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Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Predicting the Winners!

I love three shows. The first one I find extremely motivating and it helps keep me on track with a good diet and exercise. The Biggest Loser!

When I first heard of the show I thought, there's no way I'm watching that! I'd prejudged it without giving it a chance. Now it is by far the one show each week I won't miss.

Before and After

My predictions for The Biggest Loser is and always has been Tara. She's an amazingly strong willed and powerful woman. Mike is doing great and who knows, he just may pull it off.






I also love American Idol for sheer entertainment value. It's fun to watch the performances and see what each of the contestants will sing. My hubby and I critique their songs and most often agree (we both have NO musical talent, btw). Both of us are blown away by Adam Lambert. He's in a class by himself. I think Chris Allen will come in second.

And of course, because I love to dance, I watch and cheer on the celebrities on Dancing with the Stars. I was shocked by last night's elimination. All of the remaining couples are very good and I hated to see Chuck and

Julianne go. Julianne is my favorite of the professionals with her brother Derek, a close second. My prediction is really a toss up between Melissa of The Bachelor fame, who remained despite a bad injury and Giles, the

Frenchman who looks like a professional already and my sentimental favorite, Olympic gymnast, Shawn Johnson. She's too cute for words and so talented!





So there you have it! When I'm not writing, I manage to get these shows in along with Lost, Desperate Housewives and Medium. We are now a 2 DVR family... thank goodness!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Notable Quotes - Western Style

Notable And Quotable - Western Style!



"If he'd just pay me what he's paying them to stop me from robbing him, I'd stop robbing him!"


That's Paul Newman's clever rationalization in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid! Those two lovable bankrobbers had some classic lines and put smiles on our faces.


"Think ya used enough dynamite there, Butch?"


And who could forget this exchange?


Butch Cassidy: Then you jump first.

Sundance Kid: No, I said.

Butch Cassidy: What's the matter with you?

Sundance Kid: I can't swim.

Butch Cassidy: Are you crazy? The fall will probably kill you.


Here's a few more notable quotes from our favorite westerns.
"When you have to shoot, shoot, don't talk." -- The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly


"The public doesn't give a damn about integrity. A town that won't defend itself deserves no help." -- High Noon


"Are you gonna pull those pistols or whistle Dixie?" -- The Outlaw Josey Wales

"There's always a man faster on the draw than you are, and the more you use a gun, the sooner you're gonna run into that man." -- Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

"People scare better when they're dying." (Henry Fonda, Once Upon a Time in the West) (1)

"If God didn't want them sheared, he wouldn't have made them sheep." (Eli Wallach, The Magnificent Seven)

"I come close to killing you a couple of times when we were younger. It saddens me I didn't." (John Wayne, McLintock)

"Since you haven't learned to respect your elders, maybe you'll learn to respect your betters!" (John Wayne, Big Jake)

"Men are gonna get killed here today, Sue, and I'm gonna kill 'em. " (Kevin Costner, Open Range)

See if you can guess who said this:
1."A cows nothing but a lot of trouble tied up in a leather bag."

A. Gene Autry

B. Clint Eastwood

C. John Wayne

D. Steve McQueen


2. What movie did this quote come from?
"Man's got a right to protect his property and his life, and we ain't lettin' no rancher or his lawman take either.


A. Open Range

B. High Noon

C. Stagecoach

D. Quigley, Down Under


3. What female star said this, ""If you weren't the Sheriff, I'd call one."


A. Maureen O'Hara

B. Raquel Welch

C. Sharon Stone

D. Dale Evans


So, do you have a favorite line from a movie, TV show or book? And who's your favorite all-time notable quotable western star?




Answers:
1. C (John Wayne in "The Cowboys" 2. A (Robert Duvall in "Open Range") 3. B (Raquel Welch in "Hannie Caulder")

Monday, April 20, 2009

How Koala's Stay Cool





Since it's nearly 100 degrees here in Southern California, I thought this appropriate! Even koalas need relief from intense heat!

Thanks to my friend Debbie for passing this along!








