Another Contest, Another Winner!

"Appealing workplaces are to be avoided. One wants a room with no view, so imagination can meet memory in the dark." ~Annie Dillard

Drum roll please...the winner of my January Book-Blog Giveaway is...

LaskiGal! She wins an author-signed copy of Cast in Stone, a beautifully written paranormal romance by Kerry A. Jones.



(LaskiGal, email me at allieb@allieboniface.com so I can get that mailed off to you.)

Congrats, and thanks to everyone who visited my blog and commented all month long. I'll be holding a Valentine's Day contest in a few days, with another fun giveaway, so make sure to stop back and check it out!

Also, I'm a Featured Author over at The Romance Studio for the month of February, and I'd love for you to read my interview when you get a chance. I talk about Lost in Paradise and why I love the main character of that book so much (hint: you'll need some of that trivia to enter the Valentine's Day contest...).

Have a wonderful weekend!!

Happy Friday....and Happy February!

"If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night, I'll bet they'd live a lot differently." ~Bill Watterson

Just a quick heads-up: if you haven't signed up for my electronic newsletter, and you'd like to, there's a little form right over there on the sidebar. I only send them out every other month, and it's usually a brief "what I've been up to with my writing these days." The February one goes out this weekend!

And here's your Friday Feast...

Appetizer
What is your favorite kind of cereal?
Ooh, I'm eating it right now: Quaker Oat Squares - crunchy and good flavored, with fiber and all that good stuff.

Soup
When was the last time you purchased something for your home, what was it, and in which room did it go?
We just bought a new chair for the computer desk in our home office...it is SO much more comfortable than the old one!

Salad
What is the funniest commercial you’ve ever seen?
I'm not a big TV watcher, but I do think that cell phone one with the father talking to the guy who wants to date his daughter is pretty funny ("See? We're both in her Fab Five. I'm right next to you...it's like I'm watching you...all the time.")

Main Course
Make up a name for a company by using a spice and an animal (example: Cinnamon Monkey).
Lavender Lemurs

Dessert
Fill in the blank: I haven’t ______ since ______.
Gone outside without a winter coat since November. I'm already ready for spring!

And here's a funny audio clip, too!

BEST TELEMARKETER PRANK EVER

A Story with a Happy Ending

"A recent government publication on the marketing of cabbage contains, according to one report, 26,941 words. It is noteworthy in this regard that the Gettysburg Address contains a mere 279 words while the Lord's Prayer comprises but 67." ~Anonymous

I thought that quote was sort of interesting...

*****

I'm running late this morning, so just a quick post, because I wanted to show off this AWESOME promotional flyer that Stella Price made for our booksigning in March. It's beautiful, isn't it?




And also, check out this heart-warming story about a rather...um...peculiar dog at our local shelter who found a home. Even if you aren't an animal lover, the pictures themselves are worth a peek...

The Story of Badgee

Writers' Wednesday: An Interview with Jena Galifany

Welcome to another Writers' Wednesday! Today I'm featuring author Jena Galifany.


Hi Jena! Can you tell us about your latest published title?

ShadowsForge 4: The Long Way Home was released November 1, 2007 from Whiskey Creek Press. It is the fourth installment in the ShadowsForge series that follows the rock band on tour. The Long Way Home is the story of Brian Cummings, the drummer, his troubled teen years and how it is affecting him now that he is twenty-six and part of a successful band. Two years went into the writing. It is the most emotional of the series so far.

Wow, sounds like a great story! What advice would you give to new writers just starting out?

I would tell any new writer to keep learning, keep listening to those who have gone before and follow. We will never know it all and we can avoid the problems and pitfalls by taking advantage of the authors and editors that try to share their experiences with us. Keep improving your craft and listen.

So, what do you find most difficult about writing? What do you find most exciting or rewarding?


I sometimes have to work at keeping the middle of the story from sagging a bit but have found that if I have two situations going at once, I can switch off when one starts to droop. Exciting is when a plan comes together. When I figure out just the right way for a situation to be handled or written. I love twists and enjoy putting them in at the last minute. If a reader will finish the book and say, "I didn't see that coming!", that's the reward.

Oh, that's definitely true. Next question: when you write, do you use the computer or compose by hand, oral dictation, or some other method?

It starts out in my head, rolling around for a while until I know the ending. (I write backwards.) I then work out several possible things that would have happened to cause the ending to be the way I want it to be. When I get a few ideas, I make an outline. Once I've reached the beginning, I start the writing, making written notes and typing them out when I get time.

Authors often tell me that they're inspired by movies they've seen. What is your favorite movie? Did it inspire your writing in any way?

