5 Reasons Why Dave Mustaine is Sexy

I can't resist suggestive guitar poses. :)

As I'm wrapping up revisions on my heavy metal romance, temporarily titled, HIS ROADIE, I have sexy rock stars on the brain. And though the hero of my current project more resembles 90's Trent Reznor (more on him another time), I couldn't help looking back at my previous post on what makes a sexy hero and realizing how much the leading man of my favorite band, Megadeth qualifies.

So here's a list and demonstration of what makes Dave Mustaine yummy.

1.) His hair. 

Okay, I think that image is supposed to be a joke, but it's so true. That man has magnificent hair.

I mean look at it!!!

Seriously, LOOK AT IT!!!

I wish I could plunge my hands in those luscious locks.

Yes, I have a hair fetish. :) Anyway, moving on.

2.) He has passion, drive and determination.

For the non-metal-heads out there, Dave helped start a band you may have heard of called Metallica. He was the lead guitarist and wrote most of the music for their debut album, "Kill em All" as well as a significant chunk of "Ride the Lightning"

Anyway, due to multiple misunderstandings, (Btw, contrary to internet memes, James kicked Dave's dog, not the other way around) some warranted, others not, Dave was kicked out of Metallica and handed a bus ticket from New York to LA.

Instead of quitting, he started Megadeth, a band that has rivaled and ultimately surpassed Metallica since its creation in 1983. Both bands are now in the exalted "Big Four" in thrash metal. If you knew of all the first and only time members of famous bands that dropped into obscurity, you shall have an inkling of the magnitude of such an accomplishment.

And both have mended fences and are friends again.

Awwwww! 

3.) He is extremely talented. 

Dave Mustaine is one of the best guitarists in the world. Holy mother of metalness, he employs the most epic blend of shredding thrash, blues, jazz and classical riffs that I am overcome with awe.

He also holds black belts in Karate and Taekwondo.

So he LITERALLY kicks ass.

He's a brilliant lyricist who has a point: Example: "Luck deserted me and the truth beat out my brains. Men rise from steppingstones of themselves from higher things. I've stepped over lots of bodies on my way..." (From Youthanasia). I aced a short story citing the lyrics from that song.

And I believe he's a brilliant vocalist. Many disagree, including Dave himself. He never intended to sing. He only wanted to play guitar, but he has such passion, mischief, rage, and individuality in his voice.

Holy Wars gives me chills while Sweating Bullets just fills me with maniacal glee. (It takes awhile before you realize he's actually singing about something serious.)

4.) He's intelligent. 

I love how he went on CNN  to explain this album cover

The guy expected Dave to be a complete dumbass and was flummoxed when Dave explained everything more clearly than any CNN report. The only metal artist to beat him at that is Dee Snider from Twisted Sister. He turned the senate on its head here!

He also wrote the best memoir I've ever read...probably because he was smart enough to work with a good editor.

Dave's book surprised the hell out of me. For a guy who's notorious for being arrogant and short tempered, he displayed a shocking amount of humility, heart, and modesty.

5.) He REALLY gives a damn about his fans.

Megadeth was among the first bands that embraced the internet and actually interacted with their fans. Every live show he plays it is clear that his audience is his first priority. I am going to show a clip from Megadeth's 2005 performance in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Holy crap you gotta see that crowd. And I especially get the warm fuzzies when he sings the chorus in Spanish for them. (During another song they sang in French for him.)

The joy and energy is mind blowing. And when I saw them perform in a tiny venue in Spokane during a low point in their career, that same joy and energy was there. Just WOW.

My husband's been to way more metal concerts than me and this still blows his mind.

This is why whenever I am sad, throwing on some Megadeth cheers me up.

Who are your favorite sexy rock stars?

4 Reasons Why Ronnie James Dio is One of my Muses.

For those of you who don't know, today marks the two year anniversary of Ronnie James Dio's death. :( I wrote a huge memorial post about him last year. I also drew a portrait of him for my husband for our wedding anniversary, which is on the 30th. 

I swear, whenever I'm not writing, he seems to be glaring at me. 

 Anyway, somehow, in the last few years, Dio has become more than a favorite musician, he's also become one of my muses. I mentioned the realization to my husband and asked, "Do you think he'd be all weirded out, that some crazy romance author sees him as a muse?"

My husband shook his head. "No, I think he'd be flattered."

Maybe he's right. After all, I do believe that all artists and musicians really are muses.

