Silly me. I looked at my two weeks off from my day job for the holidays as two solid weeks of writing time. Figured I'd have tons of time between the visiting, the cleaning for guests, the cheer and the fun. By this point I expected to be half-way done with a first draft for a new piece.

Yeah. And the North Pole's not melting, too.

I spent the first week throwing spaghetti at the wall.

What? You don't know that metaphor? Let me 'splain. No, that takes too long. Let me sum up: My mother read somewhere that, in order to tell whether the spaghetti was cooked enough or not, you could take a piece and throw it at the wall. If it stuck, it's ready. If it doesn't stick, it needs to cook longer. Behind our stove there was a scrubbed spot on the wall from where my mother always tossed the piece of spaghetti. It was fun watching her fling it and taking guesses as to whether it would stick or bounce or slide.

When I start stories, I'm always reminded of my mother flinging those strings of spaghetti at that spot on the wall. I start writing fast and furiously, letting the story form on the page, getting to know the characters, discovering their troubles and, in general, just immersing myself for a few minutes in their world. If everything goes along smoothly, I keep writing, not coming up for air until I'm well over a thousand words in. That's a story that's ready to be told. It's a keeper and will get written right away.

Sometimes, however, the spaghetti doesn't stick. I'll write a few hundred words (if I'm lucky) or a few thousand (if I get suckered) before the story dries up and either the characters stop talking or the plot won't reveal itself or I just get bored with it. I have files and files of these not-done story starts and whenever it's time to start a new book, I rifle through them to see if any of them are done yet. I'll pull up each file, write a little more on it and either a) keep going 'cause it's ready to be written or b) throw it back into the pot to simmer a little longer. New York Moment and Kara's Captain both took more than one throw at the wall before they stuck, same with Submission Revealed. So I've learned never to throw out any un-cooked piece of spaghetti -- sometimes the story just needs a little more time before it's ready to reveal itself.

So I've spent the entire week throwing spaghetti. Not until Monday did a piece stick and now I'm 2000 words into it and still going. I'm aiming for novella length with this one -- a bit darker than I usually write, though. Keep your fingers crossed and your eye on the spaghetti water!

Sidenote: you'll see I added Steve Duprey's blog to my blogroll -- be sure you check out his work if you haven't done so already. He's got another post up with a tribute to his sister that's incredible.

Play safe!
Diana

Thought I'd share my favorite Christmas song with everyone. Managed to talk the composer into making a recording of it today -- Merry Christmas!

Diana

I need to point this blog to another today. Cait Miller blogged over at Sizzling Scribes' and her point is a good one: we far too often forget those who have to work on holidays. I know I've needed emergency care on a day when everyone else has off and I'm sure some of you have, too. Cait, besides being an amazing erotica author, works as a delivery nurse in the UK and her suggestions are good ones. I know I'll be gathering a plate of cookies for the local emergency personnel this Christmas, and I encourage you to do the same. What a great way to say "thanks" to those who keep us safe when we forget to take care of ourselves.

And to all for whom tonight is a special night -- Happy Hanukkah! :)

Play SAFE!

Diana

An interesting article here about how romantic comedies affect our perceptions of our real, everyday relationships. As I read through the article, I was reminded of the wife of a friend of mine who complained that her husband, "didn't sweep her off her feet" anymore after ten years of marriage. When I tried to explain to her that marriage didn't work that way, that the "being swept off one's feet" emotion existed only in the early stages of a relationship, she got mad at me and yelled into the phone, "He just needs to read a good romance and he'll understand!"

That conversation has stayed with me for years. The woman ended up leaving her husband for someone new -- someone who ignited that longing to be "swept" along and I spent a great deal of time wondering if the books I wrote were somehow to blame for her poor understanding of the ups and downs of a long-term relationship.

But then I remembered that most romance books end at the altar. Those heady moments of first love, the joyous discovery of each other's foibles, each one overlooking the other's small imperfections and seeing only the greater good -- that's the part of the relationship we find exciting. That's what we want to read about. Over and over and over.

