Vixenwriter

So back in the days when I first started writing I remember seeing the CAPA nominations and thinking, “Wow, one of these days, I would so love to get a CAPA nomination.” And last year that dream came true and I won the CAPA for Taking Chase. So I was thrilled to be nominated this year as well.

Yesterday I won two CAPAs - and I’m honored. One for best contemporary romance of 2007 for Making Chase and one for best erotic paranormal romance for Fire and Rain.

Thank you to the Romance Studio for the honor and the awards and thank you to all my readers who continue to pick my books up. Yesterday was an exceptionally good day.

And wow, where did the day go? I ran errands all morning long and then I hung up the new shower curtain I bought, put out the new tub liner thing, answered a hundred emails and I’m still not done. Now my boys are home which means I won’t get finished now for sure!

Oh! Ascension won best Shapeshifter Romance of 2007 from Love Romances and More!

As well as winning a Reviewer’s Choice Award from Ecataromance Sensual!

It’s now up for book of the year (along with some really excellent books) - so check em out and vote for one of em why dontcha?

I just had apple slices with peanut butter and I’m struck by just how delicious something so simple can be. Also? I’m easily amused.

How easily amused you ask? Well, I bought a pair of underwear today, just one pair, and it made me happy. See?

Anyway, I don’t have much to say today. I know, shocking! But I’m slammed and sort of brain fried so I’ll leave you with:

This is what I think of when I’m writing William, Nash’s brother and the hero in Sensual Magic, my next novella for Spice. He’s all totally suave and sexy with that bad boy “I’m not marrying anyone” air. Until he meets the right woman. Heh.

I love Anne Cain. I’m just sayin - she makes me all giddy with her covers. God, look at this. Happy sigh.

First:

moar funny pictures

Angie sent me a link to something she created, which made me giggle. She took this pic of me, or someone at Samhain did, at the RT booksigning in April. Anyway, I made the one above of Megan and I last night because she and I sold a book. A book we came up with at RT while standing in line as a matter of fact. I comes out in October of 08, which is verrrrry fast and very exciting. I can’t say for who yet, there’s one last detail to get in place but we have a title and we have a pub date and an editor and it’s all very cool.

moar funny pictures

Also, did you know the amazingly fabulous Anya Bast has a shiny new website? She totally does and it’s gorgeous! Go and oooh and aaah over it! She’s also running a contest at the Maverick author blog to win some fab books so get on over there to check it out!

Speaking of contests… head on over to the Bradford Bunch Blog - I’m doing round two of the To Do List contest!

And last but not least at all - the pub date for Battlefront is December 08! I’m so thrilled! WHHEEE! It’s not going to be called Battlefront (and in all honesty, I didn’t expect it to be, I rarely get to keep my titles, LOL) so I’ll get you the final title soon along with the back cover copy that is so made of awesome I actually squeed with joy when I read it. Leis Pederson, my editor, is so shiny with the blurbage, I’m totally happy with it!

That’s about it for now. I haven’t done much reading this last week to be honest. But I did reac 80K in notBattlefront last night and I’m heading into the home stretch. Whooo.

I’m so beyond thrilled! It’s here!

I have now turned the corner in Standoff and I’m entering the “end of the book” stage. I do have that vague, “god is this all just words put together in no coherent fashion” feeling in the back of my head as I ususally do at this part, but I’m flipping it off and I totally will call it a diva and shove it if I have to.

Also, in news that makes me giggly - So last night I got an email from the totally fabulous Rhian who’s sent me a link. She’s made a mini-movie and I’m in it. I watched it and laughed and laughed and laughed some more.

It’s violent in that summer movie at the lake is so if you’re very sensitive, don’t click the link. However, it’s totally cartoonish and also features Anya Bast and Megan Hart as well as Lila Dubois and Jill the Acadian.

Check it out!

So, a little story if I may…

Earlier this week I said to Megan via IM - “you know, I’m just so sick of being on the verge of breaking. When do I reach the point where I accept it isn’t going to happen and just be happy with what I have?” (and she said, “NEVERRRR, We’re Spartans!” which is why I adore her so).

