The Omikuji Project

Hi guys!

We've FINALLY switched over to a new printer. Our old laser printer, almost ten years ancient, was requiring reboots after every. single. story. You haven't lived til you've rebooted a printer 140 times.

On the other hand, I'm super proud of the story this month and I hope you like it as much as I do.

Lastly, I've been asked to write some poetry for Tor.com for National Poetry Month, and I wondered if you all could see your way through to letting me send them the Aquaman poem from...summer 2010? Vote in the comments, if not, I'll understand.

*waves*

Livejournal is purging "inactive communities," so I'm posting to make sure we don't get deleted!

Hello everyone!F

First, we've had a rush of new subscribers, so there will be no end to the project any time soon. Yay!

Second, I do want to apologize for the recent delays. It's been one deadline after tech failure after another. It's important to keep in mind that there is no "team" behind this, it's just me and Dmitri and a candle to light the wax with every month. When our printer breaks in the middle of the stack, there's no one to just handle it. If you email angrily about something, it's just me to answer--I don't have an assistant. I think we are on top of everything now, and on task to mail out on December 15th. Hoping my brain makes another holiday Thing--I love 25 Facts About Santa Claus so much.

Thirdly, I've had a request to reprint A Hole to China, which was the second Omikuji ever and appeared in the print anthology. As I've always promised to bring such things to you, I put it before you: shall we say yes or no to this? The publication is Fantasy Magazine, so it would be free to read online.

Speaking of the anthology, though I said it would be every two years, I don't think I can have one ready by April 2012. So I will plan for April 2013, a three-year span of stories. Hopefully that works for everyone--it'd be a lovely 5-year anniversary gift to us all, I think.

I have kept up with updating the master Omikuji story listing and to make sure that it remains a useful resource for all of us to use while organizing our stories, I want to check the last year's worth real quick to make sure my accounting is accurate.

Could some kind one or two of you check the stories and make sure I have them listed here in the correct order, with all stories present and accounted for? I am afraid I am missing one.

2010
October 05 - The Red Girl
October 28 - Where's My Flying Car?
December 11 - From Scratch

2011
January 18 - Twenty-Five Facts About Santa Claus
March 01 - The Virtue of Things Is In the Midst of Them
April 01 - Elefsis
April 25 - Aquaman and the Duality of Self//Other, America, 1985
June 27 - 5.7 miles Offshore, Heading North by Northwest, 41.585 N, 81.92W
August 05 - Leviathan, Part I
September 10 - What the Siren Sang

Thank you for your help!

Guys, I am so sorry. This month has gotten really fucked up. First, I cracked my tailbone falling down the stairs and so cannot sit upright. The finished Omikuji is sitting on the dining room table, but we cannot get it folded.

Dmitri's grandmother died around 5 pm and we are scrambling to get to Cleveland for the funeral--a 15 hour drive. It'll go out next week when we get back, and everyone will get a free month of subscription because this is just not cool, to be so late.

I can promise you this month is really good. It's one of the best ones, I think, and it would have been great to get it out in time for Christmas. I'm really sorry I couldn't.

When I opened the folder I held them in toenter the last one I managed to drop the Omikuji stories I have, I would like to reorder them in chronological order could someone post the list from "Reading Borghes in Buenos Aires" to the present?Thanks

So Omikuji will be a bit late this month as I have not been able to sit up straight for something like a week due to having pulled a muscle in my back fairly seriously. Physical therapy manana.

I wanted to let you know--and also to ask a permission, as I have pledged to do when anything concerning the Omikuji stories comes up.

I have a short story collection coming out soon, my first. It's called Ventriloquism. I am super proud of it--and I'd like to include three Omikuji stories if you all will release them to me. I hope you feel good about that idea--I chose what I thought were the best ones, Reading Borges in Buenos Aires, How to Build a Ladder to the Sun, and Oh, the Snow-Bound Earth, the Golden Moon (if you think I'm missing an awesome one let me know!)

Please leave a comment and let me know if you're cool with this use, if the majority of you are not, I'll pull the stories.

Thanks guys--creepy Red Riding Hood is incoming as soon as I'm well!

This is a list of all Omikuji stories from its inception to present, and will be updated each month.

Stories are listed by month, with postmark date included where known. Entries designated in color are anniversary mailings sent in colored envelopes.

2008
April 02 – The Glass Gear
May 10 – A Hole to China Pt. 1: An Exceptional Child
June 02 – A Hole to China Pt. 2: The Ox of Sorrows
July 02 – A Hole to China Pt. 3: Ignis
August 02 – The Kunstkammer of Dr. Ampersand
September 02 – How to Build a Ladder to the Sun in Six Simple Steps
October 01 – The Pine Witch Counts her Knuckle Bones
November 03 – The Legend of Good Women
December 05 – Mullein

2009
January 13 – That Which Lets the Light In
February 07 – A Postcard from the End of the World
March 13 – How to Raise a Minotaur
April 10 – The Economy of Clouds
May 18 – The Still
June 08 – The Wedding
July 06 – Reading Borges in Buenos Aires 06 Jul 2009
August 06 – The Folklore of Sleep
September 08 – Oh, the Snow-Bound Earth, the Golden Moon
October 21 – Chapter One: Three Husbands Come to Gorokhovaya Street
November 02 – The Opposite of Mary
December 28 – Blue With Those Tears

