Writer Wednesday welcomes Anne Michaud on art & her new book!

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Art Inspiring my Writing

by Anne Michaud

Art always played a big part in my life: my mother’s arts and crafts, my uncle’s books and my aunt’s paintings are trapped in my memories and have become a part of me. Art was very much part of our household growing up, my parents often spending weekends at auction houses for that special find they brought home – or muttered a curse for losing at a higher bidding hand. The sewing machine spinning, sunlight catching a sculpture, texture of an antique’s patina, colors blasted on canvas and music creating atmosphere have never left my life now that I’m growing old, either.

I believe that my home would only be a house without paintings on the walls, and through the years, I’ve been lucky enough to start my very own collection of figurative and abstract pieces of art. My mother’s big circle of artists friends initiated me to different approaches to colors and textures, and new friendships as well. Artists understand and support each other, whether they paint, sculpt, sing, or write – they get the frustrations and felicities we writers face every day of our lives.

Tania Lebedeff’s breathtaking “Vert Tendre (2009)”, where the pallet details gives an illusion of losing focus in the sea of greens, captured my interest while I visited her atelier. I had to have it, there was no way somebody else was going to adopt it. ‘Over my dead body,’ I remember telling her. And it’s huge, hangs on the wall across my desk so I can stare all I want, losing myself in the colors and waiting for them to inspire me to write.

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My mother, Irène Boulanger-Michaud, has explored many facets of her artistic endeavors, from handcrafting books and journals to drawings, sculptures, etchings and mostly, impressive paintings. Lingering between abstract and figurative, here’s one of my favorite, “Sur le Huang Pu (2009)”, from a collection inspired by one of her many trips to China. The sea, boats and horizon lost in perspective are subjects immortalized by my mother’s paintbrush, and I cherish this piece in my living room - after fighting my sister for it.

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I remember the day as if it was yesterday, discovering the talented Eugenia Reznik at a local gallery, where most of her beautiful paintings had sold out – almost, lucky for me, as I came back home with “Untitled (2008)”. It’s by the bed in my room so I can lose myself in its many faces, touched by the textures and darkness, seeing things that aren’t there. My dreams wouldn’t be as colorful if I didn’t fall asleep staring at it.

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Without art, I would be lost; without its beauty, my soul would be darker. Not one day goes by in which I haven’t stared at the paintings surrounding my world, and imagining my life without their presence breaks my heart. Art inspires me, I live through it by writing the worlds they create in my mind.

About Anne Michaud:

She who likes dark things never grew up. She never stopped listening to gothic, industrial and alternative bands like when she was fifteen. She always loved to read horror and dystopia and fantasy, where doom and gloom drip from the pages.

She, who was supposed to make films, decided to write short stories, novelettes and novels instead. She, who’s had her films listed on festival programs, has been printed in a dozen anthologies and magazines since.

She who likes dark things prefers night to day, rain to sun, and reading to anything else.

She blogs http://annecmichaud.wordpress.com

She Facebooks: http://www.facebook.com/annecmichaud

She tweets @annecmichaud

Girls & Monsters Goodreads page: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17335353-girls-monsters

Giveaway!! Softcover copy + The Monster Collection Skellies, 5 pieces handcrafted by the author: GIRLS & MONSTERS Giveaway

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The winner will be announced during the LIVE CHAT on release day, April 30th at 9PM east http://www.darkfuse.com/events.html

The latest Wizard is out!An excerpt from THE WIZARD TAKES THE CAKE:  “Friend!” Merlin exclaimed, letting loose of his ample bride long enough to awkwardly embrace me. Each of us held our staffs in our right hands, and for a moment they clanged together, sending showers of sparks through the air. “Looking good, boy, looking good,” he said. He had always been slight, but wore slighter still with age. As he reached out for his anything-but-slight new bride, she gently clasped his arm and they drew together, a big fat yin and scrawny yan. “An honor to attend,” I said. “And your father? He resides at Sunny Acres now, as well?” I had scanned the room and failed to find him. “Oh, no. Well, no and yes. Dad!” As Delilah continued greeting and hugging guests, Merlin IV stepped to the side and gently shook the shoulder of a sleeping old man I never would have recognized as the once powerful Merlin III. “Dad! Wake up! You’re missing the reception!” For a moment the glamour flickered, and through the veneer of a gaunt centenarian, I saw what the bridegroom had meant. I’d heard of it before, but never seen it: the curse of prolonged life. Merlin III was no longer the skin and bones he’d once been—he was merely the bones. I passed my staff over his body, the fulcrum of jewels and gems at the top swinging and twitching into frenzied motion as they absorbed the magic and dispelled the glamour, allowing me a closer look. Rasping lungs beat rapidly inside the ribcage. Dry bloodshot eyes stared out from eye sockets, the remains of a tongue jutting from between Merlin III’s ancient British teeth.“Teacher,” I said. “How can I help?” The living skeleton that was once a man rattled in his chair, but his words were indiscernible. Merlin IV grimaced, and I shook the staff over the father of the bride, applying a sleeping spell. It seemed the compassionate thing to do. Talk about “assisted living.” Poor Merlin III clearly needed assistance dying.“I see what you mean,” I said. After a beat, I asked “Demons?” Merlin IV nodded. “No wizard play at all? The Eastern European Council is nothing to mess around with, and I remember how your dad was involved in the—” “I don’t know, friend!” Merlin raised his hands in frustration. “I don’t know, I don’t know! Something that happened at Monte Carlo, I think.” Some of the wedding guests looked our way in disapproval. Delilah arched an eyebrow in warning. The message was clear: I had best not be causing trouble with her man on their wedding day.   Finally!  More Wizard, more demons, more magic, more CAKE!   Read on!  $.99  applekings: Spellbound -by Myles Pinkney
View Separately

The latest Wizard is out!

