Thursday, September 30, 2010

Debra - Part 2 "Connected"

I did a blog in January from my husband's hospital room. He'd just had a knee replacement. I had intended to blog about the hospital amenities and wireless. (Hence the "connected" title.) But instead I blogged about how people, places and things are connected in powerful ways.

That blog was long forgotten until tonight. I'm back in my husband's hospital room. He's just had knee #2 replaced this morning. I've done my Nurse Nan routine (get your brains out of the gutter). And now it's time to blog. After I booted the computer, I noticed a blog draft on my laptop called "Connected." Curious, I pulled it up and found that January blog.

And, in the process, completely convinced myself that everything is connected. Everything. Often in ways we can't understand.

A dear friend just lost her cat, Cleo. The loss wasn't unexpected but it was still heartbreaking for her. Last night her neighbor put out an SOS for a home for a tiny, tiny kitten found at the roadside, probably abandoned, probably not four weeks old. So, last night my friend spent o'dark thirty and the rest of the pre-dawn hours with "boob kitty," who was happiest snuggled in her bosom. The week before she'd spent long nights in worry over and with her Cleo, who we knew was dying. If Cleo had hung onto this world for another week, little Butters wouldn't have the home she desperately needed.

There is an odd and powerful symmetry in life which I find endlessly fascinating. I believe the best fiction contains that same powerful symmetry and connection. Symmetry is about closure and balance. We all like that.

Tonight hubby and I feel like we've turned the corner. Chronic pain will now be a thing of his past. All that's left is a little acute pain from rehab and he'll have his life back. He can take morning walks again. We can go back to fighting about my sprinting across parking lots to keep up with him. (I'm vertically challenged and have the leg stride to prove it.)

Tonight I'm left pondering the connections of life and feeling déjà vu. Only this time I don't have to wonder why this moment feels familiar. I know why!

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Win a HOT hot-off-the-presses novel!


I was talking to a friend a few days ago who was very impressed with a couple we know because they were still together and still working on their marriage after TEN years. I think I audibly scoffed. In fact, I said something like, “They're still on their honeymoon. Come talk to me in another couple decades, cuz hubby and I have been working on our marriage for…”


As I was saying the words I realized hubby and I had both missed our thirty wedding anniversary. I mean, we knew we had one coming, and we had plans to celebrate later in the month, but we had literally missed the actual day. How sad is that?

Truth is, we really do try to make each other happy, but it’s not like those early days. Remember those first few years? I was just a littttttle bit more romantic back then. And a lotttt more demonstrative. I remember a time on a plane when…well…never mind. And a time on a train when… Huh, that one’s not good for retelling either. But there was one incident I can relay. Shortly after our first baby was born, I planned a weekend away, found a babysitter, packed our bags and dragged him off on a surprise mini holiday. There was another instance when I had to attend an evening church function without him. Just to make sure he was still paying attention I wore a negligee under my outer clothing, then when I got home I stripped off my street clothes in the garage and sashayed into the kitchen as if I had gone to church that way. I’ll never forget the look on his face. There were also times when I would prepare and freeze meals ahead of time when I had to leave home for a few days. Sometimes I’d even have a neighbor drop by and pop them into the oven so he’d have a hot meal when he got done with work. I gotta tell you…those days are long gone. If he gets a hot meal when I’m HOME it’s party time.

Anyway, it occurred to me that marriage is a bit like writing novels. And here’s how: you see, my latest book has just been released, but it’s long past the honeymoon stage. It’s not my first or my third or even my thirteenth book. It’s my twenty-eighth, and instead of the fanfare and parties and hoopla that used to accompany such an auspicious occasion, I’m afraid it barely warrants a hot meal. Even though it does have an awesome cover and a pretty good story if I do say so myself.

So, in an effort to make my 28th feel special I’m giving away a copy of An Accidental Seduction to one commenter who has some sort of advice on how to keep relationships alive and happy. Or even a story about how their own relationships have changed over the years.

And thanks to everyone who has given me the opportunity to celebration 28 happy books.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

DEADLY PROMISES Winners


Congratulations to Joni and Tasha! Your names were drawn as winners of a copy of DEADLY PROMISES.
Please e-mail me at: cindyg@cindygerard.com asap with your mailing addresses so i can get your autographed copies in the mail!
Thanks and hugs, Cindy

Can it be? DEADLY PROMISES on sale now!!

When did September 28th sneak up on me? And why do I care about September 28th? Well, because it’s release day! I’m dragging myself out of deadline dementia (have a book due 10-1) to let you know that … (be warned, grandiose self-promotion to follow – but hey – it’s not EVERY day that I have a new release, right?)

