Outside, in the rain

Hello from sultry Virginia! It’s been warm here, but tonight there are glorious thunderstorms, the likes of which we just don’t get in southern California. Occasionally, briefly, but that’s it. We get a fair amount of winter/spring rain on the coast, but it’s cold and grey. Here, the water droplets are fat and warm, and I kept going outside into the dark night and just standing, smiling, exulting. Amazing cloud-to-cloud lightning, with the storm’s center about 3 miles away. The air hummed with energy; the energy hummed through me.

This evening, before the storms, Sarah and I escaped to a Starbuck’s and plotted out our next two novels as well as figured out how to expand an existing story for another market. Our next collab book will be Designed for Love, the contemporary erotic romance I got 40K into before just losing the threads. I think the problem is the hero; Sarah agrees. It won’t take incredibly much to tweak him, and much of what I’ve written can stay. We hope to finish this in the fourth quarter of the year, for the January 2008 novel workshop in Oregon. (I’m trying to write my urban fantasy, tentatively titled High Spirits, for the October workshop.) I also brainstormed a couple of short story ideas.

Tomorrow we’re either off to the zoo (if it cools down a bit) or a museum. We decided not to try for the caverns, which are 3.5 hours away. Saturday is our book signing and the Styx/Foreigner/Def Leppard concert, and then Sunday afternoon I head home. Ken may actually be there to greet me. I can’t think of anything better. Except that then we’re going to Missouri, where we will explore caverns, as well as visit friends and go to our annual bike get-together, and then we’ll hit Arkansas to visit Ken’s 93-year-old grandmother and Texas to visit his brother before heading home.

I’m going to read for a few minutes now, then turn off the light and listen to the distant thunder…

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Currently Reading: Hell With the Ladies, Julie Kenner, Kathleen O’Reilly, Dee Davis
Lately Listened To: Greatest Hits, Eurythmics
Recently Watched: Gowan concert and videos (I know. Shocking.)

For another 100 days...

30 / 100 (30.0%)

Somehow, I’ve always thought Monday the 13th should be scarier than Friday the 13th…

So, many of the workshops I took at RWA had titles like Killing Your Inner Critic and Figuring Out Your Creative Process and Overcoming Discouragement. I was in a weird place, because in the past I’ve never had a problem with the inner critic/internal editor/etc. But, anyway.

One of the ideas that sparked with me was the “100 For 100” challenge: a minimum of 100 words a day for 100 days. I know that the longer I go without writing, the easier it is not to write (until, at least, I hit the point where I’ve turned into the snarling Tasmanian Devil because I’m not writing). I started this personal challenge the day I came home from RWA.

Now, someone said to me, “I have to write a hell of a lot more than 100 words in a day!” Yes, absolutely, so do I! But the minimum challenge was to get my butt in front of the computer. I was rather surprised to discover how well this challenge works for me. If I set one that’s “I need to write 1000 words a day to finish this novel by X date,” it’s easy enough to miss a day (or a full day, and write something less than 1000 words) because I can make it up later, right? Whereas this challenge, if I miss a day, I have to start over.

Hell, no!

That's apparently my trigger. Who knew? Starting over is just not acceptable.

I started a concurrent challenge to further push myself, 500 words in 50 days, although I’ve missed that once already and have had to start over, which is truly irksome. But my stats for the basic challenge are above, so go me!

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I’m off to Virginia tomorrow for a book signing with Sarah, and a plotting of our next novel, and my only Styx concert of the summer (damn those Def Leppard fans stealing all the good tickets!). We’re also going to caves! Caverns! Underground goodness!

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Recent writing stats:

• Received comp copies of H is for Hardcore, which contains the Sophie story “Don’t Move” as well as a solo story of Teresa’s. These are the cutest damn books I’ve ever seen. I’m going to have to buy all the ones I’m not in because I must have the full set.
  
• Received the contract for “Party Favor,” which will appear in Dirty Girls.
  
• Submitted a number of returned stories.
  
• Received payment for “Behind the Masque” in Sex With Strangers and for the reprint of “Slow Burn” in Black Lace Quickies 2.
  
• Received a rejection from e-Spice for “Memories for Sale.” I have a couple other stories to shoot out to them, but they all have to be tweaked a little. [Adds note to To Do list.]
  