An excerpt from THE WIZARD TAKES THE CAKE: 

“Friend!” Merlin exclaimed, letting loose of his ample bride long enough to awkwardly embrace me. Each of us held our staffs in our right hands, and for a moment they clanged together, sending showers of sparks through the air. “Looking good, boy, looking good,” he said.

He had always been slight, but wore slighter still with age. As he reached out for his anything-but-slight new bride, she gently clasped his arm and they drew together, a big fat yin and scrawny yan.

“An honor to attend,” I said. “And your father? He resides at Sunny Acres now, as well?” I had scanned the room and failed to find him.

“Oh, no. Well, no and yes. Dad!” As Delilah continued greeting and hugging guests, Merlin IV stepped to the side and gently shook the shoulder of a sleeping old man I never would have recognized as the once powerful Merlin III. “Dad! Wake up! You’re missing the reception!”

For a moment the glamour flickered, and through the veneer of a gaunt centenarian, I saw what the bridegroom had meant. I’d heard of it before, but never seen it: the curse of prolonged life. Merlin III was no longer the skin and bones he’d once been—he was merely the bones. I passed my staff over his body, the fulcrum of jewels and gems at the top swinging and twitching into frenzied motion as they absorbed the magic and dispelled the glamour, allowing me a closer look. Rasping lungs beat rapidly inside the ribcage. Dry bloodshot eyes stared out from eye sockets, the remains of a tongue jutting from between Merlin III’s ancient British teeth.“Teacher,” I said. “How can I help?”

The living skeleton that was once a man rattled in his chair, but his words were indiscernible. Merlin IV grimaced, and I shook the staff over the father of the bride, applying a sleeping spell. It seemed the compassionate thing to do. Talk about “assisted living.” Poor Merlin III clearly needed assistance dying.“I see what you mean,” I said. After a beat, I asked “Demons?”

Merlin IV nodded.

“No wizard play at all? The Eastern European Council is nothing to mess around with, and I remember how your dad was involved in the—”

“I don’t know, friend!” Merlin raised his hands in frustration. “I don’t know, I don’t know! Something that happened at Monte Carlo, I think.” Some of the wedding guests looked our way in disapproval. Delilah arched an eyebrow in warning. The message was clear: I had best not be causing trouble with her man on their wedding day.  

Finally!  More Wizard, more demons, more magic, more CAKE!  

Read on!  $.99

 

applekings: Spellbound -by Myles Pinkney

The latest Wizard is out!An excerpt from THE WIZARD TAKES THE CAKE:  “Friend!” Merlin exclaimed, letting loose of his ample bride long enough to awkwardly embrace me. Each of us held our staffs in our right hands, and for a moment they clanged together, sending showers of sparks through the air. “Looking good, boy, looking good,” he said. He had always been slight, but wore slighter still with age. As he reached out for his anything-but-slight new bride, she gently clasped his arm and they drew together, a big fat yin and scrawny yan. “An honor to attend,” I said. “And your father? He resides at Sunny Acres now, as well?” I had scanned the room and failed to find him. “Oh, no. Well, no and yes. Dad!” As Delilah continued greeting and hugging guests, Merlin IV stepped to the side and gently shook the shoulder of a sleeping old man I never would have recognized as the once powerful Merlin III. “Dad! Wake up! You’re missing the reception!” For a moment the glamour flickered, and through the veneer of a gaunt centenarian, I saw what the bridegroom had meant. I’d heard of it before, but never seen it: the curse of prolonged life. Merlin III was no longer the skin and bones he’d once been—he was merely the bones. I passed my staff over his body, the fulcrum of jewels and gems at the top swinging and twitching into frenzied motion as they absorbed the magic and dispelled the glamour, allowing me a closer look. Rasping lungs beat rapidly inside the ribcage. Dry bloodshot eyes stared out from eye sockets, the remains of a tongue jutting from between Merlin III’s ancient British teeth.“Teacher,” I said. “How can I help?” The living skeleton that was once a man rattled in his chair, but his words were indiscernible. Merlin IV grimaced, and I shook the staff over the father of the bride, applying a sleeping spell. It seemed the compassionate thing to do. Talk about “assisted living.” Poor Merlin III clearly needed assistance dying.“I see what you mean,” I said. After a beat, I asked “Demons?” Merlin IV nodded. “No wizard play at all? The Eastern European Council is nothing to mess around with, and I remember how your dad was involved in the—” “I don’t know, friend!” Merlin raised his hands in frustration. “I don’t know, I don’t know! Something that happened at Monte Carlo, I think.” Some of the wedding guests looked our way in disapproval. Delilah arched an eyebrow in warning. The message was clear: I had best not be causing trouble with her man on their wedding day.   Finally!  More Wizard, more demons, more magic, more CAKE!   Read on!  $.99  kgthunder: Artist: Fred Fields
Pop-upView Separately

The latest Wizard is out!

