Happy February--the Love Month!!
Valentine's Day is fast approaching and many women across the world will be asked for their hand in marriage on Feb 14th--the most romantic day of the year for some couples. I've compiled a list "Perfect Marriage Proposal Locations/Scenarios" below.
Top Ten Marriage Proposal Places www.about.com
1) In a garden
2) In a winery
3) On a mountaintop
4) On a beach
5) At a zoo
6) In the back of a limo
7) At a world famous landmark
8) In a revolving restaurant
9) Atop the Empire State Building
10) Atop the Eiffel Tower
Top Ten Marriage Proposal Places www.askmen.com
1) On top of a mountain after a day of rock climbing
2) Make a personal video
3) In mid-air (flight attendant does the asking for the guy)
4) Billboard
5) Movie Theater-preview across the big screen
6) Niagara Falls
7) Vegas
8) On Valentine's Day
9) During lovemaking
10) Cop pulls your girl over and gives her a ticket (written proposal)
11) On her birthday
12) E-mail
13) Radio dedication
14) At a baseball game
And my personal favorite from http://www.diamondhelpers.com/
Arrange to meet her in a beautiful park near some riding stables. Rent a knight's armor from a costume shop or theatrical company and pick it up on the way. Rent a horse at the stables, don the armor, ride up to meet her and offer to be her prince. Present the ring with princely flair on bended knee. You could have someone in the bushes nearby ready to play Holst's "Jupiter" as she starts to see you in the distance.
Join the fun, tell us your idea of the perfect marriage proposal and/or the real one you received from Mr. Right!
Marin Thomas
Nelson in Command (Jan 07)
http://www.marinthomas.com/
Friday, February 02, 2007
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Transitions, and why we write
People sometimes ask series romance authors why we write these “little” books instead of tackling big important themes.
Here’s why.
A little over a week ago, I received word that a good friend and former critique partner, Barbara Seranella, had died following a long struggle with liver disease. In case you haven’t read her colorful Munch Mancini mysteries, Barbara was a former wild child (motorcycle gangs and drugs) who got clean, became an auto mechanic, and then wrote a series with a main character based on herself.
I can still hear her drily humorous voice reading aloud passages from her books at our critique meetings. And see her expressive face at her 50th birthday party. Although everyone knew that might be her last birthday, we hoped there’d be more. Sadly, there weren’t.
A few days ago, my family rallied to help my mother-in-law following surgery (for a non-life-threatening condition, fortunately). This woman who’s always been there for others needed others to be there for her. I’m delighted to say she’s home and doing very well.
In the process of talking to family members, I learned that my niece is expecting a baby in August. This will be the first, and very much wanted, child of that generation in the family.
Talk about life-changing events, all rolled into such a short time! Death, transitions, and the miraculous cycle of life.
Why do we write these “little” books? Because love, family and commitment are truly the greatest story of all. That’s what I’ve tried to capture in my February release, The Doctor’s Little Secret. That’s what we all strive for every time we write.
Thanks for taking the journey with us!
Here’s why.
A little over a week ago, I received word that a good friend and former critique partner, Barbara Seranella, had died following a long struggle with liver disease. In case you haven’t read her colorful Munch Mancini mysteries, Barbara was a former wild child (motorcycle gangs and drugs) who got clean, became an auto mechanic, and then wrote a series with a main character based on herself.
I can still hear her drily humorous voice reading aloud passages from her books at our critique meetings. And see her expressive face at her 50th birthday party. Although everyone knew that might be her last birthday, we hoped there’d be more. Sadly, there weren’t.
A few days ago, my family rallied to help my mother-in-law following surgery (for a non-life-threatening condition, fortunately). This woman who’s always been there for others needed others to be there for her. I’m delighted to say she’s home and doing very well.
In the process of talking to family members, I learned that my niece is expecting a baby in August. This will be the first, and very much wanted, child of that generation in the family.
Talk about life-changing events, all rolled into such a short time! Death, transitions, and the miraculous cycle of life.
Why do we write these “little” books? Because love, family and commitment are truly the greatest story of all. That’s what I’ve tried to capture in my February release, The Doctor’s Little Secret. That’s what we all strive for every time we write.
Thanks for taking the journey with us!
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Letters and other end of the month miscellaneous stuff
Okay, today's my day and I'm pretty speechless. You know the time when you've got 50 million things to do and no time to do any of them? January is like that. We have to process taxes, resolutions, new semesters, etc. etc.