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Thanks to everyone who’ve sent e-mails telling me how much they’re enjoying A Little Night Music!

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Currently Reading: just finished a book, ready to dive into a new one!
Lately Listened To: The Wedding Album, Duran Duran
Recently Watched: Masters of Science Fiction

This summer a star falls. The chase begins.

Stardust was everything I hoped for, and more.

I ended up mostly playing hooky today. Saw the matinee of Stardust with Morgana, Brian, and Tomi. Afterwards, Brian went off to a Heroscape gaming marathon, so the rest of us went to an early dinner at a new steakhouse near the theatre, then Morgana and I wandered back here and hung out 'til nearly midnight. I did get my minimum writing done, but that's it. I'll go back to work tomorrow. Today was play, and that's all good. Especially when Stardust was part of it.

The great contest begins!

The official rules for How Many Styx References Can You Find in A Little Night Music have been posted on the Contests page at my website!

Best of luck, everyone! And have fun!

Earthquake!

A 4.5 in the Chatsworth area, definitely felt here. (Although I might have slept through it if I'd actually gone to bed and been asleep.) The cats didn't notice. Sheez.

I immediately went online and filled out the official form.

When it was happening, I waited to see if it would get worse (sometimes they ramp up), and then, just to be safe, I moved to a doorway. At which point all I could hear was comedian Paula Poundstone's riff, "Oh, like after an earthquake, it's rubble...doorway...rubble...doorway..." Hee!

Anybody else out there feel it?

Happy ALNM US Release Day

A Little Night Music makes its US debut today!

Waasaabii

I was looking for something different for a veg with dinner, and decided to try coleslaw. Last year, we stayed at a Red Lion in Eugene, OR, for Faeriewords, and they had this wasabi cole slaw that was to die for. I wanted them to just bring me a vat of it and back away slowly. But that slaw had mayo in it, and I was looking to make something a wee bit healthier.

I looked up some recipes online, tweaked them to taste, and came up with the following. Which I lurve. Happily, I can make a vat of it and nobody has to back away slowly.

Wasabi Cole Slaw

3 cups shredded cabbage/carrots (I used the bagged stuff, but if I have time I'll shred red cabbage, because it's healthier)
3 tbsp white balsamic vinegar (most recipes call for rice vinegar, but I had the white balsamic on hand)
2 tbsp oil (sesame oil might also be good)
2 tsp brown sugar (most recipes called for more, but that made it too sweet. Bleah.)
wasabi to taste (if wasabi powder, mix w/water)
sesame seeds (optional)
green onions, thinly sliced (optional)

Whisk together vinegar, oil, brown sugar, wasabi.

Toss with cabbage.

Sprinkle on sesame seeds and green onion slices.

(Another recipe calls for lime juice; could be a tasty addition but I haven’t tried it.)

We only bite when requested...

Take a wander over to Lust Bites today to check out an excerpt of Sarah's and my forthcoming book A Little Night Music!

Labyrinthine

Morgana, Brian, Ken, and I went to the Nuart Theatre in LA to see Labyrinth (witness the amazing Goblin War Mullet!) on the big screen again, because the Frouds were going to do a Q&A after the showing. Above is a picture of Morgana and I with Wendy, Toby (the baby in the movie!), and Brian Froud. (They all signed my copy of the DVD.)

Writing bits and bobs

A reader named Emily took the time to send me (well, Sophie, actually!) this e-mail (and gave me the okay to repost it here):

“I read your story in Best Women's Erotica 07 and I enjoyed it so much that I decided to google your pen name, in an attempt to find an email contact. Your story was great for it's purpose (as erotic fiction) but it was also a story I deeply related to. I was particularly moved by the character's struggle with her body image and how her dance class affected that. I look forward to reading more of your writing in the future. Thank you for your story!”

We all write for different reasons. To get the stories out, to get the words out of our heads. For the thrill of seeing our names on the book covers in stores. The money’s nice; the acceptances are always joyful, perhaps even a validation.

Every author I’ve met has pretty much said, though, that even if they knew they’d never see their name in print again, they’d still keep writing.

Striving for publication, though, is another matter. And I can tell you that one of the things we all really want there is communication. To know what we’ve written has reached a reader. (If that weren’t true, whyfore the proliferation of blogs?)

