May 16, 2008 • 1 Comment

Head on over to Linda Gerber’s blog because it’s her launch party for Death by Bikini and lots of authors are blogging (including yours truly) and there are loads of prizes up for grabs!!

And watch this space for the launch party of another author friend….. yes I’m being very mysterious…. but it’s worth waiting for!!!

And what else…..   kids gone back after the mid-trimester break…. so lots less cooking for me to do……. hurray…. downside is I don’t get to put the dishwasher on every day (le sigh).

I watched 27 Dresses on dvd yesterday…. omg…. I totally LOVED it. Will definitely be watching it again.  Also saw Death at a Funeral again (so funny………. British humour at it’s best).

V ery excited because tonight we get the Andrew Lloyd Webber American Idol show (we’re a few weeks behind). Even though I know the outcome it’s still just as exciting for me to watch. A new series of America’s Next Top Model has just started which is on before Idol. So, my Friday night viewing is complete!!

May 12, 2008 • 9 Comments

I’ve been tagged by Tera Lynn Childs

It’s one I haven’t seen before, though I’m seeing lots of people taking part. So, here are the instructions:

1. Pick up the nearest book.

2. Open to page 123

3. Find the fifth sentence.

4. Post the next three sentences.

5. Tag five people and post a comment to the person who tagged you once you’ve posted your three sentences.

The book: Frenemies by Megan Crane (fab book btw) :

Three sentences:

“I think we already talked about Ashley,” Henry said reprovingly, alhthough his mouth was twitching. He was trying not to laugh.

“Oh, right,” I said.

And now I need 5 people to tag:

Maureen McGowan

Alyssa Goodnight

Stephanie Kuehnert

Melissa Walker

Jessica Burkhart

May 5, 2008 • 5 Comments

I’m very excited to tour Don’t Hex with Texas by Shanna Swendson (isn’t it a fabulous title).

Katie Chandler has fled fast-paced Manhattan and returned home to a simpler life, working at her family’s feed-and-seed store in Cobb, Texas.  In a painfully selfless gesture, Katie left the sexy wizard Owen Palmer to battle his demons in the magical realm—after all, she just seemed to attract evil, which only made Owen’s job a lot harder.  But now, it seems, trouble has followed her home.  Despite the fact that Merlin, Katie’s former boss at Magic, Spells, and Illusions, Inc., has assured her that Cobb is free of enchantment, magically speaking, Katie begins to notice curious phenomena.

         Cobb is being plagued by a series of unexplainable petty crimes and other devilish mischief, and after her experiences in Manhattan, Katie knows “unauthorized magic” when she sees it.  As this new dark magic strikes deep in the heart of Texas, Owen reappears (literally) to investigate.  Now Katie’s friends and family must show the bad guys why it’s bad luck to hex with Texas, while Katie and Owen combine their strengths like never before to uncover a sinister plot before evil takes root in the Lone Star State.

And now for the interview……

What inspired the plot for your book?

This is the fourth book in my series, so the big-picture plot and characters were already established. But when I was traveling around Texas promoting the first book in the series, I drove through a lot of small towns very much like the one I imagined that Katie Chandler, the heroine of the series, came from. It struck me that it might be a lot of fun to move the action of the series from New York to Katie’s hometown for a book. One of the themes of the series is that in New York, no one really notices the weird things that are going on, but in a small town, everyone notices everything about everyone, so that setting presents a whole new range of challenges and a lot of potential for fun.

Why did you decide to write for teens?

I don’t write specifically for teens — these books are published as adult books, but they’re what I’d call “teen friendly.” There’s not a lot of content that would alarm parents, but I think that teens enjoy reading about what might face them after college when they enter the adult world (well, minus the talking gargoyles and frog princes, which haven’t been a big part of my adult life, although the ogre bosses certainly have).

What is your writing process like?

I like to plan everything and analyze it thoroughly, then I tear through a fast first draft, generally making it up as I go. And then I analyze it all over again and take it apart and put it back together again. I often write a first draft in a few weeks, then spend several months revising the book. No matter how much I plan, it seems like I don’t figure out what the book is about until I’ve written it.

What are you working on now?

I’m just starting the brainstorming process on an urban fantasy project, trying to figure out who my characters are and what’s really going on.  And I’m revising a young adult fantasy novel that I hope to get submitted to publishers soon.

What do you do when you’re not writing?

I read a lot. I’m trying to read 100 books this year, and I’m right on target to do that. I’m also quite a TV geek, totally addicted to the Sci Fi Friday lineup, and then I have to discuss all those shows online. Or I get together with friends to do things like watch Doctor Who episodes, explore bookstores, go to various local events and festivals and, of course, eat out.

Who do you like to read?

Just about everything! My current addiction is Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series. I’m trying to ration them and only read a few at a time instead of greedily devouring the whole series at once. I love fantasy novels, mysteries, young adult books, adventure stories, science fiction, history, and I could go on all day.

SHANNA SWENDSON escaped the corporate rat race to be a novelist and pop culture essayist.  She is the author of Enchanted, Inc. and Once Upon Stilettos, in addition to contributing essays to books about television series, authors, and novels.  When she’s not writing or watching television and movies so she can write about them, she enjoys cooking, traveling, and singing.  Visit her web site at www.shannaswendson.com or her blog

Swendson’s contemporary urban fantasy novels have enchanted fans of romance, chick lit and fantasy alike.  DON’T HEX WITH TEXAS—and don’t miss what Booklist calls “one of the best romantic-fantasy series being written today”!

