OK, here is an excerpt from my WIP! The title is A Kiss of Poison. It's very different from anything I've done before, both with the setting and the characters, but I'm having fun writing it. Maybe tomorrow I'll post a bit about the hero and heroine meeting. This is just a few paragraphs from the beginning:
Chapter One--Venice, 1530
Oh, yes. He was really dead.
"Madre de dio," Julietta Bassano whispered, leaning close to examine the man's corpse, sprawled across the rich silk cushions of his gilded bed. It had not been an easy death, nor a pretty one. His face, so florid in life, was turned a dark, mottled purple-blue, his black beard matted with bile and spittle and blood. The wide, staring, sightless eyes were dotted with tiny spots of red, and his stiffening limbs were thrown wide in abruptly frozen death throes.
No--not an easy death at all. She recognized the signs. She had seen them in her own husband three years ago, as he collapsed in the middle of their own bed, convulsing and heaving.
"Witch!" he had screamed. "Sorceress! You have murdered me." And his clawlike hands snatched at her gown, his blood and vomit spraying her flesh with death...
No! she thought sternly, closing her eyes and her mind to the memories. Giovanni Bassano was long dead; he had deserved his end. He could not hurt anyone ever again.
Unlike this man before her now...
Julietta opened her eyes to stare down at the corpse of Michelotto Landucci, noble of the Most Serene Republic, high member of the Savio ai Cerimoniali. His richly brocaded robe hung open, revealing a heavy, hairy stomach, a flaccid, blue-tinged member. With a snort of disgust, she grabbed the edge of a silk sheet and drew it up over him, hiding him from view.
Behind her, she heard a soft, frightened sob, a stifled gasp. Julietta tried to take in a deep, steadying breath to calm herself, but the stench of death had grown too strong. It stuck in her nostrils, clung to her hair and cloak. Clasping the black velvet closer about her throat, she spun around to face the woman who huddled in the shadows of the palatial bedchamber. Cosima Landucci, wife--nay, widow--of the man beneath the sheet. Unlike her spouse, she was still fully dressed in an elaborate gown of gold-embroidered blue silk. Thick, dark red hair spilled down her back and fell over her white, unlined brow, proclaiming how very much younger than her husband she was. Just a child, really.
A child, whose husband lay poisoned in his own bed. Well, well. She would not have thought it of timid little Cosima. People were ever surprising.
"What happened here, signora?" Julietta asked, as gently as she could. She knew this girl--Cosima had been a loyal patroness of Julietta's perfume shop for almost two years, coming in weekly to buy her special scent of jasmine and lily, and to talk to Julietta. And talk and talk, as if she had no other friend in the world but her perfumer. And Julietta had been glad to listen. She felt sorry for the girl, who seemed so lost and unhappy despite her fine gowns and flashing jewels. She--well, she rather reminded Julietta of herself so long ago, when all her dreams of marriage and family were shattered in the face of cold reality.
But this--this was something else altogether.
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
Dancing With the Stars (of course, it's Wednesday!)
Did you catch Dancing With the Stars tonight? I swear, those judges are blind!!! They would not know good dancing if it kicked them in the butt!!! I don't see how they could pick Kelly over Joey. I had to go to abc. com and make my voice heard.
Anyway, I have been hard at work on my new book, the first in a trilogy set in Renaissance Venice. I hit the 200-page milestone today, yippee!! Maybe tomorrow I'll post a short excerpt from it. :)
Anyway, I have been hard at work on my new book, the first in a trilogy set in Renaissance Venice. I hit the 200-page milestone today, yippee!! Maybe tomorrow I'll post a short excerpt from it. :)
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Fashion
I love clothes (just ask my Mastercard, with the melted magnetic strip). I have way too many subscriptions to fashion mags for my own good, and so many evening gowns you'd think I was running for Miss America, not someone whose career needs only t-shirts and pajama bottoms. And I especially like classic clothes that help me look good with the least amount of effort on my part. A few months ago in Vogue I saw an interview with actress Emmy Rossum, where she said "You would never see me running around Hollywood in a cotton velour tracksuit and Uggs!" In the photos she wore a great white pique suit and beige D'Orsay pumps. I like that sort of fashion philosophy, and would like to follow it, if I was as tall, thin, and young as Rossum, and had freebies from Ralph Lauren whenever I wanted them. :) But she does have a point--I would a hundred times rather be like her, someone truly classy and talented, rather than, say, someone like Britney Spears. In fashion and in my writing.
In related news, I found the cutest book at Barnes and Noble this weekend, a little gift volume titled Things a Woman Should Know About Style by Karen Homer. She gives some great tips on building one's own style, as well as a pithy, British way of delivering those tips . Here are some of my faves:
"Dressing well is like kissing: fun but you have to practice a lot before you get it right"
"Plain black patent loafers are smart, comfortable, and elegant. Wear them with dresses or skirts, however, and you'll look all together too Home Counties"
"Women have a relationship with shoes that men will never understand. Men have a relationship with women's shoes that women are better off not understanding"
"Feel free to shoe your children in Clarks as long as possible. Not only will they not ruin their feet, their aesthetic sensibility will be so sharpened by years of humiliation that they will never buy a nasty pair of shoes again"
"Too tight t-shirts make your bust look like 2 pigs wrestling under a blanket"
"No one is a normal size in Top Shop unless you are under 15 and have a thigh the same width as your knee. Don't shop in Top Shop if you are over 30" (I'm not sure what Top Shop is, but I consider myself warned)
"Jeans and trainers are not stylish. Jeans and loafers are classic. Jeans and high heels are either very tacky or very now, depending on whether you are at an Essex nighclub or an A-list celebrity party. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference"
"Never pass up an opportunity to wear a tiara" (Amen!)