An excerpt from THE WIZARD TAKES THE CAKE: 

“Friend!” Merlin exclaimed, letting loose of his ample bride long enough to awkwardly embrace me. Each of us held our staffs in our right hands, and for a moment they clanged together, sending showers of sparks through the air. “Looking good, boy, looking good,” he said.

He had always been slight, but wore slighter still with age. As he reached out for his anything-but-slight new bride, she gently clasped his arm and they drew together, a big fat yin and scrawny yan.

“An honor to attend,” I said. “And your father? He resides at Sunny Acres now, as well?” I had scanned the room and failed to find him.

“Oh, no. Well, no and yes. Dad!” As Delilah continued greeting and hugging guests, Merlin IV stepped to the side and gently shook the shoulder of a sleeping old man I never would have recognized as the once powerful Merlin III. “Dad! Wake up! You’re missing the reception!”

For a moment the glamour flickered, and through the veneer of a gaunt centenarian, I saw what the bridegroom had meant. I’d heard of it before, but never seen it: the curse of prolonged life. Merlin III was no longer the skin and bones he’d once been—he was merely the bones. I passed my staff over his body, the fulcrum of jewels and gems at the top swinging and twitching into frenzied motion as they absorbed the magic and dispelled the glamour, allowing me a closer look. Rasping lungs beat rapidly inside the ribcage. Dry bloodshot eyes stared out from eye sockets, the remains of a tongue jutting from between Merlin III’s ancient British teeth.“Teacher,” I said. “How can I help?”

The living skeleton that was once a man rattled in his chair, but his words were indiscernible. Merlin IV grimaced, and I shook the staff over the father of the bride, applying a sleeping spell. It seemed the compassionate thing to do. Talk about “assisted living.” Poor Merlin III clearly needed assistance dying.“I see what you mean,” I said. After a beat, I asked “Demons?”

Merlin IV nodded.

“No wizard play at all? The Eastern European Council is nothing to mess around with, and I remember how your dad was involved in the—”

“I don’t know, friend!” Merlin raised his hands in frustration. “I don’t know, I don’t know! Something that happened at Monte Carlo, I think.” Some of the wedding guests looked our way in disapproval. Delilah arched an eyebrow in warning. The message was clear: I had best not be causing trouble with her man on their wedding day.  

Finally!  More Wizard, more demons, more magic, more CAKE!  

Read on!  $.99

 

kgthunder:

Artist: Fred Fields

Comic book giveaway

I’m running a comic book giveaway contest right now, exclusive to the folks who are on my email list.  If you want to learn how to enter, just get in touch at RedTashBooks@gmail.com, and opt in by sending me the words “email list.”  I’ll send you details.  

You could win signed copies of:

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and

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Each are from Scary Art and each are weird/horror comic anthologies.  Sound cool?  Enter!

I wrote The Happiest Place on Earth for Filthy Cake, and Dark Eagle for The Pit and the Compendium.

There has been a waiting list for orders for each of these books, but most especially Filthy Cake, I believe. These books are only available through Scary Art Comics for the time being, I think, so you are not likely to see this contest elsewhere!

Each of these books is about 80 pages of crazy art and “out there” stories.  You’ll love them. 