Acceptances: fantastic. Checks: sweet. But a reader taking the time to say “I read your work, and it meant something to me.”?

Priceless. The best gift a writer can receive.

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Some recent writing stats, from the last month or so. I’ll try to keep more current on these!

• Submitted lots of stories.
  
• Received the second half of my advance for A Little Night Music.
  
• Received the contract for “In Flight” to appear in Best Lesbian Love Stories: Summer Flings.
  
• Received payment for “Mrs. Claus and the Night Elf,” which appeared in The MILF Anthology.
  
• Received comp copy of Love on the Dark Side, which includes the Sophie story “Stranger to my Shores” as well as a story of Teresa’s.
  
• Received comp copies of Iridescence: Sensuous Shades of Lesbian Erotica and payment for my story, “Just Be.”
  
• Received the contract and proofed story for “The Witch of Venice,” to appear in Screaming Orgasms and Sex on the Beach.
  
• Received the contract for the reprint of “Frozen” to appear in Best Lesbian Bondage Erotica.
  
• Rejection from Kensington for Waking the Witch.
  
• Rejection from Heliotrope for “What Price Beauty?”
  
• Rejection from Clarkesworld for “Heaven Has Eyes.”
  

(And may I just say, it’s exceedingly cool to link to all of those books and think, “Hey, I’m in all of those!”)

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Currently Reading: Wraith, Phaedra Weldon (yes, I know I was a first reader on this manuscript. But the book is different, and I’m gearing up to be a first reader on book two, and it’s a kick-ass fabulous book!)
Lately Listened To: Division Bell, Pink Floyd
Recently Watched: Northern Exposure

Norilana Books

The inimitable Vera Nazarian of Norliana Books has asked friends to put out a plug for said publishing company, which Vera herself started. Seeing as Norliana Books is reviving the Sword & Sorceress series of anthologies, and seeing as Vera did a lovely interview of me in her blog, how am I to say no?

So. Check out this reprint of romance Evermore by Modean Moon, which got a thumbs-up from La Nora herself…

Slosh

Well, not the spiffiest of days. My back continued to hurt, and thus I was out of sorts. Plus, this: Since October of last year, when I read about it in the Endicott Studio blog, I’ve been looking forward—no, craving—to see the Pre-Raphaelite exhibit when I heard it would be coming to the San Diego Museum of Art in May. Of course I planned to see it with my Pre-Raphaelite partner in crime, Morgana, but she and Brian had a busy summer, so there was a lot of shuffling and planning and whatnot. Finally we decided on the weekend of Faeriewords, since they felt they couldn’t shoehorn Faerieworlds into their schedule. Unfortunately, we then had a mis-meeting of minds, with me assuming it would be a day trip and them assuming it would be a weekend jaunt. By the time we realized this last week, there was no way I could take a whole weekend away, especially after a week away at RWA.

So yeah, it hasn’t been the best of days.

On the plus side, I’ve been strangely compelled to do various organizational things, like rearranging the TBR bookcase to fit all the new books from RWA, and putting away all the sewing trim we’re keeping (we’re purging about half of our original stash), and mending, and filing, and story submissions… Oh, and baths with copious amounts of Epsom salts are excellent for catching up with one’s reading. Exactly why don’t I do this every day?

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Currently Reading: Lying in Mid-Air (ARC), Anne Tourney
Lately Listened To: cats purring
Recently Watched: Graham Norton, Painkiller Jane

There is no pain, you are receding...

My darling Meglet visited for a couple of days, and of course I got almost nothing done (because when Meg and I get to talking…). As a result, I’m a bit behind and a bit fretful. Add to that the fact that my back was hurting so much today that I cancelled my appointment with my trainer and went back to my chiropractor for the second time, and the day was largely a bust. Especially because the chiropractor said my muscles were spasming and pulling the bones out of alignment, and I should take a bath with Epsom salts, so I did, but not before popping half of a prescription muscle relaxant from last year.

It’s been a nice, floaty evening, let me just say.

That said, I’ve gotten a wee bit of writing done, and a lot of reading, and tomorrow is another day.

Before I forget, though, go check out the recent Lust Bites review of RWA Nationals, written by myself, Teresa, Kate, Deanna, and Anne.

More tomorrow. For now, I’m taking my loopy self off to bed.

