Who knew it would be so hard to get online in a hotel, when I've done it a thousand times before??? At last, I managed.
BEA (Book Expo America) has been exciting, glamorous, fun--and hard work.
I arrived on Thursday evening, and my wonderful editor, Joan Marlow Golan, was waiting here at my hotel to take me out for a lovely dinner at a wonderful restaurant called The Blue Fin. She had some great news for me, too--I have a little more time to finish "Tate", and she loves what I've written so far. (I'm about halfway through the book.)
Sally came in later that night, and although she's never been to New York, she really took to this town right away. Today, she rode the subway to Queens and back, on her own--how's THAT for adventurous?? But I'm getting ahead of myself.
On Friday, I had a little time to sleep in--I wasn't due over at the convention center until 12:30. At one pm, I signed "Logan" in Harlequin's fabulous booth--decorated by lots of beautiful covers for books being published over the next year, including a HUGE poster of Gideon Yarbro, the hero of my upcoming Stone Creek novel, "The Bridegroom". (Now that the show is over, Harlequin is giving me the poster, and that means the Creeds will be joined on my office wall by another of my hunky heroes!) Following my signing, I returned to the hotel and Sally and I went out exploring--as promised, I headed straight for Kate's Paperie and McKenzie-Childs, and I sure picked up some great stuff.
Last night, there was a wonderful party in Soho--at the OpenHouse Gallery. Now through June 12, this gallery is exhibiting the original paintings of many vintage Harlequin novels, and it was such a kick to see them all and read the blurbs. Of course it was all very glam--they served champagne and all sorts of little nibbles, and I sneaked outside once to have my fortune told by a gypsy. :) That was---interesting. She actually got some stuff right--and we'll have to wait to see if any of the rest comes true.
This morning (Saturday) I was up early again--Joan (my editor) picked me up at 8:15 and we returned to the convention center for another signing. This time, it was advance reading copies (arcs) of "The Bridegroom", and I was out of books in half an hour. At 11:30, I left for lunch with Donna and Loriana, executives and very good friends from Harlequin--they took me to a fabulous Italian restaurant and we swapped yarns and ate linguini and talked a little business, too. I've said it before, and I don't mind saying it again--Harlequin is wonderful to me. They've spoiled me completely. :)
Following lunch, I signed "State Secrets", my 1985 book re-released with an updated cover, as part of the "Famous Firsts" program.
Phew! I sure had fun talking to all those booksellers and librarians (God bless them all) but by the time this event was over, I was one tired cowgirl. Sally and I took a walk, had some dinner here at the hotel, and then I set my mind on finding out how to get this laptop online. A nice man walked me through it over the phone and here I am. :)
Tomorrow, Sally and I are sleeping in. Then we're going to get on one of those double-decker tour buses and see the high-points. This is, as I said, Sally's first trip to New York, and it's my umpteenth. But she'll have to teach me how to navigate the subway, because I've never done it before. :) She's turned into quite the traveler, my sister Sally.
More tomorrow. We're having a blast here in the Big Apple.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
New York, New York!
It's a heck of a town. (The Bronx is up and the Bowery's down.)
OK, got the old song out my system!
I leave tomorrow morning, early, so I don't know if I'll get a chance to blog again before I leave, but I will do my darnedest to blog while I'm there.
Today? Writing and packing. These Texas McKettricks are something else--I need to take extra B-12 just to keep up with them. :)
I managed to get a few licks of paint onto my whimsy-table--there's a scene of houses and trees in the center, and I painted in the sky and sponged on some clouds. Still need to water my deck garden, and then I'll be heading for Blue River, Texas, to see what the wild bunch is up to on this beautiful Spring day.
I am under HUGE pressure with this book, and yet I'm enjoying it so much, I can hardly put it into words. I guess this is what it's like to be Not Depressed. :)
It occurs to me, though, that those many cycles of depression, difficult as they were, were a gift, a valueable part of my development. Even if that isn't true, it's more fun to think so.
Stay tuned. I'll be back.
OK, got the old song out my system!
I leave tomorrow morning, early, so I don't know if I'll get a chance to blog again before I leave, but I will do my darnedest to blog while I'm there.
Today? Writing and packing. These Texas McKettricks are something else--I need to take extra B-12 just to keep up with them. :)
I managed to get a few licks of paint onto my whimsy-table--there's a scene of houses and trees in the center, and I painted in the sky and sponged on some clouds. Still need to water my deck garden, and then I'll be heading for Blue River, Texas, to see what the wild bunch is up to on this beautiful Spring day.
