I was crushed to hear that author Tess Gerritsen has decided to stop blogging for a while. As you can tell from the short list on my sidebar, hers is a blog I gladly recommend to my readers. After visiting it on a weekly-or-so basis for a couple of years (at least until recently, when my world went south), I became convinced that she is a genuinely wonderful person – intelligent, sensitive, compassionate, talented, generous, charming and honest. And pretty funny too.

Her blog posts usually served several functions: to give a glimpse of her as a person and as a writer; to chronicle the evolution of her current work in progress, from genesis to title to marketing plan; and to allow us an inside view of the publishing biz. Anyone who is an aspiring author, or a published but struggling one, or even a bestselling author like Tess, could find camaraderie, advice, and a kindred spirit. And readers could also enjoy that inside view of a different career, while also having their appetites whetted. Especially fun for readers is/was the fact that Tess tries something different with almost every book, and from reader reactions, it appears that for each one of those books, there’s a dedicated subgroup of Tess Gerritsen fans that regard that particular book as her very, very best. In other words, something for everyone.

Very cool.

I’m leaving the link up in the sidebar, partly in hopes that Tess will start blogging again soon, but also so that you can find it if you haven’t yet discovered it on your own. Take the time to read a few months’ worth of posts, and I defy you to remain unimpressed. In addition to all of the qualities I listed above, you’ll find she’s also very brave – brave enough to have put herself out there, trusting that the genuineness of her words would touch us. And they did.

So I don’t agree with those who say that closing her blog is a sign of weakness or a lack of courage. Are you kidding me?

And for those who call her thin-skinned, well, you know how I feel about that. It’s one of my favorite qualities in an author! *

So read her blog. Oh, and of course, read her books and find your own favorite!


* I ranted about the “thick-skin” issue back in June of 2006. Since then, I’ve gotten even more ranty about it because those who demand that quality of us are so truly short-sighted, and sometimes hypocritical. You want an author with a thick skin? One who doesn’t react deeply – maybe even overreact – to life’s hurts? You want our writing to be sensitive, moving, etc? So, how do you expect us to find that within ourselves if we were so tough? Sheesh… I for one don’t want to read the work of a truly thick-skinned author. Be thin-skinned, but ultimately resilient. Feel it deeply, then recover as quickly as possible. That’s the most that can be asked.

P.S. As you know, I’m not a paid member of livejournal. The free membership only offers limited links on the sidebar. At first, I was bummed about that, but I’ve come to appreciate it, because as time goes on, I find I don’t want to recommend blogs – even ones that I personally visit and enjoy daily – unless I feel comfortable with their regular commenters as well as the bloggers themselves. There’s just too much volatility and obnoxiousness in some communities, and while I can choose to visit (and leave quickly or watch with morbid fascination when it gets ugly) I would hate to refer one of my readers to a volatile blog on a day when something ugly just happens to be unfolding in the comment section. So I’m actually grateful to livejournal for limiting me (and of course, grateful that they host me for free at all!)

During one of the blog debates that have raged recently, a commenter made an observation that cracked me up, saying that the heated remarks during some romance issues are reminiscent of sports talk radio.

I love that ‘cause it’s true!

My husband and I listen to sports talk radio on the way to work some mornings. We’re Sacramento Kings fans, although not of the rabid variety. It’s really fun to listen to the show’s hosts, who are hilarious (immature, but pretty funny). And then there are the callers – holy cow, they’re usually fanatics of the first order. Passionate, loyal, and worked into a frenzy – it’s great entertainment. For every guy who wants the coach’s head on a plate, there’s another guy who is so defensive of the coach, you’d think they were blood relations. And the same thing goes, player by player. They love ‘em or the hate ‘em.

Then there are the callers who clearly believe themselves to be open-minded, objective, and destined to bring order to the chaos. These are the ones who really make me laugh. If they only knew how pompous they sound. Full of pseudo-insights and hackneyed observations, yet they’re so sure they’re adding intelligence and objectivity to the mix.

It’s good fun. And even though they’re all crazy, you can occasionally learn something while listening to them, so all’s well.

