Heidi Betts - www.heidibetts.com

for your surfing pleasure

Just discovered a great new website for animal lovers...

ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) Ani-Med--www.aspca.org/animed--a site where you can get answers to important pet care questions. They have a section on dogs & cats, & another on birds, fish, rabbits, ferrets, guinea pigs, hamsters, mice, gerbils, & rats. :-)

I checked it out & was really impressed. They give lots of information on common problems or concerns (including the truth about declawing, which I love!) & I even learned a few things I didn't know. (Which, considering how often I grill my vet, I didn't know was possible. :-p)

And I'm not sure where the info is on this particular site...though I did see it pop up at the bottom of one of the more serious cat ailment pages...but did you know that the ASPCA actually has an Animal Poison Control Center hotline? The number is 1-888-426-4435. There's a $45 credit card charge per case, but I think it's great that they're there if you need them.

Yay, ASPCA! :-)

Currently listening to "Hallelujah" by Rufus Wainwright
Currently reading Sleeping with Fear by Kay Hooper

still on the fence, but enjoying the view

As of today, I am still leaning toward attending the conference. We'll see what tomorrow brings. :-P

And it's amazing what a small reprieve can do...I got 8 1/2 pages written yesterday, which for me is stupendous. :-D I should be able to wrap up the end of the first chapter any minute now (knock on wood) if I can just think of a good way to transition into chapter 2.

Did I mention that when my agent called yesterday, he also gave his approval of my dragon novella? Yippee! I sent it to him a few days ago, as I'd mentioned, & he'd gotten the chance to review it before we talked. And on the erotic quotent...he said my story for the HOTTER THAN HELL anthology is "hotter than hell" *vbg* & gave it his highest rating--three cold showers. LOL

This is good news. Now, I may still have work to do on it...he's forwarded it to the editor of the collection, so there's every chance I may have revisions or whatnot...but for the moment he's happy, so I'm happy.

I also forgot to mention that I'm participating in a Harlequin/Silhouette author chat this weekend for Joyfully Reviewed. If you're interested in joining us, visit www.JoyfullyReviewed.com, scroll down the page a little ways, & you should see a link to the Yahoo Group. It will probably be a pretty lively discussion, as we're supposed to promote our latest releases, post excerpts, answer questions, & more. I haven't posted an excerpt yet, but I intend to soon. :-)

Have a good weekend, everyone!

to go or not to go

Did a very bad thing last night--I made the humongous mistake of watching Barbara Walters's 20/20 interview with Terri Irwin, Steve Irwin's widow. Aaack! Talk about a tear-jerker. I can't believe Terri was even coherent enough to speak on camera only three weeks after his death; I'd still be a basket case, hiding in my house in the fetal position.

Let me tell you, it is not easy to write while you're sobbing your guts out. I made a valiant effort, but it wasn't easy. Then I got one of those post-crying headaches & couldn't breathe through my left nostril for the rest of the night. Ugh.

Surprisingly, I still managed to sleep pretty well after that & didn't want to wake up when my alarm went off. (Who does, huh?!?) But I did...& it's a good thing.

First, I managed to get some really good writing done today. Not a ton of pages, unfortunately, but really decent stuff. I slipped into the hero's POV for the first time in this story & am just loving it. That happens sometimes; for some reason, I often enjoy being in the guy's head more than the girl's. Or maybe it's just that I enjoy the change of switching POV...it gives me a chance to see things from a whole different perspective. :-)

Then my agent called to tell me he'd managed to wrangle a couple of extra weeks out of my editor for the revisions on FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN. Yes, I'd whined, I admit it. Not with the intention of getting an extension...I actually hate extensions, because while they solve the immediate problem--or at least give you a little more breathing room--they also end up putting you even more behind schedule for the next project...but he went ahead & got one for me, anyway. What a champ! :-)

And now that he's done that, I'm rethinking my decision to skip the NJRW conference next weekend. I don't really have any specific plans for this conference (you know, hitting a particular workshop or meeting with an editor or agent) so even though I always enjoy myself at these things, I was thinking it would probably be wiser to just stay home & write. At the moment, I'm on the fence about it. I printed driving directions so I could see how long a trip it would be, & I'm thinking about all the packing that would be involved--blah!--but I just cannot decide whether I should go & risk losing writing time that I might be sorry about later (really, really sorry, as the case could be) or be disappointed for a short time that I couldn't go & just stay home to write, write, write.

