Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Passion




On Saturday, October 15th, my husband and I attended a memorial service for a dear friend. We met Boots Martin in 1973 through Stagedoor Comedy Playhouse, where I had the joy of working with her in many plays and replacing her in several others when she was busy doing other shows.

Everyone who spoke about Boots talked about her passion for theater. It didn’t matter how small or how large the role, Boots always brought her considerable arsenal of talent—her passion—with her.

Which made me think about why we writers keep writing—despite rejections, poor or nonexistent reviews and even when confronted by the terror of writer’s block. It’s our passion for the written word; the passion that demands we tell the story; the passion for the characters who compel us to tell about their successes and failures, their goodness and flaws, their hates and—above all—their loves. About their abiding passion for life and for each other.

Many years before I sold my first novel, Boots suffered through editing handwritten manuscripts, her edits also handwritten. Looking back, I wonder who had the harder time deciphering those scribblings. Boots kept reading and acting. I kept writing—all because we shared a passion for what we do, for what makes us who we are.

I miss you, Bootsie, more than words can say.

Love,
Dee

Passion



On Saturday, October 15th, my husband and I attended a memorial service for a dear friend. We met Boots Martin in 1973 through Stagedoor Comedy Playhouse, where I had the joy of working with her in many plays and replacing her in several others when she was busy doing other shows.

Everyone who spoke about Boots talked about her passion for theater. It didn’t matter how small or how large the role, Boots always brought her considerable arsenal of talent—her passion—with her.

Which made me think about why we writers keep writing—despite rejections, poor or nonexistent reviews and even when confronted by the terror of writer’s block. It’s our passion for the written word; the passion that demands we tell the story; the passion for the characters who compel us to tell about their successes and failures, their goodness and flaws, their hates and—above all—their loves. About their abiding passion for life and for each other.

Many years before I sold my first novel, Boots suffered through editing handwritten manuscripts, her edits also handwritten. Looking back, I wonder who had the harder time deciphering those scribblings. Boots kept reading and acting. I kept writing—all because we shared a passion for what we do, for what makes us who we are.

I miss you, Bootsie, more than words can say.

Love,
Dee

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Sex


Sex is serious business. It’s enthralling, enthusiastic, invigorating and enervating. In addition to being fun, it’s funny. Which is what makes my erotic romances different from others’. Humor—even in my darkest erotic romance—is my “brand.” My author’s voice.

Some people upon meeting me express surprise that I write erotic romance. My response to that observation is this: I’m not so old I’ve forgotten the joys of making love. Nor am I so young that I’m embarrassed writing about those joys. In very explicit terms!

I’ve written short contemporary, romantic suspense, Regency and Victorian historicals. I never sold. Now I write erotic romances. My sixteenth book—Her Virtual Ecstasy—will release October 1, 2011. I think you can see why I write what I write. I have two more books—It Takes a Thief and Temptress of Time that are contracted, but don’t have release dates yet.

Why do I write what I write?
·      Freedom of language: To ensure I avoid redundancy, I have an American Dictionary of Slang where I find lots of synonyms for sex parts. I also have a Dictionary of Euphemisms, which I don’t use much if at all.
·      Freedom to fantasize: I remember being really angry at Erica Jung for revealing so many female fantasies in her novel Fear of Flying. Now I appreciate the freedom to imagine anything—and to write about it.
·      Luck: In 2005 I ran in to Lynn LaFleur at the RWA conference in Reno, NV. She suggested I attend the “spotlight” on Ellora’s Cave Publishing. I won an anthology, loved every story in it, and wondered if I could write a story as funny and HOT as Charlotte Boyett Compo’s The Windsday Club. Inspired as I hadn’t been in a long time, I came home and wrote Passion’s Four Towers, which became my first sale ever.
·      Freedom to explore new (for me) subgenres: I write Historical Fantasy because I can play fast and loose with historical details—except for certain words and making sure they were in use at the time. I really admire all you wonderful authors who write historically accurate and creative stories as well. I do try to stay accurate with clothes and weaponry, but the rest is out of my own imagination. I started writing Futuristic Fantasy because I needed something to occupy my time while I waited to hear about my historical fantasy. Both genres are a lot of fun to write. I probably will never write a paranormal, even though I read them a lot.
Since I first wrote this, I have written and sold a paranormal: Chosen. It’s available from eXtasy Books.
·      Challenges: I love compound/complex sentences. Most e-publishers do not. Even commas are frowned on.
·      Naming Creativity: I live with my Character Naming Sourcebook from The Writer’s Digest. I don’t even start writing until I’ve named all my major and most of my secondary characters. Naming is fun. For example, Passion’s Four Towers three brothers’ names are variations on the word “spear.”
Sex is serious business. It’s enthralling, enthusiastic, invigorating and enervating. In addition to being fun, it’s funny. Which is what makes my erotic romances different from others’. Humor—even in my darkest erotic romance—is my “brand.” My author’s voice.

Some people upon meeting me express surprise that I write erotic romance. My response to that observation is this: I’m not so old I’ve forgotten the joys of making love. Nor am I so young that I’m embarrassed writing about those joys. In very explicit terms!

I’ve written short contemporary, romantic suspense, Regency and Victorian historicals. I never sold. Now I write erotic romances. My sixteenth book—Her Virtual Ecstasy—will release October 1, 2011. I think you can see why I write what I write. I have two more books—It Takes a Thief and Temptress of Time that are contracted, but don’t have release dates yet.

Why do I write what I write?
·      Freedom of language: To ensure I avoid redundancy, I have an American Dictionary of Slang where I find lots of synonyms for sex parts. I also have a Dictionary of Euphemisms, which I don’t use much if at all.
·      Freedom to fantasize: I remember being really angry at Erica Jung for revealing so many female fantasies in her novel Fear of Flying. Now I appreciate the freedom to imagine anything—and to write about it.
·      Luck: In 2005 I ran in to Lynn LaFleur at the RWA conference in Reno, NV. She suggested I attend the “spotlight” on Ellora’s Cave Publishing. I won an anthology, loved every story in it, and wondered if I could write a story as funny and HOT as Charlotte Boyett Compo’s The Windsday Club. Inspired as I hadn’t been in a long time, I came home and wrote Passion’s Four Towers, which became my first sale ever.
·      Freedom to explore new (for me) subgenres: I write Historical Fantasy because I can play fast and loose with historical details—except for certain words and making sure they were in use at the time. I really admire all you wonderful authors who write historically accurate and creative stories as well. I do try to stay accurate with clothes and weaponry, but the rest is out of my own imagination. I started writing Futuristic Fantasy because I needed something to occupy my time while I waited to hear about my historical fantasy. Both genres are a lot of fun to write. I probably will never write a paranormal, even though I read them a lot.
Since I first wrote this, I have written and sold a paranormal: Chosen. It’s available from eXtasy Books.
·      Challenges: I love compound/complex sentences. Most e-publishers do not. Even commas are frowned on.
·      Naming Creativity: I live with my Character Naming Sourcebook from The Writer’s Digest. I don’t even start writing until I’ve named all my major and most of my secondary characters. Naming is fun. For example, Passion’s Four Towers three brothers’ names are variations on the word “spear.”