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The Singer And Me

Posted by Vonna Harper, 06/07/08 03:40 PM

My age is going to show here, but I’m totally and completely in love with Neil Diamond. Not the songwriter himself because I don’t see the point of unrequited love, and I seriously doubt he’s going to seek me out, sweep me off my feet, and carry me into the recording studio with him. Besides, my own dh wants me around to fix a few meals.
But I’m going to be honest here, totally honest. I wouldn’t be the writer I am without Neil Diamond singing in the background. That man has a way of triggering emotions in me that absolutely have to crawl out of me and onto the computer screen. He’s pure guts and soul. I’ve worn out two Hot August Nights albums and once blew out a car speaker playing I Am I Said. Holy, Holy rocks my office and Cracklin’ Rosie wakes the neighbors. Traveling Salvation Show brings me to tears as does Song Sung Blue.
What is it about the man and his creativity? He’s been around since dirt was new and you’d think he’d have mined all the emotions he has to mine, but he keeps coming up with magic. I just bought his latest album and played it loud enough to shake the car on the way home yesterday. If not for the price of gas, I would have kept on driving and listening until morning.
Neil got me thinking about this thing called creativity, this burning need to express oneself in unique and powerful ways. I start each book with a fire in my belly and determination to make it as strong as I’m capable of. Each time I fail myself, maybe because words aren’t enough. I need to add rhythm, drums and guitars. I need a morning sunrise and spectacular sunset, but all I have are words.
But I keep on trying. I can’t imagine ever retiring from this gig I love as much as I do life. It’s a compulsion, an addiction. If I didn’t write, what the hell would I do with that fire in my belly cause it ain’t gonna go away? Like Neil, the best I’m capable of pours out of me. My art form is writing, Neil’s is music. I envy him because he touches places I can’t touch, but I work with what I have and its better than anything else I could imagine.
Neil, thank you for keeping the fires burning. Vonna
www.VonnaHarper.com

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Samhain Virgin

Posted by Vonna Harper, 03/13/08 05:12 PM

This feels strange to me, jumping onboard the Samhain blog train (is there such a thing) before my first book comes out. Ah well, BloodHunter will be on the scene on the 25th. Soon enough.
That said, who the heck cares who this Vonna Harper broad is? Hopefully someone because I have a lot riding on the answer.
To give a bit of background to the 1.2 people who mildly give a d…, BloodHunter is erotica and I’m no stranger to the genre. If you don’t believe me, check out my credentials (or whatever you want to call them) at www.vonnaharper.com. I’ve been around that block a time or nine.
I honestly don’t know how many publishing companies I’ve written for in the 100 or so years I’ve been lying for a living. People might think I went after Samhain ‘just cause’. Not true. Definitely not true. I couldn’t have been happier than when BloodHunter was accepted and am downright excited about its potential with this company. Why? Simple answer, owner Crissy Brashear. She’s in Ohio and I’m in Oregon and we met, of all places, in Germany. We were roommates for the better part of a week, not that it took me that long to realize she has an impressive business head and is absolutely and completely committed to the world of book publishing, especially the possibilities in epublishing. At the time she was working for another publisher, same as me. That publisher wanted to participate in a publishing conference being held in Germany so sent Crissy to represent them. I’d thrown my name into a hat and to my delight was chosen to receive an all expenses paid trip to the conference in exchange for talking up erotica and epublishing. Crissy and I blundered our way through language barriers and coughed our way through smoking-allowed-everywhere standards, and after the work was over, we played tourist for a couple of incredible days. P.S. I NOW LOVE GERMANY!
Jump forward a few years. Crissy had launched Samhain, and although I had other writing commitments, I carefully watched what was happening. Wow, yeah, all good! When I had time, I wrote BloodHunter, emailed Crissy and reminded her of a few of our adventures and mis-adventures. Knowing the owner and threats of blackmail didn’t give me an in. I had to submit to the editors just like everyone else. Then I waited. And then the email came. They liked me, they really liked me. Well, truth is they liked my writing. I might be another story.
BloodHunter is a shape/shifting, time/traveling, bondage gig with a dose of paranormal worked in. I’d tell you more about it if I knew. How about I throw in a cleaned-up scene to give you an idea how things get started between a modern woman and an ancient Aztec warrior with a thing for jaguars?
And if anyone’s out there, how about yelling, “Howdy?”
Vonna

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