I am under HUGE pressure with this book, and yet I'm enjoying it so much, I can hardly put it into words. I guess this is what it's like to be Not Depressed. :)
It occurs to me, though, that those many cycles of depression, difficult as they were, were a gift, a valueable part of my development. Even if that isn't true, it's more fun to think so.
Stay tuned. I'll be back.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Becoming Myself
Greetings from the book factory! I'm telling you, the first book in next year's Texas McKettricks trilogy is flowing like crazy--I can barely keep up. It's literally as though the story is being downloaded into my brain, and all I have to do is be there to watch it unfold and write it down. The experience is remarkable--with all my years of writing, I've never seen quite this phenomenon before. Some books are easy, some books are difficult, and "Tate" doesn't fall into either category. I'm working hard--probably too hard--but it's so magical. I am filled with exhausted joy! (The Texas McKettricks will be released by HQN in February, March and April of 2010.)
My deck garden is thriving, and I managed to plant my dinner-plate dahlias and some shasta daisies over the weekend. I also put a few more touches on that whimsical table I was telling you about. It is gloriously imperfect and lookin' good.
Recently, my wise mother said I am becoming myself, with all this planting and watering, painting and planning. I like that. My first reaction to this sudden fascination with flowers, herbs and vegetables was, I'm getting old. Well, if this is getting old, I like it. (Don't forget, I'll be flying a fighter jet sometime in August--my daughter's gift to me, for my 60th birthday in June. Old? I don't think so!)
Last winter, during my meltdown, I wouldn't have thought it was possible to be this happy. Every day is a joy to me now, a celebration, an adventure.
I am beyond grateful.
What is happening to me? I'm developing so many new interests--and deepening old ones. I'm determined to brush up on my Spanish so I can converse with the locals in their own language next March, in Barcelona. Barcelona! Yee-haw.
I'm learning to make soap and those fizzy bath "bombs" I love.
I've ordered a second tomato tree to grow squash and cucumbers--there's a salad growing on my deck, except for the lettuce! Jitterbug and Cha-Cha are getting high on the catnip I planted--funny to watch them cavort like kittens again.
On Thursday, I'll be off to New York for BEA, and although I plan to blog, there might be a gap, so hang in there. I will keep you posted on all my adventures. I'm so excited to see Wonder Editor, Joan, KO and Marleah, Donna and Craig and Loriana, and all the rest of my Harlequin pals. Truly, there isn't a better bunch in the business! I hope to cross paths with Debbie Macomber, too, and catch up on all that's been going on in our busy lives.
Yes, I'm becoming my true and authentic self--or, more properly, more my true and authentic self--a direct result, methinks, of getting older and thus more mature. (And, please God, wiser.) I'll always be a cowgirl--that's in my blood. But I'm discovering so many things I didn't know about myself--I am a gardener, a fighter pilot (!), a future speaker of Spanish. (Rosetta Stone.)
Heaven only knows who ELSE I am.
To be continued!
My deck garden is thriving, and I managed to plant my dinner-plate dahlias and some shasta daisies over the weekend. I also put a few more touches on that whimsical table I was telling you about. It is gloriously imperfect and lookin' good.
Recently, my wise mother said I am becoming myself, with all this planting and watering, painting and planning. I like that. My first reaction to this sudden fascination with flowers, herbs and vegetables was, I'm getting old. Well, if this is getting old, I like it. (Don't forget, I'll be flying a fighter jet sometime in August--my daughter's gift to me, for my 60th birthday in June. Old? I don't think so!)
Last winter, during my meltdown, I wouldn't have thought it was possible to be this happy. Every day is a joy to me now, a celebration, an adventure.
I am beyond grateful.
What is happening to me? I'm developing so many new interests--and deepening old ones. I'm determined to brush up on my Spanish so I can converse with the locals in their own language next March, in Barcelona. Barcelona! Yee-haw.
I'm learning to make soap and those fizzy bath "bombs" I love.
I've ordered a second tomato tree to grow squash and cucumbers--there's a salad growing on my deck, except for the lettuce! Jitterbug and Cha-Cha are getting high on the catnip I planted--funny to watch them cavort like kittens again.
On Thursday, I'll be off to New York for BEA, and although I plan to blog, there might be a gap, so hang in there. I will keep you posted on all my adventures. I'm so excited to see Wonder Editor, Joan, KO and Marleah, Donna and Craig and Loriana, and all the rest of my Harlequin pals. Truly, there isn't a better bunch in the business! I hope to cross paths with Debbie Macomber, too, and catch up on all that's been going on in our busy lives.
