Hi everyone,
Sorry it's been so long since I posted. I know I say that a lot, but you guys keep checking back and I appreciate that! Big news yesterday from my agent: we sold my book See You Next Time with an option for two more, again to Deb Werksman at Sourcebooks. Here's some info about the book:
See You Next Time
Everybody loves a hero. That's the problem.
Hero pilot Cole Langston is learning to live with—and enjoy—his newfound fame and the rabid female attention that comes with it until a lucky punch knocks some sense into him and opens his eyes to true love.
When his copilot suffers a heart attack in flight, Cole lands the jetliner in a blizzard and revives the stricken captain. Catapulted to national hero status, Cole has more women vying for his attention than he knows what to do with. They all have one thing in common: they try without success to bring this happy-go-lucky pilot down to earth. Then comes an airport altercation, a punch to the face, and the lovely Olivia—a shy, timid artist who does what no other woman has ever managed to do: steal Cole's well-protected heart. With women coming on to him everywhere they go, Olivia struggles to believe that Cole is ready for a committed relationship. His biggest problem is getting rid of all his extra ladies before the only one he wants figures out that she's one of many.
My editor is saying Spring 2011 release, but we're hoping for something sooner so there won't be two years between books. I'll definitely keep you posted!
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Saturday, October 17, 2009
What's Up With Squeamish Men?
As my cousin David would say, I "took" a surgery this week. After years of horrible monthly events that led to at least two days on the sofa and more Advil than any human should ingest on a regular basis, I finally let the doctor do something about it in an effort to prevent more drastic hysterectomy-like measures. The surgery itself was no big deal, but all the drugs made me really sick for a couple of days. Three days later, I'm still tired but on the mend.
What I've found amusing since the surgery is the reaction of men who hear you had surgery to deal with "the girl parts." They'll start off by politely asking, what did you have done? To which I reply, girl stuff. The hands immediately go up, the international sign of SAY NO MORE. I find this so funny! I mean, for one thing, do they remember they all once LIVED inside the uterine vessel? Not to mention they've spent much of their adult lives trying to get a certain part of themselves as CLOSE to said vessel as humanly possible. So why all the squeamishness? I've decided the girl parts are only appealing to them when they are functioning properly. Any indication of malfunction is a signal to them to RUN as far and as fast from the trouble as they can.
My husband is definitely the exception to this rule. As always, he wanted every detail. This is the guy who begged to be allowed to watch two C-sections. If possible, he'd have been in the gallery with a box of Junior Mints watching this week's proceedings if they would've let him. My friend Debby puts it best: He ain't right.
What I've found amusing since the surgery is the reaction of men who hear you had surgery to deal with "the girl parts." They'll start off by politely asking, what did you have done? To which I reply, girl stuff. The hands immediately go up, the international sign of SAY NO MORE. I find this so funny! I mean, for one thing, do they remember they all once LIVED inside the uterine vessel? Not to mention they've spent much of their adult lives trying to get a certain part of themselves as CLOSE to said vessel as humanly possible. So why all the squeamishness? I've decided the girl parts are only appealing to them when they are functioning properly. Any indication of malfunction is a signal to them to RUN as far and as fast from the trouble as they can.
My husband is definitely the exception to this rule. As always, he wanted every detail. This is the guy who begged to be allowed to watch two C-sections. If possible, he'd have been in the gallery with a box of Junior Mints watching this week's proceedings if they would've let him. My friend Debby puts it best: He ain't right.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Living La Vida Mediocre
My husband Dan and I have a running joke with my friend Dawn. She is one of my oldest and best friends, and during the time I dated Dan, she was my roommate. The two of them have always been buddies. A few years ago, in a moment of supreme misguidedness on her part Dawn told me—IN FRONT OF DAN—that I got one of the good ones. I'm sure some of you are saying, awwww, isn't that nice? Well, if that's your reaction, you aren't married to one of the good ones! If you are, you know what I know: he'll never let me FORGET that I'm married to one of the good ones once he's been TOLD by a WOMAN who is not his WIFE that he is one of the good ones. You with me?
Okay, ladies, think about this for a minute. One of your best friends, who has had some experience with a few of the bad ones, gives your husband that kind of compliment right to his face. Say it with me now: Noooooooo! It's a violation of the supreme girlfriend code of conduct, and I've never let her live it down. Sadly for me, HE has never let EITHER of us forget it!
