Grinch or Griswold?

My husband and I have always avoided decorating for Christmas, except for a basic tree. Last year our son had grown old enough to complain. We promised him we would decorate next year, hoping he would forget. Guess what? Now it is next year, and my son forgets NOTHING.

Also, I'm having Christmas lunch for forty relatives. When I held this gathering two years ago, my only decorations were the ones my mother brought me from her house because she thought I was pitiful.

So this year we have broken down and decorated. A few fabulous samples:



The den. We actually bought the faux-grapevine reindeer four years ago when we were trying to sell our house in Atlanta and move back to Birmingham. The realtor could not believe we hadn't decorated for the holidays! Didn't we want to impress potential buyers? We were resentful when we shelled out forty bucks for reindeer and the house didn't sell until February.



The living room. This is precariously balanced.



The dining room. I am not sure about this. I picture my relatives at lunch craning their necks to talk to each other around the strange hanging balls. Also, the lowest one may drag through the sweet potatoes.



The kitchen. I am not sure about this either. In terms of festivity level, I think this may surpass "Season's Greetings" and veer toward "roller skating rink."

Do you celebrate a holiday during December? When it comes to decorating, are you a Grinch or a Griswold?

BTW: Remember my blog post two years ago entitled Seven uses for an exercise ball during the holidays? While unpacking Christmas decorations, I came across said exercise ball. I thought you might like to see what has happened to it and exactly how much use it has been getting.

(Post) Thanksgiving Top Five Things For Which I'm Thankful...

And yes, I know, I'm late to the party. I usually post on this blog around the 15th of the month, meaning that this month I have managed to fall fully two weeks behind. But given how crazed my schedule has been this semester (and yes, I will continue to measure out my life in semesters until I graduate from my MFA program this Jan; bear with me), two weeks is actually not too shabby.

Anyhoo, around this time of year I, like so many other people, do a lot of sentimental taking-of-stock, and I wanted to share the top five things for which I'm all grateful and stuff this holiday season:

1) My friends and family (which OF COURSE includes the little devil pictured above, Miss Bridget Jones, aka my constant partner in crime). As I've mentioned on this blog, my family will be increasing in size exponentially come next fall via the wedding that ate Manhattan, and I can't believe that I get to live out my own personal RoCom with the coolest, funniest, smartest guy around.

2) My health. I haven't been running or hitting the gym nearly as hard as I have in years past, but I'm dedicated to keeping fit. Sound body, sound mind, etc., etc...Top New Year's resolution? I'm going to be way more diligent about flossing. Swearsies.

3) Inspiration everywhere! Every time I read a book I adore, I fall in love with writing all over again. Most recently? THE ADORATION OF JENNA FOX, THE WAY HE LIVED, and PAPER TOWNS. Have you read them yet?

4) The opportunity to make a living doing exactly what I've always wanted to do. How cool is that?

5) Fans/readers/writers/cyber-buds like YOU.

Okay, you've heard my list. So what I wanna know now is what you're thankful for, these days! Post post post!
(But don't worry; if I don't hear from you, I'll be back here mid-month--right on time, this time. I promise!)

Oh--and happy holidays.

We've got the scoop!

Look for these new Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies coming soon! ♥

***COMING IN DECEMBER 2008***

Sea of Love
By Jamie Ponti

When it comes to love, sometimes it’s sink or swim

Like it’s not bad enough that Darby had to leave her longtime boyfriend and NYC life to move to Florida, where her family’s started running a hotel. Now Darby has to help with the hotel’s annual Valentine’s Day "Cupid’s Ball." Things start looking up when local beach hottie Zach takes Darcy surfing and shows her around. Beach life actually starts to grow on this fish out of water.

Then--surprise! A week before the ball, Darby’s NYC ex decides to pay her a visit. Darby’s knee-deep in guilt--because she realizes that she’s head over heels for Zach!

This Valentine’s Day, is Darby ready to dive into a new relationship with the guy who’s captured her heart?

***COMING IN FEBRUARY 2009***

Miss Match
By Wendy Toliver

Want to snag that certain someone? You need Miss Match!

Sasha Finnegan has always had a knack for matchmaking. It all started with Barbie and Ken and grew from there. Now she runs her own match-making business under the disguise of "Miss Match." So far, most of her clients have been strangers...but when Derek Urban hires Sasha to match him up with none other than her gorgeous and popular sister Maddie, she's not sure if she's up for the challenge. Especially since Sasha's crushing on Derek herself.

***COMING IN APRIL 2009***

Love on Cue
By Catherine Hapka

When you have to sing your heart out, it’s best to know how...

Maggie Tannery is a true theater girl--at least she is now. Back in middle school, she was so self-conscious her parents actually made her try out for her school play, but amazingly, Maggie discovered that when she's on stage her shyness disappears. Everyone knows that Maggie's practically a shoo-in for the lead in this year's production of Romeo & Juliet. But Maggie's got other things on her mind besides playing Juliet--she's hoping fellow drama club member Derek O'Malley will be her Romeo on and off-stage.

But Maggie gets a major case of stage fright when she finds out that her school has decided to stage a musical instead of a play--and Maggie can't sing! Knowing that Derek's still going for the lead male role, she keeps her eyes on the prize and decides to get some voice lessons from Nico Vasquez, a drama club member in charge of mixing background music for their performances. Things get complicated when Nico starts making backstage passes at Maggie. It looks like the music man of Maggie's dreams is not who she thinks it is...

***COMING IN JUNE 2009***

Drive Me Crazy
By Erin Downing

Three friends kick off the summer with an unforgettable road trip. Destination: true love!