Happy Labor Day, y’all! What is UP? Or maybe for this post I should say what is “down”?  You know, like Anastasia Steele in 50 Shades of Grey?  ”Down there”…?   Yeah, evidently she doesn’t really “GET” that it’s okay to say the official name of her own body parts, or any complement of dirty words that might make her feel sexier as an adult woman fully within her own rights to express her life, love, and emotions.  (But then, I guess if she could, there wouldn’t be a book, right?  Because she’s not a grown up, is she?)Okay, I digress already.  This isn’t about 50 Shades.  This is about the one shade of grey and one orange.  I want to blog for you today about the Vagine Regime, these ladies unafraid to be themselves no matter what biological features God blessed them with—a concept that would flip Ms. Steele’s world! So what’re they all about?  It’s not a sex thing, don’t be scared.  It’s an identity thing.  It’s about the freedom to be yourself, as a woman, and be proud of yourself as a minority within the roller derby community.  The VR is about queer derby.  The VR is for gay women, lesbian women, queer women, bi women, trans women…and if you don’t understand what the distinctions are between those labels, that’s okay!  Because there are plenty of women skating and playing some of the BEST roller derby in the country who would be happy to explain the distinctions after they hip check you out of bounds and go on to call off the jam. I met some of the VR at derby bouts and then at RollerCon 2008, and they were so full of life, love, and joy it is nearly impossible to express in mere words.  Dancing with Smarty Pants at the Black and Blue ball was a highlight for me, personally, as she is a charismatic superstar of a girl.  She is also an amazing derby player!Something I try not to touch on too much (no pun intended) in Troll Or Derby is that Deb is growing up as one of only a few only young women in her high school who is obviously not into the hetero gender-play that typical teenagers usually embrace.  Unlike her athletic-but-overweight homecoming princess sister, Deb isn’t into mascara or boys.  Even though she got a lot of pain in her life, she’s strong enough not to experiment with drugs or the more-than-willing boy next door who creeps her out.   Deb knows deep within her that she is different.  At the start of the book, she doesn’t know she’s going to fledge wings and turn into a butt-kicking fairy menace on wheels—she only knows she’s tough, she’s not into boys, she’s hardcore enough to skate across the entire town—sidewalks or no sidewalks—and she’s got to get the heck out of her isolated country burg once she’s of age if she ever wants to have a life beyond looking after her mom and sister.Deb is a mere fifteen years of age and she has no mentor other than the under-committed skating rink owner “Coach” to guide her along her journey.  He’s not much of a help.  Making matters worse, those who do know something about her just from looking at her aren’t in any position to help her through the changes about to take place.  Does this or does this not sound a little like something real life members of the VR went through before they found friendship, validation, and camaraderie in roller derby?I can’t say for sure, but that is my hunch.  And I trust my hunches, because they are usually pretty good. The VR is doing a Kickstarter campaign to fund a REAL, LIVE movie and I’d personally love to see it.  It’s witty and just a tiny bit dirty-funny, so a lot of my teen readers are probably not going to be allowed or encouraged by their parents to watch the preview, but my adult readers are going to get it, I’m sure.  There are fairy and troll members of the VR, I am SURE OF IT.  Let’s help them make a movie, shall we? Donate to the VR documentary!  Only 13 days left to donate!  (Do this first, then keep reading.) Troll Or Derby is going back to regular price ($4.99 for an ebook) tomorrow.  It is still priced at $10.99 for paperbacks.  If you buy a copy of an ebook between 9/4 & NOON EST on 9/14, email me a copy of your receipt via whatever site you bought it through, and I will pledge $1 from each of those full-price sales to the VR on Sept 14.  That’s 1/3 of my take, and I’m still not in the black with this book, so it counts against my profits—but I’ll do it because I think the film’s important and I know you do, too.  If you buy a paperback from this link, I’ll give $2.  Again, I’ll need you to email me your receipt, because the book’s available all over the web and I won’t be able to track who bought what/where if you don’t tell me it’s for VR.Is my book going to change the world?  I don’t know.  It might help.  So might this movie. My book’s a reality.  Let’s make this movie a reality, too, what do you say?
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Happy Labor Day, y’all!

What is UP?

Or maybe for this post I should say what is “down”?  You know, like Anastasia Steele in 50 Shades of Grey?  ”Down there”…?  

Yeah, evidently she doesn’t really “GET” that it’s okay to say the official name of her own body parts, or any complement of dirty words that might make her feel sexier as an adult woman fully within her own rights to express her life, love, and emotions.  (But then, I guess if she could, there wouldn’t be a book, right?  Because she’s not a grown up, is she?)

Okay, I digress already.  This isn’t about 50 Shades.  This is about the one shade of grey and one orange.  I want to blog for you today about the Vagine Regime, these ladies unafraid to be themselves no matter what biological features God blessed them with—a concept that would flip Ms. Steele’s world!

So what’re they all about?  It’s not a sex thing, don’t be scared.  It’s an identity thing.  It’s about the freedom to be yourself, as a woman, and be proud of yourself as a minority within the roller derby community.  The VR is about queer derby.  The VR is for gay women, lesbian women, queer women, bi women, trans women…and if you don’t understand what the distinctions are between those labels, that’s okay!  Because there are plenty of women skating and playing some of the BEST roller derby in the country who would be happy to explain the distinctions after they hip check you out of bounds and go on to call off the jam.

I met some of the VR at derby bouts and then at RollerCon 2008, and they were so full of life, love, and joy it is nearly impossible to express in mere words.  Dancing with Smarty Pants at the Black and Blue ball was a highlight for me, personally, as she is a charismatic superstar of a girl.  She is also an amazing derby player!

Something I try not to touch on too much (no pun intended) in Troll Or Derby is that Deb is growing up as one of only a few only young women in her high school who is obviously not into the hetero gender-play that typical teenagers usually embrace.  Unlike her athletic-but-overweight homecoming princess sister, Deb isn’t into mascara or boys.  Even though she got a lot of pain in her life, she’s strong enough not to experiment with drugs or the more-than-willing boy next door who creeps her out.  

Deb knows deep within her that she is different.  At the start of the book, she doesn’t know she’s going to fledge wings and turn into a butt-kicking fairy menace on wheels—she only knows she’s tough, she’s not into boys, she’s hardcore enough to skate across the entire town—sidewalks or no sidewalks—and she’s got to get the heck out of her isolated country burg once she’s of age if she ever wants to have a life beyond looking after her mom and sister.

Deb is a mere fifteen years of age and she has no mentor other than the under-committed skating rink owner “Coach” to guide her along her journey.  He’s not much of a help.  Making matters worse, those who do know something about her just from looking at her aren’t in any position to help her through the changes about to take place.  Does this or does this not sound a little like something real life members of the VR went through before they found friendship, validation, and camaraderie in roller derby?

I can’t say for sure, but that is my hunch.  And I trust my hunches, because they are usually pretty good.