DEADLY PROMISES, a super hot, super cool (and yes, it’s possible to be both) anthology headlined by Sherrilyn Kenyon and Dianna Love, and joined by MOI and Laura Griffin hits the shelves at a book store near you today. That would be September 28th (Ahem.) Even more good news? You can also buy DEADLY PROMISES at: Amazon.com, Borders.com, and B&N.com.

I’ve been lucky enough to get sneak peaks of both JUST BAD ENOUGH, from Sherrilyn and Dianna and UNSTOPABLE, from Laura and let me tell you, both novellas rock! I’m so excited that my novella, LEAVE NO TRACE is a part of this collection.










Love this photo of Me, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Laura Griffin and Dianna Love at the RWA Literacy book signing in Orlando at Nationals this past July. What cool women those 3 ladies are.

I can already hear the question: Is LEAVE NO TRACE a Black Ops. Inc story? And the answer: Yes! And No… David Cavanaugh, the hero, is a friend of the BOIs and actually assisted them in their operation in Jakarta to rescue Crystal (WHISPER NO LIES). And Cav’s heroine is none other than Carrie Granger – Wyatt Savage’s old high school flame (RISK NO SECRETS). I received so much reader mail about both Cav and Carrie that I just knew they had to have their own story. LEAVE NO TRACE provided the perfect vehicle to make that happen.

So, I hope you want to come with me to exotic Myanmar where Cav is tasked with the dangerous mission of rescuing Carrie from a slave labor camp in the treacherous ruby mines of the Shan Plateau north of Mandlay. Then hang on for one heck of a wild romantic ride. And of course, the guys from Black Ops., Inc. show up to help Cav save the day.

Now, I've got some questions for you. Do you generally buy anthologies and if not, why not? If you do buy them, have anthologies that feature multiple stories by multiple authors ever introduced you to a new author you wouldn’t have tried had it not been for one of your favorite authors also participating in the collection? Also, do you read only the novella by your favorite author or do you read (or at least try to read) all the stories in the collection? I’m also wondering if you have you ever stumbled upon a ‘favorite new’ author as the result of buying an anthology that featured one of your auto-buy authors in the collection.

Whew. That’s a lot of questions. Please speak up. If you post, you’re in the drawing for 1 of 2 copies of DEADLY PROMISES at the end of the day. Thanks!! And happy, happy reading!

Monday, September 27, 2010

Ditching The Tiara

When you were six years old, what did you want to be?

Confession.  I wanted to be a princess.  I was the third of three girls, so the princess position had been filled.  My mother, however, read me stories about princesses and I saw them on television.  I always thought princesses did fun things like wear tiaras and have people wait on them and adore them.  They always wore pretty dresses and usually got the gorgeous prince.  This all sounded good to me.:)

PrincessHeartTiara_400-01

In real life, many princesses make a lot of appearances and work very hard.  They have a lot of pressure from the press and every move can be scrutinized by the public.  So what if you were a princess?  What if you were the princess who never gets into trouble, who avoids scandal and works like a dog?  Your brother, the crown prince, can be an arrogant you-know-what, but you love him and you know he’s under pressure, so you try to always be there for him.  Your younger, thinner, more beautiful sister who has caused countless scandals and spent a stint in rehab, is now getting married to a French filmmaker.  You have no love life.  You have no personal life. 

For one night, you get a chance to ditch the tiara at a masquerade party.  You get a chance to be anyone what you want to be.  You meet a hot, but kind rancher.  You spend some time with him.  Unlike Cinderella, reality hits you way after midnight, and months later, you learn that you, the goody-two-shoes everyone has counted on, is pregnant.

rhbaby

Yeah, this is the premise for the first Silhouette Special Edition I’ve written in over ten years.  What I like about this book is the humanity of the characters.  The hunky hero has his own baggage and the worst thing that could happen to him is an unplanned pregnancy that he caused.  Romantic Times Book Club gave ROYAL HOLIDAY BABY a 4 1/2 star review and I really like this book, so I hope you’ll give it a try.  If you do, please drop me a line at leannebbb@aol.com 

In the meantime, I’m giving away a copy of one of my previous books to one commenter.  My questions:  When you were six years old, what did you want to be?  Did you ever want to be a princess?  Have you ever worn a tiara?  (I have a hair band with crystals that resembles a tiara, but I’ve never had the nerve to wear it.<g>)   TELL ALL!:)

Friday, September 24, 2010

Answers to Title Quiz

Okay, folks, here are the answers. How did you do?

