tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-253775682024-03-14T01:50:41.586-04:00West of Mars -- the Meet and GreetThe online home of the indomitable Trevor Wolff. Hang out awhile and get as hooked as the rest of us.Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.comBlogger545125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-29318705282386014882009-05-12T12:14:00.003-04:002009-05-12T12:16:19.823-04:00Missed Me?Have you really spent the past six months wondering where I am? Have you even noticed that your routine dose of Trevor Wolff has tapered to nothing?<br /><br />There's a VERY easy fix for that. Come on over to <a href="http://westofmars.com/blog">West of Mars</a>. Pick up the feed. See what you've missed. It's all there now, including (soon) Win a Book. And more on the horizon.<br /><br />If you've already picked up the feed, make sure you've gotten the Deadly Metal Hatchet fiction I posted on Sunday. If you haven't, you'll need to update your feed once again; we switched WordPress platforms and that seems to have changed the feed. <br /><br />Don't by shy. Trevor certainly isn't!Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-77523736613530610422008-12-10T12:11:00.004-05:002009-05-06T07:49:36.816-04:00We've moved!Thanks to the help of some <span style="font-style:italic;">good</span> people who work for Google and the inspiration of a good friend and some slick talk by the Tour Manager, I can get in here and tell you that to avoid this happening again, we've moved to a new home.<br /><br />It's still partially constructed as I write this and still needs some tweaks. But it's home.<br /><br /><a href="http://westofmars.com/blog">Come join me there.</a>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-4570903771016096062008-11-29T22:25:00.000-05:002008-11-29T22:31:48.504-05:00Fiction Outtake: Cranberries (The Early Days)Patterson didn't mind that they'd left early. The after-dinner entertainment had been the same for years now: the men gathered around the television, the women in the kitchen, cleaning up and gossiping, the kids who were too young to do either dispersing to the basement or another round of football in the yard. <br /><br /> Mitchell, for all his love of baseball, loathed watching football. And Trevor's lewd comments about the sport had been immediately unwelcome. <br /><br /> Frankly, Patterson had been glad to have an excuse to leave. He wasn't much of a football lover, himself, and family togetherness had its limits when there was so much in your life you couldn't discuss. <br /><br /> He pulled the Bronco into its spot on the side of the driveway and sat for a moment. Trevor, in the back seat, had gotten awfully quiet. Too quiet. <br /><br /> Mitchell, beside him, hopped out of the Bronco like he didn't have a care in the world. Like leaving early wasn't a big deal. To the boy, it probably hadn't been. Spending the day with the family had been okay at first, with the annual flag football game and the cousins to catch up with. But if you kept Mitchell away from his guitar too long, he started to get twitchy. Once that happened, the cousins decided he was weird. Adding Trevor to the mix hadn't helped, but leaving that one at home had never crossed Patterson's mind. Trevor was part of the family now, no matter how hard he worked at reminding them all that he wasn't.<br /><br /> Trevor followed Mitchell out of the Bronco, but didn't wait by the back door with the younger boy. Instead, Trevor stared at the sky.<br /><br /> "Did you ever wonder," he said to Patterson, his face turned upward. <br /><br /> "I wondered what's bothering you tonight."<br /><br /> Trevor shoved his hands into the pockets of the leather vest he'd consented to wear over his denim jacket. He hunched his shoulders. <br /><br /> Patterson had a few guesses. But it was best if the boy talked without prompts.<br /><br /> Suddenly, the hands were out of the pockets, the shoulders were down, and the boy had spun to face his guardian. "Do you have any fucking clue what it's like to watch that table get cleared and hear everyone laugh that everyone forgot about the cranberries and this and that and everything else? Do you have any fucking clue how lucky you are to even have a fucking family?"<br /><br /> "Yes," Patterson said. "And not just because this is a holiday of gratitude, either."<br /><br /> Mitchell wandered closer, but stayed safely behind Trevor. <br /><br /> "Do you know what my Thanksgivings used to be like?" Trevor went on, his face turning red in the starlight. "Do you know what we'd have for dinner?"<br /><br /> "No," Patterson said. "Tell me."<br /><br /> Trevor just shook his head, like the words wouldn't come. Mitchell sat down in the grass and folded his legs Indian-style. He began playing with his shoelaces.<br /><br /> Trevor pulled his cigarettes out of the chest pocket of the denim jacket. "Some years, it was us sitting around the table, watching him drink a bottle of JD. One year, he beat Mom with the bird she'd brought home and then made her cook it and stood there while we ate it. I puked it back up about an hour later." He snorted. "And don't forget the year there was no food because Mom couldn't get a hold of his paycheck and he stole hers and drank 'em both."<br /><br /> Mitchell shook his head and visibly swallowed. Patterson just listened. He'd been witness to scenes like this, although not at the Wolff household. It didn't matter; the tragedy was still the same. The fact that he'd been able to make a difference in this young man's life couldn't even begin to make up for the families he hadn't been able to help so directly. <br /><br /> "Happy fucking birthday, Trevor," Trevor said, sniffing hard and rubbing at his eyes with the sleeve of his denim jacket. "They usually forgot. And there's the Voss family," he said, gesturing expansively, "with a birthday cake and apologies for being a week late." <br /><br /> Patterson looked at Mitchell; he felt the boy watching him. He'd managed to shelter Mitchell from the worst of Trevor's stories; this couldn't be easy. <br /><br /> Mitchell was imploring his father to make it stop. To help him know what to say or do.<br /><br /> Patterson pursed his lips and gave the barest shake to his head. <br /><br /> "And all that fucking food that everyone forgot to eat," Trevor said.<br /><br /> "We didn't forget," Mitchell said. "No one likes the cranberries. So Aunt Paula leaves 'em on the table because we're supposed to have cranberries. She's probably shoving them back in the container she uses every year, and she'll throw it in the freezer until next year. They'll make it to the table, probably still frozen, and then when we clear, everyone will joke about forgetting to eat them when the truth is, no one wants 'em."<br /><br /> "Think that's funny?" Trevor whirled and bent over to look at Mitchell, who shrugged.<br /><br /> "I think cranberries are okay," Mitchell said.<br /><br /> Patterson had to bite his lip to keep from smiling. <br /><br /> Trevor cocked his head, considering. <br /><br /> Mitchell started pulling at the grass. <br /><br /> "So you're saying I'm a cranberry?" Trevor asked at last.<br /><br /> Mitchell made a sound sort of like one of Trevor's indignant snorts. "No," the boy said. "You're an ass who's keeping me from my guitar. C'mon. Let's go make music."<br /><br /> Patterson moved to unlock the front door, wondering if a parent could be more proud of his son. It wasn't likely. <br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Want to know more about who these folk are? All the info you need is at <a href="http://westofmars.com">West of Mars</a>. Go check it out.</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-38761766656417812262008-11-26T21:51:00.001-05:002008-11-27T02:58:12.355-05:00Susan Speaks: I Need (another) New ChestIf you turned all these blog awards into medals and pinned them on me, I'm short enough to be all covered up by them. Possibly head to toe by this point.<br /><br />Guess you guys agree that the medals are better looking than I am (You think I <span style="font-style:italic;">forgot</span> to put my picture on The Demo Tapes?) 'cause I've got a heap more to acknowledge. <br /><br />Maybe a mountain is more like it. <br /><br />Let's start with the always awesome <a href="http://aliceaudrey.wordpress.com/2008/10/27/kreative-award/#comment-12777">Alice Audrey</a>. Don't let Chelle get a look at this award; we all know how she is with <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2007/03/byline-chelle-lafleur-more-about-typos.html">typos</a>. <br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><br /><td><img src="http://www.westofmars.com/images/AwardKreativBlogger.jpg"></td><br /><td>The award is the Kreativ Blogger award and misspelled or not, this still makes me smile. I'm doing my best to be creative and make this blog into something so totally unique, you can't stop talking about it. Seems my efforts are paying off. </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><br />I've missed my old friend Marcia at <a href="http://meeaugraphie.com/">MeeAugraphie</a>. And crumb, but I can't find the post that gave me something or other. But go visit Marcia. She's amazing. <br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><br /><td><img src="http://www.westofmars.com/images/iloveyourblog.jpg"></td><br /><td>Another new friend is <a href="http://bookworm37.gingermontgomery.com/2008/11/11/i-love-your-blog-award.aspx">Daisy Bookworm</a>. Again, I found her through EntreCard. I've been finding more than just increased hits and rankings via EntreCard. I've found a whole slew of cool folk. Daisy's a great example of the quality blogger I wouldn't have found otherwise. She's given me the I Love Your Blog Award. <br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />(Trevor's telling me to remind you to use protection when you love my blog... I think he doesn't want any more baby blogs running around. <a href="http://westofmars-winabook.blogspot.com">Win a Book</a> takes up enough of my time as it is!)<br /><br />Now. <br /><br />Here is an award that came out of left field. Given who it came from, I'm truly, truly honored. I mean, there are published authors I've made friends with (Hello, <a href="http://amyruttan.com">Amy</a>! <a href="http://www.wyliekinson.com/">Wylie</a>! <a href="http://www.shelleymunro.com/">Shelley</a>! <a href="http://www.lisaandel.com/">Lisa</a>! <a href="http://christinedabo.com/">Christine</a>!), and there are published authors who I really respect (Hello <a href="http://www.laurendane.com/">Lauren</a>! <a href="http://www.meganhart.com/">Megan</a>! <a href="http://www.anyabast.com/">Anya</a>! <a href="http://www.annaguirre.com/">Ann</a>!) but am too intimidated by to have a friendship with them (yet), but <a href="http://www.la-day.blogspot.com/">LA Day</a> falls somewhere between them. Not quite a friend yet not scary in her success, either. But highly, highly respected. <br /><br />She also loves my blog. It's mutual, believe me. I want a sidebar full of book titles like LA Day has. I wouldn't mind the naked men on the book covers, either, but they'd have to all be Mitchell or Daniel. We love Trevor, but it ain't for that bod of his... <br /><br />***<br />It began with Ann. Ann of <a href="http://fractured-fiction.blogspot.com/2008/11/awards.html">Fractured Fiction</a>, who I must have broken somehow because she hasn't been blogging regularly since we met at the Romantic Times Convention last year. Ann, can I fix you, please? I miss your posts!