turn out to be quicker and easier than I feared, or it will justify the procrastination.

But first, I'll go find absolutely anything else to do before that. My sock drawer really needs to be reorganized.