Two years ago I attended my first Spring Fling conference, hosted by Chicago North RWA, and secured the friendship of my dear Broken Writers. Many tasty adult beverages were happily consumed. I was looking forward to the release of What a Scoundrel Wants, which was still eight months away. I was just starting the third "Scoundrel" book, with high hopes for it--which have yet to pan out. Oh well. That's how publishing goes...and that's about the speed of it, too. Glacial.
But then, these last two years have zipped on by! Time is weird that way.
About three minutes ago I convinced myself that I was on the verge of a heart attack. Chest pains. Breathlessness. Gosh my body does not deal well with stress. And there's nothing I need to be stressed about! This should be like going to my mom's house. That's how comfortable I am with the members of my chapter and with my responsibilities this weekend. Eat at a VIP dinner? Moderate for people I respect and enjoy? Present a workshop I know inside out? Sign my lovely, lovely books? Yup, I can do all that pretty damn well!
I think it's the strange ritual of it. Packing jewelry, high heels, eye shadow, and new clothes can only mean one thing...conferences! I get nervous about leaving the kids, although there's no need. Keven will sort them out just fine, and I'll enjoy the break from the routine. And this isn't even the big one. Next week's trip to RT in Columbus will be even more outrageous, so I might as well just get used to the idea of being excited and crazy and apprehensive.
Here I am, a neurotic individual. Can't be helped. I hope everyone has a great weekend. I know I will, no matter what my accelerated heart rate tells me. Let's bring on those tasty adult beverages and take a bloomin' chill pill. That's the ticket.
4/23/10
4/22/10
Facebook!
Until now I've primarily used Facebook as a way to connect with friends and family. I am also friends with a number of industry types, from writers to bloggers to agents, but they're generally people I've worked with more extensively. I did this out of concern for privacy, and because I didn't always want to wonder, "Who's gonna read this status update?" On Tuesday I took the time to create a Carrie Lofty fan page. It sounds hideous and pretentious, but I think that's because it's called a "fan page." No one ever says that having a website is pretentious. I think having a page on Facebook is just another way to cover all the promotional bases I can, such as having an updated Amazon page...my next big task!
So if you'd like, please consider "liking" my fan page. Just like with my Yahoo group, I won't be pestering anyone with tons of updates. Only the news and tasty stuff.
4/21/10
Juliette's Big Question
Today Juliette lost her front left upper tooth, which had been creeping me out with its hanging-on-by-a-thread grossness. She'd been holding out for it to fall out at school so she could get a tiny tooth treasure box to keep it in. Well, ta-dah! Apparently our friend Brad got the honor of being the teacher on hand when she twisted it sideways and got it stuck that way, pinned against the gum. I'm gonna hurl. It popped out just before the end of the school day and she got her precious treasure box. As was the case with all her other teeth, the adult tooth is about 1/4 poked out already. The baby ones just don't want to give it up!
But then came the big question at bedtime tonight. Here was our verbatim conversation:
Juliette: "Mommy, is the tooth fairy real?"
Me: "Do you want to know?"
J: "Because, um, it could be...that the parents just...give the money to the kids...um, when they're asleep."
M: "Do you want to know?"
J: "Do you know?"
M: "Yes."
long pause
M: "Do you want to know?"
longer pause
J:"I don't know."
M: "Well then, how about we talk about it tomorrow?"
K: "OK. I won't think about it anymore."
She's seven and stubbornly rational, which means she's been willfully suspending disbelief for as long as possible. I guess this is as far as it goes. Tomorrow she may ask again, or she may leave it be for another few weeks until the next tooth comes out. Either way it'll be interesting to see if she can keep it a secret from Ilsa.
But then came the big question at bedtime tonight. Here was our verbatim conversation:
Juliette: "Mommy, is the tooth fairy real?"
Me: "Do you want to know?"
J: "Because, um, it could be...that the parents just...give the money to the kids...um, when they're asleep."
M: "Do you want to know?"
J: "Do you know?"
M: "Yes."
long pause
M: "Do you want to know?"
longer pause
J:"I don't know."
M: "Well then, how about we talk about it tomorrow?"
K: "OK. I won't think about it anymore."
She's seven and stubbornly rational, which means she's been willfully suspending disbelief for as long as possible. I guess this is as far as it goes. Tomorrow she may ask again, or she may leave it be for another few weeks until the next tooth comes out. Either way it'll be interesting to see if she can keep it a secret from Ilsa.
4/19/10
Appearances Update
I wanted to let everyone know where I'll be appearing in April and May, as I have many conference and workshop appearances scheduled.
First up, I've been featured on Literary Escapism's "Look Who's Going to RT" round-up. You can read the interview here.
This weekend I'll be attending Chicago North's Spring Fling conference in Deerfield, IL. At 10:30 on Saturday, I'll be presenting the workshop "Beyond Research: Deep Point-of-View and the Effective Use of Detail." I'll also be sitting with the other fabulous authors for our huge booksigning. If you're going to be there, please stop by and introduce yourself!
At RT, on April 28 at 5pm, I'll be sitting on the panel "Beyond Regency and Scotland," about writing, selling and promoting historical romances set in unusual times and places. The panel will feature Zoe Archer, Blythe Gifford, Jade Lee, Sherry Thomas, and Kensington editor Megan Records. That same day at 11:55pm, I'll be co-hosting the Mad Hatter Historical Tea Party with 11 other historical authors, which is sure to feature lots of silliness and awesome prizes.
I'll also be at the huge RT booksigning on the afternoon of Saturday, May 1. Hope to see you there!
Then in May, from the 3rd to the 17th, I'll be presenting an online workshop called "Snakebite Scenes and Hollywood Plots: Enhancing Action and Emotion in Romance" for Heart of Dixie RWA. Details here.
And finally I'll be attending the Wisconsin RWA conference on May 14-15, particularly the booksigning on the 15th.
At all of these in-person events I'll have new SCOUNDREL'S KISS and SONG OF SEDUCTION bookmarks, plus even a few possible Carina Press coupons that will be good for the June launch. It's getting so close now!
First up, I've been featured on Literary Escapism's "Look Who's Going to RT" round-up. You can read the interview here.
This weekend I'll be attending Chicago North's Spring Fling conference in Deerfield, IL. At 10:30 on Saturday, I'll be presenting the workshop "Beyond Research: Deep Point-of-View and the Effective Use of Detail." I'll also be sitting with the other fabulous authors for our huge booksigning. If you're going to be there, please stop by and introduce yourself!
At RT, on April 28 at 5pm, I'll be sitting on the panel "Beyond Regency and Scotland," about writing, selling and promoting historical romances set in unusual times and places. The panel will feature Zoe Archer, Blythe Gifford, Jade Lee, Sherry Thomas, and Kensington editor Megan Records. That same day at 11:55pm, I'll be co-hosting the Mad Hatter Historical Tea Party with 11 other historical authors, which is sure to feature lots of silliness and awesome prizes.
I'll also be at the huge RT booksigning on the afternoon of Saturday, May 1. Hope to see you there!
Then in May, from the 3rd to the 17th, I'll be presenting an online workshop called "Snakebite Scenes and Hollywood Plots: Enhancing Action and Emotion in Romance" for Heart of Dixie RWA. Details here.
And finally I'll be attending the Wisconsin RWA conference on May 14-15, particularly the booksigning on the 15th.
At all of these in-person events I'll have new SCOUNDREL'S KISS and SONG OF SEDUCTION bookmarks, plus even a few possible Carina Press coupons that will be good for the June launch. It's getting so close now!
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