Not Real:

The Italian's Cast-Off Virgin Bride
Love in the Laundry Cycle
The Weird and Wacky Guide to Knocking Off Ex-Boyfriends
Zombie Proof Your Coffin
The Absolutely Positively Kinda Sorta Maybe Final Word on Everything

Real:

The Sheik's Virgin Stable Girl
Daddy Long Stroke
Bought for Revenge, Bedded for Pleasure
Nude Teacher's Dilemma
If You Want Closure in a Relationship, Start with Your Legs
Snakes in Suits: When Psychopaths Go to Work
Living with Crazy Buttocks

Really, which set is more preposterous, LOL?

Is This Title Real?


Does anyone else pay attention to titles? I'll admit, I'm getting bad at remembering the specific name of a book I read and enjoyed. Authors' names I recall, and really that has always seemed more important to me. But it is getting a bit disconcerting to have to try and describe a book I read, saying, "You know, the Lee Child novel where the people got thrown out of a plane over a desert?" It'd be so much handier if I just recalled the title. Unfortunately, titles, along with appointment dates and phone numbers have been among the victims of my unraveling memory these days.

But on the flip side there are titles that once encountered are unforgettable. Pride and Prejudice. Coffee, Tea or Me? Go Ask Alice. Pregnesia.

Yep, that's right, I said it. Pregnesia. It was an Intrigue out last year. I dare you to forget that title.

Which brings me to my point. (Bet you thought I didn't have one ) Have you ever watched the bit on Jay Leno, "Is This Headline Real?" Let's see how you do. I'll list some titles and you try to guess which ones are real and which aren't. Ready?

The Sheik's Virgin Stable Girl

Daddy Long Stroke

The Italian's Cast Off Virgin Bride

Love in the Laundry Cycle

Bought for Revenge, Bedded for Pleasure

The Weird and Wacky Guide to Knocking Off Ex-Boyfriends

Nude Teacher's Dilemma

If You Want Closure in Your Relationship Start with Your Legs

Snakes in Suits: When Psychopaths Go to Work

Zombie Proof Your Coffin

Living with Crazy Buttocks

The Absolutely Positively Kinda Sorta Maybe Final Word on Everything

Can you find the five made up titles among the rest of these gems without looking them up? Is it important to you to recall titles of books you enjoyed? What makes a title memorable to you?

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Debra- Is English Dead? (A who-done-it in 3 parts)

Seriously, dude. Is English dead? Has language moved past the precision of the last 1600 years or so? And if we are at a crossroads in which well-used language is the murky path, who is to blame?

1) Text messaging
A necessary evil born from the frowns of those who were tired of teen phones ringing incessantly.

2) Twitter & Facebook
A necessary evil to reconnect with community in a ridiculously busy world.

3) Dude
The word that has single handedly replaced whole sentences as a form of communication.

See what I mean:

Dude. (You can’t be serious.)
dude. (I’m weary. You win. I can’t change it.)
Dude. (Pay attention you slacker.)
DUDE (This is going to be a problem.)
du-oohd. (Oh, man, is that going to be hard!)
Dude! (Quick. Come here.)
Doooo-ooo-d. (I’m am so jealous, but I have to give you props.)

I could go on. And I haven’t even started on the variations that come with facial expressions or body gestures like shrugs.

Hopefully, I’ve amused you, but my real questions are these: Can we ever recover from the inattention to grammar and punctuation? Can we ever recover from the common man’s inability to use vocabulary appropriately? (One of my favorites is the reported incident in which the Miami Herald’s story of someone “eeking out a living” wasn’t a story about the individual running a haunted house business.) Do we care? Is change the nature of a successful language? Or as we fragment our language do we lose something valuable?

My answer is: Dude, yes.

How about you? How do you feel about the state of language?

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Please welcome Kristan Higgins!


Apologies for being a bit late, all. Had trouble with Blogger today!!

Please welcome one of my favorite people in the WHOLE WORLD, my friend and amazing author Kristan Higgins!



Saving Cats

Hello again! It’s so nice to be back here with you lovely people! Thank you to the inimitable Cindy Gerard for having me back…all it took was a little blackmail. I am one of the few who knows about that tattoo, after all. (Ahem! It’s not where you think!)

At any rate, when thinking about what to write today, I went to my favorite subject. Men. Yep. I love men. That’s it in a nutshell, gang. I love romantic heroes. Just off the top of my head, here are some of my favorites: Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. We all love him, don’t we? The way he still sits on his side of the porch swing, unconsciously leaving room for his late wife?