2010
January 25 – The Consultant
February 27 – Chapter the Second, in which the Borders of a Strange Country are Explored, the Name of the Country Revealed to a Stranger by a Bird of Very Great Size, a Peculiar War Commences, and a Brusque Hospitality Offered.
March 19 – Grandmother Euphrosyne
April 26 – The Room
May – Foreword: In Case of Paradox, Break Universe
June 30 – On Moral Rectitude Among New England's Fairies
July 04 – The Blueberry Queen of Wiscasset
August 27 - On the Subject of Peaches
October 05 - The Red Girl
October 28 - Where's My Flying Car?
December 11 - From Scratch

2011
January 18 - Twenty-Five Facts About Santa Claus
March 01 - The Virtue of Things Is In the Midst of Them
April 01 - Elefsis
April 25 - Aquaman and the Duality of Self//Other, America, 1985
June 27 - 5.7 miles Offshore, Heading North by Northwest, 41.585 N, 81.92W
August 05 - Leviathan, Part I
August 06 - Leviathan, Part II
September 10 - What the Siren Sang
October 12 - St. Ulphia's School for Wastrels or, Love and Potatoes
November 07 - Chapter VII: Goblin Economicks
November 23 - Gold Like Blackberries
December 28 - Canada Goose Sutra

2012
January 26 - The Red World
March 07 - Light, Solid as a Silver Floor
April 05 - Story No. 6
April 27 - A Soul Stitch'd Full with Meadowsweeet

A master list of stories would be a useful thing for us to have, I think. A lot of us have needed help at one point or other organizing our collections, and as the project goes on this becomes a more and more complicated task.

I am willing to make such a list and post it here, updating it monthly, if nobody objects to that. I can't make it sticky, but we could link to it from the userinfo or a sidebar. Feel free to weigh in.

Right now, what I need are people willing to check my work.

Below the cut is the list I have compiled. It's not pretty right now. The final version will be formatted nicely. If I am missing anything, let me know. I think I have them all. There are 29 in my box.

I am seeking data for a few of the mailings. Specifically, postmarks. Because the stories have come out at various points in the month I thought that might be helpful. Some of my postmarks are missing or hard to read.

( Story time! )

I require a bit of assistance. I pulled out all my omikuji letters to finally start making a binder/scrapbook, but I'm having a bit of difficulty putting them back in order. This has stirred up some fear that I may be missing a letter, which should be impossible since I kept them all together... So would that mean one of mine was lost in the mail? *frets*

If anyone would be so kind as to make a chronological list, I would be most appreciative.

ETA: Damn it, I am missing one. How do I go about procuring a copy?

I'm trying to get my Omikuji Collection in order. Is The Blueberry Queen of Wiscasset the July story?  Or did I miss July? It has an Aug 4 post date on it.

On a more interesting note, I have just learned how to use GIMP as it applies to textile designing and I'm  going to try to design a cover for my Omikuji Collection. I'm not sure how I'll do, but I'll let you know, if it turns out well.

So of course I've had my letter for days and days, but I have a curious ritual when it comes to the omikuji. I fall upon the envelope like a slavering hound and rip it open to devour the title, and then I read Cat's letter. And then? I put it aside. And I wait.

The letter gets left somewhere I'll see it often -- my bedside table, or by my reading chair, or in my purse, during particularly wearing months. Days will pass, and I'll get glimpses of lovely cream paper, and my mind will turn the title over and over, gloating about it and wondering what the story will be.

And then, I'll catch a glimpse, and the pages will whisper "It's time. Read me." And I will, for the first time usually in eager gulps, and then a second time slowly. Usually while chortling loudly like a madwoman in an attic over Cat's turns of phrase.

As soon as I saw the title, I had a feeling this was going to be one of my favorites, and oh it so is. I love so much about this. . . the way New England shapes everyone who lives there, human or no, the ponderings on how even empty ritualistic faith shapes us, and oh so especially the way that any interaction is a two way street, and how the humans 'corrupt' the fairies in their turn.

It was just so, so lovely. Thank you, Cat!

Mine arrived today! See?

(links to twitpic)

The Omikuji Anthology is now available! Please spread the link around, and I hope you all love the book as much as I do. Thank you to everyone who pitched in to make it happen.

The Link: This Is My Letter To The World: The Omikuji Project, Cycle One

The Image (Also a Link): 

So! The Anthology will officially launch on Monday, but I am giving you all the link early, as a thank you for everything you've all done, and recognition of the community nature of Omikuji.

Book birthday!

This Is My Letter to the World: The Omikuji Project Cycle One

We'll have the e-version up on my site by Monday, this is just the print version. I do so hope you all enjoy it. I'm dying to get it into your hands!

And one last round of applause for all the artists in these pages, the writers of the introduction, and most especially antsswarm  for her gorgeous cover, and intelligentrix , my book layout goddess. It takes a village, yo.

Lastly, please don't disseminate this link until Monday. It is just for you guys right now. But feel free to rate it on Lulu (It'll be up on Amazon in a few days) and review it if you have a mind.

I can't believe it's done! I fall over.

The anthology is almost ready! It's pretty amazing, you guys. And once again, you should know that intelligentrix has been my personal superhero in getting it typset and copyedited. I could not have done this without her--and without you guys who contributed art and audio and were so supportive.

We'll launch on Monday, and I hope you guys will help spread the word. I'll start putting together the audiobook when the print one is settled.

Just to let you know, we discovered a problem in the Omikuji database, where the 'base was not recognizing people who signed up after a certain date. This has been fixed, and I hope everyone who has had trouble receiving their letters has been contacted--but if you haven't, hollaback.

Also, since it is around that two-year anniversary time, very many of you are seeing your memberships expire--if you want to keep getting your Omikuji, you have to re-up through the website. We've been giving people several months leeway, but spring cleaning time has arrived. And I know that for some people, Paypal has been going crazy and cancelling their subscriptions, so check your Paypal to make sure it's all is going well.

