On Aussie/NZ shelves this week

I have a frantic week of appointments for the kidlets ahead, so thought I'd do a quick reminder of what's about to hit the shelves cos you never know when I'll make it back here!!

PURCHASED FOR PLEASURE, my sexy SEAL book, will hit Aussie and New Zealand shelves later this week so make sure you rush out and grab a copy of my 3rd Sexy Sensation. Are you rushing yet? ;)

(And no, Ty isn't a teenager or doesn't have long hair, as we've already established in a previous discussion :) )

For US readers, this book will be my first Harlequin Presents on sale from Jan 28th so not long to go now...

The award I forgot about

Breaking news!!!
I've placed 3rd in the Laurel Wreath 2008 with WIFE AND MOTHER WANTED.
This award is judged by booksellers all over America so I'm thrilled.

And the best bit?
It's in the Short Contemporary category, which means the book went up against Harlequin Presents, Americans, Medicals and Silhouette Desires (and other publishers)

So it's a win for me and for the Harlequin Romance line! Yay!
Will give more details once I get them.

Funny thing, I'd forgotten I'd even entered this comp so it was a lovely email to wake up to this morning. :)

An addiction

I'd like to pose the question: do all writers have a stationery addiction?

I do, and I know several others who do too.
Let me loose in an Officeworks and I'm in heaven!
I can never leave the place with the one item I need.
Oh no, uh-uh. Instead, I come out with a whole range of stuff I'll use 'one day'.

I can't help myself.

I love all those brightly coloured hard back notebooks (yes, I have several gorgeous ones just waiting to be used.)
I love those free-flowing pens.
I love the coloured note blocks.
Those gorgeous storage boxes...filing credenzas...labels...I could go on and on but you get the picture!

The other day I ran in there for a few envelopes and came out with a purple binder and matching notebook, which I'm about to put to good use with the new Harlequin Romance I'll start shortly. I tend to have my notes for a novel shoved into a clear plastic sleeve so this is definitely a step up. Tidy mind makes tidy work? We'll see!
Also picked up way too many envelopes, manila folders, a mini-ruler, stickers and a penguin stamp (my preschooler tossed those last 3 into the basket. A writer in the making, perhaps?) :)

Any other stationery addicts out there?
Come on, 'fess up. You know you want to.

COVER TO COVER: How much is too much

Rach asked a great question in response to my layering/editing post:

Just wondering about how long your mss are when you finish your first draft! And whether that means adding words or taking them away.

I'm a bit of a perfectionist so my first draft is pretty much close to the finished product.
What I mean by this is that I write the book consecutively, from start to finish, without jumping around to various scenes.
I try to make it the best it can be, without getting stuck on the exact word or making sure a description is spot on.
For these, I highlight in bright green so when I start the layering and editing process, my eyes are instantly drawn to the word that needs to be tweaked or the paragraph that needs more description.
Then I go through a rough mental checklist (many of the points I listed in the previous post) to really tighten the story.

So my first draft tends to be pretty much spot on with word count. And it usually means adding words with the layering.

Please remember this is only one person's viewpoint.
I know authors who move from scene to scene, who might write the end of the book before the middle, who get inspired by a particular scene and will write that first before the beginning.

I'm a bit of a plotter and like to have the book roughly outlined while I'm writing, sometimes before I start (see earlier Cover to Cover post) so for me, writing in chronological order and having the book pretty close to my outline tends to make the book flow and not need a lot of tweaking.

Whether you have to cut words or add them to your first draft, it doesn't matter. Making the story the best it can be is what it's all about :)

New cover

I've been waiting for my hardback copies of my next Romance EXECUTIVE MOTHER-TO-BE to arrive for a few weeks...and nada!

Well, thanks to Trish who pointed me towards Barnes and Noble today, I now have the cover :)

What do you think?

Nate and Kristen are both very business oriented in this book, and Kris is an older heroine who never thought she'd have kids so the cover is pretty spot on.
I wish it could be a little more romantic though...both Trish Wylie and Fiona Harper have books out in Feb too and their covers are absolutely gorgeous!!!

Baby is sick again so my intentions to do a Cover to Cover post have been delayed again. Sorry! I'll finish editing COURTING CUPID tonight and will pop the post up here tomorrow. Hopefully...