My father was a projectionist (he ran the old carbon-arch projectors that were used to show films back before automation) and I saw movies every week and weekend as a child. (Too many to think about!) If I had to name a favorite it would be difficult. How about "The Lake House", A Walk in the Clouds", and "Swashbuckler". There are probably a lot more but I'll go with those for now. After seeing so many less than great movies in my life, it probably had some effect on my desire to writing but I try not to let any one movie bleed too much into my work, copyright issues being what they are. LOL

Now I would love to write a series like "Firefly." I love to write series and love the way Josh Whedon meshed it all together. Fabulous!

What a neat childhood memory! Thanks for being with us today, Jena. And readers, make sure to leave her a comment so she knows you were here. Any last word for the visitors today?

I love to hear from readers, what they think of my work, as long as it is constructive, even if they didn't like something. It helps me to grow as a writer. Here are some places I can be found around the internet:

Jena's Website

Jena's Blog

Jena's MySpace

Hey! I'm Officially an Author!

"The more you earn, the less you keep,
And now I lay me down to sleep.
I pray the Lord my soul to take,
If the tax collector hasn't got it before I wake." ~ Ogden Nash


OK, maybe I've been thinking of myself as a true author for a little while now, but the proof came in the mail yesterday: my 1099 form reporting my royalities from Samhain. Yes, that's right, since I've officially made money on my writing, I have to report those earnings to the IRS!

Lucky me.

Still, I won't complain.

I added a little feature to my sidebar, right at the top: Allie's Appearances. I'll keep a list of any places I might be showing up with books or promotional things, in the monthst to come. It feels a little decadent, but hey, if the IRS thinks I'm a professional, I should act like one, right?

Finally, I think I've made a startling discovery about my writing: I'm not sure I write straight romance. {gasp} I think I might write women's fiction, instead.

I didn't even know what "women's fiction" was, to be honest. But I was doing research for an article I'm writing, and I found some interesting differences between the two genres. Primarily, the difference seems to be that in a romance novel, the love story is the central focus. Everything else in the plot works toward and around that.

But in women's fiction, the story centers on the main character, her struggles and triumphs in her world - which might include romance but also deals with her work relationships, her family, etc. And it may or may not have a happy ending. (Mine do, so far anyway) Here are some other interesting definitions I found:


"Women's Fiction can be commercial (and usually is) or literary; it can be here-and-now contemporary or a multigenerational saga, like Rosamund Pilcher's books. The woman is the star of the story and her changes and emotional development are the subject."


"In women's fiction the heroine's relationship with her family or friends may be equally as important as her relationship with the hero."

So honestly, I think that is what I write. Don't get me wrong: I am a sucker for true love. But I also feel as though I need to explore more than just that, in my novels. Some of the critics who didn't like One Night in Boston thought the hero and the heroine should have gotten together much sooner. If it were a true romance, that might be an accurate criticism. But as I've been re-reading the galley, I realize that the story is more about Maggie trying to come to terms with her past and her present, than getting her into bed with her hero. (Lost in Paradise, on the other hand, I would call more of a true romance novel. I was experimenting.)

I hope that doesn't turn people away from my writing. I would hope that readers will care less about the label and more about what's inside the pages, though I do know that marketing counts for a whole lot.

Still, when I update my website in a few weeks, I think I may shift my "brand" just a bit and go with something like "Allie Boniface, Best-Selling Author of Contemporary Romance and Women's Fiction." (I can say "best-selling" 'cause I was, on the TWRP list for a while...right?)


What do you think?

This Post Has Nothing to Do with Writing

"You don't have to suffer to be a poet. Adolescence is enough suffering for anyone." ~John Ciardi

Yesterday I sat down and opened up the Sunday paper to find this horrific article:

1 Teen Dead, 1 Critical in Fall

One teenager died and another was critically injured when they climbed onto the roof of an elementary school early yesterday morning and fell 33 feet through a domed skylight, police said.

L.B. , 15, and N.M., 18, fell through the skylight around 2:45 a.m. and landed in the gymnasium below at A.S.K.E. School. The fall marked a tragic end to a night of youthful mischief, during which the teens had been drinking alcohol, police said.

Sometime in the early morning hours, [the girl] and three of her girlfriends sneaked out of a sleepover party. They met two boys at the elementary school. Two of the girls, who were not named because of their age, left the group while the others stayed.

The two girls and two boys stacked plastic milk crates, climbed them and then used an air-conditioning unit to hoist themselves onto the roof, police said. L. and M. split from the other two teens. Each group traveled in separate directions on the roof.

After 20 minutes, they called each other on cell phones and decided to meet on the roof. But L. and M. never showed up. Their two friends found the broken, 4-by-4-foot skylight. M. called his friend to say he had fallen and was injured, police said. Foot patterns left on the roof indicate the pair had been sitting on the skylight when it broke.

***
And all I could think was, There but for the grace of God go I.

I mean, we all did something stupid like that when we were kids, didn't we? Sneak out, or drink underage, or break curfew, or meet a boy who was older than we were, or be someplace we weren't supposed to be? One of the police officers at the scene said, "Nothing involved in our investigation shows there were any criminal intentions or attempts to break in...It was just kids being kids, and it's tragic.""