OMG ANTHOLOGY!

So! The Anthology is so very close to done. Right now it's looking like a May 1st release.

Thank you all for writing the beautiful introduction, and three cheers for intelligentrix  who is doing the typesetting of this beast.

Now, the question is: how would you all like to be credited? If you contributed art, please email me at my first name at gmail and tell me how you want to be credited for it. And how shall we credit the introduction? Is "Written by the members of the Omikuji Project Community" enough or would you prefer to be credited by name, individually? Comment and let me know so we can finish up the TOC!

So close! Yay!

Here it is, in all its round-about glory. I've put line-breaks where I felt they should come in, and invite you to chime in with comments, but will leave final editing to yuki_onna.

We wanted to whisper.

We who dwell under and behind and inside all that is ordinary, that drowns-out, that smothers -- the bills and the catalogs and the coupons. We wanted to reach each other, past all of that -- but in secret, in quiet. We wanted to whisper secrets to one another in the gloaming, in the willow world. And we did, a little, as we could find one another. But then came a whisper that carried farther.

It reached inside our minds, our hearts, calling to the center of us to draw us out, bring us closer. Enthralled, we answered. We strangers, who before had only known each other as faintest whispers in the dark, now knew each other by face. The whisper drew us closer, lured us closer, teased us, bound us together with spun threads of story and poetry and song. Spun threads of hair so fine, so very fine, from the gates of otherworlds, from the gates and through the veils of the lands behind the lands.

The whisper came to our mailboxes as an object, a thing that could be touched and held and smelled. With its heavy paper and its pressed-wax seal, the message was a treasure in itself. It was a gift given to us over and over again, a thing we shared with one another as a whisper is shared. It told us of the familiar parts of one another, the secret parts of ourselves; it spoke to us all.

And it changed us. The whisper crept inside us, blossoming and flowing into our minds and hands and fingers until we brought forth whispers of our own in paint, in wood, in metal and glass and yarn, and we sent them out as offerings to each other. Our secret voices joined the whisper until it became a song. This song of ourselves, of our community of brightly burning whispers, reverberated into a new form: paper again, an honored tome of Catherynne's prose and our prayers utterly entwined. You hold our song in your hands, and this is proof beyond measure of the creativity greater than our own possible in every reaching out.

And here, we reach out again. We draw you into our ember-hearts that glow like shadowed stars across the world, every constellation a story told in souls and swaying prose. We add our voices and the skill of our hands to the creation of this anthology, the compilation of over a year's anticipation and conversation. We invite you hereby into the circle of our hearts' hearth-glow, that you might share in the warmth and wonder we have felt. Extended now are hands of welcome to you, dear Reader, a welcome to a world of worlds and a time of times. Step across the threshold and behold the wonders of forests in which shades of meaning are your only guides, the marvels of oceans endless in whalesong and tide, and the moaning of desolate breezes in the desert serenading you to dreaming. It is yours, now, just as much as ours, and we ask that you love this world, not as we have, but as you will.

Listen! We are breaking the seal; we are unfolding the pages; we are freeing the words. Let them into you. Let them speak, and honor their voices; listen to them, and in listening join with us, word bound to word bound to heart. Join your hands and heart with ours, breathe in the words of the muse delivered unto your hands and heart on meagre pages betraying wealth unmeasurable. Breathe deep, and take into your brightest and darkest, most deep being the stories that trace the paths of lives you lived and dreamed and remembered. Come with us, with open eyes and open ears and open hearts!

We have held these missives (stamped from Ohio, from Maine, from Seattle) close to us for two years now, two precious and aching years. When you read them, remember us and the waiting and the hope; the lotteries and the letters. Take what you need from each story as we have, find your own connections between real and imagined, the finely wrought prose curling itself into the space between us, drawing the net closed.

Open these gateways in the midst of the toil and the fume and the fret of the everyday, the distractions of the quotidian. Escape into these different worlds, these vistas following different rules of perspective. With these maps and sacred texts to guide you, consult your story. Consider your fortune. Reach out your hand. Let your fingers brush ours in the darkness... across words, across worlds. We want you; we welcome you.

Open this volume as you would a secret letter from a long-lost love. Read it as you would your first dream diary, newly-discovered. These stories are yours as they are ours. As you hold the pages in your hands, feel the ancient breeze coming from inside your existence, far away, yet near, shaking the stagnation from your mind and heart, making them pulse with oxygen rich words. Hear the excitement rising through the fluttering night leaves. Turn to the sepia wooded path, where the gothic deer graze beyond the tall and sleeping depths of your forgotten self.

But beware. These pages are as rich and succulent as faerie fruit... and just as dangerous. Drink deep and know you will only crave more. But know also that if you let these pages ravish you, there will always be more. You will always return hence, to the Faerie in these pages. For from the seeds in these fruits magnificent fruit tree shall blossom, and in season they, too, will bear succulent faerie fruits of their own. Fruit becomes wine; when you drink, scarlet words drip down your chin.

Swallow these words. Ingest them. Taste their sweetness, their earthiness, their bitterness. Let them intoxicate, transform and inspire you as they have us. We welcome you to this feast and this fire -- this sacred space of storytelling. Do not bother to be neat with them, these juices will stain skin and fabric, they will run and call to ink and blood and mix on your fingers. This is what should happen; the words should leave your fingers sticky, they should make you dirty. Dirty, maybe, but unsullied.

The sullying you must do for yourself.

I think it's deeply beautiful, and makes a gorgeous arc. Thank you so much for participating!

Hey everyone,

So the Round-Robin Introduction is going well, and I really love what you've all written so far! I think it's going to be seriously beautiful.

