“I’m going to take a hike” you say. You’re in the country and plan to head out for an hour or three to wander the countryside. You’ll be walking, a little climbing perhaps. You’ll look at the landscape, the flora and fauna—hills, valleys, trees, seasonal foliage, flowers, birds, maybe a squirrel, a cow, perhaps a deer.
You return from your hike empty-handed. Or maybe carrying some flowers, a rock or a shell.
Everyone applauds your ‘get up and go.’ They envy your exercise, your interest in the great outdoors, in health, in your environment.
They don’t say, ‘What do you mean—you were gone for hours and you didn’t bring anything back? What on earth were you doing out there? Just walking around looking at stuff???”
They don’t say that. They don’t even think it. You went for a hike—that’s what you do on a hike. You walk around and look at stuff.
So is it anti-industrial backlash that vilifies the exact same actions and often similar results when they apply to an urban experience?
“I’m going shopping,” you say. You’re in the city and plan to head out for an hour or three to wander the town, check out the stores. You’ll be walking, a little climbing perhaps. You’ll be looking at the landscape, the flora and fauna—streets, buildings, stores with their displays of seasonal garb and lifestyle choices, multi-faceted entertainment, food—often unique to the time of year and locale. You’ll see people of all sizes and shapes in a phenomenal variety of “plumage.”
You return from your hike empty handed. Or maybe carrying a few things you found.
Everyone says, “What do you mean—you were gone for hours and you didn’t bring anything back? What on earth were you doing out there? Just walking around for hours looking at stuff???”
They don’t applaud your ‘get up and go.' They don’t admire your healthy exercise, your interest in the great outdoors, your curiosity about your environment.
They don’t say that. They don’t even think it. But it’s just as true as a hike in the country. That’s what you do when you go shopping—you walk around and look at stuff.
The only difference is that it’s an urban, not a rural world you are observing—but of no less interest in terms of things to observe and reflect on.
My recommendation? Reject—summarily reject—the often pejoratively-used term “shopping.” From henceforth embrace the more accurate: Urban Hiking.
Hike on!
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Thanksgiving
It's my favorite Holiday!
A holiday dedicated to celebrating food and eating together is pretty special. It also is non-religious and inclusive. I can sit in the back of any New York cab and wish my driver a "Happy Thanksgiving" no matter what. He or she doesn't even need to be an American: we all have something to be thankful for, don't we?
I realized some years ago that we are never as happy as we are sad.
What I mean is that when something bad happens, sadness is 24/7. You wake up sad, you go to sleep sad, sadness weighs on you.
Happiness is more evanescent. It's wonderful, intense, but tends to be momentary. Yes! Wonderful! Now I have to fix dinner, or whatever. It can last, but never with the same depth and intensity as sadness.
That doesn't seem right.
So at times like Thanksgiving, I try to remember to be truly thankful every day. It sounds trite; perhaps cheesy. But you know how sad you feel when an element of your life goes away, even something small, even just momentarily. You twist your ankle and can't walk. You have a cast and can't take a shower. You have stitches and can't wash your hair. Not to mention big stuff like health issues or losing someone you love.
Are you as appreciative as you could be for what you have while you have it? I decided that appreciation was something worth working on.
I think keeping that sense of appreciation top of mind is one reason why we read romances--to remind us through the stories we read of how lucky we are. Lucky to value love and have people we love in our lives.
Lucky to be capable of compromise, of learning from mistakes, of growing.
Lucky to have the courage to risk relationships, to reach out and connect to another person. It's a beautiful thing.
And when I read a great romance, I get that wonderful sense of satisfaction that no matter what might go on in the world, this works and it's good.
Wishing you and yours and very Happy Thanksgiving!
A holiday dedicated to celebrating food and eating together is pretty special. It also is non-religious and inclusive. I can sit in the back of any New York cab and wish my driver a "Happy Thanksgiving" no matter what. He or she doesn't even need to be an American: we all have something to be thankful for, don't we?
I realized some years ago that we are never as happy as we are sad.
What I mean is that when something bad happens, sadness is 24/7. You wake up sad, you go to sleep sad, sadness weighs on you.
Happiness is more evanescent. It's wonderful, intense, but tends to be momentary. Yes! Wonderful! Now I have to fix dinner, or whatever. It can last, but never with the same depth and intensity as sadness.
That doesn't seem right.
So at times like Thanksgiving, I try to remember to be truly thankful every day. It sounds trite; perhaps cheesy. But you know how sad you feel when an element of your life goes away, even something small, even just momentarily. You twist your ankle and can't walk. You have a cast and can't take a shower. You have stitches and can't wash your hair. Not to mention big stuff like health issues or losing someone you love.
