I'm leaving on a jetplane...

Well, maybe I'm getting a little ahead of myself but I'm so excited I could burst so have to share the news...

I'm going to London!
One of the most cosmopolitan, exciting cities on earth, I spent a few weeks there 9 years ago and now I'm going back. My aim is to catch up with my editor and visit the Harlequin offices, attend the AMBA lunch(Association of Mills and Boon Authors) and generally have a whoop up time! With the added bonus of meeting my buddies Trish Wylie and Natasha Oakley. Can't wait!!!


Of course, organising the trip has eaten into my writing time this week in a big way. But I plan to remedy that starting tonight. After all, I need to write a few more books to fund the trip!

The call...take two!

I got 'the call' an hour ago.

Not for the first time but just as exciting, as I've sold my first book to the Modern Extra line (hereafter known as ModX)

Remember the naked man book, the book intended for Romance but somehow it morphed into a ModX?

Well, BIG SHOT BACHELOR will be released in January 2007 and I can't wait. I now have a September 1st and December 1st deadline for my next two ModXs, along with another Romance, so guess who's going to be a busy bee for the next 6 months?

I'll be posting the entire storyline behind this book on my website over the next few weeks, so stay tuned. Set in Brunswick Street, Fitzroy, a trendy, artsy suburb of Melbourne, this book is definitely one of my faves. Sparks flew between Ariel and Cooper from the first chapter (well, he was naked for most of it. And chapter two for that matter...) and it flowed so quickly.

I'm thrilled to be writing for two Harlequin lines. Busy is good.
Just remind me I said that when I'm facing my third deadline coming up to Christmas, won't you?

Surprise release!

Just had a rather pleasant surprise.
With the merging of Harlequin and Silhouette Romance lines, my 4th book, Contract to Marry, looked like it would miss out on release in North America.
Well, I just spotted it out this month on eharlequin!

I'm not sure if this book is going retail, may only be direct orders, so if you want to grab a copy, head on over here.

This book was one of my faves. Darcy is gorgeously stuffy and in desperate need of life coach Fleur, who teaches him how to have fun!

A day for fans

THE TEMPORARY PRINCESS is done, edited and sitting in my editor's hands as we speak. Stayed up extra late last night after having an inspiring lunch with the Melbourne Lunch Mob, a group of fabulous authors who meet on a regular basis. Came in at 54000 words exactly, so happy about that. Now the waiting begins...

I received several lovely emails today from people who have read Wife and Mother Wanted and enjoyed the book. Really enjoyed it! This really takes a load off my mind, as this one is the first of my 'different' books. So thanks everyone. You made my day!
(PS. to find out who all the lovely ladies are, head on over to my website. I have names and links to all their websites there.)

Finalist!

I've got some good news to share.

IMPOSSIBLY PREGNANT, my HOLT finalist, has also finalled in the Best Traditional category of the Booksellers' Best Award. Yay!!!!

I loved writing this book with its quirky chapter headings, Keely the website designer with weight issues and Lachlan the oh-so-sexy radio psychologist. It was already my favourite out of all my Harlequin Romances and now doubly so!

Comfort writing

People who love to write, who find it's in their blood, will understand this. Everyone else will think I'm nuts!
In times of stress, some people comfort eat, some try retail therapy (okay, I admit it, I've done a bit of that this week too) but I write.
Writing is part of who I am. It makes me feel secure, grounded, in touch and when life gets tough, I know my characters can distract me.
So, for the past three nights, I've buried myself in my work. Sure, I'm happy with the 8500 words I've written but it's so much more than that.
I'm starting to feel okay again and that's more important than how many words or what I've written. I'm comforted.
A special thanks to my friends who have got me through this traumatic week; you know who you are.

Words adding up...

At last, a productive week.
After not being able to write a thing for ages, I managed almost 10 000 words this week (and darn proud of it!)
And to make me feel even more chuffed, I'm exactly half way through my current Romance when earlier this week, it felt like I'd never finish the thing!
My prince is gorgeous, Natasha is filled with angst yet falling for him anyway and the story is flowing. Gotta love that.
Now, I'm off to watch the ultimate hero Hugh Jackman in Kate and Leopold. Saw it when first released but you can never get too much of Hugh

Every word counts

I finally managed to write last night. 9 pages. 2250 words.
For the first time in weeks, the words flowed, my characters talked and I felt half-way human again!
It's tough when you've got other things on your mind and family life intrudes but I swear, I experienced the same euphoria last night after finishing 9 pages that I usually get after completing a whole book.
Getting back into writing after a break, enforced or not, is hard. Really hard.
You always wonder 'can I still do it? Is this story any good? Am I stuck?'
Today, I have 9 more pages than I did yesterday and it feels great!
Every word counts...

