Kate Hewitt - Romance Author

2012-01-21T14:37:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I handed in the revisions on my 21st Presents and so today I am still exhaling in a long, drawn-out sigh of relief. My editor, as usual, had wonderful suggestions. The amazing thing about my editor is she gives me suggestions without being too specific, so I still have authorial and artistic control, as it were, (which makes me sound like a prima donna, but anyhow), while she pinpoints just what is wrong with the story. And after I get the revision letter, I give myself a mental (and sometimes literal) slap and think WHY didn't I think of that?! Instead I sent in a manuscript that someone might kindly refer to as 'raw' or more bluntly, 'dross'. I won't hear until the end of the week or so whether these revisions turned the story into gold, but I hope so. I love the hero of this one. His name is Ammar and here is a glimpse of him from the heroine's perspective:

She stared at him, saw his mouth was twisted with bitterness, or maybe even sorrow. He looked different, and it wasn’t just the scar or near-shaven head. It was something that emanated from his very self, from the hard set of his shoulders to the deep shadows under his amber eyes to the twisted curve of his mouth. He looked like a man who had endured far too much, who was near to breaking from it all.

Meanwhile The Lone Wolfe, my contribution to the Notorious Wolfes continuity, is on sale now! Jacob Wolfe is one of my most tortured heroes (almost as much as Ammar!) and I loved writing this story. I hope you enjoy!

2012-01-12T04:55:00.003-05:00

Thank you everyone for your very kind comments and email messages of encouragement. They really are lovely to read, and a true lift to my spirits! The sun is shining today, and I think we have weathered our little storm of homesickness for the most part. The children are happier, at least, and that in turn makes me happy.

I've been following a discussion on Dear Author about the relationship between the reader and the author, and whether authors should comment on or thank reviewers, what reviewers owe authors if anything, and so forth. In the comment thread it's all got a bit hostile, which is par for the course I find when there are 100+ comments, but the whole debate has really got me thinking, and opened my eyes in some ways.

Until recently I had no idea that thanking a reviewer for a review was undesirable. I cottoned on, thankfully, and I don't do it anymore, but I suppose I wish I could. I did it to begin with out of politeness, even if the review was bad or even atrocious, simply because I am thankful that someone took the time to not only read my book, but to offer her opinion on it. Honestly, I think for most authors, that's it. We're not trying to turn reviews into some kind of commodity.

But after thinking about it for awhile, I realized that I have thanked reviewers because really, I would love to get into a discussion about one of my books, NOT to explain to the poor, stupid reader how she didn't get it but so should have, but to have an honest, lively debate. I had a terrific email exchange with someone who HATED my book. Hated it so much, in fact, she wrote Mills & Boon and asked them to make me stop writing. I am not kidding. But you know what? I addressed the problematic parts of the book for her, and we emailed back and forth, exchanging ideas about why she'd hated the book so much, and in the end we came to an agreement of sorts and she went back and finished it. I didn't enter into the email exchange to convince her my point of view was right, or she shouldn't have hated my book. I simply wanted to tell her where I was coming from in writing it, and she told me where she was coming from while reading. Really, it's been a highlight of my experience with readers, and she still doesn't like the book. Totally fine.

I think part of the problem with interaction between readers and writers is they do not come to a discussion as equals. And it might be that the perceived inequality is only in people's minds, but as long as someone feels it's there, it might as well be. To have a proper (and by that I mean respectful, interesting, and engaging discussion) you need to come to it accepting and believing that everyone has a right to express her opinion, and the reader's perception of the book is as valid as the writer's intent. It's not a session to convince someone of your rightness; it's a discussion of different views. Of course, it helps if you come into that kind of discussion with an open mind, willing to change your opinion--on both sides, readers and writers.

Anyway. That's a lot of my rather flabby thoughts. I'm procrastinating, clearly! But as a reader I love having those discussions with authors. Love, love, love it. And I'd love it as an author too. Tear my book apart! Tear it to shreds if you like, only do it respectfully, allow me a chance to respond, and be willing to engage in a two-way conversation. (And I'm not meaning to imply that this needs to happen in a review setting, which is a different thing altogether.)

2012-01-05T17:53:00.003-05:00

Oh, dear. I've neglected this blog. Again. Life has been throwing us a few curve balls lately. My father-in-law died rather suddenly, and my children were plunged into a misery of homesickness. We have felt isolated and far away from everything (which we are), and it is an emotional state that I've found is not conducive to productivity.

Life is hard sometimes. Sometimes just knowing time is passing--stages of life are ending--is hard. I've felt that recently, as my children grow older and we've moved homes/countries/continents. Looking at photos is bittersweet, because a desperate part of me wants to claw back that time. When my children were younger. When I was younger. When strangely and surely untruthfully, life felt much simpler. Photos turn every memory into a blissful movie montage. I know it wasn't really like that.

So we're all going through a bit of a hard time right now, a bit of a what-are-we-doing-here time. I'm trying to weather it without losing myself in a quagmire of doubts, which is my usual modus operandi. I can be the Queen of Overreaction. My husband complains about his job ONCE and I'm immediately all, 'You don't like it? Let's move! Let's go live in Borneo! Quick, I'll google real estate in Balikpapan! There's nothing for sale? Let's live in a grass hut. What an experience for the children!' Seriously. I have done that more than once. I tried to convince my husband to move to the Falkland Islands.

Fortunately my husband is exceedingly level-headed (is that an oxymoron?) He takes my wild warblings in stride and tells me to sleep on it. Generally by the next day or three I've cooled on my awesome plan slightly.

I'm getting older though and I know myself better. I have no awesome plans right now. Right now I am just waiting and weathering, and hope my children are too. And pray that when this storm of homesickness is over, we'll be smiling in the sunshine on the other side.

2011-11-19T15:20:00.002-05:00

Thanks to everyone who emailed me about the serial--I hope you enjoy it! Meanwhile I am rewriting the first third of my latest Presents, which has the working title (which I quite like) The Husband She Never Knew. This is proving a hard book to write, but not a bad kind of hard. It's challenging, but I can visualize an end product--it's just shaping it to get there. Some books I tie myself in knots trying to figure out the emotional conflict and how to keep it going for 200 pages. There is a part of me that says 'you love each other, get over whatever problem you have and move on already!' And let me tell you, that little voice is NOT HELPFUL when I'm trying to write a book with a sustainable conflict and plot. However, that is not the problem with this book. The problem with this book is that there is so much conflict I wonder how these two are going to make their HEA. And what's interesting, and a bit different for me, is that they're BOTH fighting for it for nearly the whole book. This is not a book where one person has to be convinced he or she is in love. This is a book about soul mates who are finding it really, really hard to stay together. And here, as a little teaser, is the last thing I wrote today:

For a stunned second everything in Noelle contracted with longing and regret. This was what she had wanted so desperately. A normal life, a normal marriage. Mornings with sunshine and the scent of fresh coffee and a hello kiss.
Well, she had two of those things today. Definitely not the third. She cleared her throat. ‘Good morning.’

2011-11-17T06:58:00.003-05:00

Hello again! I've been reading about various changes in the publishing world, from big-name authors deciding to self-publish to big-name publishing houses deciding to offer self-publishing services... it's all a bit alarming as well as exciting, and I thought I'd try a little experiment of my own. I've written a serial, Out in the Country, for the wonderful magazine The People's Friend, and as it has already been published and the rights have reverted to me, I thought I'd offer it to my readers... free! Since a little anticipation can be a good thing, I thought I'd run it the way serials normally run, which is one installment or chapter a week. The serial is only 8 installments, so this isn't too long-term a thing. Anyway, here is the deal: if you'd like to receive the serial installment, just send me your email at katehewitt@kate-hewitt.com with 'serial' in the subject line. I'll send you an installment (and nothing else, don't worry) once a week for eight weeks. Simple, right? And to whet your appetite, here is the first scene of the first installment:

Lynne Marshall looked around her dining room table and smiled. Outside she heard the muted roar of New York City’s constant traffic, but here in her apartment there were more comforting sounds: her daughter Molly’s trill of excited laughter, the warm murmur of her in-laws’ conversation, followed by her friend Sarah’s answering chuckle.
Of course, there were missing sounds from this table. Her husband Adam’s rich baritone voice, gently teasing their only daughter while his eyes held hers, had been absent for a year and a half. Yet the consuming ache of that sudden loss had lessened with time, and now Lynne silently counted her blessings, even as she felt the first fizz of anticipation for the future.
“Lynne?” Sarah broke into her thoughts, her eyebrows raised. “I was just asking you if you’ve been to Molly’s school?”
“I’ve seen the outside,” Lynne replied, “but I wasn’t able to go in--the city’s schools are so careful about security these days.”
“As well as they should be,” Kathy, her mother-in-law, chimed in. “What with all the school crime there has been...” She turned to Molly. “Are you nervous, sweetie? At least the security’s for your protection.”
“Not a bit,” Molly replied firmly. Her eyes glinted with fierce pride, and determination and excitement radiated from her. It was, Lynne thought affectionately, almost catching. Molly had been studying for the last five years for tomorrow, the day when she’d finally begin teaching, and according to her, transforming New York City’s schools, student by student. “Remember, Granny,” Molly continued, “I grew up right here in the city. I went to a public high school--”
“Yes, but you went to one with selective admission!” Sarah interjected with a smile. “You’ll find a high school with less rigorous standards a bit different.”
“Exactly why I applied for the position at Cooper High School,” Molly replied. “I want to reach the kids who aren’t being reached--not the ones that are happy to be there.”
“That’s our girl,” Graham,Lynne’s father-in-law, said with a chuckle. “You remind me so much of Adam. Always determined to make a difference.”
There was a moment of quiet as they all remembered Adam, silently acknowledged his absence. Then Kathy turned to Lynne.
“And we need to celebrate your new start! Are you terribly excited, Lynne?”
Again Lynne felt that fizz of anticipation as she thought about her own new beginning. “I’ve been so busy arranging travel plans, I haven’t had time to think of it properly,” she admitted. “But I am starting to feel excited--Jess has been giving me the updates by phone and e-mail.”
“I can’t believe you’re really going,” Sarah said, and Lynne wondered if she was imagining the wistful note in her friend’s voice. Sarah had been her best friend in the city for fifteen years, but Jess had been her friend forever... or least since they both were six.
“I can’t believe I am, either,” she said, keeping her voice light. “It’s all happened so quickly!”
Just two months ago Jessica had rung her with her plans to open a country hotel in Perthshire. It had been a long standing ambition, although Lynne had always though it as more of a daydream they’d both indulged in over the years more than anything else. Jess had a successful career as an editor for a culinary magazine in Edinburgh, and Lynne had been busy with her life in New York. She’d never thought her friend would throw it all in for a risky business venture.
“Rob’s got it all planned,” Jess had informed her, all bright, breezy optimism. “He has an investor--Guy somebody--who’s really keen. Hotels with sports amenities are all the rage now, you know--”
“What do you know about sports, Jess?” Lynne asked dubiously, and Jess had just laughed.
“Absolutely nothing, of course! That’s Rob’s specialty. I’ll take care of the kitchen, and we just need someone to front the house... add the homey touch.” She’d paused meaningfully, yet it had still taken a full minute for the penny to drop.
“Me?” Lynne asked, her voice rising to a squeak, and Jess laughed again.
“Yes, you! Just think of it, Lynne. We’d have such a grand time together, and this is something we’ve talked about doing--”
“Talked about,” Lynne agreed, “but I never thought...” She trailed off, remembering the dream they’d once had of opening a hotel together. “We were little more than school girls,” she protested, even as she felt herself imagining it, picturing colour schemes, flower arrangements, special weekend offers... “It’s ridiculous!”
“Maybe so, but I feel like being ridiculous,” Jess answered with determined recklessness. “I’m forty-six years old, and I’ve played safe my whole life. I want to do something, even if it’s risky... even if it’s ridiculous!” She paused to let this sink in before adding, her voice turning serious and somehow knowing, “Don’t you?”
Did she? Lynne didn’t answer, the phone still pressed to her ear, as she considered the question. For twenty years she’d been Adam’s wife, maintaining his home, helping his career as one of the city’s most prominent architects, living in his shadow. She didn’t regret a single minute of it, yet now the possibility of doing--being--something different held a new and surprising appeal. “Maybe...” she allowed, and she could almost picture Jess smiling, carried along by her own enthusiasm.
“It’ll be fantastic, Lynne. Just what both of us need. Rob’s got it all sorted...”
Rob, Lynne knew, was Jessica’s fiancé. They were planning to marry at Christmastime. Lynne had never met him; she hadn’t actually seen Jess in several years. Yet time nor distance mattered when they’d plaited each other’s hair--and tugged hard on those plaits--in primary school back in Scotland.
In the end, the decision had been surprisingly easy to make. She’d hung up the phone and gazed around at her spacious, airy, empty apartment, and realised suddenly how little she had holding her in New York City. Of course, there was Molly, determined to transform the city’s schools, but Lynne knew her daughter would be busy with her own life--and perhaps needed her own space.
There wasn’t much else to keep her rattling around in this apartment, wondering what to do next.
“And the hotel is up and running?” Kathy asked, drawing Lynne back to the present and the circle of smiling faces around her table. She shook her head.
“Not yet. The financing is in place, the property has been found, but I’ll be coming over in the preliminary stages, to help decorate and organise, that sort of thing.”
“Well, we know you’re good at that!” Graham chimed in jovially, and Lynne acknowledged his remark with a smile.
“I’m sorry Jason couldn’t be here,” she said to Molly. Her daughter had been dating the same boy from university for three years, and he was now finishing his graduate degree in New Hampshire. “I’m sure he’ll want to hear all about your first day tomorrow.”
“He promised to call me in the evening.” Molly’s face was flushed with excitement, although Lynne saw her nibble her lower lip, a nervous habit from childhood that she’d never been quite able to break.
“I’m sure you’ll have plenty to tell him,” Sarah said. “How many students are in your classes?”
“Thirty-two,” Molly admitted with a tiny grimace. “They’re short staffed, and they have the maximum in every class.”
Sarah nodded, and Lynne wondered--not for the first time--just what her daughter was signing on for, teaching in one of the city’s most challenging schools. She’d given up trying to dissuade Molly from taking such a difficult first teaching post long ago; she knew if Adam had been here, he would have encouraged her to take the most chaotic classroom in the city and work her magic on it, as he’d done with his own life’s work of transforming some of the city’s most unappealing buildings into both fascinating and functional places to live and work.
“Anyway,” Molly said, “Jason’s coming to visit in two weeks. By that time I should be settled at Cooper.”
“Are you going to look for an apartment?” Sarah asked. “I suppose you’ll have to share...”
“Actually,” Lynne broke in, “Molly’s staying right here, and looking after things for me while I’m gone. That way I don’t have to sublet.”
“That makes sense,” Sarah said after a moment, and Lynne rose from the table.
“I think it’s time for cake,” she said brightly. “Sarah, pour us all another glass of champagne, and I’ll get the plates.”
She bustled into the kitchen, and after a moment she felt rather than saw Sarah standing in the doorway, and turned.
“Everything all right?”
“Yes, fine. We’re just waiting for you to come in so we can have a toast.”
“Lovely--”
“I’m going to miss you,” Sarah said abruptly. She turned away and busied herself with taking forks from a drawer. ‘This is all so sudden, isn’t it?”
“And not forever,” Lynne reminded her gently. “I’ve only signed on for a year, Sarah. I’ll be back in the city before you know it.”
Sarah’s bright blue eyes met Lynne’s with a directness that she wasn’t sure she liked. “Lynne,” Sarah asked, “are you sure you know what you’re doing?”
Lynne couldn’t help but feel slightly stung. Sarah was ten years older than her, and often acted like a mentor, but she didn’t need this kind of advice now. “Yes, I do. I want a change, Sarah. I need one.” She paused, drawing a breath. “Ever since Adam died, I feel like I’ve been waiting. Waiting for the next thing, except I don’t even know what that is.”
“I’m sure that’s a natural way to feel,” Sarah replied. “It doesn’t mean you have to go haring off to--”
“Haring off, as you put it, is exactly what I feel like doing,” Lynne cut her off, smiling, although there was a certain determination sparking in her eyes. “Now, Sarah, you’re one of my best friends. I don’t know want to say goodbye to you under a cloud.”
Sarah’s face softened and she gave Lynne a quick hug. “No clouds, promise. I’m just going to miss you, is all.”
“I know.” Lynne returned the hug before gathering up a stack of plates. “I’ll miss you too.”
Back in the dining room Kathy and Graham still sat at the table, but Molly had risen and was standing in front of the window, the city lights from outside washing her in a pale, luminous silver. Lynne saw her daughter’s gaze rest briefly on the framed photograph of Adam before she spun away with a cheerful laugh.
“Champagne and cake! Shall we have a toast?”
“Absolutely.” Lynne raised her own glass, still fizzing with bubbles. “To Molly, as you start teaching at Cooper High School, that you’ll transform not just one student, but a whole classroom!”
“Hear, hear,” Sarah said, and raised her glass to take a sip. Kathy and Graham followed suit.
“And to Mum,” Molly added quickly, “and your adventure in Scotland, that you’ll transform not just one guest, but a whole houseful!”
They clinked glasses, the sound ringing through the room in a cheerful chorus. Lynne sat back and sipped her champagne, the bubbles fizzing through her.
Her adventure in Scotland, she mused happily. Yes, that sounded just about right.