Are we, however, doing a disservice to couples everywhere? The article and study are being done in Britain (although anyone can participate in the study. I think I'm in -- I answered all 14 screens of questions only to have my Internet hang up when I tried to enter my email addy. Not sure it went through or not), but no matter where you are, the romance genre will find you. And once it does, the question remains -- when you pine after Mr. Darcy or Phillip Townsend, are you ruined for all the real men and the real work of real relationships?

Play safe,
Diana

Oh, what the heck, I'll give this a go one more time.

Give what a go? Blogging. You see, I've pretty much decided people fall into one of four categories: Those Who Blog, Those Who Comment on Blogs, Those who Barely Notice Blogs, and Those Who Don't Know What a Blog is. There might be a few middlin' categories in there, but those four cover it for me and I know I'm firmly in the second category.

Reading blogs and joining in the discussion is, for me, a great way of expressing my opinions. In Real Life (RL) I tend to be the quiet one in the corner who listens, but who, by the time she's got her sentences straight in her head, the topic's moved on. And so I remain the quiet one in the corner, keeping my opinions to myself.

But online, I can take my time -- think through my answer (and even spell check it!) before I join in. Sometimes I'll write and close the window without sending because I decide what I have to say doesn't really further the topic, but at least that's my option. I'm not cut out simply because I want the time to think before I speak. I can read the post at hand, go away and think about it for a while and then come back and express myself clearly. Definitely a plus.

So why not be One Who Blogs? Time, mostly. Blogging well takes time. And time always seems to be at a premium lately. I work full-time, write erotic novels part time (and have a straight fantasy as well as a historical that keep clamoring for my attention), I have a family I love to spend time with -- and blogging just adds one more thing to do into an already busy life.

I know, I know -- others find the time, why can't you, Diana? I have no good answer to that one. Which is why I'm giving this a go again. I'll do my best to write at least one new post a week. And if no one reads it, well, that's okay, too. It's good exercise for my mind. And if you DO read it -- leave a comment now and again? So that I know you're there? In fact, which category do YOU fall into?

Play safe,
Diana

My turn to blog at the Scribes this week. Tough subject...but one I hold as important.

Play safe,
Diana

I couldn't resist...and had to do Submission Revealed as well. The font I used was "Loved by the King"...and it sure shows who is king in this story! Make your own at Wordle!

I've just discovered Wordle...what a wonderful little program! Okay, so it's not so little. What you see above is the cloud tag that came out of the entire text of Secret Submission. I copied the entire text of the novel into Wordle, it picked out the most-used 75 words (discounting common words like "I" and "is") and created the above. Cool! Just click on the picture to see it in its entirety.

Just making an attempt to get my Twitter to report here...:)

I've been posting this on my MySpace blog, but then thought there might be a few people who still read this one :). So here is what's going on in my world lately...

Wednesday, April 16

I managed to get to Pittsburg just fine. Got off the ramp and into real city streets and didn't have far to go...just a quick set of rights and a quick pull into the hotel loop. Right?

Yeah, right.

The first right was closed...road all ripped up as they do construction on...something. I drive around the block, only the blocks aren't square...they're at angles here in Pittsburg and so I stop and ask for directions (I'm not proud). Some very nice women on the street point out the Hilton (which is 2 blocks straight ahead so I wasn't too far off!) and I'm on my way. Pull into the loop...big sign "Valet Parking-- Full". Drat.

I unload and leave all my stuff on the sidewalk beside the bellhop's station, keeping my purse, my laptop and the projector with me. He says, "take a right and another right and the overflow garage is right there."

He was right . The garage was right where he said it would be. And it was full.

This attendant gives me directions for the NEXT garage...I drive over and it's automated and gives me a ticket. I drive up and up and up...finally find a place on the 9th level. Least I think it was a place. If not...I made my own. Parked, grabbed the purse, the laptop and the projector and hiked my way 3 blocks back to the hotel. Where my bags still sat on the sidewalk. No carts available.