We can make a thousand arguments: that the parents should have known she was sneaking out, that they shouldn't have been drinking, that they were trespassing, etc. I still agree with the cop: it was such a typical teenage thing to do. (Though personally, I don't know if I would have been sitting ON TOP OF a skylight, and I don't know that any amount of alcohol could have kept me outside on a rooftop when it was sub-20 degrees.) Still, I think we're remarkably lucky, most of us, that we get to live through our mistakes and learn from them.

I'm so sad for the kids and their families.

###

In other, unrelated news, did anyone see this article from a couple of weeks ago?

Marriage Annulled After Separated Twins Marry

Twins separated at birth have married each other without realizing they were brother and sister, it has been revealed.

The British couple's marriage has now been annulled by the High Court after judges ruled the marriage had never validly existed.

The identities of the brother and sister and details of how they fell in love and married are being kept secret. Soon after they were born they were separated and adopted by different families.

Neither was told they had a twin and had no idea they were blood relatives until after their wedding.

***

Good God, can you imagine? Yet I also thought, what a perfect twist for a plotline. Truth is definitely stranger than fiction; you can find fodder for stories just about anywhere you look!

The Friends Chain Email

"You can kid the world. But not your sister." ~Charlotte Gray

OK, I know probably everyone out there has gotten one of these "how well do you know your friends" emails. I rarely respond, just because I either (1) don't have time or (2) figure the person who sent it already knows most of the answers.

But today I'm going to post my answers to the latest one right here on my blog, 'cause it was from my sis and she rarely stops by...so this is a reason for her to! (Waving at you, H) Oh, and a happy birthday to my dad, too, since I know he'll read this today!!!

Here you go...


1. What is your occupation? Teacher

2. What color are your socks right now? Navy with light blue flowers - cute, not weird, I promise!
3. What are you listening to right now? "Son of a Preacher Man"

4. What was the last thing that you ate? An English Muffin

5. Can you drive a stick shift? Nope (yeah, I know, if I ever had an emergency and had to drive one, I'd be out of luck...actually I have a story where this happened. Too long to get into here, though, and my parents read this blog, so...)

6. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Red

7. Last person you spoke to on the phone? My husband - he was out doing errands yesterday and wanted to know if he could bring me lunch :)

8. Favorite drink? Depends. Usually water. Sometimes red wine if it's been a long day!

9. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Pro baseball, if the Cleveland Indians are playing

10. Have you ever dyed your hair? Just highlights

11. Pets? 2 cats

12. Favorite food? Dark chocolate

13. Last movie you watched? "Next" (last night - it wasn't very good)

14. What's your Favorite Day of the year? July6 - my anniversary

15. What was your favorite toy as a child? My stuffed Paddington Bear

16. What is your favorite, fall or spring? Spring - rebirth after a cold, dead winter!

17. Hugs or kisses? Hugs

18. Cherry or Blueberry? Blueberry but only if fresh - cooked (warm, mushy) fruit is one of the things I detest most

19. Current living arrangements? A house with my hubby

20. When was the last time you cried? Earlier this week, when I heard Heath Ledger had died.

21. What is on the floor of your closet? Shoes!

22. Favorite smell? Chocolate chip cookies baking

23. What inspires you? My students when they try harder than they realized they could

24. What are you afraid of? Not making a difference in this life

25. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers? Bleu cheese

26. Favorite car? Red, sporty, and lots of horsepower!

27. Favorite cat breed? My mixed breed sweeties

28. Favorite day of the week? Friday after school is out!

29. How many states have you lived in? 3

30. How many countries have you been to? 6

The State of my Writing

"The good writers touch life often. The mediocre ones run a quick hand over her. The bad ones rape her and leave her for the flies." ~Ray Bradbury

It's that time of year when I just sort of put my head down, dig in, and wait for spring to arrive. We've had a string of cold weather here, with nights in the single digits and days with the temp below 25 and the wind chill below 10. Everything's gray (my car most of all - yuck). The sun hasn't been shining too much. With the writers' strike, there's nothing good on television.

The bright side?

I've been reading a lot more. I know, I should be reading a lot anyway. But it's hard during school. I read my students' awkward papers and don't have time for much else. With no TV at nights, though, I've found new motivation :) Right now I'm about half-way through The Red Tent and enjoying it. It's quite interesting, and different: historical fiction, I guess. It's the story of Dinah/Jacob/Esau/Leah/Rachel from the Bible but focuses almost solely on the women's roles and points of view.

I've also been reading and reviewing not only for LASR but also for Black Lyon Publishing (you can see one of my review clips here). That's been fun.

I've also been actively working on marketing myself these last few months, mostly through writing free-lance articles for a couple different sites. In fact, I think I'm going to ask my webmaster (webmistress?) to add a page to my website just for article links. (Oh - and here's one I wrote for LASR this week. If you're an author, you might want to check it out).