Like it? Shoot me an email and I'll send you the rest of the installment!

2011-10-15T14:23:00.002-04:00

We've been in our new house (and new town, new country, new continent...) for two months now, and I have to confess, I'm getting a little tired of the question 'how are you settling in?' or variants thereof. It's well-intentioned, of course, and very kind, but at some point you want to move past the settling phase. You want to be settled. And I think we are getting there slowly, although one thing I've realized is that it just takes time. And you can't rush time. (Is that profound or what?) Whenever we've moved it has taken a year or more of just showing up, smiling, saying hello, being a part of things, before you actually FEEL a part of things. At least by now we've moved enough for me to know this, and be (somewhat) patient. And I think my kids even know it too.

In writing news, I've just finished my 20th Presents, titled The Darkest of Secrets, out in the UK in May 2012. I'm starting number 21 which is related to 20 (but I can't say how, or it would ruin the ending!) I'm excited though because it is my first linked book.

Hope everyone in cyberspace is doing well--and feeling settled, wherever you are :)

हेल्लो अगेन!

2011-09-13T16:46:00.003-04:00

Hello again! For some reason I was having trouble using blogger because it was turning all my writing into Hindi. I am not kidding. I also never figured out how to stop it; it just did. In any case, I just typed The End (in English) on my 20th Presents!! What a relief! This book was hard to write as so much was going on in my life while I wrote it, but I'm very happy it's done and I am also very happy with the book--we'll see what my editor thinks!

I am blogging at Tote Bags /n/ Blogs today and if you leave a comment you are automatically entered into a contest to win one of my backlist books!

Meanwhile The Secret Baby Scandal is still on sale!

Edited to add the title is still in another language! Does anyone know how to help with this?!

I'm Baaack!

2011-08-17T09:13:00.005-04:00

So I'm finally back online after a month away as we prepared to move from NYC to a remote village on the coast of Cumbria, in England. Quite a change! There have been some ups and downs, of course; the biggest down has been contracting pneumonia as soon as we arrived! I was bedridden for a week. Not exactly a grand start, but things improved from there. We are in our new house now, and my children are loving living in the countryside so far. Next week we get the dog.

Here is the view from my desk:

After a month of nearly no writing, I must knuckle down and finish my latest Presents. In the meantime, my historical saga Down Jasper Lane is available on Smashwords here: Smashwords . At only $2.99 it is fairly priced I hope and I'd love to know what you think of it. It contains a romance (one of my favorites actually!) but it isn't resolved at the end of the book, as this is the first in a trilogy. I do hope you'll try it though, even if you are a straight romance reader.

If you really do just like your romance, my duet with Jennie Lucas, The Secret Baby Scandal, is now on sale at eharlequin.

Finished!

2011-07-10T16:23:00.003-04:00

I'm happy to announce I've finished the revisions on my historical saga, Down Jasper Lane, and hope to have it available on all the ebook sites by next week. I'm so excited about this story because I really do love it so much, even if it's very different from my Presents! I've said Down Jasper Lane is in the tradition of Anne of Green Gables, and in fact I wrote the first version after I'd read Anne of Green Gables for about the nineteenth time and wanted to read another story a little bit like it. Not one word of those nearly three hundred thousand (yes, really!) made it into the final published version, but the heart and soul of the story are still the same.

So, to celebrate the anticipated release of Down Jasper Lane, I'm going to run a few contests on my website. Answer the Anne of GG trivia questions below and you can win a book from my Presents backlist--of your choosing! And I'm starting off with easy questions :)

Email me at katehewitt@kate-hewitt.com with your answers; the contest will run until Down Jasper Lane is available on Amazon and other ebook retailers sometime next week.

QUESTIONS:

1.) What is the name of Anne Shirley's best friend?
2.) What is the name of Anne's make-believe friend in the mirror?
3.) What is the nickname Gilbert Blythe calls Anne?

Good luck!

Finished!

2011-07-10T16:23:00.002-04:00

I'm happy to announce I've finished the revisions on my historical saga, Down Jasper Lane, and hope to have it available on all the ebook sites by next week. I'm so excited about this story because I really do love it so much, even if it's very different from my Presents! I've said Down Jasper Lane is in the tradition of Anne of Green Gables, and in fact I wrote the first version after I'd read Anne of Green Gables for about the nineteenth time and wanted to read another story a little bit like it. Not one word of those nearly three hundred thousand (yes, really!) made it into the final published version, but the heart and soul of the story are still the same.

So, to celebrate the anticipated release of Down Jasper Lane, I'm going to run a few contests on my website. Answer the Anne of GG trivia questions below and you can win a book from my Presents backlist--of your choosing! And I'm starting off with easy questions :)

Email me at katehewitt@kate-hewitt.com with your answers; the contest will run until Down Jasper Lane is available on Amazon and other ebook retailers.

QUESTIONS:

1.) What is the name of Anne Shirley's best friend?
2.) What is the name of Anne's make-believe friend in the mirror?
3.) What is the nickname Gilbert Blythe calls Anne?

Good luck!

And now for something different...

2011-06-15T09:11:00.006-04:00

I've just handed in revisions on my 19th Presents, and before I start #20 I am working on a separate project that I'm really excited about. I've written several historical novels for a small UK publisher, and one of them, Down Jasper Lane, is close to my heart. My editor at the British magazine The People's Friend asked me to write something along the lines of "Anne of Green Gables meets Little Women" and I accepted eagerly, because frankly, that sounded fantastic. The result is Down Jasper Lane, and this is the original hardcover:

Now that the rights have reverted back to me, I'm self-publishing Down Jasper Lane, and it will be available at all the major ebook retailers including Amazon and Smashwords, hopefully by July 1. The book is revised and expanded, and I hope, better than ever. And here is a sneak peek of the ebook cover, designed by the fabulously talented Lee Hyat of Author Sound Relations:

What do you think? Which cover do you prefer? I'll be celebrating the proper release of Down Jasper Lane in a few weeks, so watch this space for excerpts, blogging announcements, and contest giveaways! In the meantime, I'm being spotlighted at Minxes of Romance so stop by and read all about my latests Presents, The Man Who Could Never Love, as well as my journey to publication and what's next!

Blogging!

2011-06-06T13:23:00.004-04:00

I am blogging today at Harlequin Presents authors' blog about The Man Who Could Never Love, and am giving away a free copy of Zoe & The Tormented Tycoon, so stop by!

Also there is an interview with me up at Romance Reviews Today if you want to check that out.

I am almost finished revisions on my latest continuity book, and then I'm going to jump in to my next book and try to finish it before we up and move to England at the end of July. So life is very busy here at the Hewitt household!

New cover!

2011-05-23T19:19:00.004-04:00

So today was a bit of banner day on the internet: new Amazon covers on both the UK and the US sites! Here is the cover of The Secret Baby Scandal, a 2-in-1 with the lovely Jennie Lucas.

What do you think? I like the energy of their kiss; the encounter in my story, The Sandoval Baby, was rather urgent and desperate, so it fits!

New look

2011-05-22T21:16:00.005-04:00

You might have noticed the new colors of my blog and website, along with a revamped book page. This is kind of a mini makeover for my website, and I have to say I really like it. After four years, it needed a facelift!

I've turned in my 19th book, currently titled The Self-Made Millionaire and The Spoilt Princess, although I have a feeling that title will change. I haven't heard back yet on this book, but I have to say--and I totally appreciate that saying this could completely jinx me--but I feel really good about this book. There! I said it. *lets out big breath* I had a really good time writing this book, and after angsting about my spoiled princess heroine (talk about unlikable!), I ended up loving her. Really, really loving her sharp wit and her courage and her hidden vulnerabilities. I think she is, hands down, my favorite heroine that I've written so far.

But my second favorite heroine--Anamaria Viale, tall, big-boned, and even mannish--is out now on eharlequin in a Presents Extra, The Man Who Could Never Love. Just so you don't go and buy the same book twice, this book came out in September last year as The Bride's Awakening. This story is one of my favorites. I love Anamaria and Vittorio, love how their emotions and senses are awakened by one another. I hope you enjoy it too.

And lastly, I've roused myself enough to blog a bit across the blogosphere, and I have a list of places and dates:

Blogging at Novel Thoughts, June 1
Interview at Romance Reviews Today, June 6
Blogging at Harlequin Presents Authors' blog, June 6
Blogging at IheartPresents, June 13

So hopefully you'll see me around!

Winner & writing without a safety net

2011-05-06T16:32:00.003-04:00

So if you read romance you probably know what a Big Black Moment is. Even if you've never heard that term, you probably can guess what it is. You read a book waiting for it at the end, for that moment when everything between the hero and heroine goes wrong, and the happily-ever-after seems truly impossible. The darkest moment before the dawn, when the characters man(or woman) up and realize they're going to fight for their happily-ever-after, and they're going to get it. I have always wanted my big black moments (or BBMs, which sounds like something unpleasantly related to the excretory system)to come from the characters and their flaws rather than an external plot development or misunderstanding. Something that has always stuck with me is a workshop I attended at RWA in 2000, when Deb Dixon said that the reader should be able to predict what the BBM is going to be from the first page. And she didn't mean predict in a bad way, like its all so formulaic and obvious, but rather in a GOOD way, because from page one you are showing who the characters are and what the nature of their big problem is going to be.

So what does this have to do with writing and safety nets? Well, for me, knowing what the BBM is at the end of my manuscript is my safety net. If I know what Niagara Falls these characters are headed for, then I can manage the rapids leading up to it. I have an end point in sight. Well, the last few books I have not known what my big black moment is going to be. I think I know my characters, and then they surprise me. They show me that something else is going on, something that is keeping them from each other. And I feel like I'm being rushed along the rapids of the story, and I'm going over the falls with them. Not how I normally like to write. But I'm learning to accept it, and even enjoy it, because hey? You know what? It's a heck of a ride.

Thank you to everyone who emailed or commented for a copy of Mr and Mischief. My daughter picked a winner and it was Erin! Erin, email me with your contact details and I'll send you the book!

And meanwhile The Man Who Could Not Love is for sale on eharlequin--it's a Presents Extra and it came out in the UK as The Bride's Awakening. I love this story, because the heroine is tall, and at nearly six feet myself I loved writing a tall heroine! I also loved writing how her convenient groom starts to see her as the truly beautiful woman she is--it is as much about his awakening as hers. Enjoy!

Enjoying It

2011-05-04T21:38:00.003-04:00

The title of this post isn't meant to be particularly provocative, although perhaps it sounds like it, but something hit me today--and it's not the first time I've thought this, although it always feels like the first time, but... why write if I don't enjoy it?!

Now, hold on, I DO enjoy it. I love the thrill of a new idea, the energy of words flowing onto the page, the awe and joy of typing THE END and then, admittedly about a year later, seeing the book in my hands. It's all wonderful, and what's not to enjoy?

Well... hold on again. I am not going to complain. This is not a rant. This is me telling myself to slow down and breathe and savor what I am doing. I think this happens to writers all over the spectrum, no matter what you write or if you're published or if you're a New York Times' bestseller or if you're... well, not. We all get bogged down by the days when the words aren't flowing, when you obsess about whether your books will sell or people will enjoy or even read them, and what happens if reality television takes over the world and no one reads anymore (am I the only who envisions a dystopian future of nonreaders?) And writing starts to feel if not an actual chore, than something fairly laborious. And I hate that, because if I wanted to do chores, I'd wash my kitchen floor and have something to show for it--well, for about five minutes before my children make a mess of it again (Note: Do not rent an apartment with white tile flooring in the kitchen).

So how do you capture the joy and wonder and excitement of writing again? Well, I do a couple of different things. I take a break--not too long a break, but enough that coming back to the computer feels refreshing and necessary. I take walks by myself, without strollers or children or errands to be done. I read. I read books that I've read before and loved, and new books that have been burning up on my nook. I read things I've written myself that I really like. I start working on my current manuscript and write for at least twenty minutes without self-editing, revising, or even rereading what I've wrote, James Joyce style.

And most of all? I remind myself that even if I wasn't getting published or paid, I'd STILL be doing this. Writing this. Because I love it. And then I write from that place.

To celebrate all that I enjoy about writing, I'm giving away ONE copy of my latest UK release, Mr and Mischief, to someone who comments or shoots me an email at katehewitt@kate-hewitt.com. I'd like to give the book away to someone who has never received a free book from me before, or better yet, who has never read one of my books (Wait... does that person exist?! Ha--most assuredly!) So drop me a line and I'll pick a random winner and in the meantime... ENJOY!

The Truth About Bad Reviews

2011-04-14T20:21:00.003-04:00

You know all the advice you might read on the internet about how to handle bad reviews? About not responding, not taking it personally, not drawing attention to it, and always acting with courteous professionalism? Well, that's all true. And I try to abide by that, because the only person you're hurting when you lash out at a reviewer who just trashed your book is yourself. For real.

But here is something else that is true. Bad reviews STINK. They really do. They hurt, more than they should, and they can get me in a funk for days even though I try to brush them off. When my first book came out, I was so naive. I honestly, seriously thought everyone would love my book. I can't believe I did, but I did. And then I got my first review on Amazon--my very first--and you know what it said? 'This was my first read from Kate Hewitt and I was disappointed.' And it went on from there. And I was devastated. My first book, my first review--and already I had a reader telling me she wouldn't read any more of my books! Books I hadn't even written yet!