Kate’s tote is packed and she’s ready for a road trip! She and her two best friends, Sierra and Alexis, are geared up for a week of fun and freedom on the road to their family lake houses in Love, Wisconsin. Best of all, when Kate reaches Love, she’ll be reunited with Lucas, with whom she shared a steamy end-of-summer kiss last year. Kate can’t wait to see Lucas again and pick things up exactly where they left off.

Then Kate gets some seriously bad news: Alexis’s sarcastic, condescending, hot-but-he-knows-it cousin is crashing the girls’ road trip. Adam bugs Kate in every possible way. Now Kate just wants to get the road trip over with so she can spend the summer in Lucas’s arms. But the road to Love is full of surprises…

Shopping list!

Here’s a complete list of the Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies published so far. They’re all still available in bookstores--if you don’t find them on the shelves, ask the store to order them for you. Happy reading! ♥

How Not to Spend Your Senior Year
By Cameron Dokey

Rule #1: If at all possible, don't pretend to be something you're not. Specifically, don't play dead. Trust me on this one. I did it, so I should know.
Jo O'Connor has spent her whole life moving around. When it comes to new schools, there's not a trick in the book about starting over that Jo doesn't know. But life is about to teach her a new trick: how to disappear entirely.

Rule #2: Always expect the Spanish Inquisition, no matter what anyone else does.

They have to move again. Now. This very night. Jo knows better than to argue. Her dad is the key witness in a major case against a big-time bad guy. But Jo just can't resist one last visit to the school where she's been so happy. All she wants is to say good-bye. That can't cause any problems, can it?

Rule #3: Never assume you can predict the future.

Now Jo's one last visit has landed her smack in the middle of a ghost story. Specifically, her own. By the time it's over, she'll have a whole new set of rules about what's real, what's make-believe, and -- most of all -- what's important.

Royally Jacked
By Niki Burnham

Valerie's life is pretty good. While she's not the most popular girl in school, she does have decent grades, great friends, and a potential boyfriend. All a girl could want.Then her mother announces that (1) she's gay, and (2) she's leaving Valerie's dad for her girlfriend. Not what Valerie envisioned for her future. And just when Valerie is getting over this bombshell, her father tells her he's gotten a new job as protocol chief for the royal family of some obscure European country.

Valerie's world has come unglued. She can either stay in Virginia with her mom and her über-organized, veggie-burger-eating girlfriend, or go with her dad, leaving everything she knows for some place she's never heard of. Valerie opts to go, and quickly discovers that it was a mistake -- until she meets the prince, and all bets are off!

Ripped at the Seams
By Nancy Krulik

There's a new fashion designer in town, and "Fashion Don'ts" have never been more in style!

Sami Granger is fresh off the bus from the Midwest when some crazy person in the bus terminal warns her that life in New York City won't be what she always dreamed of. But Sami's determined to make it in an industry that is notoriously hard to break in to. Nothing she ever learned in her small town can prepare her for her first job working for a hot-shot designer: He steals her designs!

Now the only place that will hire Sami is a trashy lingerie store that she's too embarrassed to tell her old-fashioned father about. Will a visit from her father land Sami on the catwalk, or out on the sidewalk?

South Beach Sizzle
By Suzanne Weyn and Diana Gonzalez

Is Enrique trying to win her over -- or just trying to win?

Road trip! Lula Cruz has her last summer before college all mapped out. She's checking out of NYC and checking in to the sizzling hot "SoBe" scene with her best friend, Jeff.

When their day jobs get to be a drag, they spice things up by entering a local band contest. And spicy it is! Turns out that the hottie Lula keeps running into is also her band's toughest competition! Enrique might seem like the perfect guy, but as things heat up Lula has to wonder: Can she trust her biggest rival with her heart?

 

Cupidity
By Caroline Goode

Dating in high school is like reality TV. It can get pretty surreal.

Between the strict social ladder (geeks' lockers left, jocks' to the right), and silly, pointless rules (no hand-holding, no kissing, no breathing!), high school is the single worst place to find a boyfriend. And Laura Sweeney is no exception. She hasn't had a date since...well, ever.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. So Laura is calling in the big guns. She needs guidance. A proven "get the guy" strategy.

Luckily she knows exactly the expert to call. He's a matchmaking mastermind who actually has the bow and arrow to prove it. Let's just call him...Cupid.

Spin Control
By Niki Burnham

Valerie Winslow never thought life in the tiny country of Schwerinborg could be so great.

But then she never thought she would be dating the prince of Schwerinborg either! Georg, a real prince, is also her first real boyfriend.

And then everything falls apart. Georg's decided they need to cool off for a while and her dad's sending her back to Virginia to visit her mom.

Valerie's bummed -- until she decides to go out with her old crush, David Anderson. David may not be a prince, but maybe he'll take her mind off of Georg -- or will he?

 

She’s Got the Beat
By Nancy Krulik

SHE BANGS! SHE BANGS!

Miranda was the quiet type...until she moved to Austin. Home of the hippest college rock bands, Austin, Texas, is a scene. And Miranda is dying to break out of her small-town shell. So she decides to do something totally un-Miranda: learn to play the drums.

When crashing the cymbals, the girl's a wild child! Plus there's a perk to her new gig: a cute bass player. Unfortunately Mr. Bass Man isn't exactly looking for love. Can this rocker chick change his tune? Or does finding her own rhythm mean sacrificing true love?




30 Guys in 30 Days
By Micol Ostow

Practice makes not-quite-perfect

Claudia Clarkson just cut the cord from her high school love-you-forever boyfriend. Sure, she misses Drew. But with so many eligibles on her new college campus, why study ancient history?

Problem is, Claudia's lived in la-la-loveland for so long that she's completely forgotten how to meet boys -- and how to flirt.

Then her roommate proposes a solution: Meet one new guy every day for thirty days. Consider it "target practice" for when Mr. Perfect comes along. Claudia's game, but she definetely hasn't got game. In fact, Flirting 101 could be her toughest course to pass...