"Never wear a black hat to a wedding. Even if everyone else is. Everyone else may be. Everyone else is wrong"
"Wear colored mascara if you are going to a Biba revival party and nowhere else. There is nothing so pointless as clear mascara. It is a mystery why anyone bothered to invent it"
And last but not least, "Shop in stores that are your style. Not one that tempts with the promise of re-inventing yourself in fuschia pink PVC. Be strong"
I think I'll go shopping now. :)
In related news, I found the cutest book at Barnes and Noble this weekend, a little gift volume titled Things a Woman Should Know About Style by Karen Homer. She gives some great tips on building one's own style, as well as a pithy, British way of delivering those tips . Here are some of my faves:
"Dressing well is like kissing: fun but you have to practice a lot before you get it right"
"Plain black patent loafers are smart, comfortable, and elegant. Wear them with dresses or skirts, however, and you'll look all together too Home Counties"
"Women have a relationship with shoes that men will never understand. Men have a relationship with women's shoes that women are better off not understanding"
"Feel free to shoe your children in Clarks as long as possible. Not only will they not ruin their feet, their aesthetic sensibility will be so sharpened by years of humiliation that they will never buy a nasty pair of shoes again"
"Too tight t-shirts make your bust look like 2 pigs wrestling under a blanket"
"No one is a normal size in Top Shop unless you are under 15 and have a thigh the same width as your knee. Don't shop in Top Shop if you are over 30" (I'm not sure what Top Shop is, but I consider myself warned)
"Jeans and trainers are not stylish. Jeans and loafers are classic. Jeans and high heels are either very tacky or very now, depending on whether you are at an Essex nighclub or an A-list celebrity party. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference"
"Never pass up an opportunity to wear a tiara" (Amen!)
"Never wear a black hat to a wedding. Even if everyone else is. Everyone else may be. Everyone else is wrong"
"Wear colored mascara if you are going to a Biba revival party and nowhere else. There is nothing so pointless as clear mascara. It is a mystery why anyone bothered to invent it"
And last but not least, "Shop in stores that are your style. Not one that tempts with the promise of re-inventing yourself in fuschia pink PVC. Be strong"
I think I'll go shopping now. :)
Monday, June 27, 2005
Summertime
What I love about summer:
1) Fresh tomatoes with mozzarella and basil
2) A glass of chilled Chardonnay on the patio, while I watch the dogs run through the sprinklers
3) Wearing sundresses and flip-flops every day
4) Shakespeare in the Park
5) The smell of fresh-cut grass and roses from the garden
6) Jumping into a cold pool when it's 95 degrees outside
7) "Beach books" (and no, Oprah, that doesn't mean As I Lay Dying, it means stuff like Bergdorf Blondes)
8) Daylight until 9 at night
9) Fireworks on the 4th of July (plus hotdogs and margaritas)
10) RWA National every July
What I don't like so much:
1) Living in Oklahoma, the nexus of humidity
2) Bathing the dogs after they've run through those sprinklers and then rolled in the mud
3) Ironing those sundresses
4) Lack of variety at the multiplex (do Star Wars and Batman really need 6000 screens in one theater, when You and Me and Everyone We Know isn't even playing??)
5) And the thing I hate most--mosquitoes!!! (They seem to looove me, though)
Happy belated beginning of summer! :)
1) Fresh tomatoes with mozzarella and basil
2) A glass of chilled Chardonnay on the patio, while I watch the dogs run through the sprinklers
3) Wearing sundresses and flip-flops every day
4) Shakespeare in the Park
5) The smell of fresh-cut grass and roses from the garden
6) Jumping into a cold pool when it's 95 degrees outside
7) "Beach books" (and no, Oprah, that doesn't mean As I Lay Dying, it means stuff like Bergdorf Blondes)
8) Daylight until 9 at night
9) Fireworks on the 4th of July (plus hotdogs and margaritas)
10) RWA National every July
What I don't like so much:
1) Living in Oklahoma, the nexus of humidity
2) Bathing the dogs after they've run through those sprinklers and then rolled in the mud
3) Ironing those sundresses
4) Lack of variety at the multiplex (do Star Wars and Batman really need 6000 screens in one theater, when You and Me and Everyone We Know isn't even playing??)
5) And the thing I hate most--mosquitoes!!! (They seem to looove me, though)
Happy belated beginning of summer! :)
Friday, June 24, 2005
Friday! And candy!