Yes, I'm becoming my true and authentic self--or, more properly, more my true and authentic self--a direct result, methinks, of getting older and thus more mature. (And, please God, wiser.) I'll always be a cowgirl--that's in my blood. But I'm discovering so many things I didn't know about myself--I am a gardener, a fighter pilot (!), a future speaker of Spanish. (Rosetta Stone.)
Heaven only knows who ELSE I am.
To be continued!
Friday, May 22, 2009
It's REALLY Friday? ALREADY???
What a week this has been. There are things I would change about it--like coming down with a one-day flu bug and losing a whole day because Sadie was listless and needed to visit her regular vet--but hey, it is what it is.
I just learned that Sally is coming to New York with me--I'm going there for Book Expo America, hereafter referred to as BEA. :) My writing schedule is absolutely break-neck--I will probably be writing in my hotel room in between signings, lunches, dinners and, of course, shopping. I will definitely hit my two favorite stores in the Big Apple--Kate's Paperie and McKenzie-Childs. Having my travelin' buddy along will make it all even better.
My flowers are flourishing. I was guilty of some overwatering, a common beginner's mistake, but I've got that under control now.
Yesterday, on breaks, I met a small but important goal--I've learned to upload photos and will soon be setting up a place on the web to show my art work and some general photographs, so stay tuned.
Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. Most of us will be honoring loved ones who have passed over the river. While I certainly miss my dad, I intend to focus on how grateful I am to have had him for a father. I will remember the times we laughed, his strength and pride in his home, his family, his friends and his country. He grew the best flowers, waves of color all through the season, and took bouqets to various "girlfriends" in Grand Coulee--bank tellers, store clerks, and anyone who happened to be struggling in some way, especially with illness.
I love you, Dad. Semper fi.
I just learned that Sally is coming to New York with me--I'm going there for Book Expo America, hereafter referred to as BEA. :) My writing schedule is absolutely break-neck--I will probably be writing in my hotel room in between signings, lunches, dinners and, of course, shopping. I will definitely hit my two favorite stores in the Big Apple--Kate's Paperie and McKenzie-Childs. Having my travelin' buddy along will make it all even better.
My flowers are flourishing. I was guilty of some overwatering, a common beginner's mistake, but I've got that under control now.
Yesterday, on breaks, I met a small but important goal--I've learned to upload photos and will soon be setting up a place on the web to show my art work and some general photographs, so stay tuned.
Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. Most of us will be honoring loved ones who have passed over the river. While I certainly miss my dad, I intend to focus on how grateful I am to have had him for a father. I will remember the times we laughed, his strength and pride in his home, his family, his friends and his country. He grew the best flowers, waves of color all through the season, and took bouqets to various "girlfriends" in Grand Coulee--bank tellers, store clerks, and anyone who happened to be struggling in some way, especially with illness.
I love you, Dad. Semper fi.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Happy Birthday Sally Jean!
Today is my "baby" sister Sal's birthday--because I love her (and because she's nine years younger than I am) I won't tell you her age. :)
Sally is a beautiful woman, inside and out, and a great travelin' buddy. We visited London and Paris last year, and Prague this year. Next March, we're going to Barcelona (sunshine and warmth) and wherever else we can travel from there via train or bus. We are adventurous! Prague was beyond beautiful, and we had so much fun--you should have seen her face when we ordered lunch at an outdoor cafe near the city's famous clock and her trout came with the head still on! She tried to cope--draped her napkin over the fish head so it wouldn't stare at her and forked in back by the tail. :) The effort failed, but she gave it the old college try.
As a little girl, Sally had golden hair and huge blue eyes. I was so proud of her that once, during a church program, overhearing the women in the next pew commenting on how cute she was, I blurted out, "That's my sister!"
After all these years, I still feel that way.
I want to tell the world.
That's my sister.
Sally is a beautiful woman, inside and out, and a great travelin' buddy. We visited London and Paris last year, and Prague this year. Next March, we're going to Barcelona (sunshine and warmth) and wherever else we can travel from there via train or bus. We are adventurous! Prague was beyond beautiful, and we had so much fun--you should have seen her face when we ordered lunch at an outdoor cafe near the city's famous clock and her trout came with the head still on! She tried to cope--draped her napkin over the fish head so it wouldn't stare at her and forked in back by the tail. :) The effort failed, but she gave it the old college try.
As a little girl, Sally had golden hair and huge blue eyes. I was so proud of her that once, during a church program, overhearing the women in the next pew commenting on how cute she was, I blurted out, "That's my sister!"
After all these years, I still feel that way.
I want to tell the world.
That's my sister.
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