My writer-buddy Vaughn celebrated a birthday recently so I took him out today to induct him into the Death by Chocolate cult of which there are two members I know of, my friend D and me. (I neglected to take a photo of the DbC so I'll just say it's large, and there are lots of chocolate things in it, like chocolate ice-cream, chocolate sauce, chunks of brownies and more stuff that I can't recall. Then there's whipped cream and a cherry on top. And an umbrella; umbrellas are important.)
Vaughn seemed to have a slight problem first with the fact that, according to him, there were no men in the place. When I pointed out three of his gender he complained instead that the place was, ah, pink. He seemed to think that particular colour scheme indicated dire things about portion size. (Men are really hung up - no pun intended - on size.) He eventually looked at the menu and discovered there was actual food to be had, and not just dainty, pretty, small things, so he brightened up considerably. By the time the Death by Chocolate dessert came around he had settled down and was as close to normal as he gets, which ain't sayin' much. Here he is in the pink place, with the initial get-me-out-of-here expression on his mug:
I have another photo of him rolling his eyes and looking really freaked out, but I'll refrain from posting it as we don't want to scare the, ah, horses.
Verdict: the membership now stands at three. D, we've got a convert!
In other news... I read the Sandra Bullock-Jesse James revelations and could not help but feel sad for the woman. The timing well and truly sucks, for one thing, and for another, Ms. Bullock appears to be such a great person. I know from personal experience that many (most?) good people get effed over in matters of the heart. The hardass badasses, on the other hand, seem to thrive. But then that's probably my cynicism, always at war with my romanticism, kicking in.
And to round up the Friday bulletin: The school to which I applied requested a sample of my writing. I'm enclosing a copy of Café Au Lait but knowing how snobbish universities tend to be about the romance genre, I'm also enclosing a serious review I wrote a while ago that was published in newspapers in Trinidad, the Bahamas and Florida, as well as a short story and a personal essay. Hopefully the powers that be will forgive me for writing a romance novel - long enough to let me into their program, anyway. Wish me luck.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Update: Vaughn thinks I should refrain from enclosing a copy of the novel with my sample writing. You know what? He's right. Out it goes.
12 comments:
I'm glad you managed to convert your friend into your Death by Chocolate cult, it sounds heavenly to me.
I felt so sorry for Sandra Bullock too. It seems worse somehow that these revelations come after her reaching the pinnacle of her career. What a *%&^ her husband is to do that to her. It's bad enough when that happens, but must be so much worse when the entire world is watching you go through something so hurtful.
Good luck with your application.
Debs, the dessert is sinfully good! Re Sandra Bullock: I can't even imagine how painful it must be to have to deal with all of this before the eyes of the world.
...and thank you for the good luck wishes. I'll need them!
I will be only a matter of time before chocolate (good chocolate, not Charles) is made a prescription drug because of it's highly addictive properties and tendency to cause insanity in the previously sane.
To celebrities and their spouses, horning has a morality of its own. This is sad though and Sandra Bullock's husband is such an inflated nobody compared to her.
Poor Sandra B - life is really dire sometimes isn#t it? Timing sucks as they say. Good luck with your application and hope you had a great weekend!
Thank you, Flowerpot! And yes, I don't suppose there's anyone out there who doesn't feel for Sandra Bullock. I just read that she cancelled her Berlin appearance as well. She should be enjoying her crowning achievement at this time, not dealing with this crap. Life indeed.
Good luck with your application!!!
I feel bad for Sandra Bullock too. She should be out enjoying her moment in the sun, not hiding because of this bulls***.
Thank you, Phyllis! I took my writing samples in yesterday and now I await the verdict. Followed Vaughn's advice and did not enclose the novel. I hate the way academia turns up its nose at romance, don't you? :D
Argh. Poor Sandy Bullock. Life can really sucker-punch you sometimes.
Ditto to Sandra Bullock.
That photo says it all!!
Good luck with your application. I don't know why we should feel like that about our popular fiction because you still have to write well and work damn hard at it. Hope by now you've had good news.
Thank you, Chris! I'll be sure to share the good news if/when it comes.
My agent said pretty much what you did, that we should be proud of our well-written, entertaining books that people want to read, as opposed to dull, pretentious, usually highly derivative novels that nobody really enjoys. She's right, of course. There are so many examples of well-written popular fiction out there that blur the lines.
...To celebrities and their spouses, horning has a morality of its own...*
akalol, beautifully paraphrased quote from our esteemed former prime minister and leader of the opposition. Apparently most things have a morality of their own these days, including corruption, graft, theft, squander-mania...
[*For those unfamiliar with politics in Trinidad and Tobago: Former Prime Minister Basdeo Panday said that politics has a morality of its own.]
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