Life is crazy. Superbowl's next weekend, which means I'll see friends from college that I now only see twice a year. I look forward to hanging out with them and catching up.
As I bought a pick me up card for a friend last night, I realized my life has moved online. I loved Kara's comments on letters below because I, too, have had those types of letters and emails. Sometimes they are hard to deal with. But the ones I love best are the ones from my former students. They find me from blogs, books, and websites and drop a line to say hello. They've sent baby pictures. It's fun to hear that they are doing so well.
So happy Tuesday and I'll keep this short and sweet.
Michele
Life is crazy. Superbowl's next weekend, which means I'll see friends from college that I now only see twice a year. I look forward to hanging out with them and catching up.
As I bought a pick me up card for a friend last night, I realized my life has moved online. I loved Kara's comments on letters below because I, too, have had those types of letters and emails. Sometimes they are hard to deal with. But the ones I love best are the ones from my former students. They find me from blogs, books, and websites and drop a line to say hello. They've sent baby pictures. It's fun to hear that they are doing so well.
So happy Tuesday and I'll keep this short and sweet.
Michele
Monday, January 29, 2007
You've Got Mail
And if you're an author, you might not want to read it!
I enjoy hearing from readers, truly I do. And the vast majority of correspondence I get is positive. When a reader takes time out of her busy life to let me know that my book made her laugh or cry or remember what it's like to fall in love, it makes my day. Then there are those other letters ...
There's a woman who writes to not just me, but lots of romance authors, asking if we'd like to have our mouths washed out with soap, or would we like to come wash her mouth out with soap? She's written me at least half a dozen letters, and each one, no matter how it begins, descends into a discussion of profanity and mouth-washing. Then there are the readers we call the Minutia Militia*, who lie in wait for you to make a mistake in your research, then jump out of the bushes to point out your errors with great glee.
I get lots of e-mails from people who clearly have never read any of my books ("Dear Author:") but still want me to send them free stuff. And finally, there is the man who sent me his book, in installments ... from prison. He expected me to publish it for him, and he checked on me every so often to see how the publishing was coming along. When a letter came indicating he would be out of prison soon and would be along in person to check on things, I contacted the prison. They assured me he would not be getting out any time soon.
I'm thinking about fan mail today because I got a great one this morning. A female volunteer firefighter wrote to tell me she'd read the first book in my Firehouse 59 series and enjoyed it, partly because I'd used the correct terms and she could identify with my female firefighter. Since I agonized over researching the details, her letter was music to my ears!
So once in a while, take a moment to let an author know if you like her book. It's so easy now--almost every author has a website with contact information. A couple of minutes of your time could really make an author smile.
*I don't know who coined "Minutia Militia," but I heard it from Sandy Blair.
I enjoy hearing from readers, truly I do. And the vast majority of correspondence I get is positive. When a reader takes time out of her busy life to let me know that my book made her laugh or cry or remember what it's like to fall in love, it makes my day. Then there are those other letters ...
There's a woman who writes to not just me, but lots of romance authors, asking if we'd like to have our mouths washed out with soap, or would we like to come wash her mouth out with soap? She's written me at least half a dozen letters, and each one, no matter how it begins, descends into a discussion of profanity and mouth-washing. Then there are the readers we call the Minutia Militia*, who lie in wait for you to make a mistake in your research, then jump out of the bushes to point out your errors with great glee.
I get lots of e-mails from people who clearly have never read any of my books ("Dear Author:") but still want me to send them free stuff. And finally, there is the man who sent me his book, in installments ... from prison. He expected me to publish it for him, and he checked on me every so often to see how the publishing was coming along. When a letter came indicating he would be out of prison soon and would be along in person to check on things, I contacted the prison. They assured me he would not be getting out any time soon.
I'm thinking about fan mail today because I got a great one this morning. A female volunteer firefighter wrote to tell me she'd read the first book in my Firehouse 59 series and enjoyed it, partly because I'd used the correct terms and she could identify with my female firefighter. Since I agonized over researching the details, her letter was music to my ears!
So once in a while, take a moment to let an author know if you like her book. It's so easy now--almost every author has a website with contact information. A couple of minutes of your time could really make an author smile.
*I don't know who coined "Minutia Militia," but I heard it from Sandy Blair.
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