Since then I've had plenty more bad reviews. And plenty good ones too, but being an insecure, narcissistic writer, I tend to dismiss good reviews as flattery or delusions and see the bad reviews as truth. As Maisey Yates would say, it's that darn doubt crow! My attitude towards bad reviews is a little more worldly-wise now. Now I see the one star on Amazon and think, 'Really? You really felt so strongly about my little book that you had to write a paragraph about its suckitude?' Then I go into my funk, but usually it only lasts a few hours.

But here is the good thing about bad reviews, and I will admit this is true for me, but might not be true for other writers. I learn from them, even the rabid rants. If people felt strongly enough to publish a bad review online, to take the time to explain to the world at large why they did not like my book, then maybe I should listen. And I'm not going to take everybody's advice, and I'm not going to attempt to please my non-fans, but I have learned quite a bit from all the negativity. I learned to tone down my internal dialogue. I learned that my heroines need to have a stronger sense of self. I learned that angst is great, but too much repetitive angst is boring.

So now, with my 12th book just having hit the shelves last month, I've learned to take bad reviews mostly in stride. They still hurt; honestly, I don't know how they can't. But they don't devastate me and they don't make me think I'm the world's worst writer. I can look at them objectively--mostly--and move on. Well, I'm trying! And I'm also trying to believe the good reviews a bit more too. Now I know writers who don't read their bad reviews, and that is fine. I don't think I have the will power for that! But in any case, I'm glad I've read both the good and bad, and I'm also glad for the grace and humility that has grown in me through having had bad reviews. So that's another good thing! But in the end? Really? They stink.

Greetings!

2011-04-12T10:47:00.003-04:00

So it's been awhile since I've posted. We went away for a week's vacation, and when I got back it suddenly occurred to me that we're moving to another country in just three months, and I started to panic a little bit. There's a lot to do. And I'll spare you the details of the stomach bug that worked its way through our family and kept me from doing much of anything!

My big news, of course, is that Zoe and The Tormented Tycoon was nominated for a RITA Award by The Romance Writers of America. Being nominated really is an honor and I'm so pleased! You can see the full list of nominees at the Romance Writers of America website.

I've also been writing as much as I can. I've almost finished my second women's fiction novel (the first one is, for the moment, sadly shelved) and also rewriting and adding to a historical novel that was published four years ago by a small press in the UK. The rights have reverted back to me and I'm hoping to republish it in the US. And of course I'm writing Presents! My latest book, Kholodov's Last Mistress, will be released in the UK in November 2011 and I am now working on the next one, which is the third in the newest Modern continuity. It's got a self-made millionaire as the hero and a spoilt princess as the heroine, so you can imagine the sparks that are flying! And even though she's spoilt, my heroine has quite a bit of courage and strength, so I'm really enjoying writing the story.

Has spring arrived where you are (or fall, I suppose, if you're in the southern hemisphere?) It is still chilly out but the trees are budding and there are daffodils in the park--all of it is a balm to my soul!

Playlists

2011-03-18T12:22:00.004-04:00

I don't always write to music, mainly because I write when my daughter is napping and we live in a small apartment so I can't blast music. Also, I don't like wearing headphones. But occasionally, when I get a babysitter who takes my daughter to the playground on a beautiful day like today, I can be alone in the apartment and write with music playing. Loudly. Bliss!

So I compiled a playlist for what I'm working on now, which is a women's fiction called Upper East and I shared the first sentence with you a while back. This is a story about two women whose lives collide as they live in the same apartment building. It is also about how we deal with the reality of aging and death, as there is a woman in their apartment building who is ninety-three years old and they both help to take care of her. Anyway, I like to choose my playlists carefully but also from the heart: the songs have to resonate with the story in both tone and lyric. So here is my playlist for Upper East (and if I knew how to link to youtube videos of the actual songs I would, but I am fairly technically hopeless.)

The Best Laid Plans by James Blunt
Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Greenday
Cat's in the Cradle by Harry Chapin
The Crane Wife 3 by The Decemberists
Stewart's Coat by Rickie Lee Jones
Thinking About You by Radiohead

That's all so far. Over and over again. If anyone has any suggestions of songs they think might fit this mix...

As an aside, I played Cat's in the Cradle for my 12 year old daughter awhile back and when we got to the middle of the song, with the line, "What I'd really like, Dad is to borrow the car keys, See you later, Can I have them please?" We both stared at each with tears in our eyes. I love this song--but it makes me teary every time I hear it. Interestingly, I went to college with Harry Chapin's son. What a legacy he had to live with! If you've never heard this song, go to itunes or youtube or somewhere and listen to it. Especially if you're a parent. I guarantee you will be moved.

And I'll leave you with a line I finished with today:

Everything felt precarious, a tottering pile of china, or a tree with too-ripe fruit. Things were going to fall; they were going to bruise or break.

New covers!

2011-03-14T14:57:00.006-04:00

Seeing new covers never loses its thrill for me. As an author I have *very* little control over a cover (ie virtually none) so naturally I hold my breath when I see there's a new one. And generally, with a few exceptions, I've been very happy with my covers. Here is the latest, the UK cover for my July release, Mr and Mischief:

No, wait!! That's not a UK cover! That's my very first MANGA cover, which is super thrilling! It's a Japanese graphic book retelling of Royal Baby, Forbidden Marriage. I love it, green hair and all. But, in case you're curious, here is my new UK cover, which I also love:

Which do you prefer?

It's The Little Things

2011-03-10T09:04:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I received a second round of revisions on my latest Presents, which is always a tiny bit disappointing because really, doesn't every writer want to hear 'It was fabulous. PERFECT.'? The first round wasn't that difficult, but to be honest I thought I'd kinda batted it out of the park. So the second round was a surprise, and they were really just tweaks, and they didn't take long, but ultimately they really made a difference. In this manuscript my heroine is innocent. Not dumb, not TSTL, but naive. And it's hard to write a naive character these days without her seeming stupid. So my editor asked me to take out some of the references to her naivete, because really? We get it. (She didn't say it quite like that, but basically that's what I needed to hear.) And after she said that, I reread the first couple of chapters and guess what? Her innocence was all over the place. Her innocent smile. Her innocent eyes. The hero berating himself for desiring such an innocent woman! Wait a minute. Could she... possible be... innocent?! Yeah, yeah. We get it. And one thing you don't want your reader doing to your book is skimming the page and going 'Enough already. I GET it. I'm not stupid [But your heroine is...]' So I deleted a lot of it. I let her innocence speak for itself without the hero remarking on it too much. And it only took me a day, and it's just tweaks, but I think it makes a difference. Anyway, I should hear back from my editor soon, and you can judge for yourself in about 9 months. Every day's a school day for this writer.

Excitement!

2011-03-08T22:00:00.003-05:00

So on Saturday night the first line of a new novel just fell into my head. This is a novel I've had a vague idea of for sometime, maybe a year, and it's loosely based on my very interesting apartment building. The first line is this:

People rarely moved in to Number Eighteen, East Ninety-Second Street. Being rent-controlled, PreWar and spacious, people generally only moved out in coffins.

I've been working on so many other things, and this idea has just been percolating in the back of mind for awhile, without me doing anything about it or really thinking of writing it but when that first line literally fell into my head, it opened this dam and since then I've written 17,000 words, which really is amazing for me. The story and characters were all there, in vague forms in my subconscious, but they have literally just poured out on the page, fully realized in a way I've never felt before. I *know* these people. Right away. And writing has been easy, and a joy, and exciting because the output is so amazing! 8k in one day! I've NEVER done that.

So bragging aside, I have no idea if it is as awesome as it feels it is, or if it actually stinks and really, no one cares about the made-up characters in my so-interesting apartment building! But at this point it doesn't even matter, because I love this feeling of writing easily SO much. Being contracted for 4 books a year is wonderful, a gift and privilege, but it's also hard work. Deadlines stare you grimly in the face and you just have to keep typing away even if you're sick, or tired, or stressed by life. And so now I'm just writing for the pure joy of it, and I really hope this book gets published, but in the meantime... I'll just keep letting the words flow.

New Cover!

2011-03-03T11:41:00.003-05:00

I am so excited to see the cover of my August release, the last book in the Bad Blood Collection. It's called Lone Wolfe and here is the cover and blurb:

Jacob… Master. Untamed. Protector.
After years of lying neglected, the walls of Wolfe Manor tremble as the master returns. Reputation in tatters, Jacob Wolfe licks his wounds alone. When Molly Parker takes her tentative steps across the threshold, she brings with her the light missing from his darkened soul. The lone Wolfe will never be tamed – but she knows that once he loves, he loves for life.

I think this is going to be fantastic series. Thanks to Ros and Michelle Styles for pointing me to the page on the M&B site with the covers!

Just Open A Vein

2011-02-28T09:49:00.004-05:00

This is the first book on writing that I ever read--when I was twelve years old. My parents gave it to me for Christmas along with a Smith-Corona electric typewriter, and I was in heaven. I felt like a 'real' writer. I wrote a lot of poetry on that typewriter (that was my angsty medium at the time) and a few stories, but both the book and the typewriter gave my self-confidence a real boost--there was something so definitive about seeing typed words on a page. This was (and now I'm dating myself) the days before computer and word-processing--although we did a behemoth of a computer the next year. I didn't start writing on the computer, however, until college.

In any case, memories aside, the title of the book has stayed with me through the years. It is taken from sports journalist Red Smith's observation about writing: 'All you do is sit down at a typewriter, open a vein, and bleed.'

This might seem like a rather gruesome image, but there is some truth to it. Writing the intense emotional love stories that are Presents feels a lot like bleeding onto the page (or the computer monitor, as the case may be). And in any writing, you can get to a certain place where the words are being pulled from deep inside you and it hurts, but it's a good hurt, because it feels true and real. That doesn't happen all the time, or maybe even some of the time, but when it does it's amazing. And painful. And I think readers can tell, because it resonates with them from that same deep place.

I'm revising my current manuscript now, and then I'm going to jump into big (massive!) revisions of the women's fiction I've been working on for years. And in both cases I am trying to leave my sensible organized self at the door and tap into that deep place... by opening a proverbial vein. We'll see what the results are!

Meanwhile check out my blog There's No Place Like Home on Harlequin Presents's site to read behind-the-scenes of The Undoing of De Luca, and have another chance to win a book from my backlist!

The Evolution of a Writer

2011-02-25T07:25:00.005-05:00

I handed in my latest book, working title Kholodov's Innocent, on Monday and have spent the last week catching up on various things that fall by the wayside when I'm on deadline--laundry, housecleaning, bills.... nothing too important!

I really enjoyed writing this book which is always a dangerous thing to say before revisions hit, because there might be a million things wrong with it that I wasn't able to see. I did go through it several times before handing it in, changing a word here, deleting a word there, and I think that was important. I usually don't have time to do that, and end up doing it with revisions, but since I was actually early for once I was able to tweak more than usual. Never underestimate tweaking!

Often people think (myself included, alas!) that once you are published, you don't need to improve as a writer. Your books are publication-standard, isn't that enough? And it's a good start, but it really is just the beginning. As writers we are not only improving but evolving. The very talented Trish Morey once made a comment that the book you write now is not the same as a book you wrote one or two or five years ago--not just because you have improved, but because you have changed. I can see the difference in my own books--my first Presents was accepted for publication 4 years ago, and although my books are the same in tone (emotional and angst-ridden!), the plots are a little different, the interchange between the hero and heroine a little more complex--I hope, anyway.

With this latest book I tried to pare down the internal narrative that I am so very fond of. I read a review somewhere of one of my earlier books in which the reader simply stated 'could have been good except for a lot of repetitive junk' and while I admit it hurt to read it at the time, it was a helpful comment in the long run because it made me ask myself 'IS there a lot of repetitive junk in my book?' Well, I wouldn't call it junk exactly, but I did realize I could say certain things in a smaller number of words, and that is what I've been trying to do with this book.

So I hope my books are improving as well as evolving,--I think you need both to really grow as a writer. To celebrate the completion of my 18th book, I am giving away a copy of Count Toussaint's Baby or Zoe and The Tormented Tycoon, which just happen to be two books I have a lot of copies of! If you'd like one of those books, leave a comment below or email me at katehewitt@kateh-hewitt.com!

Something a little different

2011-02-15T07:31:00.003-05:00

I have a serial coming out in The People's Friend Magazine in England this week, so if you live in that fair country then grab a copy! It's set in Greece in present day and also during World War Two, and here is a snippet to whet your interest:

‘You're a good woman, Sophia--’
Sophia Paranoussis dodged the arm of the drunken farmer who’d had a glass too many of the local retsina and went back to the steamy kitchen of her father's taverna for another tray of drinks. She hated working in the taverna, hated the thick fug of cigar smoke that filled the darkened room and whose smell never truly left her hair or her clothes. She especially hated the farmers who tried to steal a kiss in the smoky darkness, claiming she was a good woman simply for filling their glasses yet again.
Sighing, she swiped a sweaty strand of hair away from her forehead and dumped the dirty glasses into the large stone sink. It was July, and the heat of high summer made the kitchen nearly unbearable. Her younger sister, Angelika, was meant to be washing dishes, but Sophia saw in a single glance that the sink was full and the kitchen was empty. Angelika no doubt had slipped out the back door and gone in pursuit of her own pleasure.
A dart of worry needled Sophia, and it had nothing to do with the dirty dishes. No, there were far greater things to worry about, such as her sister's involvement with Demos Atrikes.
Demos had been in the taverna earlier, but Sophia realized with a growing alarm that she hadn't heard his booming laugh in at least an hour. No doubt Angelika had slipped out when he had, and they were meeting somewhere--
Sophia shook her head, closing her eyes as she offered a brief and fervent prayer to keep her sister safe, her family safe, even all of Greece safe for since the Nazis had marched into Athens in April 1941 safety was no longer a guarantee. Sometimes it felt like a miracle.
So far their little mountain village had escaped notice, too far from Athens or anything of note to attract the attention of German soldiers, although Sophia had heard stories, terrible stories. She also heard murmurs of andartes, terrified whispers of the Communist-led Resistance movement, ELAS, that could be as vicious and violent as the Nazis themselves, as well as the less bloodthirsty EDES, a Resistance movement led by General Zervas of the National Democratic party. Neither movement liked or trusted the other, and there was nearly as much bloodshed between the two as by the Nazis.
Demos Atrikes, from a family of Communists, belonged to the former. Sophia had seen him in the town square, heard him bragging about the gun he'd been given by Aris Velouchiotis himself. Angelika laughed at such tales, clearly enamoured by Demos's dark hair and self-confident swagger, but Sophia knew better than to be turned by such folly. Now, more than ever, was a time to keep your head down and go quietly about your business, attracting no attention, causing no alarm.
Angelika didn't seem to agree.
Sighing, Sophia loaded her tray with clean glasses and headed back out to the smoky taverna. She would talk to her sister tonight, and God willing, make her see some sense.
That, she thought wryly as she dodged the drunken farmer yet again, was what a good woman would do.

