Immovable objects

Another Andromeda update and still 'Other Intelligent Life' remains trapped in the round 1 dungeon. I think this must set a new record. On a similar note, From the Asylum - which went on 'hiatus' for a while - was supposed to be up and running again by November 1. But while this promise is still there for all to read on the homepage (along with its ominous 'This is a good thing not a bad thing' rhetoric), FTA has not made good on it. Maybe I'll eat my words later, but a hiatus is never good news for a site run by volunteers. So it goes without saying that I've not heard anything about 'Level Two' since my previous enquiry.

In the name of submitting 'Mere Symptoms', I only added about 1,100 words to Commune over the weekend. My 'update polish' wound up taking nearly five hours, as I fiddled and fussed over clunky sentences and cut more than 200 words from the story. It's a fairly cerebral tale, a weird mix of gore, claustrophobia, humour and philosophy.

Oh, and I don't think I mentioned this, but I got a postcard from Allen & Unwin confirming that they had received my manuscript. It's sent to all those who submit, of course, but it's still a nice personal touch.

--ADDENDUM--

Received a reply in the negative from The 5th Story Review. I think I'm going to withdraw 'Recipe' from submission circulation altogether - with its strange mix of geres, it doesn't seem to fit anywhere.