And here's why Dio's one of mine:

1.) His music: Music has always been one of my primary inspirations to create. I hear a song and I picture a scene in my head. Often that scene becomes a story. Dio's songs always told stories. In fact, he once said in an interview that if he weren't a musician, he may have been an author.

Here's the song "FEVER DREAMS" from the album, "Magica." I have a novel in the works about a singer in a metal band who discovers she's the prophesied savior of another world. She has some strange dreams beforehand. I heard this song and thought, "Wow, he's singing about my character." Okay, not really, but it's still a fun thought.

Also, "Lately when my demons drag the night across my eyes..." is the coolest metaphor for falling into an uneasy sleep that I've ever heard.

2.) The inspiration of his life. Dio didn't build a successful music career that spanned across six decades without hard work and dedication. Any time I consider whining about the writing being hard, I think of him and remember that he wrote hundreds of songs and made a ton of albums. That took work. He also took lots of time to do concert tours and interviews and interact with his fans.

I try to think of each chapter I write as a song, and each novel an album. And I will strive to treat my fans as good as he did. He once sat out in the rain for HOURS signing autographs.

Here's a video of Dio in the studio, hard at work. :)

3.) We have a lot in common, so I can actually imagine talking to him. Dio loved to read. He was also really into fantasy and medieval history. I wish I could ask him if he's read PILLARS OF THE EARTH, or any of the HARRY POTTER series. Obviously, he loved music and a lot of the bands he's mentioned and toured with are among my favorites. He loved animals, cats as well as dogs. And he was short. I'm only 5' and I took a lot of crap for it growing up. So it's extremely inspiring for a fellow short person to become a giant.

You have to be big to tackle Aerosmith's "Dream On."

4.) He was damn good looking. I'll admit it, romance authors are always inspired by eye candy. I'm a sucker for great hair and eyes and Dio had both.

His wife was one lucky lady.

Muses are a good thing to have, truly. So in honor of Dio's memory, I'm going to rock out to his music and get back to work on another novel.

Who are your muses? What keeps you going when you're at the creative grindstone?

Finding Your Bliss.

Back in 2008, I lost my career as an automotive technician. This was a crippling event since automotive technology was my major in college, and I could never work in that field again. I felt like a failure. I felt like all the money I'd spent on tuition, tools, and books, and those stressful two years of 21 credits each semester, non-stop studying, living off Top-Ramen and nearly losing my man had been a waste.

Some miracle stopped me from crumpling into the fetal position and crying like a little kid. Instead, I went straight to The Center For New Directions at my local college. They were the ones who helped me get through college in the first place. They even helped my now husband and I stay together by offering free counseling.

They did not disappoint. They were offering a free workshop for women in transitional periods in their life.

I believe those weekly classes are a big contribution to my current successes in life and one of the techniques they taught was to find your BLISS.

Life can often be miserable, but it can be joyful as well. Often it is little things that make your life better. Those little things are your BLISS. When you're struggling with an important project, or had a bad day, or encountered a pitfall in life, your BLISS can help center you and get you back on track.

In the workshop, we had to do this and those who can should follow along. Make a list of little things, (that luxury cruise doesn't count) that never fail to cheer you up.

Here's mine:

Bundling up in a warm blanket on the couch and reading a good book...while eating Cheetos. Good books are the best thing to take you away from the world. And Cheetos just seem to go with them naturally.

Watching outrageously cheesy B-horror movies...especially with a friend who enjoys them as well. Life is too serious most of the time. A little ridiculousness can be healthy.

One of those shameless daydreams where I'm a total badass and I do something impractically awesome. Come on, we all do it! A lot of mine feature me magically being able to play guitar.

A cat's purr. It's been scientifically proven that a cat's purr triggers a release of endorphins. Couple that with soft fur and you get a happy sigh from me.

An entertaining conversation. Whether it's something crazy like "who would win in a fight between Gandalf, Yoda, and Professor Snape?" or something mundane like "Hey my husband did something dorky today." "Really, mine too!" Conversations like these give your mind a break from its troubles.

A game of darts. What can I say? It's fun to throw things. :)

Megadeth. Music has always been very important to me, and Megadeth is my favorite band. No matter how bad of a day I have, they always cheer me up. I picked this video because they're topless. :)

What is your bliss? What things pull you out of the darkness and havoc?

Check Out My New Writing Aid! (Metalheads pay extra attention!)