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Currently Reading: Lying in Mid-Air (ARC), Anne Tourney
Lately Listened To: “Hm, what?” she asks dreamily
Recently Watched: Eureka, Painkiller Jane

Pirate Tourney!

Pictures can be found here!

RWA away away (and back again)

Unsurprisingly, I’m writing this on yet another plane. This time I’m on the way home from RWA Nationals, where I’ve been since Tuesday. Dudes. My brain is full. Six days of workshops, 2000 writers (95% female—woah, the estrogen levels in that hotel!), an abundance of food and drink, and not a whole lot of sleep. I met so many wonderful people and reconnected with so many more.

I roomed with the fabulous Christine, the other half of my brain Phaedra, my coauthor Teresa, which was a blast. I was the only one who knew any of them—I was the pivot point friend—but as I suspected, they all got along famously. I haven’t laughed so hard in a long time…

I spent some quality time with Teresa’s and Sarah’s and my editor, Adam. Fascinating man, and lots of fun.

I hung out with fellow Lust Biters Kate Pearce, Anne Tourney, Deanna Ashford, and Deanna’s daughter (also a Kate), as well as Michelle M. Pillow and Mandy Roth (a fellow ‘80s aficionado!). I also got to meet the amazing Emma Holly.

Thanks to Phaedra, who took me as her date, I got to go to the Berkley/Penguin/Ace party. Fantastic hors d’ouvres, free wine and champagne, and oh my gods squeak I’m at a party with Nora Roberts!

I took mostly workshops on creativity, on re-finding the joy and refilling the well, although also a few on structure and whatnot. Much of the former was stuff I already knew, but needed to be reminded of, needed to get it to sink back into my subconscious. During one workshop I did have a lovely (dark and sad, though) epiphany about the book I’ve just started. It breaks my heart to do it to my heroine, but I can’t shy away from it.

I’ve been in a writing slump for a while, and just before the conference, when I started to haul myself out of it, I realized I’ve been mildly depressed overall. I didn’t want to write, but I didn’t want to do much of anything, except maybe costuming. As I started to come back to my normal self, I decided to start a new project, go in a different direction to clear out my brain. (Phae, what did you call it? Something about coffee?) Cleanse the palate. So I’m working on an urban fantasy, and it’s different that what I’ve been doing, and I’m enjoying it. I need to just play with it, not worry about whether it’s “right,” explore and learn the book while I’m writing it.

Pictures can be found here—enjoy!

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Currently Reading: Dime Story Magic, Kelley Armstrong
Lately Listened To: the buzzing in my brain
Recently Watched: Dr Who

What about this?

So what do ya'll think of this for a license plate? It's Welsh for "author."

Squee bouncity!

Got word from the Virgin marketing folks that Sarah Dale will have an ad as part of the New Author Spotlight page in Romantic Times! It'll be in the October issue (on sale in September).

How cool is this?!

Eight straight

I’ve been tagged by the scrumptious Ms. Alison Tyler to give eight pieces of trivia about myself, and since I’m doing a stellar job of writing avoidance, I’m succumbing to the temptation. (Alison’s very tempting.)

The Rules:

• We have to post these rules before we give you the facts.
  
• Players start with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
  
• People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
  
• At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
  
• Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them they're tagged, and to read your blog.


1. The first erotica story I wrote was a letter to Penthouse Forum, because if they printed your letter, you got a free t-shirt.

2. I still have the t-shirt.

3. Although my father was a pilot, my ex is an aviation meteorologist, and my beloved is an engineer, I cannot for the life of me understand how planes stay up in the air. Therefore it must be magic. I don’t fear flying because I have utter faith in magic.

4. I’ve communed with the stones at Stonehenge, felt the North Wind’s touch in the Nine Ladies stone circle, crawled through the hole at Men-an-Tol for good health, exulted on Glastonbury Tor, looked for answers in the Chalice Well, and left a strand of hair at every holy well I’ve been to.

5. I was proposed to on a beach in Cambria, handfasted in the hills above Santa Barbara, and married in Gretna Green, Scotland.

6. My earliest memory is my third birthday, which fell on Easter. I opened a door and behind it found an Easter basket of plastic eggs filled with Cheetos. (Incidentally, my fourteenth birthday also fell on Easter, but it will never happen again in my lifetime.)