Animal Attraction
By Jamie Ponti

The Season of (No?) Love

Jane's life is one giant Conspiracy, with the whole world plotting to keep any chance of romance far, far away. Her social history (17 years, 0 boyfriends) is proof positive of that. But this summer, she's determined to crank it up.

Jane's snagged a gig at the local theme park as part of the star attraction -- the Mermaid Show. But then the Conspiracy strikes, and she ends up starstruck in a furry beaver costume all day long. Hard to breathe, let alone flirt....Can Jane figure a way out of the beaver suit and into the arms of her summer love?

A Novel Idea
By Aimee Friedman

Required reading has never been so hot.

Once upon a time there was a Brooklyn hipster named Norah. Unlucky in love, and short on extracurriculars for her college apps, Norah decided to start a book group. She knew the perfect locale -- a local indie bookstore with a crush-worthy cutie manning the soy latte counter.

When the first meeting arrives, Norah gets a page-turning surprise. The attendees may be bookish, but there are also a few hotties! Most noteworthy: sweet, literary James. He's like a modern Jane Austen hero.... Only, how to snag him?

Ever the romantic heroine, Norah devises a secret plan. And if it works, Norah may just find her "Happily Ever After" love story. The End.

Scary Beautiful
By Niki Burnham

Chloe Rand's life is great.

She has a serious boyfriend, she's about to start her junior year of high school, and she has a tight group of girlfriends. But when her boyfriend moves across the country and decides the long-distance-relationship thing just isn't for him, Chloe's devastated. Worse, she soon learns that when you're the prettiest girl in school and totally unattached, everyone starts treating you differently. Girls don't trust you, guys aren't sure what to make of you, and everyone assumes you're either spoiled, dumb, or both.

Chloe realizes that she's been living the last few years in a bubble and decides to do something about it. But when she falls for Billy, a total geek, will it make her situation better...or worse?

Getting to Third Date
By Kelly McClymer

Could a forgotten cutie be Katelyn's newest catch?

Katelyn Spears is a firm believer in the two-date rule. First dates are so awkward; every guy deserves a second chance. But a third? Not unless he's got serious Romeo potential.

Enter Tyler. Tyler thinks Katelyn's rule is too harsh. He dares her to go back through her Little Pink Book and grant a third date to all the two-date duds. Oh, and she should report back to the whole school via her newspaper column.

Standing by her policy (and determined to prove Tyler wrong), Katelyn makes a few phone calls. But will any of her old flames rekindle a romance?

Dancing Queen
By Erin Downing

Who needs Prince Charming if you've got a rock star?

It's official. Olivia is a superfreak. Sure, she may have landed the hottest internship at an übercool TV music station. And yes, she's chilling with A-listers in London all summer. But when she meets her very first pop star, she gets caught in a revolving glass door and falls smack down on her bum -- all in one quick motion.

Luckily, Rocker Boy thinks Liv's quirks are adorable. He takes her clubbing at the hippest spots! Liv may be clumsy on solid ground, but on the dance floor she sparkles. The summer's just begun and she's already captured the spotlight -- and a celeb's heart, too. Now if only she was sure he's the right guy...

 

Major Crush
By Jennifer Echols

Marching to the beat of a different drum...

Tired of the beauty-pageant circuit, Virginia Sauter tosses her tiara, pierces her nose, and auditions for the most unlikely of roles -- drum major of the high school marching band.

Virginia wins, but is forced to share the title with Drew, whose family has held the position for generations. Sure, Drew is hot, but because of his superior attitude, he and Virginia are constantly arguing. That is, until they share more than just their half-time salute...

But as the drum major's heated competition turns to sizzling romance, explosive rumors threaten everything -- including the band's success. Love seemed to be a sure hit, but Virginia and Drew may be marching straight into disaster.

Do-Over
By Niki Burnham

When it comes to love, how many chances do you get?

Girl meets prince. Girl loses prince. Girl gets prince back -- right? Well, that's what Valerie is hoping. She's back in Schwerinborg after spending some time with her mother in the good ol' US of A, and hopes that sparks are still flying between her and Georg. At first it looks like things are going great, until a ski trip to the Alps has Val and Georg's romance hitting some moguls. Could Val's love life be heading for a face-plant?





Love Undercover
by Johanna Edwards

True love needs no disguise.

Kaitlyn Nichols craves a little mystery and mayhem in her life. Having a top-secret agent for a father should do the trick, but unfortunately Dad is no 007, and danger is nowhere on the horizon.

But all that changes when Mr. Nichols brings home Blaine, a seventeen-year-old hottie who’s about to enter the Witness Protection Program. Suddenly Kaitlyn’s in the perilous position of protecting the cutest guy she’s ever met!

When Dad enrolls Blaine in her high school, it’s up to Kait to detect the girls who want him... and the guys who want to kill him. Meanwhile, Kait’s about to discover that there’s one thing she can’t protect--her heart...

Prom Crashers
By Erin Downing

Will you go to the proms with me?

It was love at first sight for Emily and Ethan. But then Em lost his number, and with it, lost all hope of finding a real boyfriend before the end of senior year. All she knows about Ethan is his first name, that he has a super-cute smile, and the fact that he’s going to a prom this month. Which high school? That’s anyone’s guess...

Em enlists the help of her three best friends, who quickly score some formalwear and hail a limo. Together, Emily, Charlie, Max, and Sid vow to find Ethan, to find a cure for senioritis, and most importantly, to find true love--one hilarious prom night at a time.


Gettin' Lucky
By Micol Ostow

Looking for love in Las Vegas...

