BACK TO WRITING

After an exciting, busy and hectic RWA conference, I found it hard to get back into the grove of writing. When I’m pulled out of a story, it takes a while to get back into my character’s heads. I was sluggish and lazy and couldn't generate enough energy to write a setence. With lots of rest, I'm happy to say my mojo is back.  

It was a great conference. Met with some old friends and made new ones. I talked so much I was hoarse for two days when I got home. After the literacy signing on Wednesday night, The Texan’s Bride won The Bookseller’s Best Award. That was exciting. The rest of the time I spent in meetings, luncheons, catching speakers I wanted to hear and parties. Can’t forget the parties. I’ve had my quota of chocolate for the year.

On Friday evening I had dinner and drinks with the editors and authors of The Harts of the Rodeo continuity for Harlequin American. We celebrated finishing the books. The first book came out in July and will continue every month until December.  From l to r, Roz Fox, C.J. Carmichael, Johanna Raisanen, Kathleen Scheibling, Cathy McDavid and me.

From there we went to the Harlequin party at the Hyatt Regency. I saw Ann Roth and Barbara White Daille there. They were having a great time. “It’s Raining Men” was playing. Authors go wild when that song comes on.

Saturday was rehearsal for the Rita ceremony and then the actual ceremony. I wasn’t nervous until I was seated in the ballroom. Butterflies took over my stomach and I didn’t eat the cake or fruit they served. I was afraid I’d throw it up. Everything went smoothly though. I didn’t win and I wasn’t disappointed. I was happy to be there. Here’s a photo of me and Kathleen at the ceremony.

Now I’m back in the real world: laundry, planning meals and boring other household stuff. Last week I was fighting the temptation to relax a few more days. Anyone feel that way after a fun vacation?

Back to writing,

Linda
www.LindaWarren.net
Tomas: Cowboy Homecoming – Dec ‘12

 

Stop and Smell the... Snow?

Today, I'm starting a new project while I wait to hear if my latest proposal will be bought.  My problem is I'm going to write a Christmas story, and  it's been 100 plus degrees this summer.  Although today we're "only" getting up to 97.  :)  

Getting into the mood to write about the frigid cold, wet snowflakes, and Christmas romance when I can barely muster the energy to open my laptop?  Not so easy.

I was glad to read Ann Roth's post for tips on cooling down.  Perhaps if I do some of these things, getting into the holiday mood will be easier.

Maybe I should read some Christmas/winter books. My office is in the basement, which can be downright chilly, so I might have an advantage there. Obviously, readers in the Southern Hemisphere (for instance, Down Under) have the opposite problem.  It's summer for Christmas there, and our books depict a winter Christmas. 

Which got me to wondering about readers' habits. 

Does the season in the book matter to you?  Does it throw you off to read books "out of season?"  Do you ever pick up a Christmas book in the summer for the purpose of transporting yourself to a cooler time? 

Or have you accidentally started a winter book in the summer and had to put it down because you couldn't relate right now?

Thanks for the answers. I'm curious about offering a "Christmas in July" promo before this book is released (I self-pubbed a Christmas book last year that I could offer).  But if no one's interested, I won't do it.

Have a great holiday...er, week.  Stay cool out there.
Megan  Kelly

www.megankellybooks.com

Keepin' Cool in Hot Weather

This has been an unusually hot summer–just a glimpse of the effects of Global Warming. We all need tips on how to keep cool. Here are 10 great tips I found at ABC News  http://abcn.ws/T1ZRaX and Daily Mail (based in the UK) http://bit.ly/TJY4u

1. Stay hydrated by drinking fluids like water or Gatorade.

2. Avoid alcohol, since it can act as a diuretic and lead to dehydration.

3. Wear lightweight, light-colored cotton clothes. Heat is trapped by synthetic fibers, but cotton absorbs perspiration and its evaporation causes you to feel cooler. The light colors reflect the sun's radiation.

4. Eat small meals and eat more often. The larger the meal, the more metabolic heat your body creates breaking down the food. Avoid foods that are high in protein, which increase metabolic heat.

5. Eat spicy food. Although this may be the last thing you fancy in hot weather, curries and chiles can stimulate heat receptors in the mouth, enhance circulation and cause sweating, which cools the body down.

6. Run your wrists under a cold tap for five seconds each every couple of hours. Because a main vein passes through this area, it helps cool the blood.

7. Take a tepid bath or shower just below body temperature, especially before bedtime. Although a cold shower might sound more tempting, your body generates heat afterwards to compensate for the heat loss.

8. Replace your usual body moisturizer with a cooling Aloe Vera After Sun product to use morning and night. This will help lower your skin temperature.

9. Buy a Chillow Pillow, a thin, soft, medical-grade device that pops into your pillow to cool it down.

10. Sit back, close your eyes and picture snow. Research has shown that the body reacts to these daydreams, reducing its overall temperature.

Great tips, indeed. I hope you learned a new thing or two. I did! I’d never heard of a Chillow Pillow or considered replacing my usual moisturizer Aloe Vera After Sun lotion. Other things I didn’t know: that spicy food actually contributes to cooling the body, and that daydreaming of cold places helps keep cool. I especially like that one. (smile)

What do you do to keep cool? If you have any good tips, please share them.

Until next month and wishing you all a keepin’ cool August,

Ann

www.annroth.net