I really enjoyed writing this serial, which was a bit different for me as I've written a few Presents set in modern-day Greece, but nothing set during the War. It required a lot of fascinating and heart-rending research, for Greeks really suffered during the Nazi Occupation, and afterward during their own civil war. The story centers on the Resistance's sabotage of the Gorgopotamos Bridge, which was the first successful act of sabotage in Greece, and the first time British SOEs (twelve) were involved in the Resistance effort of another country. In the contemporary part of the story, English woman Ava Lancet is coming to the farmhouse her grandmother left her in Greece to escape the breakdown in her marriage, and she finds herself fascinated by glimpses into her grandmother's past. So do get a copy if you can--I haven't seen it myself so if anyone would like to tell me how the illustrations turned out I'd be much obliged! In the meantime, you can also check out the fabulous Sarah Morgan's blog at the Harlequin Presents authors' blog (different from Iheart Presents).

Enjoy!

Writing healthy

2011-02-10T08:44:00.000-05:00

So some of you may have noticed that RWA's magazine this month is devoted to pursuing a healthy lifestyle as a writer. I haven't actually read the magazine yet, so this post might be a bit premature, but it's something I've been thinking about for awhile anyway, mainly because I'm so tired. Now for the past 12 years I've given myself excuses for being tired. I've raised four kids, after all, had two babies who woke up every 20-30 minutes all night long for the first YEAR of their lives, and in general my life is somewhat chaotic. However I'm starting to realize that I'm running out of excuses. I've had a spate of non-sleeping recently, namely because of a certain teething two year old, but in general my kids all sleep through the night, and I manage to get 7-8 hours myself. So I shouldn't be THAT tired, right? And no, I am not pregnant.

So I started thinking about ways to improve energy. Of course I'm doing all the things you shouldn't do if you want more energy. Drinking coffee, skipping breakfast, overloading on sugar and not exercising. Once in awhile I take some vitamins. So I checked a book out of the library called 'Clean Food' and it inspired me to buy and eat locally grown produce, which is something I believe in from a moral/economical standpoint (supporting local farmers) and also a nutritional standpoint (the less distance produce travels, the healthier it is) BUT! That book scared me. Because all the recipes had things like kale and miso and some kind of bean I've never heard of, and frankly none of that is going to go over well with my kids or even my husband. And I like cheese.

So I'm thinking I need to take some baby steps on healthy living, healthy writing. And these are my goals: 1.) Sit up straight at the computer (I have terrible posture, which I really want to improve) 2.) Eat breakfast 3.) Exercise for 15 minutes a day. I think those are reasonable goals to start with. I don't want to get so ambitious I fail before I even begin. Do you have any healthy living/writing goals? Any tips? Any recipes that don't involve sea vegetables?

The joy of being a writer... and thank you!

2011-02-09T09:09:00.000-05:00

There are so many wonderful things about being a writer. There is the tingling excitement of a new idea, the thrill of getting a great scene down, the wonder of holding a book in your hands with your name on it. There are some great firsts--first book, first pay check, first glowing review. The magic of seeing my book, the amazement that I get paid for it... these are all great things.

There are also some hard things--just like with any other profession. There are times when writing feel like blood spattering the page, whole books that are painful to write, sales figures that aren't stellar, reviews that aren't glowing and some that are just plain mean. I don't think I was prepared for some of these things when I first started out, and from talking to other writers, I don't think many people are prepared. Because for so long getting published is liking climbing a mountain, and when you reach the top you think you are at THE TOP, when in fact there is a whole mountain out there before you. You just didn't see it before. I didn't come up with that analogy, by the way, but it is a great one. In fact I heard it when I was still unpublished, and I remember thinking yeah, WHATEVER. Because at that point I just wanted to climb that one darn mountain, and even being able to SEE all the others seemed like a bonus.

Yet after that mountain has been climbed, those others ones can be pretty daunting. Pretty high. And when setbacks occur--as they invariably do--it feels like you fell down the side of a sheer cliff without a safety rope. All this to say how incredibly happy and thankful I am when readers take the time to write me about my books. I woke up this morning to an absolutely lovely email from a reader about my book Bound To The Greek, and I'm still smiling about it! It's just so nice to know your books are being read and enjoyed. The one-star snarky reviews fade to nothing in light of just one reader whom I know enjoyed my book. So thank you to all of you who have taken the time to let me know you enjoy my books. It means the world to me.

Trusting the process

2011-01-22T07:53:00.001-05:00

So it is onto the next thing, which is due in March, and as usual I am experiencing my maybe-I-should-scrap-it-all-and-write-something-else panic, which always seems to hit around 15k into the story. Fortunately (or unfortunately, perhaps), this happens with nearly every book and so I was ready for it, and managed to talk myself down from the ledge. (My March release, The Undoing of De Luca, was written in a somewhat blind panic after abandoning 15k of the project I'd been working on just 3 weeks before my deadline--however, I love the book and I think it all worked out well, so...)

In any case, I'm starting to trust my process, which I know is an overused phrase and so has lost some of its meaning, but this is what it means for me: trust that even if I don't know what I'm doing NOW, I will later. This book will figure itself out as long as I keep writing, keep thinking, keep trying to dig deeper with these characters. All rewarding yet grueling stuff, but I can be a bit of a control freak sometimes and so at 15k I really like to know where I'm going to be at 20k, or 30k, or the end. And often I don't, and that makes me panic, except this time round I'm trying hard not to, and just trust that I will finish, there will be a light-bulb moment or two, and this book will work out.

I hope.

New things

2011-01-03T20:24:00.001-05:00

We had a lovely Christmas at home this year, and after experiencing it I am a full-on 100% advocate for not traveling during Christmas. In past years, for the most part, we have done the mega-schlep and packed presents, suitcases, all the kid and baby gear, and gone to relatives, usually my brother or parents. And it's fun, and crazy, and exhausting, and wonderful, but with four kids, the oldest now on the cusp of her teens (still find that shocking!), I think we might be ready to stay home.

And I have to confess that staying home means I get to sneak in a little no-pressured writing time, as this is technically vacation. So over the holidays I finished the women's fiction I'd been working on for over two years, which was a huge milestone, and I also got a start on my next Presents, currently titled Innocence and Experience. I'm having a little fun with this story, and it's just a tiny bit different in tone than my other Presents, so we'll see what my editor says but so far I like it!

Tomorrow I actually leave for three days for a short break with my husband to the Lake District in England. I'm really looking forward to it--we have not been away alone together since before our 4th was born over two years ago. This is long due!

Happy New Year everybody, and happy reading!

Release dates

2010-12-16T15:25:00.000-05:00

So my editor emailed me with my upcoming release dates, which I am excited about! They are as follows:

Mr and Mischief, Mills & Boon Modern, June 2011
The Man Who Could Not Love, Harlequin Presents Extra, June 2011
The Matchmaker Bride, Harlequin Presents, August 2011
Blackmail Babies Duo wit Jennie Lucas (to be titled), Harlequin Presents, September 2011

Now for the confusing part. Mr and Mischief and The Matchmaker Bride are the same book, just with different titles. The Man Who Could Not Love is the US title for my July 2010 Modern release The Bride's Awakening. With all the title changes, it seems like I've written twice as many book as I actually have! The Editorial Office is experimenting a bit with titles, and trying to change them from the Billionaire's Baby formula that has been successful and perhaps a touch overused these last ten years or so. I generally like the new titles, although The Man Who Could Not Love makes me think of a James Bond movie! Anyway we shall see how the different titles sell, for the proof, as they say, is in the pudding (or in the sales figures).

Blogging at RT Book Reviews site this week!

2010-12-05T21:21:00.000-05:00

I was asked to blog about Zoe & The Tormented Tycoon at RT Book Reviews this week, and I'll let you know when I have a link. The subject is the Presents hero who *doesn't* have it all, and can't buy it--and I'm actually not talking about love (although he doesn't have that at the beginning of the book, at least).

I found out this week that Zoe & the TT made the USA Today bestseller list at #99, which is really thrilling. This is the second book of mine to make the list, and it really is a wonderful feeling!

I also should have some firm release dates for my summer books soon. I do have a release date for my UK readers--my serial set in Greece during WWII and contemporary times, The Other Side of the Bridge, is coming out in the magazine The People's Friend in February, and will run through April. Check it out if you live in the UK or in fact Australia! You might not know this magazine, but it is in just about every supermarket or newsagent's--it's thin, with a watercolour illustration on the front, and it retails for about 65p, so it won't to break the bank if you buy a copy! Every issue has 8-9 short stories, some romances, some family dramas, as well as two serial installments--the serials are book length and run one chapter per week.

I started my career writing for The People's Friend--I still remember getting the magazine in the post and sitting down on the sofa and staring at my story in disbelief. I also couldn't believe I was getting PAID to do this--although admittedly not very much! That was in 2001, and I have written for them ever since--some 200 stories, and The Other Side of the Bridge will be my sixth serial. I love everyone there and the magazine has been going strong for over one hundred years.

Let me know if you end up buying a copy of the magazine--I'd love to hear what you think of it!

Website updates and more

2010-12-01T08:21:00.000-05:00

Sorry again for the silence. I wish I was a better blogger, I really do! I try to keep up with Facebook and Twitter, but I suppose there are only so many outlets where you can talk about yourself without feeling like a complete egomaniac!

In any case, I have, you might have noticed, updated my website. There are new excerpts and behind-the-scenes for all my releases, including Bound To The Greek, which is on sale online at mills and boon now in the UK, and Zoe & The Tormented Tycoon, which is in shops now in the US!

I've had some exciting news since I last wrote: I am about to sign a six book contract, so you can expect plenty of Presents from me in the next year or two! I'll be able to tell you a little more about one of those books, which is a little special, in a few weeks.

Meanwhile I just finished the edits on Mr and Mischief, the retelling of Emma out this summer, and have started my new work-in-progress, which has a gorgeous Russian hero and the insouciant American who breaks down the barriers around his heart. It's currently titled Innocence and Experience, and I'm really loving it so far.

And of course amid all this writing, I need to make some preparation for Christmas! With Thanksgiving in the US, Christmas always seems to pop up so suddenly. One minute you're eating turkey and pumpkin pie, the next you're panicking about sending out cards and wrapping presents. I hope at least for those of you in the UK the current snow is putting you in a festive mood!

Exciting news!

2010-11-03T09:25:00.001-04:00

I just learned that Zoe & The Tormented Tycoon was nominated for Romantic Times' Reviewer's Choice Award. This is the first award one of my books has ever been nominated for, so I'm pretty excited. Zoe won't be released until December, but it is on sale now over at eharlequin.

Meanwhile I'm hard at work at my novella, and have about 5,000 words to go--but they're important, hard-to-write words, so after writing 8,000 words in 2 days, I'm slowing down and trying to really get it right.

I also spotted my book, The Lone Wolfe, on Amazon.uk--it will be on sale this summer, the last book in the Bad Blood Collection. Doesn't that sound interesting?!

Taking a breather

2010-10-25T08:32:00.000-04:00

So I apologize for the silence on this blog, but I have been completely and utterly snowed under with MASSIVE revisions to my last book. I think I get big revisions every 5 or so books, and this was no exception. This bordered on a complete rewrite, which is difficult and discouraging but in the end I think it worked. I finished the reread last night and was, thankfully, pleasantly surprised. So I sent the ms in and now have 3 weeks to write a novella--yikes! However I managed 2000 words before the revisions hit. Here is the first paragraph:

Rafe Sandoval pulled his Porsche to the curb and stared at the seemingly innocuous terraced house he’d parked in front of. It was a bit shabby, on an ordinary little street, in a bland, faceless suburb of London. And his son--his son--was inside.

Rafe and Freya are a couple I've had in my mind for awhile. In fact, I wrote 16,000 words of their story last winter before I decided it wasn't working and scrapped it--then I wrote another book, The Undoing of De Luca, in three weeks! I was a little panicked :) Since then I've changed their story a bit, and now I think (hope!) it works. We'll see...

Meanwhile I've had some very nice news, which is that Zoe and The Tormented Tycoon, released as Zoe's Lesson in the UK, received 4.5 stars from Romantic Times magazine, and was one of their December top picks! This is the first time one of my books has been a top pick, and I'm very pleased. Here is the review:

When Zoe Balfour finds out she is, biologically speaking, not a Balfour, her world collapses. She meets billionaire Max Monroe at a party and finds someone whose future is even in more peril than hers. Max is slowly going blind, and he's desperate to hide the fact--and some painful secrets--from Zoe and the world. Believing that socialite Zoe will ultimately reject him, Max forces her out of his life, unaware that she is carrying his child. The less-than-perfect hero with a tragic past and the heroine who desperately wants to love him is an irresistible combination that readers will love. The end is sure to melt even the most cynical heart. A winner!

That definitely puts a smile on my face as I turn back to the keyboard and the work-in-progress!

New Cover!

2010-10-06T07:58:00.001-04:00

I've been waiting rather anxiously for the cover of my January release, Bound To The Greek, because it is one of Mills & Boon's new covers. Well, here it is:

What do you think? I'm not sure I'm crazy about the hero's scruffy goatee look, but I'll take it. Overall I really like the new cover design, and I'm looking forward to seeing future covers. Meanwhile... I've just handed in my Emma book, and am now about to start writing a novella with the theme 'Blackmail Babies'. This will be part of a duo with the fabulous Jennie Lucas. My story is set in Spain, and has an intense, brooding hero and a cool, English heroine--I'm really looking forward to writing their story. These characters have been in my mind for over a year now, and I just hadn't found the right story for them, but I think this is it--well, it had better be!

Zoe's Lesson is out now in the UK, and will be in the US in December as Zoe & The Tormented Tycoon (and he looks like a tormented Doogie Howser on the cover!). And in personal news, I've spent A LOT of time researching dog breeds and breeders because yes, we are finally doing it. We are getting a dog. Gulp. We are looking at getting an older Golden Retriever puppy. I'll keep you posted.

The time-suck of social networking

2010-09-19T18:02:00.000-04:00

I am not someone who shudders at technology, generally speaking. Yet at the age of 36 (37 in two weeks--yikes!), I find myself having some belated sympathy for my mother, who refused to figure out how to work the microwave or TV remote control. As a teenager I was impatient with her utter resistance, but now I realize these innovations came relentlessly into her world when she was already in her late 30s/40s, and learning to adjust at that age is not easy.

In fact, I find myself in a similar position. I resisted actively using a cellphone until we moved to New York, and I realized it was an essential item in the Big Apple. I had one before then, but I pretty much left it switched off, which naturally limited its usefulness (and infuriated my husband when he was trying to get in touch with me--he was the only one with my number.) I didn't even understand how Facebook worked until about a year ago, and I finally capitulated to twitter two weeks ago. And now I am on Goodreads.

I'm reluctant to embrace all these innovations firstly because I am a slow learner technology-wise (and I still use these in a bare minimum kind of way--for example, I still have not figured out what a widget is.) Secondly it's a huge time-suck. The internet is always a temptation when you are writing, but now it is accompanied by all sorts of dazzling possibilities: maybe someone has tweeted me (is that even the proper syntax?!), or reviewed my book on Amazon or now Goodreads (on second hand, let's not check reviews, shall we?) and then of course email always needs to be refreshed... and look, it's ten p.m. and I should have finished the chapter and I've written--wait--two hundred words! Excellent!

All this to say, I'm now on Goodreads and you can friend or follow me or whatever the expression is--just search for Kate Hewitt. I'm going to try to be fairly regular in posting the books I read, because that is actually an attractive option. And don't forget I'm on Twitter too--you can't get rid of me, it seems!

