Category Archives: events
Breaking Through Unmotivation
Where M.J. and Piper Play!
Today, I’ve done a guest post over on Babes in Boyland, the combo blog of the “sweet and awfully cute” authors M. J. O’Shea and Piper Vaughn, where I talk about breaking through unmotivation.
Many of you may know that I’m currently unemployed and have been for a year (with a brief stint in a temp job that failed to help much). Tuning out all that stress, worry and self-doubt to write has been an enormous challenge for me. I have learned some tricks along the way, though, to kick start my motivation. Now I share those with all of you as one of M. J. and Piper’s author posts about the writing life.
So hop on over to Babes in Boyland to learn about such things as:
- Doing it anyway
- Ignoring the shiny
- Interviewing characters
- What to read, and
- Why you shouldn’t discount the fine art of manipulating family members.
Break through that unmotivation! Because, for Pete’s sake, if I can do it you certainly can.
Celebrate Clare London’s Birthday with FREEBIES!
Over on Clare London’s LiveJournal, she has 10 posts with either free stories right there waiting for you, or links to a bazillion other free stories to read or download.
Some are her own, but she also recruited a bunch of her author and publisher friends to give up the goods. (Like me!)
It is Clare’s birthday after all. 
So hop on over to Clare’s LJ and indulge in a Saturday of titillating free reads.
It could require Sunday too.
And don’t forget to wish Clare a very happy birthday!
My Favorite Christmas Song
When I was young, my grandmother played in the handbell choir at our church. It still fascinates me that a whole group of people have to coordinate their efforts to play what has to sound like one instrument. Each person is responsible for 2, maybe 3, individual notes!
Christmas is the handbell season, and I can remember going with Mamie to practices. Trinity Church is this massive structure that makes me think of castles and knights for all its heavy woodwork, alcoves and bright stained glass. To hear those bells inside that space was to touch on something heavenly for me. Nowadays, I can’t hear them and not remember my Mamie and what it felt like to be a child awed by what she could do with a simple little bell.
Here’s a YouTube video of my favorite Christmas song, Carol of the Bells, that should give you a taste of it’s like to experience handbells at a Christmas service. (Turn your sound down a bit to avoid a tinny sound to the bells.)
Updates
I have taken the advice of a brilliant man and created a Press Kit page in here for all those curious souls desperate for information about me and my work. I know. Stop laughing.
I also added an excerpt from the forthcoming Every Time A Bell Rings Christmas short story releasing from MLR Press on December 23rd. No cover yet, but you can read about Brian meeting Trent for the first time. (And the answer to Mike’s question is yes 
)
I have been invited to join the Amber Quill Press family…just as soon as I have a finished piece to send them! Feeling very honored over here since it came out of the blue and knocked my stockings right off. I was, thankfully, coherent enough to accept the invitation rather promptly.
All three volumes of Don’t Read in the Closet, the Goodreads M/M Romance group’s Hot Summer Days series of short stories, are now available. That’s 113 FREE short stories covering all kinds of themes and is a great way to get something new from your favorite authors as well as discover new ones. My short coming-of-age, OFY, barely legal story You and a Billion Blue Tiles is included in both Volume 3 and the special authors of GRL2011 volume.
On a personal note, I’d like to direct everyone to check their vehicle registration sticker to make sure they aren’t 6 MONTHS expired like I recently discovered thanks to a local officer who can tell the difference between 11 and 12 and the $90 ticket he gave me shortly afterward. I know. Stop laughing.
Eye-Opening: I See You
Yesterday was International Transgender Day of Remembrance. I had to click on the link to find out what that meant, that it’s a day for remembering those trans* people who have been the victims of hate crimes, and my heart started breaking. I just had no idea. I’d heard of one incident a few months ago, felt very badly for her and hoped she recovered, but didn’t really understand.
I think I have a better understanding now and it is thanks to these people’s experiences that my eyes are open:
- Aleksandr Voinov
- James Buchanan
- A.J. Lewellyn
- Vic & Cherie (becoming a chosen family)
- Art of Transliness (Q&A format tumblr regarding FtM)
- Anderson Cooper (episodes & info regarding trans* youth)
- National Center for Transgender Equality
So this is my “thank you” to the people and groups above as well as a request for more information. If you have a link that gave you something–opened your eyes in some way–please share it in the comments.