Oh, man! Bud White from L.A. Confidential. Nothing like a thug trying to make good, know what I’m saying? Mm-mm! Tony Stark from Iron Man (or any role Robert Downey Jr. plays, because I am in love with him!).









Usher. He’s not really a romantic hero, but that smile could launch a thousand ships.



There are so many things to love about men…their hands. Their smiles. Their arms. Their inability to make a bed. But one of the things I love best about a hero is when he saves the cat.

This is a term I first heard a few years ago when I took a class given by the very lovely and much-missed Blake Snyder, a screenwriting guru and a wonderful speaker. Blake’s book is, in fact, called Save the Cat, and to the best of my knowledge, he invented the term. In essence, “save the cat” is the moment in a movie or book when a character reveals the reason we’ll love him—a small gesture that says, “Hey, reader. Great guy in here, waiting to be discovered. I may have just firebombed this empty house, but I saved Fluffy on my way out, so there’s proof.”

Sometimes, saving the cat can be more subtle…when we first meet Mark Darcy in Bridget Jones’s Diary, he’s snooty, superior and bored…but he’s also clad in the ridiculous reindeer sweater his mom gave him, and he’s wearing it to make her happy.

Aw! Come on! I’m helpless for that kind of thing. In fact, my own sainted husband saved the cat for me on our first date—he may have been a Bono-lookalike with his green eyes and black hair, and yes, he was the king of cool (back then, anyway), wearing his leather jacket…but he held the door for me, even if he was an Irish thug. And you know what? He had actually saved a cat…back then, McIrish lived in a grimy part of Brooklyn. One night, there was a terrible thunderstorm. He heard a small mew, looked around, saw a tiny, bedraggled kitten, opened the door and said, “If you come inside, you can be my cat.” I don’t know if McIrish was aware of the effect that story would have, but when he told it to me (on our very first date), I immediately started naming our children.

In my latest book, All I Ever Wanted, Ian McFarland is rather cold (it seems). He doesn’t seem to like the heroine at all (it seems). He’s better than the rest of us sloppy humans (it seems). But he saves the cat in the very scene, and hopefully, readers will pause and say… “Hey. That was kinda…sweet.”

So tell me—have you come across those little instances where the hero saves the cat in your favorite books or movies? Is it the heroine who rescues poor Fluffy? Has your honey ever flashed you a little cat-saving mojo? Do tell! I’ll send a signed copy of All I Ever Wanted to a commenter. Can’t wait to hear your stories!

Kristan

www.kristanhiggins.com

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

What Professions Turn You On?

I'll admit it ... my favorite heroes are alphas rather than betas. I like the strong, capable, opinionated male character. It's sexy. It's also, and this is important, a fantasy. Something I never really considered before now is that it's not just alpha or beta. Certain types of professions turn me on more than others.

I love a man in a uniform. If that's not alpha, I don't know what is. In fact, is it even possible to have a beta character in a uniform? Cops, FBI agents, Rangers, U. S Navy seals - they're all powerful.

I also love men who are capable in an every day sense. Construction types. You know a man who's capable with his hands knows how to use those hands with a woman's body. Oh, baby!

Then there's the rich man, the self-made billionaire entrepreneur. I don't care how he's made his money, he
done it on his own and that's a different kind of power.

For the first time in my romance writing career I've got a story with a cowboy (kind of) hero. The "kind of" comes into play because he's also a doctor. I know, interesting combo. Not something I planned. It's Sean Griffin, if any of you are following my Mirabelle series. He's the only doctor on the island - which is far from a full time job, given the size of the island - and so he's bought out the stable and livery operations.

Turns out that although Sean grew up with a silver spoon in his mouth, he spent his summers all throughout high school and college working on ranches to get away from his domineering doctor father. Working with horses ended up becoming a passion for him.

Honestly, and I know this will come as a shock to some of you, but not only am I not attracted to doctors, the whole cowboy thing has never really done it for me, either. Now, though, as I uncover the layers of Sean's character, I'm finding cowboy hats and scuffed up boots very sexy. I'm not sure if it's Sean, his old faded blue jeans, or the horses, but he's got something going on. Maybe part of it, is the contradictions within this character. The simple man working with his hands on one side, the well-educated, thinking doctor on the other.

Got me to thinking about how we tend to have our favorite types of heroes, so I'm doing an informal poll today. Disregarding the alpha versus beta thing, does profession play a role in your favorite type of hero? Are you turned on by power or money? A man who works with his hands? A thinker?