The finish line is in sight

2010-09-15T08:11:00.000-04:00

I have two more chapters to write of my latest book, and I am coming close to breathing a huge sigh of relief because this book has definitely not been easy to write, and I am already preparing myself for some fairly massive revisions. But at least it's almost over, and next up is a novella that I have already plotted out a bit, and which I'm hoping will be a little easier! It's funny how some books seem to write themselves--well, almost--and others are a grueling battle for each and every word. I'm not even sure why that is, and I can never predict which it will be, alas.

In the meantime, I'm getting my inspiration from the wonderful New Voices entries. I'm really impressed with the quality of the submissions, and it's making me go back to my manuscript and try to raise the bar a bit! Good luck everyone, I can't wait to hear who the finalists are.

Tweet tweet

2010-09-08T21:50:00.000-04:00

I've officially joined Twitter, and am actually using it fairly regularly! More regularly than I update my website, at any rate. So if you have a Twitter account, you can follow me and I'll follow you--sounds like a song! My username is katehewitt1. (I have a feeling I signed up as katehewitt and then forgot. I have a tendency of doing that. I registered for the domain www.katehewitt.com when I first sold and then promptly forgot, only to register again six months later and wonder who had bought my domain! Duh--I had, and I can't locate any of the information that would allow me to use it. You are probably wondering now how I manage to write book. I wonder that too.)

Still wrestling with my current ms, nearing the end though! And after that I get to write a novella which feels easy-peasy compared to this. Ha! Nothing's easy, I know. Not really...

Mills & Boon's New Voices competition is now open!

2010-09-06T08:31:00.000-04:00

If you haven't heard about this, Mills & Boon is running an X-Factor style writing competition running from today until the end of September. You can post your first chapter and people will comment on it on the site (a little exciting, a little alarming!) and then the judges (editors and the fabulous Presents author Penny Jordan) will pick ten winning entries who will further develop their manuscripts. It goes on from there, and eventually there will be one winner who will get GUARANTEED publication, and let me tell you, few writers get that, ever! So if you're an aspiring romance writer, check out Romance is not dead. It's also fun to read the entries that are already posted--some historicals and paranormals so far. I really applaud those who are posting their chapters--it's not easy to put your work out there!

I am over halfway through my latest manuscript, the retelling of Emma, which is currently titled Kingsley's Choice. I'm sure that will change, as I've yet to pick a title my editor has kept. I also just read a book I *have* to recommend, it was that good. One-Night... Nine-Month Scandal by Sarah Morgan was fun, sexy, and with a wonderful hero and heroine. It's out in stores now.

Back to Emily and Jason, who are about to take their relationship into a whole new direction...

The crispness of a new notebook, the joy of a sharp pencil

2010-08-29T21:59:00.000-04:00

Or something like that. I just took my children shopping for school supplies, and they were in rhapsodies over picking out new folders, markers, erasers, etc. Shopping for school supplies is a big deal now because the school gives us a very long list of communal supplies all the students/families need to provide for the classroom. So in addition to the pencils and notebooks, we had to haul 5 packs of looseleaf, 4 boxes of crayons, boxes of tissues and Clorox wipes, etc, etc home--and in New York City this meant taking a taxi from Target.

I wish I could approach the blank computer screen with as much joy as my children do their pencils and notebooks. Isn't a blank computer screen similar to a box of unused crayons? It's all about the freshness and potential. However a blank computer screen can be a lot more intimidating than that box of crayons, or pencils, or papers. Its blankness can seem overwhelming, waiting to be filled with inadequate words, overused ideas...

Can you tell I'm in a wee bit of a slump with my latest book? It's not so bad actually--I've certainly had worse. But with only one month to my deadline and half a book to write plus the start of school and all THAT means and I'm starting to panic. Slightly.

However I did get some refreshment from my family vacation in California where I did not bring the laptop but instead indulged in all sorts of wonderful reading: Nanny Returns, The Heart of The Matter by Emily Giffin, The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, and All I ever Wanted by Kristan Higgins. All excellent, and now I need to tear myself away from such good books and get back into the story I'm supposed to tell... I can do it! I know I can! Time to go stare at that blank screen...

Sorry!

2010-08-02T16:45:00.000-04:00

I haven't blogged in ages, mainly because summer is such a crazy time with all four children running rings around me in our apartment. I just returned from the RWA conference in Orlando, which was exhausting, consuming, and really quite wonderful. I met up with several other Presents authors, including the fabulous Sandra Marton, the super friendly Jane Porter, the wickedly funny Caitlin Crews, the delightful dancer Jennie Lucas, and hmm, I'm running out of adjectives so I'll just keep going: Janette Kenny, Maisey Yates, Carole Mortimer, Susan Stephens, and Lynn Raye Harris, all of whom were lovely, friendly, warm and wonderful friends I was so glad to either meet again or for the first time.

Meanwhile I am attempting to really get started on my Emma-inspired book, which is currently titled Kingsley's Choice. I'm finding it difficult, but I had a wonderfully shivery a-ha moment last night while rocking my youngest to sleep, so I'm hoping to make some headway soon.

I also came home to several translations in the mail, including Japanese, Dutch, Spanish, and Italian! Moments like these--as well as the entire last week--make me so grateful to be an author for Harlequin Presents.

What have you been up to? What are you reading? How is your summer going?

Internet detective

2010-06-28T13:33:00.000-04:00

My book The Undoing of De Luca comes out in September, which is relatively soon, but Amazon doesn't have a cover yet. Still, I figured there had to be a cover *somewhere* on the internet, and so after googling the title, I finally found a picture on Borders in Australia.

Here it is:

I have mixed feelings about this cover. On one hand, they got the heroine's hair right--long, straight, and white-blonde. On the other hand, it looks like she's in the middle of a squat and the hero looks a little... greasy. Plus if the heroine straightened, wouldn't she be taller than him? And what's with the generic hotel bedroom in the background? Admittedly, hotels feature rather prominently in this book, but they never stay at the Hilton.

In any case, covers are completely out of my control, and so far I've only had one that I truly shuddered at, and three that I absolutely loved. Can you guess which ones??

Hello again...

2010-06-17T09:10:00.000-04:00

I haven't blogged lately because, to be honest, there hasn't been much to blog about! After turning in my latest manuscript, The Tortured Rake, I took a breather from writing and dealt with the friendly chaos of end of school--concerts, awards ceremonies, picnics--all fun stuff, but time consuming! Then of course the children haul back all their school papers and detritus, and then the painful decision of what to keep and throw away... will I treasure my five year old's scrawled drawing of a school bus in years to come or not? In the end, I kept a few things for each child and consigned the rest to the bin. Such treasures as this journal entry of my son's, of course, were a keeper:

My hero is my mom and dad because if they were ded we would not no what to do and we might die to and are house might exploude and nobudy could live in it that will be sad. But if they were alive that wonte happen and it will be drust fine it will be cool and nowune will die and it will be grate.

Now my next deadline is starting to loom and I need to get stuck into the manuscript, which, as I've said before, is a retelling of Emma--very challenging to pare away the secondary characters and figure out how to make it more of a Presentsy story!

Meanwhile, The Bride's Awakening is on sale now in the UK, and Count Toussaint's Baby will be on sale on eharlequin in July. To check out The Bride's Awakening (which, incidentally, is one of my favorite books!), go here.

The Battle of the Covers:

2010-06-04T20:20:00.001-04:00

The cover of my July release The Bride's Awakening in India:

And in the UK:

Which do you prefer? Neither scene, as far as I can tell, actually appears in the book, but never mind...

Summer Fun!

2010-06-02T08:15:00.000-04:00

Now that my schedule is clearing up--big sigh of relief--I thought I'd do some fun stuff on my blog, such as host some other authors. What do you like to hear about from authors? What they're working on? Where they get their inspiration? What their writing day is like? How many pets they have? Let me know and I'll start lining up some guest bloggers!

More covers

2010-05-28T11:43:00.000-04:00

I thought I'd put up some of my covers from foreign editions. Here are a few recent ones:

The booksigning at BEA was really fun--I've never signed so many books so quickly! Unfortunately I didn't have time to look around. Just about all my favourite authors were there but I had to zip out to pick up my kids from school. Next time I'll make sure to spend a little more time there!

New cover

2010-05-26T08:14:00.000-04:00

I'm always excited to see a new cover, and the UK cover for my book in the Balfour Brides continuity, Zoe's Lesson, is now up at Mills & Boon. The US Presents cover will look the same as the others, but this one is really different... the heroine reminds me of Posh Spice!

So I've started to think about my Emma-inspired book and trying to figure out how to update Emma's matchmaking propensities without it taking away from the central romance of the story. It's kind of tricky! I think this book will have a slightly different feel than my others, although perhaps it will change when I actually start writing it...

As for today, I am off to BEA in a few hours to sign books!!

And his name is...

2010-05-23T08:29:00.001-04:00

Jason Kingsley! Thanks everyone who emailed suggestions for my hero's last name. I decided to go with Kingsley, which I believe was suggested by two people--Denise and Amanda. Email me with your choice of backlist title and I'll be happy to send them to you.

I am now just finishing the tweaks on The Tortured Rake before sending it in. Funnily enough, my mind is already starting to wander towards the next book, although I am going to attempt to exercise some self-discipline and not start writing until July. I find I write Presents better if I have a little break between books. The stories are so intense and emotional that I can't give them my all if I'm writing back to back. It also gives me an opportunity to work on another writing project, a single title women's fiction that I've been toiling away at for several years. Maybe one of these days I'll actually finish...

I also have an exciting opportunity this week: I'm signing books at BEA, the Book Expo of America right here in New York! This is very exciting, as there will be hundreds of authors and readers there, and I get to be amidst it all! Not only that, but there is a party that evening for the Harlequin authors, which is also very exciting. 99% of being a writer is sitting at my desk in my kitchen, trying to focus as chaos erupts around me. The other 1% is fun stuff like this, and I can't wait!

Winner and ramblings

2010-05-18T08:09:00.000-04:00

Thanks to everyone who emailed me with their lists of my matched up heroes and heroines. I was surprised (and of course gratified!) to see that Stefano and Allegra of The Italian's Bought Bride were ranked high among the favorites, because that book was basically completely rewritten. I got to 47,000 words and 2 weeks before my deadline, and realized my marriage of convenience plot did not work. So I had to go back to the drawing board, and was two weeks late with my deadline, which I never have been before or since. But in the end I really loved Stefano and Allegra's story, so I'm glad some of you did too! And Denise, email me with your address details and I'll send you a copy of Count Toussaint's Baby, although unfortunately not yet because the books won't arrive until June. Sorry--this was an early contest! And when they DO arrive, I'll pick some other lucky winners :)

So I've put The Tortured Rake on the back burner for a bit, since it is finished and I generally like to have a week or so to gain some perspective (sometimes a week is a luxury when it comes to a deadline--sometimes it is a day or an hour!!) While I'm waiting, though, I've started thinking about my next book, which is going to be a little different. Its current title is Emily's Match, and it is a retelling of a 'classic' romance--in this case, Jane Austen's 'Emma'. A couple of Presents authors have been asked to retell these classic stories, and I'm guessing they will be out in Spring/Summer 2011. It's really interesting--and challenging--to update a story while of course retaining its timeless themes! I'm trying to come up with character names that relate to the characters of Emma--Emma Wodehouse is Emily Wood, yet I'm stumped for a last name for Mr. Knightley! His first name is Jason, and he won't be budged on that, but can you think of a name that relates to Knightley without being obvious? And if someone makes a suggestion I end up choosing, I'll send you any one book from my backlist!

Onwards to Orlando

2010-05-15T10:06:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I bit the proverbial bullet, threw caution to the winds, and registered for the RWA conference. I booked my hotel room and bought my plane ticket. I'm going. This is a little alarming to me because a.) All told, it costs a fair bit of money b.) Leaving my kids for 5 days is not a usual occurrence. Yet I did it, mainly because my good friend and fabulous Presents author Jennie Lucas (who is up for a RITA this year!!!) convinced me. She told me that I was a mom 360 days of the year and I should get to be a writer for five. And after battling missing homework, teething baby, whiny kids, rainy weather, sleepless nights, picky eaters, and endless laundry for soooo long, I am inclined to agree with her!

So yeah. I'm going. And once my head stops spinning, it will feel good.

I've officially written 'The End' on my latest book. Usually I am so very ready to write those words and see the last of a manuscript. Yet surprisingly, for the first time, or at least the first time in a long time, I was reluctant to finish this book. I ended up enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would. And even though I still have revisions (oh, joy) I'm a little sad I've finished all the fresh first-draft stuff.

Whenever I finish a book, I think about all the other couples I've brought together in my other books--I'm a veritable matchmaker. So I thought I'd play a little game and list all my heroes and heroines and see if you can match them together! And if you shoot me an email or leave a comment with a couple of answers (say three, because I know there are a lot!) I'll enter you in a drawing to win my August release, Count Toussaint's Baby! Here they are, in NO particular order:

Heroes

Lukas
Stefano
Aarif
Larenz
Cormac
Alessandro
Khaled
Vittorio
Luc
Jacob
Max
Leandro
Jace
Leo
Demos

Heroines

Megan
Lizzie
Mollie
Zoe
Zoe
Rhiannon
Kalila
Phoebe
Lucy
Ellery
Eleanor
Allegra
Althea
Ana
Abby
So who belongs to who (or whom?) Take your best guess!

Steps in the dark

2010-05-13T08:15:00.000-04:00

Writing a book, for me, is like taking steps in the dark. Or not quite the dark, but perhaps holding one of those very little pen flashlights. So I can see just a tiny bit in front of me, but not much else. This is hard, because in general I like to know things. Like the ending. Or the big black moment. Or just a general sense of how it's all going to play out. I'm not what they say in the trade is a pantser. Or is it pantster? In any case, I don't like to fly by the seat of 'em.

Except, I'm coming to discover, my muse does. Or my subconscious. Or just... me. The last 4 books I've written have turned out differently than I thought, and I only found that out as I've been writing. And, amazingly, the writing has been if not easy, then at least enjoyable. Each scene reveals itself at the proper time, which is right when I'm about to write it. And the big moment at the end reveals itself right about then, too. That is, as I need to write it.

So, after 15 books, I'm learning to trust this process of mine, even though it wasn't the one I'd necessarily choose. And isn't that a little bit like life? Not to get all philosophical, because that is generally my husband's department, but in my life I've generally wanted to know the next 5 or 6 steps of whatever is going to happen. My mind jumps ahead so I'm half-living in the future rather than the present, and I think there is a reason why God keeps me mainly in the dark--in both life and books!

I'm coming to the end of my latest book, The Tortured Rake, and it's been really good to write. My hero is indeed a tortured rake. He has to go through a lot of tough stuff, probably more than any other hero I've written (and whoa, that's saying something!) to come out to the other side. I just read a review of a book [not mine] and the reviewer praised the author for not giving the characters any 'issues'. And being the insecure writer that I am, I immediately thought 'But ALL my characters have issues!' After reflecting on it for a bit, though, I realized that was okay. I write romance because I love writing (and reading) about how love redeems and heals us. I like to write about a HEA that came with blood, sweat, and tears [mine as well as my characters'!] because I feel then it's earned and it's real. So maybe my books won't go over well with that one reviewer [in fact they don't--she reviewed one of my books and wasn't too pleased with it!] but I hope they resonate with other readers.

So... back to The Tortured Rake. I'm on the last chapter where everything is wrapping up and wow, what a ride it's been!