I read about an event that I would dearly love to attend some day--the All Candy Expo in Chicago. Now, I've been a sugar fiend since I could eat solid food, but my tastes run to the mainstream--Godiva raspberry truffles, Milky Way Midnight bars, creme brulee, Braum's chocolate malts. The big news at the Expo this year was, well, gross stuff. Vomit-flavored jelly beans, cheese-flavored worm larvae, toy dogs that poop candy. There is even a line of new Fear Factor candy, as well as the now-classic Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans (earwax, booger, dirt, soap, etc--thanks so much, Harry!). "Right now there are a lot of gross-out factors driving the market, and we want to capture that moment," said one candy company rep. Okey-dokey. I think I'll stick to Godiva, thanks. And not vomit-flavored.
In related news, Snapple made a brave attempt to gain the record for World's Largest Popsicle, a gi-normous frozen behemoth of strawberry-kiwi flavor Snapple meant to be raised in New York's Union Square on the first day of summer. A Snapsicle, if you will. Alas, all did not go well in this brave endeavor. It began to melt, a river of pink, sticky goo down 17th Street. It also didn't raise above a 25-degree angle, much to the chagrin of the crowd. Alas, the folly of human striving. :)
Happy Friday everyone! May your weekend be sweet. (And I will get a new Orlando pic up tomorrow, hopefully)
In related news, Snapple made a brave attempt to gain the record for World's Largest Popsicle, a gi-normous frozen behemoth of strawberry-kiwi flavor Snapple meant to be raised in New York's Union Square on the first day of summer. A Snapsicle, if you will. Alas, all did not go well in this brave endeavor. It began to melt, a river of pink, sticky goo down 17th Street. It also didn't raise above a 25-degree angle, much to the chagrin of the crowd. Alas, the folly of human striving. :)
Happy Friday everyone! May your weekend be sweet. (And I will get a new Orlando pic up tomorrow, hopefully)
Thursday, June 23, 2005
Thursday things
I've been a blog slacker again, I know. I've been working more hours than usual this week getting ready for a benefit concert for the station tonight (went really well, BTW! If you like classical guitar you should check out the Viva Trio). So I'm behind on my writing, on surfing the Web for new Orlando pics, on aimlessly wandering the aisles at the Super Target. Really, on everything that makes life worthwhile. :) But I will get caught up now.
One thing I was not too busy to do was watch Dancing With the Stars last night. What did you all think of the outcome? I was kinda surprised Rachel Hunter was eliminated, I was sure it would be the New Kids on the Block guy. The judges seemed to love her, but she always did look really ticked off even when she was in first place. At least the three couples left are pretty fun. I liked watching them all waltz at the same time and try not to mow each other down, though I was disappointed no fights broke out. :) Can't wait for next week!
Meanwhile, check out this great website--http://www.bizarrerecords.com. It's hilarious! I nearly fell off my chair cracking up over the Saturday Night Fiedler album, though really this site is chock full of rare gems. But who the heck is Little Marcy???
One thing I was not too busy to do was watch Dancing With the Stars last night. What did you all think of the outcome? I was kinda surprised Rachel Hunter was eliminated, I was sure it would be the New Kids on the Block guy. The judges seemed to love her, but she always did look really ticked off even when she was in first place. At least the three couples left are pretty fun. I liked watching them all waltz at the same time and try not to mow each other down, though I was disappointed no fights broke out. :) Can't wait for next week!
Meanwhile, check out this great website--http://www.bizarrerecords.com. It's hilarious! I nearly fell off my chair cracking up over the Saturday Night Fiedler album, though really this site is chock full of rare gems. But who the heck is Little Marcy???
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Mardi Gras
My friend Kay's boyfriend Bill is in New Orleans right now, and has very kindly offered to bring me voodoo spells to either: A) lure Orlando to this blog, so he can see we are really soulmates (snort!!), or B) put a hex on my publisher when they thwart me on a proposal. I asked for one of each, plus a box of pralines. Need to be well-nourished for casting those love spells. Though the negative effects of the pralines on the appearance of my backside might then negate the spell! What a conundrum. :)
Speaking of Orlando, I was going to wait until Friday to post a new pic (show some restraint, Amanda, please!), but I feel like it now. I like this one, even though it also has the infernally skinny Keira Knightley in it (better than infernally perky like Katie Holmes, I guess). I'd like something like this on one of my covers some day, only I want to be the pirate wench! Hey, that gives me an idea--a pirate/time travel proposal...
Speaking of Orlando, I was going to wait until Friday to post a new pic (show some restraint, Amanda, please!), but I feel like it now. I like this one, even though it also has the infernally skinny Keira Knightley in it (better than infernally perky like Katie Holmes, I guess). I'd like something like this on one of my covers some day, only I want to be the pirate wench! Hey, that gives me an idea--a pirate/time travel proposal...
Monday, June 20, 2005
Happy Monday
So, how do you all like the glimpse into my parents' 1970s abode? I had forgotten about the gold shag carpet and the naugahyde chair. :) We also had avocado-colored linoleum in the kitchen, a gold tweed sofa, and huge, hideous painting of the Flying Dutchman by moonlight painted by my aunt. What were we thinking??? But we had a lot of fun in that house, it was a great place to grow up. And my dad might not appreciate me showing everyone his groovy sideburns, but hey, at least I didn't go with the mountain-man beard photo.
