DIARY OF A GIRL-NEXT-DOOR HEAVY METAL NOVELIST

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December 22, 2005
I spent the night at my dad's on Tuesday on my way home from Loveville. It's sometimes nice to hang out at a place with no cell phone signal or high speed wireless, but darn if I didn't miss a request from sports/rock jock Erik Fenton from Rockland World Radio. He wanted me to be on his show that night. Erik hosts a sports talk show, but he loves KISS and he's taken a liking to me, so he helps promote Won't Get Fooled Again. He also lets me gab about my NBA fetish, which I find super sexy.

Amazon only has two copies of my book left! That's really cool news to end 2005. How lucky am I to be Colette Shaw this year? Dang, I have a fantasy life. Last night, I bought a plane ticket with the airport codes JAX and ROC. It's like my novel and my live have melded into one cosmically blessed entity. Have you bought your copy of WGFA? If not, you can quickly do so and figure out what this JAX/rock mumbo jumbo is all about.

December 22 used to be my ex-wedding anniversary. Now it's officially the day I will remember for rock jocks and book sales. When that crap flits out of my memory, I'll remember Dec. 22 for being the day after I cheesed out and used the L word. I might also remember it as the night I found out there will be Christmas karaoke on Sunday. ROC and roll, suckers!

December 26, 2005
I'm all packed and ready to head to Florida to see my family and compete in the annual Shaw Cup domino tournament. Christmas weekend was quiet and nice. On Christmas Eve I found out I might be a special guest at a spring KISS expo, and last night I celebrated at a special Christmas karaoke night.

2005 was one crazy year, but I enjoyed every doggone minute. I left the career I'd been in love with for thirteen years, held my novel in my hands for the first time, traveled, romanced and unexpectedly fell in love again. In many ways, I feel like I've lived out parts of my novel in real life. I can't wait to finish the next one. I'm leaning toward a happy ending.

December 27, 2005
Today was supposed to be just another long-distance ride from Pennsylvania to Florida with my dad, but I got a surprise call from sports talkshow host Erik Fenton, asking if I wanted to be a guest on his daytime show. Heck yeah! What would have been a frustrating traffic jam turned into a welcome opportunity to talk about KISS, NBA basketball and Star Wars. Erik plugged the heck out of Won't Get Fooled Again, and made me blush more than once. Now I'm in a hotel room in VA awaiting another early morning departure and the imminent dinner with my siblings tomorrow night. Yay!

January 7, 2006
I'm vacationing in Florida with my family. My sister has played host for most of the trip, and she's helped me clarify my vision for the novel I'm currently working on (or, more accurately, the one I haven't been working on for well over a month). Two things have been great for me in regard to taking an extended break. I have more confidence in letting the story run its natural course, and I've given my hands a rest from typing, so the carpal tunnel or whatever it was that was causing pain in my fingers will hopefully be 100% gone when I start back.

I love seeing my family and this trip will probably also prove to be a good chance to develop character traits for the quirkier personalities in upcoming books. I've also done my first pleasure reading in years. I read a novel that made me feel like I was the best author in America, and now I'm reading a better piece of fiction that entertains and humbles. Perfect.

January 11, 2006
One of the advantages to not having an online connection is that my fingers are recovering so I can soon get back to work on my second novel. The down side is that I don't have opportunities to chronicle highlights of my vacation, such as seeing all four authentic KISS costumes from the 1998 Dodger Stadium concert. I gazed at the outfits through the glass cases at the Seminole Hard Rock Café, but I've gotta say the Paul Stanley mannequin didn't exactly fill out the ass portion of the costume as magnificently as it deserved.

Tomorrow, I hop a plane for Upstate NY to visit my special friend and to count down the days until we go see Love Gun together.

January 19, 2006
After a couple weeks of deep vacationing, I'm back at work. I'm currently in Rochester, NY hanging with my boyfriend. While he's at work, I've been able to add a thousand words a day to my next novel. I'm also getting KISSified through the Christmas gift of the KISS Rock the Nation DVD. If you haven't seen it yet, it lives up to its name.

Two more days until Love Gun!

January 25, 2006
Love Gun kicked ass. I love all four of those guys, and I was thrilled to be able to get up on stage with them to announce that they've been selected to perform at the KISS Hall of Fame Rally in Cleveland on August 5. I can't think of anyone who deserves it more. I must confess that my new boyfriend is not a KISS fan, but he is a good sport. He gave up two days of hearing in order to experience Love Gun without earplugs. I love this kind of commitment. If you're listening, honey, I LOVE THIS KIND OF COMMITMENT!!! Everytime your ears ring, an angel gets a new guitar.

I'm starting to confirm book signings for 2006, starting at the Amelia Givin Library in Mt. Holly Springs, PA on March 13. The new year already has magic appeal, and I'm ready to hit the road.

January 30, 2006
Thank goodness for supporters like Mike Nichols! I haven't had much to report these past few weeks, but he still logs on to read KISSfiction.com each day. It keeps me inspired to keep plugging away at my second novel.

On Friday night, I drove to NYC to film my second episode of New York Rocks. The host, Phil Fiumano, is a great guy I've known since my earliest days in the KISS Army. I love his crew - they all have thick Staten Island accents, and use words like "meatball" in their vernacular. It's hilarious. I'll post the times/locations of the show's airing as soon as I have them.

I wrote a fan letter to an up-and-coming author, Jessica Jiji, today to express my admiration and ask if she might be interested in doing some promotional events together. Her website and background remind me of mine (smart but sexy in a girl-next-door way). I'm such a fan! Check out her novel, Diamonds Take Forever at Amazon.com.

It looks like my tenure with the KISS Hall of Fame Rally has come to an end. The planning committee is making steady progress, and I'm preparing to relocate so I think this is a good time to step aside and cheer them on as they carry out their vision.

January 31, 2006
Word is getting out about my change in dating status. Friends from the two different high schools I attended called this afternoon to find out whether rumors of my non-single status are true. Apparently, my dad and his mom are spreading the word of our coupledom. The power of small town stories never ceases to amaze me. I smell fiction material!

I received a wonderful reply from Jessica Jiji today. I knew she was cool as soon as I read about her in the news! If I'm lucky enough, maybe we could team up for an event and test our powers as a smart/sassy team of authors. If not, I'd still recommend Diamonds Take Forever. (Continue)