Happy Tuesday, everybody!

Last Saturday, I attended a workshop in LA with Julia Quinn, which included lots of wonderful advice on writing dialogue and much helpful insight on career issues…but there was one thing JQ said that just about chilled the blood in my veins.

Starbucks is moving to free Internet.

Oh dear. Can I pretend I didn’t hear that?
*sticking fingers in ears*
LA LA LA LA LA!

Didn’t work. Hmph.

Man oh man. What will I do? Starbucks has become my go-to place when I really, really need to just write with no distractions. (Amazing, isn’t it, that I can ignore noisy espresso grinders and Joss Stone soundtracks more easily than I can ignore the siren song of the Internet?)

Why is it, that it’s easier to do just about ANYTHING than write? I find myself folding laundry to procrastinate sometimes. Every time I open up my WIP file and sit down to work on it, it feels like this monumental act of courage for which I surely deserve some sort of gold-plated award–or at the very least, a merit badge. Failing those, I *know* I’ve earned my latte and scone, which is why Starbucks is so perfect.

It’s a source of comfort, though, to know that most authors go through the same thing. So kindly make me feel better.

Do you play little mind games with yourself, to get motivated to write? Where do you go when you just really have to get things done, without distractions? … Read More »

First, thanks to everyone who gave me encouragement over the weekend – I was able to make a big jump forward on the novel-in-progress, and I and the kitties feel much, much better. I’ll have to try that again someday.

Well, last night I thought, “Tomorrow’s Tuesday – what shall I blog about?” And no ideas came to me, so I just went to sleep, figuring something would occur to me this morning.

Nope.

But then I decided, it’s been a while since I just gave a thorough update on all the stuff that I’ve been doing lately, to further my nascent writing career. While many of you know some of this, or most of this, not everyone is up-to-date on everything, I’m sure. And I’m also curious how all of you are doing, as we get closer to conference time.

So here’s the scoop.

At the moment (and this is not set in stone – more like inscribed on a stick of rapidly melting butter), my trilogy is set to release in May/June/July 2009. The dates have changed a couple of times already, so don’t anyone go making vacation plans around them.

The first book, Goddess of the Hunt (GOTH), has been through the revisions process – line and copy edits are still to come.

I turned in the second manuscript, Surrender of a Siren (SOAS), at the end of February. It’s been accepted, and I’ve been chatting with my editor about it. I’m expecting a revision letter sometime … Read More »

A romantic hero, no matter how flawed, should always be willing to run into a burning building to rescue a basket of kittens.
~Teresa Medeiros

Okay, so I have been a wee bit stalled on the novel-in-progress, due to the rethinking and refocusing issue I mentioned last post. And I really need to just plunge back into it this weekend and make a big leap ahead in word count.

I’ve set a goal: 7200 words in 72 hours. Quite realistic, if I focus. So by 8 p.m. PST on Monday, I must write 7200 new words on this manuscript.

And now I need some external motivation, to make things interesting. The other day, a friend said goodbye to a sweet, much loved kitty. And this has had me thinking a lot about my own two kitties who passed away in recent years. So in honor of them all, if I make my goal, I get to donate $72.00 to Kitten Rescue, a local SoCal nonprofit (unsurprisingly) dedicated to rescuing kittens and cats from local shelters.

If I do not make my goal, I have to donate that $72.00 to an organization I despise. I’ll tell a few people privately to keep myself honest, but I won’t name it here for fear of offending anyone (or inviting flame). Suffice it to say, I believe this organization to be a true force of Eeeeevil. And I would hate giving them 72 cents, let alone 72 of my hard-earned dollars. Plus, how … Read More »

Well, the CM-TD-IC critique trio is back from our whirlwind tour of Las Vegas, which was anchored in our lovely suite at the Venetian. We ate, we drank, we gambled away all of $20. (No high roller upgrades for our party, sadly.) We saw Phantom – squee! We toasted Courtney Milan’s Golden Heart final at a very, very fine restaurant that serves yuzu cocktails and expertly stroked beef (you’ll have to ask CM about that one).

And we fixed some books. On Saturday, we sat down with a bunch of sticky notes and hashed out Amy’s scare-a-minute plot of her sexy thriller, Black Box Warning. Let me tell you, I get the heebie-jeebies just thinking about that book. It’s so awesome. It has bestseller written all over it. I can’t wait until all of you can read it, too.

Then on Sunday, we did some work on refocusing on my current book, A Lady of Persuasion. I’ve actually written about 34,000 words on it. And about 20,000 of those are now going to have to change. But it’s good. It’s all good. (Can you hear me trying not to stress?)

Vegas – like any tourist destination – is a great place for people-watching. You really see all kinds, from the rich-and-famous to the cheap-and-tawdry. I love the spectacle, the excess of it all – but I really get itchy in the casinos. Part of that is from all the smoke. And part of it is because gambling just … Read More »

So this weekend, we’re having a CP summit in Vegas, baby! Woot!