Cass Parker is a big believer in luck, fate, and all things karmic. So she’s devastated when she walks in on her supposed best friend macking with Jesse, the guy she’s in total "like" with. Talk about bad karma. Vegas is just full of cheaters, she concludes, even the locals.

But Cass refuses to sulk. She finds new friends, and even gets invited to join their weekly poker night--totally casual and not-for-profit, of course. They seem pretty chill, and Cass definitely needs to get out more. So after consulting her horoscope, she gets in the game.

But when Jesse turns up for a final showdown, it turns out that Cass isn’t so good at bluffing--not when it comes to matters of the heart...

The Boys Next Door
by Jennifer Echols

Cute, available, and one cabin over.

Lori lives for summertime at her family's lake house. She spends all season wakeboarding, swimming, and hanging with her friends--including the two hotties in the cabin next door. With the Vader brothers, Lori's always been one of the guys.

But while Lori and the "baby" brother, Adam, are inseparable friends, she can't deny a secret crush on Sean, the older Vader boy. This year Sean's been paying Lori a lot of attention, and not in a brotherly way.

But just as Lori decides to prove to Sean she's girlfriend material, she realizes that her role as girl friend to Adam may be even more important. And by trying so hard for the perfect summer romance, she could be going way overboard...

In the Stars
By Stacia Deutsch & Rhody Cohon

Which do you follow: your head or your heart?

When Sylvie loses the diamond from her late mother’s ring, her best friend Cherise insists it’s a sign that love is about to enter Sylvie’s life. Yeah, right. Sylvie doesn’t believe in signs--she only star gazes through her telescope. But she also knows Cherise won’t drop it, so to humor her Sylvie agrees to date the next boy who asks.Sure enough, a new guy in school appears and Sylvie’s the object of his affection. Maybe Cherise was right after all? But when the sparks don’t fly and Cherise thinks she’s just scared, Sylvie ends up confiding in an old friend. Could finding the perfect guy be as rare as catching a shooting star?

 

Crush du Jour
By Micol Ostow

When a girl bites off more than she can chew...

Laine barely has enough time for herself, much less for romance. But she's always hungry for more projects--so she decides to start up a cooking class at her local community center. As it turns out, Seth, the guy co-teaching the class with her, is not just cute, but downright delicious!

When Seth offers her a waitress job at his family's restaurant, Hype, Laine can't resist. Just as Seth finally warms up to Laine, Laine finds out that Callie, another waitress at Hype, is cooking up a plan to steal Seth for herself. But tensions really reach their boiling point when Laine's restaurant critic mother writes a scathing review--of Hype! Will Laine have to put love on the back burner again?

The Secret Life of a Teenage Siren
By Wendy Toliver

Geeky to gorgeous in sixty seconds...

Roxy’s about to turn sixteen, but life isn’t so sweet. As a band geek, Roxy can barely get the cute guys to notice her, much less go out with her. Then, on her birthday, Roxy is transformed into a siren: seductively beautiful with the power to control all men. She though sirens were an ancient myth, but suddenly Roxy can get any guy she wants with just a few notes on her flute.

There are only two rules: don’t tell anyone about being a siren, and don’t fall in love. When she starts dating Zach, the guy everybody’s crushing on, Roxy realizes she could get used to this siren thing...but how can she keep herself from falling in love?

Love, Hollywood Style
By P. J. Ruditis

True love doesn't always follow a script...

Tracy Vance’s love life is a total flop. Sure, she has a cool job as a tour guide at a real Hollywood movie studio, but when it comes to her personal life, she can barely get her crush, Connor, to notice her.

Then Tracy gets a brilliant idea: Why not win Connor’s heart with some help from the big screen? Taking her cues from her favorite chick flicks, Tracy puts "Operation Ro Com" into action, and it actuallyseems to work!

But Tracy soon realizes that getting the leading man isn’t the same as keeping him. Maybe things never work out like they do in the movies--or do they?

Something Borrowed
By Catherine Hapka

She’s ready to catch the bouquet, not steal the guy!

When Ava gets dumped by her boyfriend, she’s pretty upset. He wasn’t the love of her life of anything, but with her sister’s wedding--a.k.a. the social event of the season--just two weeks away, Ava’s got to save face by finding someone cute and fun to bring as her date.

With the clock ticking and no dates in sight, Ava asks her best friend if she can "borrow" her boyfriend, Jason, for the night. Ava’s never been a big Jason fan, but he’ll look great in a tux and at least she’ll have someone to dance with. But it doesn’t take long for Ava to realize she’s got him all wrong...

What do you do when Mr. Right is wrapped up in a package that belongs to your best friend?

Party Games
By Whitney Lyles

If only life were one big party...

Sara would be looking forward to her sixteenth birthday, but thanks to her mom’s party planning business, she’s way too wrapped up with someone else’s: spoiled socialite Dakota London‘s. Sara would much rather spend her summer hanging out with Ian, an up-and-coming guitar player and her new crush. But Sara is so busy catering to Dakota’s every wacky whim, she’s got no time to spend with him.

And then, the icing on the cake: Dakota wants Ian to be her date for the big bash! Sara can’t believe the favor she’s been asked, especially because she thinks she’s fallen for Ian. Will this birthday end up more bitter than sweet?

 

Puppy Love
By Nancy Krulik

Romance can be ruff...

Alana loves her dog-walking job, but it blows her mind to see how pampered these pooches are. Her newest clients actually feed steak to their prized poodle and treat her to massages at a doggie spa! Alana can’t make heads or tails of why anyone would do this--or why she seems to be confiding her frustrations in hunky handyman Connor, and not her own boyfriend, Sammy.

When Sammy starts keeping an awfully tight leash on her, Alana wonders whether Connor might be a better match. But Alana's puppy love comes to a screeching halt when she learns that Connor isn’t who she thought he was. Is Alana barking up the wrong tree with him, too?

