May 11, 2008 | Uncategorized

April 1, 2008 | Plotting, Uncategorized

No, I really don’t have a trick or joke, I just thought it was fun. I’m actually in the land of revisions, with a side of still researching the next book. I’ve been fighting a cold, but Zicam is helping me win. Also, I’m planning my trip to NY to see my family (yay!). I don’t know why, but when I have to travel, it somehow creeps in to disrupt my life weeks before the actual trip. Getting nails done, for example. Sometimes the disruptions are fun, like group emails to discuss the fun stuff we’re going to do when we’re all together. But mostly it’s things like nails.

As for the research - too interesting! I’m fascinated by all the new discoveries they’re making about the brain. I’m currently reading The Neuroscience of Human Relationships. Kind of intense, but the subject is enthralling. No fiction for now, but there will be fiction soon!

Reading: well, The Neuroscience of Human Relationships
On deck: Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream

February 25, 2008 | Uncategorized

In A.O. Scott’s NYT review of the new Michael Gondry film BE KIND REWIND, Mr. Scott discusses the premise of the movie - how a couple of guys from Passaic wipe out all the tapes in the video store they work in, and replace them with homemade, wildly abbreviated, and wildly inventive remakes of the originals, calling the process Sweding. I haven’t seen the film and therefore have no opinion about it. What I did was read the review and this particularly stuck out for me:

“And yet at the same time that stuff is capable of inspiring a deep and durable sense of ownership. The movies we love belong in some profound way to us, and part of us lives inside them. Sweding is Mr. Gondry’s way of making that rather abstract sense of connection literal, of suggesting that even if we are not strictly speaking the owners and authors of the movies we like, well, then, perhaps we should be.”

So I got to thinking. I’ve always had a sense of ownership over the movies and books I’ve loved. I “own” characters whom I love, and when they are screwed-around with, my rage isn’t mitigated by the fact that they are Not mine, will Never be mine, and of course, they are Fictional. I’m not talking about the characters I’ve created in the books I’ve personally written. I’m talking about Harry Potter, among others. Logical, no. Emotionally satisfying - of course! That’s the thing about art. It hooks me emotionally and makes me feel not only included but attached. Character love is one of the purist emotions I can think of. When I ruminate about, say, Buffy, it’s an incredibly intimate process. We are, in my head at least, friends. I care about her and what happens to her. With some male characters, it gets a little messy, so we won’t go there. It’s enough to admit that, just as most of my real life relationships happen in my head, the fictional relationships are sometimes as vivid and consuming as with those people I can touch.

Before you say, come on, you’re just psycho (which may be true, but a topic for another day) I happen to see this same phenomena over and over again. Just listen to people talk about their favorite books. They become invested. Sometimes tragically so. Sometimes endearingly. Always passionately.

Is this the root of fan fiction? Is all fan fiction at its base Mary Sue? Is all character love Mary Sue love?

The reviewer of BE KIND REWIND looked upon “Sweding” quite favorably. He suggested it would be a cool thing to do and expected to see some revisionist tapes on YouTube.

Do those of you who feel fan fiction is not okay feel Sweding is not okay? Does the story always, only belong to the creator? Does media interaction need to change right along with the new back-and-forth the internet brings to our lives?

My life would be a shadow if I didn’t have my books, my music, my movies swirling in my brain. My passion for “my” characters led me to write. It is one of the most sacred things in my life, and has been with me since early childhood. I am forever imagining, whether it be about characters I create or characters I borrow.

Chime in here, please. I want to talk about this more.

February 8, 2008 | Uncategorized

You are The Devil

Materiality. Material Force. Material temptation; sometimes obsession

The Devil is often a great card for business success; hard work and ambition.

Perhaps the most misunderstood of all the major arcana, the Devil is not really "Satan" at all, but Pan the half-goat nature god and/or Dionysius. These are gods of pleasure and abandon, of wild behavior and unbridled desires. This is a card about ambitions; it is also synonymous with temptation and addiction. On the flip side, however, the card can be a warning to someone who is too restrained, someone who never allows themselves to get passionate or messy or wild - or ambitious. This, too, is a form of enslavement. As a person, the Devil can stand for a man of money or erotic power, aggressive, controlling, or just persuasive. This is not to say a bad man, but certainly a powerful man who is hard to resist. The important thing is to remember that any chain is freely worn. In most cases, you are enslaved only because you allow it.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

November 22, 2007 | Uncategorized

October 1, 2007 | Uncategorized

Just an FYI - writing is hard. That is all.