<br /><br />Anyway, Ann gave me the Lemonade Stand. She gave it to <a href="http://wyliekinson.blogspot.com/2008/11/blog-award-for-me.html">Wylie</a>, who also gave it to me. <br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><br /><td><img src="http://www.westofmars.com/images/lemonade.jpg"></td><br /><td>So now I have two lemonade stands!</td><br /></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />Is this because of Trevor's ability to make figurative lemonade out of anything? I don't know. All I know is that I'm immensely flattered. <br /><br />Wylie gave it to <a href="http://thommalyn.blogspot.com/2008/11/great-attitude-and-gratitude-award.html">Thomma Lyn</a>, who turned around and gave it to ...<br /><br />Me. <br /><br />I swear, one of the best things about these awards is seeing the company you guys put me in. Sometimes, I get down and depressed. Most of you are publishing books and I'm not! Yet you don't care. You hold me up with the some of the best of the best of the blogging writers. <br /><br />Ultimately, these are silly little awards, given to make each other feel good. I like that idea and that attitude; it's so nice to see this sort of kindness in a world that's often snarky and mean. <br /><br />Yet it's that comment I just made, that you guys hold me with the best of the best, that tells you why this means so much to me. You don't care about things like who publishes my books, or if I get an advance against royalties, or that people who self-publish, as I've done with The Demo Tapes, clearly aren't good enough to be published by the better publishers out there. <br /><br />You care about this world I've created. You help inspire it and you help push me to new heights, creatively and in terms of my writing ability. <br /><br />So... let me share some of the people who make MY day better and brighter: <br /><br />Gautami deserves an award and lots of notice for resurrecting the <a href="http://mondaypoetrytrainrevisited.wordpress.com/">Monday Poetry Train</a>. Come jump aboard with us.<br /><br />I've mentioned my friend L^2 before, but have you seen her <a href="http://www.cafepress.com/yellowdogphotog">CafePress store</a>? Don't be surprised if you see one of her notecards tucked inside any copy of The Demo Tapes that you buy from me. L is one of the coolest people out there. If you haven't seen her blog yet, you are missing out. This is one talented photographer.<br /><br />I've made a new friend, Koe, at The Half-Life of Linoleum. What a great blog name, huh? <br /><br />I was digging this blog, but when she created <a href="http://thehalflifeoflinoleum.blogspot.com/2008/11/one-future-unfinished.html">this post</a>, that sealed the deal. She threw up an unfinished poem and then added to it throughout the day/week until it became what I've just linked to. But Koe added ... the comments from the comment trail. She told me she'd like to do it again. I hope she does. Stick her in your reader and keep commenting!<br /><br />There are neat book bloggers out there, and you writers ought to take note (there are lots more neat book bloggers over at Win a Book! Why aren't you making friends???). One of my absolute favorites is Dawn, at <a href="http://www.sheistoofondofbooks.com/">She is Too Fond of Books</a>. And then there's Anna, whose <a href="http://diaryofaneccentric.blogspot.com/">Diary of an Eccentric</a> is one of my favorite blog names to joke about. Come read Win a Book to see why. And, of course, Serena, of <a href="http://savvyverseandwit.blogspot.com/">Savvy Verse and Wit</a>. <br /><br />I've had the distinct pleasure of chatting with these three ladies lately, and they are as wonderful as their blogs are. I'm so glad to have you guys in my circle. Even if you hate my own fiction, I'll still be a fan of you three. Just... not quite as rabidly so. <br /><br />Have I mentioned <a href="http://j-kaye-book-blog.blogspot.com/">J. Kaye</a> lately? <a href="http://breenibooks.blogspot.com">Breeni</a>? <br /><br />My world lately has changed shape, and in a good way. A lot of that is directly due to Breeni, who has decided to throw her considerable passion and efficiency into promoting The Demo Tapes. Beyond me, though, Breeni is every bit as passionate about books as I am -- as any of us are, really -- and is one of the biggest champions for not caring WHO publishes a book. For Breeni, it's about the quality between the covers.<br /><br />May we all learn to be so publisher-blind. <br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><br /><td><img src="http://www.westofmars.com/images/rockstar.jpg"></td><br /><td>I can't leave here without one last award. My favorite, and the one you ALL should be giving me. The rock star award!!! What a better award to hand out to a woman who writes about rock stars and the people who orbit them. </td><br /></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />It came from April, at <a href="http://angelface79.blogspot.com/2008/11/rock-star-award.html">My Life as a Mother and Single Parent</a>. We've only just met, me and April, but from the first time I saw one of her blogs (she has a few), I really dug her attitude. This woman has a zest for life that rivals Trevor's. I hope we're in for a long friendship.<br /><br />She loved <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2008/11/susan-speaks-face-value.html">my post</a> about the loss of Pittsburgh legend PittGirl. I worked pretty hard on that post, trying to make it as perfect as I could. Thanks to April, I succeeded, although I'm curious what PittGirl herself thinks of it... In the constant flow of my dreams is one where PittGirl reads my post and decides to come back... as a fictional character. <br /><br />On I dream.<br /><a href="http://www.westofmars.com/index.php?id=thebooks"><br />Come join me</a>.Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-87577055753122403172008-11-23T18:22:00.000-05:002008-11-23T18:32:45.410-05:00Byline: Chelle LaFleur -- Gearing up for Musical Hanukkah Celebration Year 3It only took ole Chelle here two years to figure it out, but when there's a message taped to her phone, waitin' for her in the morning, and when that message don't say nothin' but "Be at your phone at seven, your time, Wednesday," it means one thing and one thing only.<br /><br /> Time to talk up this year's Musical Hanukkah Celebration over in Riverview. <br /><br /> Yeah, yeah. I know. We don't live nowhere near Riverview. We be two time zones over and at least a thousand miles away. So what's Chelle doin' talkin' this thing up?<br /><br /> You boys and girls who're regulars know the answer to that. The Musical Hanukkah Celebration is the baby of the one and only ShapeShifter. And that means fat ole Chelle gets the skinny from the luscious Mitchell Voss himself. He's probably the only man who could tell Chelle when to get herself by a telephone. He's worth it every time.<br /><br /> Except, luscious Mitchell Voss… he ain't the best with the hellos. Know what Chelle hears when she answers the phone? "We've got our best charity yet for this thing."<br /><br /> No Hello? Where's the How Ya Doing, Chelle?<br /><br /> "It's the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation. Stable. Been around awhile. Famous 'cause of some movie I never saw. And we're moving into the Rocket Theater this time, too," Mr. Luscious said. "It's bigger. The stage is bigger and it holds more people. The backstage area's nicer, too, so we can have a few more guest stars. We're pulling out the stops this year. And wait until you see the t-shirt. We're making more of those, too. People want to buy 'em online and help support the cause. Since it's such a good cause, we're all for that."<br /><br /> There you go, boys and girls. We get t-shirts this year if we ain't gonna make the trek to Riverview. And why would we? We got us some great weather this time of year. Gettin' on an airplane might cost so much, you gotta sell your favorite band t-shirt on eBay, and that's before you get to the airport and they call for a cavity search. No, boys and girls. Let's stay put. There's a great local scene here y'all should be explorin'. Chelle's got a rundown of who to go see later on this week.<br /><br /> That don't mean you shouldn't buy those t-shirts when word gets out that you can. Any donation's sure to make those little kids happy and grateful. It's all about bringin' music to the kids, remember that. A kid who plays the flute now might turn out to be tomorrow's Mitchell Voss. We ain't gonna know until that kid gets the chance to make some precious music. <br /><br /> For now, you heard it here and you heard it first: ShapeShifter's Musical Hanukkah Celebration. Gettin' bigger, getting' better and with t-shirts for all, not just the folk who make it inside. Gotta love that. Chelle sure does. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">If you're new around here, this whole Musical Hanukkah Celebration thing has got to seem as though it's from left field. <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2006/12/byline-chelle-lafleur-musical-hanukkah.html">Click here to read the beginnings</a>. <br /><br />While the characters in this piece aren't real, the <a href="http://www.mhopus.org/index.asp">Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation</a> is. Profits on the upcoming t-shirts and The Demo Tapes will go toward this great effort to keep our kids musical. There will be more details and hoopla to come, I promise. And a lot more fiction, too, building up to this fun event.<br /><br />You may ask why I'm blurring the line between real life and fiction like this. The answer's easy: Today's clarinet player might be tomorrow's million-selling lead singer. Every child all deserves that dream.</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-29088823936121983992008-11-19T18:23:00.000-05:002008-11-19T18:28:47.104-05:00Susan Speaks: Face ValueUsually, if I'm cranky, I channel my fictional character, Trevor. Heck, the other day, one of my online friends was having a hard time with her mother, and Trevor wrote her this gorgeous balm for her wounded soul. It was great therapy for me. And, I hope, for her. The Tour Manager dug it, too. <br /><br /> What you don't know about me is that in real life, I'm cranky. I'm bitchy. I'm self-centered (as all good writers are supposed to be … or so goes the cliche). I'm frazzled, overwhelmed, and drowning in this life I've created. In fact, other than my friend Bridget, I'd be surprised if most of the people (if not all) who I see in my daily, offline life have nice things to say about me. Hell, there are people I've only known online who think I'm nothing but the worst kind of bitch.<br /><br /> So maybe this forthcoming rant won't surprise you guys. You're smart people and you know that no one can be as perpetually cheery as I try to be on these pages. <br /><br /><br /><br /> Here's what set me off. One of the local writers I know told me over a year ago about this local, anonymous blogger named <a href="http://theburghblog.com/">PittGirl.