Lost Tales (or, Linda Mercury takes on Tolkien)

Argonath Bookends

The Argonath

protect my desk.

They mark the boundaries of 

Gondor. 

"Go back," 

They tell the Numinorians. 

"You have reached the limits of your land."

Maybe I should face

them the other say. I have not

yet the 

limits

of my 

land.

What is the best that could happen?

Let's be honest. Right now, the world truly sucks. We are dealing with a global pandemic, the rise of fascism, and incompetent world leaders. We are anxious, exhausted, and consumed with fear. In order to find at least a tiny bit of cope, we must ask ourselves:

WHAT IS THE BEST THAT CAN HAPPEN?

"Covid-19 numbers infection rates go down."

"Nationwide, all police departments destroy the traces of white supremacy that foul the system."

Then, we ask:

HOW DO WE MAKE THAT HAPPEN?

"I can continue to wear a mask and social distance. It's really hard, but I've done hard things before."

"I will write and call and protest to the best of my ability. It is scary and feels small, but it is less scary than doing nothing."

We cannot make the best happen if we do not know what it is.

Ten Minutes: Activism if you have depression or other limitations.

The reality of injustice has been uncovered in the most horrific ways possible. We have work to do to make the country a place where people can live in peace.

If you suffer from depression, chronic pain, or other conditions that keep you from the front lines, you can still help people. The trick is to start small. If you make your goal too big, you will inevitably fail and slide into despair. So begin with ten minutes, just like if you were starting an exercise program.

You can get a lot done in ten minutes. Write a tiny email to someone you admire, telling them thank you for their hard work. Or write a tiny email to the city council, saying you want the police to learn new ways of interacting with their people of color.

No need to worry about making it perfect. Just start. For example, here's a tiny note I just made up on the fly:

Dear Police Department,

Seriously, guys, I think you need some help. The way you work now kills people, both officers and populace. Please expand to include social workers and mental health professionals. I want everyone to feel safe on the streets.

Or, you could be more assertive, depending on your personality:

Dear Police Department,

What the fucking fuck, dudes??

In ten minutes, you can create a draft about a situation or system that needs to change. If the email triggers your anxiety or your condition, you can wait for tomorrow's (or next week's) ten minutes to edit and send.

Perhaps you are awesome on the phone. Or you design excellent protest signs. Maybe you are in the absolute pits and can barely get out of bed. At that point, play some protest music, for yourself or your neighbors (my favorite protest musician is Mavis Staples).

Start small.

Small actions do add up and do make a difference.

Motivation!

Every book has its own rhythm and its own soundtrack. I did try to do a bunch of YouTube Links here  but that didn't work so well. Instead, here is a Spotify playlist that you can revisit over and over.

Here we are - classic heavy metal to women of rock!

Click here for the awesome sound of Valerie's world!

Why I write romance.

I come from a family of irritating overachievers. My father (Dr. Dad) has a Ph.D. My older brother (Dr. Bro) has a PhD and two post-doctoral degrees. Dr. Sister had a PhD (of course) and full tenure at a prestigious private collage.

My Mom had a Master's degree. My step-mother has a Master's as well. 

I'm the black sheep. I stopped after two Master's degrees (BA and MA in history, specializing in international relationships between Safavid Persia and Europe, and a MS in Library and Information Science).

So what called me to fiction?

Yes, we have silly covers.

Especially to romance, the most denigrated of genres? And even worse, what drives me to write sexually explicit novels? It would be much more comfortable to write something respectable, like literary novels.

This is why.

Romance is the most important genre of all fiction.

Our covers might be silly, but they beat this bullshit.

In romance novels, a woman will have an adventure, be she a kick-ass, special-ops sort or a sheltered Regency debutant. She will not be sacrificed to further a man's story (Women in Refrigerators, anyone?) 

What about the loss of this fabulous character in Skyfall?

The world hinges on sexual politics. Romance is also the only genre that creates a new framework the most deadly of all adventures for women - that of an intimate relationship with a man.

Romance is the only genre where a woman will live all the way through the story and have an arc of her own. It is the only genre will the woman will win.

No other popular media takes on the fundamental fear of half of the world's population. It is a brave genre filled with brave characters and brave writers.
 

And that is why I write romance.