Does a guy in a uniform do it best for you?














Or do you prefer an ordinary Joe?














Most importantly, I want to know ... WHY?

Helen

Monday, September 20, 2010

What movies scare you?

I don't like horror movies.  I don't like to be scared.  I hate excessive gore and horror-porn (like the Saw franchise).  I don't even need to see those movies to know they'd screw with my tender sensibilities.  Heck, I was scarred after watching Silence of the Lambs (and that was on TV, so all the really bad stuff was cut out).  But I saw the trailer for this movie, and something compelled me to see it.


Then I heard it was another M Night production, and I got a little leery.  His last few efforts did not impress me, though I loved his earlier works like SIGNS and, oh heck, the name for the 'I see dead people' escapes me.  I even liked THE VILLAGE (mostly).  But every time I saw the trailer, it niggled at me.  So the hubby and I saw it this past weekend.  I loved it!  It's about five strangers who get trapped in an elevator, yet alludes that the Devil will take his due and there's nothing you can do about it.  

You wouldn't think that would make for fascinating viewing, but trust me, the tension was dialed up tightly.  There was just enough back story on each character (and some story held back for even more tension) to make you care about what happened.  People die (not a spoiler) but you don't see them die.  Blood doesn't splatter the screen and parts are not torn and tossed about.  It all happens in the dark and then the shock of what happened is what'll make you jump and even drop your jaw.  (I did that a few times.)  Subtle horror, I think you'd call it.  And Night threw in his usual twist at the end.  There wasn't a wasted moment, not a boring second.  And it will keep you guessing until the very end.  This movie is a return to some of his earlier works.  It's rated PG-13, and is about an hour and twenty minutes long.

So what movies scare you?  Do you like horror and slasher flicks?  Or are you like me and prefer your horror subtle and as bloodless as possible?

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Willingham Winners!

Laurie is the lucky winner of a signed copy of Michelle Willingham's new release, SURRENDER TO AN IRISH WARRIOR! Keri Ford wins a free download of the linked novella "Pleasured by the Viking" !

Winners, please send your snail info in an e-mail to: michelle AT michellewillingham.com

Congratulations! Michelle, thanks so much for riding with us. You're welcome to hop in the convertible anytime.

Friday, September 17, 2010

Michelle Willingham Is Finding Inspriation Off the Beaten Track

Fellow travelers, welcome 2010 RITA finalist Michelle Willingham to the convertible! Over to you, Michelle...

I love traveling to international places, eating wonderful foods, and experiencing new cultures. But I'll admit there's something I hate—planning the trip! I keep hoping that a local travel agency will somehow create an amazing itinerary with fabulous hotels and B&Bs, transportation, and a tour guide who will take me around to all the sights.

What usually happens is I'm handed a catalog of overpriced tours geared toward senior citizens or college students. You spend all your time on a bus with a nametag, and you get approximately 30 minutes at the tour site before you're whisked away to yet another location. And often, you'll stay in a hotel that lost its luster in the 1970's. At least, that was my experience on past bus tours. Maybe they've changed, but from the look of it, they're about the same.

So because of that, and because of my husband's aversion to guided tours, I usually have to book everything on my own. I end up scouring guide books, TripAdvisor, or other websites to determine whether a B&B is really worth it. I print out directions, plan out where we're going, buy tickets for the castles and tours online, and worry myself into a wreck, hoping that I haven't forgotten anything critical.

This past summer, I planned a trip to Ireland, Scotland, and London. One of the things I learned about the UK is that their roads are NOT the same as U.S. highways. A location that's 100 miles away could very easily take four hours to reach. But despite our GPS, which mistakenly believed we were driving through a cow pasture, it was fun to blast U2 on our teeny-tiny rental car's stereo and marvel at the fact that we were in a foreign country. Without kids!

I filled up a notebook with descriptions of the scenery and town names, while my husband valiantly braved the one-lane roads, taking our lives into his hands as he passed the tractors. I spent hours in the museums, photographing what artifacts I could and asking the guides questions about medieval weapons and clothing. At night, we drank Bulmer's and Guinness, ate in the pubs and tried Sticky Toffee Pudding in every town we visited (Dublin had the best).

A few times, we took the "scenic" route, where the streets had no name and the sheep wandered into the road. We stopped in places where there were no phone or power lines, and it was like going back in time.

Those moments made all the hassle worthwhile. When you stand in the ruins of an 8th century monastery and can sense the priests who lived and worked there. When you don't have to be anywhere and can go hiking somewhere unexpected, discovering the ruins of a medieval fortress completely overgrown with grass. For me, it's a way of recharging the creative batteries and getting inspired.