On a recent Saturday morning—before coffee—I was talking to him (he would call it badgering) about something or other, and he reminded me that I'd gotten one of the good ones. It was 9:15 on a Saturday morning! I emailed her to let her know her special brand of magic was once again at work in my life! I teasingly tell her all the time that she's lucky I still talk to her. Dan takes issue with the word "lucky" in that statement. On a recent night out with my high school friends, of which Dawn is one, I discovered an envelope in my purse with $20 and a note to buy the girls a drink from "one of the good ones." Do you see what I'm dealing with?
Last week, I changed plans to accommodate something he wanted to do. When I pointed out to him that I been amazingly thoughtful on his behalf, I reminded him that HE got one of the good ones. Oh no, he says, you are not allowed to give that title and neither am I. Only Dawn has that power. So he appealed to her and was granted her approval to refer to me as one of the good ones. But then it hit me: a lot of responsibility and expectations come with that title. Did I really want to take that on? In the end, I declined the promotion to one of the good ones and decided to continue my nearly 17-year run as one of the mediocre ones.
There is, after all, only so much room in the house the GOOD one and HIS ego! What about you? Are you one of the good ones or one of the mediocre ones?
Okay, ladies, think about this for a minute. One of your best friends, who has had some experience with a few of the bad ones, gives your husband that kind of compliment right to his face. Say it with me now: Noooooooo! It's a violation of the supreme girlfriend code of conduct, and I've never let her live it down. Sadly for me, HE has never let EITHER of us forget it!
On a recent Saturday morning—before coffee—I was talking to him (he would call it badgering) about something or other, and he reminded me that I'd gotten one of the good ones. It was 9:15 on a Saturday morning! I emailed her to let her know her special brand of magic was once again at work in my life! I teasingly tell her all the time that she's lucky I still talk to her. Dan takes issue with the word "lucky" in that statement. On a recent night out with my high school friends, of which Dawn is one, I discovered an envelope in my purse with $20 and a note to buy the girls a drink from "one of the good ones." Do you see what I'm dealing with?
Last week, I changed plans to accommodate something he wanted to do. When I pointed out to him that I been amazingly thoughtful on his behalf, I reminded him that HE got one of the good ones. Oh no, he says, you are not allowed to give that title and neither am I. Only Dawn has that power. So he appealed to her and was granted her approval to refer to me as one of the good ones. But then it hit me: a lot of responsibility and expectations come with that title. Did I really want to take that on? In the end, I declined the promotion to one of the good ones and decided to continue my nearly 17-year run as one of the mediocre ones.
There is, after all, only so much room in the house the GOOD one and HIS ego! What about you? Are you one of the good ones or one of the mediocre ones?
Friday, October 9, 2009
Is "I Love You" the Kiss of Death?
Did I get your attention with that headline? Well, there was a great discussion about this very topic yesterday on Romancing the Blog in which the blogger used Line of Scrimmage as an example of a book she loved. What a lovely way to start the day for the author of Line of Scrimmage! The blogger, Laurie, posed an absolutely awesome question about what happens to a romance novel AFTER the hero says I love you. I enjoyed the comments and the conversation on this topic because it's something we wrestle with as authors. When exactly is the right time for the exchange of I love yous? In Line of Scrimmage, Ryan tells Susannah he loves her in the first chapter when he's trying to convince her to give him and their marriage another chance. I think in chapter 5 Susannah admits that she still loves Ryan, that she never stopped loving him and probably never would, but that doesn't mean she's ready to take him back. Nooooo... In fact, at that point, the story was just getting started.
In Love at First Flight, Michael tells Juliana fairly early on that he's falling for her. He doesn't use the word "love," but it is implied. He was definitely in it to win it before she was. But following a traumatic event, in one of the more romantic scenes I've ever written, Michael says that telling her he loves her seems inadequate because there isn't a word big enough to describe how he feels about her. He is surprised when she tells him she loves him, too. This occurs about halfway through the book, and again A LOT happens after their declaration. In the book I'm currently working on, the hero and heroine say I love you on page 138.
I've decided the reason I like to do it this way, rather than waiting until the end, is because saying those words raises the stakes. It changes the tenor of the relationship and gives the characters something to fight for. The I love yous happen organically in my books. When I feel it, they feel it. Whether it's in the beginning, middle or end, it happens when it happens. I know this will come as a shock to you, but I'm not much for "the rules" in romance. If I was, I wouldn't have written a book about an athlete or another about a hero and heroine who were with other people when they met—two things that are supposedly "not done" in romance. Screw that!