Nearing the finish line

2010-05-05T21:21:00.000-04:00

So I'm at 40,000 words of my current book, and am feeling everything start to come to a boil for that big scene that has to happen at the end of the book. Considering I still have 3 and 1/2 weeks until my deadline, I'm doing pretty well. My last two books were written nail-bitingly close to the deadline, as in the first draft was finished 3 days before. Hence some substantial revisions. I'm hoping this book goes through a BIT more easier... but you never know in this business.

Meanwhile I've enjoyed reading some books outside of the romance genre. Two of my favorites so far have been 'The Help' by Kathryn Stockett and 'Portrait of an Unknown Woman' by Vanora Bennett. I'm now onto 'Olive Kitteredge' by Elizabeth Strout which has been giving to me with glowing reviews. I'm always slightly wary of glowing reviews; perhaps it is my secretly cynical nature. In any case, the more someone tells me how great a book this is, the less likely I am to read it. This is a running joke in my family because my mother gave me a book when I was 19 years old and I still haven't read it. What can I say?

Neglected blog, reason why

2010-04-26T22:17:00.000-04:00

Well, I could give lots of reasons. Tons. Like the four children who sometimes, on occasion, need my attention. The baby who is teething without ever getting ANY TEETH. Besides the six she already has and is biting me with every time I try to check if she's got anymore... not the best idea I've ever had. Or the stress of trying to sell a house nobody seems to want. Or the gorgeous weather which drove me outside despite my best intentions to stay chained to my computer. Or the fact that of all the things on my to-do list, I am always strangely reluctant to update my blog. Some authors are really gifted at blogs, at the whole bloggy-blog type of writing. You know, chatty, friendly, pull up a chair kind of writing. I don't think I'm that successful, but I try. Or will try. When I start updating my blog a bit more regularly.

In the meantime... news! I just had the cyber stamp of approval on my 14th book, which is titled Bound To The Greek and will be out in the UK in January 2011. Meanwhile I'm hard at work (really!) on my 15th book, which is part of a new continuity called The Notorious Wolfes. My hero is the oldest brother and he is what is known as an old soul. I'm working steadily through the rough draft, but I know it's going to need a lot of clean up. Usually I stop in the middle and clean up the beginning, but this time round I'm trying something new. It's full steam ahead, all the way to the end if I can, before I start reworking everything. Why am I doing this? Because I am finding that writing the new stuff is helping me understand what I need to change about the old stuff. I confess, I didn't have a complete grip on my characters before I started, but I'm learning about them as I go and that really helps. Of course, rewriting tends not to be as enjoyable as writing the first time round, but it possesses its own satisfactions when you get it right.

I also have some upcoming projects I'm excited about, including a short story that will come out in the US under the titillating title 'Blackmail Babies'. And that's all I have to go with, so already my mind is mulling over possibilities of plots involving--yes, you guessed it--blackmail and... babies!! Or at least one baby. I'm not sure about twins at this point...

Last bit of news: I'm offering a three month writing mentorship again at Brenda Novak's wonderful auction for diabetes research. This is especially relevant to me because my dear niece Jessica was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes this winter, when she was 14. She's amazing at adjusting her lifestyle and diet to the disease, but it makes getting the funding for research all the more important in my mind. So do stop by to check out my offerings, as well as the many, many amazing things--books, jewelry, writing critiques, chocolate, perfumes, TRIPS--that you can bid on. In addition to the mentorship I am offering my complete autographed backlist--so get over there now ;)

New cover

2010-04-06T18:15:00.000-04:00

For my July release, The Bride's Awakening:

What do you think? Are they on a rug in front of a fire? Because my book after this one has this scene in it, right down to the Oriental rug... but this book doesn't! And does she look like she's dead or asleep?! Not sure...

Updates!

2010-03-15T07:46:00.000-04:00

I've finally updated my website, which never takes as long as I think it is going to take, but always seems to be an onerous task before I do it. Anyway, there is a new excerpt for my next US release, Count Toussaint's Baby, as well as behind the scenes info and photos, all on my booklist page. There is also a March short story on my Writing Stuff page, Triangles, which is not a romance but is one of my favorite things that I've ever written... do check it out and let me know what you think!

I handed my last book in March 1 and have been working on a few other projects before I start my next manuscript. I'm writing a serial for the UK magazine The People's Friend; it's set in Greece in the current day as well as during WWII. I've been enjoying writing the two different time periods, but let's see what my editor thinks! I'm also working on a mainstream novel about two NYC mothers who become unlikely friends over the course of one summer. This is a real departure from my comfort zone, because I've never written this kind of thing before. I'm 30,000 words in and am trying to polish the first 100 pages to send to my agent, but it's the kind of thing where I endlessly nitpick and change a word or two because I'm so nervous to send it off.

And I actually wrote this blog post weeks ago but never managed to post it, so here it is in all of its glory! Happy Easter everyone!!

A first for everything

2010-02-19T17:12:00.000-05:00

I'm reaching the end of my current manuscript, tentatively titled A Captive Heart, and for the first time since I started writing I made myself cry! I know some writers say if you don't make yourself cry, how will you make your readers cry [the good kind of cry, that is!] but that's never worked for me. Maybe it's because I generally don't like to cry.

In any case, I wrote an emotional scene at the end of the book that touched on an experience in my own life [which I won't go into because I don't want to spoil the heroine's secret!] but it was good and even restorative for me to be able to draw on my own experience and emotions to write the scene--and I hope it has that ring of authenticity!

I'm excited about my next release, Her Mediterranean Playboy, which contains my novella The Italian's Housekeeper Mistress as well as another by Melanie Milburne. It goes on sale at eharlequin in March and will be in stores in April. I also received a US release date for Count Toussaint's Pregnant Mistress, which will be called Count Toussaint's Baby and will be out in the US in August.

Finally, I am updating my website at long last with new behind-the-scenes for my latest releases and TWO new short stories on my links page--hopefully these will all be up by March 1!

That time again

2010-01-31T20:12:00.000-05:00

Where I'm stuck right in the middle of the book and feeling rather uninspired. I am hoping the pile of books I'm judging for RWA's RITA contest will help pull me out of the doldrums. It doesn't help that it's so very cold and unwelcoming outside, I've got a sore throat (on only one side of my throat, which feels odd) and am overwhelmed by life deadlines (as opposed to writing ones) such as taxes, credit card bill dates, and so forth...

Oh well, enough complaining! I just received the title of my latest book, which is going to be called The Undoing of De Luca! Does that give you a visual picture of er, something? It will be out in the UK in September 2010. And Zoe's Lesson, which is my installment of The Balfour Legacy Collection, will be out in October!

Back to the depressingly blank drawingboard...

Blogging

2010-01-17T22:06:00.000-05:00

I'm blogging at The Pink Heart Society today about the actor Kevin McKidd and how characters can inspire us to learn more about the actors playing them [yes, in some circles, this is called STALKING.] I saw Kevin McKidd in the BBC/HBO series Rome, and his character fascinated me so much I decided to learn more about the actor. Check it out and you can even leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of my latest release, The Greek Tycoon's Reluctant Bride.
Isn't that the most gorgeous cover?

I'm madly trying to make up lost writing time this week, because last Sunday the ENTIRE family ws hit by the most horrible stomach flu imaginable. Every. Single. Person. And all I have to say about it is this: only the adults managed to make to the bathroom. I'll leave the rest to your imagination...

I just received two shipments of books, and I'm happy to give some away, so stay tuned for a competition to win copies of The Greek Tycoon's Reluctant Bride and Her Mediterranean Playboy!

And lastly, here's the last sentence I wrote in my current WIP: He turned, and in that moment--a single second, no more--her breath dried and her heart beat fast and she remembered how good it had been between them, how she’d laid in his arms as the sun washed them in gold and he kissed her closed eyelids.

Getting Your Facts Right

2010-01-04T21:25:00.000-05:00

So in my latest ms, whose proofs I just finished checking, I had the Italian hero call the heroine [also Italian] passera, which, according to trusty Babelfish, is the female form of passero, or sparrow. This is a running theme throughout the book, and so he calls her passera quite a bit.

The book was accepted, and my editor got back to me during the copyedits because apparently the word passera doesn't exist. Fair enough, I thought, let's go with passero. But the whole exchange made me a trifle wary, so I telephoned my Italian sister-in-law [very handy to have when writing Mediterranean-set romances!] and asked her if passera was indeed a word, and also, incidentally, if she knew of any endearments similar to sparrow.

She emailed me back, rather firmly telling me that passera was most certainly not a word. Then the next day my brother emailed me, amused, to tell me the whole truth: passera is a word, of sorts; it is a very vulgar term for the female genitalia. And this was what my hero was calling my heroine as an endearment!!!

Thank goodness for Italian sister-in-laws [even if she was too embarrassed to tell me what this word meant!] and for more forthright brothers!

My sister-in-law compiled a list of birds that would do as endearments, and we settled on rondinella, which means swallow, and apparently is used in Italy as an endearment. Perfect! Much better than passera, don't you think?

And in any case, I've certainly learned my lesson. All Italian terms, endearments, and names are first run by the indomitable Gabriella!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-23T12:25:00.001-05:00

This is my daughter attempting to skate but I posted it here because it is how I've felt lately: completely rushed off my feet! But I'm signing off just about everything to go spend some much-needed down time with my extended family for a week. I can't wait to sit by the [gas] fire, drink hot chocolate, play boardgames, and just generally relax. Oh, and open a few presents! I handed my book in, finished the proof edits for my last book, and don't have another due until March, so no writing is allowed for a whole week--yippee!

I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and New Year's, wherever you are, and whatever you are doing. Merry Christmas!!!

I DID IT!

2009-12-15T20:59:00.000-05:00

I just pushed send on my current manuscript, as of now titled 'An Inconvenient Mistress'. It's done!! I wrote the 20,000 words and I'm actually, amazingly quite happy with the book. We'll see what my editor thinks!

Now I need to start thinking about Christmas...

What are you doing this holiday season? Are you traveling? Staying tucked up at home? Wrapping lots of presents? Drinking hot chocolate or egg nog or mulled wine (I like 'em all!). Let me know what you're up to!

Here's a glimpse into what we've been doing: playing chess, iceskating, and learning to walk :)

Tight deadline

2009-12-01T20:53:00.000-05:00

Two weeks, twenty thousand words. Can I do it??

We're still battling various illnesses here, and the thought of feeling 100% healthwise feels like a rather distant--and pleasant--dream. But at least I'm no longer bedridden, which is a plus.

And I can hardly believe the Christmas madness is almost upon us; I went shopping last night at Barnes & Noble and came away defeated after half an hour. It's just so hard to know where to begin. I think I'll attempt to do what I did last year, which is buy everything on the internet.

Meanwhile my youngest has just started walking!! It's so fun to see her tottering across the floor, and the proud smile she beams at everyone is so adorable. She makes sure *everyone* notices just how amazing she is--definitely the youngest (and I say this as the youngest of 5!)

If you didn't get a copy of Royal Baby, Forbidden Marriage in my first line giveaways, please email me and I'll happily send you one. I have a few more to spare.

Now! Enough with procrastination! Back to the wip... the hero, Larenz, has just asked the heroine, Ellery, about her secretive past...

A new direction

2009-11-16T20:18:00.000-05:00

So last week I was continuing to slog through my current manuscript, which has not been going well. Sometimes it feels like a round peg in a square hole, pulling and squashing and snipping at story threads till I'm not sure what I'm doing or why. Not a good feeling. So on Thursday, at 16,000 words (where I'd more or less been stuck for about three weeks, endlessly changing and revising what I'd already written) I decided to scrap it. Not delete it, but not continue working on it either. I've actually never done this before. My deadline is Dec 15 and five weeks from this date I started something entirely new. Panic!!

Actually, the new story fell into place pretty quickly, in part because I'd been thinking about the characters off and on for awhile. I'm at 12,000 words now, and still hoping to make my deadline. Of course, children and Thanksgiving and that little thing called CHRISTMAS might conspire against me...

Speaking of Christmas, I'm blogging on Iheart Presents about my November release, Royal Baby, Forbidden Marriage, and Christmas traditions sometime this week--not sure when it will actually get posted, but I'll let you know.

In the meantime, Sri, please e-mail me again with your contact details. My mailbox was full but I've fixed the problem now! Sorry!

And here is the first line of chapter 4:

Phoebe followed Sven up the thickly carpeted stairs, the long velvet curtains drawn against the night.

Are you all wondering who Sven is?! Enjoy!! :)

Sorry for the silence!

2009-11-09T21:13:00.000-05:00

We have been, for the last week and a half, laid low by the flu. It started with my son, then moved to my middle daughter, then my oldest daughter, then me, and now the baby. The only person who has resisted it is my husband, which is fortunate as I was bedridden for 5 days, which is three more days in bed than I had when I gave birth! I hardly ever get sick, sick enough to be in bed, and I always find it frustrating because while a good rest sounds rather nice actually, when my head is stuffed up and my chest feels like there is a knife in it and my whole body aches so I can't even sleep, it's not nice at all. Plus there is the whole mother-sick syndrome. Do you mothers out there experience this? While my husband is wonderful and valiantly tries to cover all the bases in my absence (or bedridden-ness, really), some things fall behind. Like laundry. And cooked meals. And keeping track of homework and hamster cages. You know? Sometimes I think about all the things in our family that only I know--like when my oldest daughter's book report is due, or when the hamster cage needs to be cleaned, or how much bread we have. It's all in my head, and no one else's.

All this to say I'm mostly better and back. No writing has been getting done, which is unfortunate as my deadline is 5 weeks away and I'm only at 15,000 words. This book has not been easy to write. I rewrote the first 5,000 words about six times before I abandoned all attempts and just kept plowing ahead. And then my characters started to misbehave--my heroine is supposed to be a play-it-safe type and she's not. She's acting entirely out of the character I created for her, which is annoying and delightful at turns, because it's good when the characters speak for themselves, but bad when it means more revision. Anyay, I'm still storming ahead so we'll see what happens.

SRI, you are the winner of my chapter three contest--hooray! Send me your details.

And lastly, we recently had our photos taken in Central Park and the photographer put up a video montage of us all that is rather cool and makes us look so nice and shiny! It's mostly of the kids and you can see it here: Melanie Wesslock Photography. Enjoy... ;)

Chapter Three...

2009-10-31T21:48:00.000-04:00

Here is the first sentence of chapter 3:

'What...?' The single word came out involuntarily, a gasp of shock and fear as the sight of Leo standing there so calm and assured brought the memories flooding back.

JANET, you are the chapter 2 winner! Send me your address and I'll mail you a copy! And leave a comment anyone for another chance to win... :)

Meanwhile, I just got the title for my 12th book: Awakened By The Count of Cazlevara! As long as there isn't an alarm clock on the cover, right?

Blogging and Winners

2009-10-27T07:43:00.000-04:00

I'm blogging about waiting during the writing process at The Writing Playground . You can stop by and leave a comment for another chance to win Royal Baby, Forbidden Marriage.

Meanwhile, MARILYN, send me your details and I'll send you a copy--you're the lucky winner!

And here is the first sentence of chapter 2:

It was raining in Paris, a needling drizzle that blanketed the royal mourners in grey, and made the images on the television screen blurry and virtually unrecognisable.

Leave a comment for another chance to win!

Contest!

2009-10-21T20:50:00.000-04:00

I promised I'd run a contest for the month of October and I'm realizing it is October 21 and so far no contest! Sorry about that. So... onwards! Here are the first few lines of the first chapter of my November Presents Extra release, Royal Marriage, Forbidden Baby:

'How much?'

