Creature Feature: Shapeshifters in Romance Fiction

Picking up where I left off when I last talked about cat shifters, today I’m contemplating the current popularity of shapeshifters in romance fiction. While werewolves are probably the most common and popular in romance fiction right now, there’s a lot of interest in other kinds of shifters as well. I, myself, have written dragon shifters (in The Ice Dragon and Prince of Spies) and a cougar shifter (Sweeter Than Wine).Here’s what Wiki says about shapeshifters: “Shapeshifting is a common theme in folklore, as well as in science fiction and fantasy. In its broadest sense, it is a change in the physical form or shape of a person or animal…shapeshifting involves physical changes such as alterations of age, gender, race, or general appearance or changes between human form and that of an animal, plant, or inanimate object…Shapeshifting may be used as a plot device, as when Puss In Boots tricks the ogre into changing into a mouse so he may eat him; it may also include a symbolic significance, as when the Beast’s transformation at the end of Beauty and the Beast indicates Beauty’s ability to accept him despite his appearance.”

I don’t think I’ve ever gone quite that far, though Lana’s discovery of Roland’s ability to shift from dragon to human form in The Ice Dragon does come as a bit of a surprise to her. I think it’s intriguing to find out there’s more to the person or animal one meets at the beginning of a novel. And the way those new revelations play into the story make it interesting and fantastical. Of late, I’ve really been enjoying writing a series of cat shifters in an urban fantasy setting that I hope to find a home for soon.

For some reason, cat shifters fire the imagination and make one think immediately of the pleasures of the flesh. Cats are sinuous, slinky and sexy, where wolves seem tough, mighty and all alpha. Cats on the other hand, have cunning, stealth, soft fur and a very sexy way of moving. Seems natural we romance writers would take them to our hearts and turn them into heroes and heroines in our flights of fantasy.

So out of curiosity, what’s your favorite form of shapeshifter, other than wolves? Dragons? Cats? Snakes? Sea creatures? What’s your take? Enquiring minds want to know!

Words of Wisdom from JK Rowling

If you haven’t heard it yet, check out JK Rowling’s commencement speech at Harvard here: http://harvardmagazine.com/go/jkrowling.html

She speaks about failure and imagination and it quite a good speaker. She also speaks of her early job at Amnesty International with heartwrenching power. I didn’t know that about her background. She talks about her college days with humor and eloquence as well. Take a listen. I think you’ll find it interesting. Especially if you’re a Harry Potter fan.

Lori Foster Weekend Wrap-Up

First, I have to thank Lori Foster for hosting such a lovely event. The hotel was fantastic. The people were great. The event overall was lots of fun! Thank you, Lori!!!

Let’s see… here’s a little of what went on…

Friday, I drove to Ohio. I hit a little rain early on and the newly-installed windshield wipers decided to flip right off my car! Ack!!! I pulled off the road and after some searching, found an AutoZone with a sympathetic guy willing to sell me a new set of wipers and put them on for me so they wouldn’t fall off. So that added an unexpected hour on to my trip, but I still got there in time. I saw my friends, Eve Vaughn, Selina Illyria and finally met Celia Kyle! I also ran into a bunch of folks I had met last year at Lora Leigh’s event, so we did a bit of catching up.

Then Saturday it was a whirlwind of activity. I met Sara Reinke for the first time and talked with a bunch of readers, including the amazing Valerie Tibbs and Jambrea - who now has a new official theme song - remember “Jam on it”? Just substitue “Jam-bre-a” - Jam J-Jam Jam Jambrea!   I spent a lovely evening having drinks and sharing stories with an ecclectic group including, among others, Barbara Vey and Joyce Ann from the Beyond Her Book Blog on the Publishers Weekly site and Dianna Love.

Sunday was breakfast in the hotel with Pam F. and her good friend, Pat, who is an inspiration! We saw Jacki Frank in passing, as well as JC Wilder and a slew of other great folks. I got to chat with lots of Samhain folks all weekend including Sharon Long/Maya Banks, Carolan Ivey, Gia Dawn, and a bunch of others. (I really should have taken notes!) And did I mention - Joy was there? From Joyfully Reviewed, of course. She didn’t wear the bunny ears at this event, but we all knew she was there. Oh! And Ali was there with her newly shortened hair (at least it’s way shorter than I remember from RT in Houston).

All in all, it was a fun weekend with lots of great company. I signed a bunch of books and learned a lot. A great time was had by all! And now I’m still on my way home, checking in from a hotel. I’ll post again when I get home. In the meantime, thanks again to all who participated in a great weekend!

Lori Foster’s Get Together This Weekend!

I’m heading to Ohio this weekend for the big shindig! It’ll be my first time at this event so please come by and say hello if you’re in the neighborhood.

Get details here.

I’ll try to post from the road, but I can’t guarantee I’ll have internet access or time! It’s also my birthday weekend, so I’ll be celebrating with a few hundred folks I haven’t met before… fun, huh?

WW: Gonna Eat You!

