Hi, guys.
I am writing this by dictating to Dragon Naturally Speaking. Wheee.
For those of you who missed the twitch chat, I got my doctor results back. The good news is that I’m neither diabetic nor pre-diabetic, which was my biggest fear. My glucose level is normal. In fact, it was so ordinary, my doctor hadn’t even mentioned it when discussing lab results with me before, because he didn’t realize it was a concern. Yay, super restrictive diet. The bad news is because I type upward of 500,000 words a year my hands are beat up. The doctor compared my injuries to that of a veteran pianist.
I have to tell you, dictating is really weird.
Basically, I have injured my hands, and the first time it happened I should’ve stopped typing. Instead I kept typing, reinjuring them further and further. I know exactly how it happened, to0. When we were finishing Magic Triumphs and Iron and Magic (Dragon typed this as Ottoman magic, hehe), we pulled marathon typing sessions both times. I think it was something ridiculous like 8,000 or 9,000 words in one day for Magic Triumphs. It was just too much.
So my prescription is not typing for two weeks. Gordon is sitting next to me and cackling, and he laughs every time he hears this. They offered me steroid shots into my fingers and I said no.
So right now, I’m dictating my parts of Diamond Fire to Gordon, who has been amazingly patient. We’re hoping to finish Diamond Fire this week and then we will resume the Innkeeper.
If you are waiting for the twitch session upload, it will be posted sometime today.
Thank you for all of the lovely emails you sent us. We really appreciate it.
Well, that’s all my news for now. I’m going to go back to the house and try to dictate like the wind.
Sending lots of healing energy your way. Take care of yourself first, always!! You both are one of my favorite authors!!
+1
I’m glad there is no permanent damage (maybe). Take care of yourself.
Learning to dictate is not as easy as it sounds when you aren’t used to it. My previous job had so much paperwork it was cheaper to have me dictate at my pay rate and someone else to type it. (Think 8 hour meetings) It was very hard in the beginning but then I became used to it and kind of miss it now. Good luck.
Thanks for the update. Glad the news is relatively good! Best wishes for a full recovery.
I am grateful the news is largely positive and seemingly not life or career impacting. As an attorney people have tried to encourage me to use dictation software and God do I hate it – try to endure in the short term.
So glad you’ve found a solution. From your previous blog post it seems like people are getting very entitled, so don’t let that affect you! Feel better!
I am glad you got good news on your fingers. ? Dictate away to the giggling man! So I guess you also found a speech recognition program? I’m often told I don’t have a real accent and yet the speech program on my phone makes up strange things all the time. I’d like to find one so that I can get things down on paper so to speak since I can’t write or type fast; never been able to. The brain goes faster than the hands.
I’m so sorry you’re in pain and wish you lots of healing and health.
So happy to hear your concerns about diabetes/prediabetes have been allayed; sorry to hear how much your hands have suffered. Sending you major healing vibes.
I’ve heard of carpal tunnel (who hasn’t), but I’ve never heard of the injury you described in the Twitch discussion. After the two weeks are up — or even now — is there physical therapy/exercises that they suggest for the fingers, or is the long-term solution that you have to limit how much you type per day? Did the doctor mention if he thought the ergonomic keyboard you purchased will help?
❤️???????????
Hi, i feel ya! I just had carpal tunnel surgery on both hands. i waited years past when it should have been done. Finally gave in when I couldnt feel my right hand anymore. As an organist i was worried that i would have troubles playing again. But I’m 150% better now. Steroid shots are scary but they really do help. I get them in my feet & elbows.
Thanks for sharing all the wonderful writing that ya’ll do.
Yay no diabetic issues! Your poor fingers though ? thank you for all you do for us.
Hooray that it looks like there’s a light at the end of the tunnel!
I wonder if it’s weird of me to feel this way, but I think I’d have gone for steroid injections on my non-dominant hand just to see if it actually makes recovery faster. And if it does, then I’d ask for it on my other hand too. I think my own health history makes me naturally want to test therapeutic claims. Lol.
Perhaps the dictation software will work so well that you’ll want to continue using it even when your hands don’t hurt anymore. #fingerscrossed
Here’s wishing you a speedy recovery!
*but cross them really gently!!
+5
Glad you have a diagnosis sorted – just get well and recover – and if Gordon giggles too much, pop a cupcake in his mouth ?
+1 Also, Imma sure this means Ilona shouldn’t do housework or dishes . . .
LOL!!
If pain doesn’t relieve, please, don’t nay say the cortisone shots. They are not a cure, you still have to limit your activity, but it takes the pain away caused by swelling ( your body’s bandaid to stop you from moving the injury). Hope you begin to enjoy dictating … does take away some of the visual , but practice makes perfect, as always z. Get better quick-er-er. Thanks for sharing
Good luck in the recovery process. Happy that your injury is not connected to other health matters.
I would be interested in hearing more about your experience doing dictation and how it affects the story development.
Sending you healing vibes, wishes for quiet hands, and all the good thoughts to a smooth recovery.
About those steroid shots in the fingers? Had it done three times in the palms of both hands and the wrists. Not fun. ?
I feel your pain. As a translator I type for living and had to give up normal keyboard for the halo type. It’s bit better but not the best either. Dictating is out of question lol. Good luck and rest your hands. Try chamomile solution it helped a bit. ??
What wonderful news, you both must be so happy to hear it. I know I am. If I were there, I would build you warm poultices, as it is, sending happy and warm ZEN healing thoughts. Relax, dictate and don’t cheat. There is a nice, wintergreen scented liniment called Eagle Brand Medicated Oil, that I use. It isn’t greasy or staining, doesn’t stink and works in seconds on my old hands. Amazon carries it and it helps on those days when I can’t hardly open my fingers. It can hurt if you have a cut or in my case, split skin, but overall it works. Thank you for letting us know you are basically ok. That is always a good thing.
So glad the news was more positive.
What is twitch?
You’re an intrepid survivor, so take care of yourself while we patiently await the next adventure. And you have my permission to kick him if he keeps giggling…
Best wishes on your recovery.
Yay for not prediabetic issues! Hope the healing continues! Iron and Magic was amazing as always. I didn’t think it was possible to root for Hugh even though I thought the book was an awesome idea.
So glad some of the concerns have been crossed off the list but very sorry you’re still in pain. Hopefully not typing for a couple of weeks will help. While I love escaping into one of your stories your health is so much more important! Lots of well wishes and hope you feel better soon.
Glad you and your Dr. have a plan.
As a professional Sign Language Interpreter, I have seen many friends with repetitive stress injuries. Have you tried hot wax “bath”? It is a spa treatment but feels soooooo good after a long day of using your hands.
You dip your hands and wrists into the wax a few times then slip them into “oven mitts” to hold the heat. After the wax has cooled, take off the mitts and it is peeled off.
Aches are reduced and your skin is soft.
Hope your recovery goes well.
Sounds glorious!
When my grandmother broke her wrist (50 Years ago) part of her physio was a warm wax treatment. She said it relieved the ache.
It is, I’ve had it during PT for my wrist, they sell one for home use at Bed, Bath and Beyond. Too bad Hugh isn’t actually real, he could heal you in seconds ?. Glad to hear that the diagnosis is not as bad as you feared. I use Dragon software when I need to type a lot and it does eventually learn how you speak, good luck with it.
Used Dragon Dictate a number of years ago, similar issue, too much time on a keyboard, it takes a little while for it to ‘get’ your speech patterns , and the difference between brain dump and dictation, but you will know you have cracked it when the printer refuses to do what you tell it to
I love hat description of when you’ve attained it 🙂
*that
Wanted to say that I appreciate the work the two of you do-both free and not. I fully understand that life happens, and not always in a helpful way. I look forward to future publications, and prayers and well wishes are going up that all goes well with the healing.
Thank you for the update! Great news about no diabetes!!! I will continue to send healing thoughts your way:)
Sending lots of positive, healing energy! Also, very glad for you that it’s not diabetes – I’ve had several relatives struggle with that and it’s awful.
Ottoman Magic sounds like a good title for a new series! 😉
I hope everything heals quickly and completely.
+1!
Ottoman as the Turkish empire or the piece of furniture you rest your feet on?
Either would be interesting, but very different I would imagine…
You are doing really well with Dragon if it’s only the odd word that it screws up. I remember using it with a kid I was working with and we only got one or two words in the whole paragraph correct.
Glad it is not diabetes and can be fixed with rest.
Glad to hear that there no diabetic complications or diagnosis, but sorry to hear about the damage and healing prognosis. Try to give those hands a rest. You guys totally rock!
So glad you are able to isolate the issue… Sad that you’re facing pain and discomfort. Here’s prayers for a whole recovery for your hands.
Be a dictator! Think of all the jokes you can make about this. Telling Gordon that he agreed you could dictate to him…….
?
Glad to hear you have a diagnosis and treatment plan!
Please tell me you used the line with the Doctor about whether you’d be able to play the piano once your fingers have healed? (Assuming you can’t currently?)
Good Luck!
T.
Fabulous news!! Those amazing hands deserve a respite. Thanks for “Iron and Magic”. I finished it this weekend and found it thoroughly enjoyable. And, as usual, I learned a few new words. I consider the vocabulary in your books a special present you deliver because I always get a new word or two. And my apologies for those fans that give you grief or guilt for not producing enough or producing fast enough. As writers, you are both incredibly prolific and fast. Any one who complains has really no idea how the writing process and/or creative process works. Looking forward to whatever you produce whenever you produce it. If Amazon had an “always pre-order” button, it would be hit for any Ilona Andrews book.
+1!!
+1
I hope your hands are better soon, resting them is key I’m sure. FYI I really enjoyed the twitch chat! Loved meeting your trusty assistant, Brandi, and always love listening to you guys.
I wish you both the best in your health (and hopefully rest!). With all the craziness in the world today, it’s always nice to see glimpses of how supportive and loving your family is. Iron and Magic was so awesome, btw. Bucky gave me lifeeee.
As an audio typist I can sympathise with your pain. In my case the strain on my hands came out as a ganglion or bible cyst, which is different but at least treatable. It can be really hard on your hands and mine often ache. I’m glad you’ve got the alternatives of Gordon and the Dragon… sorry, Gordon and Dragon… please do make the most of them and give your hands the rest they deserve.
(Oh and thank you both SO much for Iron and Magic! <3 )
LOL@”dictate like the wind” Steroid shots into joints – I don’t think so. Granted that it goes on all the time, but the science is very shaky. You can end up with a whole lot worse problems than you already had.
I wonder what the manual equivalent of biting your tongue is?
On my first reread of Iron and Magic. 😀
I’m not sure if you’ve ever heard of the orbitouch keyboard. It’s a completely non-traditional keyboard that has you move your entire arm to type. It is used by people with disabilities that can’t use their hands. It might work well for you in the future. Hope you get to feeling better.
Yeah for no diabetes! Trust me, it sucks. Also typing when you have to stab your fingers 3 times a day makes it even suckier. Good luck on the no typing for two weeks.
I had the same problem with stabbing my fingers and I found a solution.