So the bellhop tells me to go register and probably by the time I'm done, he'll have found a cart. Now I'm rooming with Jennifer Dunne, who came in yesterday. Only the hotel says she's a no-show. They still have her room available...one with a king sized bed. One bed. Not two. One. I take it, figuring for three nights I can deal with this. Not happily, but I can deal.

I go to my room, breathe. Take a few pics out the window (I'm on the 22nd floor...the better suites and rooms...which I don't mind at all). I grab some of my promo to put down on Promotion Lane and head back down to register for the conference. And who do I find down there? Jennifer Dunne!

Turns out she refused the room with the king-sized bed and made them switch us to a room with two beds. Only the change wasn't ever logged into their computer. So I go BACK to the front desk...tell them I need to change my room. After some confusion, they manage to figure it out.

Only all the bellhops are busy and there aren't any carts. So Jennifer and I lug all my junk from the 22nd floor...to the 6th.

In my roaming around trying to find people, I happened to be waiting on my floor for the elevator (waits can go as long as 20 min!), with a tall, muscular hunk of a model. I thought it might be...wasn't sure...he turned and I saw the tattoo on his shoulder (he wore a muscle shirt)...and I smiled. "You're John Fish," I said with particular brilliance (insert eyeroll here).

He smiled and said he was, so I introduced myself, telling him he's on my book, Winter Studs. We have a fun conversation, the elevator comes and we both ride it down to the ballroom floor and go our separate ways.

Ladies, I can tell you without embellishment, yes...he is as hunky in RL as he is on the cover of that book! He's polite, a true gentleman, and VERY easy on the eyes.

The Ellora's Cave party was fun, as always, although I was pretty tired. By the time I finished this blog post and Jennifer and I finished going over our presentation, it was one in the morning. Thankfully the beds here are comfortable. :)

Today deserves a post unto itself, and I'll write about that in a bit. Play safe!

Diana

Okay...so the world is divided into three sets of people: those who don't know what a blog is, those who keep a blog, and those who comment on blogs. It's taken me a while to realize it, but I belong in the third category.

It's not that I can't pontificate...heck, I do that all the time! Nor is it that I can't write (I let my books speak for themselves on this one), or that I don't have the time (although that is at a premium lately). I'm afraid it really has to do with the fact that I'm just a better kibbitz-er than I am a generator.

So if you're a reader of this sometime-blog, know that I comment like heck all over the blogosphere. I DO have opinions...lots of them. They're just spread hither and yon like so many seeds scattered across a meadow. And know that, although I rarely post here, my thoughts can be found in many places. :)

All that said, there are some important dates coming up. Besides my regular schedule of in-world readings in Second Life (btw, I'm WAY over my shyness at saying particular words...and my audience doesn't seem to mind them at all!) and workshops (just finished a 12-week set of discussions and creative writing exercises and am on hiatus for April), I will actually make an honest-to-goodness, real life, live appearance at the Romantic Times Convention in Pittsburg, PA this month! I'm arriving Wednesday afternoon and will be there all week, including the Saturday booksigning extravaganza :).

While I'm there, Jennifer Dunn and I will be presenting Second Life to the uninitiated and showing other authors how it can be used for promotion. Looks to be a lot of fun :).

So I'll see you 'round the blogosphere...and play safe!
Diana

Well, I got tagged, I guess that means I have to dig out this poor excuse for a blog and write! (grinning).

Here are the rules:
(1) Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
(2) People who are tagged need to write a post on their own blog (about their eight things) and post these rules.
(3) At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
(4) Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Random facts? habits? hmmmm....

1) In real life I also weave. Yes, weave. With a loom. Has treadles (6 of them) and harnesses (4 of those). I get to beam the warp, thread the headles and sley the reed ( love the fact that the language of weaving hasn't changed in over a thousand years). Mostly I make lap rugs from yarn. What can I say? I live in the Finger Lakes and it gets cold in the winter!

2) Speaking of where I live, I live in a Queen Anne Victorian house built originally in the late 1880's. It was one of the best houses in town and boasted a specialty that most homes didn't have...the outhouse out back was connected via a corridor to the main house...and it was a two-holer! The corridor and outhouse are long gone, but boy, does that ground make for some great tomatoes!

