Saturday, July 30, 2011
Coming soon: appearance at the Erotic Literary Salon
Philadelphia's Erotic Literary Salon, organized by the terrific Susana Mayer, keeps growing. I've accompanied Jeremy there twice, but for the first time I'll be reading too--and talking about some of the challenges of being an infrequent writer who's always still a beginner. We both read at Essensuality , but this is the first time we're billed as a couple, which is exciting. Plus I'll have a copy of Gotta Have It to give away!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
My first reading
Jeremy's going to be featured at Saturday's Essensuality event, and I nerved myself up to ask for an open mike slot. So I'll be reading from my Gotta Have It story. I've done public performances and readings before, but never erotica. I know Jeremy's piece will be a lot of fun, because I've gotten to see it "in workshop"--and my goal is to enjoy myself with mine too!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Gotta Have It book trailer and book!
Wow, what a privilege to be a part of Rachel Kramer Bussel's new anthology with Cleis! A particularly exciting week: I got to be in the fantastic book trailer which came out Monday, and yesterday I ran into the house with two packages--one for me and one for Jeremy--holding the actual book. It's a wonderful shape and size. My first time between book covers. I'm still flying high!
So cool to share the screen not only with Jeremy and Rachel, but also friends like Donna, Emerald, and Shanna!
So cool to share the screen not only with Jeremy and Rachel, but also friends like Donna, Emerald, and Shanna!
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Safe to share at Beginner's Ball #4
Erobintica talks about sharing and/or publishing one's work in the newest Beginner's Ball. The Ball is a blog series exploring the first steps and choices for those of use starting to write erotica. (And as Donna George Storey says, we will always be starting!)
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Beginner's Ball #3 - Leave it all on the floor!
The Beginner's Ball is a blog series by writers relatively new to the world of erotica--Erobintica, Marina St. Clare, and myself so far. We'd love to have others join in our dance. If you'd like to take your turn hosting, please contact one of us. Check out the first and second in the series, and please join us in the comments.
I've started my erotica journey by bringing to fictional life some of my tried-and-true fantasies, and I assume I'm not alone. What sparked your first few stories? Were there any that just came out of the blue, or were they based on scenarios that already had airtime on your inner broadcasts?
A bit of advice to first-time novelists that I heard a long time ago has stuck with me: don't hoard any ideas for the future. If it fits, put it in. When you're writing a second novel, you will have a stock of new ideas.
But with erotica specifically I have worried about what happens when I've used up my personal fantasy list. In other areas, I do have faith that there's an eternal spring from which fresh ideas constantly well up. There's no reason that erotica should be different, and yet emotionally I'm a little stuck there. Perhaps it's because the wellsprings of sexuality feel very personal and quirky to me.
Yet surprise surprise, once I start writing a story, of course my characters take on a life of their own. My protagonists aren't me, and they show me what they want to do and how, which doesn't necessarily match up with what I would choose.
I called this post "leave it all on the floor," but what sparked the idea was actually a foot race. I'm a very slow runner, so I'm just competing with myself, but it's important to me to get to the finish line with only enough left for that last sprint--"leave it all on the road." Every endeavor must have that concept. You put everything you have into the task at hand. Then you rest and rebuild. As you do that over and over, you build and strengthen your capacities--and you never have to worry "if only I had done a little more." Leave it all there--whether it's on the ballroom floor, the road, or the page.
It's one of the eternal mysteries--where do ideas come from? How is it that countless millions of words have been put together since we developed language, and yet fresh combinations are found every day, every hour?
I don't know, but I do believe that wellspring will never fail. Each of us has access to our own spring, choked as it may get with the weeds and tares of life. I trust that more ideas will come if I let them.
New writers, do you have fears like these? Experienced hands, have you been through fallow periods? How did you emerge from them?
I've started my erotica journey by bringing to fictional life some of my tried-and-true fantasies, and I assume I'm not alone. What sparked your first few stories? Were there any that just came out of the blue, or were they based on scenarios that already had airtime on your inner broadcasts?
A bit of advice to first-time novelists that I heard a long time ago has stuck with me: don't hoard any ideas for the future. If it fits, put it in. When you're writing a second novel, you will have a stock of new ideas.
But with erotica specifically I have worried about what happens when I've used up my personal fantasy list. In other areas, I do have faith that there's an eternal spring from which fresh ideas constantly well up. There's no reason that erotica should be different, and yet emotionally I'm a little stuck there. Perhaps it's because the wellsprings of sexuality feel very personal and quirky to me.
Yet surprise surprise, once I start writing a story, of course my characters take on a life of their own. My protagonists aren't me, and they show me what they want to do and how, which doesn't necessarily match up with what I would choose.
I called this post "leave it all on the floor," but what sparked the idea was actually a foot race. I'm a very slow runner, so I'm just competing with myself, but it's important to me to get to the finish line with only enough left for that last sprint--"leave it all on the road." Every endeavor must have that concept. You put everything you have into the task at hand. Then you rest and rebuild. As you do that over and over, you build and strengthen your capacities--and you never have to worry "if only I had done a little more." Leave it all there--whether it's on the ballroom floor, the road, or the page.
It's one of the eternal mysteries--where do ideas come from? How is it that countless millions of words have been put together since we developed language, and yet fresh combinations are found every day, every hour?
I don't know, but I do believe that wellspring will never fail. Each of us has access to our own spring, choked as it may get with the weeds and tares of life. I trust that more ideas will come if I let them.
New writers, do you have fears like these? Experienced hands, have you been through fallow periods? How did you emerge from them?
Monday, March 30, 2009
Coming this weekend: Beginner's Ball #3
Erobintica and Marina St. Clare are hard acts to follow! But it's my turn to host the Beginner's Ball, our series by and for those who are new to the erotica world (and for more experienced writers as well!) I've picked the title ("Leave it All on the Floor') and the topic (the wellsprings of creativity). The post will go up Saturday morning so that I (hobbled as I am by a real-life weekday job) can hang out and respond to comments over the weekend. See you then!
Monday, March 16, 2009
Dancing with a mask or without?
Marina St. Clare leads the second in our Beginner's Ball blog series with a great post about pen names and people one tells about writing erotica. Don't miss it!
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