I stab the side of my thumb towards the fingers instead. This is never used when typing so it doesn’t hurt. You may have to push your stabber up to maximum depth because of the thicker skin
You take however long it takes! Feet up! We appreciate you two so much!
Exactly!
one tip:
you might want to try to contact david weber – I read somewhere that he also has problems typing and has used a dictation software for his books for the last ten years or so.
So he might have some suggestions in case this gets worse – or to prevent it from getting worse.
I wonder if comfrey compresses would help? Comfrey has fallen out of fashion now that Arnica is so popular, but, it does stimulate circulation and seems to speed healing. A rock climber friend of mine had comfrey reccomended by the University of Colorado Orthopedics department.
Very glad it didn’t turn out to be your worst fears. Hope you don’t get too frustrated with the time off your hands. 🙂
Glad the news is better than you feared but sad that you have to deal with an injury that affects you so much!
You guys are the best and whenever the next Innkeeper installment comes out I will be thrilled to read it. You are so generous with your time and creative efforts to your fans. Thank you and take care of yourself!
Thank you for the update!
I am impressed how well the voice recognition seems to work and kudos to Gordon for being your “hands” on the keyboard.
Take care of yourselves, guys 🙂
I’m so desperately sorry you’re injured but so grateful it’s nothing more serious. Please rest up and heal and take time. I’m so sorry you get emails like that one you posted about Innkeeper. That took my breath away. I’m so thankful for the hours upon hours of wonderful adventures you’ve shared with me. Pregnancy hates me a lot and y’all are a big part of the reason I survived 3 months of bedrest mostly sane. I could go someplace else and life was okay. Thank you for sharing your gifts with us. I hope you feel better soon.
I’m a long time fan of your work. I’m also a practioner of Chinese medicine and certified aromatherapist. ( 400+ hours of clinical training). I would be happy to make you a sports injury formula for hematomas and bleeding, swelling, and pain. You could apply this to your wrists and fingers. It cuts healing time down dramatically. No charge, it’s the least I can do to give back, after all these years. Please feel free to look at my credentials re: my training and practice, on my website. My bio lists them. This formula would be applied topically. One never ingests essential oils. If you’re interested, send me an email with your shipping address, and I’ll get it right out to you.
This is such a nice offer, which wasn’t even made to me and still I’m touched by your generosity and kindness. You’re a good person!
Agree.
+1
I’m so glad that you had, mostly, good news from your doctor. Take as much time as you need to rest and recuperate! It’s so awesome how the two of you work so well as a team and manage to maintain your sense of humor. I love absolutely everything you write and will wait as long as it takes to read it. Thank you for not getting frustrated and throwing in the towel.
+1
+1 Ilona>
We really mean it! Take time off for the holiday and just relax.
Hug your new yarn and tell it you’re thinking about what will make it look the prettiest. That will keep it from feeling unloved until you can knit again.
So glad that dictating works, because your mind keeps cranking out stuff that is too precious to loose. Happy Independence Day Holliday, Y’all! ?? ? ?? ?
Glad of good news about diabetes. Dealing with pain even for short term is never easy. Healing always takes time. Must be exercises that will help
I know you will not ignore body warnings again, right?
Do what you need to do.
I’m so glad it’s nothing diabetes related. I’m a physician, and I have an accent. After reading your post about the hands, I was so angry, and so sad. Some people are not to be believed. I felt your hand problem sounded like overuse, and wanted to recommend Dragon, which is widely used in Medicine and is really good with accents. It was hard not to say anything, as it seemed to me like you needed some space.
The dictation thing gets better, although for a long time, I would talk like I was dictating, especially if I was tired, and that was embarrassing and hilarious. So, a voicemail to a pharmacist could go:” I’m calling about Mr. Smith period.”
Hope you feel better very soon.
I work in Healthcare IT, and I’ve helped set up Dragon for Medical w/Nuance. It’s a great package, even if Nuance is a competitor of my current company. 🙂
Relieved for you that it is a physical injury and not something more serious underlying! All the best for healing. I truly wish we had magic in the world like in Hidden Legacy World… lol… I was reading Wildfire last night as my ‘bedtime story’ to get my mind off a job interview for a teaching position I had this morning… so I could sleep. If I could have any magic it would be a mental kind, so my shy voice would not have taken over this morning! So frustrated with myself.
I hope the interview went better than you thought Jenn and your obvious sincerity communicated itself to the interviewing panel. If you get the job, congratulations and if you didn’t, I’m sorry and I hope the interview practice helps you next time.
Thank you so much!
I’m glad you have a “prescription” for rest. I know that must be very difficult for you! But we want you to feel better for yourself first. When you’re not dictating, maybe you could find some time to read, yourself 🙂
What a good idea and I second the relief that your hands will heal with time and care.
I use Dragon and have for about ten years, upgrading regularly. Dragon is kind of dumb to start, but it gets smarter and smarter as it learns to understand you. I’m so glad this is overuse. I was really afraid it was psoriatic arthritis (I have a daughter with that condition and one of the symptoms is splinter hemorrhages) and that it would be a lifelong problem for you. I know right now isn’t easy, but do follow the doctors orders and take care of your hands!!!
Much, move love to you and your hands! I will always wait to read what you write…no matter how long it takes. Sending you virtual tea and chocolates.
+1
+1 Sending lots of love to you and to Gordon too. I am just thankful that you both have shared your talents with us. Your books have brought me so much joy and happiness. I will also wait however long it takes. You take care of you first and foremost.
+1
Like everyone else here, sending you lots of love and healing vibes!
I stumbled upon your live session, was it yesterday?, and loved hearing both of you in person. So happy you work as such a team and support each other. Glad there is no diabetes and hope your voice and Gordon’s typing lasts until your hands are better.
I bet the injury to your hands are driving you crazy. Thanks Gordon for helping Ilona out by typing for her, so she doesn’t go insane. I’ll keep you guys in my prayers for a quick recovery and that Diamond Fire goes smoothly. Can’t thank you enough for for the q & a, Ilona covering Gordon’s mouth made my night?
+1
Rest and take care of yourself.
Your poor fingers! I hope the rest will get them to as good as new. I wonder if ice or heat would help. That’s what they do in PT with different injuries. For my shoulder it was ice. For some necks it was heat. Something to relieve any of the pain you feel besides meds. You’d have to ask a PT which would be better though because they know which is better for what.
Can’t wait for Diamond Fire and Innkeeper. I always want more but I can wait patiently.
So glad your blood sugar levels are all good – and that rest and relaxation should help your hands. I hope Dragon learning curve is fast for you so you can easily switch between typing and dictating as the mood (and fingers) dictate.
Rest away! We can, of course, wait for all the goodness that will happen once your hands are feeling better.
Just wanted to say that I fell deeply in love with Kate from book one, ages ago and have bought everything. I read incredibly fast so I try to never look for publication dates or if I know them, I try to forget so it is like Christmas and then I found Innkeeper about halfway through the 1st one. Of course it fed all the magic in my imagination in between new books and this was glorious. I just wanted to counter some of the other comments, not sure how people don’t understand Innkeeper is a side gig of love and you have other work and plus..umm, life. Anyway…I come back every few weeks or so and then have a few to read or I somehow forget to check for months and it is Christmas! Keep on keeping. Save those hands!
Dragon does work. I’ve used it for years in my profession as a patent paralegal. It’s like a marriage though. You have to work at it! Train and retrain and then resign yourself to the fact that it’s going to insert random punctuation. Also, proofreading is more intensive. Spell check won’t help. It will insert the wrong word, but it will be spelled right! Good luck!
Yup. I also use Dragon for legal and accounting educational writing, and, this marriage analogy is a very good one! It will ‘learn’ your vocabulary and will get better at understanding your accent.
I am sad to hear that you have injured your hands, but, relieved to hear that it is not even more serious. I hope that you recover quickly. Having suffered similarly in the past, I am glad to say that rest, and then when possible, prescribed physio and regular appropriate exercises really can help….
Personally, I find that using Dragon for initial writing, and, the keyboard for editing works well for me. Everyone is different. As noted above, you get more typos than spelling errors from using dictating software vs typing, so, it has changed the way that I proof-read.
Once over the (mutual) learning curve, I found that I was faster and more productive with Dragon. Due to other injuries, I find it easier to work standing up (I have had a standing desk for nearly 20 years), so I now have a wireless headset, and, dictate whilst walking up and down in my office. I am reliably informed that I wave my hands in the air and generally get quite enthusiastic at certain points (often when I am giving feedback for students’ work). It is just as well that I mostly work from home…
I haven’t been using Dragon recently* but I was pretty impressed with it. Enough so to recheck whether a Linux version has been released (Caroline, I love your descriptions).
I don’t know how much you’ve already looked into these features, but there’s a pretty rich set of command and control features, which are useful for editing and also for controlling the rest of the computational environment. (I was banned from using keyboards or mice at all at work because my doctor was a rat bastard. And because Microsoft is kind of hard core about keeping engineers from overdoing it, possibly because of past experience.) Spoken keyboard shortcuts, combined with the radio alphabet were really useful “Press control alt charlie key” and that sort of thing. Generally the radio alphabet is useful, as it’s less error prone than just spelling aloud. There’s a whole mouseclick interface, but that’s only really a thing if you’re avoiding mousing as well (and if that’s a thing, there are also so many alternative pointer devices that are probably more efficient – I used to use an Easy Ball with my feet). There’s a whole ability to create macros which can also be great, though I leaned on it more than most as I was writing code.
Generally, there are a lot of features, and the time you put in learning them is well rewarded. I can’t claim to be diligent, MS just hired me a trainer, and then I had friends at the company that owned Dragon at the time. But I did come out of it with a lot of respect for the capabilities of the software.
* only because of OS incompatibility issues.
Hmmm. I will look into that (I have been too lazy about investigating these possibilities) – thank you very much Tylikcat!
I should add that my Dragon-dictating ‘performances’ are usually wearily witnessed by our resident greyhound…. who very much does not appreciate any interruption to his 22-hour a day snoozing target.
Well, you’re inspiring me – it’s not like it’s news that too much keyboard time is bad for me (I’m an ergo and posture freak, and the spine surgery did help…) but the image of being able to get up and move while writing really has me thinking. Even if I have to install a Windows VM to do it :-S
(Gah – I haven’t dealt with proprietary software in years.)
I could get one of those big ass screens I was looking at at Costco and mount it on my library wall…
I sympathise on the proprietary software front…, I use open-source software whenever I can (albeit my various university employers over the years have had rather….ummmm…. different views). When it comes to voice recognition software, however, I have very reluctantly concluded that Dragon is the most effective option at present. Combined with a good wireless headset, I have found it to be really flexible: pelvic injuries from car accidents mean that, for me, standing and typing at length – although better than sitting and typing – is still an issue.
A big wall-mounted screen would be lovely, though. Hmmmm…. more ideas.
When I moved over to Dragon, I printed a list of the main Dragon grammar and editing instructions and had them in plain view – it helped.