</a> "She's hysterical," <a href="http://www.annettedashofy.com/">Annette</a> told me. <br /><br /> It took me about two seconds to see the truth of that. And the deeper content swirling under the surface. <br /><br /> Because she was anonymous, PittGirl felt free to rant about the city. The city's government. The rich and beautiful. PittGirl wasn't afraid to talk about how bad the Pirates are. Every week, she posted the funniest pictures of the Steelers and gave them the best captions, dialogue that had me howling until the cats got scared. I didn't always agree with her, but she always made me think about whatever she was talking about. I'd be out with the Tour Manager and suddenly, I'd say, "Oh, did I tell you what PittGirl said today? Man, it was brilliant."<br /><br /> And did I mention the pictures of shirtless Penguins? Oh, my. That woman provided better eye candy than the numerous romance authors who post Man Meat Mondays. <br /><br /><br /><br /> Yesterday, PittGirl closed up shop. Apparently, someone found out her true identity. The floodgates had been opened, and PittGirl had a choice to make. <br /><br /> She chose real life. <br /><br /><br /> <br />I hate this. I can't tell you how much I hate this. Even earlier this week (or was it last week?), PittGirl had posted a reminder that if her identity was discovered, she faced being fired from her day job. And yet some dunderhead had to go and pry anyway. <br /><br /> For what? For some bit of useless knowledge?<br /><br /> Look. <br /><br /> It doesn't matter who is behind the person who became PittGirl. Maybe it was David Conrad, one of her self-united husbands. Maybe it was Ken Rice, a local TV anchor and someone who was long rumored to be PittGirl. Those two men (interesting that I can think of only men when PittGirl was pretty obviously a woman) are who they are… David Conrad and Ken Rice. An actor and a TV newsman. <br /><br /> Likewise, PittGirl was PittGirl. <br /><br /> I mean, heck. When did Marcia Brady stop being Marcia Brady and start being Maureen McCormick? For me, she hasn't. If I find the Bradys on TV, I'm not looking at Maureen McCormick. I'm looking at Marcia Brady. I don't need to know any more about her. She's Marcia. She's got a mom, two sisters, three brothers, a step-father, and a housekeeper who's having a thing with the butcher. End of story. What more do I need to know?<br /><br /><br /><br /> Part of the strength of a good character is that they do not exist in real life. They are larger than life because if they were real, they'd be too large to be contained. Could someone real have the freedom to skewer some of the city's most powerful people the way PittGirl did when details of a society divorce became known? <br /><br /> Hell, no. If she tried, she'd be sued for defamation of character.<br /><br /> And that's exactly why anonymous characters like PittGirl -- and <a href="http://misssnark.blogspot.com">Miss Snark</a> for us writers, and Fake Steve Jobs for you tech heads -- are so important. They use their smokescreen to say the things we are thinking. Or maybe the things we ought to be thinking. Miss Snark could shoot idiots with a clue gun. She wasn't real. Readers knew that they were not in jeopardy of walking down a street and feeling a hard thunk!, only to find they'd been the unwitting recipient of a clue. No matter how badly that clue is needed, it simply isn't going to happen. The clue gun exists in a fictional world. <br /><br /> If someone -- like, say, literary agent <a href="http://jetreidliterary.blogspot.com/">Janet Reid</a>, whose prickly online persona is often held as proof that she was Miss Snark -- were to offer to shoot you with something like a clue gun, someone else would feel threatened. Hell, I know how creeped out I was for months after someone said to me, "I have a knife in my pocket and I'm not afraid to use it." That was his opening salvo, too. He went on from there. He claimed he was joking.<br /><br /> Tell that to my nightmares, buddy. <br /><br /><br /> <br />I've heard it said that we Pittsburghers take people at face value. Maybe that's why I'm having such a hard time believing that someone out there (especially someone apparently in Pittsburgh) would want to dig deeper. What's wrong with face value? What's wrong with fantasy and mystique?<br /><br /> Why did PittGirl have to become a real person? She was perfect as she was, hating pigeons and giving Steelers such horrid nicknames that you couldn't help but laugh. (Baby Cici Donna? Skippy Skeeve?) <br /><br /> I'm a writer. I miss Miss Snark but that was an end I saw coming. She'd simply run out of things to teach us.<br /><br /> But PittGirl… in a city like this one, a city that's constantly evolving and changing, that's trying so desperately to move forward (*ahem*), we needed her. We needed her as she was: a fictional woman who could point out the good and the bad that fills our Golden Triangle. Through her, I felt a pride in Pittsburgh that I haven't felt in a long time, and I adore this place. Her love of the city came through in every post, and I'd be surprised if mine wasn't the only outlook she altered. <br /><br /> Pittsburgh is poorer for her loss. She made this often grey landscape brighter. <br /><br /> I hope the dunderhead who needed to know so desperately who she was can look at him- or herself in the mirror today. Because, dunderhead, you ruined a very very good thing for an awful lot of us.<br /><br /> Maybe you're the one we should be calling Skippy Skeeve.Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-42274512025238515742008-11-18T12:51:00.001-05:002008-11-18T13:30:36.140-05:00Susan's Book Talk: In my Hands...Well, boys, girls and groupies of all sizes, shapes, and genders.<br /><br />In my hands is what I think is going to be the final version of The Demo Tapes. You've asked and I'm about to deliver... Wow. This is scary and exhilarating all at once. Sort of like I imagine how I'd feel if I were allowed to be the first person to try out a new roller coaster... with a blindfold. <br /><br />No, maybe not. Blindfolds take the fun out of it, no matter what Trevor says. We're talking roller coasters here, folks. And books. <span style="font-style:italic;">MY</span> book.<br /><br />Since this is mine, thanks to the good folks at <a href="http://lulu.com">Lulu</a>, I get to make the rules. One of which is that you'll be able to buy The Demo Tapes from me. You'll be able to buy them through Lulu. You might be able to buy them through Amazon, but I'll only earn 66 cents per copy once Amazon gets their cut, and that doesn't leave me much to pay off my (limited) expenses and still have enough profit to donate to charity. <br /><br />What I need to know right now (Yes, this instant!) is ... would you like an autographed copy? The only way to get one is to get it directly through me for a million reasons, one of which is that this book is being produced Print on Demand, so until someone places an order, there's nothing for me to sign.<br /><br />Tell me in the comments. Lay it all out; I have comment mod only only to get rid of the spammers who leave links to obnoxious spam sites. <br /><br />Here's the back cover copy:<br /><br /><blockquote>A band's demo tape is intended to introduce listeners to their music. Likewise, this collection of short pieces allows readers into the fictional world of Trevor Wolff and his band, ShapeShifter.<br /><br />Originally published online between April 2006 and March 2007, The Demo Tapes: Year 1 brings together the moments that parallel -- but never encounter -- Susan Helene Gottfried's debut novel, Trevor's Song. Arranged chronologically and with introductions to each, this is a must-have volume for anyone who's ever wanted to hang with a rock band. </blockquote><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">As Frigga asked, the book is priced at $9.98 and there will be shipping costs involved. I need to figure them out yet (think three bucks for US addresses, tops). And yes, PayPal is a FINE form of payment.<br /><br />More details on all this to come. Stay tuned.</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-57898688836908474292008-11-15T09:31:00.001-05:002008-11-15T09:33:08.866-05:00Roadie Poet: StrangerGot home just now. <br />The start of a month off the road.<br />I need sleep<br />Clean clothes<br />Good food.<br /><br />In that order.<br /><br />My key fits in the lock.<br />Everything inside looks the same:<br />Shelf for mail<br />The dent in the bannister from when I kicked it with a steel-toed boot.<br /><br />Don't ask.<br /><br />In the living room<br />In front of the TV<br />In the recliner I bought Mom with my first tour's pay<br />Isn't Mom.<br /><br />It's some guy.<br />In blue plaid flannel pants.<br />Black socks.<br />Brown slippers with no backs. <br />Not a lot of hair.<br />Glasses.<br /><br />I look into the kitchen.<br />There's Mom's cookbooks<br />Mom's pots<br />Mom's teapot.<br />No Mom.<br /><br />Just this guy.<br /><br />"Hey," he says to me.<br />"You must be RP."<br /><br />"Who're you?" I say to him. <br />"Does Mom know you're here?"<br /><br />He laughs.<br />Stands up.<br />Shoves his hand at me.<br /><br />I stare at it. <br /><br />Mom shows up then.<br />Dressed in a flimsy robe.<br />Surprised to see me. <br />Her second kid.<br /><br />Like I'm forgettable.<br /><br />She gives me food.<br />Takes my laundry.<br />Sends me to bed. <br /><br />In that order. <br />I don't complain. <br />I needed all three. <br />Especially sleep.<br /><br />I'm awake.<br />Never thought I'd need earplugs at home. <br /><br />Maybe <br />I can find<br />A tour<br />That'll keep me busy <br />For a month.<br /><br />I don't really need<br />Sleep<br />Food<br />Or clothes.<br />In any order.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Aww, man! Poor RP; his mom's got a boyfriend! There's more to this saga, so stay tuned. In the meantime, why not check out other friends who've done some <a href="http://sundayscribblings.blogspot.com/2008/11/137-stranger.html">Sunday Scribblings</a>?</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-41572864599691211222008-11-12T19:25:00.000-05:002008-11-12T19:40:59.849-05:00Susan's Music Talk: How Thinking Affects Heart RatesSo check out this article I came across today. It says that:<br /><br /><blockquote>Listening to stressful or disturbing music can be bad for the heart, according to a new study.<br /><br />An American investigation found that genres like heavy metal narrowed arteries and made people more anxious, where as “joyful” music improved blood flow.<br /><br />John Denver-style country music was found to be the most uplifting. </blockquote><br /><br />Okay, sure. Pounding drums and throbbing bass and screaming guitars require thicker skin. I can see that.<br /><br />But John Denver?<br /><br />Ever seen me twitch when that man's music comes on? No offense; a lot of it is good stuff. But... I'm a metal head for a reason, folks. It speaks to me. Hell, it soothes me.<br /><br />(remind me to tell you about the time I was pregnant with #1 and went to the OB right after listening to Ride the Lightning and my heart rate was so LOW, the Tour Manager asked how I was managing to be upright. "I'm mellow," I told him. And I was.)<br /><br />Okay, so fine. Whatever. Heavy metal = bad. <br /><br />Read on, grasshopper:<br /><br /><blockquote>The study asked the 10 healthy, non-smoking volunteers to avoid listening to their favourite music to minimise "emotional desensitisation”.<br /><br />Then, after two weeks, when they listened to music they liked “they would get an extra boost of whatever emotion was being generated," Dr Miller said.<br /><br />The results found that volunteers' arteries opened 26% wider on average during music they liked but narrowed by 6% when “anxious” music was played.