The Fall Issue of Della Donna is now out, just in time for Halloween!

TSS Week 20

I finally finished Frankenstein. It is a tragic story and though the monster is supposedly the villain, I found him very sympathetic (more so than Dr. Frankenstein). The plight of the outcast and how it drives them to do evil things made me think of those kids who are relentlessly teased until they shoot people in their schools. Not that the violent acts are justified, but that they are realistic consequences of human isolation and rejection. I wonder if this was part of Shelley's point, that crimes and the people who commit them should not be viewed in a black and white fashion.

I also found it interesting how Dr. Frankenstein and the monster came to depend on each other, even in enmity. After all, when the Dr. is hunting the monster down and becomes weary, the monster leaves food for him to keep him going. Perhaps it was a desperate need for any kind of interaction, especially with his creator, but it intrigued me.

Also, as if you have been waiting with baited breath (hee hee), my review of Blue Genes has been published in Estella's Revenge.

This is my new mantra concerning my novel:

"If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton,
you may as well make it dance."
- George Bernard Shaw

TSS Week 19

I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows last night. What a ride. I do feel that sorrow that comes with the end of a favorite series. In fact, it just reinforced for me (as a writer) how gifted writers are when they can make you care about their characters. Really care. As in, these characters are friends of yours that you think about long after the books are over. J.K. Rowling has written a Lord of the Rings for my generation. The series is definitely a classic, to my mind.

Here come the spoilers, so please don't read if you don't want the book... you know, spoiled.

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I can't tell you how happy I was/am that Snape was vindicated. I knew I loved him for a reason.

Part that made me cry: When Percy returns to the Weasleys.

I particularly like Stephen King's review of the final book and the series in general.

I am considering participating in NaNoWriMo for the first time. Most of you will probably have heard of this already, but in case you haven't, November is National Novel Writing Month, and people from all over the world challenge themselves to write a 50,000 word novel in one month. Sounds crazy (unless you're Stu :) which is why I have always steered clear of it. Yet this year, it sounds like an amazing way to force myself to sit down each day and work on my novel. Sure, whatever I come out of November with will not be publishable, but some of it will be, and those parts can be expanded. What do you think? I shudder to think that I could actually stick to this for 30 days, but it can't hurt to try, even if I don't hit the target.

An Update on the Writer

The special report has been submitted. I am very proud of the work I've done and glad that it's nearly finished. Now there will be back and forth editing and tying up of loose ends, but come November it will hit the stands all over Austin. I really hope that it will make a different for someone. That is the whole purpose, after all.

In the meantime, here are the last few articles I've written for Nü Magazine. I forgot to announce them when they came out, and I have been a little slow in updating my website.

• Lounge To... The Green
  
• Nü Presents James Diaz

My editor over there, Oscar Valdes, is so talented with layout and design, in addition to being a great guy.

Finally, the other big thing I have going on is organizing my second panel at BookWoman. It will coincide with the publication of my piece on sexual violence, so that is the topic. If you are an Austin-based author who has written on the subject (in a memoir or otherwise), and you would like to participate, let me know! We'd love to have you.

Till next time friends :)