Harlequin American Romance - June
Take family, community, love and how to get it, add few quirky, fun-loving characters, and what do you have? Harlequin American Romance!
Do you read HARs? I do! And I love the stories about relationships, not only between the hero and heroine, but within a community of caring people. Kids, babies, moms, dads, aunts, uncles and more, HAR stories deliver the best!
Did you know the Harlequin American Romance authors have a blog? Lots of things going on there, so check it out and keep up with your favorite HAR authors and discover some new ones. You might even win a book or two!
Be sure to check out this month's fabulous line-up of books from Tina Leonard, Lisa Ruff, Victoria Chancellor, and Kara Lennox. You're gonna love 'em!
Time Flies
Yesterday, a very good friend reminded me that there hadn't been anything new on my blog since December. I had no real excuse, except that life gets in the way, and I often forget to do things that should be done, instead of focusing on the things that must be done. Blogging is a "should". Paying bills, fixing meals, taking care of grandkids, and writing, writing, writing, are all "musts" that can't be ignored.
So here I am, almost six months later, giving yet another excuse for not posting that's neither good nor acceptable, but it's all I've got.
So what's happened in that almost six months? The usual. :) Christmas came and went. My daughters have had probably more happen in their lives, but even those things affect me in one way or another. Lyndsay and her family returned to their home after fire destroyed part of it in October. Sabrina's husband left for and returned from a 4-month deployment in the Middle East (Qatar) with the Air Force. Chelsea's work schedule changed from "normal" to second shift, and she actually likes it! And Mallory has discovered that being 18 isn't all that different than 17.
I had the pleasure of receiving a 2-book contract with Harlequin American Romance in March, and found myself writing, not only at night, but during the day, while transporting both granddaughters to and from school. At least that last part is on hold, now that it's summer.
Spring also brought us all closer together when my mother passed away in April. If not for my daughters and their families, it would have been a much more trying time. But I'm comforted in knowing my mom, a wholly independent person for most of her life, always involved in many organizations, is much happier now than being confined to nursing home life because of her health. She's at peace, and so am I.
My plans for the summer? We're already 3 weeks into it, and I don't have any, except to finish the second book, TAMING KATE (w.t.) and hope my editor likes the first, TANNER'S PRIZE (w.t.), and simply to enjoy each day with my 4 grandkids to the fullest. By the way, there are new pictures of all of them (and my step-granddaughter) on my photos page. They've grown!For those of you who have had weather that's kept you on your toes, keep your eye to the sky and stay safe. We've had our share of bad weather, flooding, and tornadoes here in Kansas over the past few weeks, and I know others have had the same. Hugs to my friend, writer Patricia Davids, on the devastation of her hometown during a tornado two nights ago. Enjoy your summer, everyone!As Arnold Schwarzenegger said, I'll be back!
Merry Christmas!
A Visit from St. NicholasBy Clement Clarke Moore’T WAS the night before Christmas, when all through the houseNot a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,In hopes that ST. NICHOLAS soon would be there;The children were nestled all snug in their beds,While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;And mamma in her ’kerchief, and I in my cap,Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap,When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.Away to the window I flew like a flash, Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snowGave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,With a little old driver, so lively and quick,I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick. More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!”As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky;So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,With the sleigh full of Toys, and St. Nicholas too.And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roofThe prancing and pawing of each little hoof. As I drew in my head, and was turning around,Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;A bundle of Toys he had flung on his back, And he looked like a pedler just opening his pack.His eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bowAnd the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;He had a broad face and a little round belly,That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly.He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk, And laying his finger aside of his nose,And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,And away they all flew like the down of a thistle,But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.”
'Tis the Season
In spite of the weather many of us are experiencing, I hope this holiday season is proving to be a joyous one for all. My many friends in Oklahoma experienced an ice storm this week. I know what that's like. In January of '05, we experienced the same thing here. We spent a full week without power and with streets and highways that were beyond challenging. My daughter and her family insisted we come stay with her. Seven days of ten of us sharing their two-bedroom apartment was...interesting. But she had power and HEAT, and we didn't. I'm not sure who was more relieved when our power returned, my daughter and her family or us. But power does get restored and ice does melt. Life does return to whatever normal is, so hang in there, friends!
