Hello again, Phoenix airport...

Hello, Phoenix airport, once again. This is the fourth time I’ve been here in, um, two weeks. Yeah, I’m kinda crazy. See, Styx was playing here, where my fantastic friend Sara lives, last weekend, so of course I had to come to visit her. But then Florence + the Machine announced a concert here this weekend…

Yes, yes, I know they played Santa Barbara, too. But while the Santa Barbara Bowl is a stunningly beautiful venue, not to mention only an hour away from home, they have a subscription series for tickets, which means the rest of us don’t get great seats. I’m spoiled when it comes to concert seating. I also have abysmal eyesight and if I’m not close to the stage, I can’t see squat. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

Also, I didn’t know anybody who’d go with me to see Florence + the Machine locally, and Sara didn’t have anybody in her area to go, so…

The Styx show was, as usual, stellar. We had sixth-row seats but security had no problem with us standing at the barrier. (Shout-out to John, our fabby security guard!) That way, we didn’t block the people behind our seats because, as you know, sitting down at a Styx concert is like having sex with the lights off.

At one point, Ricky (Styx’s bassist, if you’re new here) tossed a pick in our general direction. Because it was windy, it fell in the grass between the barrier and the stage. John the fabby security guard picked it up and tried to toss it in our direction, but again, wind. This time it went sideways to someone standing sort of to the right of the stage (behind the barrier—they had a pass). That person didn’t want the pick and moved towards us, but I pointed him at a woman in a wheelchair next to me. She was thrilled and thanked me profusely.

Well, Ricky saw all that and gave me a thumbs-up. Then, at the end of the show, he tossed a rolled-up Styx tote bag my way.

Imagine any scene in any movie where someone fumbles a catch, and you’ve got the mental picture of what went down. I fumbled that balled-up bag like I was juggling it, and finally it popped sideways and Sara caught it. I looked up and Ricky had busted out laughing. Honestly? I found it hilarious, too.

My reaction to Florence + the Machine was much like my reaction to seeing Loreena McKennitt live: “She can’t sound that incredible live…holy crap yes she does.” Stunningly incredible. And yes, we got there several hours early so we could be up against the barrier for that show (we had GA pit tickets), too.

Photos for both shows are on my Facebook page; I’ll try to get them up at Flickr, too, when I get the chance.

One thing I’ve discovered during these travels (as well as the trip to Canada earlier this month—have I talked about that? Can’t remember.) is that I get a metric ton of work done in airports and on planes. Clearly I need to travel more.

Except for the fact that I’ve been (and will be) away every weekend this month, and will be every weekend except two next month (and one of those includes Darach Anniversary on Saturday). Next weekend Ken and I are running our first-ever motorcycle rally together! (an 8-hour rally) and the next day he’s taking an advanced rider’s course, during which I will be ensconced in a coffee shop or bookstore working. The weekend after that, we’re doing a 3-state (AZ,* NV, and then CA), 3-day Styx concert trip that will also include an SCA event (Baron’s Feast in Gyldenholt, for those of you who’re going). Then, at the end of May, we’re going back to Phoenix yet again for Phoenix Comicon.

Well, my flight’s boarding soon and I have a few other things to finish up, so time for me to post this….

___

*Yes, I’m coming back to Phoenix. Except we’ll be driving this time. And, er, next time.

Runners/joggers: What music makes you gogogo?

Question for you fellow runner/jogger types (or, I suppose, anyone who works out in a bouncy fashion): What's your favorite workout music? Do you have a playlist and if so, what's on it?

I'm looking for some new tunes to add in to my playlist, just to shake things up a bit (and not hear the same songs every day). What do you recommend? No rap or hip-hop, please, and country will be a very hard sell. Bonus if the song's on iTunes.

I'll show you mine if you show me yours…in fact, I'll go first!

Dayle's Workout Playlist

Can't Get You out of My Head, Kylie Minogue

Dancing With Tears In My Eyes, Ultravox*

Everything, All the Time, Styx

Firework, Katy Perry (Best. Workout. Song. Ever.)**

Follow You, Glen Burtnik

Get the Party Started, P!nk

Girls, Girls, Girls, Mötley Crüe

Hooks in You, Marillion

I Don't Need No Doctor, Styx

I Drove All Night, Cyndi Lauper

I Kissed a Girl, Katy Perry

Intro/Blue Collar Man, Styx (a live bootleg. Sssh!)

