In this post, I’ll refer to my title both metaphorically and literally. I’ll start off with the former. A few months ago, I donated some clothes to a local organization that collects clothing for the poor and underprivileged. They do not charge one red cent, which is what I like about them. It’s not located in the best neighborhood, and you have to park in an alley to get there. As I was taking the clothes out of my car (on my lunch break), I noticed two highly inebriated gentleman walking towards me. Of course I thought that I was going to be robbed, but instead, they both said, practically in unison, “Ma’am, do you need some help with those bags?” At that point, I felt like a huge pile of turds. “Why yes, yes, of course,” I said. They helped me take all of the clothes I donated into the building, and they did not ask me for anything. I graciously thanked them before they went on their way. NEVER judge a book by its cover.

Now to the literal. I only read romance novels in middle school. I picked it back up a few years ago. I frowned when my best friend introduced me to paranormal romance. She insisted that I read DARK PRINCE by Cristine Feehan, and MINE TO TAKE by Dara Joy. I absolutely love both books and went on to read the series provided by both authors. I judged those books before I read them, and it was a mistake on my part. Both of those books remain favorites of mine. People judge what I write without having ever read a page. What? You write horror? Do you believe in God? Why would you write that? That’s horrible! Uh, yeah. Well, my best ideas come from the evening news—ahem. Just because a writer specializes in a particular genre, it says nothing of their character. I often hear that romance writers are desperate, horny women (which I DO NOT agree with, by the way). Well, they make up about half the market, so someone really loves what they write. I, being one of those fans! Romance writers pen stories that speak to the heart. What’s wrong with that? What’s wrong with writing about monsters? The supernatural and the human kind? What’s wrong with writing in any genre? Absolutely, nothing. Some people need to get their panties out of a bunch, or just buy a thong! ;*) Keep writing, keep reading, in any genre you will! I love it all, dear writers! :*)

I was tagged by Thomas at http://tappitytappity.blogspot.com/

Here are the rules: a. Each player lists 8 facts/habits about themselves.

b. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning before those facts/habits are listed.

c. At the end of the post, the player then tags 8 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

Okay, here are 8 random things about me:

1.) I was planning to go to medical school after college to become a psychiatrist, but I changed my mind after realizing that I would have to cut into cadavers as well! :*(

2.) I write mostly novels, but I also write screenplays, short stories, poetry, children’s stories, etc. I just like writing! :*)

3.) Horror is my favorite genre—period, but I love Mafia crime dramas.

4.) I was a guest on the Iyanla Vanzant show in 2001 after appearing in an article in my local newspaper. One of her producers called me, and I flew to New York to be on the show 20 days after 9/11! In case you missed that—I was on a PLANE 20 days after 9/11!

5.) I had a dream a few years ago about a classmate I didn’t really associate with. I dreamt that she died after she was chased by Death in a deserted western town for about 5 minutes. And she did die—about 5 months later from a rare blood disorder! Spooky!
6.) I have been writing for SEVERAL years. I wrote my first short skit in the 8th grade—and got an ‘A’!
7.) I love to shop!
8.) Bug Bunny is my favorite cartoon character.
Okay, there you have it; 8 things about me. Now I have to tag 8 unsuspecting victims, I mean participants:
Gwyneth Bolton-http://gwynethbolton.blogspot.com/
Chesya Burke-http://chesya.blogspot.com/
Jackie Kessler-http://jackiekessler.blogspot.com/
Naomi-http://violetcorona.blogspot.com/
Pat Wood-http://pkwood.blogspot.com/
Richelle Mead-http://www.richellemead.com/blog/
WrittenWyrd-http://writtenwyrdd.blogspot.com/
Tempest Knight-http://midnightmooncafe.blogspot.com/

Hey Kiddies. For those who know me, and now for those who don’t, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of my. all-time. favorite. shows. EVER! Take the quiz and post which character you are in the comments section. It’s fun! :*)

You scored as Buffy Summers, You are a very strong individual. You do, however, have some trouble admitting how you truly feel. You’ve experienced a lot during your life, but you more than manage. Always willing to help, you’re a great friend. Buffy Summers 100% Anya 83% Spike 67% Xander Harris 67% Rupert Giles 58% Dawn Summers 58% Willow Rosenberg 58% Tara Maclay 42% Which Buffy The Vampire Slayer Character Are You Most Like!? created with QuizFarm.com

Hello kiddies! Just from reading the title I’m sure that you can gauge my excitement when I saw this in the video store, right? Er, well I lost that enthusiasm as I watched this overwhelmingly boring piece of crap. I should have known not to rent it when I did not see Stephen King or George Romero any where on the label—I have committed a most grievous sin.