But the point the commenter made on the blog was this – why does everyone single out the romance community as being too defensive, too nicey-nice, unable to take criticism, thin-skinned, overly-identifying with the books, characters, authors. When you see this discussed, it’s always assumed by many that it’s because it’s women. Men – we’re told – do not behave this way.

Hmmm? Have you actually met a man?

Even when you meet a guy who claims to have no interest in sports, he doesn’t put down the ones who do (in contrast to the way we put down romance). And he will probably admit he harbors a secret love for the Red Sox or some such. Why else do these goofs always talk about Brian’s Song? And how else do you explain Kevin Costner? Sheesh. They're all that way, and not a bit ashamed of it.

It's so refreshing! I love how men are so goofy about sports, and submarines/airplanes, and war movies. They can scoff at women for falling for romantic or sentimental plots, but they can watch THE BIG RED ONE again and again without getting tired of it.

I’ve always threatened to write a submarine screenplay and submit it under a guy’s name. How hard can it be? You need the clash between the new commander and the second-in-command (the one the crew loves). You need the suspicious guy – he’s either a spy or something akin. You need a long lecture up front about the depth the submarine can withstand before it starts to break apart from water pressure (write that number down, you’ll be seeing it on the BIG DIAL about 2/3 of the way into the movie – and yes, the boat will start to break apart, and they’ll have to seal off segments, always trapping a beloved seaman who then drowns). You need the big scene where the two commanders have to cooperate – they each have a key, see? And to stop the detonation sequence that will start WWIII, they have to turn their keys simultaneously.) And you need the depth charges scene – this is where a boat on the surface drops barrels of dynamite right down on the sub.

And they say romance has a formula? Yet guys eat this stuff up.

I don’t really have a point. It just makes me smile.

Men -- you gotta love 'em.

Kate

I love my house, my friends, my family, and even (sometimes) my job, but oh, I did not want to come home. I wanted to buy the condo unit that we rented and just stay forever. Luckily, cooler heads and empty wallets prevailed.

I did come home to a bit of wonderful news. My Athena Force book CHARADE has been awarded a Reviewer's Choice Award by cataromance.com! What a thrill. I'm so grateful to the folks at cataromance, not just for the award, but for promoting category romance in general the way they do.

As for Maui, well, what can I say? We saw whales -- lots and lots of them. Right up close and personal, thanks to some very "crafty" sailors who took us right to the legal limit. The star of the show was a humpback who swam right up to our boat and jumped out of the water, giving us a show and more. Wow.

These whales were so plentiful, we could spot them from the balcony of our hotel!

I didn't snorkel. I love to swim, but with the fishes? Get real. I'm with Lucca Brazzi on that one. But the water was so clear, I could see a lot of what the snorkelers saw -- pretty fish, lovely coral, and some of the ugliest and most scary sea turtles you can imagine. Why anyone would want to be in the water with them is beyond me.

I had a great time. I'll try to post some whale pictures soon.

Kate

I’ve been in Maui for a week of fun, nature and relaxation. I have no desire to plunge back into stress.

But meanwhile, there’s a new scandal about plagiarism. Since it’s an important topic, I feel the need to weigh in with a tiny rant. ( click her to read more )

I’ve blogged a bit about my writing process from time to time, but I don’t think I’ve highlighted the irrational, superstitious parts of it. Here’s a glimpse into all that.

Step one: I always start a book by scribbling scenes, longhand. It feels more organic (that’s the logical reason), and I don’t want to be presumptuous – the illogical one. Yes, it’s true. If I were to open a Word document and put on other airs before I’m sure I have a beginning, middle and end, plus at least two compelling, semi-full-blown characters, I fear Fate would knock me on my ass for presuming. So I approach the whole thing very cautiously. In stages. I call it “an idea for a new story.” Just an idea. No commitment. I certainly don’t claim it’s a potential book – it's way too early for such hopes.