<br /></blockquote><br /><br />Now wait a minute. Wait one cotton-picking minute here. <br /><br />Notice how we're not talking about genre anymore, but about what the listener finds enjoyable?<br /><br />Think we have a scientist who's making the assumption that no one likes heavy metal, and that everyone on the planet finds metal "anxious" (whatever the hell that means)? Think we have some BIAS going on, boys and girls?<br /><br />Think. <br /><br />Don't let the headline pull you in. Read the details. <br /><br />Think. <br /><br />(I saw this study posted <a href="http://www.bravewords.com/news/100686">here</a>, at BraveWords.com. They quote the source as <a href="http://www.gigwise.com/news/47445/Stressful-And-Disturbing-Heavy-Metal-Music-Is-Bad-For-The-Heart">this place, although I think there ought to be somewhere else... like where the study was originally published</a>.)Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-83546336422954975972008-11-10T21:02:00.001-05:002008-11-10T21:05:19.879-05:00Two Months Later...Those of you who pick my feed up have seen this get accidentally posted a few times now. Damn Google and their continued insistence on my being a spam blog. Trust me, a fix is in the works.<br /><br />You'd think I'd just post this already for real, but I keep waiting for the Tour Manager to do my graphics for me. We've been swamped, trying to get the Demo Tapes out to you (so much for my projected target of October 1...), so you can imagine that a simple thing like graphics has taken a back seat. Somehow, I don't think you guys mind all that much.<br /><br />Anyway, I've been stockpiling these awards since back in September. Ready?<br /><br />Let's start at the beginning:<br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><br /><td><img src="http://www.westofmars.com/images/sc_award.jpg" /></td><br /><td>Julia at <a href="http://juliasbookscorner.blogspot.com/2008/09/super-commentator-award.html">Julia's Book Corner</a>. She was kind enough to give me the super commentator award. I know I am commenting on many of your blogs less than I used to (see above about time...), but when I do comment, I'm trying to make sure you know that I'm not just typing letters and hoping they make words. Silence from me, btw, doesn't mean I'm not here. Just that I'm in a quiet mood. I have been lately, and I'm not sure why. </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table><br /><tbody><tr><br /><td><img src="http://www.westofmars.com/images/iloveyourblog.jpg" /></td><br /><td>Breeni <a href="http://breenibooks.blogspot.com/2008/09/i-love-your-blog.html">loves my blog</a>, which is great because I love hers. In fact, I hung out there a few times during October. Did you notice? </td><br /></tr><br /></tbody></table><br /><br /><a href="http://shaunesay.blogspot.com/2008/10/feel-love.html">Shauney</a> loves my blog, too. Shauney is an old friend from back before my blogging days, when I hung around a really cool book lover's community. More on that below; right now, it's all about awards.<br /><br />Especially because I've been handed this one a THIRD time this go-around. Three, folks. Wow.<br /><br />Florinda, at <a href="http://www.3rsblog.com/2008/09/love-love-love-hearts-and-blogs.html">The 3 R's: Reading, 'Riting, and Randomness</a>, also saw fit to pass this along. Florinda and I met years ago through <a href="http://bookcrossing.com/">BookCrossing</a> when we exchanged books. Years later, she recognized me. Because, you know, I have a distinctive name and how many other women run around bragging about being from <a href="http://westofmars.com/">West of Mars</a>?<br /><br />Lisa, at <a href="http://aliveontheshelves.blogspot.com/2008/09/i-heart-your-blog.html">Minds Alive on the Shelves</a>, also gave me this award, but more for <a href="http://westofmars-winabook.blogspot.com/">Win a Book</a> than this joint. Still, I'll acknowledge it here while I'm on a roll. Besides, Lisa doesn't live that far from me (or you, <a href="http://spyscribbler.blogspot.com/">Spy</a>) and so she's worth mentioning here. She says she often comes out this way, so let's see if we ever meet in person. Could be scary; I'm SO much better here on the blog.<br /><br />The cool gang over at <a href="http://www.booklorn.com/">Booklor</a>n (who just got added to my reader for handing out this award!) ALSO gave this one to Win a Book. Even on the days lately when I've been overwhelmed and have really relied on Breeni and Bridget to post things for me, having the Win a Book blog has been a great source of FUN. Yes, it's a ton of work. Yes, it's a ton of energy that maybe ought to be spent on my fiction. But I've met so many cool people through Win a Book that it's all worth it. Keep those e-mails coming to the handy-dandy Win a Book e-mail, gang. There's a community being built over there, just as there is one here. Join them both.<br /><br />On to another award... (I said I was feeling loved!)<br /><br />Carol over at <a href="http://she-lives.typepad.com/she_lives/2008/09/i-won-i-won.html">She Lives</a> and <a href="http://www.bass-icallyspeaking.com/">Bass-ically Speaking</a>. Man, I love Carol. I want to be Carol's real-life friend. She comes across as so steady and cool; she'd be a very good influence on flighty and emotional you-know-who.<br /><br /><br /><table><tbody><tr><td><img src="http://www.westofmars.com/images/award_proximidade.jpg" /></td><br /><td>This is that Portuguese Award that makes me wish I knew Portuguese. The Proximidade Award.</td><br /></tr><br /></tbody></table><br /><br />Here's the stuff that comes with it:<br /><br /><blockquote> This is a very cool Portuguese Award and it means this blog invests in and believes that blogging makes us close. Proximidade translated to English means vicinity, or neighbourhood.<br /><br /> Here is the statement I am supposed to post...<br /><br /> "They all are charmed with the blogs, where in the majority of its aims are to show the marvels and to do friendship; there are persons who are not interested when we give them a prize and then they help to cut these bows; do we want that they are cut or that they propagate? Then let’s try to give more attention to them! So with this prize we must deliver it to 8 bloggers that in turn must make the same thing and put this text."</blockquote><br /><br />Yeah. I don't know about that deliver it to 8 bloggers thing, but the rest sure sounds good.<br /><br /><table><tr><td><img src="http://www.westofmars.com/images/butterflyaward.jpg" /><br /></td><br /><td>My new friends over at <a href="http://thevirtualdimemuseum.blogspot.com/2008/11/some-awards-also-coming-attractions.html">The Virtual Dime Museum</a> honored me before I could honor them. This is one of those blogs I love to stop by every day and linger over. There's always something new and neat here.<br /></td><br /></tr><br /></table><br /><br />And wow. I am very overwhelmed by all this (and I think I've missed an award or two; if I have, please let me know!). I wish I could tell you how much I appreciate it, but I'm lousy at this sort of thing. Thanks seems inadequate when I think of how much you guys impact my own self-worth (which, because I'm a writer is always a hairy thing) in a good way. When my real life blows up, I know that I've always got you guys and this place to hang onto. Probably because you don't have to deal with my artistic temperament (ahem) the way people in my face do.<br /><br />So... if all of these cool award-granters aren't enough in terms of cool people for you to meet, I've got some more, of course.<br /><br />There is my friend Carmi, over at <a href="http://writteninc.blogspot.com/2008/10/shaina-punim.html">Written, Inc</a>. Carmi's actually inspired a character you guys haven't met yet (but will, I promise. Know how I've been a little more absent lately? This is why.), and when I am inspired by who you are, rather than something you say, that is high praise. Needless to say, Shaun is a good guy. You'll like him when you meet him.<br /><br />Anyway, this is about Carmi. The post I've linked to struck me as something so utterly gorgeous, it took my breath away. And yet, this is business as usual for him; he's the host of thematic photographs, he runs cool caption contests... his range of topics is varied and while you never know what's on his mind from day to day, one thing remains steady: his photography.<br /><br />Now, enough Carmi. On to the sister blog of The Virtual Dime Museum, <a href="http://kitchenretro.blogspot.com/">Kitchen Retro</a>. Again, I love to sit and read these retro sites; there's so much to be learned. It's such a neat look at who our society was -- and how we've changed.<br /><br />More history? Really? I like history? When it's <a href="http://modernhistorian.blogspot.com/2008/11/on-this-day-in-history-first-six.html">this</a> cool, yes, I do. The site is The Modern Historian and I love to see what happened on this date. You should, too.<br /><br />Another new favorite is <a href="http://dirtyshankcardchallenges.blogspot.com/">Dirty Shanks</a>. These snarky greeting cards make me spit water all over my keyboard on a daily basis. My keys have never been so clean. (You'd think I'd learn, huh?)<br /><br />Laughing has been a priority lately because I'm feeling so swamped with everything. Another of my favorite stops, thanks to <a href="http://ampfiction2.blogspot.com/">Bunnygirl</a> and <a href="http://thommalyn.blogspot.com/">Thomma Lyn</a>, is <a href="http://lovelylisting.blogspot.com/">It's Lovely! I'll Take it</a>! Yeah, okay, some of these real estate listings make me realize what a spoiled, sheltered princess I am. Some of them depress me. But mostly, they make me howl. The Tour Manager and I spent hours a week or so ago, going through the site. I'm sure their site meter loved us. (As mine loves you!)<br /><br />Believe it or not, but I've actually been finding more cool blogs -- but sadly, some of them don't have their feeds on. So, gentle reader, I am asking humbly that you check your feed. Is it on? Does it work? I know I'm not the only blogger out there who won't read a blog unless it's through her reader. (Well, other than those EntreCard people, but that's another creature)<br /><br />I'll be back with more, I'm sure. In the meantime, I hope you meet some new friends.Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-83886723348291001122008-11-08T20:31:00.000-05:002008-11-08T20:39:30.920-05:00The Origin of Mabel<span style="font-style:italic;">Many of you regulars may remember Mabel. Here's how the legend began:</span><br /><br /><br />It wasn't supposed to be a big deal. Just a cheap guitar that could take some abuse, something up to life on the road. Take abuse, it did. It got knocked, bumped, dropped. But in the end, not even the inflatable ones could handle being stepped on. <br /><br /> Just like that, Mabel's life came to an end. <br /><br /> Mitchell couldn't believe how much he missed the stupid thing. He moped. He whined. He made the band threaten to leave him at a rest stop. <br /><br /> It was Daniel and Eric who came to the rescue, of course. <br /><br /> And Mabel the second was born.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">The idea for this began with this week's <a href="http://velvetverbosity.com/2008/11/04/100-word-resurrection/">100-word challenge</a>: Resurrection. It continued with this week's <a href="http://sundayscribblings.blogspot.com/2008/11/136-change.html">Sunday Scribblings</a> prompt: change.