Is anyone here planning to attend? Even just the Book Fair Saturday afternoon? I'm supposed to sign there, which gets a huge check in the "Go" column. But again--deadline. Whaaaaa! I don't know what to do. Chances are, it will take me until the night before I'm supposed to leave to truly decide. :-(

Currently listening to "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" by KT Tunstall
Currently reading Key of Valor by Nora Roberts

question of the week

Another TV-related question, cuz I'm curious... :-)

What do you think of the recent habit of secondary cable channels repeating popular shows from other networks only a week after the episode premieres?

Know what I'm talking about? Like USA repeating brand new episodes of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit or House only a few days to a week after they've played on NBC or Fox.

More and more networks are doing this, too, & I'm wondering if we love it or hate it. I mean, is it great because it gives you another chance to watch an episode or show you love...or better yet, catch it if you missed the first run? Or are we a little annoyed at having the same episodes of these shows shoved down our throats so close together?

I'm on the fence. I do like the chance to see a show if I missed it the first time...oh, if only some channel were repeating the brand new episodes of CSI: Miami. *g* But other times, I start to get excited that a show I like is on...only to be disappointed when I discover it's the same darn episode I just saw.

I'll leave it to you to decide for sure. What do you think? Enquiring minds want to know. :-D

next I'll be giving away...

...this copy of Looking for Mr. Right by Bradley Trevor Greive.

It's not as great a prize as the tote bag and four fabulous romance novels, I know. But then, I didn't just return from a big conference with suitcases full of goodies, either. *g*

This is still a really cute book, & you could win it just by dropping in to leave a comment on my blog. Same "rules" as last time... If you comment, you're entered; the more often you leave a comment, the more often you're entered; & the contest will run until I get around to drawing a winner's name, whenver that might be. :-)

Have fun, good luck, & I'm looking forward to chatting with you!

Currently watching Sin City
Currently reading Key of Knowledge by Nora Roberts

another project down, one more to go

Got CURSE OF THE DRAGON'S TEARS polished & sent off to my agent last night. I sent it via e-mail attachment, which is unusual, but that's how we've been exchanging everything related to this project, so I thought that would give him a way to review it sooner rather than later. And if he still wants a hard copy to send to the editor of the collection, I can certainly print & mail one easily enough.

Haven't quite gotten SHAKEN AND STIRRED started yet, but I'm working on it. :-P I'm not great at jumping right into new stories--even ones that are already plotted & set up. I need to read the synopsis about six times & really try to get into the characters' heads. It doesn't exactly make for a smooth transition between projects. LOL

Over the past week, I have managed to finish The Prince's Virgin Wife & Cover of Night, so now I'm going to start Scent of Danger by Andrea Kane & Sleeping with Fear by Kay Hooper. I hope they're both as good as they sound. I also hope I don't get them confused, since they're both romantic suspense. :-p

What are you reading?

the new television season--love it or hate it?

It's that time of year again, when our favorite shows return--well, not all of them :-(--with brand new storylines. The question is, do we like the direction most of them are going?

I only discovered yesterday while watching The Soup that I actually missed the season premiere of CSI: Miami. :-p That might not be surprising to those of you who were around at the end of the last season & heard me complaining about it. But I still intended to watch this season, see what was going on. And I even thought I had the DVR programmed to automatically record any new episodes, but somehow that got messed up.

So...anyone who did see the first episode of the new season last week...any chance you can fill me in? Thanks to The Soup's recap, I know Horatio, & possibly a couple others, went to Brazil in search of Marisol's killer(s), but that's about it.

I did watch the season premiere of Close to Home, though. And I liked it...I mean, it didn't seem that much different than last season to me, storyline-wise. But I'm still not sure how I feel about the changes they've made. The husband's death still really annoys me; I think it was cruel & unnecessary. And as much as I like David James Elliott, I liked the old boss, too, & kind of miss him--as well as the other detectives who used to help with the cases. (And is it just me, or is DJE looking a little pudgier than in his JAG days? Even in the hair! LOL)

Liked Part 1 of the Numb3rs premiere, House has been good, but I still need to see CSI, NCIS, & I think Without a Trace starts tonight.