At that point, I usually don’t even have a title yet. But since I need something to label the scribbles, I use a code word – one of the character’s names if I know one, but usually the characters are just X and Y at that point, so more often than not, I use something like TT or “TT idea” (time travel idea). Or TT2 if I’ve already got a TT in the works. Once again, I do not want to jinx this faint glimmer of an idea by naming it. (Same with my children, by the way. They got their names when they were born, and not a minute soon. Which is probably just as well because it kept me from being able to scream their names in agony during the atrocity joys of natural childbirth.)

Back to my “process.” By the time I have dozens, or even more, pages of scribbles – some from the middle, and always a draft-ish ending, even though I know it will change as the story evolves – I sit in the center of our king-size bed and sort the pages into piles, usually ones labeled: Beginning, Middle, End. If there are lots of pages in a pile, I re-sort into smaller ones. For example, for CHARADE, I didn’t begin actually working on the computer until I had eight stacks – Wedding Op(10 pages of scribbles); Apartment (12 pages); Pre-love scene(4pp); Love scene(4pp); Dad(6pp); Rome(2); Kestonia(8pp); Rescue(2pp); Ending(2pp). That’s a fairly standard sorting. Even though most of the book actually took place in Kestonia, I didn’t have it all worked out yet, so that stack was small – still, I had enough to know that I wasn’t jinxing myself or being presumptuous.

By this time, I know the characters very well, and have long since named them. And if I don't have a real title by this time, I have to choose one before I can proceed further.

After the sorting and naming, I build a table of contents, which is really the outline of each chapter with a blurb for what happens in each. This document affords me another layer of security – more proof that there’s a real book here – even though it might ultimately bear little relation to the final product, or at least, will change drastically during the actual writing of the book.

Finally, it’s time to begin. I take stack #1 to the computer and begin writing. Oddly enough, once I get going, I usually don’t refer to the notes/scribbles at all! I start typing, and it all feels so fresh, I don’t want to interrupt the flow to check my notes. Turns out, they are really just props, or maybe security blankets.

Still, when it’s time for Chapter Two, I go back to the middle of the bed and do some tweaking of the piles and the outline based on what has actually occurred in Chapter One. It’s very ritualistic. More often than not, I do some more scribbling of new pages, and add them to the piles.

Then back to the computer. Rinse and repeat a dozen or so times.

Do I think I could sit in front of a computer and write an entire book without scribbling things down first? Logically, I’m quite sure I could. But I will never test that theory. Never! This works for me – it has become an old friend – and I love it.

Kate

p.s. Go Bears!!! (I don't have money riding on today's Cal game, but my pride is on the line, so cross your fingers!)

This one’s a rambler, folks, and I’m not even sure I agree with myself, so be forewarned.

Over on Karen Scott’s blog the other day, Karen linked to a site that purported to teach a person how to write a genre novel. Basically, we’re talking book autopsy – take your favorite book apart, line by line, and study it like a dissected frog. Then put something similar together, from similar pieces, and voila, you’ll have yourself your own personal book.

I’ve heard this sort of thing before and it always freaks me out for a variety of reasons.( Click here to read more ranting )

For the first time in a very long time, it looks like I’m going to have a weekend free from my day job.

Wheeeeeeee

What should I do?

Sleep? Oh my yes, that would be the wise choice, since I’ve almost reached the walking-into-walls stage of sleep deprivation.

Write? Oooooo, that sounds even better.

Clean? Nope, that’s a dirty word to me this weekend (even though the house needs major work. It looks like the pilot episode of Attack of the Junk Mail around here -- sheesh).

Shop? So tempting, but no.

So it sounds like I’m going to write, unless some bad influence, a.k.a. my husband, decides we should go to the movies. Also, I need to avoid the TV, because we just subscribed to Showtime last week, and there are tons of movies on it that I haven’t seen. Tons of mediocre movies, I might add, but I’m tired enough to fall prey to that sort of thing.

Maybe I’ll also blog about my current YA project, since I’ve been keeping it slightly under wraps so as not to jinx it. We’ll see about that.

Hope you all have a great weekend. Do something you love, please. You deserve it.

Kate

Over on Diana Peterfreund’s always-entertaining blog, she has a two-day discussion of the infamous writing rule: whatever you do, don’t kill the dog. Check out her Sept 18 and 20 entries: click here


Meanwhile, I have my own “don’t kill the dog”story.