One of my favorite hobbies is taking dance lessons, ballet, flamenco, a little tap. It's a lot of fun, and it fools my exercise-phobic butt into thinking it's NOT exercising. So last night my flamenco teacher says she and some friends are going to a new salsa club and do I want to go with them. Now, my experience with partnered dancing is strictly limited--one tango workshop, a long-ago pas de deux class, and many viewings of Strictly Ballroom, but I'm not one to turn down a chance to hear some great music and try something new. I looked like a total idiot, I'm sure, but it was a complete blast!!! (To the guy whose toe I probably fractured, I'm really sorry about that, dude). I'm hoping to go back very soon, and maybe fit in a few Latin dance classes. I really want one of those sparkly, swirly dresses. Rumba, anyone?
What I read this weekend--Jennifer Ashley's Confessions of a Lingerie Addict. What a fun book! It made me want to run out to Victoria's Secret or Agent Provocateur (if we had an AP here in this shopping wasteland!), and the hero Nick was absolutely yummy. I wished he was real so I could go out and find him for myself, and believe me I don't think that very often of fictional heroes. I laughed aloud at several of the scenes, especially the Easter lunch on the boat. A perfect book for a hot, lazy summer weekend. Now I'm reading MJ Putney's Stolen Magic.
Until tomorrow! :)
One of my favorite hobbies is taking dance lessons, ballet, flamenco, a little tap. It's a lot of fun, and it fools my exercise-phobic butt into thinking it's NOT exercising. So last night my flamenco teacher says she and some friends are going to a new salsa club and do I want to go with them. Now, my experience with partnered dancing is strictly limited--one tango workshop, a long-ago pas de deux class, and many viewings of Strictly Ballroom, but I'm not one to turn down a chance to hear some great music and try something new. I looked like a total idiot, I'm sure, but it was a complete blast!!! (To the guy whose toe I probably fractured, I'm really sorry about that, dude). I'm hoping to go back very soon, and maybe fit in a few Latin dance classes. I really want one of those sparkly, swirly dresses. Rumba, anyone?
What I read this weekend--Jennifer Ashley's Confessions of a Lingerie Addict. What a fun book! It made me want to run out to Victoria's Secret or Agent Provocateur (if we had an AP here in this shopping wasteland!), and the hero Nick was absolutely yummy. I wished he was real so I could go out and find him for myself, and believe me I don't think that very often of fictional heroes. I laughed aloud at several of the scenes, especially the Easter lunch on the boat. A perfect book for a hot, lazy summer weekend. Now I'm reading MJ Putney's Stolen Magic.
Until tomorrow! :)
Sunday, June 19, 2005
Friday, June 17, 2005
Thursday, June 16, 2005
Cha cha cha
I had a very productive and responsible evening yesterday. I laid on my couch, ate miniature Heath bars, and watched Dancing With the Stars. What a ridiculously goofy, absurdly wonderful show that is! It reminds me of Circus of the Stars, which I loved as a kid. C-list celebs, clad in sparkly sequins, clumping their way through rumbas and waltzes. Perfect. :) I think that guy who played J. Peterman on Seinfeld is a ringer, though. I'll have to add DWTS to my astonishingly long list of guilty pleasures (The OC, Gilmore Girls, Hostess cherry pies, old Duran Duran songs, kung fu movies, cheap travel souvenirs, to mention just a few).
Which brings me to this--why can't we have Dancing With the Romance Authors? Maybe at RT or something, that seems like their cuppa. I'm always up for making a fool of myself in whatever way possible, I may as well try it in a samba. And I would LOVE one of those feathery dresses!!! No nasty judges, though, please. :)
Which brings me to this--why can't we have Dancing With the Romance Authors? Maybe at RT or something, that seems like their cuppa. I'm always up for making a fool of myself in whatever way possible, I may as well try it in a samba. And I would LOVE one of those feathery dresses!!! No nasty judges, though, please. :)
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
"So, what do you do?"
Since I'm not sure if anyone is reading this besides myself and three of my friends, I feel free to just babble on. :) And today I think I will babble about--dating. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Now, I've been dating since I was about 15, broken up by a few years occupied by a couple of serious relationships, so I've had my share of all three. Today I am pondering a philosophical question--why, when the first date conversation turns to careers, do so many men fall into one of two categories as I talk about my romance novel writing? (Disclaimer here: not ALL men do this. I have met some perfectly normal, nice ones who do not. But I have also met many who do). They are either: A) smarmy, leaning close to say leeringly, "Oh, does that mean you're very--romantic?" (wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more). Ugh. Not with YOU, buddy. Or: B) go all Literary Snob on me. Like it's going to impress me that they're Above genre fiction and only read obscure Japanese poets or Jonathon Safran Foer (another disclaimer: nothing against Foer here. Everything is Illuminated was a great book. Even if it IS literary fiction).