Also on the marketing front, I've been working with Stella Price and some other sort-of local authors in setting up author parties (like the one last weekend) and book signings. In fact, I just marked the date for my first official signing: May 30th! It's the week after both my books come out in print. Exciting - even though many authors say signings are not the best way to spend time...we'll see.

Finally, I've been working through the galley for ONE NIGHT IN BOSTON - this is basically a line-by-line proofread of the manuscript to make sure there are no typos or words I want to change before it goes to the printer next month. It's rather tedious but it's allowing me to look at that book again. And that's been fun.

I sent back my signed contract to Samhain for ONE NIGHT IN MEMPHIS and hope next month to work through edits on my draft of SUMMER'S SONG (anyone out there volunteering to read it for me??). I haven't decided yet where I'm going to submit it...I had originally thought The Wild Rose Press, and I still might. But I looked at their contract again, and they pay less in royalties for both electronic and print versions than Samhain (I didn't really notice last year, I was so excited to sign a contract with anyone). So I may bite the bullet and query print publishers or agents. We'll see.

And that was probably much longer than you wanted to read on a Saturday! Time for me to go cuddle under some blankets and do some more reading.

Happy weekend!

One More Look

"I have long feared that my sins would return to visit me, and the cost would be more than I could bear."
~from "The Patriot"


Marianne told me yesterday that I forgot to include a video from "The Patriot," which of course Heath Ledger was also in. I didn't forget, really, I just couldn't find one I liked with him in it. I still wish I could find one with him actually speaking, but here's a fanvid with background music that's just too damn heartbreaking. So, one more tribute for the guy who died too young:



And now for something slightly more cheerful to end the work week, here's your Friday Feast:

Appetizer
How many times per day do you usually laugh?
Wow, I have no idea...I never stopped to count! Maybe 20? (I teach high school students, so it might be a lot more than that...I laugh at them every chance I get)

Soup
What do your sunglasses look like?
Over-sized, squarish, dark...I like going for the whole "important actress" look (kidding)

Salad
You win a free trip to anywhere on your continent, but you have to travel by train. Where do you go?
Through the Rocky Mountains, of course. Gorgeous! I think there's actually a train trip by Amtrak that does this...I would love to take it someday.

Main Course
Name one thing you consider a great quality about living in your town/city.
It's small enough that when you're on vacation, the local police will come by and check your house twice/day.

Dessert
If the sky could be another color, what color do you think would look best?
Hmm...maybe that awesome pink and orange that a really great sunset offers. Of course, we'd get used to that after awhile too, just like with the blue, but for a while it would be cool.

Heath Ledger: Gone Too Soon

"Working with Heath was one of the purest joys of my life. He brought to the role of Ennis Del Mar more than any of us could have imagined — a thirst for life, for love and for truth, and a vulnerability that made everyone who knew him love him. His death is heartbreaking." ~Ang Lee, Director

Well, unless you've been living under a rock the last couple of days, you know that actor Heath Ledger died on Tuesday, under somewhat strange circumstances. I hope it wasn't suicide. I even hope it wasn't an overdose of an illegal substance. I'd like to live in my little idealistic world and imagine that he just took the sleeping pills the doctor prescribed and something went weird with his heart.

The autopsy didn't reveal anything conclusive, which means anothe 10 days for a full toxicology report, I guess. I suppose we'll know all the details then; they'll be splashed across every tabloid in the grocery store.

It's just so sad. Unbelievable, too. Such a loss, such potential, and so young for it all to end, just 28. I mourn for his 2-year old daughter and for his ex-fiancee, Michelle Williams.

Here are a few of his best movie moments, in my opinion. He will be missed, that's for certain. RIP.

Writers' Wednesday: An Interview with Jack Adler

"Down, down, down into the darkness of the grave
Gently they go, the beautiful, the tender, the kind;
Quietly they go, the intelligent, the witty, the brave.
I know. But I do not approve. And I am not resigned."
~Edna St. Vincent Millay

OK, I know today is Writers' Wednesday, but first I have to offer up a cyber-space moment of silence for Heath Ledger, who passed away yesterday. 28 years old and a damn good actor...what a loss. Full tribute here tomorrow~

***
Now, help me welcome Jack Adler: author, playwright and screenwriter living in North Hollywood, California. He's the author of Splendid Seniors, an anthology featuring biographical sketches of 52 remarkable people who made notable achievements after the age of 65. He is also the author of five nonfiction books: Consumer's Guide to Travel; There's A Bullet Hole in Your Window; Southern India; Exploring Historic California; and Travel Safety (co-authored); as well as the novels Blackmail High and Parthian Retreat. The Library of Congress selected Travel Safety for translation into Braille.