Reading the comments on yesterday's blog, I learned that some readers prefer to get that payoff later in the story—at least in contemporaries. I've been gorging on historical romances lately, and the mid-story marriage is very common in that genre. Often the I love yous come later but not always. What's your preference? Does I love you spell the end of the story for you or does it make you more invested in the couple?
Update on the Couch to 5K workout front: I got through the first week without dying, which is always a good thing. I'll start week 2 tomorrow. I've had two memorable running outings with the kids who are very proud of me, which makes it all worth it! I'll keep you posted.
TV Show Update: Loved last night's Grey's Anatomy. Meredith made me a little misty a couple of times as she dealt with her deadbeat father who needed a lobe of her liver. Lexi was also awesome. I loved when Meredith said she wasn't sure what it's like to have a father but she knows what it's like to have a sister and it's pretty terrific. Lovely. This show has LOST me in recent seasons, but I'm starting to have hope again. Of course just getting to look at Derek makes it worth my time.
Private Practice: LOVE IT. Just. Love. It. All. of. it. Except that weird thing Addison does with her mouth when she's e-mo-tion-al.
Brothers & Sisters: Cautiously interested in the Kitty-has-lymphoma story line. However, I worry that there's just too much damned cancer in people's lives for that to be entertaining to the masses. I do like how she now has her gorgeous husband's attention again. Excellent scene when she ushers Kevin out the door and then blurts out to Robert that she has cancer. Calista Flockhart is excellent.
Glee: Way behind on the TIVO'd episodes, but loving what I've seen so far. Love the music. Is there Glee Club for 40-something mothers? A friend of mine might be interested. I'm just saying...
Friday Night Lights: Please come back soon. Please. I miss Tim Riggins. Who's with me? What are you watching?
In Love at First Flight, Michael tells Juliana fairly early on that he's falling for her. He doesn't use the word "love," but it is implied. He was definitely in it to win it before she was. But following a traumatic event, in one of the more romantic scenes I've ever written, Michael says that telling her he loves her seems inadequate because there isn't a word big enough to describe how he feels about her. He is surprised when she tells him she loves him, too. This occurs about halfway through the book, and again A LOT happens after their declaration. In the book I'm currently working on, the hero and heroine say I love you on page 138.
I've decided the reason I like to do it this way, rather than waiting until the end, is because saying those words raises the stakes. It changes the tenor of the relationship and gives the characters something to fight for. The I love yous happen organically in my books. When I feel it, they feel it. Whether it's in the beginning, middle or end, it happens when it happens. I know this will come as a shock to you, but I'm not much for "the rules" in romance. If I was, I wouldn't have written a book about an athlete or another about a hero and heroine who were with other people when they met—two things that are supposedly "not done" in romance. Screw that!
Reading the comments on yesterday's blog, I learned that some readers prefer to get that payoff later in the story—at least in contemporaries. I've been gorging on historical romances lately, and the mid-story marriage is very common in that genre. Often the I love yous come later but not always. What's your preference? Does I love you spell the end of the story for you or does it make you more invested in the couple?
Update on the Couch to 5K workout front: I got through the first week without dying, which is always a good thing. I'll start week 2 tomorrow. I've had two memorable running outings with the kids who are very proud of me, which makes it all worth it! I'll keep you posted.
TV Show Update: Loved last night's Grey's Anatomy. Meredith made me a little misty a couple of times as she dealt with her deadbeat father who needed a lobe of her liver. Lexi was also awesome. I loved when Meredith said she wasn't sure what it's like to have a father but she knows what it's like to have a sister and it's pretty terrific. Lovely. This show has LOST me in recent seasons, but I'm starting to have hope again. Of course just getting to look at Derek makes it worth my time.
Private Practice: LOVE IT. Just. Love. It. All. of. it. Except that weird thing Addison does with her mouth when she's e-mo-tion-al.
Brothers & Sisters: Cautiously interested in the Kitty-has-lymphoma story line. However, I worry that there's just too much damned cancer in people's lives for that to be entertaining to the masses. I do like how she now has her gorgeous husband's attention again. Excellent scene when she ushers Kevin out the door and then blurts out to Robert that she has cancer. Calista Flockhart is excellent.
Glee: Way behind on the TIVO'd episodes, but loving what I've seen so far. Love the music. Is there Glee Club for 40-something mothers? A friend of mine might be interested. I'm just saying...
Friday Night Lights: Please come back soon. Please. I miss Tim Riggins. Who's with me? What are you watching?
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