Phoebe Wells stared blankly at the man slouched in a chair across from her. He gazed back with a sensual smile and heavy-lidded eyes, his sable hair rumpled, the top two buttons of his shirt undone to reveal a smooth expanse of golden skin.

Leave a comment and I'll draw a winner to receive a copy of the book! And stay tuned for the first line of chapter 2, and another chance to win... :)

How to be a savvy shopper

2009-10-16T14:28:00.000-04:00

My friend Rebekah has just launched a blog, Restyle with Rebekah, which is all about savvy thrift store shopping here in NYC, although there are tips for everyone who, like me, wants to look good for less. So check it out at her blog.

I'm still at the hmm point, alas!

A little bit stuck

2009-10-15T21:07:00.000-04:00

So I managed 5,000 words of my latest book so far, and it all went swimmingly. Then, at the beginning of chapter 2, I came to my first 'hmm'. Fortunately it's not so bad a 'hmm'--like a 'what the...?' but it is a time where the writing no longer flows and I really need to take stock and think where the book, and more importantly, the characters are going next.

I realize my tendency as a writer is to give away too much too soon in terms of emotional conflict and development. I generally have to scale back and put things I wrote in chapter 1 in chapter 5 or 7 or even 10. Yet writing it in chapter 1 helps me see what I need in later chapters... part of the drafting process, I suppose.

We've had workmen in our apartment all week putting doors on--something that is a long time coming. We moved apartments in July, and when we moved in we discovered that the contractors in charge of the renovations had taken off all the doors and thrown them away. Why, you might ask, would someone do that? Well the apartment is old and the doors were in bad shape, and the management company was rushing to get the new tenants--us--in. So they trashed the doors and I guess they thought we wouldn't notice, except with 4 kids and no doors to the bedrooms, guess what? We notice!

First we piled boxes and then we got a shower curtain, but now we have lovely double doors, which I will take a photo of tomorrow to show you... anyway, all this to say with the workmen in the apartment all day, and an extremely inquisitive one year old following them around and fascinated with the circular saw, it's a wonder I got any writing done at all.

Starting a new book

2009-10-11T21:31:00.001-04:00

It always feel a bit like jumping off a cliff when I start a new book. I make notes, I sketch character bios, I think a lot about the story and possible scenes, I research the locations... and then comes the time when I actually have to sit down and write. And when I actually put the first sentences on the page, it feels so... strange. So new, and it's exciting, but it's also a little daunting to think in just two months I'll have a book (I hope!) when all I have right now is a paragraph. Yet the first few paragraphs really encapsulate my vision for this story, which I had over the summer, and I thought I'd share them with you so you can see my process. Here's the beginning I just wrote:

'Did you know my wife was having an affair?' It was a simple question, Rafe Sandoval thought, deserving a simple answer. Yes or no. So very simple. Yet Freya Pearson stood before him, her grey eyes unblinking, her face a mask of irritating composure. She didn't speak. Rafe's hand curled on the smooth mahogany surface of his desk; outside a dank grey London sky pressed heavily upon the city. Still the nanny said nothing. 'Well?' Rafe demanded, and he heard the raw note of pleading in his own voice. It made him angry. He was not the guilty party here; he had done nothing wrong. Yet he felt condemnation in that cool grey stare; he saw judgement in the thin line of her plum-coloured mouth. He shook his head slowly, his own mouth thinning to match hers. 'You knew, didn't you? You knew--you saw it all along--and you never thought fit to tell me.'
Finally Freya spoke. Her voice was pitched low, calm and even unconcerned. 'Yes,' she said. 'I knew.'

What do you think? Are these people you'd like to read more about?

Left brain, right brain?

2009-10-09T08:27:00.000-04:00

Last night my five year old son challenged me to a game of checkers, a game, I might add, he only learned a few weeks ago. I agreed, and we had a pleasant time playing after dinner; I sipped my wine and pondered my moves, feeling quite relaxed and confident. I was planning to go easy on him and then beat him by just a little bit--I don't generally let my kids win at games just because they are young, as you then lose the satisfaction of a battle hard fought and won... except in this case, I was the loser. I looked down at the board and realized my son had, quite neatly, trapped me into a corner so I had no choice but to slowly and inexorably lose all my pieces. I looked up at him to see if he realized what he'd done--and he grinned and said 'You lose, Mommy.' So much for going easy on him. Clearly checkers is not my forte... or maybe it's simply that it's his!

Cheap thrills

2009-10-07T16:34:00.001-04:00

And I mean that in the best possible sense, because it costs me nothing! Dear Author picked The Sheikh's Forbidden Virgin as one of its recommended October reads! It hasn't been reviewed there yet, but I feel pretty good about it being recommended at all.

All About Romance did review the book, and while the reviewer didn't seem to like Presents-style romances in general, she had some positive things to say about the book: "Kalila is a sensible, mostly mature heroine, and was a pleasant surprise. Aarif is a tortured soul, poor guy, and rightly so. His first duty is to his family, even at the expense of his own happiness, and he is a quiet, rather taciturn, man with heartbreaking glimpses of humor; I love the quiet ones. Overall, I am convinced of their mutual suitability, and the wildly romantic ending...' Complete disclosure: I am cutting out the cutting, sarcastic bits she inserted into the review, and overall she could not recommend it because of the unbelievability of the Karedes-related plot points. So judge for yourself whether it's worth reading or not--I certainly enjoyed writing it!

I am just beginning to outline my next book, which has a Spanish hero and an English heroine and is set in the gorgeous hill country in Southern Spain--I went there once a long time ago and I've been enjoying reacquainting myself with the region, all in the name of research!

Hello out there...

2009-10-04T21:56:00.000-04:00

There is something a bit dismal about a neglected blog, isn't there? Have you ever stumbled upon a blog--whether it belongs to an author or someone else--and there hasn't been an entry for months or even years? It's the equivalent of a dusty, sheet-shrouded room, and not a place you would want to linger.

On the other hand, a blog that has a lot of entries--and comments--feels like a cozy library or living room with a blazing fire and a comfy chair, and perhaps even a pot of tea and something yummy to eat--cookies, scones, take your pick! It's a place you want to stick around and explore.

So I'm realizing that my blog has become a bit of the former, and I regret that as I had the best of intentions to keep it going, and in fact I kept a personal blog for family and friends for about three years--writing just about every day--so I thought I wouldn't have a problem doing the same here. Unfortunately, I did. Part of it was the increasing chaos of life, and part of it was the number of deadlines I gave myself, writing 4-5 books a year. And part of it was I was blogged out--that part of my brain that attempts to write witty and thoughtful summaries of my life and my writing had been sucked dry--not that there was all that much there to begin with! Blogging is a different talent than novel writing, and some writers are blessed with both. I'm not sure I am.

That all said, I'm going to *attempt* to give this blog another try and write diligently--if not daily--here. I love reading blogs when I get the chance--and the time--and I know that there are people out there who read this, even if you don't comment!! I check my stats and I get a regular number of hits every day, so whoever you are, I hope you want to read a bit of my blathering.

I just submitted the updates for my website to my webmistress, and she will hopefully have those up for you in the next week. At some point I am hoping to change the layout of my site with photos of beautiful New York City, and even a couple of me I'm notoriously camera-shy, and feel terribly unphotogenic, so this is big--for me). In fact, when I first met the fabulous Jennie Lucas, one of the first things she said to me was how much better I look than my photo on eharlequin! Thanks, Jennie!! :)

I also just handed in my 12th book, now titled Italian Count, Untamed Innocent, although I am 0 for 11 when it comes to picking titles the editors stick with. My last title--The Playboy Prince's Convenient Wife--seemed to hold all the relevant hooks, yet it was discarded for Royal Baby, Forbidden Marriage, and it is now available on eharlequin. Anyway, titles aside, I enjoyed writing this book because it features a tall heroine who is a bit insecure about her height--and I am 5'11" and have definitely gone through phases of insecurity about it, so it was nice to be able to put a little relevant personal experience in the story! Here, to tempt and tease you, is the first paragraph:

Vittorio Calzevara, the Count of Ralfino, stood on the threshold of San Stefano Castle and searched the milling guests for the woman he intended to be his wife. He wasn't certain what she looked like, for beyond a single blurry photo, he hadn't seen her in sixteen years. Or if he had seen her, she hadn't made much of an impression. Now he planned to marry her.

I'll let you know what my editors think of it!

The end of summer

2009-09-07T22:14:00.000-04:00

Or so it feels. The weather turned chilly, the children head back to school on Thursday, and my deadline looms. Strange how endless summer seems somewhere in mid-July, the days golden and stretching on to the horizon, and then all of a sudden everything speeds up and you can't enjoy the days enough, they're slipping by too fast. We had a gorgeous day out on Long Island last week with friends; the children played in the water and caught crabs and even went sailing, while I was content to lounge around on the deck and eat pavlova and fairy cakes. Now I'm making all my autumn resolutions (I think September is a much better time of year to make these kinds of things rather than January) to exercise and eat better and write more and enjoy my children and oh, just generally improve my life all around. Yes, I do this every year.

The Sheikh's Forbidden Virgin has been the #1 bestseller on eharlequin for the last few days, which is rather thrilling as I've never reached that coveted spot before. I also love, love that book, and am so pleased it seems to be doing well. If only my current work-in-progress would behave! I made the mistake of thinking, for some really rather silly reason, that this book was going to be easy to write. In fact, I think the term I used in my head was 'it will write itself'. Well, when has a book ever written itself? I'd love to see that, the computer keys typing away like those on a player piano. Alas, no. This book is writing itself by me dragging myself to my desk at nine o'clock at night, which is when we've managed to wrestle all the children to bed, and then staring dourly at the computer screen. And then typing... well, something. I'm at 37,000 words and my deadline is in two weeks. Ack!

The last days of summer

2009-08-25T13:15:00.001-04:00

We're currently enjoying the last days of our summer holiday in the beautiful Catskill mountains in New York State. The porch of our cottage looks directly across the valley (or clove, as they say here in the Catskills) to the Kaaterskill Falls, which are, I have since learned, longer than the Niagara Falls. The view really is quite stunning.

My latest book, part of the Balfour Brides continuity, has been officially accepted--hooray! No release date yet, although I finally have a release date for my Jan 09 Modern release. The Greek Tycoon's Reluctant Bride will be a February Presents Extra release. And I'm very excited to say I received my first 4 star review from Romantic Times for The Sheikh's Forbidden Virgin, out in October. I don't know what it says yet as I just looked online but I'm thrilled by the number of stars!

What are you doing during these last days of summer? Have you saved a good book to read, are you outside trying to wring the last few days of freedom and sunshine from the season? Or are you getting ready for autumn, for crisp days and beautiful leaves and freshly sharpened pencils? OR, do you live in the Southern Hemisphere in which case you're preparing for winter?!

Where did I go?

2009-08-16T09:22:00.001-04:00

You might be wondering where I disappeared to for nearly two months. I'm sorry I've been so absent; we moved apartments in July and it was a much bigger endeavour that I naively anticipated. For some reason, I thought moving within the same city would not be as big a job as moving between cities. I'm sure you've already realized how ridiculous a belief this is--no matter how far you're moving, you're still moving all your belongings and then unpacking them and when it comes to NYC, you're doing this with very small spaces that fill very quickly with very large boxes. So it's all... interesting.

We love our new apartment, except for the fact the building contractor forgot to put the doors back on some of the rooms. Quite an oversight. So now two of my children's bedroom has a big double door opening into the living room. We wave to them as they go to sleep. Considering they are five and seven years old, you can imagine how well that works. We're still, a month later, waiting for doors.

Writing-wise, I finished my latest book, Expecting The Tycoon's Love-Child, which is part of the Balfour Brides continuity series that will be out (I think) in the fall of 2010. I'm working hard on my next book, tentatively titled (in my mind, anyway), Italian Count, Untamed Innocent. Both the hero and heroine are involved in the winemaking business so naturally I've got to do lots of research, namely tasting different sorts of wines...

I also received hardback copies of my seventh US release, Royal Baby, Forbidden Marriage, and since I love its gorgeous cover so much, I'll give away one copy--just leave a comment or drop me a line letting me know about your summer!

So much news!!

2009-06-22T20:01:00.000-04:00

School is out and although my latest deadline is fast approaching, I'm breathing a sigh of relief--strangely! I am also happy to say I have massively updated my website with new book excerpts and extras, a short story, and a brand new contest co-sponsored by Sabrina Phillips--check out my contest page and enter before July 1 for a chance to win copies of our summer sheikh stories as well as some other Arabian-themed treats!

My July release, The Sheikh's Love-Child, is on sale now and is currently a top 10 bestseller on eharlequin which is always a thrill. This is Khaled and Lucy's story--Khaled is an ex-rugby star and Lucy is his former physiotherapist--and lover! The story starts with Lucy arriving in Khaled's rugged desert kingdom of Biryal four years after their affair ended--she's going to tell him about the son he never knew he had... you can read an excerpt on my booklist page.

I also have some new release dates: my eighth book, Royal Love-Child, Forbidden Marriage, will be released in the UK and US in November 2009. I love this book, and creating a fictional Scandinavian island kingdom, Amarnes, for it. Leo is a reformed playboy prince and Phoebe is the mother of the heir apparent--or so it seems!

Enjoy having a look around the website!

Hello again!

2009-05-16T21:44:00.001-04:00

I will update my website. I will update my website. I will update my website.

If I say it enough, will it happen? Pretty please?

Actually, I am planning to do a major overhaul/redesign of my website this summer... really! And I'd love to hear from my readers what they like about author websites. Is there something on or not on my website that you like or don't like? do you like bios, articles, the stories I post on my writing stuff page (which I don't know if anyone reads!), the extra fun stuff on the booklist page? Give me some feedback and/or suggestions in an e-mail or in the comments and i'll automatically enter you to win a copy of my July release, THE SHEIKH'S LOVE-CHILD.

In the next few days I'll have a new contest up on my contests page--I'm running a joint contest with new Presents author Sabrina Phillips. We both have sheikh books out in July, and you can win both plus a beautiful necklace from Sabrina and a box of turkish delight from me (Edmund in The Lion, The Witch, & The Wardrove just about sold his soul for it!) by entering. Stay tuned...

Meanwhile I am alternating between checking the proofs of my last book and writing my current one, which has the title EXPECTING THE TYCOON'S LOVE-CHILD. All these love-children! I don't think I've ever used that term seriously...

Auction!

2009-05-03T21:35:00.000-04:00

I'm sorry I have been having trouble getting my blog posts to publish, which is why--well, at least one reason why--I haven't posted here. But I did want to share that Brenda Novak's auction is now online and accepting bidding, and as last year I am offering three months of critiquing/mentoring. I'm also offering a chocolate and coffee mug gift package from one of my favorite shops in New York, the wonderful Dylan's Candy Bar. So go on over and check it out!

In personal writing news, my tenth romance, Count Toussaint's Pregnant Mistress, has been accepted and will be released in the UK in January 2010. And my third historical, Down Jasper Lane, is out now and available from Amazon! If you like Anne of Green Gables, then Down Jasper Lane is right up your alley!

It's wet, wet, wet here, and while that should make the grass lovely and green and more flowers come out, it's still... well, wet! And I'd like some sunshine, please...

Cover!