Let’s Go Crazy, Prince

Life Is a Highway, Tom Cochrane

Love Is the Ritual, Styx

Love Like a Rocket, Bob Geldof*

Mr. PC, Rick Springfield

No Such Thing, Tommy Shaw*

Nowhere Fast, Fire Inc. (Streets of Fire soundtrack)

Pour Some Sugar On Me, Def Leppard

Renegade, Styx

Shake It Out, Florence + the Machine

Tall Cool One, Robert Plant

Welcome to the Jungle, Guns N' Roses

What the Water Gave Me, Florence + the Machine

What You Waiting For? Gwen Stefani

You Spin Me Round (Like a Record), Dead or Alive

1985, Bowling for Soup 

___

*These have been a part of my workout playlist since at least 1988. I remember having them on my running/workout cassette in my Walkman when I was in law school… The other ones I can remember are Heart’s “Magic Man” and “Crazy on You,” and Kate Bush’s “Cloudbusting” (perfect for an upslope on my daily 3-mile run).

**In fact, I sometimes listen to this one over and over.

Oh. Oh, you silly brain.

Oh.

So I’m putting the finishing touches on a new collection of fantasy stories, Written on the Coast: Thirteen Tales of Magic and Mayhem Written in Lincoln City, Oregon, with a foreword by Dean Wesley Smith, right? The last task I have before sending it to Dean to write his foreword and giving it to Ken for a proofread is to make some tweaks to one of the earliest stories, “Corvus Kidnappus,” which I wrote back in 2003 for the very first Denise Little Workshop.

Meanwhile, the collection also contains “Dyrnwyn’s Fire,” about Vivian and Myrddin and the Thirteen Treasures of Britain during World War II. That story will someday be expanded into a novel.

I just realized that “Corvus Kidnappus,” which is a present-day story (well, set in 2003 specifically), could be part of the same greater story.

It’s not a book. It’s a series spanning as many time periods as I could possibly come up with ancient British magical treasures for.

I also just realized the Council (which is mentioned in "Corvus Kidnappus") is a lot like Torchwood, except with ancient British magical treasures rather than aliens.

Oh. Crap….

Anthologies, I am in them

Just wanted to give a heads-up about a couple of forthcoming anthologies in which I have stories! Both are available for pre-order.

Suite Encouters: Hotel Sex Stories contains my story "Feel So Dirty," and the title is from a song, even though the song's not in the story and it's not about music. Can you guess what song?

Anyway, the especially groovy thing about this anthology is that the editor, the wonderful Rachel Kramer Bussel, will be giving away a $150 Four Seasons Hotels gift card! She says, "Anyone who pre-orders the book in any format from any retailer and sends me the receipt by May 15th will be entered to win!" For more details, go here. If I were eligible, I'd be all over this one.

Then there's Bound by Lust: Romantic Stories of Submission and Sensuality, edited by the always amazing Shanna Germain, and my story "A Few Things to Pick Up on Your Way Home." Sometimes my titles are way long. Way, way long.

Anyway, the especially groovy thing about this anthology is that it's got a gorgeous cover and stories by talented authors.

Wait. That's true about both books. What more do you want, really?

Happy Eostre's Day

Happy Eostre’s Day! Today we celebrate the arrival of our beloved white furry princess Eostre, who showed up as a stray, in the rain, outside the cottage we were renting in Wales in 1999. She was a smart, smart girl for knowing we would take care of her, and she changed our lives forever.

Sorry to have been so quiet of late. Been very busy! Work, mostly, because I’m taking lots of time off this month. I just got back from five days in Canada (well, two days were traveling to and from Canada) with the most groovy Sara. We road-tripped to two Gowan concerts, proving we are excellent road-tripping companions (cue lots of laughing until we cannot breathe), had the opportuity to talk to the man himself, got ourselves invited to a patrons-only reception where we got to hang out with band members Danny J. and Pete Nunn (wonderful guys!), and did not go to the Arctic Circle, despite Sara’s best efforts. But it did mean we got a call-out from the stage from Gowan, highlighting Sara’s dodgy grasp of Canadian geography.