As you may remember, Creepshow I (1982-my favorite) was directed by George Romero, and the stories and the screenplay were written by Stephen King. Creepshow II (1987-love this as well) was directed by Michael Gornick and Stephen King provided the stories, while George Romero wrote the screenplay. So when I saw a 3rd installment on the shelf at my local video store, I was soooo giddy!

Creepshow 3 sucked—it just did. It was directed by husband and wife, writing/directing/producing team, Jim Dudelson and Ana Clavell. I read that they also “created” a sequel for “Day of the Dead.” For the love of God, Hollywood needs to stop these people! I won’t give a spoiler alert because the movie will spoil itself. I’ll briefly go over the five horrible vignettes as they appear in order on the film:

Creepshow 3:

“Alice” – The story of a bratty teenager who hates her mad scientist neighbor who created some stupid universal remote that can bend time and space. When her dad presses the button, she ends up with an African-American family. He presses it again, and oh no, her family is now Hispanic. Sounds racist and stupid. (It goes down hill from there if that is possible)

“Rachel, the Call Girl” – The story of a serial killer call girl who gets a call to meet up with another killer who happens to be a vampire. (Ooooh! Woweee!)

“Professor Dayton’s Wife” -The story of the mad scientist from the first story who decides to get married. He is a prankster and two of his students think that he made his bride-to-be, and they dismember her, but she’s a real woman. (**Sigh**)

“The Haunted Dog” -The story of a partying, butthole of a doctor who drops a hotdog on the ground and then gives it to a homeless guy who was hungry. The homeless guy dies from the contaminated hotdog but doesn’t haunt the doctor until the end of the vignette. (WTF??)

“The Radio” -The story of a part-time security guard who allows a radio to tell him to kill a man when the guy discovers he stole money from him. (Blah!)

All of the stories were supposedly tied together somehow—they were, but quite badly. The “directors” apparently have a tendency to use alot of prostitutes, pimps, and homeless people in their stories. Maybe they couldn’t think of anyone else to use? Don’t rent this crap! EVER!!

Casanegra is a new book written by one of my favorite, most prolific horror writers, Tananarive Due, her husband Steve Barnes, and phenomenal actor, Blair Underwood. Mrs. Due is an award-winning literary horror writer, who has several books under her belt: MY SOUL TO KEEP (my personal favorite), THE LIVING BLOOD, THE BETWEEN, THE GOOD HOUSE, JOPLIN’S GHOST, and non-fiction pieces, THE BLACK ROSE and FREEDOM IN THE FAMILY. Mrs. Due’s prose will keep you begging for more! Steve Barnes is one of the few African-American male science fiction writers, and his work speaks for itself. He is awesome! And finally, Blair Underwood, who is a well-known, well respected actor, whom we all know and love. Steve Barnes (left), Blair Underwood (center), and Tananarive Due (right, of course)!

According to various sources on the Internet, this is what the novel entails: Casanegra follows the adventures of Tennyson Hardwick, a gorgeous, sexy actor and former gigolo, living on the fringes of the good life in Hollywood. This story, which chronicles the redemption of a prodigal son, combines the glamour of Hollywood with the seedy hopelessness of the inner city.

In this hot and steamy mystery, Tennyson struggles to hang on to his acting career and redeem his sex-for-pay history, which estranged him from his family — especially his father, a decorated LAPD captain who raised Tennyson to call him “sir.” Now, in the wake of his father’s sudden stroke, Tennyson has to save himself from taking the fall for the first murder of a female rapper. In the process he discovers his hidden talents — the hard way.

I absolutely cannot wait to read this novel by these three very talented people. It comes out in July 2007, but you can pre-order it now! Happy reading!

Hello Kiddies! We all have dreams, not only the literal kind, but the goal-oriented kind as well. Of course mine is to be a best-selling, famous author, with more money than I can spend! And a pool boy with no shirt! Excuse me—sorry—ahem.

Most writers just dream about becoming published. We all know naysayers who claim that we should think about something more practical and get the thought of a being a published writer out of our heads. Dreams are what keeps most of us going. The hope that we will one day achieve our goals. We have to believe our dreams!

