Today, I’m afraid, is about blatant self promotion. Well, blatant book promotion, at the very least. My latest title, my first new book release since last October, is hitting stands as we speak.

STRIPPED, an August release from Harlequin Blaze is a double-series whammy. First, it’s the second book in the “Bad Girls Club” miniseries, following last month’s release of TAKEN, by Tori Carrington and will be followed by Leslie Kelly’s OVEREXPOSED.

But the book is also the first in a series of books I’m doing for Harlequin revolving around the St. Lyon Witches. STRIPPED stars Lilith St. Lyon, a witch who has never quite grasped the concept of “doing the right thing.” She’s not a bad witch…she’s just a bad girl who isn’t opposed to using her psychic powers for personal gain, which is a big fat no-no in the witching world. Her sister, Regina, is the Guardian Witch (and will star in her own story, “Under His Spell” in the Witchy Business novella collection which will be out next month) therefore strips Lilith of her powers.

And her timing couldn’t be worse. Mac Mancusi, Lilith’s former lover and a Chicago cop, needs her help. She’s not so anxious to get tangled up with him again since he kicked her out of his life when he figured out she was using her powers to manipulate him, but she can’t seem to resist the pull of Mac’s sexy sensuality. So without hiding the fact that she no longer possesses the power of the Sight, Lilith sets out to help Mac solve his case, never realizing that her world and his are about to collide.

Sound interesting?

(more…)

And no, I didn’t two days ago. But last night, I had to go and take my new professional pictures to be included in the back of my next books.

Modeling is hard.

It may not look hard, but I challenge anyone to stand in front of a camera under very hot lights to look good the majority of the time. Granted, I don’t look like a model and am not built like one, but these weren’t fashion shots we were after, either. Just one or two decent pics that my photographer can Photoshop until I’m gorgeous. How hard can that possibly be?

Well, it was a learning experience. Here’s a run down of what I learned:

First, when I think I’m smiling big, I’m not. In fact, I sort of look like I’ve smelled something bad. This does not translate well into a picture. Who wants to buy a book from someone who smells something bad?

Second, when I smile really big, I look stiff. I’m a lot of things, but stiff isn’t one of them.

Third, when I don’t smile, I look mean. The fact that I am mean is not the point. I certainly don’t want to look it when I’m trying to entice a reader into buying my book. (Okay, I know that readers do not base their bookbuying on what the author looks like…much. But I do think it’s one more element of the complicated buying process and if nothing else, an author should at least look friendly!)

Fourth, brown lipsticks look red on me. Red lipsticks look well, alien. Now, I actually knew this before…which is why I wear the darkest possible browns in order to get a rather nice looking red. Now I have photographic proof that I’m not imagining how my lips change the colors of very expensive makeup. (You should see what they do with pinks…actually, no, you shouldn’t. And you won’t. I wear no pink.)

Fifth, well, fifth has to do with dieting. If I wanted to talk about that, I’d call my mother. So nevermind.

Sixth, my young photographer is really good at what she does.

The picture on this blog is my old pic. I think it’s really good. Not that I’m in the running to take Paris’s place now that she’s in the pokey, but it’s friendly and attractive. Unfortunately, I’m no longer wearing my hair that way so I thought it was time for a change. I narrowed over 75 shots down to 6 and now I’ve narrowed it down to 3. I want 2. I’d post them here to get everyone’s opinions…but if you think I’m posting non-retouched pictures to a public place on the web, well, you’re about as nutty as Paris is going to be when she gets out of jail.

So stay tuned on that front.

That said, I do feel sorry for Paris Hilton. She’s a celebrity because we made her so. We being the public who buys magazines and watches television for yet another glimpse of this girl. Now, after years of adoring her and laughing at her celebrity persona and making her a star, we revel in her downfall. I find it disgusting at best and hypocritical at worst. I’m not saying what she did was right, but she’s a product of her enviroment and we, the general public, are part of that enviroment. We have no right to hate her. We don’t know her–not the real her, and trust me, it’s the real her who is serving time. To me, she’s a young woman who was raised poorly and is paying the price for it now. I pray for her and hope this changes her heart, if indeed it needs changing.