Kinda cool!

Friday, April 17, 2009

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Today's the Day


I'm blogging on our brand new Desire Blog at Eharlequin!
Stop on by and say hello!

And have you signed up yet for the Eharlequin newsletter?
It's on the Sidebar here. They have books for 76% off!
You can't beat that!

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Silhouette Desire Blog starts on Monday!


Come and meet us!


22 Desire authors have come together to form the Desire Blog on Eharlequin. Maureen Child will be launching our site and I'll be blogging on Tuesday, Leanne Banks will blog on Wednesday and so on. Each day, you'll meet a different author!


Please stop by and say hello.

We'll be having fun giveaways all week and hope you'll post a comment.

On Tuesday I'll be giveaway my entire Suite Secrets Series, that's 3 books to one lucky commentor!



Bookmark or Favorite this Link!

Friday, April 10, 2009

Couldn't Resist these Easter Keesters. You Have to See This!


Don't you just love these Easter Keesters!!

ALL I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT LIFE I LEARNED FROM THE EASTER BUNNY

Don't put all of your eggs in one basket
Walk softly and carry a big carrot
Everyone needs a friend who is all ears
There's no such thing as too much candy
All work and no play can make you a basket case
A cute little tail attracts a lot of attention
Everyone is entitled to a bad hare day
Let happy thoughts multiply like rabbits
Some body parts should be floppy
Keep your paws off other people's jellybeans
Good things come in small sugarcoated packages
The grass is always greener in someone else's basket
An Easter bonnet can tame even the wildest hare
To show your true colors you have to come out of your shell
The best things in life are still sweet and gooey

Thursday, April 09, 2009

Recession Busting Romance!


There's good news on the horizon for romance!
We're Recession Busting.



POSTED FROM THE NY TIMES:



In a recession, what people want is a happy ending.
At a time when booksellers are struggling to lure readers, sales of romance novels are outstripping most other categories of books and giving some buoyancy to an otherwise sluggish market.

Harlequin Enterprises, the queen of the romance world, reported that fourth-quarter earnings were up 32 percent over the same period a year earlier, and Donna Hayes, Harlequin’s chief executive, said that sales in the first quarter of this year remained very strong. While sales of adult fiction overall were basically flat last year, according to Nielsen Bookscan, which tracks about 70 percent of retail sales, the romance category was up 7 percent after holding fairly steady for the previous four years.

At Barnes & Noble, the country’s largest book chain, where its chief financial officer, Joe Lombardi, recently warned that overall 2009 sales were likely to fall between 4 percent and 6 percent, sales of romance novels are up. And in the first three months of this year Nielsen Bookscan tracked a 2.4 percent rise in romance sales compared with a slight decline in sales of general adult fiction for the same period. Those figures may underestimate the demand for romance, since a significant portion of sales come from retailers like Wal-Mart that are not tracked by Bookscan.

Like the Depression-era readers who fueled blockbuster sales of Margaret Mitchell’s “Gone With the Wind,” today’s readers are looking for an escape from the grim realities of layoffs, foreclosures and shrinking 401(k) balances.

“Given the general dismay and gloominess,” said Jennifer Lampe, a lawyer in Des Moines and avid romance reader who runs a book blog under the pseudonym Jane Litte at dearauthor.com, “reading something like a romance with a happy ending is really kind of a relief.”

Such escapist urges are also fueling sales of science fiction and fantasy, said Bob Wietrak, a vice president for merchandising at Barnes & Noble. Mr. Wietrak said sales of novels with vampires, shape shifters, werewolves and other paranormal creatures were “exploding,” whether they were found in the romance, fantasy or young-adult aisles, where Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series continues to dominate and inspire look-alike books like the House of Night teen novels by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast.

Romance readers are considered among the most loyal fans, sticking to a series or an author once they have grown attached to one. “It’s a very dedicated audience who doesn’t see it as a luxury as much as a necessity,” said Liate Stehlik, publisher of William Morrow and Avon, imprints of HarperCollins Publishers.