What about the rest of you? What are you watching, not watching? Liking, not liking?

checking in

Morning, all! I've been kind of quiet the past couple of days, but only because I've been so busy--& also because I had absolutely zero to say. :-P

The good news is, I finished "CURSE OF THE DRAGON'S TEARS" late last night. Whoo-hoo! Feels great to have that done, even though I still have to read through to do the proofing & polishing. Since it's so short, hopefully that won't take long, & I'm going to let it sit for today to try to clear my mind of the details. But my goal is to have it out of here on Monday. I'm really happy with the way the story turned out, & hope my agent & the editor are, too! :-D

The bad news comes in two parts. First, I now have to jump immediately into my sexy beach novella, which is due so soon, it's scary. I have it pretty well plotted out, so I shouldn't run into any huge problems that slow me down significantly--knock on wood!--but you just never know. It's the unexpected that tends to throw a wrench in the works, right? :-)

Second, I found out yesterday that I'm going to have revisions on the book I just turned in, FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN. Not a huge problem, since I'm used to revisions, & I'm not actually surprised, because they do tend to ask for revisions pretty regularly on continuity books. But I was surprised that my editor was able to read the book so quickly. (Thought I had a couple of months reprieve, at least, before we got to this stage. LOL) She's also hoping I can get the changes done & back to her by the first week in November, which I'm just not sure is possible at the moment. It will depend on how big (i.e. nasty *g*) the revisions are, of course. Simple ones, I could probably whip out in a week or two. Larger ones...eek. But I'm going to wait until I see the notes to decide how panicked I actually need to be. :-P

I'm also starting to be on the lookout for my author copies of BEDDED THEN WED. They don't usually arrive way ahead of time, but since it's a November release & we're coming up on October, I expect them to show up soon. I can't wait! :-D

I'll let you know when that happens, & in the meantime, I'd better get to work on "SHAKEN AND STIRRED." I keep changing my mind, but that's what I'm currently calling the beach novella. :-)

Currently listening to "Lullaby" by the Dixie Chicks
Currently reading Cover of Night by Linda Howard

question of the week

Here's one for you:

What do you think of UPN & WB turning into the new CW?

I am undecided. LOL I used to watch UPN occasionally, but then when I switched to Dish Network, it wasn't part of the channel line-up. I sort of missed it, but got used to it not being there. A while later, they added WB, but I rarely watched that unless it was repeats of older shows like Will & Grace or Seinfeld. Now, they're turning the channel that had been WB into CW, so I'll have it, but the only show I'm glad is on it so far is America's Next Top Model.

So I'm reserving judgment until it's been on for a while & I see what it's like. :-) How about you?

& the winner is...

All righty, I drew a name for the Nocturne tote bag & four great books that come with it. And the winner is...

Karen G.!!!!

Congratulations, Karen! Please e-mail me at heidi@heidibetts.com with your address, & as soon as I find a box *vbg* I'll get your prizes sent out.

For those of you who have been stopping by but didn't win this time around, do not despair!!! I have a few other goodies lined up that I'm going to be posting in the very near future. So keep dropping in, keep posting, & see what you can win. :-D

the busiest Monday ever :-P

I'm a couple of hours behind on my regular schedule today, because first thing this morning the Sears repair guy showed up to fix my exercise bike. (Yes, again. I think I got a lemon--but it's my lemon, & I like it. :-p) He actually called really early--I wasn't even awake yet!--but I'd rather that than having to wait around all day. :-) And now my bike is fixed--yay!

Now I'm waiting for the refrigerator delivery people, who are also supposed to come today. They're going to call first, too, which means I still have to stay off the phone & internet...not something I'm very good at. :-( The fridge we have now is about 35 years old & on its last legs. (I even read somewhere that most refrigerators only last about 10 years, so I guess we're lucky we haven't needed one before now.) And when a store in town started having major "going out of business" sales, we decided it might be a good idea to buy a new one. I'm not sure I'm going to like it, since the inside space is a slightly smaller than what we've got now, but I guess I'll get used to it.

