Monday not so Funday

The long weekend is over and I have a head cold. I almost never get sick. In fact, I think the last time I got sick was last year around this time. Stupid flu season! I was laid up all day Saturday but Sunday I actually got out of bed and met with my critique partner. Today, meh, not much better :) I tried to work on a scene and kept having to retype everything (thank you DayQuil) so I've given up for a bit.

What did everyone else do this weekend? I'm sure it had to be much more exciting than what I did!

Have a Good Weekend!

Yesterday was one of the most relaxed Thanksgivings we've had in a while. I got to see my mom and some close friends from Norway before they had to go home, I got to spend time with my dad, relatives, and more importantly, I got to eat some of my mom's famous pecan pie (famous in our house anyway). Today almost feels like Sunday instead of Friday. I don't like shopping (yes, I said it) and avoid it whenever possible so there's no way on earth that I'd brave the masses to buy some crap that I don't even need just because it's on sale. If I was in the market for a new computer, maybe I'd be out right now, but since I don't need anything electronic, I'm staying in and writing today. My husband is still in a turkey coma so I'm hoping to get a lot of uninterrupted time today.


I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and has a very relaxing weekend. Take advantage of the down time and give yourself a break! :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

In the midst of running around today I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!! Hope everyone is staying safe and enjoying lots of yummy food :)

What are you thankful for?

What are you thankful for? Come share at Writers Gone Wild.

Monday...finally

Never thought I'd say this, but I'm glad it's Monday! My house, which has been perpetually busy and full of people for the past week is finally back to normal and quiet. My sister's wedding is over and right about now she's probably sitting on a plane waiting for it to take off. There were surprisingly random pockets of drama at the wedding, but it was beautiful and I've never seen her and her husband (that feels so weird to say) happier. Despite a wardrobe malfunction (that was pretty much one of my nightmares come true), I had a great time and even made new friends. I'm just thankful that this week is short and in a couple days I'll be eating pumpkin pie!

In writing news, I haven't gotten anything done in the past few days but all that's changing today. Before the wedding I finished editing one of my manuscripts and sent it off to my agent. Now, I'm digging back into the manuscript that I fear will never end. Since starting it, I've had to stop to edit four different stories (2 for my agent and 2 for different editors). The editing was necessary so I'm not complaining. I just really want to get back into this story :) Hopefully the long weekend will allow for some uninterrupted writing time.

What did everyone else do this weekend?

Tomorrow...

Tomorrow is the big day! My sister and all the wedding party had the rehearsal dinner yesterday (for some reason they couldn't do it tonight) and everything is falling into place. My sister looked so happy and relaxed at the rehearsal yesterday. It was like a weight had been lifted and for that, I'm thankful. I think she's just finally ready for the day to get here, then be over so they can enjoy each other :)


Okay, the one week I'm not able to be online much, it seems like the romance world exploded. Apparently Harlequin has decided to open what they call a self-publishing line (Harlequin Horizons), though it really sounds like a vanity press. My time is still limited online and while I'd love to chat about this decision, check out Dear Author, here, here, and here for a wonderfully detailed description of the unfolding drama. My big problem is that they're not separating the Harlequin brand from the self-publishing brand. They say they are, but including an HH logo on the spine is annoyingly similar to something like Harlequin Historicals. And don't get me started on the covers, which can also be seen at the Horizons website b/c they look like a lot of Harlequin covers. For typical readers, it's unlikely that they'd be able to tell the difference between a regular Harlequin book and a self-pubbed one. Talk about brand dilution. That's just bad, bad, bad.


RWA sent out a notice to all its members yesterday stating that Harlequin was no longer meets the requirements as being a non-subsidy/non-vanity press. Quote from the alert: With the launch of Harlequin Horizons, Harlequin Enterprises no longer meets the requirements to be eligible for RWA-provided conference resources. This does not mean that Harlequin Enterprises cannot attend the conference. Like all non-eligible publishers, they are welcome to attend. However, as a non-eligible publisher, they would fund their own conference fees and they would not be provided with conference resources by RWA to publicize or promote the company or its imprints.


Apparently, Harlequin moved fast with a response, which I pulled from Literary Agent Kristen Nelson's blog, Pub Rants. It sounds like they'll be changing the name of Harlequin Horizons to something undecided at this time, but it will not be linked to Harlequin in the future. I'm glad they've made a move toward changing this (other NY publishers have self-publishing companies, they're just not linked in name), but I don't think it should have ever happened in the first place. The whole debacle just feels sleazy.