The hardest job in the world.

Yesterday was Mother's Day, a special day when kids (and dads!) get to spoil their mums for doing the hardest job in the world: raising the little munchkins!
For every sleepless night, there is a rewarding hug.
For every fever, a smoochy kiss.
For every second of worry, a cherubic smile which lights up your life.
Yeah, motherhood is the hardest job in the world but it's also a fabulous journey of discovery and unconditional love.
I had a lovely relaxing day. I hope all the supermums out there did too!

Spooky...

Okay, talk about coincidence...I just had an email from an author who'd read my current 'Author of the Month' feature on the eharl Aussie site, informing me that my fictitious town where my current release, WIFE AND MOTHER WANTED, is set isn't so fictitious.
It's actually a real place! And it's 2 hours north of Sydney (in the book, I'm sure I mention that Stockton is a few hours north of Sydney, a figure I totally made up.)
How bizarre is that!
I've never been to the place, never heard of the place and plucked the name out of my head (actually, I think it was the surname of a girl I used to know.)
So there you go.
Now about to rush off and make sure my fictitious island for my sexy prince isn't an actual principality!

A step back in time.

Still winding down from revisions earlier in the week (and frankly, not in the mood to write) so last night, curled up on the couch and watched Flashdance.
Now, I'm a child of the eighties. I love the music, the memories, though I can leave the fashion (especially those ugly leg warmers for if you're a shorty like me, they really didn't do much for you!)
The amazing thing, I've never seen Flashdance in its entirety. Sure, the movie is dated but I loved it! The whole 'girl from the wrong side of the tracks doing it tough to achieve her dream', inspiring stuff! Found myself humming 'What a Feeling' for an hour afterwards...and blogging about it today.
Long live the eighties!

I have news!

Okay, maybe this isn't the best time to write this as the news hasn't sunk in yet and it has all happened so fast but here goes.....
Spoke to my editor tonight about the last Romance I submitted and it turns out the book isn't a Romance but a Modern Extra. Yes, that's right, I'm now writing for another Harlequin line!!!
It was totally unexpected as it wasn't my intention when I wrote the book but I can see how my ed thinks it would be perfect for the old Temptation line(now renamed Modern Extra): not many Romances start off with a naked man!
I'm really excited about this unexpected turn of events though a bit blown away too. It means I have to write 4 books this year, not counting finishing the NEXT or my single title stuff.
If I vanish here more often than not, you'll know where I am....chained to my chair, slaving over a keyboard in serious meltdown! Or will that be my brain?

Reminiscing...

Took a step back in time yesterday when I caught up with a group of uni friends, some I haven't seen for 10 years!
To protect the not-so-innocent, let's call this gang Rob, Mary, Leanne and Teresa. Back in the physio days, we'd attend lectures, swap notes, study together, hang out and write the odd letter to each other over semester breaks. These guys were great.
Then of course, life intrudes and we head off in many different directions, career and personal wise. Families are born, new careers followed and a whole heap of other stuff which gets in the way of keeping in touch more regularly.
Step forward to yesterday: a gorgeous balmy Autumn afternoon, great food, fabulous company and a feeling like nothing had changed, that same comfortable feeling you get when you sit down on the floor cross-legged with a familiar photo album.
It's a special feeling; the warmth, the camaraderie.
So, to the gang: Rob, you just might make it as a hero in one of my upcoming books! Mary, follow your dream. Leanne, your energy levels never cease to amaze me. And Teresa, my creative friend, you paid me one of the nicest compliments I've ever received about my writing. "When I read your books, it's like I'm chatting to you, the sense of humour, everything."
Thanks, guys. Today, I'm off to recapture some of that wonderful feeling and flick through old photos...and maybe the odd letter or two?

Steady...steady...