Though it's a pain in the neck, skip the bus tours and try going off on your own. Ask the locals for recommendations on where to eat and where to visit. You just might find yourself in a small part of paradise. Or possibly behind a tractor.

When you've traveled, did you go on a bus trip or on your own? Where did you go, and what was your experience like? Post a comment, and two lucky winners will receive a signed copy of my new release, SURRENDER TO AN IRISH WARRIOR or a free download of the linked novella "Pleasured by the Viking." Both are set in Ireland while my next series, which kicks off with the book CLAIMED BY THE HIGHLAND WARRIOR (available in the spring of 2011) is set in Scotland.

Michelle Willingham is a RITA® Award Finalist and the author of seven historical romances and five novellas from Harlequin. Visit her website to read excerpts of her work or find her on Facebook and Twitter. You can see all the pictures of her trip on Facebook.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

What could you give up?

It's not Lent, but I recently decided to go cold turkey on the sugar.  Why, you ask?  Well, I think I was a little out of it at the time.  :-)

Seriously, though, I've been doing a diet, or rather, a different way of eating, for about 40 days now.  Let me say that I hate dieting.  I don't usually diet.  Diet is a dirty word to me.  The few times I have attempted to diet it lasted until about two o'clock in the afternoon, and I swore I'd never eat another plain broiled chicken breast again.  Bring on the chocolate!

But I was walking through Borders one day and saw a book, The Belly Fat Cure.  The title sounds obnoxious, and the blurb line : "For people who don't have the time or energy to exercise" should probably more truthfully read "For people who are too lazy to exercise", but I paged through a bit and landed on a recipe for macaroni and cheese.  An eating plan that allows macaroni and cheese?  I'm in!  I bought the book and started reading the seemingly complicated instructions, but really, after a day of it, I had the plan mastered.

And this is what I learned the first day:  I'm a sugar addict.  I realize that sugar hides in almost everything we put in our mouths (fruit! bread! milk!), but for some reason those M&Ms I'd toss down all day, everyday, never really seemed substantial.  You know?  It's just a few M&Ms, and heck, they have those healthy almonds in them!  And so what if I just ate six chocolate chip cookies, they were small.  And that rich chocolate dessert me and the hubby snarfed down after dinner?  We shared it.  And juice, don't get me started on fruit juice.  Juice is healthy, yes?  Especially since I was so careful to buy the stuff without the high fructose corn syrup.  But I'd drink a couple glasses a day, everyday.  Juice, my friends, is my heroine.

So, I ventured on to this new way of eating.  The plan is very low sugar (15 grams a day; so you're not entirely giving it up) and low carbs.  The first day I didn't think I'd be able to do it.  15 grams of sugar?  There's 25+ grams in one glass of juice! And then I started mentally adding up all those glasses of juice, and M&Ms and well, yep, the addict choked.  So, anticipating an extreme rough time giving up sweets, I warned the hubby that he may come home and find me sprawled on the floor in a catatonic state.  If that should happen, just pour juice down my throat.
Sugar skulls!

But you know what?  The rough time never happened.  I'm still knocking on wood because cutting back on the sugar didn't bother me at all.  I didn't crave chocolate (I still have the emergency bar of chocolate I bought at the beginning; half left), I didn't drool to watch the hubby drink that delicious juice, my tummy didn't complain that I wasn't feeding it sugar.  Could it be my body was pleased I had finally started to treat it right?

Anyway, what I'm trying to say today is, sometimes we are more afraid of giving something up than we should be.  We make excuses (in my case for over a decade as I avoided changing my eating plan), we covet that which we adore most (give me sugar!), and we ignore the things we should at least give a try.  I gave it a go, and it's still working for me.  I feel...better.  A little more clear.  A little lighter (lost 14 lbs so far; no exercise!).  A little happier because I know I did something good for myself.  And that puts a bounce in my step.

So what about you?  Have you given something up lately that made you feel better about yourself?  If not, what would you like to give up, or change, that would affect your life in a positive way?

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Guest: Angi Morgan

Please welcome Angi Morgan to the convertible today.  She's taking us on a sight-seeing tour, so put the top down and hold onto your scarf!

Thank you, Michele, for inviting me to ride with the top down. I’ll share details how my debut Harlequin Intrigue, Hill Country Holdup, was conceived and researched. I also have a couple of contests where readers can win some cool prizes.