Now, to more fun news. I MADE BREAD. I’ve never made a successful loaf of bread before, but I did it! At my crazy altitude! And there was no kneading involved! It was a beautiful loaf that was crusty on the outside, tender and flavorful on the inside, and I should have taken a picture. It’s not a quick process, but a very simple one. In fact, so simple, I’m going to make my next loaf very soon, only this time it will be more wheat than white.

Because I love you all, here are some links so that you, too, can amaze your friends and make your enemies jealous:

The original New York Times article about No-Knead Bread

The youtube video so you can watch the process

You’re going to be so happy!!

PS - I cooked mine in a cast iron Dutch oven.
PPS - I’m going to take pictures next time. Let’s all take pictures and have a BREAD SPREAD!

September 28, 2007 | Online Classes, Linkage, Uncategorized

Okay - this is it. The last day to sign up for my online class. Go here for more info and a way to get in on the action.

Also, is everyone getting involved with the whole Giving thing? I admire Clinton so much for what he’s doing to make a difference in the world. I’ve volunteered (using commitments.org) to help me find a perfect match for my time and my skills. I’m going to be working on editing and composing letters for 2nd Chance 4 Pets, an organization dedicated to making sure our pets are taken care of in case something happens to us.

There are literally thousands of opportunities for giving, hundreds you can do from home. Did you know people who volunteer live longer?

And speaking of making a difference - this year, Dotes and I are participating in Heifer International - making one big donation that will be our Christmas/Hanukkah gift to everyone we love. Honestly, all our friends pretty much have everything they need, and what better way to celebrate the season than to transform a family’s life. If you haven’t heard of Heifer’s International, go check it out.

There’s still time to sign up for ForensicU - an all forensic weekend sponsored by Sister’s in Crime. It’s running from Nov 1 - 4 in St. Louis, and I’m so excited about it! Here’s the info: ForensicU

September 14, 2007 | Blogging, Uncategorized

It’s Random Stuff Friday!

- Anyone here have any experience with Melaleuca?

- I have my screen saver set to rotate all my personal pictures, and since I had to save all the puppy pictures to get them posted, I now have Adorable Puppies and Kitties popping up at random. This is a Very Good Thing as it makes me totally happy to see them all. On the other hand, I end up not working so the auto screen saver kicks in, which is not a good thing as I have a book due really, really soon.

- I’m putting together the online workshop, which is interesting because I’ve only ever given the class live. For me, that means I have an outline of things to cover, but I hadn’t ever written it out. I’m trying to include everything, but I really hope it’s an active class. So much of what I teach live has to do with audience participation. So far, so good, but the proof will be in the pudding. (mmm…pudding)

- Dr. Who Tonight! Weeeee!

- I’m almost finished reading AMERICAN GODS by Gaiman (terrific book!) and now have to decide whether to read TWILIGHT or DIRTY next. Recommendations?

- I’m planning a container bulb garden. Another first for me. I’m really going to miss my tomato plants. In fact, I’ll miss my whole little garden. The herbs! I made a mint-rosemary tea yesterday and I was squee-ing like a little girl that I got the ingredients (except the black tea) from my garden!

- I’m off to the bigger city to get wonderful things done - facial, hair, massage. If I was very, very rich, I’d hire a full time masseuse and one of her jobs would be to massage my scalp all day. Yes. I’m that odd.

Have a great weekend, and if you haven’t submitted your pet yet, go to the Who’s Your Doggie post and do it!

September 10, 2007 | Uncategorized

So I’m doing the art-fact sheet for my latest book, which is a pain in the ass, but inevitable, sort of like revisions, and usually I like to give the art department a visual. I pick someone reasonably famous and let them know he/she should look something like that. It mostly doesn’t work, but did so, smashingly, with Relentless -

I told them the hero was Clive Owen. Not too shabby, huh?

Anyway, I filled out the whole thing, phft, done. Here’s what the hero looks like:

Unfortunately, instead of writing Thomas Gibson…I wrote Charles Gibson:

Not that Charles isn’t a very good newscaster, and I’m certainly not implying that he isn’t a nice looking man. It’s just that, well, you know.

PS - sign up for my newsletter!
PS, again - I need more dogs! See two posts down. I’ve already included most of those submitted! More! More!

That is all.

September 4, 2007 | Writing, Uncategorized

It’s September! How did that happen? I’m not ready.

Went on an excursion yesterday with my gal pals and we ate (sushi! gelato!) shopped (Asian market! Tai Pan Trading Co!) and enjoyed the hell out of the day. It was a long drive, though, and I crashed last night, hard. Today, start with page 1 of the new book, work on my workshop, work on ST. Also massage, thank heavens.

Honestly, I still can’t get over the September thing.

I’m going to go look at my tomato plants. They’ll be history so very soon.