My first published novel was a time travel. I wrote it in the days before I started working from a real outline, so I didn’t know what was going to happen other than the basic plot.

The heroine was a contemporary woman who went back in time and met a 17th-Century woodsman. He was very rugged, and predictably, had a very cool dog. I grew so fond of Prince, it was an unexpected bonus.

Part way through the novel, to my dismay, the heroine was being held captive by a bad guy. The bad guy was just about to shoot another captive, who was the hero’s little sister. Prince bounded into the room and took the bullet for the sister.

No one was more shocked than I. Fortunately, it was a TIME TRAVEL so later in the book, the heroine was able to go back in time again and ensure that she and the sister were never abducted in the first place. So – the dog lived!

At my first book-signing, a woman presented me with her well-read copy of TIMELESS and told me how much she loved it. But as I was signing, she added firmly, “I loved it, but I’ll never forgive you for killing that poor dog.”

Naturally, I said, “But she went back and saved him. So the dog lived.”

“Yes, but you still shouldn’t have killed him.”

Oh well. Later that day, I was telling one of my friends about this conversation. My friend is an animal rescue person who passionately loves critters. She laughed at the story and agreed that it was silly – because after all, the dog lived! She had read the book and didn’t have a problem with it.

Then I made the mistake of saying: “But even if the heroine hadn’t been able to change history, it was still better that the dog died rather than the little sister. Right?”

My friend looked me right in the eye and said, “No.”

“Are you saying that if it were a choice between the sister dying and the dog dying….?”

“Exactly. If that’s the only choice? Kill the sister.”

So all you aspiring authors out there, do not kill that dog. Seriously!

Sorry for the ten-day absence. I wish I could tell you I was on a beach that was so remote, wild and untamed, there wasn’t any internet access, but you probably guessed the truth: it was just my day job, which has become a full blown nightmare in which Kate does not sleep, nor does she write fiction. Law – what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.

Meanwhile, I’ve been hearing good things from readers about CHARADE, and that has helped boost my spirits, and remind me I’m not really a lawyer, I’m a writer. Thanks to all of you for that! I'm so pleased that you're loving the ATHENA FORCE books.

So what’s new otherwise? Here’s some Movie news, some Doggie news, and a bit of Writing news.

MOVIES: We went to see SUPERBAD, and yes, it was funny. Not as funny as KNOCKED UP, but pretty good. A lot more juvenile-boy humor in SUPERBAD, so I did notice that the men in the audience were howling during certain scenes where I was just rolling my eyes.

Once again, the trailers before the movies promised a great Fall and Winter season. The new Denzel Washington movie looks fantastic. Then there’s Jessica Alba doing romantic comedy – it looks hilarious, and since I like her, I want that one to be a huge hit and the start of a new phase of her career.

Even National Treasure II looks good. The first was good also, and again I give credit to that cast. They’re funny and charismatic, and just the right group to take a fairly preposterous plot and make it work. (My husband has warned me that I’ll need to see this one without him. That’s fair, since I won’t go see that 3:10 to Yuma thing with him, right?)

DOGGIES: poor little Parker, the mini pom-chi, was finally disemballed. He came through it surprisingly well, full of energy that same day. Such a trooper.

WRITING NEWS: Last month I finished the manuscript for the YA novel I began in May, and I have now found the perfect, perfect agent to represent it, so I’m hoping for great things! I’ll keep you informed about this as things progress. I’ve known for a while that I should switch agents, but it’s not an easy thing to do. It feels right though – in fact, it’s amazing. I would have been so much more disheartened this month if I hadn’t had something exciting going on in the background, writing-wise.

Anyway, wish me luck on that!

I’ll blog again soon. Have a great day.

Kate

I just heard that Romantic Times magazine loved CHARADE -- yay! And what a relief.

CHARADE received a 4 and 1/2 star rating. I had confidence in it, but still... A Mafia princess and a Eastern European dictator are far afield from the characters I usually create, so a little validation is wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.