The VR is doing a Kickstarter campaign to fund a REAL, LIVE movie and I’d personally love to see it.  It’s witty and just a tiny bit dirty-funny, so a lot of my teen readers are probably not going to be allowed or encouraged by their parents to watch the preview, but my adult readers are going to get it, I’m sure.  There are fairy and troll members of the VR, I am SURE OF IT.  Let’s help them make a movie, shall we?

Donate to the VR documentary!  Only 13 days left to donate!  (Do this first, then keep reading.)

Troll Or Derby is going back to regular price ($4.99 for an ebook) tomorrow.  It is still priced at $10.99 for paperbacks.  If you buy a copy of an ebook between 9/4 & NOON EST on 9/14, email me a copy of your receipt via whatever site you bought it through, and I will pledge $1 from each of those full-price sales to the VR on Sept 14.  That’s 1/3 of my take, and I’m still not in the black with this book, so it counts against my profits—but I’ll do it because I think the film’s important and I know you do, too.  If you buy a paperback from this link, I’ll give $2.  Again, I’ll need you to email me your receipt, because the book’s available all over the web and I won’t be able to track who bought what/where if you don’t tell me it’s for VR.

Is my book going to change the world?  I don’t know.  It might help.  So might this movie. My book’s a reality.  Let’s make this movie a reality, too, what do you say?

(via fuckyeahrollerskates)

Very nice.  I could live on deviant art, I think. roller derby sinner mag color by ~ink5000
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Very nice.  I could live on deviant art, I think.

roller derby sinner mag color by ~ink5000

Writer Wednesday: Author Fight Club Round 2!

Okay, this week we’re including last week’s video redux!  Pardon my hair, I was out hiking this badass landscape all day today: Clifty Falls State Park.

Notes from this week’s In Bed With Red video blog:

  • Last week for Writer Wednesday I asked: who would win in a fight, Asimov or Crichton?  Watch the video to find out who the winner was.

    Penelope Crowe chose this week’s pairing:
     
    The GREAT JRR Tolkien vs 
     
    The man I lovingly refer to as “Uncle” Neil Gaiman, so much do I adore him.

    So, tell us!  Who do you think would win in a fight?   If I chose your answer, you get to pick next week’s pairing.
     
  • I answer reader questions from Rachel Isbell & Banci Wright!  (one each on the video—the rest of Banci’s questions are below)
  • The Wizard & friends!  Download the updated “fortified” version for free.  (You might have to delete the old version and then “rebuy” it for free.  Links are here.  Look for the orange seal on the cover to read shorts by Ash Krafton & Claudia Lefeve!

Here are the rest of Banci’s questions, and my answers!

And here’s his awesome drawing of Harlow (sans glamour, I think, as he is quite good looking with it on, in a very rough way):

 

You should check out more of Banci’s work.  He’s QUITE good.

1) Whats going on for you at the moment writing-wise?

So much!  Just finished the first draft of A Laurents County Landfill Christmas, which will be part of holiday anthology I’m pretty excited about.  Been watching as three amazing artists bring some of my characters to life in a couple of comics anthologies.  Picking up momentum on That Crackling Silence, the sequel to my first novel This Brilliant Darkness.  A head full of ideas about Troll Or Park, the next Roller Deb novel.  Getting closer to finished a YA Sci Fi collaboration with Axel Howerton that’s been a pure joy to write…honestly, Banci, there’s so much.  I’m so blessed to have the opportunity to write full-time.  I’m in ecstasy.

2) How is Troll Or Derby going down amongst dark fantasy fans?

So far rather well.  The reviews have been fantastic.  My challenge is getting it in front of readers right now.  It’s not a great time for book-buying, unfortunately.  People are busy doing late-summer things!  Every review has been great, though.  There is nothing like waking up in the morning and seeing a Google alert on my book, only to click and find a five star review.  I wish I could thank each of these people personally, but as it happens, I usually only get to say thanks to those who reach out to me.  I guess I’m pretty fortunate that people like my stories—I hear from readers a lot!  I feel like I know them all at this point.

3) And what is dark fantasy for dumb-dumbs like me who don’t know?

Well, there are different kinds of dark fantasy.   There are high fantasy stories with a dark angle, for instance, someone who writes about orcs and necromancers battling dragons with swords and things of that nature.  Then there are dark fantasies that straddle the line of horror, which is where I think my first novel ended up.  Maybe not full-on shock, blood/guts horror, but “horror lite.”  Then there is a book like Troll Or Derby which is neither old school fantasy, nor urban fantasy (can’t be urban in the middle of rural Indiana, can it?), nor is it horror, but combines some elements of each while telling the tale of rock & roll trolls, drugs, and roller derby.  

In other words, I don’t know.  ;)

Seriously, though, that’s an issue of some debate.  It’s just not a clear-cut genre.  I feel that is where my work belongs, though.  Dark, funny, imaginative, leaving behind the real world but incorporating enough real world details to feel like “Hey, this could happen!”  And very, very addictive.  I feel like if a book isn’t addictive, how dark can it be?  Then it’s just fluff.

4) What made you want to become a writer in the first place?