Mouse problems!

I'm thankful to say, they aren't real mice, thank goodness but my PC mouse went kaput yesterday. My second in the last year!
So had to troup to PC shop, buy new mouse and keyboard, wait whole day for it to charge...and here I am.

Loads has happened.
My baby post the other morning must've got things moving for my bud Ally, as later that day I got a text message saying she's had a baby girl!
Congrats Ally, I'm thrilled for you!!!! And can't wait to meet the gorgeous girl :)
I have over 170 emails to get through.
I have a book to finish editing.
I have a Cover to Cover post to do here.
I have to participate in an online course which I signed up for but haven't got the time to make full use of yet.
I have to send off an interview I've done for that magazine I mentioned a while back.
I have to tidy house for fab writing friends to descend on Sat morning (our first meeting in months!)
Life is busy.

And they're off!

Today is the running of the Melbourne Cup, the race that stops a nation.

Over one hundred thousand will flock to Flemington racecourse, frocked and suited up, to socialise and have a flutter or two.

The Spring Racing Carnival has become a huge social event in Melbourne, so much so it inspired a book around this time 2 years ago: INHERITED: BABY, featuring my horse strapper heroine and set at Flemington. If you haven't read it, check it out (enter the comp on my website and you can win your choice of a book from my backlist!)

Speaking of babies, can you believe my bub is 6 months old now?
Time has flown.
There is so much to love about him...
-his gorgeous sweet milky smell
-his loud chuckles when I snuggle my nose into his neck
-his loud chattering...even in the middle of the night!
-his good morning smile
-his hands reaching up to explore my face
-his screwed up expression when tasting food for the first time yesterday
-his wide-eyed amazement when his brother does something new

I could go on...and on...and on...
Being a mum is the greatest gift in the world. :)

Writing-wise, started editing COURTING CUPID last night. Very nice surprise to find I'm 69 pages in and the book is a lot tighter than I anticipated. Looks like all my research on characterisation paid off! Will blog about it towards end of the week.

It's official: book 15 sold!

I now have a title and release date for my 4th Modern Heat (and 15th book!)

HOT NIGHTS WITH THE PLAYBOY will be released in June 08 (yes, another simultaneous release, as my Harlequin Romance THE DESERT PRINCE'S PROPOSAL also hits the shelves in June!)

The title is spot on: Judd Calloway is a photographer who has spent the last 8 years travelling the world (and has a teensy weensy playboy reputation) and when he meets up with his best friend, Abby Weiss on a Whitsunday island, there's plenty of steam, loads of hot nights...

When I get a spare minute (ha!) I'll be popping the usual excerpt and 'under the covers' (behind the scenes goss) on my website.

Hopefully some time this weekend...or not...

Will try, promise!

The launch!

The book launch for SIZZLE, SEDUCE & SIMMER last night was absolutely fantastic!!

Dymocks bookshop in the heart of Melbourne is huge and the perfect venue for a launch.

About 100 people turned out for this event and it was fabulous to be surrounded by so many author friends who contributed to the book.

As Marion Lennox says in the intro, this is a friendship book.

It started from the regular lunches we have as a group and developed from there.

It's truly satisfying to see our collective work in one, fantastic book. And the recipes are yummy! I've already tried the Sinfully Delicious Seed Slice...twice!!

(Pity in my rush to bundle baby and sick mum out the door and into the car last night I left the slice in the fridge rather than taking it to the launch where it was supposed to be!!)

A great evening was had by all. And I had my first taste of a book signing on a larger scale...was great fun!!

Here are some of the talented, wonderful authors who feature in this book: (from left to right) Fiona MacArthur, moi, Bronwyn Jameson, Fiona Lowe, Amy Andrews, Valerie Parv, Marion Lennox, Anne Gracie, Stephanie Laurens, Trish Morey, Carol Marinelli and Keri Arthur.

Aren't the pinafores cute?

I'm so proud to be a part of this book.

Thanks to everyone who turned out last night (and who bought copies of the book as gifts for their friends.) Remember, it would make a fabulous Christmas present: romance and recipes in one book, what more could you ask for? :)

(Pop back tomorrow for news of my 15th book. The title is fab!!)

Where am I today?