Are you as appreciative as you could be for what you have while you have it? I decided that appreciation was something worth working on.
I think keeping that sense of appreciation top of mind is one reason why we read romances--to remind us through the stories we read of how lucky we are. Lucky to value love and have people we love in our lives.
Lucky to be capable of compromise, of learning from mistakes, of growing.
Lucky to have the courage to risk relationships, to reach out and connect to another person. It's a beautiful thing.
And when I read a great romance, I get that wonderful sense of satisfaction that no matter what might go on in the world, this works and it's good.
Wishing you and yours and very Happy Thanksgiving!
Friday, November 03, 2006
A Note from THE WIDOW-maker... Carla Neggers
New York Times bestselling author Carla Neggers has just come back from her tour for her first hardcover, THE WIDOW. I've known and enjoyed Carla's work for many years (we won't go into how many) so it is particularly delightful to see the success of her debut hardcover.
You have to check out the contest on Carla's website: It's Adopt-A-Puffin to celebrate the Maine setting of THE WIDOW. Now I know some of you may be thinking Carla is just another celebrity adopter, like Angelina or Madonna, but that's just not true. She has already facilitated the adoption of a Loon and a Whale. It doesn't get any bigger or crazier than that! And the Puffin is really cute!
She's also got some excellent Blueberry recipes contributed from readers on her website. An appropriate match for the moody blue cover of THE WIDOW. And just think of all the anti-oxidants. But let me let Carla share a piece of her life....
"I'm back home on my hill in Vermont after getting out on the road for signing and media interviews for THE WIDOW. . I have only two rules for going on book tour. One, eat oatmeal for breakfast. Two, have fun. I blew the oatmeal rule on my second morning, in Baltimore, after my 4:15 AM wakeup call for a 5:15 AM pickup for a 6:45 TV interview. I was on after Elmo . He helped do the weather. The people in the studio were great, but when I arrived back to my hotel, I ordered pancakes.
"In Philadelphia, I ran into serious gridlock on the roads. George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton were there to receive the Liberty Medal. Fortunately, Art, my driver, knew the side streets and a good place to get a true Philadelphia cheese steak (I'd had oatmeal that morning). We're talking heavy security, which turned out okay, because it triggered story ideas, all involving the Secret Service.
"In Maine, I stayed just down the road from the Kennebunkport home of--guess who? George H. W. Bush. No, I wasn't following him, but more stories involving the Secret Service started percolating. The housekeeper at my inn turned out to be a fan, which was nice, and they served a breakfast buffet that did not include oatmeal. I was off the hook. My big indulgence was a lavender martini, the bartender's own recipe...different.
"A bookseller I met in suburban Philadelphia told me what she enjoys most about her job is talking with people who love to read. That sums up the best part about getting out on the road, too. It's not that easy to eat oatmeal every morning, but the people I get to meet make it is easy to have fun."
Carla
I asked Carla what's coming up in the future? She said look for:
- CUT AND RUN in March 2007, a reissue, originally published as MINSTREL'S FIRE, a Rita Award finalist
- ABANDON: June 2007, which she is wrapping up now....It continues her "U.S. Marshals" series.
Carla also has a blog so you can keep an eye on what's going on in her life.
There are also a couple of interesting online interviews. One with
with Bill Thompson of Eye On Books and one with
Judyth Piazza of The Student Operated Press
Check it out!
You have to check out the contest on Carla's website: It's Adopt-A-Puffin to celebrate the Maine setting of THE WIDOW. Now I know some of you may be thinking Carla is just another celebrity adopter, like Angelina or Madonna, but that's just not true. She has already facilitated the adoption of a Loon and a Whale. It doesn't get any bigger or crazier than that! And the Puffin is really cute!
She's also got some excellent Blueberry recipes contributed from readers on her website. An appropriate match for the moody blue cover of THE WIDOW. And just think of all the anti-oxidants. But let me let Carla share a piece of her life....
"I'm back home on my hill in Vermont after getting out on the road for signing and media interviews for THE WIDOW. . I have only two rules for going on book tour. One, eat oatmeal for breakfast. Two, have fun. I blew the oatmeal rule on my second morning, in Baltimore, after my 4:15 AM wakeup call for a 5:15 AM pickup for a 6:45 TV interview. I was on after Elmo . He helped do the weather. The people in the studio were great, but when I arrived back to my hotel, I ordered pancakes.