My upcoming January Harlequin American includes a snowstorm that brings the hero (Nick) and heroine (Becca) closer together. It was also a turning point for the heroine and brought a major change to the way she looked at their relationship.
I loved writing about Nick's family and Becca's three children in Family by Design, and I'm so very pleased that Whitney Kate Sullivan at Romantic Times enjoyed them and the book. Her review is here, so if you're curious, take look.
And I've added an excerpt of the book, so if the season is getting frantic and you need to stop and take a deep breath for a few minutes peace, relax with a glimpse of the story. I hope you enjoy it AND this holiday season!
Family by Design
 My first book for Harlequin American Romance, Family by Design, will hit the shelves in January, but today I saw the cover for the first time, and it's great! Cover art is always a mystery to the author, until she sees it in the final product. I've been very lucky to have had wonderful covers for all of my books, and the cover of Family by Design is no exception. Kudos to Harlequin's wonderful art department for depicting Danny, the heroine's young son, as the adorable little guy he is in the book!
If you'd like to learn a little more about Family by Design, click on the BOOKS link above, where you'll find a blurb about the story and a link to the Inside Story of writing it.
October is a month my family would like to forget this year. With one son-in-law hospitalized with a partially collapsed lung and the other returning from deployment in UAE with the Air Force, it was a difficult month for two of my daughters. Happily, the hospital visit and the deployment are a thing of the past now. But just as we thought the hardest part was over, my next-to-oldest daughter's house caught fire. Charging back inside to retrieve their kitten didn't help the lung of her hubby, and although they'll be living in a temporary house for at least three months while their house is made liveable again, we're all very thankful that no one was hurt and the fire was contained in one bedroom, while the rest of the house sustained smoke and water damage. The weather has been much cooler here, but we didn't need that kind of heat!
I hope everyone had a delightful Halloween (and didn't eat too much candy!) and that Thanksgiving will find you surrounded by loved ones, thankful for many things.
Friends and Parties and Limos, Oh My!
I've only been home a couple of days from RWA's annual conference held at the Hyatt Regency in Dallas, and already I'm wishing it could have been a longer trip!It's always wonderful to get to spend time with friends and especially when they're writing friends. Eight of the Ditzy Chix managed to finally get together at a conference and had a fabulous time at a celebration dinner for our achievements this year.It was an especially super trip because, not only did I room with my friend Kathie DeNosky for the first time, we shared the flight from Kansas City to Dallas. We spent as much time as possible talking and laughing and sometimes shed a tear, and quite often shared that time with Kristi Gold and her nifty roomie Vicky Dreiling. Of course, there's always the party hosted by Harlequin/Silhouette that's one of the big highlights for some of us at conference. This year, several H/S authors went together for a special treat--and some of the Ditzy Chix joined in the ride back to the hotel from the party...in a stretch Hummer limo. Now just how cool is that?!
His Queen of Hearts in Italian
 It's always such fun to receive foreign copies of my books. The other day, a new one arrived, and it has such a beautiful cover! This one is the Italian version of His Queen of Hearts, the last of my Silhouette Romance books. (BTW, the literal translation of the title is Escape in Dress White.)
I'd love to know what you think of the cover!
Catching Up
Busy, busy! That's what I've been since the middle of January. Why? Because I learned then that Family by Design will be a January 2008 Harlequin American release! What a wonderful group of writers the Harlequin American family encompasses. I've been able to be in contact with several old friends who write for HAR, and it's wonderful to meet new (I hope) friends. But with an April 1 deadline to have the book finished, there hasn't been a lot of time to be as sociable as I'd like to be. It's all done now, but that didn't mean I could lay around and eat bonbons and watch soap operas.
I've done three new Designs by Delaney websites and am finally now able to catch my breath. (I hope!) Heather Waters, Susan J. Mitchell, and Susanna Chelton Sheehy are worth a look and such very nice writers who were wonderful to work with.Here's hoping Winter is on its way out and Spring, if not already here, is on its way!
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