The Fun Book
May282007
Besides Always Kiss Me Goodnight, (aka The One With The Ghosts), I’ve been working on a Fun Book for awhile now. It’s like nothing I’ve ever done before, completely over the top. The heroine is the embodiment of ecstasy, but her family forgot to tell her. The hero sleeps with everything that moves. My dog Wolfie is in it. In fact, there are nine dogs in it. They talk. I cannot tell you how much fun I am having with this book. Every time I say, “I don’t know if I can get away with this,” one of the other writers says, “Jenny, we have talking dogs. You can get away with it.”
Oh, right, and it’s another collaboration. I love collaborating, I do things when I collaborate I’d never do alone, and I learn so much. It’s the treat I give myself for sticking with the day job of writing solo novels. Which I’m also doing. Always Kiss Me Goodnight now has 10,000 damn fine words. I’m on it.
But oh, the Fun Book.
However, the Fun Book has had, in its own way, more grief than any other project I’ve ever worked on. The stars are aligned against it. Things just aren’t working out. And so the three of us–that would be Anne Stuart, Lani Diane Rich, and me–looked at each other, all three of us with solo books we needed to write, and said, “It’s okay if you don’t want to do this.” And then all three of us said, “Hell, no, I’m in.” Which is when it really got fun, because we realized that not only had the three of us bonded–our Google Group is ThreeGoddesses and sweetie, we are–but we were all rabid about the book and its nine talking dogs. (Rabid. Get it? I crack myself up.)
So we began to think about doing Exciting Things. Like self-publishing. (This is probably where I should mention that no editor has seen this book yet. It has not been rejected. It’s just probably death to our careers. I’m telling you, nine talking dogs and my hero sleeps with six women the first night of the story. The book has Issues.) Then we thought, maybe we’d put up a website and self-publish it there.
And then we got side-tracked and decided to put up a blog instead.
I know, I need another blog like I need another talking dog, but we started thinking about what we could do there. Like workshop the scenes from the first act of the book. And put up pictures of dogs. And publish the transcripts of our Sunday chats. And get other people who have collaborated to post about how they do it. And put up posts about goddesses we love. (I’ve got a thing for Cloaca, the Roman goddess of sewers. Yes, she’s real.) And do drive-by posts about stuff we’ve dug up researching the book, like cylinder seals and Mesopotamian jewelry. But mostly talk about writing the book. Sort of like reality TV, only not. It isn’t the kind of blog that would appeal to a lot of people, we figure. Just to people who would like a book with nine talking dogs.
Knowing you guys, I figured you’d want in.
You are invited to the opening of the Dogs and Goddesses blog–that’s the title of the book, we love it–hosted by us: Anne Stuart, Lani Diane Rich, and Jenny Crusie. We have no idea what’s going to happen with the blog, the book, or with our futures. It’s very exciting.
Pray for us.
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34 Comments to 'The Fun Book'
On May 28, 2007 at 1:10 am orangehands said...
ok, this has been a good night. first ghosts, and now talking dogs. besides which, it’s good to know your hero can go all night.
and a new blog! ok, must go play, thanks Jenny.
but i must know- do the dogs get their own povs?
On May 28, 2007 at 1:17 am Alice said...
Talking dogs sounds awesome which is why I just headed over there to check it out. And discovered that i have to highlight the blue text in order to be able to read it. You may want to try a lighter color for the text if you’re going to keep the brown background. Otherwise it’s lovely and i adore the banner. A book with ten talking cats in it is the third Enchanted Forest Chronicles book. Just thought you might be interested.
On May 28, 2007 at 1:23 am kc said...
This really does sound like a fun book…hope it gets to see the light of day!
On May 28, 2007 at 1:47 am orangehands said...
can you not post comments over there?
On May 28, 2007 at 1:50 am patmc said...
how cool. first, i found this place Worldwidestore.com where you can purchase from mesopotamian bracelets ones i saw were about $560.00 ea.for the bangle but there is a slip on cuff with spikes that you could use for self defense for $475.00 (they take checks) but it could really get you in the mood.
of course dogs talk, ours have for years. we are down to 2 now, a 110lb rhodesian ridgeback, a second time with that breed, how dumb are we? and a border terrier blend of several, long body short legs and front legs bow so badly his feet look like they are on the wrong feet. he eats jewelry, actually eats the pieces i crochet out of sterling silver. chews have no clue why, he won’t tell us. maybe he will tell you.
both are available for interview for the book.
On May 28, 2007 at 3:42 am Lani said...
Hello! Thanks for checking out the Fun Book. It’s been a blast!