The Twelve Dates of Christmas
By Catherine Hapka

Lexi’s feeling a little holidazed this winter...

Lexi Michaels has been with her boyfriend of four years, Cameron Kehoe, way too long. Sure, he's a nice guy, but lately she's felt like there's a spark missing between them. And his plan of staying close to their Christmas-obsessed town of Claus Lake, Wisconsin to attend culinary school just don't mesh with Lexi's big-city dreams. She comes up with the perfect plan--get Cameron to fall for another girl, and she'd be free--guilt-free, too.

But on a chilly December morning, when Lexi sees Cameron looking awfully cozy with new girl Jaylene, she realizes that she's made the stupidest mistake of her life. Will one of Lexi's many schemes get her all she really wants for Christmas--her boyfriend back?

Look how cute!

You can download a totally adorable Simon Pulse Ro-Coms screensaver! Just click on the picture of my cat watching it go. A window will pop up that asks you where you want to save the screensaver on your computer.




Bess pushed this idea through, and Matt made the screensaver for us. All together now: THANK YOU BESS AND MATT!

Dry Erase Board Confessions

Years ago when I worked at Seventeen, a dry erase board hung high in the office's main area was a source of many shenanigans (and birthday shout-outs). One day I invited the edit staff--via said dry erase board--to list their favorite corny songs of all time. Mine was "Sussudio" by Phil Collins. The cheesy tune reminded me of my childhood best friend's birthday party at a roller skating rink. (Back story: It was a huuge deal that I was allowed to go to said party--my very first outing sans overprotective family tagging along. My bff Monica was transferring schools, and I was cut up about it, so my mom let me go.) "Sussudio" played on the car ride to the rink, and it was blast through the speakers at the rink. I was a kick-butt roller skater and I remember skate-dancing to the song, feeling totally liberated.

Skating trips down memory lane aside, "Sussudio" wasn't the "Favorite Corny Song" list's best entry on the dry erase board. Another editor beat everyone hands down with his fave--Neil Diamond's "Coming to America." ("To-DAY!")

I've been thinking a lot about that dry erase board recently. I have a shameful secret I'd like to confess to it. You'll never believe this, but I just watched "Mean Girls" for the first time. Sure, I'd seen clips of the movie before, but I never watched it in its entirety until last week. And I call myself a writer who's hip to the teen scene? [sulk]

New dry erase board question: "What popular boat did you miss?" No judgment here. Trust me, I can relate. After moving back to the States from London, I felt lost when people threw their hands in the air to songs I'd never heard before. I had a lot of catching up to do.

So, chime in with your confessions. Haven't read the Twilight series and all the Harry Potter books? Not yet heard Lil' Wayne's music? Never seen "Bring It On!" or watched a full episode of "Grey's Anatomy?" Tell me your startling omission. Misery wants company!

Book Clubs: A Maiden Voyage

Though The Secret Life of a Teenage Siren is soon approaching its one year anniversary, last night was my first guest author appearance at a ladies' book club meeting. I have to admit I was a tad nervous. Would I spend the evening stuffed in a corner, listening mutely to their high intensity debates about my book? What if they hated it? And while I feel very comfortable presenting to teenagers at schools and other writers at conferences, I wasn't sure what to expect with a group of adult readers.


I'm glad to report it was a major success. I got to meet new people and eat a variety of delicious foods, all while answering questions about how I managed to become a published author, how I got the idea of writing about a modern-day teenaged Siren, and how I balance my writing with raising three little boys. The best part was getting to hear what they liked most about the story.

I know some authors don't "do" book clubs, but I'm officially going on the record saying I had a marvelous time and I hope another book club invites me to come in the near future. (That's me, in the middle of the front row.)

NaNo No

I've spent the last couple weeks refusing to feel guilty about NOT doing NaNoWriMo. The thing is, I think I'm going to participate every year. But every year, I'm in the middle of a project when it rolls around, so I'm not exactly at a good point to start an all-new project and barrel through.

On the bright side, I've made great progress in the last couple weeks on my in-the-middle-of project. (I admit, I was election-obsessed for the first week of the month, but who wasn't?) So even though I'm not doing NaNoWriMo this year, I'm having a great writing month.

Here's the thing with writing: as long as you're making forward progress, you're doing well. So if you're participating in NaNoWriMo and are starting to think you aren't going to get all 50,000 words done by the end of the month, don't sweat it. Just keep going. You'll still end up with a book if you just stick with it.

(And for a lesson in perseverance, take a clue from this guy, who started his project in 1979!)

Speaking of NaNo...

We're nine days into NaNoWriMo and I'm less than a day's word count off the schedule. I'm very proud of myself! It's a great feeling to have 50 pages of a manuscript after a little over a week of work. The only problem is that NaNo asks you to write a 50,000-word novel in a month, whereas the sort of book I'm writing needs to be 100,000. So even if everything goes according to plan and I'm declared a NaNo winner on November 30, I'll have another month of NaNo-esque work ahead of me before this book is finished.

The book I'm writing isn't a Simon Pulse Ro-Com. I just turned one in, and I write a lot faster than YA publishers want to put out my books. So this one's a paranormal romance for adults. However, this idea did start life as a Simon Pulse Ro-Com. In 2006, after MAJOR CRUSH came out, I needed to write another ro-com. I pitched this idea to my editor, who said she liked it but I couldn't write it because it was set in Las Vegas. Micol's GETTIN' LUCKY was set in Las Vegas, and her book would come out only two months before whatever I wrote next.

Of course, none of this was Micol's fault, so I never thought a single unkind or jealous thought about her. I played with what I had. I tried setting the book in New Orleans or Savannah or Key West. And when none of that worked, I whined. I told my editor that Las Vegas is very popular right now and it was perfectly okay to have two Las Vegas ro-coms back to back. She told me to stop whining and combine the plot of a second ro-com I'd pitched to her with the setting of a third. Thus THE BOYS NEXT DOOR was born.