3). I have two teenagers...one a senior in high school (yes, we're doing the college visits now...applications are going out and the wait begins...). The other is a sophomore and loves World of Warcraft.

4) Love, love, love Second Life. I went in originally to advertise my books, but have met so many people and made so many friends there that it's become much, much more than a source of advertising.

5) I still have a day job even though I write and have published (at this point) an even dozen stories. One of these days one of the books will catch the right eye at the right time and I'll be able to drop the day job and do full time what I love best: write!

6) I have three college degrees: a BA in Theatre, an MS in Education and a CAS in Educational Administration. Funny how I use the theatre one far more than the other two!

7) My husband is a theatre director...directing five shows a year. We're on haitus now for two weeks...LOVE IT! I actually get to see him for a little while!!! :)

8) I drive a standard. Love the control it gives me over the car. The first car my husband and I shared was a standard and he taught me how to drive it (we're married 26 years this past summer, so I guess I must not have been TOO bad a student!). Don't ever want anything BUT a standard. Too much fun to drive!

LOL Okay! I'm done. Now I need to tag eight other people. Hmmmm...I tag....

Heath Vercher, Ruby Storm, Ruth Kerce, Ravishal Bentham...and I can't think of any more who have blogs! At least that haven't been tagged already.

Play safe...and enjoy! :)
Diana

I blogged over at the Sizzling Scribes blog today...it was my turn :). Head on over and have a read!

Play safe,
Diana

http://sizzlingscribes.blogspot.com/

LOL...I can barely keep up with one blog...but the Sizzling Scribes have decided to undertake a group blog where each of us will take a week and post. One week out of ten? I think I can handle that.

Head on over and take a peek. Soon as I remember how to add this to my blogroll, I'll get the link into the side panel....

Play safe!
Diana

Well, as you can see, I've been very lackadaisical in posting to this thing. The latest idea was a bit of a bust, although I thank those who did participate. I suppose I should just up and admit, I'm a better fiction writer than blogger, period.

That said, it's been an interesting several months! I've done live readings in Second Life...yes, readings of my very own work. It was hard at first...I was terribly nervous and I self-edited some of the more specific words out of my readings. The second reading I suddenly came across the word "pussy" that I had missed in my editing and hesitated before saying it. But the audience egged me on and I haven't looked back since. I think, though, it cost me some listeners.

In fact, while I had a segment that wanted to hear the hotter stuff, the majority (I think) didn't want it so explicit. It was really hard to tell. I started with audiences/listeners of 15-17 people...and by the end of a six weeks had only 2 or 3. Time to face facts...either they didn't like my voice, didn't like the selections, didn't like me....I had to do some pretty dark soul-searching because the reality was that, whatever I was doing, it wasn't working.

So I took a hiatus, ostensibly to write more (which I have done), but it reality, it was to nurse a wounded ego. I really don't have a big one. No, really...I don't! lol But to go from a small audience to a tiny one would make anyone stop and think. During this time (most of May), I curtailed my SL time somewhat...touched base with the Real World and started a new project (see, you can't keep me down for long!).

Working with Selina Greene of Book Island, I proposed 4 writing workshops. I thought to use my stream and do a combination of streaming and chat in order to present. The delay makes it...interesting! I'm either ahead of the conversation by a full minute...or behind it! But the attendance has been steady in the 20-25 people range--a perfect number for a workshop. Small enough that everyone who wants to participate in the chat can...and yet large enough to make Book Island want more.

So yes, I added two more workshops to the line up and probably would go on with more, but I'm going on holiday (yes, I'm from the States, so I should say 'on vacation' but I really like the British choice of words better!) and I won't be in-world for three weeks. I hope they don't forget me!

I'll be adding more workshops when I come back as well as restarting this set from the beginning for those who missed a workshop or two. I'm having fun...and even when the stream breaks down or SL decides not to cooperate, I'm finding the people of SL are just fun to be with and are very understanding that technology always comes with issues.