The start of another month...and how many days till Christmas? Sheesh! Where has this year got to?

I'm blogging at the PHS society about why I love the Harlequin Modern Heat series. And yes, there will be the usual sexy hero pics. Need you ask? ;)

Tonight, I'm off to my very first book launch at Dymocks in the city, at Australia on Collins.

I was thrilled to be a part of SIZZLE, SEDUCE & SIMMER, the fabulous short story and recipe anthology collated by Marion Lennox.

Hope to see you there! If you can't make it, pick up your copy here. It will make a great Chrissie present!

COVER TO COVER: Life Happens

I should be busy trying to get this guy, Blane Andrews, and this girl, Camryn Henderson, together.

Well, okay, they are together considering I've finished the first draft of COURTING CUPID but in my mind, they won't officially be together till the book is polished, edited, done, dusted and sitting in my editor's inbox waiting for a read!

I had grand plans to start the layering process this week.

But like all grand plans, they suffer setbacks when life gets in the way...

I have a household of sick boys (and yes, including hubby in this because I think men tend to regress to boys when they're sick...not being mean here, just truthful!!)

Boys who are coughing all night, boys who need their noses blown, boys who are teething and scratching because their eczema is out of control...yes, I love my boys but right now, I could do with a moment (or ten!) to myself.

The interesting thing when 'life happens' is that writing is my saviour.

Writing keeps me sane.

Writing keeps me focussed.

Writing gives me a distraction from the everyday stuff.

Writing gives me an escape.

And life does happen.

No matter how well you plan, how much time you set aside for your writing, something will always pop up.

So deal with it.

But keep your mind fine tuned by thinking about your characters/story/next plot.

Jot down a word or two between baby feeds and nose blowing.

Look forward to that peaceful hour next week when you can dive back into your story.

Most of all, dose up on Vitamin C and garlic.

Those boys have a happy habit of sharing their germs around ;)

The Lurgy is back

Yes, the dreaded cold lurgy has hit our house again with a vengeance.
Kidlet 1's b'day on Saturday a fizzer, as he was too sick to want to do anything.
Bub has caught it too, so very disgruntled and clingy and generally unwell.
Hubby coming down with it.
As usual, Mum is the last one standing... ;)

Must admit, this is the reason I push myself when I have a deadline to meet. With kids, you never know what's around the corner and I'd hate to feel extra pressure with a book to finish and kids to nurse.

That said, I have to get back to editing COURTING CUPID. Maybe a little later than I first anticipated!

New release dates!

For readers in the USA, I've got some great news.

Release dates for my first 2 Harlequin Presents have been moved forward.

PURCHASED FOR PLEASURE, previously scheduled for April, will now be out in February 08 (the same month as my next Harlequin Romance, EXECUTIVE MOTHER-TO-BE)

And MISTRESS TO THE TYCOON (titled BIG-SHOT BACHELOR in the UK) will be released the month after in March rather than July.

Looks like a few bumper months of releases coming in early 2008! And I'll post the new covers as soon as I get them.

In other lovely news, I found a wonderful 5 star review for Purchased for Pleasure on Amazon by Marilyn Shoemaker.

Here's a snippet:

Kate's character is smart, sexy, charming and very spirited. She gives as good as she gets but she does not want to loose her heart again....Have a box of tissues ready, there are times you will need them. However, this charming couple will have you laughing with their banter, sexy smiles and their journey at rekindling their love; it is absolutely an incredible love story, one you will not want to miss! Tyler James has two secrets you will learn and they both will tug at your heart. This sexy Seal loves to tease but underneath, he is tough and does not want to loose his heart again to Kate. She is like a magnet but he is determined to leave at the weeks end and not break Kate's heart.......wrong, he shatters it! Kate and Tyler's journey is up and down and at times you will want to knock their heads together. However, you will come away realizing what a talent Nicola Marsh has with spinning and weaving her sensual story in such a way, you will want to read more. Personally, I cannot wait for Nicola's next book!