I've always loved the idea for my Las Vegas book, though, and I'm glad I'm finally getting the chance to explore it. Some lessons about writing we can draw from this experience:

Lesson #4,329,160: IT'S NOT MICOL'S FAULT.
Lesson #4,329,161: WHINING DOESN'T WORK AS WELL AS YOU WOULD LIKE.
Lesson #4,329,162: NEVER THROW ANYTHING AWAY--IT MIGHT COME IN HANDY LATER.

Is it just my imagination or is NaNo all over the blogosphere this time around? Do you have friends who've practically disappeared this month to work on their novels, or are you NaNoing yourself? How are you doing?

I Haz NaNo Brain

For those who haven't heard of it, NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. It was dreamed up to encourage all those people who want to write a novel "some day" to step up and write it. Lots of people do.

I've participated in NaNo several times, won some, lost some, but always came away with more knowledge about myself and my writing. (You win NaNo by writing 50,000 words on your novel -- good, bad, or incoherent).

My SALEM WITCH TRYOUTS novel was drafted in a NaNo. I had a lot of fun that NaNo.

This NaNo isn't going quite as well. I'm working on my newest book right now. I don't like to say much, so as not to jinx it, but I can drop a few hints... tornadoes, high school, a girl who doesn't like to be touched and a boy who just wants to be left alone. Yeah, probably doesn't tell you much, does it? You'll just have to read it one day.

I got a late start because of other work I had to finish to clear off my desktop. But I expect to be up to speed by Wednesday. (Up to speed means have the appropriate word count suitable for being 12 days in ... which would be 20,000 words...yipes!!...thankfully, they do not have to be coherent).

What I like most about NaNo is that it frees me from writing the perfect sentence/action/scene. Instead, I just go where the characters lead me. After writing fifteen novels, I know I can handle revising and redrafting, so I let myself play with the NaNo draft. That playing has always rewarded me with a little something-something in terms of my writing, even in the times I didn't win NaNo. In SALEM, I freed my inner comedian for the first time, which astonished even me!

This time (for another hint) I'm finding that I'm connected with the emotions of first crushes. I guess you could say I'm freeing my inner heartache. Not quite as much fun as my inner comedian. It has been a long time since my first crush...but that's a subject for next month. Right now I have to go write...I have a date to go break someone's heart this afternoon -- fictionally, of course).

Kelly

Corn Crib

Since it's National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), and writing a novel really scares a lot of people, I figured I could use this space to share something I'm afraid of. It's not writing. My recent harrowing experience took place at an apple picking place (see photo reference A).

A:


While at this apple orchard, I followed my little girl into something called a "Corn Crib", which is a structure whose floors are made of 1mm-thick plywood (under-exaggeration) and walls were straw (or something like that). There were approximately three thousand (major exaggeration) little people between the ages of one and nine running around inside this three-story human-sized cage. The Corn Crib had a single set of stairs that led up to a second level, then another set of stairs (really, more of a ladder) leading from the second to the third level. See photo reference B for a visual of the Corn Crib.

B:


Once you went up the stairs to the top level, I discovered, you could never get down again. Because there was a constant stream of small people storming up the ladder and without getting past them, there was no way to get back to solid ground. The Corn Crib was shaking and shuddering in the wind, tossing me from straw-wall to straw-wall (in reality, it was maybe swaying 1/2 an inch or so). Here's me at the top of the Crib (photo reference C).

C:


Yes, I was freaked out. I was one hundred feet above solid ground (okay, ten feet), held up by only a few scraps of particle board. Freaked out by a Corn Crib.

What scares you?

Later,
E.

Let's hear it for the teachers!

 I have been doing an unusual amount of school and bookstore visits these days.   (Which of course means I've been doing an unusually small amount of writing, but don't tell the editors, okay?)  I like doing the visits because it means I get to connect with the readers, and hear what they like and don't like about the books.  (And no one tells you what they don't like quite like kids do!) But last week I visited a Barnes and Noble in my old hometown of Cherry Hill, NJ, and spent the evening being the guest speaker at an Educator's Reception.  What an interesting night!

First of all, let me say that it is humbling being in a room of teachers.  These are the folks in the trenches, working with kids every day. Teachers have it hard these days.  The whole No Child Left Behind thing, with its endless tests, has made it hard for the teachers to impart any real knowledge. They have to teach for the tests, and that makes it hard to keep the learning fun.  And yet, they keep on trying, searching for new ways to reach students, particularly those who don't ordinarily want to read.  Teachers really deserve to be making a whole lot more than they do.  What's up with a world where a single baseball player earns more than a whole school system's worth of teachers, anyway?

My job at the Barnes and Noble that night was to explain to these teachers how they could use my books in their classrooms.  That was a tough one for me, since I don't exactly write "message books."  My stories have very few morals at the end. I just want kids to learn to read for the fun of it.  So I keep the humor flowing, throw in a few personality and romance quizzes (in the How I Survived Middle School series) and try to make the characters as fresh and realistic as I can.  And that's what I told the teachers.  I just want kids to feel like the characters in the books are people they know, and want to keep in touch with.  For some reason, the teachers seemed to feel those were the kinds of the books kids needed these days.  Like all the rocom writers who blog on this site, they wanted kids to know that reading was something that could be fun, not just something you had to get really good at for the  statewide tests.

So, while you are sitting there at your computers, wondering if anyone really appreciates the fact that you can give a kid a good laugh, or a good cry, or an afternoon where she feels a little less lonely, know that the teachers do appreciate what you do.  And take a little time to appreciate them, too.  Okay?

xxoo

N

Boo!