Hi, Jack! Thanks for being here today. Your book Splendid Seniors sounds intriguing and inspiring. What advice would you give new authors, just starting out in the journey to publication?

I'd advise any writer to develop their own style,not copy or mimic any other writer; and to make suretheir material -- no matter what other flaws it mayhave or not -- is tightly written. Use strong verbs,cut down on adverbs, and support adjectives.

Definitely good advice. What do you like to read? Any favorite authors?

I like historical fiction and nonfiction, and mysteries. Elmore Leonard is one of my favorite authors.

From looking at your bio and background, it certainly looks as though you've been successful writing in many different lengths and genres. That's exciting! Any final words for readers today?

Always struggle to do good work, and then make it even better. Getting recognized through publication, and possibly good reviews, is always gratifying.

Terrific advice ~ thanks! Readers, want to know more about Jack Adler or his works? Visit his publisher's page. And thanks for stopping by today!

Atonement

"I love you. I'll wait for you. Come back. Come back to me. " ~Keira Knightley, in Atonement

Man, I was disappointed in this movie. I went to see it yesterday, on my day off from school, and from the movie trailer and the Golden Globe for Best Picture and the rave reviews, I expected to be blown away.

I wasn't.

If you watch the trailer, you'll know the "secret" - it isn't really difficult to figure out. The younger sister sees "something," is a typical 13 year old brat, and lies to her parents and the police about what she thinks she sees. So, okay, I can deal with that, even though the super-suspenseful music throughout the 2-hour film keeps you thinking that maybe there's something you missed, maybe there will be this grand other secret revealed at the very end.

There isn't.

Interestingly enough, the part I found most intriguing was the final scene. I won't give it away, but it is a commentary on why novelists write - and why they write fiction, rather than retell the truth. The truth, and honesty, is boring and predictable and unforgiving and unchangeable, and often hopeless as well. So novelists create different versions of life for their characters, different adventures, and they give their characters a happy ending because life won't.

Not a very uplifting message, perhaps, but the movie isn't uplifting. And some may see that final statement as a negative mark on authors in general, but I found it the most intriguing and honest part of the movie.

Other negatives: The love story isn't fleshed out, and so it's difficult to identify with or feel compassion for either main character when they're torn apart by The Big Lie. The little girl who tells the lie is an interesting character, but she comes across as bratty and unrepentant, even though her atonement is supposed to be the focus of the film. Finally, there's a sweeping war scene on the beach in France, all death and destruction, which is effective but goes on WAY TOO LONG. I was sitting there thinking, "What does this have to do with the rest of the plot?" Not much, as it turns out.

On the bright side, the movie is beautifully shot, with lush landscape, and the one sex scene is hot. (James McAvoy, as the doomed hero, is easy on the eyes, no doubt.) The film also makes a good point about perspective, about how different people view the same event from multiple vantage points. As a result, it's sometimes impossible to find out the "truth," whatever the truth really is.

I give "Atonement" 3.5 stars.

I Have a Dream

"A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom." ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.

Anyone else think it's sort of discouraging how far we haven't come in the last 40 years?

***

Well, I have to give major props to the NY Giants, who pulled out a win over the Green Bay Packers IN Green Bay, last night. Anyone watch the game? It was -4 degrees, with -24 degree wind chill, and those guys were hitting the frozen ground and having a harder and harder time getting up as the game went on. Went into overtime, too...and I was so happy for the NY field goal kicker, who missed 2 at 37 yards, got chewed out by his coach, and then made a 47-yarder to win the game. I was also happy for the NY quarterback, Eli Manning (the famous Peyton Manning's brother, of course), because he's been ripped apart by the media here for most of the season as being sub-par and not up to the challenages of being an NFL quarterback. I always like it when the underdog comes back and shows the naysayers they were wrong!

Of course, I still want the New England Patriots to win the whole thing, just because I think it would be cool for them to make history as the first team to go unbeaten for 19 games in a season/post-season. Yes, I know the Miami Dolphins did it years ago, but they had a shorter season and played fewer games.

***

Since I have today off for the holiday, I'm treating myself to the movie "Atonement" - there's a 10:45 showing for $5.00. Can't beat that! I don't know much except that it has a twist ending and is very sad. So I'll be forgoing the eye makeup and stuffing my pockets full of tissues. I'll give you the report tomorrow...

A Very Very Cold Sunday

"Winter either bites with its teeth or lashes with its tail." ~ Anonymous

Brr! They promise single digits overnight, and they were right (for once!). It's crawled up to a blistering 14 degrees and is supposed to top out at 17 for the day. So I'll be staying inside for most of it...

Last night's author party was fun! Not as many people showed up as we originally thought, but it was still cool to hang out and talk books. One women drove 2 hours to come chat with romance authors - now that's dedication! (Or a really devoted sense of stalking, as she joked). I would definitely do it again - I think the idea is a good one.