It's always so hard to get back into the story after a weekend off (one of the main reasons I used to drive myself like a maniac and rarely have a night off.) I just found it easier to keep writing, keep the story flowing till I realised that exhaustion and sickness are not conducive to producing a good story anyway!
So, managed 2000 words tonight. Not bad, steady progression. I'm almost a fifth of the way into the story in a week and I have to be happy with that (though I'm usually so much quicker and this pace is killing me!)
Seeing as I work at night, I don't have an opportunity to watch much TV. However, this season I've become addicted to Commander in Chief and Prison Break so without further ado, I'm calling it quits for tonight and heading off to enjoy more of that lovely down time.
Dante and Natasha can wait till tomorrow...

Baby steps getting bigger...

The end of my writing week and I'm pleased to report I'm 7250 words into a new book. In all honesty, I can't quite believe that word count as it feels like I'm moving at a snail's pace with this one (probably because my mind is definitely on other things.)
However, the baby steps do add up and in forcing myself to sit at the keyboard every night and write something, at least the words are there.
As a wise author once said, you can edit a bad page, you can't edit a blank page.
Hope you all have a fabulous weekend.

A fresh start

If you're anything like me, you love new things: new books (I really dig the smell!), new clothes and starting a new book.
The characters are jumping up and down, sticking their hands up in the air saying 'notice me! notice me!' and you just have to start telling their story.
This happened to me last night. I started watching a movie (which turned out to be bor-ing) so went to turn off my PC around 9.30. Instead, found myself sitting down to maybe get the first page written of the new idea. 5 pages later, called it quits because I was pretty zonked anyway but I know I'll love whizzing through the first 3 chapters, loving the fresh, vibrant newness of a story.
Writing the rest is the hard part...

Done!

After working about 8 hours the last two nights, I've finished the revisions for Bollywood or Bust. Yay! After chatting with Ethan, I didn't think they were much but I ended up adding around 10 000 words to the book. The good thing is, they weren't that difficult and definitely improve the story.
Now all that's left is the final read through and it's off!

I'd planned on starting off the new week with the NEXT story but I forgot about the article I have to write for a German romance magazine about the Melbourne lunch mob of authors who meet regularly. I'm also in the middle of planning a presentation with Ally Blake for the Williamstown Literary Festival which we're doing on May 13th.

Looks like the next few weeks are going to be super busy.

Weekend? What's that?

I have been bad.
As many bloggers have warned me, this blogging business eats up time and they're not wrong!
I have revisions on my ST and NEXT novel (that's for the Harlequin NEXT line as opposed to my next novel which appears overly important with the use of capitals!) so what did I do all week?
Celebrate my good news, fluff around surfing the Net for blogs and finally creating my own.
So when the weekend hits and I usually wind down and have a few nights off, what happens? I work!
Made a start on the Bollywood or Bust revisions last night and pretty happy with them, almost finished. Then it's onto the NEXT.
As my Nan used to say, no rest for the wicked, huh?

We have lift-off!

Ok, after spending a few hours trying to get the links stuff to work last night, I huffed off to bed, only for the savvy Ally Blake to save me from tearing out any more hair this morning with a few quick pointers.
Thanks Ally!

Now I have some idea how to work this thing, I can actually get down to the interesting stuff like telling you about my huge week! And it has been huge...


On Saturday, I received a call from the USA. Impossibly Pregnant, released Oct 05, has finalled in the HOLT medallion, Best Traditional category. After hugging everyone within arm's length (my poor squeezed family), wandering around in a daze for a while then sitting at the PC and actually trying to tell all my writing buddies with shaking typing hands, the news finally sunk in and I resorted to grinning like a loon instead.
This book was one of my faves to write and I'm thrilled that the judges loved it too.

The HOLT winners are announced on June 10th so fingers crossed!

My big week continued when I signed today with Ethan Ellenberg. I am thrilled to have him as my agent and look forward to working with him. I'll keep you posted on developments.

Now, I really should get back to the writing stuff.
I knew this blogging thingymajig would be distracting...

The Anti-blogger

Yes, the unthinkable has happened...
The anti-blogger, as some of my friends call me, has succumbed and finally decided to blog.
Better late than never, right?
Now, I have no idea how often I'll post or whether the content will be as scintillating as I'd like but hey, I'm here.
Things can only get better from here!