It is very nice to be paid well for one's writing. My publisher, Quarto, has been very good to me, and very nice. They pay me well, and they pay me quickly. I learned, this week, something I didn't know before. If you deposit a check above a certain amount to your bank, no matter how big the company that wrote you the check, and no matter how big the bank against which it is drawn, your bank will hold the check and not allow you to use any of the money for a week. So, my bank account shows a substantial balance. But my "available funds" is sadly quite tiny. Thankfully, that will change come the 16th, according to a nice letter I got from my bank today.