I never wanted to be a writer.  I have always been a writer.  I wanted to be a dancer, a linguist, a teacher, a wife and mother, a rollergirl, a reader, a world-traveler, and I very much would like to be an artist, but there has never been a desire to write, any more than I have a desire to be an eater or a breather or a sleeper.  It’s just the best way I express myself.  As you can see from the videos, I open my mouth and sound a fool.  I like to think I’ve got less of a chance of sounding foolish through my writing.  There’s no chance to edit real life, sadly.  When I write, I feel brilliant.  That may be the most pompous thing any writer has ever admitted publicly, but it is just my thing and for me to act coy about it would be disingenuous.  Writing is my high, my prayer, my drug—the bounce in my step & the sugar in my blood.  It is what I love.  It is The Work.  And I may fail at it in terms of commercial success in the long run, who knows?  But I have already achieved Writerlyness, and thusly, I’m content.

Professionally, I started freelance writing about a decade ago just because I was writing so much anyway, it seemed the thing to do.  I had several blogs and a really big combined following, and it felt like the next logical step for me.  It was.  I became a nationally syndicated opinion columnist and then realized that I was getting so wrapped up in journalism that if I ever wanted to see my dreams of being a novelist come true, I needed to give up a paying gig for a whole new world.  And that’s where I am now.  On my way to stardom, I’m sure.  ;)

5) What do you think it is like for writers these days with ebooks coming heavily into vogue?

I think it is like crazy scary, honestly.  I think of all those indie bands on MySpace (remember them?) who wanted to be the next big thing.  How many of them uploaded songs to iTunes and made something of their careers?  A lot, yes, but so many others just treated it like a lottery.  “Maybe I’ll make the bigtime!”  Well, I think those musicians found out the hard way that you’ve got to promote the heck out of yourself to get anywhere with music.  That’s where I think writers are today, in the ebook world.  

Right now it is still a safer bet in terms of sales and exposure to publish traditionally and have a big print run of books shipping to bookstores around the country, and possibly the globe.  But the publishing landscape—oy vey!  It’s changing so quickly, who can keep up?  I’m not certain agents can.  I’m not certain editors can.  I think writers who take the chance to go straight to the reader and who have the wherewithal to place their books in front of readers who will LOVE their work stand a great chance of success, without the tradition of querying hundreds of people and hoping the timing was right.  I liken the old way to throwing a dart through a spinning tire swing, past a pendulum, and into a tiny dart board.  Your timing has to be exactly right and your aim dead on to grab the right agent, who grabs the right editor on the right day, and everyone has to have had their coffee and be in the mood to like something new.

If you were in the business of selling books, what would you turn to?  Proven sellers, or someone new?  There are tons of very good writers out there publishing their own books now.  There are even a lot of future “greats.”  In my opinion writers have more opportunity than ever to be heard, whether they want to blog, freelance, write books, scripts, or whatever.  The sky is the limit.  It’s finally “okay” to be indie, just like it’s “okay” to be an indie musician, filmmaker, or inventor.  Being an “indie” chef has been preferred for generations, over chain restaurants.  Eventually the book world will catch on.  Readers already have!

6) On to Troll Or Derby. The characters I found had such strong believable personalities.   Were any of there personas taken from anyone you know?

(See video!)

7) What made you go the dark fantasy route?  Do you plan to stay in this genre? 

I am what I am.  When I started writing This Brilliant Darkness, I thought it was going to be lighter than it ended up being.  I was a bit embarrassed by how dark it got, honestly.  By the time I was done, I needed a rebound book.  “This time I’ll write something much lighter!” I thought.  “This time I’ll write about fairies!”  Next thing you know, there are drugs (scene one), sexual assault, biker gangs, more drugs, inbred Amish trolls, homeless kids, violent rock concerts…and I was absolutely rapt with glee the whole time.  That was my version of light and fluffy.  

I would still like to write something lighter.  The collaboration with Axel Howerton, Joan of the ARC, is much lighter in comparison to Troll Or Derby.  And maybe I will publish something completely different under my real name one of these days—a romance, perhaps.  But, egad, all the ideas my muse delivers are akin to the chewed up, filleted mice my cats used to leave on the back door.  I look at the gifts and recoil in horror, but what are you gonna do?  I tell you what you do: you pet the nice kitty and praise her, then you do what needs to be done with the mouse.  For me, that mouse is absolutely holy!

8) Do you read a lot of fiction and do you find this helps with your writing process?

I used to read a lot more than I do now!  (See video for more talk about raising kids & how they impact all your free time.)  I also had some seriously heavy life events in the past year.  Until someone has been pregnant, homeschooling three kids, and caring for two dying parents, I don’t think anyone can understand how I never had time to read during that period.  It was just way too intense to kick back and see what Sookie Stackhouse was up to, or whatever.  

Now that things are settling down and I’m starting to put to bed some of that mess, I’m reading a lot more.  Friend me on Goodreads, where I post frequently about what I’m reading!  http://www.goodreads.com/RedTash

9) Are there any writers in particular you admire and who would you recommend to people watching this interview?

I always enjoy Neil Gaiman.  You can really watch his storytelling skills improve across his body of work, as well.  He only gets better & better.  I love Stephen King, but most people have given him a read and either like him or don’t.  Same with JK Rowling, although occasionally I still hear of someone who hasn’t read the Potter books (unbelievable—I don’t want to live in a world without Harry).

If you’re a fan of my work, in particular, I would recommend you also try: JL Bryan, Axel Howerton, Holly Black, Melissa Marr, Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett, Ash Krafton, Jessica McHugh, Stephen Fry, Penelope Crowe…really, there are too many to list & I’m sure I’m forgetting some.  