Everyone is different, but I suspect for some people moving to dictating software like Dragon, the main issue is the lack of haptic feedback. I am not sure that there is an answer to this – other than practice – but for me, it did help to try to channel my inner Star Trek (“Computer…”).
I was really impressed with Dragon when I was using it fifteen years ago – and it seems like people are running Dragon under Wine because there aren’t reasonable FOSS options. So, perhaps it’s time. Though, ugh – I scrubbed Windows off all my current boxes within minutes of getting them, and it’s almost a ritual purity thing, I swear. (After giving most of my twenties to MS, I have a few twitches! …and then when I left I ended up in a situation where they paid for my research for the first two and a half years, which was the sharpest of mixed blessings. But when I fled across the country, I went all FOSS all the time.)
When I was wrapped up in spine injury v1.0 (er, maybe v1.5…) I got really interested in the technical aspects of input technology – not in the least beccause I spent a while in there as an accessibility advocate. (Things to do if you’re bored: turn a screen reader on while you have Dragon on and let them talk to each other…) It breaks down into two different issues – one of is the text input, which is actually really a pain. Coming up with options that are fast and accurate and aren’t either a keyboard or voice recognition is really hard. Maybe some kind of brain-computer interface along the way? (I’m both serious and want to make sarcastic remarks about the practical state of the research.)
The other is manipulation of everything else in the computational environment – selecting, moving around, opening, closing, etc. And that, I think is where a 3D interface with, say, haptic feedback gloves (they can be super light weight, and don’t have to be full gloves) could work very well. People still talk about the Minority Report interface – not because it was the world’s best design, but because there aren’t that many examples of one like it being visualized.
I mean, let’s step back a bit. Computers are amazing, and there are all kinds of wonderful things to do on them. A traditional interface is also hell on your body – sure, moreso if you have an existing injury, but really, on everyone’s body. (In theory, my injury was doing just fine until I was a dumbass and overdid everything and tried to work myself to death, because young over achieving idiot in her twenties. Also, playing serious politics.) What you describe, in terms of being up and moving around is pretty close to my dream of being able to control my computer via full body movement (which is impractical, I just like to move.) Ahaha… maybe I should consider this as a research focus in a few years. Though I’m really liking my robotics community.
BTW, last time I was at Costco, not only did they have nice and surprisingly inexpensive 4K screens, they had these nifty wall mounts that you could pull out and turn ninety degrees. I had no excuse, but I will admit to tech lust. I might develop an excuse – and you have one already.
Sending healing thoughts from across the pond! You need to rest so as much as it pains me we can wait for innkeeper. Get Diamond Fire done (as I’m assuming it’s contractual) then take time off!!
Hugs,
I used to have similar issues couple of years back and it sucks. I am a software engineer and typing is all I do all day, every day. Here are couple of tips when I was experiencing pain in my hands:
1) Different keyboard – it made an enormous difference. Mine is “KeyOvation Adjustable Keyboard” and I keep my hands in this position: https://www.ergodirect.com/images/goldtouch/keyboard-hand_1.jpg
My husband (also software engineer) went more extreme and got himself https://www.kinesis-ergo.com/shop/advantage2/ It takes time to learn how to type on it, but it has an advantage that you are forced to keep your hands in a correct position and use minimal movement when typing.
2) I used to have pain from elbow down. Tennis elbow strap was a huge help. From what I understand it re-distributes the tension along the muscle similar to pressing a string of a guitar. Example: https://www.amazon.com/Bracoo-Tennis-Golfer-Elbow-Support-Compression/dp/B006LA6U3O
These days I don’t use it. My massage therapist showed me how I can use the elbow of one hand to put a pressure point and massage the other hand. Check out DIY Elbow Pain Massage on youtube – it might help.
I am sure other things are also important (angle of your elbow, switch from sitting to standing for 5 minutes every hour, don’t cross your legs) but keyboard+elbow strap did a trick for me and I didn’t have any issues since then.
Hope it helps and that you get better soon!
Hurrah!!! So glad it’s nothing more serious for you!! Although as a horse rider who rides despite injuries and understands the trouble with having no choice but to follow doctors instructions at times, I am laughing as well because I know the difficulties in being good for the long term and how amused Gordon must be!!
Heal well.
Oh, and I just finished Iron and Magic today (been a tough week, normally that would be an in a day read for me!) And I adored it. I’d been looking forward to it but I honestly wasn’t sure where I’d end up feeling about it because as much as I adore bad guy Hugh (one of the most entertaining characters and properly evil to boot) I wasn’t sure I could get behind him as a ‘hero’ But I shouldn’t have worried. The book is spectacular and I loved every moment.
SO MANY TIMES when reading that I found myself saying, “I can’t believe I’m rooting for HUGH. Geez.” I loved it too!!!
Hoping for a quick recovery! And perhaps you should continue dictating for a long time even after that to get those hands in tip top shape!
A side note… I cannot believe how fast Diamond Fire will be done. Even though it’s a novella it still blows the mind how quick your minds churn!
Glad you have a recovery plan & congratulations on Magic and Iron success!
Once you start typing again you might consider using rubber finger tips such as “Pack of 20 Studded Rubber Finger Cone Thimblettes in 5 sizes For Note Counting and Page Turning” on Amazon to cushion and spread the impact to your finger tips. They have a number of choices. Since I haven’t used them they may or not work or they may screw up your typing but in theory they may help. (It appears that each manufacturer has their own sizing.)
Delighted to hear that your hands aren’t symptomatic of diabetes, both my sisters are diabetic and one of them has arthritis in her hands. She’s had a steroid injection in her foot and now intends to have the other one done, she found the thumb one more painful and less effective though and isn’t having that redone.
I’ll be buying your books when you’re done writing them, so from a purely selfish point of view – please take care of your hands so there are many more for me to read in the future.
I feel like such a dunce (and old). I completely forgot about the live QA from Thursday/Friday to Saturday. Duh. Now I am looking forward to the upload. Thanks for the reminder.
Take care of yourselves and like most of your followers I will be delighted when the next Innkeeper installment gets here – on your timetable. Feel better and I hope the dictating software works well for you.
Whew! I am glad that you got a diagnosis of hand rest and it was not something more serious. There is only one of you (and two of your hands) so please take care of yourself. Your hands have typed millions of words for you and they now need a much deserved vacation. Don’t cheat, as tempting as it may be. A while ago one of the regular guys at my gym hurt his shoulder. The doctor told him to take 6 weeks off – he took two weeks off and damaged his shoulder to the point where it needed 6 months to recover.
I look forward to the Twitch session. I have read Iron & Magic twice now and just love it. So many great sections and quotes I just love. Thank you two again for taking it from April Fool’s joke to a trilogy. You’re the best.
I’ve been reading your books for what feels like forever, and have always been ASTOUNDED by how quickly new releases come out. Your dedication to various story lines and the craft of writing itself is amazing.
That said? When you were prescribed “rest,” I envisioned Doolittle looking at Kate with much despair……
That made me laugh!
Good one Jaime!
So happy to hear that you have a plan for your hands. Thank you so much for all you do for your fans; not only writing amazing books but your blog and the snippets, and the video interviews. I so enjoy being part of the BDH. Please know that 99% of us are always grateful and want you to put your health and family first. I know it is hard to ignore the complainers. They need to develop a span filter for those emails and comments so you don’t have to deal with them.
Finish your contract work, then take a trip to Florida (or anywhere, really) and let your hands truly heal. Have a similar problem with overuse in my wrist – it’s taken 6 weeks to alleviate the pain since I didn’t give it 2 weeks off! The BDH will gladly wait for you guys to rejuvenate. Your last 2 years have been incredibly busy and you deserve a long rest 🙂
x 100
I completely am in agreement on this.
For everything you both do you also need time to relax. Good vibes being sent your way.
Such good news about your hands! Take your prescription like a good girl and rest those precious fingers!
You’ve been in my prayers. My husband is a diabetic (just pills so far and I hope and pray we can keep it that way). He still has a struggle because of it and I worry about him a lot. I’m relieved for you that you don’t have to deal with that!
I want to apologize again for all the really ungrateful people who complained that the gift that is the Innkeeper serial was not getting here fast enough to suit them. Some people weren’t raised right, as my mother would say.
Thanks so much for all you do and here’s hoping for a speedy recovery!
Also, no knitting. Typing wreaked my hands and knitting finished them off. I had to give away a fortune in yarn. If you rest now hopefully all will be well.
I was just thinking that too Helen. No knitting or crocheting or anything else handwork for longer that the 2 weeks your doctor prescribed, Ilona. Also, keep your forearms and hands warm. The blood circulating will help speed up the healing process. Cold hands, fingers, and forearms will cramp horribly.
Speaking as someone who did not let her hands rest and paid surgical consequences; try rest, ice and maybe a chocolate martini
Ilona,so happy for you that’s it’s not diabetes. Sorry that you have sore and injured hands and glad they can come right with rest. Thank you again for all the amazing words.
What a relief to read that you don’t have a serious disease! (When my auto-immune conditions hit, my hands swelled up until they weren’t useable.) Rest your hands and train the Dragon to understand your speech!
You are in my thoughts and prayers. I hope that the hands free time will not be too frustrating. If you forget and start using your hands when you shouldn’t, like I did, try some soft socks on your hands. My ‘loving’ big brother sent me sock monkey puppets. I recommend some thin soft socks that won’t make your hands sweat but will be a reminder to not use your hands for things.
Have fun with it… be the Queen for the week and enjoy having your helpers! (ask for a really bright glittery crown!)
Very glad to hear that it’s not diabetes related.
Hope the dictation issues work themselves out quickly and that the rest period is enough. Once contracted work is finished take some time off. We’ll wait for renewal
of Innkeeper.
I suspect that your love of knitting hasn’t given your hands much of a break either.
I am glad to hear that your hand problems aren’t symptomatic of a more serious health issue. I have heard of Dragon & other dictating programs & wondered if it wouldn’t help you. Back in the 90’s I had gotten a similar program (because I never learned how to type) but got frustrated with it. Luckily my job doesn’t depend on my ability to type & I manage just fine typing with only my right hand.
I appreciate all that you do for us. And while I admit that I’m jonesing something fierce for the next installment of Sweep of the Blade, it would never occur to me that sending hate mail your way was going to get it out any faster. (big eye-roll)
So take care of yourself (and hands). We will be waiting for you when you are able to create more stories 🙂
Hope your hands are better soon and who knows, you may actually come to enjoy Dragon speaking
I’m so sorry that you’ve had pain and I hope you are better soon. I have Dragon on my phone and it’s great. It’s really weird at first but this horrible experience could have give you a new fantastic tool. Thank goodness for technology and magic. Sending you positive thoughts.
I am so glad that your worst fears were not realized. Just remember to drink plenty of soothing fluids so you don’t lose your voice too.
I can’t believe some trolls would badger you on the timeliness of Innkeeper installments. I just check every day and when I new one is posted it is like getting an unexpected present.
?Thank you for the thousands of hours of reading enjoyment you have given me over the years. Now that the final Kate book is coming, it is time to reread the series beginning with book 1. ???