But if nothing else, this is a girl who manages to look beautiful all the time, even when just walking down the street to the nearest Starbucks on Rodeo Drive. After last night, that amazes me. I can’t manage to look even half as good after getting my hair professionally done, my makeup applied with expert care (by me, I happen to be good at it) and being photographed by someone who is standing still and likes me as opposed to paparazzi. Let’s give the chick a little credit for that.

;-)

After waiting for nearly ten years to have my twenty-some-odd year old kitchen redone, my husband and I are finally getting closer and closer to our goal. This week, I’ve spent a lot of time online picking out various gadgets and appliances and looking at designs.

You see, I know nothing about interior design…I only know what I like when I see it. And while I’m a enthusiastic cook, I have no idea the gadgets and such that are out there. Like this weekend, when I discovered that Kitchenaid makes a SINK that is actually a DISHWASHER. A sink, people. And while it only cleans about 5 dishes and various utensils, it does it in 18 minutes. 18 minutes! On silent mode.

Must. Have. This.

And you would have thought I’d discovered the Holy Grail when I bounded into Lowe’s and saw the POT FILLER. This is a faucet that is on the wall behind your cooktop that allows you to fill large pots of water (like for pasta) without dragging the thing to the sink. Holy cannoli, as I’ve been wont to say. I want that, too.

So let’s say you’re designing your dream kitchen. Other than a live-in cook (it’s a given, people,) what would your dream kitchen have to have in order for you to be very happy? Do you cook? Entertain? Does your hubby cook?

I love to cook. It’s my favorite procrastination when I have a book due. Which I do. Only instead of cooking this time, I’m designing a kitchen. My life is so weird.

I have a book due. In an hour and a half, technically. I have two pages left to write and it’s like pulling teeth. I need to get back to work!

But I have to pose this question…how much leeway do you give favorite authors who switch genres or subgenres? I mean, taking into consideration that the basic writing style remains fairly similar, do you care if a one-time romantic comedy author, for instance, switches to dark romantic suspense? Do you think she needs to change her name? Or is that silly, since most savvy readers know who the writer is anyway?

I’m curious. Would J.D. Robb have been as successful with the In Death books–the publisher notwithstanding–if she’d written them as Nora Roberts? I think they would have because the books simply rocked…but I’m curious about the opinions of others.

For a long time, I didn’t watch much television beyond my soaps. When life got really, really busy in the past few years, I pretty much gave up those as well, watching intermittently rather than religiously every day. Then a few years ago, I noticed that what I like to call my cultural literacy was starting to drop. People were talking about lots and lots of shows that I wasn’t watching. Lost. Gray’s Anatomy. Even Veronica Mars. I liked all these shows when I watched them, but I wasn’t “into them” enough to talk intelligently about them.

Now, I’m not a hugely social person. Like most writers, I’m an introvert who can act like an extrovert when necessary. (Those of you who know me are laughing at this statement, thinking I’m the biggest extrovert you know. Trust me…I’m not. It’s not an act, but I can only be extroverted in short bursts.)

Anyway, television, to me, has become a social thing. Television gives me topics to blog about and to talk to the other moms about after school tomorrow as we wait for our kids. Sure, we have other things to discuss, but I find the discussion of television shows fascinating because it allows me to talk to people about the real things I love–characterization, plot, theme, tone, dialogue, etc–without necessarily talking about books.