Your blog has inspired today to share some photos that were taken from our vehicles while riding either with the top down or at least the window open.  For those who know my family, we love Jeeps. We love to take the soft top off the Wrangler and just drive. There are plenty of roads in Texas and most of the time we choose which way to turn based on the least amount of traffic. First, here are some pictures from our travels.

HAWAII
 

Last year my husband and I rented a Wrangler and drove everywhere on Oahu and Maui.

But even when riding with the top down through some of the most beautiful scenes...you have to get out and squish the sand between your toes.


MEXICO
 
My mom took me to Playa de Carmen for my birthday one year and yes, we rented a Wrangler to see some sights.




 We were told that the beach you see is the same one used for the Corona commercials.

SAN ANTONIO


 The River Walk and the Alamo. My current work in progress begins in San Antonio. Hill Country Holdup, my September Harlequin Intrigue has several scenes in San Antonio, including a walk through the Alamo. .38 Caliber Cover-Up heads north of Dallas, even stopping at the Plano Balloon Fest.

TEXAS


 I love setting my books in Texas. It gives me an excuse to drive and explore even more of my home state. I might seem a little over-proud... but my family has a long heritage here. The first record of my mother’s family is a death certificate for 1752: death by Indian arrow.

There’s just something about a back road to anywhere... The top’s down and you know you’re going to have to eventually pull over when the clean smell of rain begins blowing through your hair.

But as much as I like traveling, sometimes just looking out the back window takes your breath away.

So where exactly did HILL COUNTRY HOLDUP take root? At a Fourth of July fireworks display in Las Colinas, Texas. A judge mentioned my characters’ names were too unusual, so I was joking around with my husband and youngest daughter that I should just write a book called: See Jane Run. And the story took off. The opening scene has things we all observed that evening. The Hill Country journey is actually one my daughter and I took the following Columbus Day. The lake house belonged to my aunt.

I hope to keep traveling and keep being inspired by everything around me. I warn people all the time that they may end up in a book.

CONTESTS: The details for my contests are on my website. Today, everyone who leaves a comment will be entered in a drawing for a copy of HCH.  Hold Up the Cover will run the entire month HCH is on bookshelves--I have several prizes to be drawn for those purchasing the book and sending me a picture of themselves with the cover (and signing up for my newsletter). And there’s one more contest for debut week: I’m blog hopping and if you leave five comments at five blogs this week, then send me an email, you’ll be entered in a drawing for more books and prizes.

Thanks for having me on Riding With The Top Down. This has been a blast.

~~Angi

You can find Angi at her website where all the details of her contests are listed: AngiMorgan.com, friend her at Facebook, or follow her on Twitter: AngiMorganAuthr

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Where I’d rather be.

We’ve had a couple of blog posts lately on the end of summer and the beginning of yet another school year, another fall, another winter in the offing that we hope won’t dump us with a ton of snow like last year. And much as I am tempted to blog about the raw meat dress Lady GaGa wore to the MTV awards the other night, I'll leave that to those much better equipped to understand it.

In the meantime, it’s a beautiful sunny, late summer day here in Iowa as I’m writing this post. I’ve worked all day at my desk (10-1 deadline looming) wishing that I could have taken my laptop out on the deck to work and enjoyed what may very well be some of summer’s last gorgeous weather. But since the last time I used the laptop, it froze up on me and I lost 2 pages (yes, 2 riveting, pivotal, best-seller worthy, PERFECT pages that my subsequent attempt to recreate resulted in a mere shadow of their former brilliance - insert several colorful expletives here) I opted for working on the desktop.

Still, I spent a lot of time looking out the window today waiting for the muse to visit. Outside, the grass is still green, the flowers are still blooming – albeit not with the glory of their spectacular early and midsummer form. Clearly Buddy, the cat, is enjoying the flowers.











The birds are happily flitting about at our feeders and seem to be oblivious to the fact that not much more than a month from now they will be fluffing their feathers against a frosty wind.

The lazy black cat (also known as Sly, also known as Gummer because he has absolutely no teeth) is sunning himself in the window, enjoying a morning nap that stretched in to an afternoon nap that will no doubt ease into an evening nap due to the sheer exhaustion of holding down his favorite perch all day.

Keith Urban is singing a moody, bluesy song on XM radio about another summer that’s come and gone and I’m feeling nostalgic. (But you already guessed that, right?) I find myself thinking about other summers and wondering if it could possibly be THAT many years ago that we took that special trip, or went to that great new movie, or to the state fair … and I’m suddenly asking myself, if I could pick an age or a year that I’d like to go back to, what would it be?