We are now Dodgy Woman and Innuendo Girl: Together, they stalk rock gods!

(Not really. We’re way too polite and nice to stalk. Lurk nearby in the hopes of getting noticed is more like it.)

Anyway. I flew home on Friday, which was my birthday, and the birthday gods saw fit to have an exit-row window seat with my name on it for the longer flight. I got lots of work done both going and returning, actually. Clearly my career requires me to fly more often…. Friday night I curled up, watched some great TV with Ken (Castle, Psych, and Big Bang Theory, and relaxed in our new hot tub (there’s a blog post about that coming soon!).

Saturday we, along with Morgana and Brian, headed out to the opening day of the Renaissance Faire, where we walked our sore patooties off and had a fantastic time. I bought a glorious feather fascinator/headpiece that will work for my bad faerie costume as well as steampunk (I think it’s something the Evil Queen in Once Upon a Time would wear. I covet her wardrobe, I really do.) and M&B bought me faerie bat wings !!! as my birthday present. Ken, meanwhile, spent an exorbitant amount of money on a leather vest with tails, in which he looks impossibly hot. It’ll work for steampunk, faerie/Labyrinth of Jareth, pirate…now he just has to make the other clothes to go with it.

Today we’re headed off to his dad’s for Easter dinner. We’re going to take the new bike (a BMW K1600GTL)—it’ll be my inaugural ride!—but before we do, I’m going for a run and then making a serious attempt to whack through the work and home email In Boxes that have grown like a weedy lawn during my travels. I also have two short stories due this week.

Because did I mention that on Friday evening, I’m flying to visit Sara in Phoenix and we’re going to a Styx show? And the following weekend, I’m flying out there again for a Florence and the Machine show? And that the weekend after that, Ken and I are going to run our first rally together (just an 8-hour one…I’m not that crazy!) and I’m going to a bridal shower. Then May starts and we’re off to Phoenix and Vegas for two Styx shows (note to self: book Vegas hotel soon). May will be mostly quiet after that, until we go to Phoenix Comicon at the end.

So between travels it’s going to be heads-down workworkwork, but I’m looking forward to all of it. I have a lot of projects that I’m juggling, and it’s exciting: stories and a novella to write, a collection and novels to epub and POD.

Right. Off for a job, then some email weed-whacking before we head out. I hope everybody has a lovely day, however you celebrate!

What do YOU think?

Ignoring the watermark in the center, of course, what do ya'll think about this cover?

(Not entirely wedded to the pen name, either, so comments are welcome about that as well. I was originally going with Andrea Loewen for my [sweet-to-spicy, non-erotic] romance name, but I really hate being asked "Do we call you Dayle or Andrea?" so I thought keeping Dayle for all genres except erotica made more sense. And since people sometimes think Dayle, even with that spelling, is a guy's name, I figured I'd add a clearly feminine middle name—and I've been struggling with that for weeks. The only other option I kinda like is Holly. Is Dayle Holly Loewen better than Dayle Ivy Loewen?)

Is it magic...or madness?

"Berengere" by Dayle A. Dermatis

When Berengere’s husband, the king of Coraise, goes away crusade, his brother Jean assumes the role of Regent—and makes Berengere, her sister, her husband’s grandmother, and her closest servants “guests” in his chateau. Berengere knows they’re really prisoners, but there’s nothing she can do except try to make their appartements more pleasing by painting murals of the outside world. Are the murals a means of escape…or is Berengere slipping into madness?

Available in a variety of electronic formats

Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords

A sassy, light-hearted ghostly romance

"Some Old Lover's Ghost" by Dayle A. Dermatis

Helena runs Paranormal Manifestation Services—PMS for short. When she’s hired by Beth and Marguerite to find out why a ghost is bothering Marguerite, she doesn’t expect to get a crush on Beth…which makes things especially awkward when she learns who the ghost is. Rainbow Reviews called this short story “unexpectedly romantic [and] heart-wrenching.” BONUS: Includes an interview with the author about the writing of the story, her own paranormal experiences, and more.

