Hi guys,
I'm in the middle of a marathon trip to the east coast, and the first leg of this adventure is a stop at my daughter's house in Pittsburgh. That's where the two-year old comes in. My Pburg babies are 6 and 2. So, believe me, I'm getting the full treatment of My Pretty Pony, Carz, dinosaurs, Webkinz and Only Hearts Club dolls. There's nothing like playing a couple of dozen rounds of Candy Land to get your blood flowing.
From here I go to my son's house in the D.C. area (two more grandbabies). Then on to Annapolis where I'm doing a book signing with a couple of my Harlequin Everlasting Love friends - Geri Krotow and Linda Cardillo. If you're in the Annapolis area on Sunday, November 11, please stop by and visit with us at Hard Beans and Books (it's right downtown). We'd love the company.
From there Geri and I go to her hometown of Buffalo for another signing. I'm thinking I didn't bring enough warm clothes. And then on to Toronto to do a tour of the Harlequin offices.
After that I hopscotch back home through Baltimore. My tongue's hanging just thinking about it.
So wish me luck. I'll check in later - after I get home, wash my clothes and hibernate for a couple of days.
Ann
A Perfect Tree - One Magic Christmas - Harlequin American Christmas Anthology - available mid-November
Goin' Down to Georgia - Harlequin American Romance - March 2008
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
Monday, November 05, 2007
Creative outlets
We all need creative outlets. Mine are fiction writing and cooking. Just as I enjoy creating characters and telling their stories, I also love turning raw ingredients into savory dishes. Because cooking is fun for me, my food usually tastes good. (Yes, I love my own cooking.) If I didn’t enjoy the task, I’m certain I’d produce blah results. The same holds true of writing. If a writer doesn’t like what she’s writing, it shows!
Back to cooking. I especially like to bake. Once a week (and only once a week, except for holidays and special occasions—don’t want to get fat …☺) I bake from-scratch cookies or bread or cake or pie. Or several of each. That’s why God invented freezers. ☺
Now you know my creative outlets. What are yours, and do you have more than one? Please share.
Before I sign off, here are several announcements:
November 7 I’ll be guest blogging at Fresh Fiction (http://freshfiction.com/blog). Please stop by and post a comment.
November 9 I’ll be doing an internet radio interview from 11:30-12:00 est. Find the show at http://blogtalkradio.com/MelissaAlvarez. If you would like to call in, the listener call in number is 347-215-8473.
November 15 I’ll be the guest at Noveltalk. From 9-10 pm est. To join the chat (and maybe win a door prize) , go to http://www.noveltalk.com/chat/default.asp.
Until next time,
Ann
www.annroth.net
Mitch Takes A Wife, August 2007
All I Want for Christmas, November 2007
Back to cooking. I especially like to bake. Once a week (and only once a week, except for holidays and special occasions—don’t want to get fat …☺) I bake from-scratch cookies or bread or cake or pie. Or several of each. That’s why God invented freezers. ☺
Now you know my creative outlets. What are yours, and do you have more than one? Please share.
Before I sign off, here are several announcements:
November 7 I’ll be guest blogging at Fresh Fiction (http://freshfiction.com/blog). Please stop by and post a comment.
November 9 I’ll be doing an internet radio interview from 11:30-12:00 est. Find the show at http://blogtalkradio.com/MelissaAlvarez. If you would like to call in, the listener call in number is 347-215-8473.
November 15 I’ll be the guest at Noveltalk. From 9-10 pm est. To join the chat (and maybe win a door prize) , go to http://www.noveltalk.com/chat/default.asp.
Until next time,
Ann
www.annroth.net
Mitch Takes A Wife, August 2007
All I Want for Christmas, November 2007
Sunday, November 04, 2007
Who's got the time?
Everyone has the same twenty-four hours in a day, right?
Then why do I always feel as though I've gotten shortchanged?
Okay, there is that single day of the year when many areas of the country "Spring Ahead," move their clocks forward, and lose an hour. But after a lifetime living in an area that changes its clocks, I've relocated to a state that doesn't, so I don't even have that excuse!
(Worse luck, I don't "Fall Back," either, which means that last night I didn't gain an hour I definitely could have used.)
Still, my days seem as though they're getting shorter and shorter, my To Do lists absolutely are getting longer and longer, and I'm trying to find ways to lower my stress level by getting more done in less time.
One friend suggested I try using a timer, setting it for a specific number of minutes, jumping into whatever project or job is next on the list, and working flat-out and focused on only that one task until the buzzer goes off.
Have you had any luck with that technique?
Have you got any other timesaving, work-producing, To-Do-list-managing tips in your toolbox?
If you have, then you've probably got lots of time to share them. (grin) So, please do!
All my best to you,
Barbara
~~~~~~
Barbara White Daille
http://www.barbarawhitedaille.com
Then why do I always feel as though I've gotten shortchanged?