Thanks Marilyn :)

COVER TO COVER: Letting your manuscript stew

Take one first draft.
Well done.
Leave to stew for a week, minimum.
Then take one pair of fresh eyes, one pair of eager hands with itchy fingers to type and a fresh perspective, re-open and start the editing process.
Sounds easy enough, right?
Wrong! If you're like me, it's hard to walk away from a manuscript, especially one just finished. Though exhausted, your mind is still buzzing with ideas, you're still in the characters' heads, the setting is still vivid and you want to get this baby off to your editor ASAP.
Instead, let it stew. The longer the better. There's nothing like tackling a first draft with a completely fresh outlook, and with the benefit of time away from the story.
It's too easy to get caught up in your plot or too close to your characters and after a while you can't see the pitfalls, the holes and the glaring mistakes. This is why time away is essential, especially if you don't have a critique partner to pick up a lot of this stuff for you in later drafts.
Fresh eyes brings fresh perspective, an eagerness to layer, and the all important clarity to make your story the best it can be.
So do what I do. Immerse yourself in the rest of your life. Keep busy. (You can give the sleepless nights a miss!) Read. Have fun.
And then take those itching fingers back to the keyboard and start the writing process all over again!!
(More on layering next week, when I actually get stuck back into COURTING CUPID.)

Book launch!

In everything that is going on here, I'd totally forgotten to post this invite here!

SIZZLE, SEDUCE AND SIMMER is a fabulous short story & recipe book anthology I was lucky enough to be a part of and it's officially being launched on November 1st at Dymock's in Melbourne.

All details on the invite above. Please book directly with the bookstore.

Hope to see you all there!

The book would make a great Christmas gift so if you can't make the launch, buy online here.

Will bring you more info about my contribution on my website and here early November :)

COVER TO COVER: Reaching 'The End'

With the bulk of my books, once I'm heading towards the end scene, the words are tumbling out so fast my fingers can barely keep up.
My characters are aching to get their happily-ever-after.
They need resolution.
And I want to tie up all those niggly loose ends I've created throughout the book.

So what's happening with COURTING CUPID?
Strangely enough, after writing half the book in a fortnight, the end is coming slowly. Very slowly. Try 2500 words all week when I usually write that in a night.
Now I'll explain why.

Ever had that feeling right before an important exam where you've studied your heart out, know everything there is to know, yet just before you enter the exam hall or turn the exam over, your mind goes blank?
Well, that's what has happened to me this week.

I've been so wrapped up in maintaining tension throughout this book, upping the stakes with each scene, that now I've reached the end and Blane and Camryn have the opportunity to resolve their differences, my mind has blanked.
There is so much that needs to be tied up all nice and tidily in one neat book that my brain is refusing to co-operate.
So how to get around it?

Step 1: Write.
May sound simplistic but that's exactly what I have to do: write. Let the words flow. Do what I've done for the rest of the book. I can always go back and fix and layer later. Can't fix a blank page, huh?

Step 2: Focus on obvious resolution.
Work on one problem at a time. Don't stress about tying up the rest of the loose ends. Leave this for the first revision pass, where you can jot down the threads that need tying as you re-read the book and follow up at the end.

Step 3: Think happy thoughts.
My characters have waited all book for this, all 50 000 words to get their HEA. Don't cheat them. Make this scene a cracker so you leave your readers craving more (and rushing out to the bookstore when your next release hits the shelves!)

Step 4: The fantasy of romance.
We all love sigh-worthy romantic endings but if you've had a strong conflict throughout the book, resolving differences isn't always easy. Therefore, concentrate on making this final scene real. If all can be solved with a simple conversation, then the odds are your conflict throughout the book hasn't been strong enough. Hence my difficulty in getting Blane and Camryn on the same page here...a good thing with regards to conflict, a frustrating thing when I want this book finished!

Step 5: Finish at all costs.
I like my books to flow in one, cohesive block. I don't jump around from scene to scene (though many writers do.) I write the first draft in one go then go back and layer.
With COURTING CUPID, now that I'm a tad 'stuck', I want to go back and read the whole lot again before finishing the book, but I won't. Why?

I want the ending to be instinctive, like the rest of the book has been. I want it flow on from the last scene, and not be contrived from something I've written earlier. I want it to be a natural resolution of everything that has happened before.
Plenty of time to tweak later.

Hoping to put all this into practice and finish the book tonight. But don't worry, that's not the end of this series. Plenty more to come!

COVER TO COVER: Reality versus imagination

In this series I've already done a post on setting, so consider this an adjunct to it.