Trust me, gentlemen, you will win no points with a lady by tearing down her life's work. One date (who I only went out with once), then went and bought a copy of my book. Very sweet, major brownie points. Then he made a point of telling me he bought it used, because he wouldn't actually spend real money on such things, and then (oooh, then it got really good!!!) he sent me a long email critiquing my writing style and narrative ability!!! (Forgive the multitude of exclamation points. This happened quite a while back, but I'm still astonished by it all). I have critique partners, an agent, and an editor for that sort of thing, thank you very much. I'm looking for something, shall we say, different in a date. Men like this do not come across as intelligent and discerning, they mostly just seem like pompous jerks who are no fun to be around. And life is too short for that.
Granted, I realize I'm not exactly Tolstoy over here (and TG for that! While I confess to a morbid love for Russian literature and history, I couldn't function at all, let alone write, if I had to wander around in a haze of existential dilemma all the time). But I do work very hard on my books, and I'm proud of them. Any man I fell in love with would have to be proud of them, too. On a first or second date, all I ask is that he be interested and polite, the way I'm interested and polite about their jobs. Is that too much to ask? Am I just being picky, as my aunt says I am? Oh, well--better picky than sorry. :)
On another dating note, I am going out to dinner with my family on Saturday night to celebrate Father's Day, and we actually get to (gasp!) meet my brother's new girlfriend!!! A truly momentous occasion. My little brother (who is 25 now, so I guess I better quit calling him that) is a good-looking guy and has always had many girlfriends, girls calling the house and his cell all the time, etc. But he is also very shy and private, and we've never been formally introduced to any of them before. He even says she bought a bike in order to go mountain biking with him in Colorado next month. It must be serious. I just hope she's ready for us.
Trust me, gentlemen, you will win no points with a lady by tearing down her life's work. One date (who I only went out with once), then went and bought a copy of my book. Very sweet, major brownie points. Then he made a point of telling me he bought it used, because he wouldn't actually spend real money on such things, and then (oooh, then it got really good!!!) he sent me a long email critiquing my writing style and narrative ability!!! (Forgive the multitude of exclamation points. This happened quite a while back, but I'm still astonished by it all). I have critique partners, an agent, and an editor for that sort of thing, thank you very much. I'm looking for something, shall we say, different in a date. Men like this do not come across as intelligent and discerning, they mostly just seem like pompous jerks who are no fun to be around. And life is too short for that.
Granted, I realize I'm not exactly Tolstoy over here (and TG for that! While I confess to a morbid love for Russian literature and history, I couldn't function at all, let alone write, if I had to wander around in a haze of existential dilemma all the time). But I do work very hard on my books, and I'm proud of them. Any man I fell in love with would have to be proud of them, too. On a first or second date, all I ask is that he be interested and polite, the way I'm interested and polite about their jobs. Is that too much to ask? Am I just being picky, as my aunt says I am? Oh, well--better picky than sorry. :)
On another dating note, I am going out to dinner with my family on Saturday night to celebrate Father's Day, and we actually get to (gasp!) meet my brother's new girlfriend!!! A truly momentous occasion. My little brother (who is 25 now, so I guess I better quit calling him that) is a good-looking guy and has always had many girlfriends, girls calling the house and his cell all the time, etc. But he is also very shy and private, and we've never been formally introduced to any of them before. He even says she bought a bike in order to go mountain biking with him in Colorado next month. It must be serious. I just hope she's ready for us.
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Shopping a la Europe
My Internet wanderings today took on a distinctly European theme--buy from around the world without leaving the comfort of your living room! :) Here are some interesting sites:
Austriastore.at (for all your Alpine needs, such as embroidered lederhosen and dirndls)
Artofvenice.com (Venetian glass, gorgeous)
Directart.co.uk (just in case you've always wanted a print of "Last Stand of the 24th Regiment of Foot South Wales Borderers during the Zulu Wars", just 42 pounds plus 15 pounds shipping)
Pedroximenez.com (Spanish wines)
Figleaves.com (English lingerie)
Fromages.com (all French cheese all the time, naturellement)
And, BTW, Baby Dior has now opened its first boutique in London! Now your wee one need no longer pine for those designer rompers and booties. :)
Bon voyage!
Austriastore.at (for all your Alpine needs, such as embroidered lederhosen and dirndls)
Artofvenice.com (Venetian glass, gorgeous)
Directart.co.uk (just in case you've always wanted a print of "Last Stand of the 24th Regiment of Foot South Wales Borderers during the Zulu Wars", just 42 pounds plus 15 pounds shipping)
Pedroximenez.com (Spanish wines)
Figleaves.com (English lingerie)
Fromages.com (all French cheese all the time, naturellement)
And, BTW, Baby Dior has now opened its first boutique in London! Now your wee one need no longer pine for those designer rompers and booties. :)
Bon voyage!
Monday, June 13, 2005
Le weekend
So, I had a busy (and fun!) weekend. My book Star of India won the Holt Medallion, which I was VERY excited about!!! I've finaled in this contest before but never won--was beginning to think I had a big "L" stamped on my forehead. :) I also finished reading The Dark Queen, and loved it. It's a long book for a romance--over 500 pages--but it was so complex and full of activity and history that it flew by. Now I'm anxiously awaiting The Courtesan, Gabrielle's story, which I think is out in August. If I had it in my hot little hands I would devour it right now! Damn you, Susan Carroll, for not releasing these books all at the same time!!! Remy had better not be dead.