Case in point: I live in the South, and there is this belief that if you dream about numbers, you should play them in the lottery; especially if a deceased relative gives them to you–it’s a sure win! Er, yeah. I always thought that was so dumb. WELL, I dreamt that my dad (who is ALIVE and WELL) was going to loan someone some money; a few hundred dollars. I woke up the next morning, and thought nothing of it. I’m not a gambler anyway. Just for fun, I played the numbers a few days later (Pick 3 in S.C.) and won 40 bucks. I was really freaked out! Crazy, right? I trusted my dream, and it came through for me.

We as writers should trust our gut feeling and go with it. If you eat, sleep, breathe, and live for writing, then that’s your dream and you should follow it. NEVER allow anyone to stifle your dream of writing, or any other dreams you may have! Keep writing!

Hello Kiddies! Are you afraid of Friday the 13th? I’m certainly not. I can’t be! It’s my birthday! Maybe that’s why I’m so warped! Plus, this is my 13th post. How cool is that? Have a great weekend everyone! :*)

Hello Kiddies! No, I don’t mean exorcising your demons, like when little Reagan spewed pea soup all over the priest and yelled, “I’m the devil!” I mean exorcising your writing demons. I spoke before on stress causing writers to not write as often as they should. I think most writers have experienced that.

What I mean is thinking that you’re not good enough as a writer. Evanescence has a song entitled, “Sweet Sacrifice.” A particular verse is pertinent to my topic. It goes, “Fear is only in our minds, but it’s taking over all the time.” Sometimes even the most brilliant writers think that it’s time to give up the ghost, so to speak. Most writers are they’re own worst critics. “What if no one likes my story,” or “What if my words don’t make sense,” and “What if my words aren’t complex enough.” Trust me, I have heard it all.

We need to be our own critics, as well as our own cheerleaders! I know, it may seem like an oxymoron, but it works. If you have to complete revisions, your inner critic says, “Oh, that sucks. Get your butt back in that chair and change it!” But, on the other hand, if you have polished your manuscript and are a little hesitant about sending it out, your inner cheerleader says, “You’ve done great! Now send out that manuscipt and celebrate!” Okay, I know that was corny but you get the point.

Also, you need to write every day. I think it was Hemingway or Faulkner, I can’t remember which, who said to at least write something every day, even if it’s just a paragraph a day. Exercise your brain and write daily in order to hone your skills! And exorcise those demons who tell you that you cannot do it! Until next time, America!

Hello Kiddies! Remember when I told you guys about the agent I was referred to by one of her professional clients? And that she had it on an exclusive basis? Well, I received my rejection via snailmail last week! :*( I was kind of bummed at first but then I realized that this was one agent’s opinion.

I realized that she does not normally represent urban fantasy, so my series may not appeal to her senses. My series leans more towards horror fantasy. Most of my work leans towards horror in general, if it must be categorized. I am just a writer, I’ll allow everyone else to place my work in little heart-shaped boxes! :*)

Once, one of my favorite horror authors, Tananarive Due, sent me an e-mail asking me had I received my wallpaper of rejections. Of course my answer was ‘no.’ She mentioned that several rejections are par for the course and to expect many in this business. I only have a small handful of rejections thus far for my dark urban fantasy series, so I have already compiled my list of agents who represent what I write, and they are a grand group of agents. I have been looking over my query and synopsis to ensure once again that everything is correct. When my tinkering is done, I will then e-mail and snailmail said queries.

All writers experience rejection during the querying process, but do not allow it to dissuade you from your ultimate goal of publication. If you are good at what you do, someone will take notice; that is all! :*)

Okay Kiddies, if you don’t get the joke from my title, then you don’t go to church. YOU SINNER!! :*)

Anyway, I have not been writing as much as I promised myself I would. I don’t have writer’s block or anything of the sort. As a matter-of-fact, I have ideas almost daily. I know where I want my stories to go, but when I’m stressed (mostly from my job), I just cannot focus the way I should.

Usually I don’t allow stress to thwart my writing, but as of late, I have let stress get the better of me. It only lasted a few days though; my muse would not allow me to rest. She grabs a hold of my imagination and won’t let go. It does not matter if I’m at work, in the grocery store, asleep, etc. She is always there to ensure that I write no matter what. And I thank her for her tenaciousness!

I just finished the outline for the second book in my dark urban fantasy series. I am going to write a short story first, while I continue to research historical data for my novel.
How do you deal with stress? Does it ever affect your writing?