2009-04-18T21:25:00.001-04:00

I love this cover, which is for my book in the Royal House of Karedes series, which is launching this May with Sandra Marton's book, Billionaire Prince, Pregnant Mistress. My book comes out in July in the UK, and October in the US, and I have to confess it's my favorite book that I've written so far.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T19:37:00.000-04:00

Easter is one of my favorite holidays. It's a celebration without the rigamarole of cards, live trees, and too many presents. It's in spring, even if it was chilly today, and of course it's a rather important holiday in the Christian calendar. I like to think of Easter as a holiday of hope, of faith, of belief in miracles. So whatever you believe, I hope you had a wonderful day, a renewed sense of hope, and a lot of chocolate!

Happy Easter!

Chaos

2009-03-26T17:26:00.000-04:00

I'm afraid I haven't been very good about updating this blog. I'm deep in revisions on my latest book, and am thinking about my next one. And my children have been home for the last two weeks on spring break. Excuses, excuses! I did find the cover of the anthology An Italian Summer which features my novella Italian Boss, Housekeeper Mistress on Amazon. I'll post it as soon as I can. Meanwhile, let me know what is going on in your life... is it spring where you are? Are you reading any good books? Anything happening in your life? And does anyone have any ways to make a baby sleep through the night or at least more than 2 hours at a time??

Sneak peek

2009-02-27T10:11:00.000-05:00

The cover of my July release, The Sheikh's Love-Child, has been making the rounds of British newspapers as they cover the launch of Mills & Boon's International Billionaires series, which is a series of eight books that combine romance and rugby. I know very, very little about rugby--my best friend in college played women's rugby and it seems like there were an awful lot of ambulances coming to the pitch--so I'm very grateful the RFU fact checked all the books. Anyway, here is the cover, taken from Time Magazine:

The cover is actually very similar to Sarah Morgan's Feb release, The Prince's Waitress Wife:

Anyway, I'm happy for the publicity!! Now back to all the admin stuff I've neglected over the last four months...

It feels good

2009-02-24T20:59:00.000-05:00

I handed my latest book in--big sigh of relief! It's currently titled The French Count's One-Night Mistress. It's a fun little challenge for me to try and think of a title the editors might actually keep. So far I have not succeeded.

Just as I was planning on having a bit of a rest after this book was handed in, a host of other activities clamored to be on my to-do list. Top is finished the critique of someone's manuscript that I promised absolutely months and months ago, before a baby and two books swallowed up my entire existence. (Stefani, I'm sorry!!! I will have your lovely ms back to you very, very soon) I also have to bring this website into 2009, and update my eharlequin profile. I might even spring for a glossy, high-res photo of myself (something I've avoided--you might have noticed there is no such photo on my website!). I'm not photogenic and I hate photos of myself. I know a lot of people suffer from this affliction, but they actually look good in photos. I don't.

I also have to write the next two parts in a serial I'm writing for The People's Friend. It's a contemporary story about a New Yorker who relocates to Vermont to run a bed and breakfast. And speaking--or rather writing--of New Yorkers, I fear I might have become one. By accident, you understand. This place gets into your blood. The other morning I was walking to school at a *very* brisk clip, Starbucks decaf latte in one hand, a cellphone clamped to my ear as I checked messages, baby Anna in the baby Bjorn on my chest. I was walking along Fifth Avenue by Central Park and a group of tourists slowed to a halt in front of me so I nearly collided with them. Annoyed, I almost muttered something to myself about their snail-like pace, until I realized they weren't walking particularly slowly, I was simply moving at the speed of light. Then as I reflected how my walking pace has changed since moving here, I jaywalked the next intersection, striding out into the street in a way all New Yorkers do (if the car has not crossed the intersection, it's safe--really!) and appalling all the tourists around me. I was carrying a baby, after all. [If you're worried reading this, please don't be. No cars were coming, I promise.] So all in all it looks like I've become a New Yorker. At least when I'm walking.

Almost done

2009-02-16T08:49:00.000-05:00

I'm 5,000 words away from the end of my latest book--hooray!! Every time I finish a book I feel a sense of amazement that I've managed to write this thing, followed by an almost paralyzing fear that my editor won't like it. Then when it's accepted I feel overwhelming relief, followed by further nervousness and fear when it's released and readers start giving me their responses, which are wide and varied.

I've had some lovely reader mail about my February US release, The Italian's Bought Bride, which I am very grateful for. I also have many copies of this book--40--so if you missed it in the stores and would like a copy, e-mail me by Wednesday midnight eastern standard time and I'll send you a copy.

Meanwhile I need to finish the latest book--working title The French Count's Secret Child--and even think about the next one, which is going to be set in my hometown!

Now my 4 month old baby girl is fussing so I'd better go give her some comfort...

Nearly halfway

2009-01-28T16:46:00.000-05:00

Somehow I am managing to get this book written. I'm not sure how, because my brain is on half power and I am VERY sleep deprived. But I'm also at 22,000 words, although perhaps I'll reread them and scrap it all... who knows?!

Winner!

2009-01-22T21:44:00.000-05:00

Sorry to be absent from my own blog for so long. I've drawn a winner, number four for my four year old son--Roberta, please send me your address details and the gifts will soon be winging their way to you!

I am trying to get into the next book, which is going well except for the fact that I have to write in snippets, due to a baby who demands much of my attention and a general lack of sleep. So this book will be written in short bursts, which is okay although I do like to have several hours of uninterrupted writing time on occasion...

Meanwhile here is a photo of my latest historical cover, Down Jasper Lane, to be released April 30. I loved writing this book, and am eager to write a sequel when I get the chance. If you've read (and loved) Anne of Green Gables, then you'll like this book... only you have to figure out which character is like Anne's Gilbert!! :)

Almost done

2009-01-15T18:46:00.000-05:00

I'm putting the final touches on my ms this evening and sending it winging to London via cyberspace tonight--thank goodness!! Then it will be time to crack on with my next story, which I've outlined. Whew. After that I think I'll need several weeks of no writing and strong drinks.

I was walking down Madison Avenue with the snow falling and noticing how winter in New York brings out an almost 1940s feel-- men wear fedoras and trenchcoats and everyone carries old fashioned, wood handled umbrellas. I also passed by a Starbucks with a very Mediterranean looking man sitting in the window, wearing a wool trenchcoat with the collar turned up, half dozing in front of his cup of coffee. It made me wonder what kind of man he was, and what his story is, for everyone has one, and he looked like a Presents hero come to life!

To celebrate my finished manuscript, I'm giving things away--because I love to give things away! Leave a comment and I'll draw a winner--the prize is a copy of my first book, The Italian's Chosen Wife (whose cover I still absolutely adore) and a $10 Starbucks drink card--because the man in the window is going to be the inspiration for my next book.

Sorry for the silence

2009-01-12T07:43:00.001-05:00

Upon return to New York and life in general, I got hit with some massive revisions for my latest book--alas! I had a feeling they were coming but it still doesn't keep me from experiencing a rather large lurch of panic. There's nothing like having your book in shreds around you--figuratively speaking, of course, but still. It's scary. I've revised 7 chapters and have 3 to go, with the hope of turning it in on Wednesday. And then there's the next deadline of Feb 15--I'm going to write a book in a month?! I wrote about 7,000 words of it before the revisions came, and now I'm scrapping it all because it's just too darn dreary. So once these revisions are over I'm starting over with a fresh plot. The idea came to me while I was rocking baby Anna to sleep--what if an Italian billionaire (of course) were driving along a deserted country road in England in the middle of the night and came across a woman walking in an evening dress, all by herself? That's the opening scene of what is currently titled Pretend Mistress, Convenient Wife, and it hasn't even been written yet, so you're coming in at the very beginning! I'll keep you posted as best as I can, as this book has to be written FAST...

I'm also hoping to update my website with a new story and contest and some more details on my upcoming books--The Italian's Bought Bride is out in the US and Australia this February, and you can already buy it on eharlequin. It managed to sneak into the Top 10 Ebook list at #7, which is great news.

All right, back to my shredded manuscript...

Finally!

2008-12-29T16:25:00.000-05:00

I apologize for the long wait! Blogger, for some reason, wouldn't let me post a blog for quite a few weeks. But here I am, the Christmas rush is over (my best present was Anna sleeping through the night on Christmas Eve--she hasn't done it since!!) and I have a winner for the contest India Grey and I sponsored. JANE, you won a copy of my latest book, The Greek Tycoon's Reluctant Bride, as well as some yummy chocolates from Dylan's Candy Bar. India will also be posting a winner, and so send us your details and we'll get our presents out to you!

To everyone else, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I've written the first chapter of my next book--I chose a French hero, a glam setting, and a secret baby/marriage of convenience plot. Stay tuned for more details...

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T22:37:00.000-05:00

I'm finally drawing a winner--sorry for the delay! JANE, please email me with your contact details. You're the lucky winner of a copy of The Greek Tycoon's Reluctant Bride as well as some fabulous candy from Dylan's Candy Bar. Also fellow Presents author India Grey will post you a copy of her latest book!

Meanwhile everyone have a happy, healthful, safe, and peaceful Christmas and New Year's! I'll be back in 2009!

We have a winner!

2008-12-23T21:48:00.000-05:00

Sorry to take so long with this! As usual life took over... and over...

Anyway, I drew a winner and JANE, you have won a copy of The Greek Tycoon's Reluctant Bride, as well as some lovely chocolate from Dylan's Candy Bar. So send me your details and I'll try to get that out to you ASAP.

Meanwhile I've started my next book, which has a glam urban setting (Paris!) as well as Cornwall and the South of France. The plot is a marriage of convenience (I love those!) Right now it's titled The French Count's Secret Child, but I'll keep you posted...

Meanwhile check out my new December short story on my Writing Links page as well as my newsletter.

Bigger and better!

2008-12-06T10:50:00.000-05:00

I'm teaming with fellow Presents author India Grey to offer a contest to win copies of both of our December releases, as well as some other goodies including the aforementioned chocolate from Dylan's Candy Bar. So to enter, leave a comment telling me what kind of setting you like in your Presents, then hop over to India Grey's blog to leave a comment on what kind of hero you like. Comments from my previous entry will automatically be entered.

So... get your thinking caps on. What's your pleasure?

A Greek island?

A sultry desert?

The big city?

Let me know!!! We'll draw a winner next week.

Done!

2008-12-02T07:35:00.000-05:00

Amazingly, miraculously, I managed to finish my book and hand it in Dec 1 as promised. This book was typed mostly one-handed and with a missing h key on my computer--if you noticed any dropped hs in my post, that is why. I have to push the little tab underneath the h key space to get it to work. But the book is done, and I feel like I have a new lease on life.

Of course, I have another book due Feb 15, which is *not* that far away. (Who came up with these deadlines? Oh, wait. I did.) And with all the preChristmas madness, this should be interesting. I have--count 'em--twenty-five nieces and nephews. I am not kidding. My husband and I are both the youngest of five. So that's a lot of little presents. Plus Christmas cards, presents for grandparents, teachers, doormen and maintenance men of our apartment building, decorating, getting Anna's passport expedited... well! There is a lot to do.

BUT. I'm thinking of my next book, and I thought I'd conduct a little poll. So if you want a hand in my next book, tell me what kind of book you like. Marriage of convenience, revenge, shared history, secret baby? And what about the hero? Italian, Spanish, English, French, American, Greek? And the setting...? Glam city? Rural idyll? Greek island? I promise to take everyone's responses into consideration and you can win something too--leave a comment telling me what kind of book you like and I'll pick a winner from the responses. You can win a copy of one of my released books (The Italian's Chosen Wife, The Greek Tycoon's Convenient Bride, Ruthless Boss, Hired Wife, or The Italian's Bought Bride) PLUS a selection of chocolates from Dylan's Candy Bar, a famous candy store in NYC that we spend far too much time and money at (it's around the corner from my son's school and he knows this). Check it out here.

So, tell me what kind of book you like or even don't like!

Life with baby Anna

2008-11-25T09:17:00.000-05:00

Progress

2008-11-17T08:27:00.000-05:00

I'm at 43,000 words for my latest book, which is pretty muc on track--one week to finish it, one week to polish and revise. Of course, that second week is also the week of Thanksgiving--kids off school, and we're travelling to my brother's. But never mind. That is what laptops are for.

Meanwhile I've discovered that my rugby-themed book, The Sheikh's Love-Child, will be out in July, and my novella, part of an Italian Summer anthology, will be out summer 2009 as well.

And while I'm finishing this up book, I'm also thinking of the next one which is due right around the corner--February 15! Eek!

But I'll leave you with an exchange my husband had with my four year old son a few days ago:

Son: Daddy my pants are wet.

Husband: How id they get wet?

Son: I wiped my hand on them.

Husband: How did your hand get wet?

Son: I stuck it in the toilet.

Husband: What! Why did you do that??

Son: To get the toothpaste. It fell in.

Husband: Ugh...

Son: It was your toothpaste. [pause] Don't use it.

Thanks everyone

2008-11-10T08:34:00.000-05:00

For the suggestions regarding my shoulder injury. I really laid off carrying anything as much as possible (including Anna, poor thing) and slept on my back and kept icing it and now it is a lot better. I'm also starting to exercise (amazing for me) which helps. And meanwhile I have to be diligent about the writing. 3,000 words today to keep on track, and most of that will be typed one handed while nursing. Unfortunately my h key has given up the ghost and needs to be pressed about 3 times before it works, so this slows things down even more.

I have some foreign releases coming out, which is exciting. The Greek Tycoon's Convenient Bride is out this month in Harlequin Bianca, retitled Enchantment Under The Sea! Makes me think of The Little Mermaid :) It's also coming out in Germany, and Holland is putting it out in a few months, and I even get to be highlighted as their author of the month! Then in March Ruthless Boss, Hired Wife is coming out in Harlequin Bianca as Cruel Love. I love these titles, they remind me of the old Mills & Boon Titles of the 60s and 70s.

Has anyone got a favourite title of a romance or any book at all? One of my favourite book titles (even though the book infuriated me!) is Atlas Shrugged. That's so evocative, and you have to think to get it, which I like. I just read the book You're Not You and I have to admit that title bugged me a bit--it doesn't sound grammatically correct somehow, even if it is (is it?). A title of a book (mainstream) that I'm working on in my spare moments (that is, I'm thinking about it while on the bus) is called What's Left Behind, which is a title I really like for some inexplicable reason.

Do titles ever make you pick up a book--or keep you from picking it up? What are some of your least favourite titles?

Help needed

2008-11-02T15:41:00.000-05:00

So I am writing this book. Slowly. A sentence here, a paragraph there, sometimes a page or more, almost all typed one handed as I hold and/or nurse a baby. The only problem with this really is that I have wrenched my shoulder in the process and it KILLS. All the time. I've tried icy hot ointment, long hot showers, plenty of tylenol and advil, alternating ice packs and a heating pad. I sleep flat on my back at night except when I'm nursing Anna, and still! The pain. OUCH. So does anyone have any miracle cures for me? What's been your trick with bad shoulder/back pain? Somebody have a suggestion, please!!!

Winner!!

2008-10-29T13:38:00.000-04:00

Today is my daughter Ellen's seventh birthday, so I picked the number seven for my winner--Rose, please email me with your address details and I'll post the books on to you!

Thanks everyone for participating!!

I'm 15,000 words into my next book, which feels pretty good all things (ie, baby) considered. I'll post a short excerpt from it soon, so come back to take a look!