<br /><br />To read more about Mabel, check out <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2006/11/thursday-thirteen-2-for-tour-manager_08.html">this link</a>. She's appeared in other spots, too. If you'd like to read them, search the blog by using her name. They'll pop right up. Have fun and remember to leave comments so I know where you've been!</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-39486131869733218082008-11-06T14:34:00.000-05:002008-11-06T14:47:48.675-05:00BTT: PresentsThis week's <a href="http://btt2.wordpress.com/2008/11/06/presents/">Booking Through Thursday</a> asks us:<br /><br /><blockquote>What, if any, memorable or special book have you ever gotten as a present? Birthday or otherwise. What made it so notable? The person who gave it? The book itself? The “gift aura?”</blockquote><br /><br />With few exceptions, people don't give me books for presents. Maybe it's the 500+ stack that refuses to shrink, no matter how fast I read, that scares them off. Maybe it's that many of those 500+ come from RABCKs -- Random Acts of BookCrossing Kindness. That's when a fellow <a href="http://bookcrossing.com">BookCrosser</a> decides to look up my address and pop a book in the mail to me, just because. As someone who loves to do this, herself, I love getting RABCKs in return. <br /><br />There's one book that sticks out immediately. That's <a href="http://powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/2-9780810957923-1">The Plucker</a>, an illustrated novel by Brom. Yep, one name. Brom. Awkward at first, it takes on a beauty of its own after a bit, doesn't it? Brom. <br /><br />So does the man's art.<br /><br />Anyway, the Tour Manager bought me a copy of The Plucker last year for my birthday. Horrible wife that I am, I haven't read it yet. I'm waiting, you see, for a day where I can curl up with something I can get lost inside, where I can lose all the pressures I've been facing lately, trying to get The Demo Tapes done -- along with everything else that my ambition is dictating. <br /><br />I think, truth be told, I'd rather have a gorgeous new pen (I prefer rollerballs) or an account at <a href="http://www.robertaweissburgleathers.com/">Roberta Weissburg</a>'s and time to devote to having her make me a gorgeous new dress coat. Or time to play with the washable suede pants I've recently discovered. Or... Yeah, you get the idea. Time and money for this rock and roll writer's rock and roll wardrobe.<br /><br />Which, of course, explains why I'm wearing a too-big pair of Levi's and a t-shirt from WPTS-FM, the radio station where I had so damn much fun on Sunday afternoons...Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-61445187120687041002008-11-04T20:38:00.000-05:002008-11-04T20:46:03.428-05:00Susan Speaks: While You're on a RollSo you went and voted today. I'm pretty certain you waited in line longer than I did: the kids and I pretty much walked right on up. <br /><br />Now, though, you've juiced up those voting fingers (hey, we've got the touch screens here now. Fancy living, West of Mars) and ... what are you going to do? <br /><br />Well, vote for me! <br /><br />It's all <a href="http://breenibooks.blogspot.com/">Breeni</a>'s fault. She was nominated for a <a href="http://2008.weblogawards.org/nominations/best-literature-blog/">Weblog</a> award and turned around and nominated me. <br /><br />There are really good people in the same category. I see a number of blogs I know from my <a href="http://westofmars-winabook.blogspot.com">Win a Book</a> blog, and of course, there's Breeni. To be honest, I'll be glad if I don't finish dead last, but ... every now and then, it's fun to think about being first.<br /><br />Check it out. Nominate someone, even if it's not me. You've got this voting thing down pat now, right? Exercise your choice and your rights some more!Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-47840860346654452452008-10-31T13:19:00.001-04:002008-10-31T15:27:53.134-04:00Fiction Outtake: Needing Candy (The Early Days)<span style="font-style:italic;">Warning: This outtake contains lots of foul language and men in women's clothing. Happy Halloween!</span><br /><br /><br />"Trevor, you may <span style="font-style:italic;">not</span> go trick-or-treating!"<br /><br /> "Aww, Mom, why not?"<br /><br /> Mitchell dove for the safety of his room. If Ma wasn't going to let Trevor out of the house in spandex pants and a vest, she sure as shit wasn't going to let him out. Not with his hair spray painted orange and while he was wearing one of Amy's old bras. Aim would kill him when she saw him in her only long skirt, too. Hopefully she'd stay up at school tonight and hit up those stupid frat house parties she'd been raving about. As if he'd go to college, let alone join a fucking fraternity.<br /><br /> Trevor showed up a minute later, looking glum. "Mom threatened to barricade the door."<br /><br /> "Did you ask if we can hand out the candy?"<br /><br /> Trev shook his head. "She's on to that trick, dude."<br /><br /> "So let's fuck with her and <span style="font-style:italic;">really</span> hand out the candy."<br /><br /> "What are you going to do about your hair?"<br /><br /> Mitchell shrugged. "We've got a gig tonight, right?"<br /><br /> "And no candy to throw during it." Trevor sat down on the bed and dropped his chin into his hand.<br /><br /> "Eric'll cover for us."<br /><br /> Trevor sat up and snapped his head around. He narrowed his eyes at Mitchell, who raised his eyebrows in surprise at the extreme reaction and waited. "What happened to pulling our own weight?" the bass player demanded. He jumped up and started waving his arms around, occasionally pointing at Mitchell. "We're a band and we rely on each other but that doesn't mean we slack off. It means we <span style="font-style:italic;">all</span> work our <span style="font-style:italic;">asses</span> off to be the <span style="font-style:italic;">best fucking band</span> we can be. That doesn't mean you sit on your pampered ass and wait for Eric to show up with the fucking candy. That means you use my escape route out that window of yours and we go fucking trick-or-treat so we have something to give our fans, dumbfuck!"<br /><br /> "Not in a skirt," Mitchell said calmly, picking at a fold. Really, he thought, these things weren't so bad, once you got used to them. It was sort of free inside there, not all caught up inside a denim casing like a sausage or something.<br /><br /> Trevor jumped up and down, his eyes screwed shut, his motorcycle boots thunking on the floor. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"<br /><br /> "Nothing. What the fuck is wrong with <span style="font-style:italic;">you</span>?"<br /><br /> "Fuck off. I'm the one giving a fuck around here."<br /><br /> "No," Mitchell said, sitting up and adjusting the bra. They'd stuffed it with socks, of course, although Trevor had sniggered and suggested using underwear. It didn't matter what was in there; Mitchell now had a <span style="font-style:italic;">much</span> better idea of why they called them knockers. "It's not about whether or not I give a fuck. It's about how long we have to wait to pull off my plan."<br /><br /> "Oh, a plan," Trevor said with an exaggerated sniff and wag of his head.<br /><br />Mitchell stared at the ceiling and asked whoever was hanging out up there <br />for some patience. "Yes, a plan, you dumbass," he said. "It's simple. We hand out candy. One to the kids, one to us. By the time we need to split, we're set."<br /><br /> "And how are you planning on getting that past Mom? You know she won't go for it."<br /><br /> "It's simple. Either we take it, or we eat it. Remember what happened last time you hit a sugar high?"<br /><br /> "Fuckhead."<br /><br /> Mitchell laughed. He stood up and held his arms out. "So tell me. Do my boots go with the skirt?"<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">For more Scandalous happenings, check out this week's <a href="http://sundayscribblings.blogspot.com/2008/10/135-scandalous.html">Sunday Scribblings</a>. And, as always, I invite you back to <a href="http://westofmars.com/index.php?id=characters">my website</a> where you can learn more about Trevor and Mitchell and where you can gain easy access to see more of them in action.</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-31160030951769166912008-10-29T20:27:00.001-04:002008-10-30T12:52:43.985-04:00Susan's Music Talk and Cool ShitNow, it stands to reason that anyone who grew up the way I did loves great music. That I love to throb with music. (Oh, shut up, you gutter brains!)<br /><br />When I was little, my sister played the flute and piccolo. She'd practice for hours. Thus, music is something that's always been a part of me, something I miss when it's not around and like many musicians, something I hear in the oddest of places. <br /><br />Too bad I can't play it worth a damn. <br /><br />So of course I fell in love with the absolute brilliance that is <a href="http://apocalyptica.com/">Apocalyptica</a>. A four-man cello band from Finland who got their start playing <a href="http://Metallica.com">Metallica</a>?? <br /><br />Man, that start was only the tip of the iceberg for those boys. I can <span style="font-style:italic;">not,</span> listen to the song <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUy4QfYI8bk">Burn</a> from their newest album without humming and thrumming along. Sheer brilliance. Sometimes, depending on where I am and how sunk into listening I am, it brings tears to my eyes. (That link'll take you to a live version)<br /><br />That's why, when #1 brought home a note from the school orchestra teacher inviting the kids to a free concert by cello rock group <a href="http://www.cellofourte.net/">CelloFourte</a>, I figured they'd have to call the cops to get me out of that auditorium. Live music? <span style="font-style:italic;">Good</span> live music? I am so there.<br /><br />Turns out it wasn't an issue. Heck, with that large number of kids from third grade on up, the powers that be at the school were probably quite glad to see us parents sprinkled in among the students. <br /><br />CelloFourte only played for an hour, which was about right for those of us with younger kids. #1 sat a row in front of me with three of his friends, transfixed. Me, I fought the urge to go stand up somewhere. It's been way too long since I've seen live music and the sound of those cellos... oh, man. Soulful. Different from Apocalyptica, and different is good. These three men and one woman can certainly put their own stamp on the cello rock genre. <br /><br />Afterward, #1 and his friend wanted copies of the newest CelloFourte CD. And this is when the Pittsburgh connection kicked in.<br /><br />Turns out that the very coolly named Tate (uhh, he'd be the cello player in the band) works for a friend of mine. And when he's not doing that, he's playing with a band you might have heard of... Skillet. <br /><br />My jaw dropped. <a href="http://www.skillet.com/home">Skillet</a>? The same Skillet I hear (not often enough) on Squizz? The same Skillet who does the amazingly moving <span style="font-style:italic;">The Last Night</span>?<br /><br />Tate, dude, we gotta be friends. My living room makes a great practice space, ya know...Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-19467852142224773462008-10-28T10:55:00.001-04:002008-10-28T11:51:14.315-04:00Susan's Book Talk: WAY overdue!I can't believe I haven't done a Book Talk since August, when I raved about <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/17-9780778323426-1">The Kommandant's Girl</a>. Granted, my reading's (regrettably) slowed since then, as I've had other things in the works and all of us adjusting to the new school year. <br /><br />I've been reading great books, though. In fact, of the 14 I've read, there have been only 2 that I haven't finished. That's a pretty good ratio.<br /><br />I'm not going to go through all 12 that I finished. I don't want to bore you -- I want to point you to the great reads. There have been plenty.<br /><br />Let's start with <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/17-9780505524898-0">George and the Virgin</a>. This was my first romance written by <a href="http://www.lisacach.com/">Lisa Cach</a>, and it's easy to see what everyone is raving about when they talk about Ms. Cach. I really liked the heroine, but even more, it's a good reminder of what can happen when our lives are ruled by fears. <br /><br /><a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/71-9781594146688-0">Sweet Man is Gone</a> is <a href="http://www.peggyehrhart.com/">Peggy Ehrhart</a>'s fiction debut and a definite don't miss. I reviewed it over at <a href="http://frontstreetreviews.com/">Front Street Reviews</a> -- look under mysteries. I've also swapped a few e-mails with Ms. Ehrhart and she's wonderful. <br /><br /><br />For a long time now, I'd heard mixed reviews of both <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/2-9780765300348-1">War for the Oaks</a> (<a href="http://emmabull.wordpress.com/about/">Emma Bull</a>'s classic) and <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/1-9780446601979-3">Parable of the Sower</a> (<a href="http://www.sfwa.org/members/Butler/">Octavia E. Butler</a>'s classic), and had been dragging my heels about reading both of them. It was time to suck it up (see my comment about George and the Virgin for that lesson on being ruled by fear). I'm glad I did. Both books are incredible. Both have very dark visions of society, which is fine. I like a good dystopic society. Parable is perhaps the darkest book I've ever read. Oaks shows the power of music. <br /><br />I reviewed Parable for Breeni. <a href="http://breenibooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/guest-review-parable-of-sower-by.html">Check it out</a>.<br /><br />Time to change gears and finally take the plunge and read a book by <a href="http://www.laurendane.com/">Lauren Dane</a>! I've been reading her blog for years and I like <span style="font-style:italic;">her</span>. I won a copy of <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/61-9781599987590-0">Making Chase</a> in a contest held at her blog and while it took me a little bit longer than I'd intended to get around to reading it, it was worth the wait. Ms. Dane creates wonderfully real, complex characters. She's about to have a few new books released by a major publisher; look for them. <br /><br />To tie the romance and the alternate society together, I finally picked up my very-badly-treated copy of <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/1-9780778324218-1">Stray</a> (really, the person who sent it shouldn't have, despite the vague rules at <a href="http://paperbackswap.com">PaperbackSwap</a>. This poor book can't be sent back out again -- and before you suggest it might be ME who treated it so badly, I challenge you to ask Bridget, who borrows all my books. She'll tell you how gentle I am with a book. She's been known to ask if the copy I'm handing her is the one I read.). <a href="http://rachelvincent.com/">Rachel Vincent</a>'s debut is another book I've heard negative things about. With one minor exception, I disagree. <a href="http://breenibooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/guest-review-stray-by-rachel-vincent.html">Read what I thought</a> over at Breeni's. (It made me feel good to see the comments, where someone says they'd steered away because of the negative talk, but I'd changed their mind.)<br /><br />And last night, I finished a humdinger. I've read <a href="http://www.anitadiamant.com/">Anita Diamant</a>'s <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/17-9780312195519-0">The Red Tent</a>. I've read <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/17-9780743225724-1">Good Harbor</a> (a book which continues to resonate with me, years later). I've even read some of her nonfiction books "about contemporary Jewish practice," as her bio describes them. <a href="https://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/17-9780743225748-0">The Last Days of Dogtown</a> trumps them all. <br /><br />The friend who'd handed me her copy said "Eh," as she handed it to me, but I loved this series of interlocking stories that collectively tell the tale of a small New England town (that actually existed, according to the back cover) as it breathes its last. Well-drawn characters it's impossible not to care for make this another book that'll stay with me a long time. <br /><br /><br />So there you go. Seven books -- that's half of what I've read in the past two months. I'm on a roll. I hope it continues; it's much easier to tear myself away from the screen (and impending burn out) when there's a good novel waiting on the couch for me.Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-57704475397521370072008-10-25T21:27:00.000-04:002008-10-25T21:56:30.597-04:00Seven Braggy ThingsMy new bud, <a href="http://beadedtail.blogspot.com/">Beaded Tail</a>, tagged me for that seven things meme. The last time I did it, Trevor took over. (Read it <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2008/04/susans-inside-writing-outrageous.html">here</a>.) Okay, he does a lot of my memes for me. He did <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2008/09/tagged-trevors-it.html">this</a> one, too. <br /><br />Given that the <a href="http://sundayscribblings.blogspot.com/">Sunday Scribblings</a> prompt this week is all about bragging, it seems natural to let Trevor do this one, too. No one loves to brag like Trevor Fucking Wolff. <br /><br />But... I like being as unpredictable as my Trevor. And I got lots to brag about. <br /><br />So I'm stuffing Trevor back into the tour bus and taking a rare spin at this blogging about myself stuff. (Although I suspect I do it more than I'm willing to admit! Do I?)<br /><br />Know why?<br /><br />Because I'm about to give you guys something many of you have asked for. Nope, not the novel you've been longing for. Not quite yet.<br /><br />I've been playing with this idea for a year and a half now. I was advised to hold off doing it by a literary agent who offered representation ... and then disappeared. <br /><br />Sometimes, things happen for the best. 'Cause there's not a person involved in the big business of books who'd tell you that what I'm doing has ANY commercial value. Let's prove them wrong.<br /><br />What I've done is taken ALL the ShapeShifter fiction (minus anything Chelle wrote) from my blog's first year. I've organized it into chronological order, like you've asked for. I've edited each piece, more than once. <br /><br />And I've uploaded it to Lulu.com.<br /><br />Nope, you can't buy it YET. Know why?<br /><br />The first copy I made had some odd layout issues. And the font was too small. And it needed another edit. <br /><br />The second copy I made had two Tables of Contents.<br /><br />And you know what? I have a whole new, healthy appreciation for people who do this stuff for a living. Sheesh, we've learned a lot, the Tour Manager and me. <br /><br />It'll be soon, though. As soon as I let the Tour Manager have the laptop back so he can finish whatever tech stuff it is he's got to do. Believe me, I'll let you know.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Now</span>, because I'm doing this myself, that means I don't get any free copies that'll show up on my doorstep for people to promo and review, like most authors get. And while most of you groupies deserve your own free copy, you might change your mind when I spring this fact on you:<br /><br />Most of my expenses after profits will go to various charities, hopefully a different one every three months.<br /><br />I say "most" simply so I have some wiggle room. If I say "I'm giving ALL my profits to charity," I won't feel right about holding back money for expenses I know are upcoming. I'm not doing this to make a profit. I'm doing this for these reasons:<br /><br />1. I have something you guys have said you want.<br /><br />2. No one else seems overly willing to help me get it to you ("No one else" meaning any of the people in publishing I've approached over the years, except for the one agent who went poof.)<br /><br />3. I can. <br /><br />4. I've always wanted to be a great philanthropist. Growing up in the shadow of Andrew Carnegie will do that to you, I suppose. Or all those lessons from the rabbis about the importance of tzedakah -- charity -- sunk in. You pick. <br /><br />5. I'm curious to know how many copies of this little book I'll sell. <br /><br />6. It's not always easy to search a blog's archives. This way, you'll have at least a third (or so) of the ShapeShifter fiction that'll be easier to refer back to.<br /><br />7. I have lots more outtakes we can do this with... Year 2 wrapped up last April, and we're in the middle of year 3 now. <br /><br />So... there you go. Much better than listening to me rave about how actor <a href="http://www.cbs.com/primetime/criminal_minds/bio/shemar_moore/bio.php">Shemar Moore</a> was featured in this month's <a href="http://www.bicycling.com">Bicycling Magazine</a>, right? <br /><br />(btw, this is only the beginning... look for some fun stuff to wear and a few other surprises in the next few months, given the speed at which the Tour Manager and I move lately. If you have an idea for a t-shirt, give a holler! I'm sure we can work something out...)Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-68854836814710201282008-10-23T07:50:00.000-04:002008-10-23T08:05:59.817-04:00BTT: CouplingAt first glance, this week's <a href="http://btt2.wordpress.com/2008/10/23/coupling/">Booking Through Thursday</a> is a great question:<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">“Name a favorite literary couple and tell me why they are a favorite. If you cannot choose just one, that is okay too. Name as many as you like–sometimes narrowing down a list can be extremely difficult and painful. Or maybe that’s just me.”</span><br /><br />Well, of course my favorite couple is Mitchell and Kerri. That goes without saying. I created them. (And wait until you see the couple I'm working on now!)<br /><br />But then I began to think a little more deeply about the books I've read lately. Know what?<br /><br />I can't name any relatively recent couples.<br /><br />There are a bunch of triangles -- and I like triangles -- roaming around out there. <a href="http://colleengleason.com">Colleen Gleason</a>'s got Max and Sebastian. I haven't read Stephanie Meyer, but it sounds like there's a triangle with Edward and some other dude. <br /><br />Notice something else? Those are both series I've just named.<br /><br />There hasn't been a great epic novel in a long time -- epic like Gone with the Wind epic. Those are the novels that let us really get to know a couple, to allow us readers to spend enough time with them that they become alive. So now we need the series novels to make that happen.