That is what marriage is about, team work even if there cackling involved. Your health should always take precedence. Glad your not a diabetic also. Thanks for all your hard word and dedication it’s much appreciated, but rest when must.
Take a well deserved vacation. Multiple books per year plus Innkeeper…you’ve spoiled us and we like it, so take a vacation so that the spoilage can continue. Glad to know that it’s not diabetes and that it is treatable. Take care of yourselves.
I’m so happy you have found a solution that lets your body heal and rest as much as possible. Yay no diabetes!!! I devoured the dead tree version of Iron and Magic. It was super yummy! Thank you and get well!
glad to hear the hand situation is requiring rest and not something much more serious medically. I was a nurse for 43 years and have a husband who often does not listen to what the doctors say so please do rest your hands. I enjoy reading your books too much to have you have to stop for health reasons. As for the very rude email from the “person” ignore him. From what I have read in your blog comments your true fans will wait until you are 100%. I just go back and reread until then.
I’m so glad that you have a good diagnosis, and I, too, hope that the rest will help. Dragon is supposed to “learn” your voice and accent, so perhaps the dictating will become more useful, and less amusing.
It bothers me when people write comments suggesting a direction for your writing (plot ideas) because according to my parents (who were both writers), it snarls up the creative flow.
And it annoys me when the commenters seem to assume that you owe them anything at all. You are the writers. You get to write what you want, when you can or wish to write it. Of course commercial work comes first. I want Maude too. And I very much appreciate the gift of this story. Thank you. Whenever she reappears, I will be grateful.
I’m glad the hands weren’t bad for diabetes or stuff. I’m really sorry they are hurt. I hope you get them well and the injuries never come back to haunt you. Or at least haunt you minimally. (A couple of years ago, both my hands were unusable, and it is scary and upsetting to have them BOTH be swollen and painful. I am so sorry.)
Good luck with Dragon. Based on reading over the years, it is a pain to get used to and to train, but if you keep at it, it eventually becomes useful. Maybe even quite useful.
Good luck, Gordon and Ilona.
Bone broth (made with grass fed, antibiotic beef bones) will speed the healing. Epsom salt soaks will help too. And wine, of course! I hope you feel better soon!
Your poor hands. Enjoy your break and rest well. Might I suggest watching the World Cup? I’m not usually a soccer fan, but every four years I have to watch the world’s best players battle it out. There are grown men sobbing, Oscar-worthy acting over a slight trip, and some really awesome footwork. All the drama should take your mind off your predicament for at least 90 minutes each match!
Don’t let a small number of entitled, spoilt haters get to you. They sound terribly rude! I’d imagine it was pretty awful reading all that negativity when you’re in pain and feeling down.
Just know that there are many of us out there who love your work and appreciate all the effort that goes into it. Sending you lots of positive energy!
Great news about the non-diabetes. Typing — yikes!!! Good thing Gordon is there to help out — albeit while laughing. ? I type nowhere near what you do and I think I’ve got 20 years on you, but I especially feel it in my thumbs.
Finished Iron and Magic this weekend. You guys don’t disappoint!!! Eagerly waiting #2. Thanks, as always, for your WONDERFUL books!!!
This is my second comment ever(I think), definitely my less than tenth comment ever.
I am so happy to read the good news about your hands. I will also send good vibes that your marriage will withstand the dictation process.
I have met you guys twice, and read most of your books. I think you’re (both) pretty great, and I wish you a complete recovery.
Hooray to no diabetes!! Boo to a repetitive use injury. They suck. Take your time, get well, and listen to Dr. Gordon. Rest and relax and enjoy yourself.
Get well soon and try to enjoy dictation, maybe make up words and slip them in as you go, just for fun
+1
+1
So, so glad to hear it. Take care of yourself. Happy to hear you found a text to type program that works but now is the time to catch up on your three Rs. Reading, relaxing and resting.
Absolutely +1 to the three Rs, assuming that’s even a possibility in your busy life. I know you feel like the ergonomic keyboard is weird and slow, but it will improve with practice, too. And if it helps to prevent a reoccurrence, then I say go for it. And you may find that dictating is a good standby! In the meantime, take care and best wishes.
+1 to all of the above! I hope that your hands feel better soon and that dictating works out. We all love your writing and can’t wait to get our hands on whatever you write next, but you come first!
+1. Please please test up, oops, that’s rest up…. Hand injuries may come back to haunt us (personal experience).
Best wishes for a prompt and complete recovery.
+1
+1
I am so happy for you that the diabetes concern has been resolved. I am so sorry for the damage/pain but it is good that you found a solution. I am further happy that they many outpourings of support and love have helped with the ugliness of the entitled. I was worried for you. I look forward to reading all the books!
Very well said and seconded!
And thirded.
Like Hope T and Sally I am relieved to hear it is not diabetes or something else requiring dire medical intervention. I am happy you have a plan to deal with the injury and to prevent further injury going forward. The voice to text program sounds good and I assume is the one people said can adjust for accents(charming ones like yours Ilona included). Once you are allowed to type again I assume the ergonomic keyboard will help prevent further damage.
Please take this as another message of support and ignore the negativity from those who allowed their sense of entitlement to get in front of their common sense. You and Gordon are very generous with your readers and this member of the BDH appreciates both your writing skill and your willingness to engage with us.
+1
+1
+1
Well said, Frances!
+1
Holy moly, 500,000 words in a year…yikes! This is when the phrase “keep your hands to yourself” comes into play. 😀 I’m glad there were no underlying issues with the hand pain. One thing…if you feel your tendons and ligaments shorten up it’s due to the inflammation and damage done to the soft tissue. I know this due to falling down some stairs over 20 years ago. To this day I have limited range of motion in my left foot and in my knees. Keep in mind soft tissue damage heals slower than a hard bone break (this is what my doctors told me over time). Just do what your doctor and Gordon tell you to do, and before you know it, your hands, fingers and forearms are healed up.
Glad to hear Diamond Fire is coming along. Re-reading Iron and Magic (Ottoman Magic…that could be the name of a new book in the future…love autocorrect (or in the BDH’s view autocorrupt)).
Whoops, didn’t finish my thought about Iron and Magic. This book makes me laugh, shake my head, and think “this is not about the love of a good woman to a man (hehehe). Just the opposite. If somebody else doesn’t kill them, they will kill each other.” It will be very interesting to read the second book after Magic Triumphs. 🙂
Well expressed Patricia. This is not a story of a bad man being redeemed by the love of a good woman!
I think Hugh (who I previously hated because Aunt B. Mauro. Locking people in cages. Imprisoning Kate in water cistern.) has linked up with the one woman who can match him in badassery and, if they don’t kill each other, help him in killing their enemies. I like that they are both loyal to their people and Elara’s demonstrated loyalty to Hugh was a good start to their being a real couple. (The hot sex probably didn’t hurt either!) I too look forward to their development as individuals and as a couple in books 2 and 3.
Ilona and Gordon, would it be possible for a discussion blog on Iron and Magic? I realise it would need to be clearly labelled SPOILER ZONE so those of the BDH who haven’t yet read it can avoid it.
With Iron and Magic, I find it interesting to learn how much Roland suppressed Hugh’s emotions. It is also interesting to see that the story could lead to where the vision from the dancer at the castle overseas may come true….just not how Hugh thought it would. What wonderfully creative authorlords!
So glad to hear that you are getting the care you need to recover! Please consider having your work space and methods evaluated by an ergonomic specialist. Your ability to create shouldn’t be paid in pain or injury.
And I hope you are able to take some mental breaks too – chronic conditions can be so draining, and you can forget how restful it is to not feel your hands. Paraffin dips, arm massage, floating in a pool, I wish these all for you.
+++1
I second the recommendation of a workspace ergonomic evaluation if you haven’t already done it. My company has 2 ergonomists on staff, finances are tight enough that the only reason they would do this is because the benefits outweigh the cost. I spend most of the day on the computer though I certainly don’t type as much as you. But it makes a huge difference when my chair, keyboard, desk, and screen are aligned properly with the appropriate parts of my body.
I send best wishes and prayers for a quick recovery and reduced pain. And totally support you taking a generous amount of time off when you finish your contractual commitments. Come back to Innkeeper when it’s truly fun, not because you think you ought to.
I third the recommendation of an ergonomic assessment. I spend a lot of time at a desk and on computer as well and generally have an ergonomic assessment for me and team members every 18 to 24 months. New folks get one immediately. Frequent reassessments may sound like overkill but our bodies change as we age or start a diet, exercise program, etc. And you wouldn’t believe what a difference the “seat pan” on a chair makes – that is the actual seat. You wouldn’t think it would make a difference to how you type but it does – ensuring your body is properly aligned is all part of it…
I agree with all above. The relief when the work area is set right is almost instantaneous, and not just for your hands.
Happy 4th of July to all! Thank you both for the great books!
Occupational therapists do ergonomic evaluation as well. You want one who is an OTR — the R means ‘registered’; it’s a higher level certification, like RN versus LPN.
My mother is an OTR, so the entire house was organized to precisely suit six people shorter than 5’4″. Mama is very keen on wrist supports for typing, chairs raised to the proper height, and various supplies arranged so they are easily seen and precisely where the hand will reach for them.
It is always worth avoiding injury. An ounce of prevention worth a pound of cure & all that. And with repetitive injuries, the key word is repetitive. If you can’t stop typing, then take the steps necessary to make typing less injurious. Ergonomic assessment, yoga or barre classes for your posture, breaks throughout the work process, massage therapy. It won’t be one thing that helps the healing and prevents re-injury – it will be a mixed bag of things.
It is always worth avoiding injury. An ounce of prevention worth a pound of cure & all that. And with repetitive injuries, the key word is repetitive. If you can’t stop typing, then take the steps necessary to make typing less injurious. Ergonomic assessment, yoga or barre classes for your posture, breaks throughout the work process, massage therapy. It won’t be one thing that helps the healing and prevents re-injury – it will be a mixed bag of things.
So happy that it’s not diabetes or pre-diabetes. I hope you feel better soon. All the best.
Just the image of you dictating and Gordon there laughing so that your written sentences show as “and ha then ha they ha ha” etc XD
Sending best wishes to you both, Gordon happy typing and Ilona happy dictating….hugs to both of you ???
I am a long haul truck driver and your books keep me entertained for the long hours I have to drive. Thank you for that. My middle finger in my left hand also has issues from holding the steering wheel for so many years. I thought I had gout in my finger. It started swelling and got so bad I was no longer able to move it. It was finally diagnosed as trigger finger and I do daily exercises to keep my hand/finger able to move freely. Thank you again for all of your wonderful stories and characters that keep me moving down the road.
I drove OTR for 6 years. I have to say that I was also addicted to audio books during that time. 🙂
Now I only drive 1-2 hours a day, but I still listen to books in the car. As well as read them on my tablets at work for several hours a day. I know that I only listen to books that I have already read before. Because if I am listening to a new book, plus reading a new book, it can get confusing to keep things straight.
You got this, Ilona! Take it easy, and let Gordon baby you.
Get well soon! And while we miss you – HEAL UP! We will wait and be there for you.
