The Lost Blog of Don Juan

To Boldly Go...A Virtual Book Tour

I spent a lot of time on the road promoting the hardcover of The Lost Diary of Don Juan in the U.S. and in Europe -- readers of the blog may remember the crazy heckler who interrupted the 100-person talk in New York City ("Ah," I said, looking out at the mortified hometown crowd, "it's good to be home,") or the one woman who turned up in Madison, Wisconsin, or the all night dance vigil in the disco in Madrid after missing my flight.

So it is nice to be able to stay home with Rachel and my children as I embark on a Virtual Book Tour (also called a Blog Tour) over the next two months. The calendar for September is below, but please check back for updates, changes, and the Tour schedule for October.

If all goes according to plan, I will be coming to a blog near you. I doubt it will be as fun as looking into the eyes of a reader and hearing what they thought of the book. (Is there anything more amazing than hearing that some assortment of words from one's mind has made a lasting impression on the heart of another person?  OK, so sex is probably more amazing, as is kissing your child goodnight.)

Which is why, while I'll miss meeting readers on the road, I am glad that I'm going to be staying close to home.  If you do come across interviews or guest posts on blogs in the cyberworld, please do let me know.  I'd love to hear from you, even if we can't look each other in the eyes quite yet.

And last but not least, many thanks to Dorothy Thompson of Pump Up Your Book for all her tireless efforts in choreographing my Virtual Book Tour!

THE LOST DIARY OF DON JUAN VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR '08

Sept. 2 - If Books Could Talk and Harriet Klausner’s Review Archive

Sept. 3 – Amateur de Livre

Sept. 4 - In Bed With Books

Sept. 8 – Book Bitch

Sept. 9 – Paperback Writer

Sept. 10 – Mama Bear Reads

Sept. 11 – The Story Behind the Book

Sept. 12 – The Friendly Book Nook

Sept. 15 – Book Excerpts from Bestselling Authors and Bookish Ruth (guest post)

Sept. 16 – Booking Mama

Sept. 18 – The Bluestocking Society

Sept. 19 – Dear Author and Bookish Ruth (book review)

Sept. 21 -- Savvy Verse & Wit (review)

Sept. 22 – The Book Connection

Sept. 24 – Backroom Reviews (book review)

Sept. 25 -- Zensanity

Gangsta Rap & Writing Sex Scenes

I just finished an interview with Bill Marx of TheArtsFuse.  His questions were very interesting, especially one about whether gangsta rappers—and their debasing sex and violence—were the new Don Juans of today.  The stereotype of Don Juan is as a user and abuser of women very much like the gangsta rappers.  In Mozart’s opera, Don Juan has raped a woman and killed her father practically before the curtain has risen.  What I said in reply is that sexuality has always been fused with power for men and that most pornography and the lyrics of most gangsta rap (that I’ve heard) is more about power (and the fear of weakness and disrespect) than it is about sex.  Many of the portrayals and fantasies around Don Juan (not to mention the men who fashion themselves as real life Don Juans) are about power fantasies.  What I was interested in portraying and exploring in the Lost Diary is real passion and ultimately real love.  The plays and movies of Don Juan have only allowed us to see the man from a distance; a diary lets us go into the body, mind, and heart of the man.  What we find is someone who really did see passion as an art and for whom sexuality was art.  As I have said in a number of interviews, it is a 16th century Don Juan that is worth recovering in the 21st century.

Don Juan Reveals His Secrets of Love and Passion on Morning TV

On Monday I did my first television show; a great program called AM Northwest (the Good Morning America for Portland).  The hosts, Helen and Dave were very nice and the interview was on what I’ve learned from Don Juan about love and relationship. 

They wanted me to add some practical examples for viewers (and readers).  I am definitely not too high and literary to talk about relationship, since the book was inspired by my own question of how I could stay happily and passionately married to my wife for the rest of my life.  This was the question that Don Juan came to answer and so I am happy to share his secrets.  While the book is not a self-help book and can be read simply as an adventure love story and historical thriller, I do hope that reading the book will transform people’s understanding of love and passion.