However, it would appear that the introduction is now the only thing missing from the anthology, so I'm going to toss in a new rule: if you don't respond to the post within 48 hours of my notifying you that it's your turn, I'll have to skip you and go on to the next person in the list.

We're about halfway through the list now, and by my count no one's taken longer than 48 hours yet, but in order to try and wrap this up in a timely fashion (a tentative original date was April 1, though I think realistically this will spill over by a couple of days), I'm going to have to start counting.

If anyone feels they don't want this added pressure, just let me know and I'll withdraw your name. I hope everyone will still keep on with it, though!

Cheers,

Your Friendly Neighbourhood Moderator

I'm a big fan of stationary and letters, boxes and organization, which led me to an interesting thought last night. I've been wondering how you all choose to keep your wonderful monthly treasures once they've arrived.

Do you keep them in each their envelopes, tightly snug safe with their wax circles unbroken? Do you tie them up like love letters with some twine or perhaps a ribbon? Do you flatten them out and keep them, perhaps, in a binder, to easier reach and find each story? Or is it something entirely other, as well?

I'd love to know what you've all come up with.
Pictures are even welcome if you want to show it off!

I got a package in the mail today. Not only did it contain a wonderful story, it also had this:





I am fortunate to have a couple pieces of Cat's jewelry, and she intimidates me with how talented she is at absolutely everything. I love it!

We draw closer to the anthology's birthday! Please remember to take part in the introduction and get me art if you've promised it. Several stories are art-orphaned at the moment.

Here is the first cover draft--please share your thoughts! I used antsswarm 's Spy image, even though most of you liked the image of the hands written upon. However, it makes a much better interior illustration for Mullein than a cover--this image has space for text, shows the actual Omikuji, and has gorgeous color. So I chose it, for being more or less perfectly blocked to be a book cover.



What do you think?

All right, dear shiny people,

The time to write the introduction to the Omikuji Anthology has come! Here's the round-robin list; if you missed the sign-up post, please go comment there and I'll add you to the bottom of this list.

Here's how we're going to do this:

- Beginning with caudelac, each of you posts 1-3 sentences of omikuji-introducing material as a comment to this post.
- I am going to keep track as best I can and contact you when it's your turn, but,
- It would help speed things up and keep them running smoothly if you tracked this post and kept an eye on where it's at, as well as try to remember who's before you.
- When you post, please take the previous commenter's lines and quote them in italics above your own response. This will make it easier for me to gather it all together when it's done. So, if you're the second person, you quote the first person's line and write yours. If you're the third, you quote the first person and the second person's lines, and write yours. And so it goes, increasing. No need to do this anymore, since it won't fit, but please read the whole thing so far before posting your addition.
- I will strikethrough the name of each person who's posted so that we can all keep good visual track of whose turn it is.

And around we will go! I only see this needing one loop, personally -- at 24 people participating, if you write sentences that average 50 words, that'll already be over 1K words, which is a sizeable introduction. Not that you should be counting words, by ANY means, I just picked that out of the air to illustrate with.

WITHOUT further ado, here is the list:

caudelac
inaurolillium
celestineangel
ravenedgewalker
rymenhild
naamah_darling
intelligentrix
fireriven
garnetlocks
shellefly
starlady38
foxipher
dormouse_in_tea
hokuton_punch
wanderlustlover
windbourne
ladyaraia
oursin
lyssabard
briarspell
seajules
happypeasant
dulcinbradbury
regyt
antongarou
firebirdgrrl
yukihada
cucumberseed

And, caudelac? Here's the first sentence to start you off:

We wanted to whisper.

ETA: Apparently the introduction has now gotten too long to be quoted in full in the comments, so I'm putting it up here. I do think it's important for each person to read it in its entirety before adding to it; it's been working beautifully so far. Almost there!

We wanted to whisper.

We who dwell under and behind and inside all that is ordinary, that drowns-out, that smothers -- the bills and the catalogs and the coupons. We wanted to reach each other, past all of that -- but in secret, in quiet. We wanted to whisper secrets to one another in the gloaming, in the willow world. And we did, a little, as we could find one another. But then came a whisper that carried farther.

It reached inside our minds, our hearts, calling to the center of us to draw us out, bring us closer. Enthralled, we answered. We strangers, who before had only known each other as faintest whispers in the dark, now knew each other by face. The whisper drew us closer, lured us closer, teased us, bound us together with spun threads of story and poetry and song. Spun threads of hair so fine, so very fine, from the gates of otherworlds, from the gates and through the veils of the lands behind the lands. The whisper came to our mailboxes as an object, a thing that could be touched and held and smelt. With its heavy paper and its pressed-wax seal, the message was a treasure in itself. It was a gift given to us over and over again, a thing we shared with one another as a whisper is shared. It told us of the familiar parts of one another, the secret parts of ourselves; it spoke to us all.

And it changed us. The whisper crept inside us, blossoming and flowing into our minds and hands and fingers until we brought forth whispers of our own in paint, in wood, in metal and glass and yarn, and we sent them out as offerings to each other. Our secret voices joined the whisper until it became a song. This song of ourselves, of our community of brightly burning whispers, reverberated into a new form: paper again, an honored tome of Catherynne's prose and our prayers utterly entwined. You hold our song in your hands, and this is proof beyond measure of the creativity greater than our own possible in every reaching out.