Here's the letter:
Harlequin was very surprised and dismayed to receive notice late yesterday that the RWA has decided that Harlequin is no longer eligible for RWA-provided conference resources. We were even more surprised to discover that the RWA sent a notice to its membership announcing this decision, before allowing Harlequin to respond or engage in a discussion about it with the RWA board.

Harlequin has been a significant supporter of the RWA for many years in several ways, including:

• financial sponsorships at the annual conference
• sending editors to the national and regional chapter conferences throughout the year to meet with and advise aspiring authors and participate in panel discussions on writing
• celebrating our authors, most of whom are RWA members, annually with the largest publisher party at the conference.

It is disappointing that the RWA has not recognized that publishing models have and will continue to change. As a leading publisher of women's fiction in a rapidly changing environment, Harlequin's intention is to provide authors access to all publishing opportunities, traditional or otherwise.

Most importantly, however, we have heard the concerns that you, our authors, have expressed regarding the potential confusion between this venture and our traditional business. As such, we are changing the name of the self-publishing company from Harlequin Horizons to a designation that will not refer to Harlequin in any way. We will initiate this process immediately. We hope this allays the fears many of you have communicated to us.

We are committed to connecting with our authors and aspiring authors in a significant way and encourage you to continue to share your thoughts with us.

Sincerely

Donna Hayes
Publisher and Chief Executive Officer
Harlequin Enterprises Limited


I wish I could chat longer, but I'm out for now. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Writers Gone Wild

I'm over at Writers Gone Wild today chatting about weddings. Come share your craziest wedding story! (doesn't have to be your own)

Between Heaven & Hell

One of my fellow Divas has a new release! Check it out!

Stephanie Adkins new contemporary erotic romance suspense novella, Between Heaven and Hell, is now available from Liquid Silver Books!

Blurb: Somewhere between Heaven and Hell … there are nightmares. After being forced to confront an abusive ex-lover in court, Elaina Richmond wanted nothing more than to get away from the trial and the nightmares that came with it. Escaping to her Aunt and Uncle's vineyard in the rolling hills of Sonoma, California, she is reunited with her first love, Caden Russell. An old flame is rekindled. Though Heaven is found in his arms once again, Elaina soon discovers that the Devil has a way of finding you … especially when there's hope to destroy.

Click here to read an excerpt.

Click here to purchase.

Visit Stephanie at www.stephanieadkins.com

Monday Funday

I've come to the realization that I'm too old to stay out dancing until the wee hours of the morning without suffering the side effects. My sister's bachelorette party was on Saturday and while it was sooooo much fun, it's Monday and I'm still tired. I'm a total morning person so if I'm up past midnight, I'm useless the next day. My legs are sore from dancing and I could probably go back to bed and sleep today away also. No crazy stories, no drama, and everyone had a lot of fun. IMO, it was a perfect bachelorette party. Now, I just can't wait for her wedding to be over, lol.

It's doubtful that I'm going to get much writing done this week, but I'm going to try to squeeze a little in if I have some down time. One of the out of town bridesmaids is staying with me (she's also one of my best friends) so I've got to go grocery shopping, and CLEAN today b/c she gets in Wednesday! I know she won't care, but my house is in serious need of some scrubbing. I'd planned to do it yesterday but I didn't leave the couch. So, after work today, it's on. I probably won't be online much this week, but after Saturday, hopefully everything will be back to normal!

What did everyone else do this weekend?

Happy Friday!

It's 53 degrees and a little windy here this morning. Definitely a nice change of pace! Tomorrow is my sister's bachelorette party and instead of staying in town we're all going to drive to the beach and stay the night. She hadn't planned on the cooler weather so it looks like we might have more indoor fun as opposed to sandy, beachy, sunny fun. I don't care what we do as long as my kid sister has a great time!

I spoke to my agent yesterday and she's read and seems excited about the revised manuscript I just sent to her. She only had a few notes so I finished them and emailed the final version to her early this morning. Of course she'll have to accept my changes, and she might reject a few, but we're very close to sending this baby off! I'll keep y'all updated when she does :)

My alter ego, Savannah Stuart, is over at Naughty Author Chicks today chatting about inspiration. Stop by if you get a chance. If not, have a wonderful weekend! I'm sure I'll have fun stories next Monday!