Sometimes I think my brother is a genius. On his Facebook profile, under interests, he lists "Halloween."
Maybe it's an Ostow thing.
My mother grew up with thirteen brothers and sisters (total, not each--BUT STILL!), and learned very very very quickly how to bury herself in her schoolwork while distractions raged in the background. It's a habit that stuck, and while *I* was growing up and she was in grad school, I'd often wander into the den to find her finishing up her schoolwork while the tv flickered silently in the background.
Her backdrop of choice? Horror movies.
I was raised against images of old 50's monster movies and 70's slasher films, and when my mother took me to the local library, I eschewed the children's room (Sweet Valley High notwithstanding) for Stephen King.
While most of the stuff I write is cheerful and girlie, I definitely have a dark side. Whenever N goes out of town, I curl up with a glass of wine, the doggie, and a horror movie. And like my brother, Halloween is my favorite time of year.
This year, we're hosting our annual bash, and I've got my costume ready--zombie bride (perfect for someone recently engaged, no?). And in the spirit of the spookiest season, here's a list of creepy books I've been reading lately that I totally recommend. They are screamingly good:

1) BLISS, Lauren Myracle: Bliss moves from a hippie commune to a wealthy suburb and quickly discovers that evil spirits haunt her idyllic private school.
2) RHYMES WITH WITCHES, Lauren Myracle: the dark underside of popularity.
3) BOY HEAVEN, Laura Kasischke: three girls ditch cheer camp for the day with dark consequences
4) GENERATION DEAD, Daniel Waters: the arrival of a zombie population divides a small-town high school community.
5) ZOMBIE BLONDES, Brian James: the truth about the cheerleading team.

Hope that list helps to get you in the holiday spirit. And happy reading!

Lions & Tigers & Public Speaking...Oh My!

In the spooky spirit of Halloween, I thought I’d share my terrifying tale.

Okay, so thrillers like “Sixth Sense” and “The Others” creep me out. And there’s a 99% chance I’ll get super startled if you sneak up behind me and shout, “Boo!” But what really scares the bejeezus out of me is public speaking. I admit it, I get terrified. I mean, Shaggy-and-Scooby scared. It’s not even fun fright like a Ouija board séance. There’s nothing amusing about butterflies with tin wings flapping around in your tummy! (Here I am speaking at a high school a few months ago--cue eerie "door creak" or "cat screeching" sound effect.)

I’ve had this fear issue for as long as I can remember. Getting picked to read aloud in the 5th grade? Gulp. Holding the floor in weekly ideas meetings at my old magazine editing job? Redrum! But over the years, I’ve found ways to work around my condition. For example, back in 2004, a few magazine writers and I were invited to read our contributed essays (from “Transculturalism”) at Barnes & Nobles in Manhattan. I asked Claude the editor if I can be the first reader. Defense #1 in this fright fight: Go first to get it over with, otherwise the torture of the wait could be spine-tingling. Thankfully, he obliged.

And then there’s always inspiration from stage fright role model Beyonce. To combat her notorious nerves, the fierce entertainer becomes “Sasha,” the fearless alter ego. Nice strategy—but I’m more likely to take a page from author Alison Larkin’s book. Alison is both a writer (of novel “The English American”) and a performance artist (She had a one-woman show!), so her author appearances are like mini performances. Oddly enough, I loove performing. I've been in local theater musicals, and I used to be a dance troupe member. So, I’ve patterned my talks after Alison. This has worked for me. One surprising result is that people have told me how fun and funny I am in front of groups/audiences.

But my real breakthrough came a few years ago when I was asked to speak at my cousin Malou's wedding. Throughout the church ceremony, I couldn’t concentrate on anything but my nerves. When it was time to stand before the congregation and read the selected passage, that familiar anxiety attack took hold—shortness of breath, quivering voice, dry mouth. The fear was rapidly escalating until I took one look at the bride and groom. They were kneeling side by side, and seemed to me to be listening with their hearts. That’s when I had the sobering thought that instantly halted the anxiety attack: This isn’t about me. I’m just the messenger and mouthpiece. The message is what’s important.

Today I remember that moment every time I face a group. Sure, I still go into every talk feeling like an extra in “The Invasion of the Nerve Snatchers” or something. But I stay mindful of the important fact that I'm there to connect with readers.

That thought alone is strong enough to turn any "Boo!" into "Boo-yah!"

Leavin' the Laptop Behind!

As promised, Korea pics! I left the laptop behind for the first time ever, but apparently I did not leave the guilt. I THOUGHT I had, since I made a conscious decision to make the Korea trip a total writing vacation. But then, as I was window shopping in Insadong, Seoul, I saw this:



I'm sure it says "Starbucks", but the instant I saw it, a little voice in my head translated it to, "Why are you shopping when you should be writing? In here? With a venti nonfat latte nearby and oodles of words flying onto the page?"

But since I refuse to write by hand (it's completely illegible, even to me), and the laptop was a few thousand miles away, I marched right down the street and plunked down some Korean Won for a funky green pot to put on my desk. Then the next day, I visited the DMZ, which I highly recommend doing if you're ever in South Korea. It is the ultimate way to NOT think about whatever writing/cleaning/other project you should be doing.

Other trip highlights: Visiting three different Buddhist temples (one at 4 am so I could be there when the monks rang the morning bells), three different palaces, and two local markets (mostly so I could check out the food, which is sold by friendly people like this):



The highlight of the trip, however, was completely unexpected. While walking in Namdaemun Market, I was approached by a group of teenage boys who begged me to take a picture with them. So I did!



Yep, I'm the blonde one. Also, the only one not wearing Converse. Go figure!

And now for something completely different.