Oh, and my author copies arrived too. Now begins the dance. The carton will sit in the entry way, unopened, for a while -- maybe two days. I will circle it warily, or gaze on it fondly, depending on my mood. It's part anticipation, part superstition, and mostly procrastination -- because if it's the wrong book, or the cover is hideous in person, I don't want to know.

I did receive the wrong books once -- those of another author with a release that same month. Very disappointing. Eventually rectified, but I always remember it, thus the circling.

Did you know that once I open it, I will not ever open the book itself, except to autograph some copies? I have never once in my life read any of the pages of my books once they're bound. Why? Because I can't tweak them anymore, and I'm such an eternal tweaker, I just can't look. Plus, if I see a typo or error, I'll go crazy.

Best not to look.

Kate

I hardly ever give writing tips, but here's a good one: You should write in the bath.

It's very freeing. For one thing, you don't feel pulled in a thousand directions. Sure, the laundry needs washing and doorbell needs answering and the cat's scratching at the back door, but there's not much you can do about any of that. Your job is simple -- relax and get clean. Part of relaxing is daydreaming. Part of writing is daydreaming. Ergo, you're already writing, so you might as well make some notes!

Oh, I forgot to mention, the best part of being in the bath is that you can't "write" there, at least not in the traditional sense. No chapters, no fonts, no paragraphs even. Unless you've got a super amazing laptop, you can't "write" in the bath. It's like the laundry and the cat -- even if it needs doing, even if you're past your deadline, there's nothing you can do about it while you're in the tub.

So you just lean back, close your eyes, and listen to your characters. Or listen to other characters that aren't even yours yet. Let you mind wander.

When something comes to you, you'll want to jot it down. This is the most important part of this tip: jot, don't try to actually write a scene. Use shorthand, get the gist of it, then go back to soaking.

You'll need specific equipment:

Pencils, not pens. Trust me, if you splash your page, the ink from a pen will fade fairly quickly. I've lost some good stuff that way! So sharpen half a dozen pencils and have them handy.

Paper -- I use lined paper that I've torn into half horizontally. Full sized sheets are too big -- you'll get it too wet. And don't use newsprint type paper, or certain recycled paper. use the good stuff. Newsprint paper is cool, and recycled is important everywhere else, but they absorb too much random water. You need something that encourages the water droplets to roll away, or at least, doesn't absorb water too quickly.

Don't get greedy. Make a few notes per sheet, then set it aside so it can start drying. Keep a stack handly.

Writing in the bath is like plotting while you're driving -- for me at least, my mind feels freer, and I suspect it's because I'm not necessarily going to record my thoughts. It's too inconvenient. So it's like pretend writing. Chances are, it will never see paper, much less, printed manuscript pages, so it doesn't matter if it's good, or marketable, or even makes sense.

And this is so much better than writing while you're driving, because pulling to make notes over ten times on the way to the store is so inefficient. But in the bath, if you're soaking and daydreaming, you're right on task!

Now we know why I don't give too many writing tips! Oh well, have fun.

Kate

I’m told that the majority of older (let’s say, older than 35) female readers want to read about older heroines. I can see why, up to a point. They can identify with those females – same stage of life, same problems, etc.

But for genre fiction, especially action/adventure romance, I’m a fan of the younger heroine, and it really confuses me when I hear people say that they can’t identify with those females any more or don’t find them relevant to their lives.

Really?

Here’s how it works for me. When I was a young woman, I identified with young protagonists because we were all making the same choices, and man, did we have choices! Part of the reality of life is that as you make those choices, you narrow the range of your future options – not a lot, but enough so that it matters. It’s not a question of whether you regret your choices. Even if you’d do it all again – have that baby, not have that baby, go to law school, use your savings to buy a house or use it to backpack around the world – you still eliminated certain possibilities.

And when I read genre fiction, it’s all about the possibilities. I could be that spy! Even though we all know I can’t be that spy because of child-care issues, or whatever. Mister Wonderful could be just around the next corner and he could be anyone, even though in reality, I’ve got mine, and as great as he is, he’s a certain build, hair color, personality.

For me, a young protagonist provides a do-over. A chance to go back to a time of seemingly unlimited choices and play around with them again. When I’m in that twenty-something year old’s point of view, I’m that age again myself.

