Idea to story.

Chances are, you have ideas. Chances are even better than your friends will have ideas, too. I have a wide circle of friends who love to brainstorm ideas for stories with me.

Dr. S and his really awesome husband, the Flaming Chef.

Dr. Snickerdoodle is one of my favorite brainstorm partners. He told me the story of one of his first crushes, back when the poor doctor lived in the desolate hinterlands of Oklahoma.

Showing that he always was a lot smarter than I was, he avoided telling his crush, since the man in question wasn't the nicest guy in the world.

While Dr. S talked, I took many mental notes on this person's character. He was the sort to play his friends against each other, and had a cruel streak the size of the Marianas Trench. I wanted show his self-congratulatory streak and his enjoyment of frightening and controlling people.

I don't like writing anything too on the nose, so of course, it had to have a vampire in it. And I started writing.

Over the next few days, I'll reveal the story. And we can all talk about getting your ideas out of your head and onto paper. :)

Vampires in Literature

My favorite vampire in literature (other than my very own Valerie Tate, if I may be so immodest), is Joseph Le Fanu's Carmilla.

In the story, Carmilla befriends the lonely, isolated Laura.  In true romance fashion, Carmilla recognizes Laura as a friend from a dream they had shared at six years old.

 In the older style Harlequin stories, the shy heroine is drawn to a handsome, brooding, moody hero. In this story, Laura is drawn to Carmilla's beauty.  Carmilla herself is moody and passionate. There is much foreplay, snuggling,  and Laura braiding and playing with Carmilla's hair. Carmilla herself goes from an engaging young woman to a determined lover pressing her suit with kisses on Laura's cheeks and claiming that Laura is *hers*.

"Darling, darling," [Carmilla] murmured. "I live in you and you would die for me. I love you so."

The pursuer overcome with possessiveness and extreme displays of desire is still a common motif in modern romance novels.

In true Victorian fashion, Laura, virginal, pure, and close to her protective father, begins to exhibit unusual behavior, such as exhaustion and restlessness and meloncholy. Common behaviors for someone in the throes of first love.

The father and the other male researcher refuse to share their suspicions with Laura, leaving her helpless in the face of Carmilla's desire for both blood and love.


And, as is usual in literature, the passionate and sexual Carmilla is revealed to be a perversion and executed.

Laura, 'safe' after her exposure to independence, is restored to her virginal state and returns to her remote home under her father's protection. But a hero can never truly return to who she was before her experiences. She still remembers the sound of Carmilla's steps on the drawing room floor.

Pompeii.

Eh. I'm too tired to write anything intelligent and carefully researched. Have some pictures of Pompeii.

The best tasting octupus ever.

The Flaming Chef and Dr. Snickerdoodle outside the amphitheater.

Mosaic from a wine bar/lunch counter

The dogs of Pompeii were very fat and happy.

The city baths.

Dr. Snickerdoodle as the barkeep!

The ruts in the streets from the carts.

The House of the Faun.

More wicked cool mosaics.

One of the victims of Vesuvius.

Tidbits from the Roman Forum.

Flowers on the mound.

 I've been putting off my blogging. I was going to get "serious" and write about my writing process.

But I wasn't ready to leave Italy behind! Back to Rome for an exploration of death and rebirth.

The mound to the right is the altar of the Temple of Caesar. Augustus began construction of the temple in 42 BC after Julius was assassinated. All that remains is the mound above.

Below is the entrance to the Umbilicus Urbis (Navel of the City). I found myself fascinated by the small, unassuming structure. It had been used as a reference point for center point of the city and was considered an entrance to the Underworld.

The sign at the Umbilicus Urbis.

Augustus Caesar as the Pontifex Maximus.

The remains of a colossus of Constantine.

The Roman emphasis on realism in their portraiture proves that you don't need to be a big, brawny guy to rule the world.

The statue from the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, originally built around 509 BC. Wow!

Author Speed Dating!

Sponsored by the Library Foundation of Hillsboro!

Ever wanted to just sit and chat with an author? Find out where all those ideas come from; maybe even find out how to bring your own zany stories to life? Well, come on down to the library on Wednesday, Oct 30th and you’ll get your chance to learn more about how the magic happens with a whole room full of Pacific Northwest authors! Light refreshment will be served. Learn more about NIWA at www.niwawriters.com.

Photo Blast of Rome

How can I describe the massive experience that is Rome? I can't. So here are a bunch of photographs.

The impossibly blue sky over the Colosseum.

Umbrella Pines at the Imperial Palace

The Boxer of Quirinal, a bronze of 330 BC.

A sarcophagus. Check that crazy detail!

The center of Rome, in the Forum.

Trajan's column.

The Pantheon. Appropriately a busker was playing Stairway to Heaven in the courtyard!

The enormity of the Colosseum.

Athena will mess you up!

Augustus as the Pontifex Maximus.

The head and hand of Constantine.

Reclining Dionysus.

A dramatic corner of the Baths of Caracalla.

The only photograph of Florence you will ever need.

You cannot go to Florence without seeing Michelangelo's David. 

It's hard to describe how truly epic this sculpture is. No photograph can truly capture it's emotion and passion.

Except, maybe this one:

From the Women's Restroom at the Accademia.

More Florence

While we were in Florence, we also visited the Piazza del Duomo. Wikipedia says this is one of the most visited places in Europe, and boy, I can believe it. 

Exterior shot, including the lines to get in.

The whole thing is flipping gorgeous!

I did the best I could with my little iPhone.

Magnificent! 

On the way to the altar.

A beautiful, peace side chapel.

You get the altar, then look up, and Wow!

God and Jesus being awe-inspiring.

The Bapististery, with the famous Gates of Paradise by Ghiberti. MAGNIFICENT!

Welcome to Florence, Italy!

Have some stairs.

Yes, it is true, Italy is full of stairs. Tall stairs, endless stairs, curving stairs, and marble stairs.

Fortunately, the views are worth all the stairs!

Our first stop in Florence was the Pallazo Medici Riccardi.

Euripedes.

Caracalla. You can really get a feel for how brutal he was.

This one was labeled Sovrano Ellenistico.

I really loved the expression on this guy. He is the Atleta Riccardi.

Meeting rooms with massive frescoes.

The world's coolest ostrich painting.