You can't judge a book by its cover, but you can make an educated guess. You can tell by looking at the cover of Going Too Far, my new novel coming from MTV Books in March, that it's a lot darker than my Simon Pulse Romantic Comedies. If you're only interested in reading my ro-coms, you're in luck--The Ex-Games will be published by Simon Pulse about a year from now. But I hope you'll follow me over to the dark side just for a visit. Every once in a while I like to shake up my writing by trying something new.

And that's why I'm participating in National Novel Writing Month during November. You can participate too by signing up at NaNoWriMo.org. It's free--all you need is an e-mail address. If you're under 13, there's a children's division where you can set your own writing goals for the month. If you're an adult, you must pledge to write a 50,000-word novel in November. (To put this in perspective, Major Crush is about 55,000 words, and The Boys Next Door is about 62,000.) If you're between 13 and 17, you can choose whether to be a child or an adult (for once!).

Some people participating in NaNoWriMo have actually had their novels published. Recently I read a wonderful book called No Plot? No Problem! A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days by Chris Baty, the founder of NaNoWriMo. I was surprised to find a testimonial by one of my favorite writers of adult romantic comedy, Lani Diane Rich. She says she wrote her first book during NaNoWriMo and sold it to a major publishing house! If I recall correctly, this is the same book that won the highest award for a romance novel, the Rita (which our own Niki Burnham has also won!), and Lani wrote the entire thing on Post-It notes. Hey, whatever works.

Most people writing a novel for the first time won't get it published. But they will gain the satisfaction of having written a novel. It's one thing to take creative writing classes and write short stories and poetry and talk about writing a lot. It's quite another thing to sit down and write this tome, and a lot of us will never do it unless we're given a little push. My push was taking a creative writing class in which we had to write part of a novel, and after the class was over, I just kept going. This could be your push.

For those of us who have written novels before, NaNoWriMo can be an opportunity to clear our minds of our usual plot patterns and write something completely different. This worked for my friend Christy Reece. She'd written novels before, but she hadn't gotten one published. Then she wrote a novel very quickly--not for NaNoWriMo but for an even shorter, two-week program--and was surprised to come up with an adult romantic suspense novel, a genre she hadn't considered writing before. That novel and its two sequels will be published by Ballantine next spring.

I hope you'll give NaNoWriMo it a try. If you finish a novel in November, (1) congratulations!!! and (2) please don't send it to Simon Pulse on December 1! Mike the Romantic Comedies Czar will come find me! Just because you can write a novel in a month does not mean that you can write a good novel in a month. NaNoWriMo works because you have to turn off your internal editor, the nagging voice telling you that your writing isn't good enough and you should just give up now--or that you should keep rewriting the first paragraph over and over until it is perfect and then move on to the second paragraph five years from now. You simply can't write a novel in a month with your internal editor on because you don't have time. You turn the editor off and let the words flow, and that's what allows you to finally get the novel out, or to free yourself from your usual rut. BUT, it's very important that when you've finished your novel, you turn your internal editor back ON and let her run rampant across your manuscript with her red pen and her fairy-dust of self-doubt. That's the only way to shape these 50,000 words into something worth showing to other people. And if you can survive writing a novel in a month, you can definitely survive your own internal editor.

Are you with me? Sign up and then feel free to add me as a writing buddy. My user name is "jenniferechols." My critique partners Catherine Chant and Victoria Dahl are also participating, so I look forward to a fun-filled month of moral support and, you know, taunting.

Tell us about your writing experience. Have you finished a novel? Do you want to? Are you participating in NaNoWriMo? Leave a comment here before October 17 and you're automatically registered to win a copy of No Plot? No Problem!

Vacation ... All I Ever Wanted

I just had a nearly unprecedented experience. I went on vacation. An actual lock-up-the-house, head-out-of-town-for-more-than-a-weekend, leave-the-computer-behind vacation.

Did you notice the “leave the computer behind” part? I know!

When your family lives all the way across the country, you tend to spend your free time going to the exotic destination known as home. And though I grew up in a historical tourist destination, I lived there for the first twenty-one years of my life. It’s not like I get some kick out of visiting the Liberty Bell for the umpteenth time. Seriously. There’s a bell. It’s got a crack. Wheee! So previous "vacations" always turned into working vacations in what I fondly refer to as the East Coast Office.

For my first actual vacation in forever I started out in Seattle where I visited the birthplace of a true American institution: Starbucks. For some writers, going to the very first Starbucks is like visiting the motherland. Sad, I know. But oddly thrilling. I also checked out the coolest independent bookstore you ever did see. The Elliot Bay Book Company has more nooks and crannies to explore than a Thomas’ English Muffin (not that I go around exploring breakfast pastry, but you know what I mean). But the highlight of the trip was a tour of the Seattle underground. I’ve wanted to do that ever since I saw the episode of Scooby Doo where those meddling kids unmasked the scary red demon terrorizing the city. There were no demons in the underground, but the comic tour guides made up for the lack of costumed villainy.

From Seattle I went further north to Vancouver and Victoria. There were many touristy highlights in Canada, but my trip will be remembered mainly for one thing. As I’m sure the other writers here will attest, there’s nothing cooler than seeing your book in your local bookstore. You’ve been going there for years, dreaming of the day your own work would be on the shelves. Suddenly, it’s there! I assume it’s kind of like singers hearing their songs on their favorite radio station.

Do you know what’s almost as cool? Seeing your book on the shelf at a bookstore in a foreign country. (If it hasn't already been clear, Canada is about as foreign as I've traveled, but someday I hope to cross an ocean.) The Chapters bookstore in downtown Vancouver has a very nice representation of the Romantic Comedies. All of them front-faced! (Before I even got there! I had nothing to do with it … though I would have, had they not already been that way.)

But now that I’m back on my computer I should really get to work.

Have to make some money if I ever want to cross that ocean.