Alice – yikes! That’s not the way the site has shown up on any of the systems we’ve tested on, although my husband did have that problem at work, with a really early version of Mozilla. If you’re willing to guinea pig with me, please e-mail me and I’ll see if I can’t get it fixed. So sorry!
orangehands – I forgot to open up comments. Because I am divinne, but sometimes, a little dopey. Do they work for you now?
On May 28, 2007 at 4:08 am orangehands said...
lani: thanks! comments work. (i managed to sound crazy in the first one too…)
On May 28, 2007 at 5:07 am Lani said...
No, OH, you sound fine! And thanks for helping me test it out! Glad it’s working for you! All new posters get moderated the first time around, but I just released you, so you should be able to comment freely without moderation from here on out. Thanks again!
On May 28, 2007 at 5:31 am micki said...
(-: “Rabid dogs.” Who says you are not a laff riot?? (There’s a little bit of darkness in that humor, too — rabid dogs aren’t really that funny. They are super-scary (-:. But in this case, it’s got an edge.)
It sounds like a great deal of fun. You could always choose a penname(s?) if you are really worried, but You Better Tell Us Who You Are Writing Under!!!!
I don’t suppose the workshop is going to cover non-human characters? We’ve got four dogs at our house, and they are quite the canine soap opera.
On May 28, 2007 at 6:08 am Ingrid said...
Well, if I have to read it online I will, but I would much prefer to read The Fun Book in paperback format. That way I can read it in bed, or on the train or in the doctor’s waiting room.
So could you please tell your editor I said so when you show it to her? Isn’t there a rule of thumb that for every idiot who writes in with an opinion, there’s a couple of hundred sensible people who feel exactly the same but don’t write?
On May 28, 2007 at 6:51 am Kieran said...
I adore the new Dogs and Goddesses website! The first book I ever wrote (a short Regency sitting in my desk drawer) has a Jack Russell terrier in it who expresses his thoughts, and someone told me, “That will never fly, Stoo-pid! You can’t have a dog’s POV!” so I put it away. I am so glad you ladies are doing this book, and I can’t wait to read it. And I think your publisher should publish it, and if they check out the website, they will want to.
On May 28, 2007 at 7:03 am McB said...
Oh what fun! Now back to reading about dogs and godesses.
On May 28, 2007 at 1:42 pm Eileen said...
My dogs have tons of things to say- this doesn’t strike me as odd at all. Rabid. HA!
On May 28, 2007 at 1:42 pm roben said...
Cloaca? LMAO. That’s also the butthole of a chicken, well actually its the place where everything … forget about it! Heh.
Loved the site and all of the exerpts and photos. Love the dogs, even the one that looks like a cow.
What fun!
On May 28, 2007 at 4:13 pm Susan D said...
Okay, am I the only person who can’t read the God/doG blog? Black text on dark chocolate background with a sprinkling of caramel links?
Oh wait, I see Alice is with me on this.
Dang, really really really need a new computer.
On May 28, 2007 at 4:43 pm Jenny said...
I’ll tell Lani, Susan.
Somebody somewhere asked about You Again. It’s on hold. Again. I think I’m really just going to have to start over. Some books, like Marley, are dead to begin with.
On May 28, 2007 at 4:46 pm downundergal said...
I need another Crusie blog like a hole in the head – blogs are taking over my life! Where do you get the time to write?
But…I went there. Had a brief look because I’ve got to go and be a good mummy and pack lunches and get the kiddies to school etc etc and my girl dog is looking at me patiently through the screen door with that “he’s doing it again” look as her brother tries to hump her….again Maybe he’s channeling your hero Jenny.
Can’t wait to read him!
On May 28, 2007 at 5:06 pm BCB said...
Susan, I had the same problem when I first looked at it using Netscape. Just about went blind before it occurred to me to switch browsers. Looked again using Mozilla and it was fine.
And I’m now convinced Jenny doesn’t sleep at all. Plus she’s apparently figured out how to make time stand still for long stretches so she can accomplish all this stuff.
On May 28, 2007 at 5:27 pm inkgrrl said...
I can see it just fine in Firefox… huh. It looks fabulous and I’m fansqueeing all over the place. Yay Fun Book!!
On May 28, 2007 at 5:42 pm Diane L. said...
the Dogs and Goddesses blog–
I am so there! I’ve been owned by dachshunds my whole life and nobody writes dachshunds as well as you do-that’s why I became a Crusie fan in the first place. A Crusie featuring a dachshund is truly one of my favorite things.
On May 28, 2007 at 5:48 pm Sheena said...