And wouldn't you know, the one day I can't be on the phone or internet is the same day I'm supposed to start my online workshop for the East Texas Chapter of RWA (RWA-ETC). I'm doing my workshop on "Writing Category: Breaking In & Staying In." I've only ever given the speech in person, so it was a little strange figuring out how to break it up into "lessons" for every day this week & to get the information across in a personable way when my notes are more of a very brief outline. (The kind with Roman Numerals & everything. LOL) But I've already got my first lesson typed up, so all I need to do is post it.

Last night, I was able to finish chapter 3 of CURSE OF THE DRAGON'S TEARS, which I'm very happy about. Only a couple more & I'll be done.

I haven't gotten the chance to watch even a single episode of Firefly yet, though. Bummer. But I've got it recording, so I'll watch it later. I think it will be great to write to, don't you? :-)

before I forget *again*...

Busy weekend. I've been writing, writing, writing & am (I think) about halfway through the dragon novella. I'm liking it a lot, & am about to start another super-hot love scene because that's what this story is supposed to be all about. :-D

I must have had a brain blip last week because I forgot to mention a couple things I meant to post...

First, I just discovered that Arrested Development is playing on the G4 channel. Too cool! I really liked that show & was disappointed when Fox cancelled it, so I'm glad I can catch it again in repeats. I hope it stays on forever. *g* If you're interested, I think it's on every day at 2pm & 11:30pm, EST.

Second, when I talked to my editor last week, she also discussed having me do another continuity story for 2008 & asked which series I thought I'd most like to be involved in--the next installment of "Texas Cattleman's Club" or one called "Park Avenue." Well, sheesh, they both sound great. How am I supposed to choose? She told me a little about each, though, & I told her that if I had to choose...cuz she won't let me do both, darn it! *g*...then I thought I'd prefer "Texas Cattleman's Club." It's not official yet, but I'm already getting excited. :-)

And the reason she wouldn't let me do both...aside from the fact that it would be a little selfish of me LOL...is that she really wants me to do a miniseries in 2008, too. They call them miniseries, I call them trilogies...three connected books. But the good thing about doing a miniseries they've approved is that they'll promote them as being connected, give the books an official trilogy title, etc. As opposed to the connected books I've been doing, then labeling myself...like the "Bed" books. :-) Yes, they're connected & probably could have been a miniseries, but we just didn't plan or schedule them that way. This miniseries...whatever it turns out to be...will end up being released three months in a row. I definitely like that idea, but talk about deadline pressure! :-P

I think that's all for now...& I've got a novella to finish. :-D Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Currently watching The Golden Child
Currently reading The Prince's Virgin Wife by Lucy Monroe

another story in the works...

Had some errands to run yesterday, but before I left, my editor called. She wanted to discuss what I might have in mind for my next project, since she was hoping to schedule another release for me in October 2007.

Hey, I'm all for that! :-) She also wanted to know if there was any way I could give the story a Christmas theme because she really needed a holiday book for that month. And of course I can. In fact, I love that idea. I've always wanted to do a Christmas story, but have never had the chance. I desperately wanted to make BLACKMAILED INTO BED a holiday book...the storyline would have lent itself so well to that...but since I already knew it was going to be a February release, it wasn't even remotely possible. (I did sneak a Christmas party into a flashback scene, though. *vbg*)

So I told her the two ideas I'd been playing around with--one for the third story in the unofficial "Bed" trilogy, & one for an auxiliary character from the "Dakota Fortunes" continuity book I just turned in. She liked both storylines, but the chances of getting to do Brad's story (the extra "Dakota Fortunes" story) are looking slim. See, continuities are created by the editors/publisher, so they own the copyright & the rights to the characters. I knew that & don't have a problem with it, but it makes branching out & doing an extra story a little complicated.

She's going to look into that...& if all else fails, I can always use the story idea I have in mind for a plain old stand-alone story...so we settled on doing BED #3 next. I wanted to make sure we got "Bed" in the title to link it to the other two books, & had been toying with In the Prince's Bed, In Bed with the Prince...something like that. But then, if it's going to be a holiday book, I thought we might have to change it to Christmas in the Prince's Bed or whatever. My editor suggested CHRISTMAS IN HIS ROYAL BED instead, & I just love it. How about you?

