First, a huuuuuge thank you for making the launch day for SOME LIKE IT SCOT so successful! I appreciate all the well wishes, the congrats, the tasteful billboards (grin), and the purchases! Woot woot! I hope you all enjoy the launch of the series. I am looking forward to finishing this final book…and am excited to tell you about the next series….but that has to wait for official word.

I spent Launch Day in an all day altered arts class. As some of you know (and have attended!) in addition to writing full time, I also teach metal and paper-crafting classes. I grew up in the craft world in my mom’s shop. She’s long since retired and the business is long gone, but I re-entered that world as a freelance instructor a few years ago and am very much enjoying the creative alternative to writing. I tell my students that it’s my way of not staying home and playing with my imaginary friends every day! Important to have contact with, you know, actual real people, from time to time.

Yesterday, however, I had the absolute pleasure of being a student again and taking a day long class by multi-published and renowned artist, Michael DeMeng. His aesthetic is a bit darker than mine (okay, it’s a lot darker…skulls, coffins, demented toys…) but he was fully open to his students going in any direction we wanted, so I went in a zen beach direction with my Cave of Pages “assemblage” as he calls it.

It was an intensely creative day, spent in a room full of women who were otherwise canvas artists, silversmiths, collage artists, altered artists, and the list went on and on. Enormous fun! Will be interesting to see if I can somehow integrate some of the techniques I learned into the kind of work I teach. To that end, here is a sample of one of my upcoming classes of mine on metal work!

Morning After Commentary…
On with the MAC! Have any of you been watching Finale Week? I did catch the end of DWTS. Kate, seriously? Still so annoying and so very bitchy. Why do people care about her? I simply do not get it. But I enjoyed the final dances, was disappointed that Erin/Maks didn’t make it to the final two, but not at all surprised. I agree with a lot of you who feel that while Nicole definitely worked hard and earned her mirror ball trophy, given that everyone pegged an Evan/Nicole final two from the very first night…the producers might want to think a bit more on who they cast. I like to see folks like Erin and Chad, who really grow and learn during the competition. If I wanted to see all professional dancers, I’d go to a Broadway show. (Speaking of which…I am! Promises, Promises, with Kristen Chenoweth and Sean Hayes. I can’t wait!)

Back to finale week….in Idol finale news, Crystal blew the doors off the joint and sang in the DeathStarAuditorium that is the 7000 seat Nokia Theater like she was perfectly at home at the corner bar and OWNED the night….while Lee sang U2, not particularly well. In even better news, there was no ridiculously tragic and horrifying original song FINALLY so we don’t have to go through that hot mess again, ever, one hopes. Given the crowd reaction to Lee, I still think he’s as much up for this as Crystal. Of course, Evan had all the polls by a strong lead on DWTS and he ended up second. So….it’s anyone’s guess. I don’t know that I care any longer…I just want it to be over.

You? Tell me how you really feel. DISH!!

Tags: Writing //