I’ve put up a new WARBREAKER annotation about chapter 55. Plus there’s also a new Writing Excuses episode up on professional organizations. As our cohost Mary Robinette Kowal is also the vice president of SFWA, she has many useful things to say on the topic.

About a week ago, I finally got back from my extended stay in Europe. I have to say, you guys treated me very well over there. I hope to be back soon.

One of the highlights was my impromptu event in Amsterdam. If you didn’t follow that little fiasco on Twitter, I ended up missing my connecting flight to Oslo because of an air traffic controller strike in France. This resulted in an eight-hour layover.

Well, I tweeted about what was happening, and some very kind (and somewhat determined) fans convinced me I should go out and see the city. I did. And it was awesome. By the end, there were about twenty of us. We grabbed food at a local place, and I asked what was considered authentic Dutch cuisine. I was told pancakes by one person and potatoes by another. So, I ordered pancakes and fries.

Strange looks ensued. Apparently “pancakes and potatoes” meant “pancakes or potatoes.” But I stuck to my guns. (And this was by no means just an excuse to order some fries… )

The signing in Oslo was awesome. I loved the store, and the turn-out was great. Seriously, if you live in the area, you need to check out Outland Kirkegata. They’re the only bookstore that has ever flown me internationally on their own dime just so their readers could get some signatures. And, speaking of bookstores, I did sign some books in a few places, wherever I found them. So here’s a list of places you’ll find signed copies:

Simply Books, Salt Lake City Airport
Top of Concourse C

Borders Books, Cincinnati Airport
Terminal 3B
Phone: 859.767.4960

Outland Kirkegata, Oslo
Kirkegata 23
0153 Oslo
Phone: 22 33 04 10

The American Book Center, Amsterdam
Spui 12
1012 XA Amsterdam
Phone: +31(0)20 625 55 37

Forbidden Planet Megastore, London
179 Shaftesbury Avenue
London WC2H 8JR
Phone: 0207 420 3666

Waterstone’s, Guildford
71-73 High Street
Guildford GU1 3DY
Phone: 01483 536366

I had a great time in London. It was my first visit to the UK, but I intend to get back soon. And of course France was awesome, as always.

One regret of the trip was that after we’d set my dates in stone, we realized I was not only doubly nominated for the David Gemmell Legend Award for Best Novel, but would be leaving Europe only a few days before the ceremony. We looked into changing things around, but the cost–and the fact that I was plain exhausted from the trip–was too much. We went ahead and regretfully returned on schedule.

To my great surprise, THE WAY OF KINGS actually won.

I hadn’t been expecting this. I’d been nominated three times before without winning. This year, with two books up for the award (like last year), I was convinced I’d split my votes again and have no shot at it. Beyond that, the competition was pretty steep this year.

I now wish I’d made the extra effort to stick around. Still, my publisher was there, and we’d talked about them accepting the award for me in case I did win. At least we were represented.

Either way, I’m deeply grateful to you all for your votes for THE WAY OF KINGS. Once I get the award, I’ll be sure to take photographs and post them up for everyone to admire.

And now, back to work on A MEMORY OF LIGHT.

(Also, p.s., I’ve been invited to Comic-Con International in San Diego again this year, with a request that I appear on the fantasy panel. I wasn’t intending to go, but with the invitation on the table, I decided it was worth the diversion. So if you’re attending, plan on seeing me there. I’ll bring some ALLOY OF LAW goodies to give away.)