"In Philadelphia, I ran into serious gridlock on the roads. George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton were there to receive the Liberty Medal. Fortunately, Art, my driver, knew the side streets and a good place to get a true Philadelphia cheese steak (I'd had oatmeal that morning). We're talking heavy security, which turned out okay, because it triggered story ideas, all involving the Secret Service.
"In Maine, I stayed just down the road from the Kennebunkport home of--guess who? George H. W. Bush. No, I wasn't following him, but more stories involving the Secret Service started percolating. The housekeeper at my inn turned out to be a fan, which was nice, and they served a breakfast buffet that did not include oatmeal. I was off the hook. My big indulgence was a lavender martini, the bartender's own recipe...different.
"A bookseller I met in suburban Philadelphia told me what she enjoys most about her job is talking with people who love to read. That sums up the best part about getting out on the road, too. It's not that easy to eat oatmeal every morning, but the people I get to meet make it is easy to have fun."
Carla
I asked Carla what's coming up in the future? She said look for:
- CUT AND RUN in March 2007, a reissue, originally published as MINSTREL'S FIRE, a Rita Award finalist
- ABANDON: June 2007, which she is wrapping up now....It continues her "U.S. Marshals" series.
Carla also has a blog so you can keep an eye on what's going on in her life.
There are also a couple of interesting online interviews. One with
with Bill Thompson of Eye On Books and one with
Judyth Piazza of The Student Operated Press
Check it out!
Monday, October 30, 2006
iBOAS—you'll never guess what it stands for, but you may want to join when you find out!
Far left: Malle & her pet dog. Center: Tamara & Mary (Tamara with Crown). Right: Me.
First, the scene set. Yes, these are my colleagues. While we are all fascinating, and have unique and very different special powers, amazingly, we share certain reading tastes.
We realized when we started working together we shared a passion for a particular author and decided to form a Club. Please note that the author in question knows nothing of our plans. We decided we needed a name. We needed presence. It all came together.
We are the imaginary Buddies Of Anne Stuart. iBOAS. Please note the thematically linked and color coordinated boas! I assure you a feather boa is completely appropriate attire for any Buddy, imaginary or not, associated with Anne Stuart. We are here to alert you that she has a new book coming out in NOVEMBER, you can check out the fabulous Publishers Weekly review below. We also wanted to share some of our thoughts.
Anne Stuart's previous title (there is a connection to this one) Black Ice got a starred review in PW and Cold as Ice got an excellent review from Publishers Weekly.
Early (or whatever whenever you read this) breaking news: Cold as Ice will be #33 on the November 12th, 2006 New York Times Bestseller list! and #77 on the USA Today Bestseller List (also on the list are Nora Roberts' Silhouette First Impressions @ #10 in hardcover, and Dream Makers @ #9 in paperback, Debbie Macomber's MIRA, Christmas Letters, @ #20 in hardcover and Glad Tidings in paperback @ #5, Diana Palmer's HQN hardcover Heart of Winter and Sharon Sala's Nine Lives @ #24--iBOAS are equitable about sharing information. We just adore Anne Stuart.)
Tamara: "Anne Stuart gave me a gift in the form of a special paradox: She created bad boys that I loved, who also made me glad to be married to such a good soul. I can escape into the world of Black Ice, and Cold as Ice whenever I choose and snap back to reality in a heartbeat.
"As someone I know once said, I can enjoy exploring that world and lose myself 'between the covers, not between the sheets.'"
Mary has these thoughts to add...
How Anne Stuart has changed my life:
"Ever had one of those weeks where you're just not sure you can make it through? I was having one when I realized that the new Anne Stuart would be available in time for the weekend. I remember that it was this ray of sunshine in the distance, knowing that maybe, just maybe, if I made it through the week I would be rewarded with a Saturday devoted to reading a great story.
"OK. I'll be honest, half a Saturday because I just tear through her books. Anyway, thank you Anne. You made living through that tough week worthwhile.
How much I enjoyed Black Ice:
"I must confess that I re-read Black Ice. The confession is not that I re-read it because I re-read a lot of my favorite books. My confession is that I read it first on Saturday and then again on Sunday. And I totally loved it both times.
"I loved Cold As Ice because after I read Black Ice I told someone that Peter Jensen would be a great hero for the next book. She explained to me why this wouldn't be possible. In fact she told me... "Didn't you notice? He's gay. He couldn't possibly be a romantic hero...or at least not for you.' I went back to the text and thought...Well, I guess she's right.
"But I should have trusted that Anne Stuart, the queen of the baddest of the bad boys, would be able to make Peter Jensen a romantic hero for me. I don't know how she'll top Cold As Ice but I can hardly wait to see."