I get a lot of inspiration from music. Whenever I have writer's block, I often plug in my MP3 player and listen to my favorite bands for hours. This has worked great for my urban fantasy and contemporary romances, but with my regencies, not so well. Because, face it. Historical romances just aren't metal. It's not their fault the electric guitar wasn't invented yet.

I found a way around this problem. It was under my damn nose the whole time. When planning my wedding, I had to be clever with the music. I didn't want to traumatize my grandparents. The solution? String Quartet tributes to my favorite bands.

We look smug because not only were we just married, we were walking down the aisle to Iron Maiden, and only a few people realized it. 

Here's a few good ones they sound so pretty!

                                                                     Tool: "Parabol"

                                                      IRON MAIDEN: "Aces High"

              METALLICA: "One" (I'm surprised they didn't break their violin strings near the end of the song)

                         LED ZEPPLIN: "Stairway to Heaven." This one's so beautiful I got teary-eyed.

And OMG OMG OMG!!! There's even MEGADETH!!!!!! (They're my favorite, can't you tell?) :)

There's also string tributes to AC/DC, Pink Floyd, The Beatles, Guns n' Roses, Slayer...I could go on forever. Just google "String Tribute" and you'll find all sorts of awesomeness.

My muse is pleased! 

Courting the Muse with Unconventional means.

Trent Reznor: King of Depressing Inspiration

Every writer has types of scenes they dread writing. For some it's love scenes, others have issues with action or exposition. For me, it's the sad scenes that do me in. I will use any excuse necessary to avoid the keyboard when one of those come up. And once I do get to the document, the words crawl...and they often turn out dry and distant.

Well, this time I couldn't do it that way. My crit partners are on my butt to get my weekly quota of pages to them  AND they will have no mercy if those pages aren't up to snuff.

So I really had to dig deep and utilize some unconventional methods to get that scene out. I don't usually listen to music when I write because I prefer total silence. But this time I did. I listened to REALLY sad music. Highlights were: "The Moonlight Sonata" by Beethoven, songs from the soundtrack for INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, and most of all, "Something I can Never Have" by NINE INCH NAILS.

...and it worked. The scene came alive to the music, so much that I had a giant lump in my throat the whole time writing it.

What about you? What scenes are hardest for you? What unusual (for you) tactics have you used to get them out?

Summer Resolutions

Because nothing say's "summer" like a hot, topless man. :)

Is everyone excited for summer? Together now ::HAPPY SIGH::: There's barbecues, swimming, fishing, barbecues and other fun in the sun. Summer has always been my favorite time of year. There is nothing more blissful than sipping hard cider under a balmy, star studded sky and conversing with long lost friends who've been hidden away all winter.

But...this year I almost dread it.

"WHAT?" you say?

That's right. Last summer was a train wreck of anxiety. Due to the kids being on break and constantly underfoot, and the frequent influx of unexpected company and what seemed like nightly barbecues, it was a struggle to get anything done, whether it be a blog post or a new chapter in the WIP.

I'm not liking this new hostility for what I consider the best three months of the year. So from now on, I'm going to make "resolutions" for this and every summer to come.

Here goes:

1.) I will try to get blog posts finished in advance.

2.) I will not dive too deep in a new project. Instead, I'll put primary focus on polishing existing ones.

3.) This summer will be mostly dedicated to reading: research, beta reading and reading for pleasure.

4.) I will take at least one day off each week to "be a normal human," abandon my laptop, and enjoy the season.

5.) When I can't write, edit, or research, I will not agonize. Instead I will continue to court my muse with daydreams.

Whew, that made me feel better already! How about you? What are your "summer resolutions?"

When You Need to Write

"And when I'm not working [writing], I'm not working at all, although during those periods of full stop I usually feel at loose ends with myself and have trouble sleeping." Stephen King

For the last month I've been letting a draft marinate while I focus on revisions and beta reading. This weekend I took time from all of it to celebrate my one year wedding anniversary. But my muse hasn't been idle...though sometimes it feels like it. I've been doing a lot of the things that stir my imagination and creativity: watching movies, reading, and listening to a ton of music.

As my time between new projects extends I find myself daydreaming more and more. At first the daydreams are disjointed, with no hint of what characters they belong to, if any, and little to indicate what plot they'd form. But then they grow more solid and I get an inkling on who is speaking to me and which book it belongs to.