And last night I went to the movies and saw Layer Cake. I highly recommend this one, especially if you love twisty, clever caper movies like I do. The director was producer of Snatch and Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, and it has a similar style to those films, British-y, clever, sarcastic, violent in a stylized way. It follows the old formula of con man who wants to retire but gets pulled back in for one more job--up to a point. Then things get complicated. "Layered", if you will. :)
It's great to have a satisfying entertainment weekend, but alas it leaves me nothing to be snarky about. We can only hope for tomorrow.
And last night I went to the movies and saw Layer Cake. I highly recommend this one, especially if you love twisty, clever caper movies like I do. The director was producer of Snatch and Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, and it has a similar style to those films, British-y, clever, sarcastic, violent in a stylized way. It follows the old formula of con man who wants to retire but gets pulled back in for one more job--up to a point. Then things get complicated. "Layered", if you will. :)
It's great to have a satisfying entertainment weekend, but alas it leaves me nothing to be snarky about. We can only hope for tomorrow.
Friday, June 10, 2005
What I'm reading
What I'm reading today--The Dark Queen by Susan Carroll. One of my favorite romances is her Bride Finder, and it's been a long time since she had a new book on the shelves, so I was very excited to pick this one up! Especially since I think the era, the time of Catherine de Medici, is fascinating, and ripe for all kinds of intrigue and paranormal doings and meaty, rich plots. It has a gorgeous cover, too, though the Boucher painting is a tad bit late for the setting. :) It's the first of a trilogy, centered around 3 sisters, and the first one, Ariane, is a sort of supernatural healer/witch thing, and ruler of her own island. The hero is actually dark and interesting, not pretending to be dark but actually whiny (which makes me so mad in heroes!!!). And the setting is well done. I'm only about half-way through, but so far so good. I'm really enjoying it. I always do feel so sorry for poor Catherine de Medici, though--was she actually as bad as she's always depicted in books, or just misunderstood? (Another great new read about this period, in non-fiction, is The Serpent and the Moon, about Catherine and Diane de Poitiers).
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
Ebay tonight
Tonight on Ebay--a Bollywood lunchbox!!! This I must have. Now, Oklahoma is not exactly a hotbed of Indian cinema, but from the few Bollywood films I have managed to rent from behind the counter at a local ethnic grocery, I'm hooked. Huge production numbers, teeth-gnashing villains, bright colors, outrageous plots, handsome heroes, spunky heroines who can summon back-up singers whenever she needs them--everything I love in one place. I have to go check on my bid...
Bookstores, etc.
Today on Ebay--a Mr. Potato Head Darth Tater, an "I love Orlando Bloom like a fat kid loves cake" t-shirt, and a pair of Frida and Diego "wedding art dolls." None of which I bid on, but I did seriously contemplate reproduction pendants of the Pirates of the Caribbean Aztec coins. It would make a great accessory for my planned pirate costume at RT next year! :)
And now for something completely different. I was at Barnes and Noble last night, the one closest to my house, where I waste copious amounts of time drinking mocha lattes and reading British Vogue. They moved the Romance section!!! Where I used to happily browse Gaelen Foley, Liz Carlyle, and Madeline Hunter, and turn my own volumes to advantageous face-out positions, there was now the entire Dr. Phil opus. Romance was now in the ghetto at the back of the store, no less than nine shelves high. To reach the books I wanted at the top, I had to find a big footstool and drag it over, because there were no salespeople in sight. This is not a happy situation for those of us who are, shall we say, vertically challenged. I shudder to think what would happen if it was, say, my 87 year old grandmother scrambling to climb on that stool.
Luckily, my own book was right at eye level. Already turned face-out. There were 3 copies, down from 7 last time I was there. I hope someone besides my mother has been buying them. I hope LOTS of someones are buying them, because my publisher is "evaluating" whether it's worth their while to publish the sequel. Is this not the most frustrating business in the world???? Maybe I should invade their offices with a scabbard-sold-separately Sword of Ibelin and MAKE them buy the book.
Or maybe not. Maybe I'll just go over and see how much that Darth Tater is going for.
And now for something completely different. I was at Barnes and Noble last night, the one closest to my house, where I waste copious amounts of time drinking mocha lattes and reading British Vogue. They moved the Romance section!!! Where I used to happily browse Gaelen Foley, Liz Carlyle, and Madeline Hunter, and turn my own volumes to advantageous face-out positions, there was now the entire Dr. Phil opus. Romance was now in the ghetto at the back of the store, no less than nine shelves high. To reach the books I wanted at the top, I had to find a big footstool and drag it over, because there were no salespeople in sight. This is not a happy situation for those of us who are, shall we say, vertically challenged. I shudder to think what would happen if it was, say, my 87 year old grandmother scrambling to climb on that stool.
Luckily, my own book was right at eye level. Already turned face-out. There were 3 copies, down from 7 last time I was there. I hope someone besides my mother has been buying them. I hope LOTS of someones are buying them, because my publisher is "evaluating" whether it's worth their while to publish the sequel. Is this not the most frustrating business in the world???? Maybe I should invade their offices with a scabbard-sold-separately Sword of Ibelin and MAKE them buy the book.