Also wanted to add my support here to you guys re: Inn Keeper. Some people have massive entitlement issues.
I still blows my mind that some people think they are OWED something you have given to us for free as a labor of love. It makes me a little nuts.
While I love Inn Keeper and will sorely miss them, I for one (and I know I am not alone) will totally get and respect if you don’t want to do it anymore. But I also hope you don’t let the trolls who are minority of your audience ruin something for you that has given both you guys and us much pleasure in the past.
And thanks again for all you guys have done and do. Your writing has brightened many days.
+1
Get well Flower from my garden 😉
+1
Ditto on her comments there is no pleasing everyone.
+1 🙂
Hope your hands feel better after their rest, you probably shouldn’t do anything with them for the next two weeks. At least that would be my take if it were me. I did learn to appreciate steroid shots after several injuries but I did not let them stick a needle in my hip. But after almost 10 wks of PT, I think I would be tempted to reconsider that decision if I am ever in that position again. The shots did work wonders on my knee and shoulder. Still having trouble believing you made me like Hugh, not a lot but a little bit.
It is important to take care of yourself first. I know it must be hard to be creative with another method but with practice it gets easier. Best wishes for a smooth recovery.
After suffering through years of RMI (and still occasional flare-ups), I hope you have a reduction in pain as you go through recovery! Time is what you need – please take care of yourself!
Is it hot in Texas? (kidding) Maybe treat yourselves to a trip after Diamond Fire. We live in Florida and head to a rented house in Maine for a week every August just before I spontaneously combust. Lobster rolls, blueberry turnovers, no humidity and 40-50 degree nights. It is bliss.
Hope you’re inflammation in fingers goes down with rest! Mine usually gets a little better on my summer vacation when I get four whole weeks away from work and the constant typing, and it’s unfortunately because I rest them as much as I can (so have had to give uo computer games). I have had psoriasis arthritis in my hands since my mid twenties, so I really really feel for you with the hands!
Since some of the best advice and tips I have gotten for managing my pain and inflammations has come from fellow sufferers I wanted to just pay it forward, hope you don’t take offence at unasked for “advice”…
First, I applaud your instincts about cortison shots, I got them my first years, and though I think they have their uses, I have anaged to avoid them for four years now, and will only consider it again if the pain gets really unbearable. Because they are often VERY painfull to get, for days after, and only works if the doctor is skilled and gets the injection just right. They can also damage your joints if given incorrectlg, which then takes months to heal. Plus the cortison, even in shots, when you take them regularily, can mess with your weight (NOT fun suprise…)
I get bad inflammations much more seldom now, partly because I get biological medicins, but also because I tapemy fingers! That is my biggest tip, apart from the usual “rest and apply topical anti inflammatory” advice they always give you… Right now my hands are bad, but I have to work, so I use sports tape, cut into a long oval (slightly shorter thanthe finger, and about 4 cm wide). Then I cut an oval hole inside that oval, and tape the piece on to the finger from the top of the finger backwards. The tape should go along the side of the finger, leaving the joint tape free, but “lifted”. Aparently the theory is that it gives a little bit of more room or something in the joint, but I do it because it helps lessen the pain, probably by stabalising the finger. I also feel like it helps lessen the overtaxing of my hands when I have to work with an ongoing inflammation.
I’m using this right now on my hands and this week they feel better than the last, so I hope to survive the summer without my regulat physio therapist sessions of hot parafin hand baths, which are good for keeping the inflammations at bay, but unfortunately do nothing ones I have one, which was why I didn’t think of that under the “tips froma fellow sufferer”…
Anyways, wanted to spread the word on taping fingers, it was a bit hard describing how one cuts out the tape, hope it makes a little sense. I imagine there must be pictures on the internet since my physio therapist came back from a seminar with a book, but one has to experiment a little I think, to find the best shape for ones own fingers…
Best wishes and hope you will recover quickly and fully!
I have had paraffin baths on my feet. They are divine!
Paraffin baths work great for your hand pain. I also like to put therapy putty in the fidge. Aspercreme or lidocaine gel work pretty good. But when my hands hurt really bad I tape my fingers with Lidocaine patches or Salonpas patches while I sleep.
I hope you find Dragon to be so good that you use it all the time and can save your fingers for other things like knitting and gaming.
15ish years ago I worked at a university, and the senior academic I worked for used Dragon cos of arthritis in his fingers. Even that far back it good enough to make a huge difference for him and I hope the software has continued to improve.
While I am thankful for all the energy you direct into your work, I hate to think it caused you injury. I love each and every piece of writing you guys have produced and have read them multiple times. I hope your hands heal completely. Do you also have to abstain from your knitting? Maybe you can knit and dictate?
Get well soon! I know everybody and their brothers probably gave you advice, but did you try using green clay poultice ? it works wonderfully on inflammations… (also NO NEEDLE!) I used it a lot when I had problems to my knees tendons.
So glad there is no long term diseases. So sorry that you have soft tissue injury. Thank you both for all the great books!
Along with the soaking, topical rubs, and tapping I would also recommend a big cushy steering wheel pad or cushion. That has helped me loads! You can get them for $10-20. The more cushion the better. You don’t think it will help, but it really does.
Rest well! When you publish I will buy!
Take care of your hands. Take whatever time you need for you.
Thanks you, Ilona Andrews, for the great news. I was thinking carpal tunnel not pre diabetic or diabetic issue.
Regarding steroid shots, everyone reacts differently to steroids. Me personally I turn into someone who makes the wicked witch look like an angel. One of my siblings is pain free, happy, nice…
Regarding Dragon software, Dad loved it even when he started slurring his words. So I am glad it is working for you.
Regarding Gordon, I ROFLOLED until pup came to make sure I was okay. I could just picture Gordon maniacally laughing and typing. Thanks for the chuckle.
One word of caution, soft tissue inflammation and damage takes longer to heal than you would expect especially hands /wrists/ feet/ ankles no matter your age. So listen to your doctor and let Gordon help you.
Thanks again. For good news.
Yes. On the longer to heal – I’m surprised you only have to not type for 2 weeks. Hopefully that’s a long enough break.
Do take your time. When you feel ready to begin again, no marathon typing events. Ease back in slowwwwwly!
Good luck with finishing Diamond Fire. And remember to stop and smell the roses every now and then!
Very glad to hear that you haven’t got a chronic condition and I hope that the rest will help your hands get better soon.
Sending you lots of healing energy and hoping that the two weeks will be enough, given your demanding schedule. I am really completely amazed at the sheer number of words that you type and the marathon session you described- wow.
So I’m feeling a little guilty and sad that all the work you’re doing which results in so many wonderful books for us to enjoy causes you such pain.
But rest assured we treasure every word you write and I will gladly reread my trove of your books while your hands heal.
Good luck and best wishes for a full recovery. And hopefully you’ll find something to tide you over since you’re probably suffering from knitting withdrawal on top of that, this must really be trying.
I recently injured my finger and learned how many things you never think about until they become a challenge all of a sudden- so I’m hoping you’ll get lots of help and that you can tame the Dragon to make things easier on your hands.
++++++++1!
so very happy to read this.
knowing there is no underlying issue and that it is “only” (ha!) overuse is a much much better outcome.
I understand hand injuries – had to have carpal tunnel surgery for much the same reason (even though I Know how to hold my hands/wrists from years of piano).
Wishing you all the best – and No Typing (I also understand the evil cackles that accompany that prescription).
Your health and ability to use your hands is Far More Important.
Do what you can, when you can.
🙂
Great news on the long term illness side but take care of your hands and keep dictatingvto Gordon. The idea of him laughing as you dictste snd the typing makes me smile (and will every time i think of it). Keep well both of you.
Please take a break when you can. Don’t worry about inn keeper. Someone suggested paraffin bath for your hands. I have had this on my feet, it is divine. If the doctor ok’s it you can also get it done at a nail salon. I have thought of you often, sending you good vibes. I keep rereading Iron and Magic. I have to say Hugh and Elara are higher on my list of heroes and heroines then Kate and Curren. I love them together!
Gahhhhaaa!
I whacked my right hand a few days ago, believe me I know what it’s like.
Get better soon.
So very glad to hear it nothing super serious….rest up and take your time coming back. Your well being is the most important thing. (I dictated this on my phone and only had to correct 8 words, rolls eyes) Wish you a speedy recovery! Now im going back to reading….?
Yay! That’s all. Yay!
Wishing you an excellent recovery. You have achieved so much, and now it’s time to get a proper rest.
Ilona – there’s suddenly no Reply buttons or Comments box in the latest Innkeeper chapter. While comments are still working here. Is it intentional to shut down the comments section there?
Maybe they’re full after a certain number? It was inching toward 1200 last I looked.
Hi Simon, comments for the entire multisite are on a 2 week timer. No comments can be made after the post is two weeks old. It’s done this way to keep people from commenting on posts from 5 years ago.
OK – Thanks Ilona, I understand. Hope your hands get better soon so you can start feeding the BDH again! 😉
I’m so glad that the diagnosis wasn’t something more serious. Well obviously it’s not good that you’ve damaged your hands in the first place but I’m glad it’s not something like diabetes and that with rest your hands should recover! It’s good that you seem to be getting on okay with dictating too, hopefully that will help prevent you from injuries in the future.
I’m glad you’ve got Gordon to take on the lion’s share of the typing for Diamond Fire but perhaps when you’ve finished that you guys should try and take a proper break! As much as we all love Innkeeper I think the majority of your fans are more concerned about your health and happiness than when we’ll get the next instalment. Whatever works for you but don’t stress out, relax and give your body time to recover fully and I really hope your poor fingers are feeling better soon!
Yayyyyy!!! Awesome news. And if you end up having to try any other dictation programs, I’d love to hear about them…but consensus is you started with the best.
I hope the diagnosis from your doctor helps with the worries for a while. My husband’s favorite comment from his doctor was “You’re boring. Come back next year.” It sounds as if the blood sugar element got a similar verdict. (Yay!)
It hopes of making your day a bit brighter, I am sending you a photo (if it works) of Lady Alvina Krahr. She is a 3 month old Maine Coon kitten and will grow into her name with time.
Squee! (For the kitty) Big name to live up to.
Beautiful kitty—love her name!
Will you call her Karat for short name? *giggle*
Of course. One of the best things was that people who don’t read Innkeeper will have no idea how I got Karat out of Lady Alvina…
Lovely! She already has the attitude down.
so glad you had good health news and even more, what a great team to be able to continue to work! I hope you get to take some time for yourselves and your family. Thanks for all you do!
The rest cure is the one that really works with soft tissue injuries. I had plantar fasciitis and everyone kept just saying that’s it until someone finally listened to what I was saying about 2 kinds of pain, one feeling more like stretchy, tendon type pain and the other like in the bone. Finally got sent to the right specialist, and I was right. I also had stress fractures in both feet, one worse than the other. They threatened me with a wheelchair if I didn’t use the soft cast for the bad foot and stayed off them as much as possible for 4 -6 weeks. I managed 4 weeks, and tapered off the cast, and ya know, both types of pain were much improved. Imagine that. I keep up with the exercises for pf, am very careful about choice of shoes, and have much less problems with feet. So I think this is the time to follow medical advice, since this advice will at worst not cause more damage.