Art by Daio

GLAST - Exploring the Universe

Gamma Rays aren’t just for The Incredible Hulk anymore. No, now we’re using them to explore the universe with this great monstrosity:

Here’s what NASA says about it:

GLAST: Exploring the Extreme Universe

NASA’s Gamma-Ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) is a powerful space observatory that will open a wide window on the universe. Gamma rays are the highest-energy form of light, and the gamma-ray sky is spectacularly different from the one we perceive with our own eyes. With a huge leap in all key capabilities, GLAST data will enable scientists to answer persistent questions across a broad range of topics, including supermassive black-hole systems, pulsars, the origin of cosmic rays, and searches for signals of new physics.

The mission is an astrophysics and particle physics partnership, developed by NASA in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy, along with important contributions from academic institutions and partners in France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Sweden, and the U.S.

Personally, I can’t wait to see what this baby can do. Some of you know I used to make my living as a chemist. I worked with gamma radiation (one of the reasons I wanted to get out of that field - plus the fact that chemists have a generally shorter life expectancy than most other professions) in biological assays. Vastly different from what this GLAST will be doing, of course, but in order to do that job, I had to study up on radiation and the physics of the different kinds of particles I’d be working with. My first few weeks “on the job” were spent in an empty office — reading. No joke. I got the job fresh out of college, reported to duty for my first day, and was parked in an empty office right next to the PhD who was to be my boss with a stack of books on radiation.

The only thing that saved me was the fact that before swithing my major to chemistry, I’d spent two years as a physics major. The reson I left that program had more to do with the faculty at my college than anything else. The entire physics department had heavy accents from all different places and although I’m very good with accents (I’m the daughter of a European immigrant), I couldn’t understand half these people! LOL. The chemistry department was much more intelligible. And at that point in my life, I was fascinated by the molecular workings of biological systems.

But enough of that… watch for more info on the GLAST launch. I’ll try to post any news I stumble accross here on the blog (for those of you who care). Geeks of the world - unite!

Great Weekend!

Some great things happened this past weekend, in addition to the beautiful launch of Space Shuttle Discovery. For one thing, FireDrake finally topped the MBAM Best Seller List! It had been stuck at #2 since the day after it came out and I wasn’t quite sure it would make it to #1, but it did and for that I am very, very grateful. Thank you to all who helped put it there!

Second, I got a great review for FireDrake from Joyfully Reviewed. Vivian actually named FireDrake a RECOMMENDED READ!!! Thank you, Vivian! I’m thrilled and humbled.

Also, I made a new video for FireDrake using some of the images I’ve rendered (using my DAZ|Studio software) over the past few months. Since I don’t know how to imbed vids in this blog (it never works when I try), try this link. I’ll also be putting it up on my website next week sometime, so let me know if something doesn’t work quite right – I’m still kind of new at this video-making program.

Now I’m just waiting for the cover for Jaci’s Experiment to be approved so I can show it off to you all. I got a peek at it late last week and it’s spectacular! I can’t wait to see what you all think once it’s official and I can post it. Stay tuned… shouldn’t be long now!

Fair Folk

Did our ancestors call these mythological creatures “fair” because they were beautiful or because our ancestors were begging them to be fair in their dealings? That’s kind of a tricky question that popped up while I was doing some research for my latest Dragon Knights novel. Perhaps I’m sheltered, but I always thought the term “Fair Folk” was simply another name for elves, fairies, and the like. I thought it had something to do with their reputed beauty, or maybe their complexion - which might be a holdover from Tolkein’s elves in my mind.  

I’ve come to find that the term might actually be a bit more sinister in nature than I believed. By naming them “fair,” perhaps our ancestors were employing a bit of wishful thinking. They hoped calling them “fair” would make them deal fairly with the human population. There are so many legends about changling babies and fey folk playing tricks on humanity, this explanation of the name bears some thought.

Still, I think I’d rather live in my little Polyanna world and believe the word “fair” refers to their coloring and/or countenance. In my books, at least, that’s the way I’m going to take it. You heard it here first - the latest Dragon Knights novel, FireDrake, features a new race of magical warriors known as the Fair Folk. They’re easy on the eyes and lethal - a fascinating combination. As to how they deal with humanity? Whether it’s “fair” or not, remains to be seen…

Space Shuttle Set For Launch

Here’s a snippet from the NASA site:

Space shuttle Discovery’s STS-124 mission is officially scheduled for launch May 31.

Discovery’s 14-day flight will carry the largest payload so far to the station and includes three spacewalks. It is the second of three missions that will launch components to complete the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory. The crew will install Kibo’s large Japanese Pressurized Module and Kibo’s robotic arm system. Discovery also will deliver new station crew member Greg Chamitoff and bring back Flight Engineer Garrett Reisman, who will end a three-month stay aboard the outpost.

Launch Date: May 31, 2008
Launch Time: 5:02 p.m. EDT

I usually watch launches and landings both on my computer (so I can watch the entire thing) and my big screen TV (so I can see it REALLY well! LOL). Keep your fingers crossed for good weather and all systems go!

Signing Tonight in Paramus, NJ