And here, we reach out again. We draw you into our ember-hearts that glow like shadowed stars across the world, every constellation a story told in souls and swaying prose. We add our voices and the skill of our hands to the creation of this anthology, the compilation of over a year's anticipation and conversation. We invite you hereby into the circle of our hearts' hearth-glow, that you might share in the warmth and wonder we have felt. Extended now are hands of welcome to you, dear Reader, a welcome to a world of worlds and a time of times. Step across the threshold and behold the wonders of forests in which shades of meaning are your only guides, the marvels of oceans endless in whalesong and tide, and the moaning of desolate breezes in the desert serenading you to dreaming. It is yours, now, just as much as ours, and we ask that you love this world, not as we have, but as you will.

Listen! We are breaking the seal; we are unfolding the pages; we are freeing the words. Let them into you. Let them speak, and honor their voices; listen to them, and in listening join with us, word bound to word bound to heart. Join your hands and heart with ours, breathe in the words of the muse delivered unto your hands and heart on meagre pages betraying wealth unmeasurable. Breathe deep, and take into your brightest and darkest, most deep being the stories that trace the paths of lives you lived and dreamed and remembered. Come with us, with open eyes and open ears and open hearts!

We have held these missives (stamped from Ohio, from Maine, from Seattle) close to us for two years now, two precious and aching years. When you read them, remember us and the waiting and the hope; the lotteries and the letters. Take what you need from each story as we have, find your own connections between real and imagined, the finely wrought prose curling itself into the space between us, drawing the net closed.

Open these gateways in the midst of the toil and the fume and the fret of the everyday, the distractions of the quotidian. Escape into these different worlds, these vistas following different rules of perspective. With these maps and sacred texts to guide you, consult your story. Consider your fortune. Reach out your hand. Let your fingers brush ours in the darkness... across words, across worlds. We want you; we welcome you.

Open this volume as you would a secret letter from a long-lost love. Read it as you would your first dream diary, newly-discovered. These stories are yours as they are ours. As you hold the pages in your hands, feel the ancient breeze coming from inside your existence, far away, yet near, shaking the stagnation from your mind and heart, making them pulse with oxygen rich words. Hear the excitement rising through the fluttering night leaves. Turn to the sepia wooded path, where the gothic deer graze beyond the tall and sleeping depths of your forgotten self.

But beware. These pages are as rich and succulent as faerie fruit... and just as dangerous. Drink deep and know you will only crave more. But know also that if you let these pages ravish you, there will always be more. You will always return hence, to the Faerie in these pages. For from the seeds in these fruits magnificent fruit tree shall blossom, and in season they, too, will bear succulent faerie fruits of their own. Fruit becomes wine; when you drink, scarlet words drip down your chin.

Swallow these words. Ingest them. Taste their sweetness, their earthiness, their bitterness. Let them intoxicate, transform and inspire you as they have us. We welcome you to this feast and this fire -- this sacred space of storytelling. Do not bother to be neat with them, these juices will stain skin and fabric, they will run and call to ink and blood and mix on your fingers. This is what should happen; the words should leave your fingers sticky, they should make you dirty. Dirty, maybe, but unsullied.

The sullying you must do for yourself.

And that's a wrap! Thanks so much, everyone! It makes for a beautiful whole!

Dearest fellows,

So, we are to have an anthology, as yuki_onna has posted about in detail, and the time has come for a round-robin introduction.

Remember the first round-robin? yuki_onna gave us the first line of a story she was writing for that month, I asked those of you who were interested to sign up, and, following the order on the sign-up sheet, added to yuki_onna's one line until she was finished the story on her end, at which point we drew ours to a close. This was the result, and I think it was pretty fine.

So, same deal now! We are to write the introduction to the first ever Omikuji anthology. We're doing it together, line by line. Those of you who are interested, please comment to this post! I will make a list of your names in the order you comment, continue to bump this post up to catch other wayward Omikuji-ers through the weekend, and we'll all begin writing it together on Monday.

I'd like those of you who want to take part to think about what this project, this community, these stories have meant to you; what, ideally, you'd like the introduction to say, both to your fellow Omikuji-ers and to those who have no idea what this is about. Feel free to share those thoughts and mullings here, or to post about them yourselves between now and Monday.

Those of you who are interested, please either provide me with an e-mail to contact you in order to tell you that it's your turn, or allow me to message you on LJ; the project got a bit slowed down last time as a result of privacy settings. Alternately, if you'd really rather I didn't get in touch, please make sure you track Monday's comment thread and take note of whom you're meant to follow, so that we can keep this rolling smoothly and wrap it up in a timely fashion.

To recap!

- Comment to indicate you want to participate, and your preferred method of contact (e-mail / LJ message) if you're cool with being contacted
- Feel free to discuss, in comments, what you'd like the introduction to say, mean, do
- Await the List on Monday, and further instructions then!

It pleases me that we're doing a Round-Robin so few days shy of Spring.

Last Monday, I was on my way home from a truly awful day, and decided on a whim to stop by my mailbox, just to see if there was anything there to cheer me up. And, lo and behold, there certainly was.

I found a box that was *just* small enough to fit into my mailbox, addressed from Peaks Island, Maine. I thought to myself, "I know what this is!" and rushed it inside to open it up.

What did I find? My Omikuji envelope, a small square card, and a purple box, inside of which was a satiny golden bag, inside of which was this:

( Cut for politeness and amateur photograpy )

According to the note that came along with it, "This necklace is called 'To the Death', all full of amber and blood and pale crane hearts."

I was fortunate enough to go to Cat's reading in Seattle later that week, and I told her that it wasn't anything I would have chosen for myself, and that I wasn't used to wearing jewelry with a name, or such a presence, but I am fully and deeply in love with this piece, and do feel so fortunate to have won it that I wanted you all to see it too!!