“Definitely a light-hearted read – kind of a lesbian Ghostbusters. What makes this story stand out is the strong narrator – she’s smart, funny and definitely opinionated. For some reason or other, the word ‘sassy’ comes to mind when I think of this story - and that’s a good thing.”
— Megan, goodreads.com

“unexpectedly romantic [and] heart-wrenching”
—Rainbow Reviews

“Some Old Lover’s Ghost was nominated for a 2008 Romance Erotica Connection Award for Best F/F Romance Short Story and for a 2010 Gaylactic Spectrum Awardfor Best Short Fiction.

“Some Old Lover’s Ghost” originally appeared in Haunted Hearths and Sapphic Shades: Lesbian Ghost Stories (Lethe Press, 2008).

Available in a variety of electronic formats
Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords

In the market for a new camera - thoughts?

Okay, folks, I’m in the market for a new camera, and I’m looking for advice and suggestions.

A little background: Way back in the mists of time when I was a reporter, I used a bells-and-whistles camera, plus my husband at the time was a great photographer and we had a proper camera. But over the years, I’ve moved to point-and-shoot (and digital, natch). Now I want to get back to real photography again…but I’ve forgotten a lot.

So the questions of “What do I want?” is hard to answer.

Here’s what I want to use the camera for:

1. concerts. I need to be able to shoot decent pictures without flash, and the camera needs to take pictures quickly with little down time. Concerts mean I’d need a camera without removable lenses.
2. book covers. I need to be able to take reasonably high quality photos for covers (300 dpi for print covers).
3. travel. I want to take nice pictures when we travel. The camera doesn’t need to be waterproof, but reasonably light, small, and hardy are pluses. Extra lenses might be too bulky for motorcycle travel, so again, I’m probably looking for one w/o removable lenses.

I like the idea of having one that has point-and-shoot capability as well as all the manual controls.

I’m somewhat flexible on cost. This is an investment and I’m not necessarily looking for the cheapest camera; however, I want to find a balance between quality/functionality vs. break-the-bank/more features than I’ll ever use. So far, $500 doesn’t scare me; more than that and I’ll have to be convinced the cost is worth the added features.

Thoughts, suggestions, recommendations? Feel free to ask me questions to help me refine what I’m looking for! And thank you!

(And please leave comments here rather than FB/Twitter/G+…that way I don’t have to look four places to compare everyone’s suggestions. Thanks!)


Update 2/20/12: I think I've narrowed it down to the Canon S100, the Sony HX100V, and the Sony HX9V. Which is not to say that I'm still not completely waffling…see the comments for more!

Definitely on the mend - finally!

Yes, I’m definitely starting to feel better. Despite not getting nearly enough sleep last night (O Nyquil, I reach out a trembling hand, but you slip from my grasp…), I’ve been productive and actually have energy today. As in, “Okay, let’s tackle the next item on the To Do list” as opposed to “Oh gods, not the next item on the To Do list…fuuuuck…”

Okay, for the record, I did doze off during my acupuncture appointment. That was a nice rest.

Of course, now I’m battling with the Popcorn Kittens. So many projects bouncing up and down demanding my attention! First orders of business are copyediting (I have two jobs to finish before we leave for Oregon on the 23^rd) and a short story due ASAP. I’m expecting a story assignment by the end of the week (for one of the Oregon workshops) that will then be due ASAP (before the second workshop; I don’t know the exact date, but probably before we hit the road).

Butbutbut then there’s publishing! I just got my second collection out (Five Funny Fantasies) and I’m jonesing to do another. I see that if I publish two more outdoor erotica stories, I’ll have a total of 10, which will be perfect for a collection. I also have a mock-up done of a cover for another fantasy story; I think it’s pretty good, which means I have to buy the art, format the story for the various markets, see if there any nice reviews of the story out there, write the blurb, etc.

HOLY SHIT, DUDES! Apparently the story in question, “Some Old Lover’s Ghost,” was nominated for a 2010 Gaylactic Spectrum Award for Best Short Fiction! It didn’t make the short list, but still!  O.O

Woah. Right. Where was I?

