No, I’ve not let this corner of the web go feral – I’ve merely been recovering from my recent speaking tour, which included a pit-stop at Legare’s in Portland and appearances at the 38th Willamette Writers Conference. Here’s evidence that I was actually present at one of the aforementioned locations (rather than having a dipsomaniacal episode in some Portlandian grotto or other, or, worse — drying out) courtesy of journo Vivian McInerny in last Sunday’s Oregonian. The three-day confab assembled the Pacific Northwest’s best and brightest writers, from inklings to page-borne pensioners, hobbyists and hacks alike. And it was a pleasure to meet every goddamn one of them.