As I understand it, our intrepid yuki_onna is lost in transit thanks to the sweet ass fucking that comes FREE!! with flying with Continental. While she's busy finding her way home a la one of her short stories, let's get some business out of the way to help her out.



yuki_onna has asked for art for the Omikuji Anthology, and I've provided photographs that may be used on the cover. There are several to choose from.

It might be helpful to yuki_onna if we vote for our favourites. I believe you're allowed to comment on the images: vote for your favourites! If you can't leave a comment on which images are your favourites, simply list their names in a comment to this entry and we'll find a way to tabulate those in later.

Yes?
Fantastic!

Try to imagine each image with a title and the author's name included.

Clickenzee to visit ze daguerro-site!

Omikuji has gone out (sorry for the lateness, I will get on top of this!) and begins a new tradition: when I finish a novel, the next Omikuji will be a sneak peak of it, just for you guys. No one else will see this for a year!

Is it Prester John having carnal relations with a crane? It might be.

In anthology news, we are nearing the time when art and audio must be in, so that I can get everything typeset. There are still slots available and forlorn stories, so let me know if you're up to any of them!

Love all of you...my tongue tastes like envelopes.

CMV's Fairyland has been nominated for the Andre Norton Award!

Fairyland has won CultureGeeks's Reader's Choice Award for Best Web Fiction of the Decade, beating out Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, The Guild, and XKCD. Thanks to all who voted!


Here on Omikuji, CMV still has some open spots for illustrations for the anthology! DEADLINE IS MARCH 1st! Come claim the story that you loved best!

And here, after much requesting, is a list of all the Omikuji stories, so that you can see if you missed any, and also call dibs for the anthology! (Please call said dibs in the comments. All art would need to reproduce well in black and white and be in by March 1st. Anyone who wants to do audio recordings, dib that too, and if there are musicians, we could do an audiobook + soundtrack! It's all up to you guys--this is your project.)

We'll be starting the round-robin introduction soon.

The Glass Gear--art called by fireriven 
A Hole to China Pt.1
A Hole to China Pt. 2
A Hole to China Pt. 3
The Kunstkammer of Dr. Ampersand
How to Build a Ladder to the Sun in Six Easy Steps--audio called by triskelmoon, art called by dynix 
The Pine Witch Counts Her Knuckle Bones--art called by black_mascara, audio still open
The Legend of Good Women--art called by hokuton_punch 
Mullein--audio called by windbourne , art still open
That Which Lets the Light In--art and audio called by upstart_crow
A Postcard from the End of the World--art called by hoshikaze 
How to Raise a Minotaur--art called by thanate , audio still open
The Economy of Clouds
The Still
The Wedding
Reading Borges In Buenos Aires--art and audio called by caudelac 
The Folklore of Sleep--art called by foxipher, audio called by antongarou 
Oh, the Snow-Bound Earth, the Golden Moon!--art called by windbourne , audio by justbeast 
Three Husbands Come to Gorokhovaya Street--audio called by greektoomey , art still open
The Opposite of Mary
Blue With Those Tears
The Consultant--audio called by shellefly , art called by dynix 

As a last note, a lot of lottery winners appear to not be members of the community, so from here on out I'll post pictures of the prizes if I don't see them here within a week or two.

Much, much apologies--the letter did not get included this month. It was a mistake in the folding process, it won't happen again. Here is this month's letter!

My Kami, My Dears—

This month’s story was inspired by my friend Mike calling me a year or so ago and announcing that he needed a fairy tale consultant. I immediately thought: this should be my new life. I posted about it on Livejournal and everyone demanded a book—which I don’t think, really, will ever happen, but never say never—though I think in their heads it was an obvious comedy, and to me, fairy tales never are. They’re deadly, bloody serious, and a fairy tale consultant would be a hard and depressing job. But one with the possibility of illumination—and that right there is kind of the subtitle of noir.
Writing this, I thought that in essence, though I don’t have the frosted door or the scotch or the rainy street, this is what I do, with my books, every day. I lay out fairy tales on the table and point out, very carefully, to anyone who happens by, all the ways in which they are just like real life, and how they can teach you, how they can grant grace. Because it’s no joke: we all really are in a story and that’s the whole reason these stories last, because they keep having new things to say about the way we live. Collective subconscious, baby, and you don’t stop.

There is no snow this winter. Two snowfalls, one of which is sticking around just long enough to get dirty and lumpy and icy, and today it was so warm I didn’t need a hat. There’s something elementally disappointing in that. It’s still horribly cold, but the sun keeps on shining. I’m nearing the halfway point of another book, not about fairy tales exactly, but about the place where fiction and life meet, and what grows in that country. I am drinking a lot of coffee, and knitting, and in just a moment I’ll be getting on a train and speeding south. Life is quiet and proceeds, and I think that will be much of this year, in which I have so much work to do. Live, work, eat, love, sleep. Later, rinse, repeat. Not so bad, really, this grown-up thing.

CMV

  Yesterday I received a large white envelope in my mailbox with the US Postal Service logo on it. The back of this letter stated that occasionally accidents happen and mail becomes damaged while they are attempting to ship it. I then opened the envelope and found HALF of my lovely cream-colored omikuji letter. I cradled my poor, torn letter and wondered mournfully why the USPS couldn't have murdered a bill instead of this precious piece of mail. But, alas...

  So, I was wondering is it possible to request another copy of a particular story? Or if not can I pay for a pdf version of the story? I would prefer the paper mailing as I have been saving all the beautiful stories in a pretty little binder.

Thanks from a chronic lurker   ;o)

~GoblinQueen

So, since I've been having a terrible time getting Omikuji out on the 1st over the past few months, with your permission, I'd like to change the official release date to the 15th of every month.

