DIARY OF A GIRL-NEXT-DOOR HEAVY METAL NOVELIST

(...go back a page)

May 2, 2006
I've definitely got my fire back. I spent some time at the public library tonight, after sending them an email last night to see if they have any interest in collaboration. I hope so! Now it's time for me to start getting psyched for the New York KISS Expo and raising money for the cancer walkathon. Can you spare a couple bucks? It's so easy to contribute; just click the link below. It'll make you feel good.

The third of three articles about job searching was published this week in a college administrators mag. It's not a new novel, but it's worth a perusal.

May 4, 2006
Yesterday, I went out shopping for a couple new business suits for an upcoming event. I haven't worn a suit in over a year. The emotions attached with sliding back into my old life were pretty powerful.

When I got home, I contacted a few of the libraries near my new home in hopes of setting up book-related workshops. Even if Dean Shaw is poised to make a reappearance, I can still give Suzanne Curtis the life she deserves.

May 5, 2006
I updated my page of news articles with the article from We Magazine. I love this article!

Now, I'm off to New York (the city part, not the part I live in) for some music and reunions with old friends.

May 6, 2006
There have been times in my life when love and fantasies collided. What a mess. Today, I saw magic when both converged in harmony. The NY/NJ KISS Expo was fun fun fun, and I'm ready to snooze to see whether my dreams and reality meld, too.

May 10, 2006
I haven't had a chance to upload my pictures from the KISS expo yet, but I can't wait. My relationships with the conventions has evolved over the years, and although I sometimes wish I could go back to the days of being invisible, I also love the feeling of connectedness.

In 1999, I went to my first KISS expo. I'd seen an ad for it in a copy of Metal Edge magazine, and I decided to drive to Philly for the day to see what it was all about. I had no idea what to picture in my head, but I knew I had to be there. The day of the show, I had a tough time inserting one of my contacts, then I made matters worse by driving to Philly with my convertible top down. I loved the feeling of freedom as I hit the highway with Alive II blaring and one of my eyes twitching like an injured moth. Eric Singer was the celebrity guest that day, and I stood in line waiting for my turn at an autograph and a Polaroid. The tribute band blew my mind that day - loud, ballsy and highly interactive. I swore to myself after the show that I'd never attend an expo without getting a hotel room for the night so I could linger in the fantasy as long as possible.

I can see that my recollections will quickly become a manifesto, so I'll break it into reasonable chapters. That will also help me linger in the KISS a little longer. :)

May 16, 2006
Oh my. I guess it's that time again. Someone on my guestbook took the time to point out the glaring hypocrisy of my career in education vs. my website and MySpace profile. As a deep believer in the values of the liberal arts, I appreciate and enjoy the exercise of comparing and contrasting my values. I only wish that the signer had given truthful information in his/her posting so I could engage in a true dialogue. It may very well be that I should be taken to task, but I'm not sure why.

I like KISS. Lord help me, but I do. I can't even explain fully why their music speaks to me, but it does. Being a KISS fan doesn't mean that I do drugs, drink, or engage in crazy sexual behavior. In fact, I don't. I just like loud, happy rock & roll. KISS music helped inspire me to be a values-centered college dean, a published novelist, a contributing member of an orchestra, and a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. It's true that I've seen a lot of alcohol abuse, mistreatment of women, and violence in my days, but those were all things I witnessed among the college students I worked with, NOT in the rock world.

Can you listen to dopey music and still strive for intellectualism? I hope so. Cognitive growth takes place when you're exposed to as many different ideas and experiences as possible. When you learn that seemingly opposing views don't contradict each other, there is a confusion (we call it "dissonance" in my field) that leads to a healthy process of analyzing the world (we call that "critical thinking"). I don't want everyone to like KISS, or like me, but I do want them to realize that I can be a KISS fan and still be a feminist, an activist, and maybe even a role model. I just happen to do it with a tongue in my cheek.

Here's where my own dissonance kicks in. I'm scared. I left the world of education to travel for a year on behalf of my feminist novel, and I wasn't sure whether my book promotions would kill my career in college life. I've thought many times about closing down my website, but in the end, I've always reached the conclusion that that would be the most hypocritical move for someone who believes in the power of intellectual conflict. As I send out résumés now, I have a nervous flutter in my stomach when I think about the conclusions an employer might reach about me if she/he were to stumble upon KISSfiction.com. The fear can literally keep me up at night. But here I am, plugging along, relying on my faith in people's ability to see beyond the superficial.

I have to go now to rock & roll all night and party every day. For me today, that means washing dishes, laundry, writing up notes for my latest consulting job, hugging my monogamous boyfriend when he gets home, and reading a book I checked out of the public library this week.

May 18, 2006
After that long entry on the 16th, I ended up getting sick that night. It probably serves me right. Whenever I come close to yackity yacking about how I don't drink, I end up being the one who yacks. In reality, the problem probably wasn't my dogma as much as it was the boiled eggs my sister left in the fridge when she came to visit last weekend. Either way, humor is the best med.

But, doggone it, I don't have any funny material. I've been writing and getting ready for some upcoming business meetings. I also spent most of the day sending out letters of solicitation for my Relay for Life walkathon. For fun, I developed my "I Heart Rochester" page. I do! Rochester has a history and heart of social activism, and I can't wait to get more involved.

Dang. Not funny at all. I think I must resort to my favorite joke: What's brown and sticky? Click here for answer. (or continue with blog)