Thanks for the update and allllll the love you give your readers over the years. You two are magical and we (your fans) are so lucky to have you and your work. Take your time and heal yourself.
PS – I am on my second read of Iron and Magic. It’s AMAZING
So glad to hear the good news- & I guess that just means you should take a vacation since speak to text stinks!
Long after carpal tunnel surgery I still use & love my ergonomic keyboard, even though all the letters are worn off, & love my vertical ergonomic mouse. I hope you’re not typing on an awful laptop keyboard. Hopefully Gordon has strong hands not only to type with but to give you frequent hand massages! (:
Ilona, go get a delux mainicure! …And have you tried going to a beauty supply house & getting a parafin wax dip spa kit for home? I have lavender and eucalyptus wax-So soothing for aching tired hands. You can take turns wrapping each other’s dipped hands in syran wrap & towels and kick back & relax!
Glad you’ve gotten some answers! The worst is not knowing. Rest and dictate (too much fun that might be!) and we’ll see Innkeeper when we see it.
“Ottoman Magic” – much smaller than a flying carpet, kind of like those Smart Cars vs a standard sedan??
(If you end up having to have cortisone shots, you should get lots of really good chocolate as the reward!!)
Well, good news on diabetes. As for Dragon Speak, I’ve heard once it learns your voice and patterns, that it is quite decent. Obviously will require better editing than your norm, but that’s a small price to pay to have working hands that don’t ache. You take care of you. We’ll wait with bated breath as long as necessary. ? Love anything you write. Maud is a favorite!
Hope you feel better soon! Take care of yourself and don’t overdo it. As a fan of your work, I’m always ready to read anything you write, but I’d rather only get 1 book a year and you have more rest than you feel bad and hurting or pushing yourself to write when it’s not enjoyable to you anymore!
Totally glad it was something workable, even if a bit stressful. I can’t play guitar for longer than an hour before I pull my hand off the frets and it shakes like I’ve got Parkinson’s. The next day I can’t play at all because my fingers simply won’t’ close over the neck. I’ve been told it’s because I hold it too hard, well I can’t push down the dang strings OTHERWISE! People with tiny girl fingers and palms can’t reach the other side of the manly neck!
I’m not bitter. Nope. I just go play piano and trumpet and pretend my hands aren’t shaking.
Glad you’re going to mend! Now, make Gordon take ALL the diction!
Please take care of your hands, they are a treasure. if I couldn’t read any more of your books, I have no idea what I’d do.
Please take good care of your hands, they are a treasure. If I could no longer read new books by you I have no idea what I would do
Gah. I hate dictation. I’ve been an attorney for a long time and I still type all of my own briefs. (Control issues). This has to be hugely annoying for you. Sorry.
Excellent news ! Getting better takes time – but time is needed for the hands to heal so don’t overdo it when you’re let loose again 🙂 All in all – excellent news all around everything (couldn’t find a way to say all in there again).
Best wishes and good luck with Naturally Speaking – it might need a little tweaking since y’all apparently have an accent.
Good luck!!! I hope your hands get to feeling better soon and fingers crossed the dictating gets even better and easier with time!
Thank you so much for twitch, your many books (I just read and reread them as I wait.), and your wonderful blog. I hope your hands heal completely and quickly Mrs. Ilona. I love the excerpts from your POV Mr. Andrews. You are both so great. Thank you for my much need ‘scapecation.
+1. Perfectly said Lora! ?
+1!!
Our main concern is that you take care of yourself!! Yes we want the next installment of the innkeeper, but we want you well and able to continue writing for a long time, so please take care of yourself!!!
Exactly! If you both were to drop from the face of the earth for a whole year and not write a single peep, leading to delays in your whole publishing schedule, I would of course be a little sad but ultimately very supportive of your decision and very, VERY glad that you’re taking care of yourselves. Because I’m grateful to you for your work and you deserve to be happy and healthy. And if you want to keep writing, then it needs to be at a rate your bodies can keep up with so that it can go on for as long as you want it to. We obviously will always devour everything you write, don’t break yourselves trying to feed the horde! 🙂
Please take care of your hands. I know you will have some relief its not a disease, but its sounds like you have a major repetitive strain injury as well. Please rest. I appreciate your books, but nothing is more important than your health. Take care both of you and best wishes to your family.
This. Please just try to get better. We can all wait. Happy healing!
I totally agree. Best wishes to both of you!
Yay! a solution found! But that means you have to stick to the ‘no typing’ edict. No cheating! Hopefully your husband makes a good secretary. I am now picturing a film noir scene with Ilona playing the private eye and Gordon playing the secretary taking notes on a flip pad (or the one who walks into the office with the mysterious problem to solve…)
I am so ecstatic for your good news Ilona.
I’m sure your even more so.
Would you please consider the continual use of Dragon Naturally Speaking after the 2 weeks of hand/finger rest.
The reason I ask is the amount of typing you apparently do.
Maybe you could do a combination of typing and dictation, possibly one in the morning and the other in the afternoon.
You may have already thought of this yourselves, just throwing it out there.
+1.. good to know that your typing alternatives are working out.. prayers for your complete recovery!
This is good news-with limits. I know it’s a relief when you find out it’s not disease. Rest your hands, entertain Gordon, have a glass of wine. Ignore the trolls. Y’all are truly treasures and so very generous to your fans.
+1
+1
If I remember correctly, Ilona promised on this very blog that she would take two weeks off after she was done with Hugh’s book. Of course, this was before the Hidden Legacy/Diamond Fire announcement. Ilona, please take the time to rest once Diamond Fire is off. Take a restful vacation, too. Btw, how was NYC? Did you get to do any of the touristy things the BDH recommended?
PLEASE take care of your hands!!! Just because it’s an injury and not a disease is no reason to be blase about it. It’s taking me 5 years plus to START to recover feeling in my feet after chemo caused severe neuropathy. If you injure your hands severely enough, the symptoms will be similar even if the cause is different. Don’t let it get to that point!
Heal well, and take some time off. We CAN wait patiently for you (trolls’ opinions notwithstanding!).
+5
Amen. I hope whatever course of action you take, the hand injuries don’t haunt you in the future.
This time around I have not had the time available to read all the comments. However, I really wanted to post something, so all – please forgive me if I inadvertently restate something already posted by someone else previously.
Ilona, I am so happy that your fears of diabetes or a pre-diabetic diagnosis were not realized!! I am sorry to hear though about the level of physical stress and abuse your hands, wrists, and fingers have endured – especially re ently and after they were already injured from overuse. I am glad that you found a dictation program that seems to work fairly well for you, and that you have Gordon’s help and support – albeit with a healthy helping of humor! I hope you allow yourself the time to truly and completely heal, so you don’t cause further and even worse damage to yourself. I would not dream of trying to tell you what to do or how to go about your business (you are a full-grown, and demonstrably capable woman), but I hope you do not feel pressured in anyway to resume the Innkeeper postings unless and until you and Gordon can enjoy doing so. I simply LOVE all your works, am enjoying SOTB immensely and am dying to know what happens next, but would much rather have you abandon it than continue what was a labor or love and gift to your fans as something that has become unpleasant chore. I am pretty sure that the majority of the BDH feels the same. There doesn’t seem to be anyway I can truly repay your and Gordon’s generosity to your fans. All I can think to do is buy all of your works, highly recommend them to all, and write what I hope you take to be a positive and encouraging post every now and then. I would feel horrible if you suffered for your kindness!
Please, rest and allow your body the time it needs to heal, let Gordon help you (and get a good laugh from the situation), and don’t resume Innkeeper until it is on YOUR schedule!
Thank you Gordon and Ilona for all you give freely of yourselves to your fans! ?
+100
I agree. Anything you write is a gift to us. You and Gordon were the first UF books I read and I have been hooked ever since. Take care of yourself first. Ignore all the trolls and keep doing what you love.
I’m glad your diagnoses was what you needed to here, I suffer from Rhuematoid Arthritis so I know how painful hands can get even after surgery, so take care of your hands and not just rest them even though you use them for your livelihood you need them for so much more as I’m sure you have realised over the last few weeks. So pamper them as often as you can, hot wax baths are great for easing pain, having had steroid injections I don’t blame you for not having them as the pain of the injections can last a couple of days before the relief kicks in and in my case at least didn’t last too long, hence surgery. Hope you are getting some help with the hands we can wait for the books no matter how people moan about the wait your health comes first!
My mother-in-law looooves her hot wax baths too. 🙂
I use hot wax baths for my feet in winter when my arthritis is so bad. Feels wonderful
Great to hear that it’s not a diabetes problem! Sad to hear that it’s damage; take care of it. Follow the doctor’s orders, please.
Pfui; I find myself wanting to fill this space with platitudes about taking enough time to heal, which is ridiculous. I’ll just say again that I hope you do.
Am I the only one who now badly wants to read, “Ottoman Magic – Roland,the early years”? these April fools titles and now dragon naturally speaking mistakes really fuel our desires for more. Although, we are the horde, we do devour so more is always good.
I used dragon many years ago when it was really new I’m glad it is helping you out. And really what other dictation program would a fantasy writer want.
Hoping things become more comfortable for you after a good rest. Does the rest stop you from doing things like knitting too? although who can knit when it’s 100 +
I want to read Ottoman Magic, in whatever form that takes.
…when did Roland wake up?
Oh Ottoman Magic! That sounds like glorious fun! Although, I think I should go to bed now, because in my head all I can see is D’jinn teaching shifter babies about the Ottoman empire while they sit on ottomans staring at the magic map on the wall with big anime eyes.
+1
I think that your Treatment plan should include”no dish washing”, because, typing and dish washing are hard on the hands. Seriously, rest the hands. I can say, from personal experience, that steroid injections do help decrease the pain and inflammation. It doesn’t mean that you can go back to typing immediately. Your body does heal better when it isn’t fighting the injuries and the pain. Rest and be kind to your body.
I have been told, that Dragon Speak gets used to your speech patterns. I don’t know for sure because I don’t have enough patience to find out. At least you are entertaining your husband. I hear laughter is good for your health…Take care and thank you for the update on your hands.
So glad to hear that you don’t have diabetes as you feared. Please rest for as long as you need to. I really enjoy the Innkeeper books; they were the first books of yours I read and after that I read all the Kate Daniels books. And I really appreciate authors who blog; many of the authors whose blogs I have followed are more into social media these days. I am grateful for you attention to us, your readers.
I don’t think that you really need my input about your hands. Once the bugs are worked out, dictation just might become your best friend. But then I prefer audio books. I can’t wait for your next books to come out in that format. Anything that you publish needs to be in my library.
Mainly, I just want to say to have a happy Fourth. I am happy to hear that your health fears were not realized.
Take as much time as your hands need. We’ll all be here when you’re better. And don’t forget that you > any story we want. No matter how whiny we get.