There are so many books out there that it’s hard sometimes to find someone who has read the same book you have. A few bestsellers here and there, but I don’t always get to read what’s super-popular. Television allows those same conversations within a different context, with the regulars who people my day. My daughter’s soccer coach’s wife, for instance. She loves to read, but she’s a super busy working mother of two and generally only gets to read on the holidays. She’s fascinated by the fact that I’m a writer, but honestly, sometimes I get very tired of talking about myself and my work! Tonight, we got into a great discussion about my new favorite television show, HEROES. We talked about the plot, the characterization, the pacing, the blurred lines between good and evil and the amazing marketing strategy. (Save the cheerleader, save the world is brilliant!) It was a great conversation. It wasn’t about kids, grocery shopping, laundry, school or any of the other minutae that makes up the life of a literal soccer mom like she is and like I am.

Television leads to intelligent conversation! Who knew?

It leads to laughs and it sparks ideas. I once wrote a book based on the inspiration of a soap opera character who I didn’t think the writers gave enough good storyline to. Another book was based on a character I loved. If I didn’t tell you, you’d probably never guess the connection, but the inspiration helped me create a story I really enjoyed telling.

I noticed in Karen Rose’s post that a lot of people don’t watch television. I certainly don’t watch a lot (though TiVO helps me watch more than my fair share) but I’m glad I have this medium in my life. It’s can be more than mindless entertainment…though sometimes, there’s nothing wrong with that, either!

So, readers…what shows spark (or have sparked in the past) your imagination, your conversations, your life?

We’re fast approaching the holiday season and my FAVORITE is just around the corner. Halloween! I think it’s the coolest…you get to dress up, eat things that are bad for you, you don’t have to buy anyone expensive gifts and you have no real family obligations.

I stopped wearing costumes only about 10 years ago when I retired from teaching. Actually, two years before that. My last two years in the classroom were spent at a very conservative Catholic school and costumes were frowned on. (Just about anything fun was frowned on…heck, the girls couldn’t even wear pants to school during the winter and this was 1996!)

But before that, I was at a really cool Catholic school and dressing up for Halloween was fun. One year I was a witch. Not a sexy one or an ugly one, just a pretty one. Think Glinda, but all in black. Another year, I was a devil. See? Sense of humor. :-)

Now that I have a child, I’m more about her costume. This year, she’s going as Hermoine Granger, which makes me proud as punch. Last year, she was a Greek goddess. The year before, Mulan–but only because I let her accessorize with a sword. She’s fun to buy for, this kid.

My neighborhood takes Halloween pretty seriously, too. One neighbor sets up a spooky “haunted” scene on his patio and hires his friends to jump out at the kids from the shadows. About half of the neighbors set up their candy outside, replete with lawn chairs and tropical drinks (I live in Florida!) and greet trick or treaters and their neighbors like it’s a big block party. All the children under 13 are accompanied by parents…I know I’ll be there. My brother and his wife, who live in a tiny neighborhood, always come spend the holiday with us, so I’ll be doing a little cooking. I found recipes for melted witches and spider pigs in a blanket. It’s going to be a ball!

So, what are your plans for this wonderfully fun holiday? Do you dress up? What about the kidlets? How does your neighborhood treat this fun time to get out and about?

Yesterday, Alison Kent did a hilarious blog that asked readers to finish the sentence…”If I read one more story with…. I will fall asleep.” Of course, I read through the comment thread, hoping I hadn’t written a story anything like the ones that these readers seemed to hate so vehemently. I’m sure lots of authors reading the blog did the same thing. I’m happy to report that none of my books quite fit those descriptions–or at least, if they did, it didn’t jump out at me. Personally, I don’t think that authors who write cliched books are necessarily aware that they are doing this. I mean, can you imagine an author saying to herself, “Oh! I just read twenty novels that had a heroine who is dominated by her parents. Let me write another!” That’s certainly not how I think. But then, my brain is wired strangely.

Anyway, that’s not what my blog is about. Instead of harping on the negative and what readers don’t want to see (as much as I enjoyed the blog!)…I want to know what you WANT to read. Finish this sentence…

“If I read one more story with … , I will rejoice loudly and insist all my friends buy this book!”

(Authors, get out your notepads…)