I hit this spot where I wasn’t necessarily sad, but I just felt sort of bleh and uninspired. I usually feel so passionate about writing but I think I was just in a big old rut.

Then as the days of this week began to pass, I hit my sweet spot in Standoff and I felt like I really began to get my characters and understand them and I truly fell in love with the book and then I got my fab cover and I thought this morning, “well, you know, I have things pretty damned good”

And then…

I got a phone call about forty minutes after I posted. It was my agent and she told me I’d just sold to Berkley Heat. I nearly fell over. After much squeeing on both ends and a lot of “OMIGOD!” on my end and “holy shit!” too, I’m still sort of shaky. I’ve wanted to write for Berkley forever and I can honestly say they’re a dream for me. I called my husband and sort of blurted out the news and had to get off the phone because the other line was ringing and my daughter was talking loudly and I couldn’t hear anything and I got about three steps to go downstairs and I had to stop and sit as the tears really hit.

I’m so fortunate. I have this dream. I have a beautiful, wonderful family and a husband who will hear my second voicemail in which I bawl and he probably can’t understand a thing I said but he’ll listen anyway. I have the most wonderful agent in the whole world who has been so supportive and has believed in me when I wasn’t sure I believed in myself and I have fabulous friends who did the happy dance along with me.

So now I can announce it in public and I’m still bowled over and thank god it’s sven and I’ve been working my ass off becuase I’m 60% done with Standoff and when I finish that I’ve got to get working on Battlefront because it’s due at the end of January! But I can do it. I can. OMG, I can!

Essentially, I suppose the moral of the story is - keep writing. It will happen. I know I’ve told myself this a thousand times and there were days I thought they were empty words. But I kept writing and wow, I’m just a goofy tool, but a lucky, goofy tool.

We learned this week that Harlequin Spice has picked up the second Vegas anthology and it’ll be out in 2009. Not a whole lot more right now, this is brand spankin new. The second anthology has a paranormal theme and will have secondary characters you’ll meet in the first anthology.

My story, Sensual Magic, features William Emery, the owner of the burlesque club The Dollhouse and a witch named Nell Hunter who bursts into his life on the hunt for an embezzler.

By the way, I’m a featured author this month at The Romance Studio Blue!

Let’s see…I’m getting ready to go to Lori Foster’s Reader Author Get Together next weekend. I’ve never been so I’m really excited about it. I get to finally meet Barb and Pam in addition to many other authors and readers I’ve known online forever so that’ll be wonderful. I also get to see the ever-so-wonderful Anya Bast, who I just love to death and I haven’t seen her since October so I can’t wait! I’ll be at the book signing on Saturday, June 2 from 4 - 6 at the hotel (Cincinnati Marriot North) so come by and say hello if you’re in the area! If you’re attending the get together, please find me and say hello!

I’m blogging my reads in the 10,000 books challenge at eharlequin. I did a count a few days ago but every day I remember other books I’ve read. I should keep better track, LOL. I think blogging them will help me do that. I did make a personal decision not to blog the books I hate. Yes, yes I know some people get shirty about that and I’m sure I’ll be accused of something or other because of it, but it’s a personal decision. Generally, I don’t want to spend time on books I hated over books I love. Now I will talk about books I enjoyed but may have had flaws. But I have my share of wallbangers too, god knows I have preferences just like anyone else. Still, I think I’d rather talk about books I want everyone to read instead of books I didn’t like. I bitch enough without that.

It’s a long weekend, yay! I hope it means a lot of writing but in truth it most likely means breaking up a lot of inter-sibling bickering, laundry and the cleaning of bathrooms.

Ascension will be out in less than two weeks! Whee! And then Making Chase on the 12th! It’s going to be a really good June.

I’m reading Gennita Low’s Virtually His, nearly done as a matter of fact and it’s so good! It’s also movie night for me and my dude.

Okay, off to clean the kitchen…

OH! Anya Bast’s Witch Fire is starting to show up in some bookstores! This is such a fabulous book and Anya is one of my favorite authors so you should go and grab it. If you like paranormal romance, magick, really hot chemistry, sexy heroes and smart heroines - this is the book for you. I’ll be reviewing it later in the week along with an interview with Anya as well.