Yay for no diabetes, but OW for the hands. I’ve been there (radial tunnel, yay 🙁 ) and it was absolutely NO fun. They still give me issues if I type more than a couple thousand words a day. Really really hope they heal and heal well! I can wait till whenever for new books/Innkeeper. Health is more important!
So glad to hear it’s not diabetes, but am sorry what you’re going through with your hands. I know both how painful and frustrating it is. Take care of yourself and wishing those hands a speedy recovery!
I have never posted before and likely won’t again because I am a cowardly lurker, but:
Over ten years ago, I was slaving away in a miserable job managing a corporate bookstore in the CNN building atrium, and one day my new stock included this interesting debut author (I didn’t know Ilona Andrew’s was a combo package yet!) who had chosen Atlanta as her setting, so I gave it a try.
I was hooked the minute I discovered where the vampires were nesting.
I pushed the Kate Daniels series on literally every fantasy junkie I knew (“The writing is so GOOD! The characters are amazing! The world building is completely unique!”). In more recent years I worked at an independent bookstore and there came a point at which, when I suggested Ilona Andrews, my customer had already read your books and loved them too.
Every book y’all publish, every Innkeeper chapter y’all post, makes that day a good one for me. I’m in a new job now, in a completely different field. It’s a great position and very fulfilling (I work for a clinic that makes orthotic braces, funny enough) but it’s a steep learning curve and I’m terrified of failing. I had an awful day last week, couldn’t get anything right and just felt drained at the end of it, but then Iron and Magic was on my kindle when I got home and all of my miserable mood just drained away. Y’all are wonderful, and I wish that in some tiny way I could improve your day the way your books have so many of mine, for a decade now.
In deepest sincerity, thank you both for sharing your stories.
+100
well said.
Take care of yourselves and have a great 4th of July.
Pls get well soon. Cant wait to read more postings on innkeeper next chapter. But then your health should come first.. take care..
Good call resting and not getting steroid shots. I had one once for a problem ankle and I’ll need to be near death to ever allow anyone to give me one again.
Best of luck recovering well and having the discipline to be kind enough to yourself to stay so.
I am so glad about the diagnosis regarding your hands. You both are two of my favorite authors. Not only for your books for the generosity of your time and talent. Can’t wait for Kate’s book. Again my thanks for the hours and days of enjoyment. Marcelline
Sounds like the best possible result with the doctor….but now you have to follow the rules and keep those hands “quiet” !!! Here’s sending best possible vibes and prayers your way for some serious healing.
Supposedly Dragon speak is supposed to get better the more you use it. It learns how you speak. I hope this is true so you can rest your hands. You need to take care of yourself first. You don’t want it to effect your future use of your hands. Good luck and thanks for all of your hard work. Love your books!
Gordon just needs to hold your hands ? and kiss ? them better while you dictate.
I just can not help myself with this visual. You dictating, your wonderful hubby kissing your hands. I think this would be an entirely different series, which of course I would definitely read, but I do not think it would be a part of the Innkeeper series. LOL!
So glad your biggest fear was not realized. Take care of yourself as we worry about you. I know you are getting a lot of advice. Allow me to offer some old fashion remedies. Rest is first, of course, but consider ice baths of 5-10 minutes (no heating pads yet). You might want to find a massage therapist that does hands and arms as it really does help. Arnica oil with the massage may help. If you can a find therapist that does both ultrasound (which increases blood to the swollen and aggravated tissue – this was a huge relief for me) and, later, electrical muscle stimulation, even better. I hope the Dr. prescribed anti-inflammatory meds like etodolac or take over the counter aleve.
Please rest and keep using the dictation software. You give us so many gifts. Give yourself the gift of time and rest.
I am SO glad that the diagnosis was “just” overuse trauma – I had looked up splinter haemorrhages on reputable medical sites, and became extremely worried that you might manifest some of the more serious underlying causes. I wonder, would epsom salt soaks help Ilona’s hands? In any case, **both** of you take good care of yourselves and take however long you need to get to optimal health… and that includes consigning those ignorant buttheads to the virtual rubbish bin to maintain your mental health! The adults among us will wait patiently until you give us the green light. Vaya con Díos 🙂
Take good care!!! I’m rehabbing shoulder tendonitis and basically can’t use my arm for anything; it is beyond frustrating to have activities reduced. Especially when your stress-relieving hobbies (e.g. KNITTING!!!) end up also being banned. Hang in there.
Yay!!! I’m so glad it wasn’t something worse and there’s an end in sight for your hands 😀 Whew. The pianist comparison makes sense :). Don’t lose you’re choice with all of that new dictating though 🙂 Hot honey lemonade is very soothing if it gets too be too much. After all, one can’t tell they’ve overdone it until they already have. Good luck and I’m so glad you have a great husband to work with you during the healing process. The thing about him laughing about you being told not to type by the Dr… after he had probably already said the same thing… sounds like just what my husband does when he’s proven right and then I have to take his advice from the Dr :). I about it is funny :D. Good luck with getting better and also getting Diamond Fire finished up in however long it takes and thanks to both of you!
-Virginia
Get well soon ans thank you both for all the great work!
I have such a mixed bag of emotions. 1) very happy to hear that the problem with your hands is not diabetic related. 2) very unhappy to hear that the joy and happy I get from your books has caused such trauma and 3) exceptionally happy to hear a dictation program could help you two continue to publish the stories that bring me the joy and happy. Thank you both for your dedication to these series. It is greatly appreciated.
Thanks for the update, and wishing you all the best!
You’re like those young gymnasts whose coaches push them so hard, they land somersaults on broken ankles — only the one pushing you is yourself! Take better care of yourself; you’re valuable in many ways, not just to those of us in the BDH! <3
I type a lot daily at work and had similar issues at some point. The secret, I learned, is in the keyboard and typing method. Laptop keyboard works best as it is compact. With regard to typing, once I managed to rest my hands on the table while writing and not throw them on the keyboard from a great height, as well as not applying much force when touching the keys solved my problems entirely.
I dont know about you, but because I was used to think while typing it was very hard for me to be creative and find a flow while dictating.
Good health to you both!
At one point, Dragon released a medical dictation suite that a former employer bought for us to use to dictate our surgical records during the (veterinary ) surgeries. It was a real circus act… it started out promising but quickly devolved into an object lesson in frustration and a verbal record of everyone’s cursing skills. Let’s just say that the program could not get “ovary” right but had a better understanding of cursing creativity than Patricia Briggs’ werewolf Ben… Obviously, a LOT of doctors and veterinarians spent a good deal if time cursing at the program… it lasted 3 days, before the practice manager threatened to wash our mouths out with soap, set us each in a corner for a time out, and set fire to the dictation headsets. The vet techs gave out creativity awards at the next office luncheon.
Hopefully, they have improved over the years.
Squee!
Glad tidings and welcome news about your projected recovery!!
((Snoopy Dance!))
I love your books, i just finished iron and magic, had so much fun,.. Im a fan and im waiting for the next innkeeper, looking forward to magic triumph and diamond fire, but please dont force yourself so you dont damage your fingers permanently, it would be a loss for us all if you’re no longer able to type, btw im from philippines and it was an honor that you used tikbalang, i would suggest you take your typing prohibition seriously… Your books are great.. Please take care..
Great news on the health front! Let Gordon pamper and make a little fun of you for the next few weeks, the girls need their pampering from time to time.
Also, and this is just a thought, most of us don’t know how to type correctly, as in we have never taken proper courses for it and type in odd ways with often weird numbers of fingers, I’m looking at me right now and I type with 6….. So if that is the case for you both, (yes I’m including Mr Andrews here) maybe, once your hands get better, learning how to type properly with all ten digits and proper positioning of the body could help get some strain off your hands. When you think of the secretary that types all day long every day, she has had proper training and probably doesn’t feel as much strain as people like me, who can’t type properly, do…
As for the Innkeeper, as we say: “good things come to those wo wait”…. I’ll gladly wait…..
Oooo rest up and get well soon!
Great news. Take care of yourself and your hands.
We will happily wait any Innkeeper installment you can write.
All the best.
Hi Ilona & Gordon. I started out reading fantasy with authors like Anne Mcafferty ‘Dragons of Pern’ series and Marion Zimmer Bradley books. A voracious reader from early childhood, I’m now 50 years old and I can say without a doubt that your books have been the most enjoyable I’ve read ‘hands down’! The characters, world building & story lines are so good that my family knows that ‘mum’ is unavailable for the day while I devour the eagerly awaited new gem of a book (I make no apologies for these occasional selfish days either, it’s ‘my precious’). You both are such talented and imaginative writers. When you and Gordon give so much of yourselves & make yourself accessible to your fans, it is unfortunately inevitable that a few negative types are scattered among your multitude of hugely admiring and appreciative fans. I sincerely hope that these handful of trolls do not sound more loudly to you than the majority of the rest of us. You and Gordon are truly wonderfully generous people and I just wanted to say ‘thank you’ and that I am in awe of your prolific rate of publishing while still maintaining the exquisite level of quality writing.
Ditto for me – only I’m 60 (better late than never, eh?) blessings to you both.
I have you both beat I’ll be 75 in September. I am a voracious reader ! My husband says that I’m a dedicated bookaholic. I love all your books and have re-read all of them multiple times! I was shocked to discover that you actually made me like Hugh ! Shock of the century!! Please take care of yourselves the BDH will still be here no matter how long it takes for you to recover your health. We love you both and do not want you to jeopordize any portion of physical, mental, emotional, health, just remember, you have to put each other and #1 & #2 first. Creator Bless
I waited years for the next book of the wheel of time series. You take however long you need, damn it, and just ban anyone who complains. We love you and your work and can wait!
+1 on the banning!
Thank you for the update. Too bad that knitting while dictating would be self-defeating! Good luck to both of you working in this new mode. I can’t believe how many fun things you are creating and how lucky we are to get to read them.
I have used Dragon Dictate. It’s a little frustrating at first but gets better the more it learns. I found I had to do a lot of correcting, and when I wanted to go two paragraphs up and add, or change something it was a pain in the butt. I adore your books, and like I’ve said before, I will read a grocery list if you write it, but please don’t let our greed destroy your hands. Take a break if you need it. Maybe record you words then have some one type it up for you?
First and probably last comment here, but hello from across the pond. I’m so glad you haven’t got the nasties you were worrying about, there’s little worse that seeing all those things on the horizon, poised to roll over you and make your life miserable.
Your books, if they were in dead tree format, would be so well read by now they would be in tatters; you guys are the bright spot at the end of the day, especially when it’s been a bad day and it’s a new book! I am sooo looking forward to the new stuff… I will only have read Hugh’s book about twenty times by then.
Anyhoo, I write because I’m a DSE assessor. A big part of my job for twenty plus years has been looking at how people are hurting themselves in the office and putting it as right as possible. If I could make a suggestion, one which of you may already be very well aware (as you are the authorlords and therefore, omniscient), quite often problems with hands/arms/shoulders stem from the height at which you are sitting. If you sit high enough so that your hands are above the keyboard, like a concert pianist, it takes away a lot of the stresses. If as you say, you pound the keyboard, there are a pile of them out there which are good for that as it’s a problem I have: apparently my typing is loud enough to wake the dead. There will be a soft touch, ergonomic keyboard that is right for you. I could suggest a couple to try, some of which are truly freaky, but at the end of the day it is often position that helps in concert with other adjustments.
