April 17, 2007

My heart, prayers and thoughts go out to the families, friends, and colleagues of any student at Virginia Tech–especially the victims in yesterday's tragedy. I'm stunned and angry and horribly distressed.

I found out about it when I walked into a restaurant yesterday and saw a silently-playing CNN coverage: BREAKING NEWS….

At first, it said 1 killed.

And then 7-8 casualties.

By the time my husband and I were done with lunch, it was 21.

And then later that day I was talking to my friend on the phone who said 31.

Where were you when you found out?

Where were you when you found out about Oklahoma City?

I was sitting in a car dealer, waiting for my vehicle to be fixed, and I saw it on television…after my husband phoned to tell me to watch.

Where were you when you found out about Columbine?

I honestly don't remember. I must have been at work. It was before the Internet was fully accessible at my job.

Where were you when you found out about 9/11?

I was home on maternity leave with my youngest, and I called my sister–who lived in Astoria and worked in Manhattan–just to chit-chat. I had no idea what I was calling into; and looking back, it's amazing that I actually got through at 9:00 on that Tuesday morning.

Where were you? How did it change your life?

And then I remind myself that this kind of violence, with the taking of dozens of innocent lives, happens every day in places like Iraq. Every day. 

April 16, 2007

Happy Monday!

Is it? Do tell!

The sun's shining here, the kids are back to school after Spring Break (yay!) and I just paid all the monthly bills, so, despite the lightness of my checkbook, I'm still in a good mood.

Got a little project done over the weekend I was working on, and I'm giving away an Advance Review Copy of Rises the Night over at my other home today.

Got some great reviews about Rises over the weekend, too, so that helps. One's already posted on Vampire Romance Books, and another on Romance Divas, so check it out.

Took the kiddies to see Meet the Robinsons on Friday. It was cute, but not one I'd rave about. Nice message, and I (doh!) didn't figure out the twist until too far into it for my ego. Maybe that's because I was just half watching it, and using the other half of my brain to plot Gardella Four. (At least, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.)

Disturbia did well at the box office. Anyone see it? 

April 15, 2007

(This is a "sticky" post…scroll down to read more recent entries.) 

~~The contest is now over. See the list of winners below.~~~

If you haven't read The Rest Falls Away yet, here's your chance before Rises the Night comes out. Make a comment on any post between now and April 15, and you'll have the chance to win a signed copy.

I'm giving away 15 copies of the book (that's nearly one per day!). (If you've already read it, you can give a copy to a friend! Or your library!) 

To make a comment on any post, merely click on the link below that post that says, "X others joined her in the spotlight."

ETA: Here are the winners (I'll keep a rolling tally):

1. Erica R.       2. Sparky Duck    3. Chris         4. Sue A.      5. Michelle

6. Stephanie   7. Susan H. G.      8. Cherie J.    9.  katkat     10. Tori L.

11. Michael     12. Lonnie          13. Wry Writer 14. ai chaku  15. Sarah 

April 12, 2007

Finish the thought:

It drives me crazy when… 

April 11, 2007

There are very few authors who are on my auto-buy list. They've had to produce consistently great books for me to place them there.

When I say auto-buy, I mean that: you see the book in the store, or you know it's coming, and you pre-order it or otherwise buy it without hesitation.

You don't look at the back cover copy, you don't read an excerpt, etc., you don't read or wait for reviews…You automatically buy the book.

I've got a few auto-buy authors. JD Robb, Nora Roberts, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, Jennifer Crusie (when she's writing solo), Liz Carlyle, JK Rowling, to name a few.

These are the writers that I'm really excited about their new books, and I'm at the bookstore the day the book is released.

What about you? Who are yours?