Update on the Winter Reading Challenge: I finished Carrie Pilby a few days ago. You can read my thoughts on it here.

I'm currently finishing up a book review for another small press (ideally they'll put a clip from my review along with my name on the book cover itself, which would be nice promotion), and then I have a few choices as far as what I want to read next. I'll probably review one for LASR, but I also have a stack of Tori Phillips historicals next to my desk (I found all 6 in the "Cavendish Chronicles," on Ebay...I'm so excited!). Then The Red Tent is sitting patiently next to my bed as well, and I've been wanting to read that one for a while.

Hmm...we'll see what mood strikes me later today!

All Sorts of Excitng News for a Saturday!

"If there's a book you really want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." ~Toni Morrison

So I've been really confused the last few days, because Marianne and Judy of LASR kept leaving these really cryptic comments on my posts about books..and reading...and needing bookshelves...now I know why. Apparently I won their January giveaway contest and a whole bunch of autographed books! Very, very exciting!! Now I just have to find the time to read them...

Thanks, guys!

***

So you'll remember that I was stressing about the telephone interview I did with a reporter from my hometown newspaper. I was worried about what I'd said (and forgotten to say)...but I just got a copy of the article/interview yesterday, and it turned out great! Of course, you can't read it online, because it's a small town and the paper's website only features the front page and lead stories (maybe one day I'll be there!), but she did a good job and was pretty much true to everything I said :)

My advice to other authors out there: send out press releases and do as many kinds of contact/promo/interviews as you can, especially when it doesn't cost you very much. Speaking of which...

***

Tonight I am going to a "private author party" - sort of like a Tupperware party, only we're selling our books rather than food storage containers. It's being organized by Stella Price, the author I met back at the December Book Fair in NYC (who, it turns out, lives about 30 minutes from me), and there will be 4 authors there total, and about 15-20 guests. I'm looking forward to it, even though I'm a little nervous as well. I'm obviously not "selling" my books, since they aren't in print yet, but one of the other authors emailed me tips on making excerpt booklets for both One Night in Boston and Lost in Paradise, and I'm going to give those away. I'm hoping that if people read and enjoy the first chapter, they'll want to buy the whole thing!

Not exactly sure what to expect, but I'm keeping an open mind. Hey, I figure the more people who hear my name, the better, right? So I'll give you the lowdown, tomorrow...make sure to check back!

A 3-Day Weekend AND a Snow Delay!

Wow, nice way to start the 3-day weekend, with a 2-hour weather delay. I guess there's some slick stuff outside (I should probably look before I go careening off to work in a couple of hours)...been a weird sort of winter so far, what with more ice and sleet than rain. Guess we can thank global warming for that.

Anyway, here's the Friday Feast - enjoy!

Appetizer
What is your favorite beverage?
It really depends on the moment:

Morning: Starbucks Nonfat Latte
Evening: A glass of good Chianti if it's been a long day
Water every other time

Soup
Name 3 things that are on your computer desk at home or work.
Home:
1. A calendar with all my deadlines for writing and promotional events
2. A cute little sticky note holder with the acronym "BIC, HOK!!" on it (that's "Butt in Chair, Hands on Keyboard" for those who don't write...it means no procrastinating)
3. My Zune with all my favorite music!

Salad
On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being highest), how honest do you think you are?
Maybe a 7? I'm not always completely honest when telling people I love their new haircut or stuff like that. I'd rather preserve their feelings.

Main Course
If you could change the name of one city in the world, what would you rename it and why?
Not the name, but the slogan: Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love. Now, don't get me wrong, I like the city itself, with all its history, and I've spent many weekends there, but the Philly natives are definitely NOT the nicest I've come across. Especially when they're driving. I'd change it to Philadelphia, we're not our brothers' keepers.

Dessert
What stresses you out? What calms you down?
Stress? Too many things on my plate at once. And people at work who don't pull their weight or are too dense to understand something even after you've explained it 5 times.
Calm? Reading, writing, playing the piano, working out. Oh, and see "favorite evening beverage" above.

Roar For Powerful Words

"If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry." ~ Emily Dickinson



Judy tagged me the other day with the Roar for Powerful Words Award (2 tags in 1 week! What is the blogging world coming to?) I liked the questions, so I'm playing.

Here are the rules:

* Link back to the person who tagged you.
* List three things that you believe are necessary to make writing good and powerful.
* Tag five others and comment on their blog informing them that they've been tagged with this award.

In My Mind, Good & Powerful Writing Has All Of The Following Elements:

1. An Original Way With Words ~ The authors I admire most are those who can manipulate language in a way that takes my breath away (to paraphrase Emily Dickinson, who said it best in today's quote). When a line is so perfectly constructed, with the right words and the right tone, when it makes me stop and read it again, aloud, because the cadence and the image is near-perfect, that's powerful writing.