So, copyediting, writing, publishing. I’m also doing the tutorials for InDesign so I can finally get some print books out (oy). I’m behind on work email, too. And a wee bit of promo here and there—a bunch of Cleis Press anthologies I have stories in are now available as audio books, and I’d like to do a post on my romantic stories that would be nice for Valentine’s Day….

Meanwhile, I’ve been pretty good about keeping my home email In Box, which includes bunches of SCA mail, mostly down. But a flurry came in this morning, so I need to deal with that tonight. Today, I’ve also gone to Trader Joe’s, the drugstore, Best Buy (I can has a new little light wee Kindle!), and Jo-Ann’s. Not a lot of house stuff, but some puttering here and there.

What I really want to do is watch the new Styx DVD, but it’s just gonna have to wait a little while longer! Writing calls!

Edited to Add: And tomorrow I’m going back to bootcamp after a couple of weeks off. It’s gonna hurt, but it’ll gonna hurt so good….

First fantasy collection!

Five Funny Fantasies by Dayle A. Dermatis

Five Funny Fantasies is the first collection from prolific writer Dayle A. Dermatis. Prepare to be amused by these five humorous fantasy stories involving dragons and slayers, deals with the Devil, 80s hair metal, and much, much more!

Includes the following stories:

• If the Shoe Fits
• Feline Design
• Famous Last Words
• Hell’s Belles
• What Dragons Prefer

“Dayle A. Dermatis’s ‘If the Shoe Fits’ is a funny (and rather ingenious) semi-modern twist on Cinderella, in which we find out why that shoe was really so important to everyone.”
—Errant Dreams Reviews

“[What Dragons Prefer’ is] a very good short story with a classic twist at the end. This story is very well worth reading.”

—Steve Challis, Smashwords.com

“Simply put, the author's writing style is really, really good!”

—A.A., Amazon.com

“I chuckled aloud at [‘What Dragons Prefer’]. Brilliantly succinct expression of a neat twist!”
—George, Podcastle.com

Cover art © Julien Tromeur / iStockPhoto.com.

Available in a variety of electronic formats
Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords

State of the Dayle (and Ken)

We’ve had a much-needed quiet, somewhat catch-up weekend. I’m pretty sure I’m on the far side of my cold; I finally haven’t needed nasal spray to sleep (which I’ve been using since, oh, Christmas) and I’m not coughing much at all. Maybe tonight I’ll try to go without Nyquil…? Which would be sad, because I like Nyquil so very much. It puts me to sleep, and keeps me asleep, and even if I get up to stagger to the bathroom or snort more nasal spray, it puts me right back to sleep. Sweet, sweet Nyquil. Why must you have high fructose corn syrup in you? Of course, as soon as I’m not sick and I try to take Nyquil, it will keep me awake, spinning and spinning. So at least there’s no chance I’ll become addicted to it.

Sadly, Ken’s now been struck with a cold; hopefully it won’t linger as long as mine. Sigh.

My root-canalled tooth still hurts if I try to chew on that side, and I’m hoping that’s because I have a temp filling. My jaw is also still a little achy, but nothing awful.

So we’ve spent the weekend catching up on TV (plus I’ve been saving some stuff to DVD), and I’ve ton a bunch of copyediting and started a short story and answered much work email (and home email and SCA email and…), and Ken’s cleaned off his desk, and we cleaned off part of the sewing table (as well as putting away the air mattress and sheets and blankets from our most recent guest), and Friday night to Saturday morning I slept 11 hours, waking with dismay at 1 pm.

But maybe that’s why I’m finally feeling better. Who knows. I set my alarm for noon today and got up at 11:30, so I’m slowly dragging myself back to a schedule the rest of the world views as “normal.” I’ve got an acupuncture treatment tomorrow morning so I have to be up…

I think my hand’s marginally better, thanks to my babying it as much as possible. The NAMM and Styx/Geoff Tate vacations helped, as does Dragon Dictate. Writing is still slow going, though. I’m handwriting a story and then dictating it in, but I’ve discovered that when I handwrite, I tend to default to notes rather than, oh, actual sentences. Ack.

Okay, off to hammer through some more emails before I curl up in bed with Ken and the latest Sue Grafton!