I'm officially on the schedule again, with that story, which means another deadline added to my calendar. It shouldn't be a problem, but I hope the holidays are boring so I can get a lot done. :-D

quote of the day (it's Joss Whedon, people, so you know it's going to be good!)

"The trick is to walk away, either to another script or to some good old mindless vegging out. The other trick is to not give up right away 'cause you're lazy and you wanna play. But if it ain't comin', it ain't."
~Joss Whedon on handling writer's block

the book is in the mail

Well, you all know what today is--the five year anniversary of 9/11. The television coverage is too much, so I'm purposely watching non-news channels & pre-recorded stuff.

I also just stuck FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN in the mail, then dropped an e-mail to my editor to let her know it's on the way. My editor is so sweet. Her reply was, "Thank you sooooo much!" Like she has to thank me for doing my job. :-) I should be thanking her for giving me a week past my official deadline to get it all polished & cleaned up.

As I said before, I think the story is good & holds together well, but she's the true & final judge. I'm always too close to the projects, so I wait with bated breath to hear what she thinks. Fingers crossed she likes this one.

Oh, & I just got Korean copies of WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN. I've never gotten Korean ones before. They're kind of boring, as far as covers go...just a mint green background with some lighter flowers & leaves. Pretty, but nothing close to what I'm used to. No sexy clinch covers allowed over there, I guess. *g* I should send one of these to my uncle, who spent a year in Seoul when he was in the Army. Wonder if he could read any of it. :-)

Currently watching Blade: Trinity
Currently reading Cover of Night by Linda Howard

only three more chapters!

Morning, all! I can't believe the weekend is almost over already, but I guess that's what comes of locking yourself in your office to work. :-)

It's totally been worth it. I only have three more chapters of FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN to proof & polish, & I'm very happy to report that I think it's really good! :-D

Believe it or not, that comes as kind of a surprise to me. Once I get close to the end of a story, I've usually forgotten much of what I wrote in the beginning, so going back to read through from chapter one was almost like sitting down with someone else's book. The end of this book also started to get a little complicated & confusing for me at times, so by the time I finished, I wondered if it would hold together at all. I sort of envisioned running into problems from the start & having to really tear thing apart to get them all lined up & falling into place again.

Thankfully, that didn't happen. From the very first page, I was actually impressed with how well the story flowed. (This is not patting myself on the back. This is being sincerely impressed that I didn't mess things up as much as I thought I had. LOL)

There were a couple of minor points I had to straighten out...numbers, especially, seem to trip me up. Like how many years my heroine had been living at the Fortune Estate compared to how many years her mother and the hero's father had actually been married. I swear, I need a flow chart for these things. But I got that ironed out, so all is well now. (Knock on wood.)

Only three chapters to go, which I plan to get through today. Of course, I expect them to be the most complicated chapters, since that's where the plot really thickens & all the characters from the entire "Dakota Fortunes" series come pouring in. Yikes. There are also a couple of things I've decided to add to the epilogue, so I'll need to work those in as smoothly as possible.

Aside from all of that, I did manage to finished both Key of Light & The Billionaire Boss's Forbidden Mistress. Ha! (We had a storm here yesterday, so I was forced--yes, forced--to shut down the computer & find something else to do for a while.) Now I'm reading Key of Knowledge, the second book in Nora's "Key" trilogy, & The Prince's Virgin Wife, a Presents by Lucy Monroe. Both are good so far, though I'm only a couple of pages into each.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend, everyone! And if you hear a printer zip, zip, zipping, that will be me, getting FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN ready to mail. :-D

& the best laid plans change again...

Welcome to my world, where I never know from one day to the next what the heck is going on or what the heck I'm going to do. LOL

My plan, as you all know, was to take a few days & try to get my dragon novella finished before going back to revise & polish FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN. As Jennifer would probably say, I may have been trying to convince myself I was going do that more than I was trying to convince anyone else. :-P

But this morning I woke up & decided that FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN has been set aside long enough. I'd really like to have it in the mail on Monday, so now I'm going to set "CURSE OF THE DRAGON'S TEARS" aside & focus on FFW again instead.