The romance genre may also be especially attractive to consumers during difficult economic times because so many of the books are sold in the mass-market format, smaller paperbacks often found on racks at the grocery store or in airport bookshops. These books sell for $7.99 or less, compared with $12 to $15 on larger trade paperbacks.

Romance novels also often appear in discount chains like Wal-Mart or Kmart, where shoppers make impulse buys.
If you’re going to Wal-Mart or Target anyway, you’re more likely to go and pick up a book,” said Ms. Hayes of Harlequin. “And a book is such incredible value in this environment.” Several retailers including Kmart, Wal-Mart and Kroger have been running three-for-$10 or two-for-$5 specials on Harlequin’s new titles.
Romance readers have always tended to buy in much higher volumes than people who read other genres like literary fiction. So even though some romance readers may be cutting back — Sue Grimshaw, the romance buyer at Borders, says people are buying four or five instead of five or six books a week — they are still buying more than readers of other book categories.
Some publishers have seen such strong sales on particular authors that they are willing to test hardcover editions for the first time, even in this market.

New American Library, a division of Penguin Group USA, has published six paperback-only versions of vampire romance novels in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J. R. Ward. Later this month it will publish Ms. Ward’s “Lover, Avenged” in hardcover, with a planned first printing of 125,000. (These numbers are generally known to be exaggerated, but they are a sign of the publisher’s confidence.)

Friday, April 03, 2009

Desire Fans!


Twenty-two of your favorite Desire Authors will be blogging very soon on Eharlequin's website. You'll get a chance to speak with them, learn about their writing lives as well as their personal lives in a fun and informative Blog.

We go LIVE on April 13th!

Details to follow.

Thursday, April 02, 2009

Nora Roberts on Lifetime

Nora Roberts Fan Alert!






Have you seen these Lifetime Movies? I saw Northern Lights and Midnight Bayou already. Coming up next is High Noon. Here's a little more about it.



In the Nora Roberts movie "High Noon," expert hostage negotiator Lieutenant Phoebe McNamara (Emilie de Ravin) juggles her high-pressure career with the demands of raising her young daughter and contending with her agoraphobic mother, Essie (Cybill Shepherd). When Phoebe meets handsome bar owner Duncan Swift (Ivan Sergei), he can’t resist her take-charge attitude and attempts to earn her affections. Though she tries to resist his charms, Phoebe soon realizes no amount of negotiation will keep Duncan at arm’s length. When Phoebe is assaulted by an unknown assailant in her precinct, she can’t help but be deeply shaken.


Here on the west coast these shows have been airing on Lifetime on Saturday nights from 9 to 11 PM. Set your DVR's. They're worth watching!


Isn't Nora an inspiration to all readers and writers?


Wednesday, April 01, 2009

American Idol Choices ... do you Idol?




Do you American Idol?
I have to admit that in the past I've never missed it. But Tuesday and Wednesday nights are so full of my favorite "unwind" shows, that I often have too many to watch and not even space on my DVR to tape them all.


So it's been hit and miss with me. But I do enjoy the singing and the whole process. I've narrowed it down to 2 favorites. The last two weeks I've seen great things from Adam Lambert -- his Elvis look last week when singing Motown, gave me goose bumps! He's very talented and versatile and I think regardless if he wins or loses the top spot as the AMERICAN IDOL, he will still have a great singing career.


I also like Kris Allen. He has a beautiful tone to his voice and last night's performance blew me away!



My other weaknesses on Tuesday night are The Mentalist, Biggest Loser and Dancing With Stars . Don't you hate when they pit your favorite shows up against one another?
I'm not even going to mention losing Life On Mars -- in my opinion, the best written, best acted TV drama on this season. It was cancelled and I've petitioned, along with many others for it's return. If you didn't get to see it this season, you missed something special!







Contest Ending today!

My Suite Valentine's Contest ends today! I'll be posting the winner's name and starting a new contest soon! So check back.

Thanks to all of you who entered. Good luck!