In the end, though, as I sorted through those really fond memories, I realized that even if I could, I wouldn’t go back. Every experience – good or bad – has shaped me in some way, guided me, sometimes even led me by the hand to the place I am today. And most days, the place I am - friend, sister, wife, mother, gramma, author - is a pretty good place to be.

But, if I HAD to chose, it would be the summer I met my DH. I was a high school senior. He was a college sophomore. Mutual friends set us up on a blind date. We had just settled into the back seat of my friend’s boyfriend’s car (double date, ya know) and the first words he said to me were, “Want some candy, little girl?”

Needless to say, it turned out to be the first of many fun summers with that man :o)

How about you? Any summer memories you want to share before winter takes over our thoughts? Any place you'd rather be or something you'd rather be doing today that where you are?

Monday, September 13, 2010

Guest Author: Kathryn Shay

I met Kathy Shay several years ago when I sold my first book to Harlequin Superromance. I have to tell you I was freaked out the first time I went to a Super author gathering at the RWA conference, but Kathy was as welcoming as welcoming can be.

She's branched out from Superromance to write a book that touches her heart and is here today to talk about the release of The Perfect Family.

I'm out of town today without reliable internet, so I won't be able to check back. In any case ... Welcome Kathy!

Helen

Dear Riding With the Top Down host and readers,

Thanks so much for inviting me to blog on your site. I’ve been here once before, at Helen Brenna’s invitation then, too, but for those of you who don’t know me, I’m Kathryn Shay and have published 37 romance novels for Harlequin and The Berkley Publishing Group. I was asked to tell you about my new book, THE PERFECT FAMILY, from Bold Strokes Books--the genesis of the story and why I wrote it.

First off, this book is not a romance. I wanted to tell a mainstream story and try my hand at something new, so I went in a different direction that worked out, thankfully. And, by the way, this is the book of my heart.

The story follows the Davidsons: they’re an average American family with a good life and they consider themselves lucky to have each other. Then their seventeen year old son tells them he’s gay and their world shifts. They have no idea what they will go through after Jamie’s disclosure: Jamie's father Mike can't reconcile his religious beliefs with his son's sexuality. His brother Brian is harassed by his jock buddies and angry at Jamie for complicating all their lives. Maggie, his mother, fears being able to protect her son while struggling to save her crumbling marriage. And Jamie feels guilty for the unhappiness his disclosure has caused. The book is full of both conflict and love, ending on a redeeming note.

I think I’ve been preparing to write this book my whole career. I’ve written Harlequins about teenage suicide, date rape, gangs and adultery. I’ve done single titles about growing up in a dysfunctional environment and then helping young kids deal with their issues. I’ve tackled school violence on a large scale.

When my son came out gay, I felt compelled to write about that issue. THE PERFECT FAMILY is fiction but touches on some of the things my own family went through. I wished then I’d had a book like this to help me understand that a family’s struggle when a teen comes out is common, but he deserves love and support from them. I was also a high school teacher for many years and I know teenagers. I know how they react to people who are different from them, how sexual orientation can freak them out and how they can be cruel. But they can also be unbelievably loyal and supportive. I tried to show all this in the book.

Having raised kids of my own, I’m also aware of how a child’s problems can affect the whole family. I originally wrote the book in first person narrative from the mother’s point of view (it was called A MOTHER’S STORY) because I knew what Maggie, the mom, was going through. I’ve also experienced the pain when spouses disagree on what’s best for their children. However, it wasn’t long before I realized this book was more than Maggie’s story; it was each family member’s journey. On the first of many revisions, I put in the viewpoints of Mike, Brian and Jamie. I think this expansion enriched the book and made it more relevant. After several revisions, I added a secondary storyline to mirror the first which gives the book an added dimension.

The character of Jamie is based on my son, Ben. He read the manuscript twice, the beginning draft and the last one. I was amazed at the insights he had into the characters. His comments led me to make some further revisions. And we have a gift for my readers. Ben is a singer/songwriter and made a CD in high school about “loving a boy” and other adolescent issues. We’re offering it free at the publisher’s website when you order a book from them at http://www.boldstrokesbooks.com/products.php?product=Perfect-Family%252C-The-%25252d-by-Kathryn-Shay. It will be also be offered on my website, www.kathrnyshay.com while copies last.

You can visit me at www.kathrynshay.com; www.facebook.com/kathrynshay; http://kathrynshay.livejournal.com; http://www.myspace.com/kathrynshay and http://twitter.com/kathrynshay.

Thanks again for having me. I’ll check back for comments.

Kathy