<br /><br />Except... <br /><br />A lot of the series I've been reading -- <a href="http://kimharrison.net">Kim Harrison</a> comes to mind, as does <a href="http://rachelvincent.com">Rachel Vincent</a>, although I'm not current on either series (and what does that tell you about how frequently books are being pumped out lately?) -- don't have couples in them, per se. They feature women and men and yeah, there's some attraction and chemistry, but the characters don't couple off. Not permanently, and at least not up through the books I have gotten to (so many series...). <br /><br />Yet then there's Queen Betsy, and Sookie Stackhouse... (Although again, I'm far from being current on either series)<br /><br />Another exception to this rule that isn't holding up worth a dedication page: <a href="http://jenniferestep.com">Jennifer Estep</a>'s Bigtime series. These three novels all feature the classic romance formula: boy and girl meet, boy and girl make the long-term commitment. Boy and girl also return in the other books in the series, albeit in limited roles, so that we readers can revisit old friends. (But not, you'll note, continue to get to know them)<br /><br />But as for couples like Rhett and Scarlett, I just don't think we're seeing as many of them anymore. Society's changed. Our wants as readers have changed. <br /><br />Or have they?Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-58486748596958939662008-10-19T22:01:00.000-04:002008-10-19T22:07:55.512-04:00Fiction Outtake: Rusty's Place (Trevor's Song Era)So this was it, Trevor thought as he followed Mitchell off the elevator and down the narrow, dark hallway. This was the other love shack, the one Mitchell bonked Rusty in when he wasn't doing her in his own place. Trevor wasn't so sure he wanted to go in. Hell, he wasn't sure why Mitchell wanted in Rusty, but the big idiot had never been the smartest thing around when it came to girls.<br /><br /> At least the door to Rusty's place was cool: floor to ceiling and on these rollers that made a great noise when Mitchell pulled it open. It looked old and industrial and was almost as interesting as his place. <br /><br /> The first thing Trevor noticed was the space. Huge. Empty. A few ugly couches, a few lights set around them like he'd seen at photo shoots the band had been on. And a drafting desk, white, facing the couches. <br /><br /> A couple of mismatched throw rugs on the floor. Rusty's bike by the door, and hooks for keys and shit. Not hooks, he realized as he looked closer. Carabiners. They made stealing her keys pretty fucking hard, the way they were rigged, there. It was almost a good idea. <br /><br /> Behind the drafting desk, he saw a couple of stools, one of which held Her Rustiness. Her shadow fell behind her on one of those screens for privacy that had some soothing nature scene painted on it. That must be her living space back there, but damn if Trevor could see any of it. Damn if Trevor <span style="font-style:italic;">wanted</span> to see it. <br /><br /> He hated to admit it, but the whole place added up to some sort of artsy style. A little too serious to be a student's digs but at the same time it was obvious she wasn't on easy street. If this wasn't <span style="font-style:italic;">Rusty's</span> place, he might even have been able to respect the person who lived here.<br /><br /> "Hey, you're here," she said from behind that drafting desk. She lifted her head and pierced him with those damn eyes of hers. Trevor still didn't understand how Mitchell had found a girl who had the famous Voss eyes. <br /><br /> "Yep," Mitchell said, crossing the couch area and going over to Rusty. He put his hands on her waist and kissed her like he was trying to crawl down her throat. All of him, not just his tongue.<br /><br /> Trevor looked around, wondering where the bathroom was. Just in case bad judgment got the better of him and he decided not to yak on her floor. Watching her clean up that mess would be sublime -- assuming Mitchell didn't make him do it himself, which the idiot would probably do. After all, Rusty might get her precious self dirty or something. <br /><br /> He jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder. It hadn't hit him; it couldn't be Mitchell. That meant…<br /><br /> He jumped again, away from Rusty this time. He gave her a quick once-over: paint-covered sweatpants that used to be grey and a sorta snug but not tight t-shirt. He couldn't deny she had a good shape. Even worse, the paint streaks brought that out. <br /><br /> That she was barefoot didn't surprise him. Mitchell would have to fall for someone who hated clothes as much as he did. It was that simple, until you got to the eyes. That was just fucking freaky. <br /><br /> "Hi, Trev," she said like he hadn't just handed out this insult by getting away from her touch. Sometimes, he thought she was clueless, but then he looked in those eyes and knew better. The Queen of Polite, that's what he ought to call her. Maybe he would -- except Rusty fit so much better. And it pissed her off.<br /><br /> Trevor realized he had no cranky comeback for her. Nothing about the lack of walls helping make sure she didn't get lost. Nothing about the high ceilings or those couches. Nothing. <br /><br /> Mitchell growled and stuck an elbow in his ribs. Trevor glared at him and reached for his cigarettes. <br /><br /> "Let's get rolling," Mitchell said.<br /><br /> "I need to change," Rusty said. She vanished behind the stupid screen.<br /><br /> "You can't change enough," Trevor told her and placed an unlit cigarette in its usual place at the corner of his mouth.<br /><br /> "How did I know you'd say that?" she asked. It was weird, talking to her like this. He couldn't see her but nothing was muffling her voice. It was like talking to someone who was invisible. Then again, life would be better if she wasn't there at all. <br /><br /> "Maybe you're a fucking clairvoyant or something."<br /><br /> "Maybe I'm just smart," she said, coming around the screen all dressed in jeans and another t-shirt, this one without paint on it. "We ready?" She held her arm out. Mitchell grabbed it and wound it around his waist. <br /><br /> Trevor tried not to gag. "I'm readier than you'll ever know," he said.<br /> "Good thing," she said as Mitchell took a swipe at the back of Trevor's head. It wasn't hard; just enough to remind him to watch himself. Like he'd do anything else here in Rusty's lair. If she'd used it to snag Mitchell, there was no telling what she'd do to him. <br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">So you've met <a href="http://westofmars.com/index.php?id=Trevor">Trevor</a>, <a href="http://westofmars.com/index.php?id=Mitchell">Mitchell</a>, and <a href="http://westofmars.com/index.php?id=Kerri">Kerri</a> over the past week. Now you get to see them in action, as part of the <a href="http://sundayscribblings.blogspot.com/2008/10/133-my-style.html">Sunday Scribblings</a> prompt.<br /><br />I don't know about this one. For those of you who're regulars, I'm going to drive you NUTS when I say this: it feels like it belongs right inside of</span> Trevor's Song. <span style="font-style:italic;">Sorry, but it's true.<br /><br />Stay tuned for news on how to help get that book into your hands. There's a lot brewing behind the scenes here. And yes, you'll like it all.</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-76792083548325458262008-10-17T15:02:00.001-04:002008-10-17T17:26:24.534-04:00Fast Facts: Kerri VossIn my fictional world, there are lots of triangles. One of them will only be seen when you finally get to read <a href="http://westofmars.com/index.php?id=TrevorsSong">Trevor's Song</a>. <br /><br />One of the other triangles involves Trevor, Mitchell, and Mitchell's wife, Kerri. You've already met the boys <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2008/10/fast-facts-mitchell-voss.html">here</a> and <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2008/10/fast-facts-trevor-wolff.html">here</a>. So now it's time for the girl. <br /><br />1. Kerri Voss left her hometown of Pittsburgh because she'd been accepted at the very picky Riverview Art Academy. Kerri was going to be an artist.<br /><br />2. Although Kerri liked to turn her radio to KRVR when she worked, she couldn't have identified a single member of ShapeShifter even after the day she noticed the hot blonde in a leather biker jacket looking over the tomatoes in her favorite grocery store. And even then, it took a few weeks -- and a driver's license -- before she realized the hot blonde wasn't a struggling musician like he'd initially led her to believe.<br /><br />3. Even though ShapeShifter fans are introduced to Mitchell's wife in a variety of ways (she'll play tech during his shows and help him switch guitars, and bands always need artwork, don't they? T-shirts, album covers, website design...), Kerri won't talk about her pre-Mitchell life, except to say she went to Riverview Art. Anything before that strangely doesn't exist. <br /><br />4. Trevor's nicknamed her Rusty. Gotta read <span style="font-style:italic;">Trevor's Song</span> to find out why. But in typical Trevor fashion, there's more than one easy reason. <br /><br />5. The physical: she's about five-nine, which plays nicely with Mitchell's six-one. She's got a willowy, dancer build although she was too busy pulling pranks to do something as serious as dance. And she's got that deep red hair that fades to brown with age -- unless it's, as Trevor suspects, enhanced. Or is it?<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Although Kerri doesn't have a huge role in <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2007/10/fiction-outtake-breakfast-trevors-song.html">this outtake</a>, it's still one of my favorites. And it'll show you a bit of this triangle in action.</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-868643743201896032008-10-14T21:32:00.000-04:002008-10-14T21:50:08.517-04:00Fast Facts: Mitchell VossIf you missed <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2008/10/fast-facts-trevor-wolff.html">the other day's post</a>, I'm offering a few quick notes about the main characters who run around this joint like they're real people. To many of us, they are.<br /><br />I did Trevor first, of course. No, wait. We're talking about Trevor, so let me rephrase. I did not DO Trevor. I wrote about him. He's not real, remember. A real person can only fantasize. But then, so does Trevor. And so does his best friend.<br /><br />Anyway, that brings us to...<br /><br />Mitchell Voss.<br /><br />1. Let's start with the physical: six-one. Keeps fit by spending so many hours in swimming pools, his silvery-blonde hair turns green. Hazel eyes that look right through Trevor and annoy him to no end.<br /><br />2. Trevor's the closest thing he's got to a brother. He's actually got two older sisters. One's a doctor and lives nearby. The other is a mom and lives out of Riverview.<br /><br />3. A large part of the ShapeShifter dynamic is the Frick and Frack, Heckle and Jeckle, Lucy and Ethel that goes on between Mitchell and Trevor. It's been this way since Mitchell dreamed of a band and Trevor decided to make it happen.<br /><br />4. It's rare to find Mitchell without a guitar in hand. The man oozes music and for better or for worse, there's not much more to him than music. But does there need to be more?