Saturday night I literally dreamed about writing. It felt so good to be poised above the keyboard letting a story pour out my fingertips. I wish I could have seen what was on the screen. Unfortunately I was unable to do more than a blog post on Sunday due to my anniversary festivities. Then Monday, the kids came home...but I got as far as opening up the document and skimming through what I had. Today I'll hopefully be able to make some notes and maybe even begin a scene.

Does this happen to the rest of you when you go between projects? Is there a time where you clench your fists and say, "Damn it, I need to write!"?

What do you do to court your muse?

How Do You Write?

Because of my slow internet issues...which still haven't been resolved, I've gotten more writing done than usual. I've also realized that I actually have a method!!! It makes me feel so professional. :)

Someone once asked Stephen King how he wrote and Sai King replied, "One word at a time." So true and we writers must never forget it. I remember that quote when I beat myself up for only getting a measly 300 words in a day. I got 3K this weekend, though!

I've heard the terms "Pantser" and "Plotter" bandied about a lot in this wonderful online universe of writers. A "Pantser" is someone who literally writes at the seat of their pants, no outlines or anything that will give them a clue as to how the story will end. A "Plotter," as the name implies, plots out the story in advance, often with a detailed outline and character notes.

For the longest time I've wondered which one I am. I've decided that I'm both, and neither. I know it's an oxymoron but ya gotta realize this is coming from someone who loves to swim but hates to get wet. All that aside, I've realized that I write like I paint...except for some reason I can't write with music.

First I start with an idea. Maybe it's a vision of a scene, or maybe I hear an intriguing snatch of dialogue in my head. I'll then "sketch" that scene. But as Bob Ross would say, "That scene looks lonely. Let's add in more happy little scenes to keep it company."

The basic rules of a painting is you start lightly blocking in the basics, then you do what is called a wash, in which with lightly diluted paint, you tint in the colors and shapes. Then you start painting in this order : Background, Middle Ground, the Foreground, getting more and more detailed as you go along.

My "wash" is my rough draft. I don't write my scenes in order because I don't always know what happens between point C and K...or I have a vague idea but I don't see it clearly enough to do it justice. What I do then is separate those scenes with vague notes of what I think happens. When I return to those sections, I often discover that something completely different occurs and more scenes are born.

My first revision is my Background and Middle ground. I blend in the rough transitions and give more color to the characters and story. Then I send it off to my critique partners.

With their feedback, I can add the final details of the foreground. The subplots should be all smoothed out by now and the story and characters painted in sharp detail.

Then it's off to more art critics. "The 'nose' is all wrong," they may say, or "you need more shading here, and more highlighting there."

Shading and highlights can be a lot of fun. I think of shading as foreshadowing and darkening of the adverse parts of the story and highlighting as emphasizing positive aspects of the characters' relationships.

As you can tell, I really miss painting. How about you? How do you write?

My Muse Has Surprised Me

I blame it on the project I just finished for my husband's anniversary gift. I drew a portrait of Ronnie James Dio, one of our heroes and inspirations. Ironically our anniversary is May 30th, which has been declared Ronnie James Dio day.  I can't wait to give it to him. In the meantime, he's not online so I get to show it off.

Man, that guy was hot in his day....and I can't help but notice that he looks a lot like my husband. *grin* Anyway, although the portrait took me a week to draw, I spent about 2 weeks prior to that acquiring the needed materials and finding the best picture of him to do. Also, I've been researching rock stars and the world of heavy metal for the past few months to prepare for the 3rd book in my series in which the heroine is the lead singer of a metal band.

In my research, a story popped up in my head. What if my heroine were to encounter one of her idols? She and her band have a rule of not sleeping with fellow musicians so they can be taken seriously. But when Dani Deity (a sexy amalgamation of every badass metal star ever) invites them to tour with him, the rule gets thrown out the window. It was a fun short story to write, but a little sad since I knew they couldn't stay together.

I put IDOL'S KISS aside and set to work on the drawing. For a little while I was occupied fully with my pencils and tortillians. But then, as I drew the eyes and the sexy hair, (I have a hair fetish) my mind kept straying back to Dani's character. I LIKED him, dammit, and he deserved an HEA of his own. Unbidden, another story formed in my head.

The problem? This one is completely contemporary. No one has fangs, magic, or superpowers of any kind. At least with the last one, I knew the heroine wasn't human though I never pointed it out. I am completely out of my element. And if the story is good enough, what will it do to my "Author Branding" if I market it?

Argh!! My frustration is endless. Has this happened to any of you? What did you do? What should I do?

In the meantime, happy writing, all!!!