Or maybe not. Maybe I'll just go over and see how much that Darth Tater is going for.
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
Internet meanderings
Since I'm a model employee, I was surfing the web at work this morning. Started with my usual (look for new reviews of Lady Midnight, check Amazon and B&N numbers, read favorite blogs), then went on to finding useless and/or unusual places to shop and waste a little more time. There is no shortage of sites like this. There's the old stand-by Ebay (I never knew I needed a cast-iron Titanic doorstop until I saw one there!); the ABC store, so I can pretend to be in Hawaii; Past Times, a wonderful, wonderful store out of England; and, of course, the Sanrio site for Hello Kitty products. Today I also found Museum Replicas, a fabulous place for sword-and-sorcery geeks like myself. They have Monty Python and the Holy Grail products (though nothing as cool as the talking King Arthur action figures on the BBC America site), Lord of the Rings stuff (including an "official" One Ring, and Arwen's green ceremonial dress), and, from Kingdom of Heaven, a super-deluxe Sword of Ibelin for just $225 (scabbard sold separately). This would be very handy for cleaving the heads of people who annoy me, but I doubt I could lift it. I'll just have to settle for naming the villains in my books after them.
My favorite today, though, was the Unemployed Philosopher's Guild. I have 2 dolls from their signature Little Thinkers line, Emily Dickinson and Frida Kahlo. You wouldn't think these 2 would get along, but they appear to. They just sit in my bedroom and discuss that Hope is the thing with feathers... business. Anyway, I now have my eye on the Jane Austen and Shakespeare dolls, but you can also get Gandhi, Van Gogh, Darwin, Monet, Poe, Wagner, and Virgina Woolfe, among a slew of others. It's your very own artistic cabbal, for 14.95 each! Other must-haves include finger puppet sets of Hamlet and Carmen, Nietzsche's "Will to Power" candy bars, Freudian slippers, and t-shirts that read "Hear's looking at Euclid" and "What would Machiavelli do?". I had a good laugh for a Tuesday morning over there. :)
And here's another Orlando pic, a still from KOH I found after I tired of shopping and googled Orlando. Though I really doubt it would pass RWA's "graphical standards" (even though there is no breast-touching going on that I can see!). BTW, I was going to post about that brouhaha, but I think I'll wait until after I hear the "official RWA statement." Ahhh, the delicious absuridty.
My favorite today, though, was the Unemployed Philosopher's Guild. I have 2 dolls from their signature Little Thinkers line, Emily Dickinson and Frida Kahlo. You wouldn't think these 2 would get along, but they appear to. They just sit in my bedroom and discuss that Hope is the thing with feathers... business. Anyway, I now have my eye on the Jane Austen and Shakespeare dolls, but you can also get Gandhi, Van Gogh, Darwin, Monet, Poe, Wagner, and Virgina Woolfe, among a slew of others. It's your very own artistic cabbal, for 14.95 each! Other must-haves include finger puppet sets of Hamlet and Carmen, Nietzsche's "Will to Power" candy bars, Freudian slippers, and t-shirts that read "Hear's looking at Euclid" and "What would Machiavelli do?". I had a good laugh for a Tuesday morning over there. :)
And here's another Orlando pic, a still from KOH I found after I tired of shopping and googled Orlando. Though I really doubt it would pass RWA's "graphical standards" (even though there is no breast-touching going on that I can see!). BTW, I was going to post about that brouhaha, but I think I'll wait until after I hear the "official RWA statement." Ahhh, the delicious absuridty.
Sunday, June 05, 2005
Sunday night stuff
Got back from a weekend out of town to find a happy message on my machine (as opposed to the usual irate ramblings from Mastercard)--my book The Rules of Love (the one that is also a RITA finalist this year) is a Bookseller's Best finalist!!! I just love the little jolt some external validation can give. :) Saw a fab-oo Betsey Johnson dress at the mall last week that would look excellent at the awards ceremony, if I could just find enough change behind my sofa pillows...
So, I spent a couple of days with one of my oldest, bestest friends, who I affectionately call Kay-Kay, or Kayter, though she now goes by her much more dignified first name of Laura. We've known each other since we were freshmen in high school, and I have to stay on her good side because she knows waaaay too much about me. Stuff that no one cares about now, but someday when I marry Prince William and win the Pulitzer Prize, could be valuable to US Weekly. We had a great time. Her boyfriend Bill made chocolatinis (I must congratulate the rare genius who first came up with the idea of putting chocolate and booze together in one glass. Sheer brilliance). We had cottage pie at a faux-Brit pub, watched dumb movies, and looked through old yearbooks and photo albums.
I recommend people do the nostalgia thing only after the chocolatinis and Guiness, or your drink of choice. It turns the situation into one of even higher hilarity and lessens the sting of remembering your youthful fashion/dating/social life mistakes. For instance, my yearbook is chock-full of guys with mullets and girls with foot-high mall bangs. These were slip-ups I somehow avoided, but I did have a perm that made my usually stick-straight hair look strangely triangular. Kay had shockingly large glasses and sometimes borrowed her mother's clothes (the horror!). Ah, the folly of youth.
