Wake-up calls...

...or, to be precise, wake-up emails.

One was from a client who buys one story each month. The are publishing a "special issue" of their magazine next month, and my regular feature won't appear.

The other let me know a large-ish story I wrote under some pressure to get it done speedily has been delayed for one, maybe two, issues.

In plain English, that means I won't see checks for those articles for a while. Possibly a long while.

Thanks, people. You brought a dose of holiday cheer to my day.

I really love trying to explain to my creditors -- a couple of whom are getting downright testy -- that I'm working, but the payoff will be delayed. Again. Somehow, the talent for making them understand and accept continues to elude me.

How long do my clients think they will be able to depend on me if I can't afford to be here?

Merry friggin' Christmas.