I'll take the weekend to read over it, polish, do any beefing up or revising that needs to be done, then hopefully have it printed & packed up to ship off Monday. That will be one more thing crossed off my list & then I'll be able to concentrate a little more easily on the dragon story. Right? It sounds good, anyway. :-)

I am also this close to finishing both Key of Light & The Billionaire Boss's Forbidden Woman, so you know all I want to do is sit around reading both. I won't, but I sure want to.

And I had the added pleasure of having to set my alarm for 3:30am last night so I could jump out of bed & give Angel one of his pills. I don't think he liked being awakened in the middle of the night for something like that anymore than I did, but it had to be done. :-)

Currently watching Secret Window
Currently reading Key of Light by Nora Roberts

my best laid plans always go astray

Okay, so you had to know things wouldn't go quite as smoothly as I had planned. I did not get my dragon novella finished in two days. As a matter of fact, I haven't even started work on it yet. Sheesh. :-P

First off, since I haven't been out in a while, I decided to go shopping yesterday. Mostly "stocking up on essentials" shopping, since I was out of just about everything. But of course, I hit a few other stores, too. *g* And I didn't think taking one day off was too bad. I'd earned it, right?

Then today, I was totally ready to buckle down & get back to work. I had read over my synopsis & first chapter of the dragon story (which was already done) to try to get my mind wrapped around where I needed to pick up. But as soon as I sat down, my oldest kitty, Angel, climbed up on my lap & I noticed almost immediately that something was wrong.

I probably should have realized last night or earlier this morning that he was acting odd, but I just thought he was being good for a change. LOL Normally, he can be a little needy & whiny, so I was kind of relieved he was being quiet.

Turns out he was sick. Oh, yes, I'm wracked with guilt over that one!

When he got on my lap, he wasn't purring...clue #1...he settled right down...clue #2...then I noticed he was shivering & his breathing was both harsh & rattle-y. Clues #3, 4, 5, 6, 7...

Well, of course, I called the vet's office immediately. They're on speed dial. :-p They're also great to me in there, so they fit me in for an appointment this afternoon. I didn't actually intend to insist I get Angel in to see the doctor, but I was concerned & once the lady heard some of the symptoms, she suggested the vet see him sooner rather than later, too.

I hate to admit that I'm both paranoid & easily prone to panic where my cats are concerned, but the last time I took one to the vet with breathing problems, she died, so...

This time, though, all is well. Angel just has a bit of an upper respiratory infection, sort of like a cold or flu to humans. Poor baby has a really red, sore throat & has to be on antibiotics for the next two weeks, but aside from that, he should be okay. Yay!

Unfortunately, that pretty much ate up my day, so now I have to really, really get down to business tomorrow. I mean tonight. Now that I know he's okay, I need to get to work tonight.

Did I mention that the dragon story is supposed to be super-super sexy? Maybe I should spend this evening researching before I actually begin to write. *vbg*

score!

I am done!

See, I told you I was close to "The End." It took me a little longer than planned, but I still got there. The epilogue was especially tough because I had to include all of the characters from all six books--five, in addition to my own, & that's not counting the parents, who technically make up a seventh couple. :-P

But at least I'm finished & can heave a big sigh of relief. Now, I will set the book aside for a couple days & just let it simmer. Let my brain forget about it for a while & hopefully go back practically to the clean slate stage. Then I'll come back to it & start reading over every word to make sure it holds together & all makes sense.

I also just backed up all of my files--just in case. We've been having a lot of power outages here, & I don't want to take any chances on losing chapters I just wrote. :-p

And while I'm letting FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN sit...sort of hoping writing faeries will come in & fix any mistakes I might have made *vbg*...I've printed out the synopsis & first chapter of my dragon novella--tentatively titled "CURSE OF THE DRAGON'S TEARS." It's not technically due until December 1st, but my agent has encouraged me most strongly to get it done & turned in early, early, early.

It doesn't need to be very long, so I'm hoping to get it done really quickly. Then get FFW printed & in the mail. Then get my butt moving on the beach novella that's due November 1st. (Eeek! You see why I don't sleep, right?!?)