I wish you both well and happy, and I look forward to the next opus!
So glad that you are taking a break. We will happily read your next series, Ottoman Rising.
Glucose levels are not the only thing one should check when looking for signs of diabetes. If it’s possible check your insulin levels as if they are high it could be a sign of metabolic syndrome or prediabetes. High insulin levels can make it nearly implossible to loose weight as it affects how the body stores and uses fat for energy. When you have hyperinsulinemia your glucose levels can be perfectly normal..
Happy dance, happy dance!! Diabetes is scary and I’m so glad its not a stress factor anymore. Shake the haters off because us true fans want you to be healthy even if that means we reread your old work over and over. Shoot, I do that on the regular anyways!! 🙂
Best wishes for your recovery Ilona – it sounds like both good news in that it’s not a major illness, but recovery is a pain no matter what!
Maybe you should treat yourself to a decent therapeutic massage – if you’ve done that much damage to your hands, your shoulders and neck will be tense as well. It’s that joyful meeting of personal pampering and actual physical benefit.
Phew! Glad to hear it’s not diabetes. Good luck with the Dragon program. Of course in my head I’m now thinking that the Authorlords now have a dragon secretary.
So glad tests results are ok. Take care to heal your hands well otherwise it will keep recuring. Really enjoyed Iron and Magic it was awesome?✌
Please feel better! So sorry about your hands! Maybe your editor should spring for a personal typist :). Thank you again for the wonderful writing, love everything you do. Iron and Magic was incredible. Inn Keeper is incredible. You are incredible. Thank you thank you!
And please take care of yourself!
So sorry got your precious hands, but pleased it wasn’t the diagnosis you feared. Get well soon and take your time.
Genuine offer here, but I’m a touch typist and more than happy to type from dictation if you are inclined to ask/need it.
*for NOT got! That was autocorrect, not my touch typing (blush).
Glad to hear there’s a dictation software that might work for you. Hope it works out and your hands get better.
Love your writing.
-C
I agree. I loved Iron and Magic and am waiting with baited breath for the next installment of Innkeeper. I hope your hands are better soon.
Would it help you to recover if you did lots of piano technique – like scales, broken chords, arpeggios? I love your books and greatly enjoy your (plural) imaginations, so I wish you both all the best. Please get better soon, and enjoy the dictation software.
So glad your fingers will heal! Just finished reading Iron and Magic … it was fantastic! Like others have said, I’m surprised at how sympathetic Hugh became! A whole new perspective on him.. Your writing is wonderful, I love all your books! Thank you for sharing your talent with us. So said Kate is coming to an end. Would love if you could write some more about Andrea and Raphael. Take care of those fingers! Thanks again!!
Were there instructions on how to sign on to Twitch?
I am not a fan of social media and am completely clueless here.
Help?
Please!!!! Preserve Your Precious Digits!!!! Take whatever time is necessary and IGNORE the Pitiful Whiners.
Yes, your fans are important but we aren’t more important than your Health!!
BE WELL
YOUR BDH will be here when you are ready. ?
+1
Agreed. Feel better, your health comes first.
You might try a Gold Touch keyboard. I broke my wrist this past January and the new keyboard has saved me.
Illona – Glad that nothing’s seriously wrong.
It sounds like you may be typing with your fingers vertical on the keyboard so it’s the tips of you fingers that hit the keys. Try typing with your fingers almost horizontal (about 30 degrees) to the keyboard so you’re using the soft pad of your fingers to hit the keys. And only use the minimum pressure necessary on the keys. I’m talking from getting on 40 years of typing experience. I used to type hundreds of pages a day at over 90wpm for years. Never had the slightest problem with that method, which I still use.
Hope your hands get better soon!
Thank you for all your extra efforts for your fans. It’s time for me to reread the series so I will be ready when the last book releases
I hope your hands get better. I look forward to the twitch videos as I missed them live.
I’m glad you are working with the voice recognition software. It is also very relieving to hear that your health concern on the diabetes front did not come to fruition.
Carpal tunnel is no joke. I got it with both of my pregnancies and had to wear braces at night. You might consider hand physical therapy. I don’t know if your health insurance covers it, but I did it and they did both paraffin wax therapy. Looking into it now it looks like ultrasound is another possibility for treatment. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28785810 and https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4256823/
Please continue to take it easy on your hands!
I agree that Physical Therapy is needed for your hands. Physical therapist here. Ultrasound and paraffin wax aren’t going to help though, they’re not really effective. Massage, cupping, rest, stretching, and progressive loading of your wrist and hand muscles. Stretching your entire chest, spine and shoulders are also necessary, like lying on top of a foam roller for a few minutes everyday. Carpal tunnel doesn’t just involve hands. It’s the whole extremity and neck. Typing plus being hunched in front of the computer does a number on you. Nerve damage is serious. As a person who works with her hands hunched over people all day, I can attest to this.
Hope you get help and take care of yourself.
Hope your hands are beginning to recover and the dictation software is the answer to a healthy path forward. Please know that the majority of your fans don’t fall into the rankly ungrateful category. The majority of us are grateful for anything you guys dig out of your imaginations. Fans are cannibals and they will eat you alive if you let them so do whatever you have to do to keep writing your fantastic books. Thanks for letting me travel with you on the adventures!
I very much agree with Tee!
I do have a complaint with those “supersmart” Geeks who boast of all the things they can do!
Well, why don’t they invent a, sort of, “printer machine” that you speak into – and voila! it spits out the printed sheet?? 😉
Do take care of your health – fingers included!
So glad to hear your hands will get better. Please so take care of yourself!
Hello, not a doctor, but have you researched Carpal Tunnel Syndrome? lot of typist suffer with it.
Love your work x
Glad to hear you got the diagnoses sorted and a decent dictation software that works for you. Might have to try that myself.
Hope Dragon works I tried an early version many moons ago and it was OKish as long as I did not pause, it hated pauses and would fill in with whatever it thought. Will be sad to see the end of the KD stories its like losing an old friend.
So happy to hear there is no diabetes ❤️❤️❤️ It’s a very evil disease. Please rest your hands like they have said. They are the only two you have. You should just sit around like a princess and let someone take care of you. Two whole weeks?
So glad your hands were not a sign of something more serious than over use. Your books are so important to a lot of people, most of whom appreciate you and your awesome skill sets. It’s too bad a few people are too into their own wants and needs to take you for granted. As far as I’m concerned (my wants and needs, of course!) you can take as much time as you want and need to have a life full of family, fun, friendships, and a successful career. We,your fans, benefit greatly from that. If you only wrote one book every 5 years, it would still fill a spot in my life. So thank you, thank you for doing such a wonderful, creative thing to take me to places never imagined and outside my own life and daily stress. You’ve been one of my favorite authors for 20 years.
I was so glad to hear it wasn’t the diabetes you were dreading. Not so great that you injured yourself so that you have to completely rest your hands for so long. That has got to be frustrating for you. Please take care of yourself and let Gordan type away. Hope the two weeks flashes by!
How about a half cast that can be taken off when you shower? With your arm our and thumb pointing to ceiling they build the cast from palm to halfway to elbow. You can lift it off and on over the thumb.
Ilona,
If you take the time to really learn the Dragon software, it can be very effective. It can also learn to spell the creative words unique to your novels. Dedicating time to teaching the software your words, and learning to use the verbal commands and retraining features, will save you a ton of frustration in the long run.
I discovered that submerging my hands in cold water several times a day also helped. It reduces inflammation and is extremely refreshing. A popcorn sized bowl with water and ice works wonders.
Wishing you a speedy recovery! I come to your site often (obsessed with Innkeeper) and have never commented before but wanted to share that I have read everything you and your husband have written and love your work. Please take care of those hands! While your books are a lifeline for me your health is so much more important. xo
I too hope your hands are healing and that they recover swiftly. ♥️
So glad you do not have any endocrine disease!
Be prepared to develop typing -limiting discipline, and exercise routines for the long haul, i.e., forever. Actively mine your physical therapist’s expertise and keep a log book of your sessions, prescribed exercises, how you feel as you complete your homework and any modifications you make.
From my own experiences w hand surgery and carpal tunnel, a lot of the suggestions in the blog have some merit. Do discuss w PT to see what is appropriate and when it is.
I hope you have significant relief very soon.
I am really glad that you are OK! You guys have been a part of my life since the first book 11 years ago! I feel like you are family! I can’t believe that we have been together that long and that I am just as excited to read your books, free fiction, newsletters, comments etc… as the very first time I read Kate! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve re-read everything – just because. I will tell you this, I am an avid reader and I do read books from many authors, however, I do not wait anxiously for any book like I do for yours! You guys are magic! Thank you for all the years of laughter, adventures and pure joy! I wish you all the very best of everything! BTW, if you need someone to type for you, I’d be ecstatic to type for you! LOL
+1
Save the hands, save the author.!
Take care of yourself! We all love you lots and you’re writing is one of the high points of our literary/fiction/addiction life.
I’m glad your Gordon is doing all of this with you.
It’s great news that you have no sugar problems. I deal with being pre-diabetic and it’s a pain.
Congratulations on that… Keep healing. We’ll keep reading and sending good wishes.
Thank you for letting us know your main health is in good shape.
Sorry to hear that in giving us such enjoyment you have injured yourself.
I am glad that a break (and it may need to be longer as YOU come first) will help with the hands.
I can only imagine the joint laughter and frustration of using Dragon. At least there will have been laughter, that great medicine.
We look forward to more stories when you aren’t putting yourself at risk. We will wait.
You might be writing a book with diamond in the title…but you’re a couple of diamonds too.
Does this make you…a dictator? Muwahaha.
Glad to hear that your sugar levels are normal. Rest up those hands so they heal properly
Please rest those hands! We want more stories from both of you long term! 🙂
Take care of yourself! The big question, tho, is can you still knit? Or are your hands on complete bedrest? (if I couldn’t knit they’d have to lock me in a closet or something. I knit so I don’t have to kill people. It’s a form of meditation.)
Ilona
As you decided to skip the injections which by the way I have had in my hands years ago ( hurt like hell)
Ask your Dr. if you can use Voltaren Gel, ( if you are not doing so already)
You will need a prescription or a trip to Canada or Mexico….
This stuff ,another spin off to humans from Equine Veterinary Med .
Surpass…takes the pain away quite well, rums into fingers …good stuff.
Sounds like your typing to put in piano language needs to be less fortissimo..
Best Wishes
Juni
Thinking Happy Healing Thoughts for your hands! Good luck with the Dragon Speak thingy. BTW…Iron and Magic was awesome! Thank you both!
Hey, spoiler I’m about to give you unsolicited advice!! Our local health food store sells a hemp salve. I tried it and was surprised that in a very short time (5-10 mins), my feet felt 70% better. I did not expect such dramatic results. Check it out if you want to. I hope you are fully mended soon