Love Is In The Air - The Cerritos Library

A day of romance at the gorgeous Cerritos Library! There's nothing better than spending an afternoon with fellow authors, Barbara McCauley, Maureen Child, Sandra Paul and Patricia Thayer having Tea and delicate sandwiches and speaking on a panel in the gorgeous Skyline Room! I've never seen a more amazing library, from the gorgeous outside fountains, beautiful architecture both inside and out, the wide panel aquarium in the entry, the computer rooms, special children's library, works of art and much more. My pics will try to capture the event, where five authors and our wonderful moderator, Louzana Kaku had a great time speaking about romance, our loves and passions and then answering questions and signing our books. I felt truly honored to have been invited to participate. Special thanks to Padmini Prabhakar and all the Friends of the Cerritos Library for making us feel so welcome. Thank you!!

My good friend, Tanya Hanson and me at "Butterfly" fountain And a dolphin fountain!


I'm in great company! Authors seated from left to right, Lou Dair, Author and Moderator, Barbara McCauley, Sandra Paul, Pat Thayer and standing with me, Maureen Child.

The beautiful Skyline Room, three floors up, overlooking the city of Cerritos.




My fab new agent, Kelly Mortimer with the Mortimer Literary Agency joined the Tea and lent her support. We concluded the event with a booksigning. A thoroughly enjoyable day in Cerritos!

Pink Heart Society and Contest!

I'm guest blogging today on with the Pink Heart Society. Hope you can join in and add your comments on hunky Western heroes, those rough and tumble cowboys of the old west. Got some great pics up there too. I'd love to see you there. www.pinkheartsociety.blogspot.com/

Also, we'll be picking three winners for my 2006 From the Heart Contest on September 30th. Be sure to enter. Just a week left!!

Gainfully Employed Again!

I knew the moment I blogged about the waiting game, I'd hear from my editor. It's seems TPTB want me to write two westerns as well as the anthology I was offered. So, now, not only am I gainfully employed again, but crazily so, since all the stories, that's Bodine's Bounty, the "blind" book, meaning I have no clue what that'll be about, and the anthology are all due before Aug 2007! Lots of writing for me, planting myself down in the chair every day and no vacation for me until I finish the first book.

I'll miss perusing the sites of my friends, reading other blogs, playing online poker (wink) and reading most of all. But I'll be doing what I love to do and that's writing my stories. So, who's complaining? Not me.

I'll leave you with this. Please read, it's very important:

Just a word of warning.................
I don't how many of you shop at Sam's Club or Costco, but this may be
useful to know. I became a victim of a clever scam while out shopping.
This happened to me and it could happen to you!!

Here's how the scam works: Two seriously good-looking 23-year-old
well-built guys come over to your car as you are packing your shopping
in the trunk. They both are shirtless and start wiping your windshield
with a rag and Windex, with their highly-defined chest muscles and
rock-hard abs exposed. It's impossible not to! look. When you thank them
and offer them a tip, they say 'No' and instead ask you for a ride to
another Sam's Club or Costco.

You agree and they get in the back seat. On the way, they start talking
dirty about what they want to do to you. Then one of them climbs over
int! o the front seat and begins kissing your neck and begs you to pull
over so he can make love to you!! While this is going on the other guy
steals your purse!!

I had my purse stolen last Tuesday, Wednesday, twice on Thursday, again
on Saturday, and also yesterday and most likely tomorrow.

(Couldn't resist, isn't that funny?)

Playing the Waiting Game

It's probably the hardest thing for a writer to do, whether published or unpublished. Wait. Yes, I've sent in two proposals to my editor. She in turn, has sent everything to the senior editor who has the final word. So, what does a writer do while waiting to hear if her proposals are accepted?

Well, I could play.:) And I admit I'm guilty of that sometimes. I don't spend as much time writing as I ususally do, but I am glued here in my computer chair anyway. I catch up on emails, check out different romance sites, read excerpts, enjoy a game or two of poker. I spend a great deal of time promoting my books, doing chats, guest blogging and visiting my friends' websites and blogs. But, after a while, all the waiting gets old and my fingers itch to hit the keyboard and write my stories.

So, I start another story. One, I fully plan to submit to my editor. It takes a lot of thought, plotting and sometimes, I'll write only one page for that day. But it's writing, it's the beginning of something I fully intend to complete and it's what I have to do. I have to write. This may be difficult for some who doesn't write to understand. But more than I have to write, I can't NOT WRITE. There's a difference. So, this week I decided to develop another story for Desire. It's going well and when it goes well, it's thrilling.