If you're still reading this...I have a few thank yous to give: to Secundo Dharma who has been a big supporter and who interviewed me for SLCN; to Selina Greene of Book Island who is graciously hosting these writing workshops, and to Ronin Kirosawa of Booksquare who is helping the publishing world see there are alternate avenues to getting your work out for public consumption (sorry, Selina...can't find the link for the Book Island website!).

I'll try to be better in posting to the blog!

With AS the SL WORLD TURNS off to a good start, I've turned my attention in Second Life to doing readings of my works. Taking a lesson from the musicians, I have done three readings so far...one in my home shop (Passionate Books) and two on the island of Hukilau, where I was asked to come and read! Two other sims have contacted me about doing a reading in their venues and I'm setting up a weekly reading at Passionate Books.

I have to say that this blows my mind a bit. I've never even done a reading of my works in RL! The response has been positive (although the lag between the time I make a joke and the time I get a response from the crowd does drive me crazy a bit. Ahh..the technology of broadcasting!). I do worry people will get bored, though, so I hope they'll tell me if a piece is too long...or too hot!

Wednesdays, Passionate Books, 5 PM SLT...at least, every Wednesday in March to see how it goes. I have already begun to line up some guest authors in the erotic romance genre. The format of the hour is still a work-in-progress. At the moment, three readings with time in between for questions and/or stories (if no one asks questions) seems to work.

Still hoping for people to begin using this blog as an outlet for their Second Life stories!

Hooray! My bookshop is named and open for business in the Mystic sim of Second Life. Today is the official opening!

For those of you who don't know, a few months back I decided to explore this new "game" called Second Life and see what kind of promotional opportunities might be there. I'd heard a piece about it on NPR and the announcer mentioned Ford and Toyota had places there...I thought...well, if they can, why can't I?

The learning curve is incredibly steep...it took me two months just to get a clue how to create objects, what prims were to begin with...how to make Linden dollars so I could buy all the gorgeous dresses! But this week, the climb up will bear fruit as I open Passionate Books, Diana Hunter, Prop.

To celebrate the opening, I'm offering the first two episodes of my new serial...AS THE SL WORLD TURNS...a set of stories set in Second Life whose storyline is directed, not only by my own experiences thus far, but by those of the readers as well. To get your copies, stop by Passionate Books...and read a few hot excerpts while you're there!

This is a new form of storytelling for me, but it is not a static story with a set plot already formed in my head. Come tell your own SL stories! I will take pieces of your adventures and weave and interweave the wonderful threads into a tapestry filled with the color and passion of Second Life. Let Rosie’s story be truly interactive…come post your thoughts about each episode and help direct the next one!

Play safe!
Diana

This blog is taking on a second life. Or maybe I should captialize that? Let me explain...

I started this blog initally as a place to do some thinking out loud about characters and stories. Thought readers might be interested in the "behind the scenes" look at the writing process. Well, to put it bluntly, they weren't. I don't know how many people subscribe to this blog, heck, I can't even find the darn RSS button it supposedly has on it somewhere. Few people leave comments, even when I post on bigger topics. Over the past several months, I've been posting less and less frequently as a result.

Those of you who DO read, know that my past few posts have mentioned Second Life, the Linden company's virtual world that mirrors everyday life...and yet has its own, unique reality. I've established a presence there, with a new reading room/coffeeshop/bookstore-type place to showcase my books. Click on a book cover and read an excerpt...follow the links to Ellora's Cave Publishing and voila! Purchase my books! Clever, huh?

Except I don't want it to end there. Second Life has far too many stories of its own to leave them untold. So, sitting with Ravishal Bentham one day (owner of East End Radio), we got to chatting about how to tell those stories. He told me of another story-teller who publishes on the web, adding a chapter on a regular basis, whose readers comment on his stories and gives him direction for the storyline.

Well, that got me to thinkin'....What about a story set both in RL (real life) and SL (Second Life)? A story that not only took some of my own adventures and viewed them through the eyes of a fictitious character, but that allowed readers to post their own stories as well? A story that could be directed by the readers as new worlds are created and new events occur? In other words, not a static, already-plotted out story...but a new, dynamic storytelling where the reader could interact with the characters and the storyline!

