November 29, 2005

The Best is Yet to Come!

Last night the critique meeting went great. Beth and Yasmine showed me how to clean up the rough spots in this on-going saga. So once again I’m back on track. I must admit, I was pleased when they reacted to a line just as I’d hoped. It’s a thrill when your reader gets those little nuances tucked in a scene.

This morning I ‘m ready for bear, hmm, bare. Yes, definitely bare because David and Teddi are now hot on the path to gratifying sex. Yes, the road will be bumpy. It has to be - it’s a romance. But there’s a hellova lot of fun along the way.

Time to get back to writing. Teddi’s in the middle of a fantasy where David is licking and sucking. The poor woman can’t be left out there with her nipples puckered and her vagina throbbing for too long.

Sloane

November 28, 2005

PRESSURE

This day is insane and passing much too fast. Since early this morning I’ve written, scratched out, rewritten, and scratched out even more. Triskelion Publishing is patiently waiting for the rest of this manuscript and tonight is my critique meeting. If I don’t have something worthwhile Beth and Yasmine are going to flail me alive. I might as well carry my own whip to save Beth the time digging for hers. And if I don’t really get the lead out of my ass, Triskelion is going to tell me to take a hike.

Where the hell did I ever get the idea I could write fiction? Oh yeah, I remember. It all started when these words began to bubble inside me.

You see all my writing friends hear these great voices or see these amazing hunks who tell them what to write. All I get is bubbling words that half the time make me want to puke! Yet somewhere in the chunky garble are a few beauts. Pearls of wisdom? No. Just words blending together to tell a story of sensuality and a not so young woman who finally comes alive.

Of course it’s a romance. But it’s filled with sexual tension and passion, not to mention a few explicit scenes that have me craving a cigarette by the time I finish typing.

This writing business is tough. It requires stamina, creativity, patience, dedication, and a strong determination to stay focused. I know I can do it. I want to do it. Dammit! I WILL do it.

Now what the hell was he doing with that naked woman stretched out on the love seat? See? It’s all in staying focused.

Sloane

November 25, 2005

Travel

Our good friends, Bonnie and Tom, came for dinner last Tuesday. It was a fun evening with Tom’s constant off-beat cracks about life in general and Bonnie’s zest for everything.

We four have been mulling over a trip to Europe next summer, my least favorite time to travel, for almost a year. With enough pineapple vodka flowing through Tom and Studly’s veins, they finally popped loose with those coveted Visa cards.

Everyone’s excited to spend three weeks split between Italy, Austria, and Bavaria. Bonnie’s practically balistic to visit the Vatican and Sistine Chapel. Tom’s already practicing his German to sing along in the father of all beer halls, the Hofbrauhaus. Studly just grins and waggles his eyebrows thinking about ten nights in Italy. I do love that man. Then there’s me, sitting back and imaging all the story lines that will fill my notebooks as we ride the trains through these countries. And if I don’t get my ass pinched in Rome this time, I’m gonna throw a fit!

Sloane

November 23, 2005

My Admitted Shame

Tomorrow is the day when American families will gather around dining room tables groaning with an abundance of goodies. They’ll clasp hands and say a prayer of thanks for everything good in their lives. My family will do the same thing.

What I wonder is, do these same people ever give a thought beyond themselves? Do they ever consider the section of humanity who doesn’t share an opulent meal with family or friends? Have they ever given a thought to the homeless freezing in their cardboard homes with little or no protection from the elements?

Most of us don’t, unless it’s to side-step and quickly look away as if homelessness and hunger are dreaded diseases spread by a glance. What a shame that we stroll on by in our Guccis and Ferragamos while children huddle starving and are clothed in rags.

I’m no better than thousands of other Americans who do nothing except for the occassional handout. In my heart I cry for these people, but on the surface all I do is talk a good game. Pathetic isn’t it, just two days ago I was overcome with joy to win as a finalist in two categories of a prized contest and never gave a thought to people less fortunate?

Today I’ve matured and decided yes, I damn well will do something about it. I have promised myself I will contact a shelter and work at least one day a week, not out of pity, to simply do the right thing.

You are all welcomed and encouraged to challenge me, question my motives, and be sure I follow through on my promise.

Sloane

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. May you have a blessed and peaceful day.

Sloane