Horror Story

Know what I love about Stephen King? Not his prose, though he sometimes strings together some memorable ones, like the guy who watched his wife's blood "run away red into the night," or something like that. No, what's wonderful about him is that he can take something totally ordinary and turn it into something totally horrifying. Take a pair of wind-up clacking teeth, the kind you buy in novelty stores. Or a pair of sneakers. Read what ol' Steve does with these and I guarantee that every time you look at those oh-so-humdrum everyday things you'll always be reminded of what they could become if you turn that cosmic corner--a nightmare from which you can't, and will never wake up.

It happened to me, once. Seriously.

Remember the novella/TV movie Langoliers? The one about the jet turning that cosmic corner and flying into yesterday? Remember the crazy dude who ripped paper into shreds in order to calm himself? Well, one day I had to go with my then-boss to this meeting. I was sitting across the table from him. Halfway through the meeting, my boss flips open his notepad to the last page and starts slowly tearing it into little strips, just like that guy in the movie. Scared me down to my drawers, especially since I'd just watched it (pretty good, Hollywood didn't mess it up). Scarier still, later that day not only did I have to get on a plane, I had to get on a plane with him...

But nothing happened after all that. The jet didn't fly into yesterday, and my boss didn't turn into a crazed murderer. In other words, I got to wake up.

That's what Stephen King does to you. And that's why, IMHO, he's so good.

The Neon Rain

Re-read The Neon Rain by James Lee Burke last night. It's a gritty thriller about a Cajun police detective who takes on drug lords and arms smugglers and nearly loses himself while battling his own demons. I lived in New Orleans for several years, got to know a bunch of Cajuns from the bayou (some really do speak only French and don't know a lick of English) and he got the N'awlins atmosphere just right, the way it was in the mid '80s when I was there. Here's one of my favorite lines:

"It started to rain in large, flat drops when we turned onto the Expressway, then it suddenly poured down on Clete's car in a roar of tackhammers."

Ain't that the truth. It rained every day around 4 PM, and it was like the sky just opened up and vomited water. It came down so hard it really did sound like hammers. Felt like it too, if you were caught in it. But it never lasted more than twenty minutes. Then the clouds would suddenly disappear, the sun would come out, and in the near-tropical heat you could see the steam rising from the rain-soaked concrete like smoke from a cigarette.

To be honest, I can't say I'm a Burke fan, but IMHO, The Neon Rain is his best.

Disguised As A...

Let's say there's a person in a uniform--a grocery cashier, a maintenance person, etc.--that you see frequently in the same place, for at least a year. After so much time, you usually nod and smile at one another, or maybe even say a quick greeting. Then one day you see them on the street and you walk right on by. Or you do a double take. You're so used to seeing them dressed a certain way and in a certain place, you don't recognize them without the uniform and in a different environment. I don't know about you, but this has happened to me several times. It's a little embarrassing. In a way, it's like telling them that they're the uniform and not a real person.

It's happened to me the other way around, too. I usually wear jeans and a t-shirt to my day job, or a sweatshirt if it's cold. There are times though, when I have to "act like it" and wear the kind of clothes that makes everyone think I'm a class act (you can laugh now--I sure am). When I do, people don't recognize me, sometimes even up close. They don't realize it's me until I say something. I always say I'm in disguise.

So I bought this big, fancy church lady hat yesterday, just for fun. I've decided to buy a church lady suit to go with it. Me, dressed like a church lady--the perfect disguise! I don't think I'd recognize myself. I know a helluva lot of other people wouldn't. Hey! I could wear it for Halloween!

All of this is to say that disguises are going to play a role in my next book. At least as far as Melera is concerned. If Beloc's coming to Earth for a visit, she'll have to change her looks--completely. She's a shifter, so at first blush it might not seem like a problem. But she can only hold to her new form for a couple of hours before being forced to revert. And then, because shifting takes so much energy, afterwards she has to rest for a long longer than that. Disguised, trapped in close quarters with Beloc and nowhere to hide. Does he capture her? If not, it'll be interesting to see how she pulls off her escape.

RWA: It's Official!

Secret a-a-a-gent man!
Secret a-a-a-gent man!
They've given you a number
And taken away your name...

(Air guitar solo)

Well...no. It's just that when I got my RWA membership confirmation and saw I'd been assigned a membership number, that song was the first thing that popped into my head.

So I've registered for the Annual Meeting next month, which will be quite near where I live. The cost was a bit steep, but I'd be a fool not to go. Learning, networking and FUN!

Of course I'll tell you all about it. Ad nauseum, most likely.

Website Coming Soon!

Okay, so I've installed the software (and tutorials). The developer claims they've taken the hassle out of building a site. Jeez, I hope so. I know just enough about these things to be dangerous.

Why do I feel like I've just jumped off a cliff?

I'll let you know when I hit bottom...

Whither The Alien?

A number of posts ago, I said I wanted your opinion about the The Alien Within's title. Actually, I thought I'd already written about it. But after going through my older posts, I'm forced to conclude that I'd hallucinated the whole thing. That happens to me a lot.

So...the book's title. A number of folks have told me they thought the title misleading, in that it sounds like it's a work of science fiction, but it's not. I can understand that. These days, the word "alien" evokes thoughts of ET. But the term applies to humans as well--a person of a different nationality, or even of a different family. For example, I am alien to my neighbors' families, because I am not related. And, of course, in any country there are resident aliens and illegal aliens. There's another meaning too--"exotic", as in "that culture is completely alien to me."

To my mind, The Alien Within works on four levels. First, and most obvious, is that Melera is an alien hiding within the larger Earth-bound society. Second, it also refers to preternaturals in general, who also hide within the larger human society. That's why I call them "exotics", or zots. Third, it refers to those preternaturals like Parker, a being with two unrelated personalities--human and wolf--who occupy the same mind and body. Finally, it refers to the light and dark sides of someone's personality. The face Garrett shows to the world at large (the zot world anyway) is that of the compassionate Healer. But when it comes down to getting what she wants, she is as ruthless as any CEO.

Do you think all this too subtle? I did think of one new title: Underground. Zots not only live in an underground world, but their "safe place" in Seattle is the city's Underground. Actually, if I went this route I'd like to call it Alien Underground. After all, Melera's lives just as far "underground" as any other Earth-bound zot. But then, that title probably raises the same issues as The Alien Within.

What do you think?

Romance Writers of America

Faxed my membership application to RWA first thing this morning. As in early. As in REAL early. It was probably still dark in Texas.

When I first started querying, I pitched The Alien Within as a romance. Then, after doing a lot of 'net research and talking to people, I was finally convinced (it took a while) that TAW wasn't a romance. Not a straight romance, anyway. Then I read on RWA's website that books of a certain genre (like urban fantasy with a dash of sf) with a strong romantic element qualify as romances--as far as the association is concerned, anyway. And that is exactly what TAW is--an urban fantasy with a dash of sf coupled with a strong romantic element.

RWA is having its annual meeting in July. Sure, I'm going. My third "con" of the year. I just love hanging out with writers.

But you know, when I faxed in my application this morning, I couldn't help thinking of what Groucho Marx once said. To paraphrase, "I wouldn't join any club that would have me as a member."

I have to laugh...