And then there are the autographs from people we no longer remember at all, urging us to keep in touch, don't get into trouble over the summer, and "stay sweet", and fondly recalling antics in AP English. I was completely unable to recall the name of my junior prom date, so Bill dubbed him Dude Sorenson, for no apparant reason, but it's as good a name as any. (My senior prom date, BTW, was named Chris, just in case you were wondering).
Ahhhh--good times. Kind of. The bad hair thing sucked, but we did have some rockin' times in English class when Mrs. Vandergriff left the room. :)
So, here's a pic of senior prom. Kay is in the teal dress and (natch) big glasses. I'm in the middle in black (I have somehow never again been able to achieve cleavage like that). And my other oldest, bestest friend, Anne, is in the green dress. Anne and I met when we were 12 years old, but, very sadly for me and the many other people who loved her, she passed away last year. She has missed the high school fashion curse here, though, and looks great. I hope she'd like to be remembered this way.
And, since I don't want Kay to think I'm a complete pooh-head for posting old pics of high school in a public forum, here is also one of more recent vintage. Bill, Kay, and moi on a trip to Seattle last spring.
So, I spent a couple of days with one of my oldest, bestest friends, who I affectionately call Kay-Kay, or Kayter, though she now goes by her much more dignified first name of Laura. We've known each other since we were freshmen in high school, and I have to stay on her good side because she knows waaaay too much about me. Stuff that no one cares about now, but someday when I marry Prince William and win the Pulitzer Prize, could be valuable to US Weekly. We had a great time. Her boyfriend Bill made chocolatinis (I must congratulate the rare genius who first came up with the idea of putting chocolate and booze together in one glass. Sheer brilliance). We had cottage pie at a faux-Brit pub, watched dumb movies, and looked through old yearbooks and photo albums.
I recommend people do the nostalgia thing only after the chocolatinis and Guiness, or your drink of choice. It turns the situation into one of even higher hilarity and lessens the sting of remembering your youthful fashion/dating/social life mistakes. For instance, my yearbook is chock-full of guys with mullets and girls with foot-high mall bangs. These were slip-ups I somehow avoided, but I did have a perm that made my usually stick-straight hair look strangely triangular. Kay had shockingly large glasses and sometimes borrowed her mother's clothes (the horror!). Ah, the folly of youth.
And then there are the autographs from people we no longer remember at all, urging us to keep in touch, don't get into trouble over the summer, and "stay sweet", and fondly recalling antics in AP English. I was completely unable to recall the name of my junior prom date, so Bill dubbed him Dude Sorenson, for no apparant reason, but it's as good a name as any. (My senior prom date, BTW, was named Chris, just in case you were wondering).
Ahhhh--good times. Kind of. The bad hair thing sucked, but we did have some rockin' times in English class when Mrs. Vandergriff left the room. :)
So, here's a pic of senior prom. Kay is in the teal dress and (natch) big glasses. I'm in the middle in black (I have somehow never again been able to achieve cleavage like that). And my other oldest, bestest friend, Anne, is in the green dress. Anne and I met when we were 12 years old, but, very sadly for me and the many other people who loved her, she passed away last year. She has missed the high school fashion curse here, though, and looks great. I hope she'd like to be remembered this way.
And, since I don't want Kay to think I'm a complete pooh-head for posting old pics of high school in a public forum, here is also one of more recent vintage. Bill, Kay, and moi on a trip to Seattle last spring.
Friday, June 03, 2005
Finally Friday!
Well, I have nothin'. Nada. I've been brainstorming new proposals all week, and am getting ready to go to a Celtic music jam tonight and then off to visit friends for the rest of the weekend tomorrow, so my brain is fried. :) I'll just leave you with a new Orlando image until Sunday!
Thursday, June 02, 2005
True confessions
A couple of days ago, I read an article in the NY Times Arts section about a site called postsecret.blogspot.com. This is an online confessional, but with a twist. Lazy confessors need not apply. You have to mail your secret anonymously on one side of a 4 X 6 postcard you make yourself. You have to WORK to confess.
Since I'm very nosy, this intrigued me, so I dashed over to this blog to check it out. It was a riot! One of my favorites was a postcard half a photo of the Pope's funeral, half the Survivor logo. The confession--"I deleted the Pope's funeral unwatched off my TiVo to make room for an episode of Survivor." Others said "I think my actor roommate is ugly and untalented" and "I don't care about recycling (but I pretend I do)".
So, here is my confession. I act like a music snob, but I watched the finale of American Idol. I also sing along to Kelly Clarkson songs in the car. I particularly like Since You've Been Gone. So there.
Since I'm very nosy, this intrigued me, so I dashed over to this blog to check it out. It was a riot! One of my favorites was a postcard half a photo of the Pope's funeral, half the Survivor logo. The confession--"I deleted the Pope's funeral unwatched off my TiVo to make room for an episode of Survivor." Others said "I think my actor roommate is ugly and untalented" and "I don't care about recycling (but I pretend I do)".
So, here is my confession. I act like a music snob, but I watched the finale of American Idol. I also sing along to Kelly Clarkson songs in the car. I particularly like Since You've Been Gone. So there.
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