What does the over-35 heroine have to offer me? Hmmm, a seasoned, experience point of view? A rich life? I can hear all that from my friends (who by the way, are completely kick-ass and fun and lead exciting lives – just for fewer hours a day, on a tighter schedule, and with more ibuprofen involved).

The possibility of long lasting love? I’m lucky enough to live that. And if I weren’t – if my marriage hadn’t worked out – I wouldn’t want to read about someone’s who had. I’d want to read about someone who was just starting out, filled with possibilities and unknowns. I’d want to recapture that experience. For literary fiction or stories approaching that nature, sure – a forty year old suicidal divorcee can give me a thought-provoking experience. I’m interested in learning a little about her. But being her? No thanks. And if she’s a semi-well-adjusted forty-year old female with normal problems, well as I said, I’ve got friends to provide lots of juicy details about that.

Hmm, this is not nearly as coherent as I had planned it to be. I guess my point is this: while there are vocal readers, and editors, talking about making the heroine relevant to the older reader, I am delusional enough to believe that the majority of women want to read about the exciting world of unlimited choices – whether they’re in that stage themselves, or just have fond memories of it and want to recapture the feeling. Given a choice of a few hours away from real life, they enjoy re-living certain challenges, certain “firsts.”

I’m not talking maturity level here, by the way. My favorite characters are often unusually mature by nature, or forced to grow up too quickly by circumstances – lots of variety possible here. (Plus, maturity is sort of a myth to me. For example, I didn’t use profanity in my twenties. Now I do. Does that make me more mature? Less? Sheesh, so much of this stuff doubles back on itself! I’m confident enough now to be immature when the situation calls for it, whereas I would have been mortified at 25 to act that way! I believe in guts, imagination, intelligence, and integrity – and those virtues are just as prevalent in young women as in older ones, so maybe that’s my point. They’re both the same person, just at different stages of life, and for a couple of hours, I’ll take the endless-possibilities stage any time)

Kate

p.s. movie report soon, but meanwhile, I loved the new DIE HARD movie.

No RWA for me this year. I hope everyone who went is having a great time, and everyone who stayed home is glad s/he did.

It would have been a huge waste of money for me this year, because I’m so immersed in, and loving, my latest project that I would have just stayed in my hotel room the whole time, scribbling scenes on hotel stationary and ordering room service. Of course, I would have enjoyed seeing some friends – and some family in Dallas too – and listening to some publishing folks, but this is such a busy time of year in my day job, I would have had to keep an eye on it over the internet, and possibly attend a meeting by phone, and so it would have been zoo-ish for me and those around me.

But in honor of RWA, I’m taking a few days off to write. I’m tempted to change the bed linens every day and order food delivered for dinner every night, since those would have been two of my favorite parts anyway.

Next year: San Francisco! I will be there. It’s close enough to my home that I could drive there for a few days even if I have meetings in Sacramento that week as well. Plus, any excuse to go to San Francisco in the summer, when Sacramento is blazing, and the city is lovely.

BTYL!

Kate

My problem with the happily-ever-after ending is that I don’t know what the heck it means.

If it means that the couple will have a blissful life thereafter with no complications – well, I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy. Plus, it’s an insult to truly great couples.

You want bliss? Try a lobotomy.

Otherwise, HEA is like a freaking curse! It’s like saying, “Here’s your future: You will never go through labor or have teenagers in your house. You won’t even have hormones! You won’t own dogs or cats, because you’d have to suffer through losing them. You’ll never make enough money to be audited by the IRS. No one will ever flirt with you at a party, and you’ll never notice a nice-looking stranger out of the corner of your eye. You’ll always play it safe.”

Does that sound like our hero and heroine? Think about what brought them together in the first place. Triumph over adversity. Shared struggle. Make up sex!! Are you really asking them to give all that up?

Hero, do you think rescuing her from a stalker was tough? Let me introduce you to the delivery room, where a determined human being is trying to wriggle out of her body.