Okay, there is that single day of the year when many areas of the country "Spring Ahead," move their clocks forward, and lose an hour. But after a lifetime living in an area that changes its clocks, I've relocated to a state that doesn't, so I don't even have that excuse!
(Worse luck, I don't "Fall Back," either, which means that last night I didn't gain an hour I definitely could have used.)
Still, my days seem as though they're getting shorter and shorter, my To Do lists absolutely are getting longer and longer, and I'm trying to find ways to lower my stress level by getting more done in less time.
One friend suggested I try using a timer, setting it for a specific number of minutes, jumping into whatever project or job is next on the list, and working flat-out and focused on only that one task until the buzzer goes off.
Have you had any luck with that technique?
Have you got any other timesaving, work-producing, To-Do-list-managing tips in your toolbox?
If you have, then you've probably got lots of time to share them. (grin) So, please do!
All my best to you,
Barbara
~~~~~~
Barbara White Daille
http://www.barbarawhitedaille.com
Saturday, November 03, 2007
Twilight Zone Time
So, I should probably start by admitting that I collect Christmas houses. I’ve bought one every year I’ve been married. (18) And, okay, I’ll admit it…sometimes I’ve bought more than one. Choosing the right house is a mini-big-deal for me. I really look forward to it. I wander around the store, look at past catalogs, pick up one, change my mind. You get the idea.
Yesterday was my day to get a house. Because it takes so long, I put my houses out right after Halloween. Anyway, there I was, happily celebrating an hour of house-hunting, relaxed. Sipping a latte. And…my cell phone rang. It was my daughter. She was at cheer practice. And she had questions.
I’m not one of those people who likes to talk on the phone in public places. So, my answers were clipped. Yes, Yes. Okay. Bye. Five minutes later, the phone rings again. Another question. Ten minutes after that…guess what, the coach let them leave early, if they wanted to. So, could I come pick her up? Now?
These are relatively normal things. After all, she’s 14. She’s a nice girl. She’s used to me being at her beck and call. But I wasn’t happy about it. And, well, I happened to be holding my new house…the North Pole Reindeer Spa. So, what did I do? I knew my husband was working from the house yesterday afternoon…so I told her she could either wait until I got back her way, or call her dad.
This little scenario makes me remember life without cell phones. I was on a drill team all through high school. What did I do when practice got out early? I waited. Now that I’m older and my high school years have that pretty sheen of nostalgia all over them, I recall hanging out with my girlfriends, thankful for thirty minutes or an hour of nothing to do. There was a drug store near our school. We’d pool money and buy ice cream, and sit on the sidewalks near the parking lot and talk. Flirt with all the boys who were waiting to be picked up, too. It was eerily fun. Secret, almost. Twilight Zone Time, where we could do things no one knew about because everyone thought we were occupied.
Sometimes, when it was time to be picked up, we’d all pretend that we just got out of practice…never admitting to eating rocky road. Now, I think I’d have a fit if I found out my daughter was running around town buying ice cream. And well, do teenagers even sneak ice cream any more?
So, maybe it’s good that my daughter doesn’t know about that twilight zone time of secret waiting. Maybe it’s good that she’s impatient, and has a phone to constantly communicate with me. But a part of me feels that she’s missing out.
End of the story? Tom picked her and her girlfriends up for me. I finished my latte, bought my house, and an hour later came home. I showed the Reindeer Spa off to my family-who pretended to think it was oh, so cute. Then I cooked dinner, supervised homework, and cleaned everything up.
And then it occurred to me…maybe I'm still attempting to have some secret time. Only now I’m buying houses instead of ice cream. But that ‘found’ time is as sweet as ever. So, anyone else remember waiting to be picked up when they were in high school? What did you do?
Yesterday was my day to get a house. Because it takes so long, I put my houses out right after Halloween. Anyway, there I was, happily celebrating an hour of house-hunting, relaxed. Sipping a latte. And…my cell phone rang. It was my daughter. She was at cheer practice. And she had questions.
I’m not one of those people who likes to talk on the phone in public places. So, my answers were clipped. Yes, Yes. Okay. Bye. Five minutes later, the phone rings again. Another question. Ten minutes after that…guess what, the coach let them leave early, if they wanted to. So, could I come pick her up? Now?
These are relatively normal things. After all, she’s 14. She’s a nice girl. She’s used to me being at her beck and call. But I wasn’t happy about it. And, well, I happened to be holding my new house…the North Pole Reindeer Spa. So, what did I do? I knew my husband was working from the house yesterday afternoon…so I told her she could either wait until I got back her way, or call her dad.
This little scenario makes me remember life without cell phones. I was on a drill team all through high school. What did I do when practice got out early? I waited. Now that I’m older and my high school years have that pretty sheen of nostalgia all over them, I recall hanging out with my girlfriends, thankful for thirty minutes or an hour of nothing to do. There was a drug store near our school. We’d pool money and buy ice cream, and sit on the sidewalks near the parking lot and talk. Flirt with all the boys who were waiting to be picked up, too. It was eerily fun. Secret, almost. Twilight Zone Time, where we could do things no one knew about because everyone thought we were occupied.
