Just about a year ago I posted my pitch for the third annual Clarion West Write-a-thon, which means we’re coming up on CW WAT IV. This year I’m not just hittin’ y’all up for money…I’m hittin’ y’all up for money while actually participating in the Write-a-thon!

You can find more detail at the Clarion West Write-a-thon home page*, which includes the tax-friendly phrase “501(c)(3) organization”.

You can also check out my CW WAT IV Love Page, featuring — along with a picture of me that might as well be called the Mona Lucifer — the following writing goal:

I’ll be revising and submitting one story each week. Characters in the potential revision pile include a vampire and her epicurean Scheherezade, a literal rat bastard, a figurative rat bastard, an imperial diplomat on a hedonistic rampage, a Ricardo Montalbot named Chareezmo (covered, of course, in rich Corinthian leather**), and a couple of hapless time salvagers. Also Leo Tolstoy.

This being an ‘a-thon, you can make your donation contingent on how well I meet my goal, or you can just kick in a few bucks via the Donate button on the Love Page. If you opt for the thrilling uncertainty of a condition-al-thon, I’d appreciate it if you’d post your intention (but not necessarily the amount) in the comments to help foster a healthy FEAR OF FAILURE to keep me on track. Because, you know, this isn’t just about raising money for a good cause — it’s also about getting six stories out the door. The Mona Lucifer loves a win-win.

How will I demonstrate on-trackness? Each Sunday starting June 17th I’ll post the opening of the story I’m working on that week. I’ll post an excerpt or two over the course of the week, and at the end of week I’ll let you know which market the story went off to.

That’s at least three posts a week! The joint will be hopping. We’re talking NaNoWriMo levels of hoppingness.

* Many thanks to Kira for doing such bang-up job on all the Write-a-thon pages.
** Many thanks to Stephen B. for letting me have this joke.