I've also changed my mind about the title for that one. I was calling it "GOOD GIRL GONE BAD," but now I'm thinking of changing it to "SHAKEN AND STIRRED." It would totally suit the heroine & the situation she finds herself in with an oh-so-hunky U.S. Marine on leave. :-D

And now, I'm shutting down my computer & going out to dinner to celebrate the completion of yet another novel. It's part of my process. *g*

oh, crickey--Steve Irwin is dead!

Happy Labor Day, all! Although, it's not a very good one in my corner of the world. I woke up to the most awful news, & am still in shock.

You know who Steve Irwin is, right? The Crocodile Hunter. The crazy, wacky, educational guy who liked to roll around in the mud with creatures that could have snapped him like a twig.

My entire family have always been huge fans. And half the appeal was that he was wild & crazy. No way would I do half of what he has, but he was a great spokesperson for the environment & animals, especially the less-than-cuddly ones that most people hate. Gathering around the TV to watch Crocodile Hunter specials is a holiday tradition around here--Christmas definitely won't be the same this year without that. I also have big lizard bedroom slippers because of Steve, & a deck of Crocodile Hunter playing cards. :-((((

Oh, my gosh, I can't believe it. And he had two really young kids. I feel awful. I think we should all go out & adopt crocodiles today in honor of this great, brave man. (And, no, I don't mean bring one home, I mean those at-a-distance adoption things like they do with dolphins & pandas. :-p) I also think we should all be very careful about not disparaging stingrays or any other ocean creatures, just because of this tragic accident.

Waaaaa!

Aside from that stunning & very sad news, FORTUNE'S FORBIDDEN WOMAN isn't wrapping up quite as quickly as I'd hoped, but it is moving along. Got 8 pages written yesterday & am at the very end. Really, I am. Or at least I'm darn close. I just forgot how long it can take to get through the big "confession of love" scene. In my synopsis, it's one short paragraph...in actual books, they always end up being more like a full chapter. I'd forgotten that part when estimating how much longer it would take me to finish the manuscript. :-P But I'm closing in on "The End," honestly I am.

I'm also watching The Ringer...the Johnny Knoxville movie where he pretends to be mentally challenged so he can compete in the Special Olympics. And while I suspect it's wrong on many, many levels, I'm really enjoying it. It's a hoot! I definitely recommend it far & beyond The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. :-D

Currently watching The Ringer
Currently reading Key of Light by Nora Roberts

way to go, dear abby!

Did y'all read Dear Abby yesterday? The first letter is titled, "Teen's taste for steamy novels doesn't sit well with mother."

Since it's copyrighted material, I can't copy the letters here, so READ THIS:
http://www.uexpress.com/dearabby/?uc_full_date=20060902 & then we'll discuss. :-)

(If you have trouble finding the article or the letter has changed, you can always go to www.dearabby.com, then scroll down a bit to the "Dear Abby Archive" & go to any date you want. This particular letter is for Saturday, September 2, 2006.)

You can tell from the last paragraph of Abby's response that she hasn't read a romance novel in a while. :-P But all in all, I'd say she did a good job. And I think the girl's mother should start reading romances, too...that way she'd not only know what her daughter was reading, but be familiar enough with authors & lines/imprints to both recommend titles & keep the girl from reading things that really may be a bit too hot for her.

That's what my advice would have been, anyway. *g*

the end is near, I'll crawl if I have to

It's late, I know, but I warned you that as my deadline--& the end of this book--approached, I'd be less chatty. At least I'm not snapping, "I don't have time to talk, I'm writing!" at you the way I sometimes do with family & friends. LOL (Thankfully, they still love me, they just don't like me very much during deadline crunches. :-))

I'm closing in on 9 pages of writing today--whoohoo!--& am about 2 pages from finishing this latest chapter. After this, my best guess-timate is that I'll need one more chapter & probably an epilogue before I'll be done with the book. I hope, anyway.

I can't believe it's September already, though! I don't like it at all. Time is going by much too quickly & I have much too much to do for the months to be zipping by like this. I demand a slow-down. Not to my writing, of course, but for the clock. I demand that every minute now contain 90 seconds, every hour contain 90 minutes, & every month contain 60 days. Yeah, I like that plan, how about you? *vbg*

Now, back to the book! G'night!

Currently watching The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Currently reading Cover of Night by Linda Howard

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