Thank you! I feel like I have received an unexpected Christmas present. I’ll enjoy this new blog a great deal.
On May 28, 2007 at 8:49 pm Susan D said...
Thanks Jenny. Yes, I have an old browser. Netscape.
Hmm, Old Browser. Sounds like a faithful dog.
On May 28, 2007 at 8:50 pm Lani said...
Hey, girls.
I tried to futz with the code to fix the problem, but apparently, it didn’t work. If anyone who’s having the problem wants to e-mail me with the browser and version you’re using, it might help me diagnose where the problem is. In the meantime – my apologies! I am trying!
On May 28, 2007 at 9:02 pm Charlene Teglia said...
Fabulous. I’m cracking up just from the description.
On May 28, 2007 at 9:54 pm Erica - Aussie CB said...
The Fun Book is sounding great! I love the dogs *g*
Jenny said – “The heroine is the embodiment of ecstasy”
This was niggling at my memory and bugged me until I dug through my boxes of books that don’t fit on my shelves… You probably have this, Jenny, or it might quite possibly be irrelevant – but here it is, just in case it’s useful:
Eurynome (ECSTASY) – ‘Eurynome (pronounced you-reh’no-may), or “wide wandering”, is the Pelasgian (pre-Hellenic peoples of Greece) Great Goddess of all things. She divided the sky from the sea and, while dancing on the waves, created the north wind. The north wind grew lustful, so she seized him in her hands and formed a serpent she called Ophion. Eurynome made love with Ophion and then assumed the form of a dove to lay the universal egg out of which all creation came. Ophion, not content with being a creation of Eurynome and then cocreating with her, boasted that he was the supreme creator. Eurynome knocked out his teeth and banished him.’
.
Feisty
*g*
On May 28, 2007 at 10:06 pm Erica - Aussie CB said...
Woops. I just realised – wrong place and wrong people. Why do we only notice these things after we post?
On May 28, 2007 at 10:35 pm Jenny said...
That’s okay, Erica. Especially since we made them up.
They’re the triple goddesses of sex, essentially: arousal, sex, and orgasm. We just prefer Lust, Chaos, and Ecstasy. Because saying, “Hi, I’m Arousal” has such a clinical ring to it.
On May 28, 2007 at 11:37 pm Penny-scope dope cherrybomb said...
Hey girls, I told DH about the hero?? sleeping with six women in the first night and he wants to know, “Who is he? Superman? LMAO
On May 29, 2007 at 2:10 am patmc said...
after the 5th misscarrage, i got the ok, yet again, and dr said, “tell jon 5 times you on top.” i told her to write that on a Rx paper, for proof. I showed it to him, next time he asked how it went which was at the “after party” following my grandfather’s funeral. we were in my parents bedroomm rooting thru coats for my bag, and i found it, and handed it over to him.
course, dad chose that time to come in room, as jon began to laugh AFTER
On May 29, 2007 at 2:15 am patmc said...
after the 5th misscarrage, i got the ok, yet again, and dr said, “tell jon 5 times you on top.” i told her to write that on a Rx paper, for proof. I showed it to him, next time he asked how it went which was at the “after party” following my grandfather’s funeral. we were in my parents bedroomm rooting thru coats for my bag, and i found it, and handed it over to him.
course, dad chose that time to come in room, as jon began to laugh AFTER he turned pale. then brother in laws came in, followed by twit sisters, we had more people stuffed in that room all discussing sex, positions and how it can be done (apparently on a sunday during football season tv in bedroom would do it for one bro in law)
mom came in and broke up the impropto party we had going. i was once again told that they can’t take me anywhere. hey, i was home for goodness sake.
On May 29, 2007 at 9:19 am Jenny said...
Yes. Seriously. He’s a god.
We don’t do things that are ridiculous in this book.
No, wait. Yes we do.
On May 29, 2007 at 11:03 am Carol said...
Jenny wrote about You Again: “Some books, like Marley, are dead to begin with.” ROTFLOL. See–you are a laff riot. I am sorry about it being on hold because your excepts made us want more, but it seems like you don’t have to worry that you don’t still have it–like before DLD.
On May 29, 2007 at 3:02 pm AMC said...
I VANT TO READ THIS BOOK!
On May 31, 2007 at 2:46 am ZaZa said...
Ahem. You Again? You aren’t going to leave us waiting another several years while you are having big fun? Surely. I mean, fun is all well and good in a writer, but James…
Yeah. Okay. This sounds like a fun read, too, and I love the blog for it. Dogs and Goddesses. *snort* But I want to read about James!