Isabel said,"Years ago, when I found myself sneaking into the Harlequin side of the New York office to 'borrow' all the Anne Stuart titles, I knew I had discovered a special author. An author worth stealing—excuse me—borrowing (at least until the titles were reissued) was a keeper. Nothing has changed my opinion. No, I don't lend my Anne Stuarts. Sorry."
Upcoming schedule in MIRA: Cold as Ice, November, 2006; Ice Blue, April, 2007; Ice Storm (tentative) November, 2007; and possibly Reno's story in spring of 2008.
In addition to her own fabulous website where you can read excerpts, Anne also has a blogging site, Story Broads with Maggie Shayne, Tara Taylor Quinn, Patricia Potter, Lynn Kerstan and Suzanne Forster.
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Karen Harper in recent NYT article on Book Fairs
Check out Book Fairs: Reading Might Not Be Dead By Beth Greenfield in the New York Times, October 20, 2006. And just in case you don't click, here are the bits I think are relevant:
Ms Greenfield starts by saying: "LESS than half of the adult American population now read books that can be defined as literary, the Census Bureau reported after a 2002 survey. Yet the number of book fairs appears to be growing, so perhaps not everyone is eager to replace hard covers with hard drives after all.
"'There are now 35 statewide celebrations, and that has gone up tremendously in recent years,' said John Y. Cole, director of the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress. Mr. Cole arranges for authors to appear at the annual National Book Festival, which drew 100,000 literature lovers to the National Mall in Washington last month. The center also helps organizers put together local book fairs.
"Several are scheduled next month, with the Miami Book Fair International the biggest and best known...
"If it all seems like a highbrow disconnect to those who associate Miami with glitz and glamour, they may find an even bigger surprise in Las Vegas: the fifth annual Vegas Valley Book Festival, held in the shadows of the city’s casino theme parks."
But the one I care about is (natch) the one that mentions MIRA's very own Karen Harper....
"In Wooster, Ohio, the 19th annual Buckeye Book Fair aims at all ages. Participants will include Karen Harper, a best-selling mystery writer and the author of “Hurricane,” and Carl Sferrazza Anthony, who wrote “Nellie Taft: Unconventional First Lady of the Ragtime Era.”
“'State festivals tend to focus, rightly, on local writers,' said Mr. Cole, who is happy for any excitement about reading that these events create. 'In the electronic age, books and reading and authors really need promotion more than ever. The real competition now is not the computer per se, but for a reader’s time.'"
The Details
MIAMI
What: Miami Book Fair International, www.miamibookfair.com
When: Nov. 12 to 19.
LAS VEGAS
What: Vegas Valley Book Festival, www.vegasvalleybookfest.org
When: Nov. 3 and 4.
CHICAGO
What: Latino Book & Family Festival, www.latinobookfestival.com.
When: Nov. 11 and 12.
STORRS, CONN.
What: Connecticut Children’s Book Fair, http://bookfair.uconn.edu
When: Nov. 11 and 12.
WOOSTER, OHIO
What: Buckeye Book Fair www.buckeyebookfair.com
When: Nov. 4.
FRANKFORT, KY.
What: Kentucky Book Fair www.kybookfair.org
When: Nov. 11.
Ms Greenfield starts by saying: "LESS than half of the adult American population now read books that can be defined as literary, the Census Bureau reported after a 2002 survey. Yet the number of book fairs appears to be growing, so perhaps not everyone is eager to replace hard covers with hard drives after all.
"'There are now 35 statewide celebrations, and that has gone up tremendously in recent years,' said John Y. Cole, director of the Center for the Book at the Library of Congress. Mr. Cole arranges for authors to appear at the annual National Book Festival, which drew 100,000 literature lovers to the National Mall in Washington last month. The center also helps organizers put together local book fairs.
"Several are scheduled next month, with the Miami Book Fair International the biggest and best known...
"If it all seems like a highbrow disconnect to those who associate Miami with glitz and glamour, they may find an even bigger surprise in Las Vegas: the fifth annual Vegas Valley Book Festival, held in the shadows of the city’s casino theme parks."
But the one I care about is (natch) the one that mentions MIRA's very own Karen Harper....
"In Wooster, Ohio, the 19th annual Buckeye Book Fair aims at all ages. Participants will include Karen Harper, a best-selling mystery writer and the author of “Hurricane,” and Carl Sferrazza Anthony, who wrote “Nellie Taft: Unconventional First Lady of the Ragtime Era.”