<br /><br />5. Many of my long-time groupies have come to love Mitchell more than Trevor. He's moody, sensitive, and the calm in the face of Trevor's storm. He's also completely devoted to his wife, Kerri, in ways that all us married women wish our husbands really, truly were like. No matter how great our husbands. <br /><br />(okay, now. Who was this post REALLY about? I told you that Trevor rules the roost around here!)<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Want more Mitchell?<br /><br /><a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2008/03/fiction-outtake-baking-cookies-early.html">This link</a> will take you to one of my favorite Year 2 outtakes. <br /><a href="http://www.westofmars.com/index.php?id=Mitchell"><br />This link</a> will take you to his bio page. Like with Trevor's page, there are lots of links for you to have fun with. Focus on those, not the bio. Looks like I need to rewrite it. Yikes!</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-6264057472960497962008-10-12T07:42:00.002-04:002008-10-12T08:00:00.402-04:00Fast Facts: Trevor WolffThere have been a number of new faces around these parts lately. In an attempt to bring you up to speed and help you understand all the fuss and hoopla, here are some fast facts about the (fictional) man known to many as Trevor Wolff.<br /><br />1. He stands five foot ten. Really. Truly.<br /><br />2. He weighs about 120. Soaking Wet. <br /> Okay, that may be an exaggeration, but not by much. Trevor's one of those skinny guys, almost scrawny, with the flat, hollowed-out chest and a little tuft of chest hair dead-center over the breast bone. <br /><br />3. His nose has been broken more times than he can count. It's ugly, misshapen, and has a hook in it. But it works and he'll take it. <br /><br />4. When it comes to being a member of ShapeShifter, his value isn't in his bass playing. Far from it, in fact. In some circles, Trevor is known as the luckiest no-talent on the planet. Some say even hard work can't save him. But the band is Trevor's vision of Mitchell's dream, and no one can imagine a Trevor-less ShapeShifter.<br /><br />5. Here at the Meet and Greet, Trevor often rules the roost -- no small feat for a fictional character. As we get closer to the annual Musical Hanukkah Celebration that ShapeShifter throws every year, you'll be seeing more of him again.<br /><br />I know you groupies will be pleased.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Want to know more? Want to see Trevor in action? Use <a href="http://www.westofmars.com/index.php?id=Trevor">this link</a> to be taken to his bio page. At the bottom of the page -- well, taking up most of it these days -- are a bunch of links. Click yourself into Trevor nirvana.</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-66160483312248580162008-10-09T20:49:00.000-04:002008-10-09T20:53:36.533-04:00Pam Fiction: Pregnant WomenOkay, so I know I'm not the smartest girl who ever walked the Earth. I mean, if I couldn't figure that out in school, then maybe I am too stupid to live, like those rich bitches used to say I was.<br /><br /> But I'm not. Know how I know that? It's because I know something that a bunch of smarties at some university back East had to study for years to figure out. I'm a health professional. Them, they're eggheads. That's how I got to know this so much faster.<br /><br /> Pregnant women who exercise have less depression.<br /><br /> Like I didn't know that? Hello? <br /><br /> I can totally see it on the faces of my pregger students. How they walk in all achy and complaining and maybe sorry they've done this to themselves but of course they can't admit that. I watch them careful 'cause, you know, they're pregnant and all. As class goes on, those aches go away. Their bodies gear up and get in the groove. I see their faces relax. Their hunched shoulders drop. They smile. By the time they leave, it's all good and being pregnant is the best thing in the world. <br /><br /> It's simple. Exercise makes you feel good. It makes you feel like your body's under your control. I've never been pregnant but my students say that sometimes, their body feels out of control. That it's doing all these things and they can't stop it and they can barely watch because some of it's ugly. Their body knows what to do and it goes and does it and the heck with what their brain wants!<br /><br /> This is why I do what I do. I never feel as good or as alive or as sexy or anything as I do after I've worked out. I don't feel dumb when it's me up there leading the class. I'm not dumb when they come to me and ask why something hurts. <br /><br /> And I'm sure not dumb when I know that exercise makes pregnant women less depressed. <br /><br /> Now if only Mitchell Voss would see how not dumb I am. And that I'm only with Trevor until Mitchell notices. I mean, how much closer does a girl have to get? Hello? I'm right here with your best friend, buddy! Open your eyes. I'm waiting.<br /> <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">With Yom Kippur ending, pregnancy and kids are on my mind (see <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2007/09/susan-speaks-yom-kippur.html">this post</a> for why) and ... well, I felt like it.<br /><br />If you'd like more of Pam, <a href="http://www.westofmars.com/index.php?id=Pam">click here</a>.</span>Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-13535044563181971562008-10-06T22:50:00.000-04:002008-10-06T22:50:21.497-04:00Susan's Fashion File: The Promised Cool ShitThe cool thing about EntreCard is that I'm meeting some extremely cool artists who use their blogs to advertise their Etsy shop and their handmade goods. (And frequently, the handmade goodies of others, too.) I found a great bracelet from <a href="http://beadedtail.blogspot.com/">The Beaded Tail</a> that I've added to the stack on my right forearm. It looks perfect. <br /><br />The bad thing about Etsy is finding <a href="http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_list_6&listing_id=13621927">this</a>. I don't wear a lot of rings, usually just my bridal set and either a pinky ring that began life as my baby ring or else my Mommy ring. But that? I'd make an exception. Whoo boy, that's for me.<br /><br />The price is great, too. I can't say as much for the next line of clothing I found. Remember how we thought <a href="http://storesense2.megawebservers.com/HS2534/Detail.bok?no=108">$67 for a hoodie</a> was too much money?<br /><br />Then do not -- <span style="font-weight:bold;">DO NOT</span>, I say click on <a href="http://www.yellowman.com/c/WTC5/WOMEN%27S+Tattoo+Apparel.html">this</a> link for Yellowman clothing.<br /><br />Yeah. You're as sorry as I am. <br /><br />Hey, Yellowman people? Total Skull people? If you'll be so kind as to send me some clothes, I'll go have an author picture taken in them. The Tour Manager and I are revamping my website; we'll make the picture look good. We'll give you credit. Lots of it. <br /><br />C'mon... publicity for the cost of a shirt. You know you want to!Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25377568.post-40278872268601563842008-10-05T09:00:00.000-04:002008-10-05T09:43:55.922-04:00Susan's Inside Writing: The Banned BookI really shouldn't be surprised at the demand to find out what the banned book in the <a href="http://westofmars.blogspot.com/2008/10/fiction-outtake-banned-books-early.html">previous outtake</a> was. <br /><br />And okay, you caught me. There <span style="font-style:italic;">is</span> a book in mind. The book that inspired this whole outtake, in fact.<br /><br />I don't remember the entire story, as I've done my best to block out most of my high school years (despite running into a former classmate yesterday on her way to her wedding), but here's what I do recall:<br /><br />It was senior year. One of the most popular teachers was the wrestling coach, who taught two classes for seniors: government, which was for the higher-thinking students, and survival skills, which was for the kids who weren't going to college. It was a class about how to get a car loan, how to manage a credit card... you know. Survival skills.<br /><br />I took government and loved the teacher. Loved his style: energetic, demanding, and never ever humiliating. If you fell asleep in his class, he didn't make a big deal of it. He just handed you a detention slip on your way out the door. (although I remember him giving one to Gorgeous Jimmy during class. Woke the poor guy up, too, when that paper slid under his arm.)<br /><br />So I took survival skills the next semester, even though it was "beneath" me, everyone said. Like learning how to be financially responsible is beneath ANYone? (Nope, not going to get all political here. Sorry.)<br /><br />Anyway, it was this teacher who told me that our school district had banned ONE book in district history. ONE. And he had a copy of it. If I didn't tell anyone, he'd slip it to me and let me read it on the QT, at home. I wasn't allowed to tell anyone where I'd gotten it, how I'd heard of it, or anything.<br /><br />I should feel bad about breaking this confidence, but it's been almost 20 years. (Yep, I'm that old) It's also something I've -- clearly -- never forgotten. The whole experience had this much impact on me. It's one of my few good memories of high school. <br /><br />The book was <a href="http://www.powells.com/partner/31639/biblio/2-9780806528472-0">Johnny Got His Gun</a>. Here's how <a href="http://www.powells.com">Powells.com</a> describes it:<br /><br /><blockquote>Johnny Got His Gun holds a place as one of the classic antiwar novels. First published in 1939, Dalton Trumbo's story of a young American soldier terribly maimed in World War I — he "survives" armless, legless, and faceless, but with mind intact — was an immediate bestseller. This fiercely moving novel was a rallying point for many Americans who came of age during World War II, and it became perhaps the most popular novel of protest during the Vietnam era.</blockquote><br /><br />Let me tell you, if I hadn't been anti-war before reading this book, there's no way you can put it down and still be anti-war. It WAS disturbing, and that was the reason it had been banned (I believe that the school actually used to teach it, which is something I think SHOULD be done with controversial books. Informed minds and all...). It was also excruciating to read. I mean, there's little dialogue 'cause the main character has no face. There's no action 'cause the guy can't exactly walk around with no legs. <br /><br />This story doesn't end here, though. You music fans may recognize the book title. It inspired a rather famous song (and a band's first music video, which set the entire world of videos on its ear and ushered in the <a href="http://hetfield.tarsierjungle.net/chart.html">Golden Era of Hetfield</a>.). Yup, around the time I was reading Johnny Got His Gun, so were a couple of guys who played in a band you might have heard of: Metallica. The song? <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwW9L_qzqp8">One</a>. <br /><br />You know, I've never been able to listen to One comfortably. It brings back memories of sitting on my mom's couch with that book, thinking all these angry thoughts about how stupid war is, and how powerless I was to change the world and get rid of war. It brings back memories of that excruciating reading experience. <br /><br />Hard as it was, it changed me. <br /><br />And for that, I'd like to thank that wrestling coach-cum-teacher.Susan Helene Gottfriedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12778191943289129869noreply@blogger.com19