Writers Gone Wild

I'm at Writers Gone Wild today chatting about looking at things from a writer's perspective vs. a reader's perspective....Come say hi and offer an opinion :)

Happy Birthday USMC!

On November 10, 1775 the Continental Marines (United States Marine Corps) was founded. Happy Birthday to the Marines and thank you to all Marines for your service and patriotism. I'm a little biased, but there's nothing sexier than a Marine in his uniform. Click here for a very brief history lesson.

234 years later, I think we're incredibly lucky to have such brave men and women defending our country. If you know a Marine, tell him or her Happy Birthday today :)

A New Week

This weekend my local chapter had their 'Romancing the Holidays' book signing. We were busy this weekend so I wasn't able to stay as long as I'd have liked but I got to meet a couple authors I hadn't met before and I picked up a copy of Immortal Wolf by Bonnie Vanak (one of my favorite authors). I met her last year and she was just as nice this year :) She was also doing something really cool this year. When someone bought her book, she gave away a copy of Holiday with a Vampire III which is an antho not out til Christmas (Silhouette Nocturne). When I find the time to read both, reviews will most definitely follow. With each purchase, buyers also got a bag of books and I scored a fabulous one, including a copy of Brenda Novak's Trust Me. Seriously, I'm in book heaven right now!

In writing news, I finished editing a novella and finally submitted it to my editor at Ellora's Cave. That story was tearing at my brain and wouldn't let me focus on anything else until I was finished. Now I'm back to working on adding scenes and lengthening one of my current manuscripts for my agent. It seemed a little overwhelming at first but I've broken my ideas down by scenes and I'm writing them separately, then working them into the story. So far, it's working out. I'll have to go back and tweak some stuff, but coming at it this way has kept my sanity.

Yesterday I realized that my sister is getting married in two weeks. Two freaking weeks. Not to mention her bachelorette party is this upcoming weekend. And I still have a lot of stuff to get ready. I'm trying to get a big chunk of my scenes done this week before the party and before one of her other bridesmaids (and one of my bff's) gets in town b/c she's staying with me and I know I won't have a lot--if any--time to write. I love my sister but I'm going to be soooooooo happy when this wedding is officially over. Since I also work with her, wedding stuff has slightly bombarded my year and I'm tired of looking at flowers and centerpieces. ;)

What did everyone else do this weekend?

Interview with Caridad Pineiro Nov 5-7!

As you know, today I normally blog at Writers Gone Wild. I took the easy way out and posted pictures of Ryan Reynolds (without a shirt) as opposed to coming up with something fun and witty. If you feel like some hot eye candy, scoot on over there ;)

Now, on to more important things!!

November 5-7 I'm interviewing the fabulous Caridad Pineiro over at Desert Island Keepers! Not only is Caridad a New York Times and USA today best seller, she's also incredibly sweet! She's going to be sharing fun tidbits about who she is and what goes into her writing process so be sure to stop by for a chance to win either a copy of Fury Calls or a Sins of the Flesh t-shirt!

Día de los Muertos

I woke up this morning and instead of being pitch black, there was actually a bit of light streaking across the sky. I love the time change! This weekend I discovered that the authors of Ellora's Cave and the ladies of Romance Divas are absolutely wonderful! Okay, I already knew they were fabulous, but so many of them offered to blog my latest release, I was floored by the # of people who contacted me.

I also received good and bad news. The hubby might be coming home early b/c the elections in Afghanistan were called off (Kari, you called it!!). Not sure yet, I'm just waiting on news. It's good b/c the hubby will be home for the holidays but it's bad b/c well, it was a job we were counting on. In writing news, I only got 1500 words done this weekend but it's better than nothing. Plus, I got a fight scene out of the way that I struggled through so at least it's done.

In case you didn't know, today is Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead (All Souls Day) in Mexico. November 1 is All Saints Day (the day children are mourned) and November 2 is All Souls Day (adults are mourned). In addition to building altars and/or shrines and baking favorite dishes to honor the dead, people wear masks and visit the graves of their loved ones as a sign of respect. There is more that goes into it, but basically it's a time for friends and family to gather and pray for their loved ones who have passed on. I think it's a great tradition to recognize those who have died. It keeps loved ones alive in memory and while it's not an all out party, it's still a celebration.