“'State festivals tend to focus, rightly, on local writers,' said Mr. Cole, who is happy for any excitement about reading that these events create. 'In the electronic age, books and reading and authors really need promotion more than ever. The real competition now is not the computer per se, but for a reader’s time.'"
The Details
MIAMI
What: Miami Book Fair International, www.miamibookfair.com
When: Nov. 12 to 19.
LAS VEGAS
What: Vegas Valley Book Festival, www.vegasvalleybookfest.org
When: Nov. 3 and 4.
CHICAGO
What: Latino Book & Family Festival, www.latinobookfestival.com.
When: Nov. 11 and 12.
STORRS, CONN.
What: Connecticut Children’s Book Fair, http://bookfair.uconn.edu
When: Nov. 11 and 12.
WOOSTER, OHIO
What: Buckeye Book Fair www.buckeyebookfair.com
When: Nov. 4.
FRANKFORT, KY.
What: Kentucky Book Fair www.kybookfair.org
When: Nov. 11.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Sobol Award: We Discover New Writers
Just attended a lovely event at the Century Club hosted by EVP of Contest Management Sue Pollock and EVP & Editorial Director Brigitte Weeks announcing the launch of The Sobol Award for Fiction and wanted to share the details:
The Sobol award for Fiction is a national contest designed to discover talented, but unknown writers, to help them get published and find enthusiastic readers.
Yearly contest, open to all unpublished writers in English
Electronic submission, complete anonymity & equal chance
Competent readers, including a panel of prominent editors
Every writer receives at lest 2 reviews of his/her work
All winners are represented & presented to leading publishers
Submission fee: $85.00
First Prize: $100,000
First Runner up: $25,000
Second Runner up: $10,000
Visit www.sobolaward.com for more details
Good luck!
The Sobol award for Fiction is a national contest designed to discover talented, but unknown writers, to help them get published and find enthusiastic readers.
Yearly contest, open to all unpublished writers in English
Electronic submission, complete anonymity & equal chance
Competent readers, including a panel of prominent editors
Every writer receives at lest 2 reviews of his/her work
All winners are represented & presented to leading publishers
Submission fee: $85.00
First Prize: $100,000
First Runner up: $25,000
Second Runner up: $10,000
Visit www.sobolaward.com for more details
Good luck!
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Presenting...MIRA & Spice Editor Susan Pezzack
Let me introduce you to an editor from the Toronto office—Susan Pezzack. I'll let her speak for herself!
Tell us about you: I’m a huge Anglophile. I adore any and all things British, especially Monty Python, BBC television and have a mild addiction to Coronation Street. My fiancé tells me we can never live in England because he’s sure I’d run off with the first man who spoke to me with that yummy accent.
Role at Harlequin: I’ve been with Harlequin for seven years now. I began in the Marketing department, but moved over to Editorial after a year. I spent about three years working on Temptation and Blaze, then got the opportunity to work on the single title side of the business with MIRA Books. Then, in 2004, I was asked to help roll out Harlequin’s new single title erotic fiction imprint, Spice. Now I edit and acquire for both imprints.
Did you always want to work in publishing? For a long time, I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. My degree in Fine Art and French Literature didn’t really offer me much in the way of gainful employment! I’d always been a huge reader – I used to bring a book with me everywhere as a kid, and I was always reading at the table during meals, even if it was only the back of the cereal box. I finally decided to try to explore whether I could do something with my love of books that also paid the rent. I went back to school and did a degree in Publishing with a focus on editing, and here I am!
If not, what else did you want to do? I saw myself as the curator of the
Royal Ontario Museum, believe it or not. My love of art and archaeology is still very strong, but unfortunately curator jobs are pretty hard to come by.
Favorite recent film/film of all time: An impossible question! I’m a sucker for romantic dramas/comedies, particularly the British ones like Love, Actually, Bridget Jones’ Diary, Sense and Sensibility and Notting Hill…but I also love historical dramas like Lion in Winter and A Man for All Seasons.
Favorite author? Roald Dahl, hands down.
Favorite meal/to make, to eat: There’s not a lot of food I don’t enjoy. Good, authentic fish & chips is one of my favorites. I could eat my weight in pastry. When we travel to Montreal it’s essential we have steamies (steamed hot dogs) and fries at least once a day. It’s the worst food in the world for you, but it’s such a treat.
Hobby? Obsession? I’m an avid horseback rider. And I’m obsessed with decorating shows.
Do you get to write off sex toys with your new Spice responsibilities? Lingerie? Hmmm, I haven’t thought to ask, but now that you mention it...
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