But of course, I need a way for readers to talk back to me. Find me in-world (I'm Diana Allandale, in-world), or add your stories here for the world to read. Let's give this blog its own Second Life!

Play safe,
Diana

Something old...something new...and Second Life!

The old first...which isn't so very old...I have been working on a sequel to Secret Submission. When I first concieved the novel, I had a much larger story in mind. One that went all the way to Sarah and Phillip's wedding. I pitched it to Ellora's Cave as a two-novel set, but since I was an untried (an as yet, un-pubbed) author, they would only buy the first book, since it was finished and the second part existed only in my mind. Wise choice on their part.

Over the past few years, I set the story of Sarah and Phillip aside as I worked on other projects. But every time I opened the story starts folder I have tucked away on my computer...the file of bits and pieces would stare at me...accusing me of abandoning them. This past fall, I gave into the guilt and pulled the pieces out.

Tentatively titled, Submission Revealed, the story has flowed quickly. There is but one scene left to finish (and it's a doozy of a sex scene!) and I can send it in to my editor. I have hopes to have it done by the first of the year which, by the calendar on the wall beside me, says I'd better get to it! I wrote 3000 words in the last two days...another 3000 or so ought to finish everything off.

Something new...I have my first Exotica novel debuting in January! Mostly, as you know, I write erotic romances. A New York Moment is my first that is more erotic and less romantic...although there is a romantic element to it. It's a Quickie...just a short story, as befits the title!

and Second Life.

When I originally started in Second Life, it was to explore the online possibilities of a place for my readers to visit with me. I'd heard of the colleges that were conducting online classes and the big businesses that were getting into the SL market for their products (like Toyota and Ford!). I figured there had to be a place for an erotic romance author with a small following to find a pleasant place to chat with one another in a real-time environment much more pleasant than an online chat room.

With that vision in mind, I started my Second Life exploration. What I discovered along the way were casinos galore and entrepreneurs every other person...places of education and BDSM clubs as well. I also discovered a sim full of friends and soon-to-be neighbors. While I currently have a few places open where people can download excerpts from my books, by the end of January I hope to have that place I originally envisioned...a permanant spot with lots of comfy couches where readers can come to download excerpts and talk about books, erotica, and life in general. The spot is already reserved...the building has begun! Soon, you will be able to sit and chat with Diana Hunter (as Diana Allandale, my SL avatar) in a marvelous new way!

Till then,
play safe!

Diana

I haven't blogged much because of two happenings in my life that have been keeping me busy. The first is a new story (yay!)...and no, I'm not going to spill the beans till it's done and into my editor (which, if all goes well, should be in the next week or two).

The second, appropriately enough, is Second Life. I know I asked before if there were any SLers out here, and I did discover a few (waving hi to Montecore). Well, recently I rented space at the Nantucket sim and have put up a few of my book covers. More will be coming soon. I'm also trying to figure out how to create notecards so that when you click on a cover, you get a card with an excerpt from the book as well as purchasing information. Actually, I've created the cards...just have to try and figure out how to attach them to the posters!

The entire idea of Second Life is intriguing...at first I thought of it as just a giant chat room with avatars. But it really is a lot more than that. Sometimes, I will admit, I feel a bit like I'm playing with my Barbies again...every time I change my avatar's clothes. And believe me, Diana Allandale (my avatar on SL) likes to change into appropriate clothing for the sim she's in! Guess I miss playing Barbies more than I thought!

I have met some wonderful people there...from all over the world. A few days ago I visited a BDSM spot and the place was taking a long time to "rez" (sometimes the resolution of a site takes a bit of time). Several people stood nearby, carrying on a conversation and I eavesdropped as I rezzed. Being me, I couldn't resist going over when my avatar was finally fully pictured and joining in. The conversation revolved around Real Life issues of real Master/slave relationships. What an opportunity to talk to people about a subject near and dear to my heart...with no sideways glances, with no disapproving looks, with no concerns about what people might think!

LOL I could go on and on...but I'd better get back to writing this story.

Play safe!
Diana