7. If I possibly can, the first thing I do when I sit down is kick off my shoes.

8. I love learning new things, but hate doing things I don’t know how to do well. Me and learning curves, oy.

I tag…
Angell
Cat (to get her to update her blog!)
Helen
Julie/Margaret
Jessica
Lynn/Iliana
Phaedra
Rob
Sharon (because I want to get to know her better!).

EDITED TO ADD:

I apparently smushed two, two, two links into one. Now that I've fixed them, I've tagged nine people. Eight, nine...I love my friends, so it's all good!

Iridescence Blog Tour

Five Questions from Jolie du Pre, editor of Iridescence, for Andrea Dale, author of “Just Be.”

1. Why do you write erotica?

Confession: I started writing erotica in college for beer money. But I was having so much fun, I never really stopped. Now, I think it has to do with an exploration of human emotion—we all have sex, and we all exerience it differently, even at different times in our lives. How does it relate to emotion and emotional development? How does it change us? Plus I love combining erotica with other genres: paranormal, humor, suspense, etc. There’s no limit to what you can write about!

2. What do you like best about lesbian erotica?

Mmm, girls! Girls are soft and curvy and they smell nice. What’s not to love?

3. What is the theme of your story “Just Be” in Iridescence: Sensuous Shades of Lesbian Erotica?

Finding balance and peace in our lives. The title is unabashedly lifted from the Styx song “Just Be,” and it’s a reminder that sometimes we have to step back, away from all the craziness in the world and all of the things (e-mail, chat, cell phone, etc.) that distract us, and just enjoy the moment. The characters in the story have a chance to reconnect and spend quality time together, and remember why they love each other so much.

4. Name some other books where we can find your work.

Novels: A Little Night Music, written as Sarah Dale (with Sarah J. Husch), Cheek Books 2007; Cat Scratch Fever, written as Sophie Mouette (with Teresa Noelle Roberts), Black Lace 2006.

Anthologies: Ultimate Lesbian Erotica 2007, Travelrotica for Lesbians, Got a Minute, and many more. See my website for a complete list!

5. Just for fun! Gym Shoes or Stilettos?

Nothing at all, actually! I’m happiest when I’m barefoot and have warm sand or cool grass or my home’s lovely hardwood floors beneath my feet.

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My thanks to Jolie du Pre for hosting this fun author tour. If you’d like to read the interviews by the rest of the Iridescence authors (including my frequent co-author Teresa Noelle Roberts!), go here for a list and links!

Waiting for the third shoe to drop...

Words Written: ~750 in the airport, more to come

Ugh. I didn’t sleep well, got to the airport late, and managed to leave my credit card in the check-in machine—and this time, when I went back, it was gone. (You never get a reminder to remove your card nor does the machine spit it out for you at the end. And when you’re juggling your new boarding passes and your carry-on and you have to haul your suitcase back off the scale and drag it across the airport to the security screeners…) I miss Ken. It’s a full flight. (I offered to give up my seat, but they didn’t want me, because of the difficulty of ensuring I made my connecting flight. Since my massage therapist canceled on me tonight due to an emergency, I really had given up caring just how long I sat at LAX. And I could’ve really used that free flight. Oh well.)

But I just spent about an hour and a half writing up my Styxfest wrap-up report, which is overdue anyway. I’ve got three hours at LAX, so I’ll get some lunch, hang out next to the one working outlet in the 80s gate area, and get some writing done.

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And because my day apparently could get more thrilling, I arrived home to discover that my car had been towed. (This would be my old car, which had been parked in front of my house for the nearly three years that we’ve lived here. My new car is in the shop getting that dent repaired. Apparently there’s a law here that you can’t park on the street for more than three days. Apparently it goes into effect after two years and nine months, the day you’re getting home from a vacation. That’s right, they towed it this morning. My heartfelt thanks to our tenant and the guy across the street, both of whom tried to reason with the cop. So anyway, that’s approximately $200 I owe to the police, and who knows how much the towing place will charge. Hopefully it’s not too much, because I had to cancel my damn credit card.)

Is it too early to start drinking?

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Currently Reading: Perdido Street Station, China Miéville
Lately Listened To: An Ancient Muse, Loreena McKennitt
Recently Watched: the empty space where my goddamned car should be