In COURTING CUPID, Blane takes a leave of absence from his high flying career to build his own house.

He wants a sea change. It's the first step in his dream.

I needed a small town about an hour or so drive from Melbourne(essential to tying in with city girl Camryn's conflict) and it had to be coastal.

My initial choice was Torquay, closely followed by Cape Schank, then Inverloch.

As fate would have it, I couldn't book accommodation at any of those places so I did a search on quickbeds and came up with Barwon Heads.

I knew Barwon Heads was down near Torquay somewhere so it would be perfect. (Little did I know how exactly right it would be!)

Now, I won't bore you with the details of a nightmare trip down there yesterday which took 4 hours instead of 1.5 (babies with eczema do NOT travel well!!!) or how totally drained I was when we finally arrived, but the place was perfect.

Stayed in a condo on a golf course but did the bulk of the research this morning in town...snapped many mental images, got a feel for what Camryn and Blane see, took a drive along the ocean coastal road, immersed myself in the ambience...perfect for the layering process I will commence in the next few weeks.

So my point behind all this?

When I was having accommodation hassles ages ago, I almost gave up and decided I could always create a fictitious coastal town. (After creating a fictitious Arabian desert country Adhara in THE DESERT PRINCE'S PROPOSAL out June 08, I knew how much fun it can be!)

While using creative licence is fabulous (just ask the great paranormal authors out there at the moment, or the talented authors creating wonderful sheikh and royalty books), in some cases nothing beats placing yourself in the setting of your book.

For me, the setting is interwoven with the conflict so I really needed to make it a focal point of the book, therefore walking a mile in my heroine/hero's shoes was crucial and very productive. I'm pleased to say that Barwon Heads proved a gold mine and my characters will be eternally grateful!

And the spooky bit?

After I booked the condo and checked out the town on line, I learned it was the place where they filmed the TV show...Seachange!

Had to be fate that Blane chose it for his very own seachange...

COVER TO COVER: Staying motivated

Marcy asked a great question in answer to my previous post on Motivation.

How do you keep motivated when you hit a section that is just not working for you?

This is when staying motivated is crucial to finishing the book.

We all know the feeling well: the first chapters fly, maybe the whole first half of the book, then we get hit by the sagging middle (and no, I'm not just talking about my post-baby belly!!)
So how do you stay on top of it?
How do you get past the roadblock to creativity?

For me, I focus on that last word: creativity.
I sit with a blank sheet of paper and pen, and let the ideas flow.

Where can my characters go from here?
What can up the stakes?
Why are they behaving this way?
What will propel them towards the happily-ever-after they deserve?
Who has the most to lose?
What events can conspire against them?
What events can bring them closer together and up the tension?

These are just a few ideas to get you thinking.

I always find pen and paper extremely useful for 'unblocking'.
When I use this method, I also tend to end up outlining the rest of the book, even if it's only a line or two for each chapter and you'd be amazed how much easier it is to finish the book with something solid to refer to when your mind (or characters!) start wandering again.

Hope this helps get you past those mini blocks :)

The great cover...up!

Take a look at the cover for PURCHASED FOR PLEASURE on your right.

In the UK version currently on the shelves, Navy SEAL Tyler James is gorgeous, with the broad (bare!) chest I credited him with.

And SEALs have short back and sides.

And Ty is 6 ft 4".

And in his 30s.

Now take a look at the Aussie cover for the same book(out here in December.)

Is it just me or do these two look like a couple of teenagers? As for that hair...

I'm not going to say anymore.

I'll leave the comments up to you!

(For Aussie readers, this is one of my favourite books of all time so don't let the cover fool you...It really is a very mature story!!)

New website launch!

We have lift-off!

A new website is born…yes, the Modern Extra authors have banded our sassy butts together to create a new group website and its fabulous!

Want to know about ‘a day in the life’ of an author?
Maybe a… ssshhh…a secret or two?
How about booklists, bios and hot guys?

You’ll find all that and more over at SENSATIONAL ROMANCE so check it out!

And stay tuned for a monster book giveaway…

By the way, in case you haven’t heard, from January 08 Modern Extra will become Modern Heat in the UK, and will be released monthly as Harlequin Presents in the US. Great news, huh?