2. A Plot That Turns Pages ~ Even if the language of a story doesn't have finesse, if it has a plot so intense that I can't put it down, the book will usually capture me. Intense doesn't have to mean suspenseful, by the way. It does have to mean original and captivating. It means that every chapter ends with a hook that makes me want to read more. It means that I try and guess where the plot is going, and then I'm pleasantly surprised when I'm wrong.

3. Characters That Captivate ~ I want characters that are so developed that I think about them when I'm not reading the book. I miss them when the story is over. I feel as though they are somehow real people that I have come to know in real life. That's tough to do, but the talented authors succeed. All the little details, from physical description to inner turmoil to relationships with others in the story...in the best stories, they add up perfectly to a person I want to get to know more.

(Now, of course, the challenge is to try and do all that in my own writing!)

I'm not going to tag anyone specifically for this one, but if you want to play, let me know!

Writers' Wednesday: An Interview with Paula Calloway

Welcome to Writers' Wednesday! Today I'm pleased to feature author Paula Calloway, who writes sensual and erotic romance in the genres of fantasy, sci-fi and paranormal. She has a lot more fun information about herself and her writing on her website, so make sure to visit there as well.

Note: Paula will be chatting with readers from 11 am to 9 pm at http://www.ebooklove.com/, this-coming Saturday, to celebrate her newest release. If you like what you see here and want to find out more, make sure to mark that date on your calendar!

Hi Paula! Can you tell us a little about your background?
Born in Pennsylvania and grown in Florida, I call Tennessee home. I still cuddle with my husband. My teenage daughter is an angel who interprets "teenageese" when I ask. One of my nephews lives with us and is an A/B honor roll student. I have five nieces and five nephews from four baby sisters. As is typical with siblings, they all have at least me as an older sister and, on occasion, each other, by their own choosing. You ought to see when they quibble...most flee the area. LOL

Wow! So when did you first begin writing? Was there an event or moment in your life that triggered your desire to write?

I always wrote poetry. In 1991, I endured a dream that would not leave me alone. Haunted for weeks on end by this dark and devastating vision of future earth, I created a web page titled "Nature's Plea" where the dream is revealed (accessible from my home page). It wasn't enough. Two of the characters from that dream came to life and demanded I tell their story. I lived through those dreams on a nightly basis and the only way to get them to leave me in peace was to write them down. Hence, The Cursed Hit and The Blessed Return. These were based on the Y2K theory and postponed when that date slipped past. Now, with a little rewriting and time shifting, I'll adjust any given dates, years and events to work on the 12/21/2012. I haven't stopped writing since.

Can you tell us about your latest writing project or published title?
A Cry in the Night. Oh my heart be still! I entwined my father's love of the old Werewolf with my version of the new Vampire. So many Werewolves in today's stories shift when they want because the one thing that is supposed to rule them has been deemed a mere light in the night sky. Nature's power of full moons, lunar cycles and the tide shifts are forces that should never lose their part in a creature created to work with them. I took the Werewolves of days lost, from times long ago and legends faded and brought them back. Now the Were, the Beast and the Wolves need help. Only one legendary creature has ever been able to tangle with a Beast and survive: vampires. Once known as healers in some ancient realms, they walk the earth and care for the Were who cry out in the night, protect the Wolves lost to the feral side and intercept the hunted the Beast in its bloodlust frenzied search for Human flesh.

How do you go about developing your characters?
Odd as it sounds, they come to life on their own. I might hear a phrase or song or see something in a dream or life and they live. The rest is the Hero and Heroine standing close and telling their story. Occasionally I have to heave a sigh to get them to slow down, but it's worth it. There are times where the Heroine-especially the young, inexperienced one-might drive me insane or moments where the Hero-young and dominant-agitates me, but it's part of them, their ways and the path they walked. I don't create them, they are and they live. I do have to look over my shoulder every now and then because I have this supervising, lurking, muse. He has a nice smile but can be unnerving at the worst of times. Sometimes I think he's what keeps the others in line. Or is he waiting to see who tells what and try to better their story? *shiver*

Oh, very well said. So what advice would you give to new writers just starting out?
Actually, I put together a page with the help of reviewers and editors just for this purpose. I hope it helps. http://www.paula-calloway.com/writingtips.htm

Great resource! Well, what do you find most difficult about writing? What do you find most exciting or rewarding?
Difficult? Editing. Making sure all the little glitches are destroyed.

Exciting? When a reader tells me they like my story. Even more so is the comment one reader gave about Dark Hope and how she enjoyed it so much, she read it again!

What a great compliment! Tricky question, now: How do you balance writing with the rest of your life?
Carefully. There are times where I shut down writing because my family needs or wants me and there are times where they lead me to my desk and make me sit because the energy thrumming in my veins is a story and they can feel it. It is those moments they send me to my desk so I can de-energize. But no matter what, I am always there for them. With a husband, a daughter, a mother, four sisters, five nieces, five nephews and numerous pets, I am always available.

