who's a dead doggie?

I'm officially taking my own medicine. I've submitted my query for Hinterland to "Query Shark," Janet Reid's new query critting blog. It's worth a read anyway. Here it is, too, if you're interested. It's gone through a few incarnations, and this is the latest.

When an assassin hunter chases his wife’s killer into a war-torn world, he must embrace a legacy of murder and magic to avenge his wife and achieve peace.

Sean Kelly’s father tormented him with frightening tales of an archaic world called Hinterland, in which magic is a weapon and necromantic priests inflict an army of evil souls upon the innocent. As an adult - and a rational MI6 operative - Kelly attributes it to an early form of torture from an abusive father. But when Kelly’s wife is murdered, his search for the killer leads him straight into the horror stories from his youth. Murderous spirits terrorize Hinterland’s countryside, racial and religious tensions erupt in the cities, and sectarian tribes vie to wrest control from a weakened scion queen. Revenge-lust draws Kelly into a burgeoning civil war. After he foils an attempt on the queen’s life, she asks him to find the assassin and resolve the issue discreetly. But to avenge his wife - and achieve peace - Kelly must betray the queen he swore to protect.
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I also officially have a dog who can play dead. When I shoot her with my finger-gun and say, "BANG," she rolls over onto her back. This took about three sessions of teaching and now she does it without treats. Then we rub her belly and say, "There's a dead dog, who's a dead dog, what a dead doggie!"
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I posted an essay over at the Electric Spec blog called Speculative Fiction Today. Go take a gander if this is a topic that interests you.
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And last but not least:

ROBIN HOOD is back!