And heroine, what are you laughing about? Sure he slayed dragons for you, but when the IRS comes calling – having confused you with another, wealthier and cheating couple – his lance won’t cut it. Nor will your sumptuous curves, witty repartee and ability to move objects with your mind. The name of the game here is simple – find the damned receipts! But the dog ate them. What now, power couple?

You will cry. You will fight. You will wonder if the dud next door would have made a better mate. (Did I mean “dude next door”? No, I meant DUD. The safe guy.)

Okay, I know what you’re saying. HEA means they’ll stay together. Through richer, poorer, sickness, etc. Until death does them part. But what then? She’s not allowed to fall in love again even if she outlives him by 20 years? That seems kind of extreme. So I guess HEA means they stick together no matter what, then they’ll die simultaneously.

Kinda rough on the kids, don’tcha think?

But let’s not split hairs. The truth is, my heroes are confident they can win the heroine over and over again. In fact, they look forward to it! They don’t need some phony HEA to ensure success. And my heroines? They do NOT want to be taken for granted. HEA? Sure, as long as he continues to deserve it, but it’s not a given. Let’s see some effort for crying out loud.

Am I kidding? Yep. But I really do think HEA can only mean one thing – that these two people are so right/perfect for each other, they maximize each other’s chances for withstanding the tough parts of life, and for enjoying the fun parts. They’re stronger together – better able to tackle problems – than they would be apart. It’s not really about being happy – because only the lobotomized couple is always happy. It’s about facing life together, and being the better for it.

In cowboy movies, they ride into the sunset. In fairy tales, they live happily ever after.

My couples? They’ve got a lot more in store for them, but they’ll make it through all that together – if she doesn’t wring his neck first!

Kate

I almost called this post Urban Fantasy De-Mystified, but of course, if we demystify it, it won't be UF any more, so I decided to avoid the whole loop effect and just change the subject line.

Meanwhile, if you're interested in UF, or just want to read some very cool insightful comments about it, check out the comments to the previous post. Ferfelabat and miladyinsanity and mizkit all came through for us!

Thanks Cindy, May and Catie. You've really given me something to think/fret about (in a good way!)

Kate

Editors/publishers communicate in a secret code that authors struggle to crack. Or at least, it’s a struggle for me. My latest challenge is figuring out what they mean by Urban Fantasy” I am aware of some books that bear that label, but what are the parameters?

How “urban”? And is urban the same as contemporary unless it’s “futuristic urban fantasy”? Or is it always slightly futuristic? And is it always dark? Gritty?

I’m hopeless enough to still believe that fantasy can be light, or at least, energetic. For me, dark-gritty-urban sound more like a nightmare than a fantasy. But then, I’ve never been a fan of the dark school of futuristics. I mean, seriously, are we really sure it’s all going to be apocalyptically grim? Isn’t there an equal chance that it’ll be fascinating and upbeat?

And to be completely realistic about it, even if it is grim, won’t they medicate us so we won’t know it, a la Brave New World and co?

But I digress. I really just want to know the parameters of the term Urban Fantasy. For some reason, that particular label is bothering me today. So if anyone who stops by has an inkling, let me know – thanks!

Kate

I had a different entry half completed, but I'm putting it aside to draw your attention to a good column written by Lori Devoti over at romancingtheblog.com this morning. She lists some of the major romance conventions and asks which ones we'd like to say bye-bye to.

The one that caught my eye, predictably, is the one I've ranted about here before -- editors are convinced that romance readers don't want real love triangles. Fake ones, okay - -but if you can't tell who the hero is right away, editors will tell you that in your case, WIP means wallbanger in progress, not work in progress.

I don't think the editors are correct. Sure, there might be a few readers who have an absolute rule against this, but I'm willing to bet the huge majority would love to mix it up a little, hero-wise. Aren't readers always saying they want variety? And frankly, I'm a reader myself, and I love those kinds of plots.