Sometimes, when it was time to be picked up, we’d all pretend that we just got out of practice…never admitting to eating rocky road. Now, I think I’d have a fit if I found out my daughter was running around town buying ice cream. And well, do teenagers even sneak ice cream any more?
So, maybe it’s good that my daughter doesn’t know about that twilight zone time of secret waiting. Maybe it’s good that she’s impatient, and has a phone to constantly communicate with me. But a part of me feels that she’s missing out.
End of the story? Tom picked her and her girlfriends up for me. I finished my latte, bought my house, and an hour later came home. I showed the Reindeer Spa off to my family-who pretended to think it was oh, so cute. Then I cooked dinner, supervised homework, and cleaned everything up.
And then it occurred to me…maybe I'm still attempting to have some secret time. Only now I’m buying houses instead of ice cream. But that ‘found’ time is as sweet as ever. So, anyone else remember waiting to be picked up when they were in high school? What did you do?
Friday, November 02, 2007
Holidays
Holidays…when we gather with family for fun times and a nice meal. Where we strengthen family ties and catch up on everyone's life--Yeah, right. More on that in a minute.
First, congratulations to Lily--our October HAR blog winner! Lily, please contact the following authors through their websites to claim your prize: Shelley Galloway, Cindi Myers and Marin Thomas.
Keep the comments coming. Authors will be giving away more books to a winner for the month of November.
Okay, back to Holidays--the good, the bad and the ugly….
More likely than not, many of us will attend gatherings with people we have little or nothing in common--Family. You got that right. How is it that siblings can be born to the same parents yet be so different? Sister Susie-homemaker bakes up storm and everyone praises her cooking skills. Sister Margaret is Ms. Career Woman who travels the world and makes more money than your own husband. Then Brother Bob slides through life effortlessly, always finding people to fish him out of trouble or loan him money when he makes bad choices. And then there's you--Ms. Responsibility--the one who goes through life playing by the rules but no one cares or finds you interesting. Sound familiar to anyone???
I thought it might be fun to make up a list of tips on surviving the holidays with family. I'll go first:
1) Lower your expectations (I'm talking way lower). The day is not going to be perfect. It never has been and it won’t be this time. Uncle Joe will still tell off-color jokes and your father-in-law will undoubtedly bring up politics at the dinner table. And don’t forget Aunt Judy, she'll have one too many drinks and spill her red wine all over your white tablecloth. Just think…if no one sets the Christmas tree on fire the gathering will have been a success!
Okay, who's got the next Holiday survival tip?
Marin Thomas
For The Children (Oct 07)
In A Soldier's Arms (Feb 08)
Thursday, November 01, 2007
Beginners' pluck
A writer never stops learning, even when she’s been published for twenty-five years. Take me. I’m always experimenting with voices, fictional techniques and genres.
At first, every bit of knowledge seems confusing and hard to apply. Gradually, however, I integrate these skills into my subconscious, just as I once learned to drive or diaper a baby.
It can be hard to remember how awkward I was at the start. That unfocused style and those messy plotlines, not to mention the shallow characters and clumsy romantic arcs. Maybe some more talented authors didn’t suffer those problems, but I did.
Recently, I’ve been reading a lot of material from beginning writers. A few have won critiques through my local chapter of Romance Writers of America. Others have entered contests I’m judging, and some are students at a distance-learning institute for writers where I’ve begun teaching (you can check me out at www.longridgewritersgroup.com. I’m listed under my full name, Jackie Diamond Hyman).
Seeing their struggles reminds me of how easy veteran writers make the process appear. And a good thing, too. Who wants to read a book that seems labored?
I admire these valiant newbies. It takes courage to start up this steep hill, knowing how many obstacles lie ahead. My hat is off to you guys. I’m just glad that, through critiques and teaching, I sometimes get a chance to help.
At first, every bit of knowledge seems confusing and hard to apply. Gradually, however, I integrate these skills into my subconscious, just as I once learned to drive or diaper a baby.
It can be hard to remember how awkward I was at the start. That unfocused style and those messy plotlines, not to mention the shallow characters and clumsy romantic arcs. Maybe some more talented authors didn’t suffer those problems, but I did.
Recently, I’ve been reading a lot of material from beginning writers. A few have won critiques through my local chapter of Romance Writers of America. Others have entered contests I’m judging, and some are students at a distance-learning institute for writers where I’ve begun teaching (you can check me out at www.longridgewritersgroup.com. I’m listed under my full name, Jackie Diamond Hyman).
Seeing their struggles reminds me of how easy veteran writers make the process appear. And a good thing, too. Who wants to read a book that seems labored?
I admire these valiant newbies. It takes courage to start up this steep hill, knowing how many obstacles lie ahead. My hat is off to you guys. I’m just glad that, through critiques and teaching, I sometimes get a chance to help.
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