I admire most authors & artists, because what we do requires a lot of work, and the kind of focus that most people don’t give to most areas of their lives.  I admire the heck out of Christine Demaio-Rice.  God, I could just start and never stop.  I’m not sure Santa would be able to compete with my list!  Marian Allen, Patrick Wensink, David Dalglish, Debora Geary, Shéa MacLeod…

In some cases it’s because I’ve come to know the writer and admire him/her personally.  In some cases it’s because the work blows me away—but I confess, that is rare for me.  I am a hell of a reading snob, truth be known.  All those years of reading growing up turned me into an erudite bitch & a half and now that I write fiction professionally I have become even harder to please!!!  That’s part of why I don’t like to write reviews for other authors.  I would rather be a “recommender” than a “reviewer,” as Ed McNally says.  As much as I love and idolize JK Rowling, her last book was awful, and I know I wouldn’t have felt that way if I hadn’t started writing fiction as more than a hobby.

10) Describe a typical Red Tash day in terms of creativity.

Wake up, make a cup of coffee, open gmail and facebook, close them immediately, open them again just for a second…close them again!  Look at list or writing projects.  Decide which has either nearest deadline or feels the most neglected.   Hop in and start writing!  Come up for air when strictly necessary.  (For me that usually means when the kids are all awake and ready to start the day—it’s a great thing that I type FAST.)

I keep spreadsheets to keep me on track of where my ideas were supposed to go…I don’t always follow them.  I have learned that despite the BEST outlines, the thrill of creativity happens for me when the characters take over and start telling me what to type.

If I get stuck, I may think it over later in the day while I shower.  I also like drawing as an alternate creative activity in the afternoons, and I sometimes have been known to illustrate badly-drawn cartoons and voice them.  AS IF THAT AIN’T ENOUGH, I keep another journal that’s mostly unrelated to Red Tash stuff, so I pretty much blather about all over the place until I have something useful for one of my stories, then I park it there.  ;)

11) I have seen that you have written stories for comics as well.  How was that and do you enjoy the process of collaborating with others? 

Collaboration is awesome!  I love it!  I look forward to doing more in the future, for sure.  I have a few more in the works.  Hoping they pan out.  It’s so cool that writers and artists can find one another this way now.  I feel blessed to have these opportunities.  This time last year I never dreamed I’d have comics coming out, or have a really funny SciFi adventure in the works.  It’s just so awesome.  What a blessing.

12) Are your friends and family supportive of what you do?

My husband and kids are terrific!  The kids do sometimes ask me why I don’t write for the paper anymore, but they’re getting over it.  My friends have been pretty awesome, too.  You really find out who loves you when you do something rogue like publish your own book.  Either people disappear from your life completely or they step and proudly tell other people about you.  That’s a huge honor and responsibility, and I hope I live up to it.  I was raised by wolves, so my friends have always been my family and their support means the world to me!  No one supports me in my writing more than my best friend & husband Tim Tash, though.  He’s a saint.

13) Are you going to be doing a lot of book signings this year and what areas can we expect to see you?

This year I’ll be at That Book Place in Madison, Indiana for their Labor Day book event.  (I know they are taking pre-orders, for any locals planning on going.)

That’ll be my first book signing, ever, actually.  I used to go and speak to groups once in awhile as a journalist, but it was never my favorite thing.  I always imagined (hoped) someday that I’d have a line of eager readers waiting for me to sign my novel for them, but now that the prospect of actually meeting readers face-to-face could happen, I confess I feel rather shy about it.  The local library asked me if I would be interested in holding an author event if they ordered my book, and I totally chickened out.  

Still, I’d like to meet readers, and I’ll be part of the Heroines with Heart book tour in 2013, appearing in Louisville and Indianapolis.  I think the “celebrity” sort of book tour that I used to dream about will have to wait until I’ve got some huge contract with a six-figure advance.  In the meantime, I’ll be mostly sticking around the home front, writing like hell and working my way into your hearts from Fort Tash!

14) Do you believe in the philosophy of you can either write or can’t?

I’ve never heard of that one, but, um…probably, a little bit.  A lot of people desire to have written something, whether that is a newspaper column or just a freelance piece, or a poem in their church bulletin.  A lot of people want to check that off their list of things they have done.  Most people think they have a book in them, but writing an actual book-length work isn’t that tough.  It just requires several sessions of sitting down to write.  It is the rest of it—the thinking, the plotting, the rewriting, the editing, the proofing, the plot-hole-searching, the big picture vision and the minute detail inspection that most people have no desire to do.  I bizarrely happen to like that stuff.  I suspect that if you don’t have that kind of personality, then you will probably have a steeper learning curve if you try to write a book or direct a movie or compose a Broadway musical.  These are just really BIG sorts of works.  It’s okay to start small and play around with imagery and voice and techniques.  I am no painter, but I imagine it’s much the same as taking painting classes in college.  You do it until you discover whether or not it’s your thing, then you take it on the run, baby, and make it your own.  Nobody starts out painting the Sistine Chapel, and no one writes ground-breaking mind-splitting-open literature on his/her first try, either—not without years and years of effort put into it, in my opinion.  I’m sure there are exceptions to this rule, but that’s my opinion!