I can get myself in big trouble, because if I SELL everything I'm WAITING on, I could conceivably have four books to write in one year. I've done it, barely, once before, but not stories with the scope and difficulty I have in mind. And I vowed never to do it again. So, do I hope for a rejection? NEVER. I'll find a way, but odds are I won't have that problem. One book is already sold, I'm waiting on approval of the synopsis so I can start the story, the other is a single title contemporary, something new that I've tried which is "iffy". Yet another, is the one I'm hoping to hear about soon, my bounty hunter western. And the one I'm writing now, won't be ready to send off for several weeks.

So there you have it. The craziness of the writing world! It's famine, then maybe too big a feast!

So, after I blog and write a page or two today what will I do with the last days of summer upon us?

Go to the beach!

But I'll be plopped back in the computer chair tonight.
It's what I do.

September 11th

Well, it's THAT day again. And five years ago today we all saw how evil works. But I won't talk about that today.

Today I want to honor all the men and women who have lost their lives. To say a prayer and to keep good thoughts for their families five years later. And I want to thank the men and women in uniform, whether it be police, firefighter, soldier and many more who take it upon themselves to protect us from the crazy fanatics in this world. To all of you I say THANK YOU!

Let's hope we never forget.

To Blog or not to Blog?

It's funny but over a year ago, I didn't really have a clue what a blog was. I remember pestering an author who had tried to explain what it was and how it worked to me and to my frustration I found that I'd over-complicated something that was quite easy to understand and do.

Now I find myself on four blogs. The Desire Author's Blog though, is going to be changed to an Author Spotlight, due to the lack of time for most those authors. Let's face it, we're writers and we need to time to write! Right now, I'm between contracts, waiting on the go-aheads on three projects. If all go through, I'll be one busy little camper, that's for sure. If not, then I'm working on a fourth project. But there's always room in my "off season" for blogging.

Our Harlequin Historical Authors now have blog. We're 54 members strong, so there will be lots of happenings, fun stuff, Top Ten lists, recipes, pics of heroes, covers and so much more on that site. Definitely worth a trip over. http://harlequinhistoricalauthors.blogspot.com/

And I just posted on the Digital site Cobblestone Press Blog about my September release, Abducted at the Altar. That site is mainly for erotica and paranormal readers, but they do have room for sexy, romance stories as well. The Way to a Man's Heart is on sale there, a one time Kensington release. http://cobblestonepress.blogspot.com/

Then there's this one, my own home site blog which I try to update every day or so. Is it hard to come up with pearls of wisdom every day? Some days it is and some days it isn't. It depends on your frame of mind, what's happened in your life lately, and what you think would be of interest.

And then there's the blogs you're invited to do from other sites. Though I'm a new member, this blog will be monitored and done periodically from the brand new Pink Heart Society, a site for writers and readers of category romance, complete with a little Dancing Heart, which I have not been able to successfully download! He's cute though.

So yesterday I turned in a Guest Blog on Why I Write Westerns - The American Cowboy, a fun one to write about the hunky heroes from TV and movies which with be available at the Pink Heart Society Blog on September 21st. I'll be on site that day to comment and answer questions on the subject. Hmmm, guess I could have a lot to say about our hunky heroes! http://www.pinkheartsociety.blogspot.com/

My RWA chapter at Orange County has a blog on their site which I've been invited to do a few times. They are often themed blogs, this time I sent in WHAT OCC MEANS TO ME, which may even appear in our award-winning newsletter as well. http://www.occrwa.com/a_slice_of_orange.htm

It's almost gotten to the point where I writer could be behind the eight ball, if he/she doesn't blog, they've become so common and expected. It's just another way to reach out to the writing community, to keep in touch, to communicate our thoughts on a regular and active basis.

So for me, as long as these fingers keep hitting the keys and the brain doesn't fry, I'll choose to blog. :)

TOP TEN HISTORICAL ROMANCES!

Hey, it's always nice to make a TOP 10 list.

Here's a list that includes many of my friends and yours truly! The current top 10 bestselling historical romances at e-harlequin.

Top 10 Historical Romances

1. An Unexpected Pleasure by Candace Camp
2. Stay for Christmas by Judith Stacy and Victoria Bylin and Elizabeth
Lane
3. The Rake's Proposal by Sarah Elliott
4. The Inconvenient Duchess by Christine Merrill
5. My Lady English by Catherine March
6. The Rebellious Debutante by Meg Alexander
7. Maid of Honor by Paula Marshall
8. Mistaken Mistress by Margaret McPhee
9. Abducted at the Altar by Charlene Sands
10. The Gladiator's Honor by Michelle Styles