The thing is, I usually have 3 or more assignments due on the 1st of any given month, and it's just become impossible to get it all out on time. It's like the 1st is the only date anything ever comes due.

Is this ok? I'm very sorry. You'll get your December Omikuji shortly after Christmas.

So the consensus appears to be all the stories, possibly withholding the letters as something special to you guys or including one line from each letter as an epigram.

Big yes to the line by line member-composed introduction.

There's some discussion as to art. I don't think photographing the prizes would work--the quality wouldn't be good and we don't have pics of all of them. However, I'm definitely up for member-created art based on the stories. Thing is, I don't think it would work unless there was something for every story.

So...comment here to claim a story if you want to make art. You can claim more than one. It can be anything, so long as it reproduces well in black and white. (Photographs of art ok.) If all of them get claimed, we'll go that route.

As to the cover--I don't want to do a collage. I'd prefer one of you create a piece, be it a painting or a photograph of a sculpture or whatever. (For example: one of naamah_darling 's skulls with a letter in its mouth--it can be anything)

I'm not interested in art from anyone not a member of this community. So if you want to tackle it, let me know!

Man, this is a crowdsourced anthology. How cool!

I'm sorry Omikuji is taking so long this month, guys. Between the wedding, the insanity of the honeymoon, and my shiny new foot injury, it's been all I can do to keep my head above water. It'll be out ASAP, end of the week at the latest. And from here on out it should normalize and go out on the first again.

Also, our two year anniversary is coming up in March! Yay! Can you believe it's been so long?

As a celebration, last year we all discussed doing an anthology of Omikuji stories. It's time to start thinking about that for real!

Assuming you all still want to have such a thing, I would do it through Lulu, since this is a homegrown operation. And since Omikuji essentially belongs to you all, I want your input on everything.

So. Please to comment.

Is this a best of that we should all vote on, or a complete Omikuji compendium containing everything? Does it have the letters in it as well?

What does the cover look like? Would any of you have an interest in creating the art for the cover?

I also thought of having you guys write an introduction via the line by line method you used to create the story a little while back--what would you all think of that?

Any other ideas, things you'd like included?

I can't believe I'm writing this, but then again - it's happened to me. I shouldn't be surprised.

yuki_onna is stalled in Frankfurt, Germany - her travel agent planning her honeymoon did not clear her visa status before booking their flights through to St. Petersburg. They are now stuck in a very expensive hotel trying to find the $$ to continue their voyage after they've had to pay change fees due to the agent's blunder.

Their agent, a well-known internet-based firm - has refused to accept any responsiblity. They are completely on their own. (I know these guys. I believe it.)

They can get their visas and continue - for $900, payable RIGHT NOW.

I don't know about you, but I wasn't able to attend the wedding and I certainly haven't gotten them a wedding present yet.

Cat does not feel right about accepting straight donations - but she did update her online YA novel this evening, and as it has always run on the donation model (you like, tip the writer), the jar is out.

Toss a bit more in, would you? And enjoy the story - it's a very, very good one.

Thanks in advance. Signal boost, please?

Kami (are we Kami to each other? I looked up the word and it means spirit, according to Wikipedia. I don't know the Japanese writing to look it up in my Japanese dictionary. We are all embodied spirits, so unless reprimanded with explanation, I will use it.),

My subscription got messed up and I missed a couple of issues of Omikuji. Being during the summer when I was working on projects and visiting family was in town, I didn't realize it until September when I finally got to my unopened envelopes. I straightened things out with Cat and she has graciously allowed me to get the stories I missed (if I understood her correctly). The thing is, I don't know which months I missed because my envelopes were not postmarked. Has someone kept a list of the stories and what month they were sent?  Could there be a link to such a list in the sidebar here or on the profile page?

TIA

~Faith
I see a world where all people accept each other as friends and neighbors and celebrate each person's uniqueness as a vital part of everyone's life, like threads in a tapestry.

Dear Readers,

I just want to drop a note to let you know that CMV is just about ready to send out Oct's Omikuji Project.

We thank you for your patience!

Best,
Deborah
(Assistant to CMV)

Omikuji will be a little late this month due to big giant novel deadline. I promise it will go out this week, however, and as a sneak perk of being Omikuji members, you all will be getting the first chapter of my new book, Deathless, this month, more than a year before it hits shelves, with the Lottery prize provided by naamah_darling!

November, sadly, will also be a little wonky, as we're getting married on November 1st! We are going to try to get it out early rather than late, but there is always the possibility that with wedding planning, it might not happen.

After November, though, everything should be back to normal. I hope you all are still enjoying everything!

I moved to a different part of town in June and haven't had the chance to establish a new ritual for reading each new Omikuji piece (I used to take myself to lunch at a taqueria near my old house), so I have a few Omikuji letters stacked up, unread. This month, I received the letter in the usual fashion, and put it on the stack.

Well, today I got home from work to find a small package awaiting me, and the return address said "Peaks Island." I admit, I blinked at it a few times, stunned at my good fortune. Then I took it inside and opened the letter to read a sharp and lovely story of snow and moons and dazzlingly beautiful children with white eyes, and the silence of the earth, before I opened my prize.

Reader, I cried. Both snow and moon are special to me anyway, but I also got pearls. As you can probably tell by my username, I am very, very fond of pearls.

( Cut for two largish images )

Spouse, who has a discerning eye for jewelry, declared this "gorgeous." He is right.

I received my Omikuji letter in yesterday's mail, and just now got to sit and read it properly.

I cannot get enough of fairytale retellings, particularly Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and of course Snow White. Disney has a lot to answer for, but I can't be wholly sorry that they planted these three in my hind-brain where I can't be rid of them.