15) What advice could you offer young writers wanting to break into fantasy writing like yourself?

Take writing classes, keep a journal, read a lot in the genres you enjoy, and then write a little bit every morning until your story is complete.  Randy Ingermanson (the snowflake guy) is a great resource for how to plot stories.  Your favorite authors are going to teach you more about world-building and character development than most literary training programs—MFAs are lovely, but I see a definite divide between commercial success & literary accolades.  Decide if you are in this to be an artist, or to be a best-seller, or one of the select few who is both.  Maybe you want to be neither of those—maybe this is just your hobby and you want to hear from readers more than anything.  Maybe you want to order your books as Christmas gifts and give to friends—you tell me!  Whatever your motivation is, whatever your goals, STICK TO THEM.  You will see other writers having varying levels of success.  It’s okay to amend your goals if you truly would rather sell books than win contests, for example.  But make sure you are following your heart in this matter, because a book is SUCH a huge commitment, and when you receive criticism & face set-backs (and you will), you need to be able to take it in stride, as part and parcel of your vision and your goals!

I have met so many wonderful authors who set their goals at high commerciality for their books and crank them out fast.  They work with editors, they hire cover designers, and they are doing great sales-wise for their genres.  You can do that, too.  I have a different process and different goals, I guess.  I don’t think I’ll ever be a “new book every month” sorta gal.  I have major respect for those who are, though.  They’re outselling me like crazy.

Another day, another NO VIDEO

I desperately needed to deface public property today, so armed with rain-delible sidewalk chalks of varying shades & shapes, I took my ninjas & monkey to a public park, where THIS TIME, no one broke an arm, and all was well that ended well.

As weird as it might sound, the first thing I did was trace the shadow of leaves on a concrete pad.  It was a stage, in an amphitheater.  No one will see it, more than likely.

In fact, one of the ninjas leapt onto it (backflip, sai gleaming in the sun, natch) , and announced “It says JESSICA on it!”  Spraypaint.  Red.

Oddly, no one was emboldened to chalk over Jessica, although my race against the breeze in the branches and the movement of the rock away from the face of the sun made for some interesting “leaf” shadows on my part.

Weird, weird, very weird, but I can’t tell you how good this felt.  I could go back and trace an entire forest of shadows if I had enough chalk and enough pavement to decorate.

I also tried to get the monkey to use her chalk to decorate the amphitheater’s benches, but she refused.  She wanted to work up on the stage like she perceived the rest of us to be.  Because of her age and size, and the height of the stage, we quickly resorted to tracing ninjas and monkeys, because I was otherwise chasing her all over the place.  Everyone took turns lying down, except for the one ninja who tells me he’ll be an artist when he grows up—he chose to trace everyone, instead.

The ninjas then began defacing one another’s chalk body outlines with slurs.

We concluded our project by having a 3 silly string can salute!  (One of the ninjas inexplicably passed on this.) I still have green silly string in my hair.

I love my family.  God, am I the best mom or WHAT!?

So that is why there is no video today.

I was engaged to go out drinking tonight, but have decided that I’m still not feeling social enough to do that.  Ever since the book launch I’ve been too plugged into social media and that makes me remarkably cranky.  I love y’all too much to make you bear witness my nasty side, and it is threatening to come out lately.  

I like to save that for funneling through assholes like McJagger and Dave, or even Greachin.  

Oh, surely not, Red.  Surely there is nothing of those foul beasts within you.  

Wait, just wait, dear reader, until you see where Christine goes in That Crackling Silence.  And the new queen baddie from Troll Or Park.  

Oh, shit, I guess they do come from me.  It all comes from me and I am horrid.

;)

Video SOON.  I promise.  And the rest of your reader-submitted questions, answered!

Have you read that?  Cool.  I have other works, too.

MONDAY is my first anniversary with this blog.  What did you get me?

BEST.  Derby.  Art.  EVER. geektothemax: Roller Derby movie poster by ~Loopydave
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BEST.  Derby.  Art.  EVER.

geektothemax:

Roller Derby movie poster by ~Loopydave

Google’s tribute to the drive-in movie

Are you a drive-in fan?  Me, too.  If you’ve read The Wizard Takes a Holiday, you know that, don’t you?

If not, go download it now. It’s free, everywhere!

And then go watch the Google animation celebrating the anniversary of the drive-in theatre.  Go, before intermission is over.

I woke up this morning and just couldn’t live with it.

I think it’s like when you get a new haircut, and at the time, you think “This is a great idea!”

But the entire week afterward, whenever you see yourself in the mirror, you scare yourself.  You think “OMG, who is that!?” and not in a good way.

And then you color it, to try to hide it.  

Then you swear to grow it back out, which takes, like, THREE YEARS or something.

Well, fuck that.

I still like the concept of the new banner, but it’s just not ready for primetime yet.

So, we’re back to just Greachin for now.  Greachin and Stella, right?

Thanks for all the help and suggestions, but until I can make the new concept at least as high res as the old, and the silhouettes perfect, I guess I’ll stay here for now.

Speechless.

Still speechless.


Jason Edmiston.

These pieces are part of the group show, “Rock Paper Sinners,” at Phone Booth Gallery in Long Beach, California. The show is up until May 8th.