The Craziest Thing with Erica Lucke Dean

When I asked, "What is the craziest thing you have ever done?" I got a huge response from writers, homemakers, musicians, ex-pats---pretty much you name it! Today, meet Erica Lucke Dean , a tragically clumsy author of romance, paranormal romance, and the recently released Ashes of Life, a beautiful story of family that will break your heart and make you smile. Erica lives in the Georgia mountains (think Deliverance) is the Pied Piper of chickens and is owned by a slobbering, spoiled mastiff..

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Just Another Crazy Author

What does it really mean to be crazy?

When Kelly challenged me to write this post about the craziest thing I’d ever done, I wasn’t sure I could pull it off. I mean I've done lots of stupid things, but crazy? I just wasn’t sure if I’d ever done anything that was actually crazy. And then I had to ask myself, what is crazy? What does that really mean? And who gets to define it? I mean, sure, whacking someone over the head with a shovel sounds pretty crazy, but hey, maybe he deserved it, right? So how could I possibly decide what moments fell under crazy versus what was just plain stupid?

I decided to lay it all out for you, and we can decide together, ‘kay? But since I’m a mature adult who doesn’t do anything remotely crazy or stupid anymore, I’m going to have to dig really far back to come up with something.

Now let’s see. Hmmm. When I six I… no that’s dumb. When was a teenager I… no, that wasn’t really crazy or stupid, that was naïve... Wait, I know, there was this one time I… ah… not that either. Hey, can I count my first marriage? I mean, in retrospect that was both crazy and stupid. Hahaha—he won’t read this right? Maybe, just forget I said that. Crazy… I was thinking up something crazy.

Hang on, I’m still thinking.

Okay… got it. About fifteen years ago, I attempted my own bikini wax with no prior experience or training. Some might call that crazy, but having lived through it, I can definitely say that was stupid. My crotch stuck to everything for like two weeks. And I burned through every Lady Gillette I had in the house shaving off the wax. Totally stupid. Now, writing about it and posting it on the internet might be considered crazy? Can I get a vote? No? Okay. What about that time I flashed my… on second thought, let’s not bring that up.

Here we go… a possible contender:

A few years ago, my husband and I ditched the big city to move to the mountains and live on a farm, with absolutely no experience or knowledge outside of what we could find on the internet. Soon after moving in, we discovered flies somehow know you live on a farm even before you have animals, and they send out fliers (I couldn’t resist) and invite all their friends to the party. Then we discovered that flypaper is nearly impossible to get out of your hair. Or your eyelashes. But it doesn’t taste quite as bad as you might think.

Then once we got a handle on the flies of Biblical proportions, we got some chickens and ducks. And when that turned out easier than we thought, we bought five piglets and penned them in with fencing even a fifth grader could break out of (and for the record, pigs are totally smarter than a fifth grader.) Then when those cute little piggies grew up and broke out like George Orwell warned us about in Animal Farm (a warning that went totally unheeded, I might add,) we tried to catch them using donuts (cuz who doesn’t love donuts?) and dog leashes (did I mention pigs are really strong, too? As in, never leash yourself to a pig.) Now try to imagine five two-hundred-plus pound pigs running down the road. Tires screeching, cars swerving, people swearing. And my husband running after them with a big stick and a loaf of bread. Good times! But crazy? I just don’t know.

I think maybe the answer to my original question, “What does it really mean to be crazy?” lies somewhere in the gray areas. One girl’s “crazy” is another girl’s “stupid” is another girl’s “woo hoo, it’s Saturday night!”

Or maybe crazy people have no idea they’re crazy. ----Erica Lucke Dean

April 28 is the release date for Erica's latest novel, Ashes of Life. A GREAT novel (I had the pleasure of reading an advanced copy) and that cover alone is worth it. Check it out, buy a book, and connect with Erica at her website, on Twitter, on Goodreads, and like her Facebook page.

We ALL have a little crazy in us, so I ask: What's the craziest thing you have ever done?

Every week, meet a new person, right here, sharing their story.

Do you have a great crazy story to tell?
Email me or DM me on Twitter or Facebook and get ready to spill your crazy.
And in the meantime, check out:
The Craziest Thing with Jerry Underhill
The Craziest Thing with Amy Beech
The Craziest Thing with Lorca Damon