I adore this Snow White retelling. The gender switch, that there's something both more and less than an actual person sleeping under glass, and that this is possibly only one complete piece to a story that extends over lifetimes.

Monday was a great day, not only did I receive the story in the mail but there was also a new chapter of Fairyland to read. I enjoyed the flow of the story and the premise was intriguing. It's funny, but Monday night I had three different dreams, when usually I might remember/recall one I had at night. Also I really liked the imagery of the dogs and cats of dreams, and ended up buying a few sun and cat charms for a necklace (I was buying charms anyways).

What do others think of the story?

(I'm sorry if I sound a bit dis-jointed right now, I'm writing with the TV on)

Reading Borges in Buenos Aires is certainly my favorite Omikuji story so far.

Just sayin.

Oh! To sort through the unassuming pile of mail, and find something addressed to me! There is no happiness like receiving something in the mail, I am convinced. Christmas presents come in the mail, birthday presents, wedding announcements, graduation announcements, cards for diverse occasions... and now, literary quickies that have all the fire of lovers who have been separated for a month. I should have known, from the first moment my eyes slid over the curves of my name and address, her name and address. Together, with the stamp-king blowing love at us both, we had a fine time getting here. To think! My first menage-a-trois, on the front of a letter. I'll tell the postman, and he'll surely be titillated.

But enough of that. I ripped the envelope open once it clicked that yes, yes, she was offering herself to me, my name and location on her flat belly an indisputable invitation, not thinking to preserve the wrapping in my pent-up passion. And then, and then... the red wax, I had heard about the red wax, but to see it! The C, for her first name, informality superimposed upon the formal seal in a seductive combination that beckoned with closeness as it wore brocade corsets and satin skirts.

I cracked the seal gently, carefully, as if opening a fine wine which might vanish if rushed. The red wax left marks behind, not unlike that left by raven-haired mistresses on their lovers white collars. Everyone who saw them would know, the way your mother knows when you come home with a hickey. Wicked thing went on in that envelope.

Finally, the story. Jorge was a coincidence (the blue eyes, too, but never mind those. Names have more power). I hope mine doesn't leave me for a medievalist. I have heard they prosecute for sodomy, and then where would he be? (Certainly not enjoying his beloved alfajores.)

Hello fellow Omikuji readers! I recently moved, and when I did my Omikuji stories got out of order. I know this may seem kind of silly. I am putting them into sheet protectors and into a binder now, and I find that it bothers me. Not that the stores themselves are out of order, but Cat's little letters at the end. If only I had kept them in their envelopes!

So I was wondering, has anyone here kept theirs in order, and if so, would they be willing to write down that order by story title? I would so appreciate it!

I am utterly disgusted with myself. I have just managed to ruin one of my omikuji mailings. My favorite one, of course -- which is why it was on my bedside table, for ease of constant re-readings.

If this were a decent story, it would have at least gotten drenched in honey-wine, and I could have lapped up the words as they melted from the paper, and become drunk thereof. Because it is my life, I only knocked over a glass of slightly musty tap-water. *sighs*

Currently open for debate is whether I keep the rumpled mess of paper as is (this is fabulous paper, Cat -- it may be pleated like a smocked christening gown, but I can still read it! Well, with smishing. The ink is all still there, is my point) and deal with being slightly cranky in the back of me whenever I read it, or whether I try to do. . . something with it.

Has anyone made art with an omikuji mailing? I'm not at all sure what I'd make, but I do know I simply can't bear to throw it away.

(and has anyone else had a mailing ruined?)

If you have signed up for a monthly mailing subscription to Omikuji in the past month--I do not have your address. Paypal does not provide it. Please email me so I can get your mailing out this weekend. If you signed up for a yearly sub, no worries, Paypal includes it there.

Also, we are still trying to deal with the database of people who's yearly sub was up in March, April, May, or June. You can help by letting us know if you decided not to re-subscribe in the comments, or re-upping before this month's mailing goes out.

I'm in love with this story about rime giants and maiden aunts. I frequently think this with each new omikuji, but I think "The Wedding" is my favourite yet, if only for this paragraph:

It's important to marry someone, she said. Not because you need them to complete you or because you ought to be someone's wife by hook or by crook. It's just that worlds want to combine, they want to marry, and they use people to do it, the way you mix medicine in with something sweet, so it's easy to swallow. That's why we have to have all those silly things: a frilly dress and something blue and a bachelor party and a priest. Just so that a boy and a girl can live together and make babies? Posh. Because the big worlds inside us are mating, and they need the pomp.

I'm still aching over the gorgeous truth of this. What a beautiful way of seeing the world. I love it completely.

I've also fallen dreadfully behind with compiling a year's worth of omikuji music, having dropped the last few stories (I stopped at "That Which Lets the Light In" -- England and thesis got in the way of keeping up), but I wanted to share a song that I also associated with the very first Omikuji story, called "The Frozen World," by Emilie Simon.

won't you open for me
the door to your ice world
the young, white desert

I just want to stare
out of these snow fields
until we're warm again
we'll belong to the frozen world

when the ice
begins to thaw
becomes the sea
O, you will see
how beautiful it can be

Will link to later, but for now, just needed to squee.

It went as these things always seem to go. I received my story (there really is no better envelope to draw out of one's mailbox after a terrible day at work) and I also received a strange, small padded envelope. I thought to myself, "Perhaps someone has sent me a present." In a way, this was true. The Lottery Prize from this month is a very beautiful necklace. I will take a picture tomorrow and post. (no camera at home)

There is now an Omikuji Facebook Group! Join up!