Especially in romantic suspense! It's a win-win, right? It ups the suspense, and you get two hunky guys to enjoy. Sometimes the fake hero turns out to be the villain -- I love those. And even if the one who loses out is a great guy, well the beauty there is, the heroine goes into the sunset with the real hero, and you get the other one! (Until he gets his own book someday)

I'm not suggesting that a writer should drag it out right till the end. But if there's some question about which guy is Mr Right for the first third of the book, let's say -- or a moment of huge doubt half way through -- is that so terrible? (Or is it fantastic? I think so)

Oh well, I could be wrong. But I have a lot of faith in my readers. They wouldn't want a steady diet of love triangles, but every once in a while? Bring it on! Otherwise, some really fun plots get abandoned by the wayside.

Kate

Something really amazing happened this week. I got an idea for a story, and I just sat down and started writing it.

Why is that so blogworthy? Because these days, when I get a new idea, I tend to give it the third degree.

The third degree goes something like this:

Hello, new story, I have a couple of questions for you, so please sit right in front of this blinding white lamp and try to get comfortable. Okay, here we go:

 Which publisher are you targeting?
 Who is your readership – i.e. give me the demographics, dammit!
 How many pages do you think you’ll be?
 Are you a dark paranormal or an erotica? You’re not? Damn you!
 You’re not one of those lightweight, quippy books, are you? Because if you are, just leave now and don’t embarrass yourself.

That in a nutshell is the third degree.

But this new story got a pass. Lucky for it, because it would have gotten all the answers wrong and I never would have given it the time of day. Instead, I’m already in chapter two!

Wish me luck!

Kate

It seems like I might just be in love with the hero of CHARADE (my October Athena Force book).

Why is this such a surprise? I routinely fall for my heroes, but I thought this one was different. Handsome and sexy, sure, but not really my type. Or so I thought. The plot-line called for a certain kind of guy, and I created him, and liked him a lot. But love?

Apparently.

There are three kinds of fictional guys that I generally fall in fictional love with. Take charge and arrogant (but with a heart of gold, of course)– yum; stubborn and dedicated to a cause, and doggedly trying not to be distracted by me the heroine – I love him; and the charming con man – yowza, I think he’s my favorite.

Jeff Crossman doesn’t fit any of those profiles.

I just finished proofing the galley pages (or what H/S calls the AAs), and to my delight, I was seriously crushing on him, so much that I kept forgetting to proofread. I had to force myself to go back and concentrate on the words instead of him.

He’s the take-charge-with-minimal-gabbing type – no arrogance at all. And since my favorite heroes are usually much more chatty and quip-y, this was a first. The heroine is a wild woman, and I was originally concerned that she’d overshadow him, but surprisingly enough, she gets a little tongue-tied and droolie around him too. I didn’t realize until now that he actually steals a couple of scenes from her! Who’d a-thunk it?

There’s something so decent about Jeff. And isn’t “decent” supposed to equate with “boring”? But apparently not. There’s a sexy edge to his attitude that I love, mostly because he’s in complete control of almost every situation. Well, 99% of the time at least. And in that other 1% -- sigh. That’s fun too. He’s so sincere. And adorable. And determined. And, well…

Yep. I’m officially smitten.

I can’t wait to get some other reactions to him.

Kate

P.S. When I say Sasha’s a wild woman, I’m not kidding. Among other things, she’s a dress designer, a Mafia daughter, and an undercover thrill-seeker for the FBI.

Just a drive-by entry to wave "hi" to the person who Googled "governess stories" and ended up at my website. My site keeps statistics and I love seeing from whence visitors came. And I especially love it when someone ends up at my site looking for a good story.

My governess story is a novella in an anthology called Then He Kissed Her. The title of the book didn't give shoppers a clue that the stories were all about governesses. And the cover was just pink with a ribbon or something -- again, no clue. I was so disappointed at the time because I believe there's a strong untapped niche market for all kinds of crazy things, governess stories being one of them.

I loved writing mine, and it got a funny review at Mrs Giggles -- the only thing of mine she ever reviewed. I imagine one of the other authors sent it to her -- brave! I've never sent her anything, which makes sense because, generally speaking, I don't send review copies anywhere. I really should start, I suppose.

Meanwhile, I hope you find the book somewhere, favorite visitor of the day! Or you could try to win a free copy by entering my contest -- hint, hint.

Sheesh, it doesn't take much to get me in a good mood, does it?

BTYL,
Kate