And as part of the festivities, we’re going to see Phantom of the Opera at the Venetian. I have never seen Phantom, so I’m psyched. But I know it means I’ll be singing it for weeks and weeks to come. Showtunes are mental peanut butter, aren’t they? They just stick in there forever. I saw Les Mis for the first time when I was in high school, and I think I still know good parts of that musical by heart. If anyone’s interested, we can have a sing-off in SF:

Before I became bizarrely shy, I used to sing in front of people, back in the day. (By this, I mean in high school concerts and church choirs and stuff – nothing actually good or impressive.) Now I just sing around my house, and in the shower – but it’s still those same songs. My go-to showtune is the song “Sailor of My Dreams” from the little-known and less-performed screwball musical Dames at Sea. I was in a civic theater production of it in high school (although I did not have this, or any, solo). It’s the dippiest song ever, but it is in my brain like peanut butter:

Side note: How fun is You Tube?

So, fess up. What do you sing in the shower? Which songs are permanently embedded in your gray matter?… Read More »

Was it really less than a year ago we were still hearing “Historicals are dead”? On this week’s New York Times bestseller list, 4 of the top 20 mass market paperbacks in the country are historical romances. (And 2 of those 4 are Ballantine releases – woot!) A few weeks ago, Victoria Alexander’s The Perfect Wife was number one on that list.

It’s a good time for historicals. Any theories why? (Despite, of course, the general awesomeness of the subgenre.) I’m guessing the recent success of books and films like The Other Boleyn Girl and the Jane Austen marathon on Masterpiece Theatre are part of the reason. Period romance is doing well, in all media. I only hope the trend doesn’t fade before mid 2009!

But speaking of future historical romance authors who’ll help keep it healthy–

Some squeeing is overdue.

First, for Courtney Milan, who is now not only a Golden Heart finalist, but a double finalist in the Chicago North RWA Fire & Ice Contest! Yep, she is 2 of the 3 finalists. Her odds look good. 🙂

And second, for Jackie Barbosa, (and former fanlitter Guavaln) who has some very, very exciting news today on the Manuscript Mavens blog!

SQUEEEEEE!… Read More »

Yikes. This has been a crazy-busy week. At the end of which, I have accomplished…nothing that can be quantified. Virtually zero forward progress on ALOP, and my taxes still aren’t even started. Ack. Ack. Ack.

But I feel a lot better than I did last Tuesday, which is good. Some weeks give us progress that isn’t precisely measurable, but important nonetheless.

And I found some time in there to watch a little basketball.

I just love the NCAA tournament. I’m from Indiana, and so a certain amount of basketball appreciation is required. But the reason I love March Madness is less about the basketball, and more about watching a bunch of men–players, coaches, fans–publicly display a whole range of emotion: courage, determination, exuberance, loyalty, heartbreak. It’s just riveting.

There’s no tomorrow in a single-elimination tournament; it’s win or go home. And for a lot of these guys, this is the end of their basketball career. As the final buzzer nears, it’s like the world is on the line in every shot. It’s all about those last-second miracles, like Mario Chalmers’ shot to tie the championship game for Kansas.

But mostly, I’ll admit it–I watch to see the guys cry when they lose. There are so few events at which it’s socially acceptable for a big, strong guy to just break down and cry. Sweating your heart out in the NCAA tournament only to lose at the last second is one of them, I guess.

Is there a topic here? Hmmm…… Read More »

April Fool’s.
Well, I am giving up blogging for the day.

Thank you so much to everyone who clicked over to Romance Bandits to say hi yesterday – it was so great to have so many friends in one “place”, and the Banditas were wonderful hostesses. I’ve been really bad lately about making rounds to all of your blogs. So today I decided to just concentrate on getting around to as many friends’ blogs as I can. It may take me a few days, but I’ll do it!

I’m even disabling comments on this post, so I won’t come back and recheck it.

Thanks again everybody, you’re the best!… Read More »

With the Banditas!

I’m being interviewed by Anna Campbell today over at Romance Bandits. Drop in for the chance to win some Amazon bucks!… Read More »

Latebreaking news –
Please join the SQUEE chorus for the following FanLit alums who are Golden Heart finalists!
Courtney Milan (Historical, Breath of Honor)
Pamela Bolton-Holifield (Regency Historical, Lost in Love)
Darcy Burke (Regency Historical, Glorious)
Liese Sherwood-Fabre (Strong Romantic Elements, Heads Up, St. Anthony)

And the following FanLit pubbed author participants who are RITA finalists:
Anna Campbell (a double final!! in Regency Historical for Untouched and Claiming the Courtesan)
Laura Lee Gurhke (Historical, And Then He Kissed Her)
Toni Blake (Single Title, Tempt Me Tonight)
Julia Quinn (Regency Historical, The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever)
Shana Galen (Historical, Blackthorne’s Bride)

I hope those lists keep growing!
And congratulations to everyone who entered this year – being eligible to enter the GH is an accomplishment in and of itself.
San Francisco is going to be awesome!

So last weekend, I came down with a nasty migraine. Once some meds had started to kick in, and the pain dulled to the point where I could better tolerate the flickering light of the TV than I could cope with my own boredom, I flipped channels and found The Sound of Music playing on cable. Ah, what better to soothe an aching cranium than the sweet voices of the Von Trapp children?

But something strange happened as I watched the movie for the umpteenth time since my own childhood – for the very first time, I found myself sympathizing with the Baroness. I … Read More »