April 29, 2008 • 9 Comments

You might find this hard to believe, but I’m only just discovering Judy Blume. I had my fav authors when I was young but she didn’t figure. I’m not sure if that’s because I lived in the UK or because from an early age I read adult books.

Anyway, I’m making up for it now. I’ve just read 6 of her books, one after the other, and she’s awesome. I love her easy laidback style and the way she deals with issues. And EVERY book has been a page turner…. much to the annoyance of my husband because I can barely utter two sentences during the evening when I’m reading!

What else……. writing has slowed a little, I’m working on a mid grade series, but really need to do a scene spreadsheet for a couple of the books before I get down to some serious writing.

I’m very excited because my friend is coming to stay tomorrow for the day/night. So lots of food, fun and maybe a movie!!! Oh, and we’ll talk about writing, of course, and maybe throw in some goss.

Oh yes, something else. I’ve just discovered a brilliant movie. I don’t know why it passed me by. Ice Princess. It’s a Disney movie and I’ve got it out on week loan from the video store. So far I’ve watched it twice. I suspect I’ll watch it at least twice more, and then I might see if I can buy it!! I get very excited it when I find movies I really love.

Lastly, I’m posting on Teen Fiction Cafe this week, talking about music, if you want to pop over!

April 23, 2008 • 6 Comments

I can’t believe we’re at the end of April. Which means…… not long before we go to San Fran and the RWA conference. I wouldn’t be lying if I said this trip is occupying our time almost every minute of every day. We (Amanda and I) have already discussed clothes, sight-seeing, shoes, food, money… and even workshops (should I be admitting our obsession…. hmmm).

We’ve also been discussing the RWNZ conference which is a couple of weeks after the RWA one. We’re doing two presentations. One to the whole conference on Internet promotion and the other a smaller workshop on writing young adult. So we’re very excited about that too.

Oh yes.. and amongst all this I’m also writing a mid-grade proposal for a series. VERY exciting!!!! I’ve been wanting to write a series for ever and suddenly a few weeks ago…. after months of deliberation, an idea popped into my head.

Finally, this week my book is being toured by GCC (Girlfriends Cyber Circuit). So far, you can see me at the following places:

E. Lockhart

Karin Gillespie

Stephanie Kuehnert

Amanda Ashby

Bev Katz Rosenbaum

Megan Crane

Carrie Jones

Laurie Stolarz

Tanya Lee Stone

Shanna Swendson

Jennifer O’Connell

Jennifer Echols

Laura Bowers

Melanie Lynne Hauser 

I will add the others when they appear!!

April 13, 2008 • 2 Comments

I’m so excited because today I’m interviewing Megan Crane and touring her book ‘Names My Sisters Call Me’. And isn’t the cover the most awesome ever. I’m totally in love with it.

Here’s what the book’s about:

Courtney, Norah, and Raine Cassel are about as different as three sisters can get. Norah, the oldest, is a typical Type A obsessive who believes there is a right way and a wrong way to do everything. Six years later she has not forgiven Raine, the middle sister, for ruining her wedding day. Raine is Norah’s opposite - a wild, follow-your-bliss hippie chick who flees to California after the wedding fiasco. The only thing the two sisters have in common is their ability to drive Courtney, their youngest sister, crazy.

When Courtney’s longtime boyfriend proposes, she decides it’s finally time to call a family truce and bring the three sisters together. After all, they’re all grown-ups now, right? But it turns out that family ghosts aren’t easily vanquished, and neither are first loves. Reconnecting the sisters also means reexamining every choice Courtney has made in the past six years, right down to the man she’s about to marry.

Whether you have suffered the angst of sibling rivalry or been one of the lucky (or unlucky, depending on how you look at it) few who just watched from afar, Names My Sisters Call Me is a book that anyone with a sister, a sibling, or even a friend can appreciate.

Megan thanks for agreeing to be interviewed. First of all can you tell me what inspired the plot for your book?

I knew I wanted to write about first love versus true love, and somehow that evolved into sisters and secrets and trips to California. And my main character was suddenly and irrevocably a cellist. And here we are.

Why did you decide to write for teens?

Well, I don’t write specifically for teens. Though I think a large number of teens read my books, which is great. I think the target audience for my books is probably women in their twenties and thirties, but I have much older and much younger readers. I think books find us when they’re supposed to.

What is your writing process like?

I tend to spend periods mulling and daydreaming and stressing about how I will never write another word, and then periods of great productivity, when I set daily word or page quotas and write madly day and night. I am trying to come to terms with both.

What are you working on now?

I’m working on a book that’s a bit of a departure for me, and I have about 150 pages of another 5 Spot sort of book, which needs to marinate for a while before I look at it again.

What do you do when you’re not writing?

I read a lot. I go through phases where I watch a lot of television (Life, Reaper, Chuck, Journeyman– I watched a lot last fall), and phases where I read obsessively instead, and both phases are very rewarding in different ways. I spend a shocking amount of time online, to my shame. I think my life would be more fulfilling if I did something craftier, like scrapbooking. (Or like cleaning my house.)

Who do you like to read?

I’m not kidding when I say I read a lot, and I’ll read just about anything, though my favorite books are usually romance novels. I’m currently reading “The Sweet Far Thing” by Libba Bray, and I’m loving it, but I don’t want it to end!

Megan Crane is a New Jersey native who graduated from Vassar and got her MA and PhD in literature from the University of York in England. She is the author of Everyone Else’s Girl, English as a Second Language and Frenemies. She lives in Los Angeles.

Check out Megan’s website where you can read an excerpt from her book, and her blog