2/24/09

Welcome!

First, a couple of important announcements:

One - a plug for a wonderful couple who are looking to adopt a child, birth to 18 months, any race, either gender. They're willing to negotiate an open adoption. Maria and Nathan are some of the kindest people I know. What makes it even better? They are funny, fun-loving, warm, friendly, and yes - they're Harry Potter fans. They have a website for anyone who is interested in learning more at mariaandnathan dot com. Please help spread the word - it's only through word of mouth that they can be successful. I'm looking forward to being an honorary Auntie, so please spread the word. :D Thanks so much!

Two - I'M WRITING AGAIN! I've been so very very uninspired lately, but I'm writing again. And (gasp!) I'm trying my hand at a Drarry. It's a bit intimidating to even try, as there are so many people writing good stuff for that ship (my favorite being Cheryl Dyson - go read her if you haven't). But... here we go. It is planned to be a 4-chapter story, and I'm... maybe halfway through the first chapter. It will be posted on my WordNerds2008 profile (user ID# 1673268)! My usual partner in crime, Felena1971, is already a big help with brainstorming plot points, and will beta the whole thing. If you haven't signed up yet for author alerts from that account, and you want to know when I post chapters of the new Drarry story (tentatively titled "Seasons of Change"), head on over there and subscribe. I'll see you there!

And now, onto our regularly scheduled programming...

I'm "I'm Just Drawn That Way" and I hope you'll find something here you'll enjoy. My stories are all HP, which is the only fandom I foresee using as a playground. I will also be posting stories (eventually - nothing there quite yet) at my new joint account WordNerds2008 (user ID# 1673268). That is the new home base for collaborations between me and Felena1971, who has been my beta-reader for most everything and co-author in varying degrees for most of these stories as well. Some of you have told me you are having trouble finding WordNerds2008, and Shiny Objects suggested I add that profile to my favorite authors list to help you find it. So - I'm doing that! Great idea!

Stories:

"Secrets of the Heart", a Hermione/Severus story, written with co-author/beta-reader/partner-in-crime Felena1971. We had so much fun writing this and getting to know some of our readers. We love you guys!!

My other lengthy fic is "Hermione Granger and the Sleepless Nights." It was the first fiction I'd tried writing in over 20 years, and... well, I think it came out pretty good. All but a couple of the 350+ reviews it's gotten so far seem to agree. :) I hadn't realized when I started writing it how smutty it would come out, but... what can you do? The characters were asking for it... (and I, being a merciful author, obliged.) In my real life, I have a job at which I am required to be an incredible goody-two-shoes. Perhaps this outlet is necessary for balance. This story recently got its 100,000th hit! I was so excited. I danced around my living room, and then drank an oatmeal stout to celebrate.

I've also got several one-shots up, various pairings, some slash, some het.

I was honored to have two stories (HGatSN & HBM) nominated for several Quill to Parchment awards. I didn't win anything, but thanks to all of you who voted! It was fun to be in the running. I also had two stories (Luna Helps Out and What Happens in Umbridge's Office) nominated for Quibbler Awards. Didn't win anything there, either, but again, I'm honored to be considered at all.

General info:

I've got an unhealthy obsession with all things Harry Potter: the books, the movies, fan fiction, and Wizard Rock. (I highly recommend the bands "The Moaning Myrtles," "Draco and the Malfoys," "Gred and Forge," "The Quaffle Kids," "The Remus Lupins," "Remus and the Lupins," and "The Whomping Willows.")

I went to a huge wizard rock festival over Memorial Day weekend: Wrockstock 2008, where I hung out with hundreds of other people with unhealthy Harry Potter obsessions, and heard lots and lots of bands. Next Wrockstock will be November 2009... I'm just sayin'...

I am deeply in love with Remus Lupin, inappropriately intrigued by the idea of Daniel Radcliffe naked in Equus, and the more I write him, the more I am developing a major crush on bad-boy Severus Snape.

ANIMAGUS: I decided my animagus should be a horse, so I could run fast with the wind in my mane and have people pet me and feed me apples and sugar cubes. If I could turn into an inanimate object (yet still retain sentience), it would have to be Dan Radcliffe's washcloth, so I could rub all over his naked, wet body. Crikey, that boy turned out FINE.

PATRONUS: However, there is apparently no debate about what my Patronus would be - I've been informed in no uncertain terms that my Patronus is a cougar, because I can't help but have occasional inappropriate thoughts about younger men (see earlier notes about Dan Radcliffe, and... well, I TRY not to be too fangirly around all the Wrock stars, but with limited success, and most of them are 10 - 20 years younger than I am). (See "urban dictionary" if you're as unfamiliar with this usage of the word "cougar" as I was!)

HOUSE: I'm a Hufflepuff, no doubt. My next best match is Ravenclaw. I would have put Gryffindor last, as I don't see myself as brave, but do think I have a sirius bad-girl streak, however the most thorough quiz put me with Slytherin last. Whatever - I'm such a Hufflepuff it's alarming. ("Brace yourself - I'm going to hug you!")

I'm too old to be as silly as I am, and too married to be lusting after werewolves and potions masters (though at least they're only fictional) and Boys Who Lived to Become Exceedingly Hot (the actor, not the character - and as such he is NOT fictional, but may as well be - and yes, yes, I'm married and old enough to be his mother, but Lordy, I DO love the scenery).

You know, I'm not really a bad girl,

- I'm Just Drawn That Way

p.s. If you like the stuff coming from me & Felena (which is pretty much most of my stuff, with her at least as beta-reader, if not heavily involved in plot brainstorming as well), please check our new JOINT PROFILE at WordNerds2008, user id# 1673268. Any forthcoming stuff that is a joint project will be posted there, not here. The only stuff here will be anything I do without her - and she's so fricking cool to work with, I can tell you right now that won't be much.

p.p.s. Found this in an interview with Alan Rickman, and thought it was HILARIOUS! You can read the whole interview at http://community.livejournal.com/alanrickman/852775.html

"QUESTION: ARE YOU
COMFORTABLE WITH THE SEX SYMBOL STATUS THAT'S COME ALONG WITH THAT BECAUSE
THERE'VE BEEN BLOG GROUPS OF WOMEN TALKING ABOUT YOU IN THAT SENSE?
RICKMAN: The world is weird. This is the thing.
This is why 'Sweeney Todd' has only ever been relevant because there are
apparently – I haven't looked – websites now where grown, mostly women, write
porn and putting those characters together. So, 'Sweeney Todd' is a smallfry to
the idea of that going on and this isn't even being done covertly. They have
conventions and things."

When I sent this snippet to Felena, she texted back that she thinks Alan would like Secrets of the Heart.

"What's not to like?" I asked. "His character in it is smart, sexy, rather well-endowed, and gets the girl."

Says Felena, "What more could he want?"

Says me, "Live nude reading with the authors?"

To which Felena replies... "You are a BAD, EVIL WOMAN for texting that to me at work!"

(bwah ha hah hah!) (and, OK, so maybe I'm NOT just drawn that way...)