OK, but do you ever suffer from writer's block? If so, what do you do about it?
I have, but not for some time. (Knock on wood.) When writer's block struck years ago, I spent hours on my porch listening to the cascading brook, babbling stream and plunging waterfall that feeds my 3500 gallon pond. With all the soothing sounds of nature, I soon washed away all the interference and returned to writing in only a few short months.

How blissful! Can you describe your writing space for us?
My small desk houses hubby's generous gift of a 3.4 GHz dual processor, 1.5 GHz memory, large non-glare/flat screen, HP Compaq. I don't understand all that, but it does fly. Little yellow stick 'em notes decorate the monitor's left side and bottom. Full page notes stand on the monitor's left and right. A tall left-hand shelf holds a thesaurus, dictionary and various research books, including a Strunk & White Elements of Style. The top desk shelf holds a dragon with a massive sword, a baby dragon, a tiger, a unicorn and a black knight. On the right is a large cage with four parakeets who dance and sing throughout the day. Behind me, the sliding glass door opens and invites in the sound of the backyard waterfalls. A coffee warmer lives a foot from my right hand. Shame I can't find a tea cooler for my right. If I snack while working, I prefer cereal and fruits. The other day, I concentrated on finding an error I knew I saw and reached for a honeycomb. I dipped my fingers in the coffee. :)

I can almost picture that! LOL Thanks for an informative and entertaining interview, Paula!

Readers, remember to check out Paula's website and also join her for an all-day chat and a chance to win one of her books on Saturday, January 19, 2008. (You must be a member of the group to participate, so head on over to join before the 19th and get in on the fun: Click here to join eBookLove)

7 Things You Might Not Know About Allie

"Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather is one of those things that give value to survival." - C. S. Lewis


Emma Sanders tagged me the other day, and since I haven't done one of these in a while, I'll play:
The rules are:
List seven things about yourself

Link to the person who tagged you (see above)

Tag seven new victims, er, friends.

So here's a list of seven things about me:

1. I didn’t get married until I was 30 years old.

2. I can still sing the “50 States” song that I learned in 6th grade. It lists them all in alphabetical order and is quite impressive at cocktail parties LOL (“Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas…”)

3. I studied sign language for 2 years after graduate school and wish I’d continued.

4. I don’t like mustard, mayonnaise, onions, or pickles. As you can imagine, I eat a very naked burger.

5. I have a baby grand piano in my living room that I play daily.

6. I ran a marathon in 1999, in Washington DC, and have no desire to ever physically punish myself like that again.

7. I would go back and live in Shaker Heights, Ohio, in a heartbeat, if my hubby would agree to it. I miss Cleveland :)

So who am I tagging? YOU, if you want to play...let me know!

Rewriting the Romance

The decision to kiss for the first time is the most crucial in any love story. It changes the relationship of two people much more strongly than even the final surrender; because this kiss already has within it that surrender. ~Emil Ludwig

Well, we got a little bit of snow overnight, but definitely not the 6-12" they were predicting! We got a 2-hour delay from school rather than a snow day...

So over the weekend I finished up another article for WOW (their February issue) titled "Romance: It's Not Your Mother's Bodice-Ripper Anymore." (It's a feature article, which means from this one piece I will make just about the same amount of $$ I have made in royalties on One Night in Boston since last August. Oh well.)

My article is, as you would guess, a look at why today's romance is so different from those of 20-30 years ago...and why it should get more respect than it does. In doing some research online, I found this terrific article, that appeared in TIME magazine back in 2003. It's definitely worth a read, though I'll quote a couple of my favorites passages here:

Julia Quinn [author of the Regency romance The Further Observations of Lady Whistledown] isn't who you think she is. For starters, she isn't really Julia Quinn. That's just a pseudonym she chose so her books would be shelved next to those of the best-selling romance writer Amanda Quick. What's more, she's not a little old lady with a dozen cats. Julia Quinn is Julie Pottinger, 33, a smart, ambitious Harvard graduate. Quinn spent two years after college fulfilling her pre-med requirements, then went to Yale medical school. But after two months she dropped out to pursue her true purpose in life: writing romance novels...

Writers like Quinn are reinventing the romance novel for the postfeminist generation. Although she hasn't discarded the conventions of romance, Quinn is more than willing to tweak them...

In her next novel, Quinn plans to explore some darker themes — the hero is a widower whose late wife suffered from clinical depression. It's an interesting direction for a romance writer, one that might bring her perilously close to literary respectability. As she points out, "You always get more respect when you don't have a happy ending." So is she tempted to trade in her soft-focus covers for cultural credibility? To end, just once, with a funeral instead of a wedding? "Oh, no!" Quinn says quickly. "I have a mortgage."

It makes me happy that a Harvard grad can write romances and (maybe, just maybe) not get a bad rap because of it. Maybe there's hope for the rest of us too :)