Happy Holidays!

I just want to wish you and yours a joyous holiday season. I'm taking a little holiday break to do some writing and some R & R, so I'll post again once 2007 is here!

Michele

Permission to say no

The holidays are upon us. I'm finishing my second to last day of teaching before winter break, which starts this Friday.

I have set a goal for the holidays: giving myself permission to say no.

I'm going to start by saying no to buying those extra presents that will destroy my budget. No, I'm not being scrooge, but rather you know those last minute impulse gifts that you really don't need--you've already bought the perfect gifts and think that they aren't enough. They are.

I'm going to say no to all eating more than I should. If my goal is to slim down, I have to practice my resolutions now, not starting Jan. 1. I'm also watching my favorite movies while I walk on the treadmill, saying no to being a couch potato.

I'm going to say no to things that sap my writing time. I'm on deadline, and the week after Christmas I'm going to do three 12-hour days Monday-Wednesday to kick a lot of my November 2007 American out. I'm leaving my calendar blank and rewarding myself by doing fun things on Thursday and Friday. Thus, I'm also saying no to crowds, doing my returns a little later in the week.

The holidays are draining, and I'm usually sapped by the end of them. This time, I'm saying no to stress (somehow) and I'm going to enjoy them. That means catering a dinner (hello Honeybaked Ham) rather than cooking. I like to cook, but the goal is to see everyone, not have me over a hot stove. Catering will give me time to do what is most important, spending time with those I love. I'm saying a big yes to that.

Michele

Under Orders

I just finished reading Dick Francis's book Under Orders. I've been a Dick Francis reader for years. I loved Banker and Bolt, and have read many of his other works. He's very prolific. A writer friend of mine, Eileen Dreyer (go to www.eileendreyer.com), and I were discussing Dick Francis's writing a while back. Her comment was that Dick Francis can lay everything out on the dining room table, but you won't see it until he's ready for you to see it.

Under Cover, which is set in England in the racing world and uses Sid Halley, a former jockey turned detective, didn't disappoint.

Michele

Blogging

My agent has a great blog on well, blogs. http://bookendslitagency.blogspot.com/

While I'm not able to blog every day, having a blog has been a fun experience. Because of this blog, I've been able to reconnect with one of my former eighth grade students, and that has been a great experience! I always love hearing from former students. After all, we spent nine months of our lives together, at least one hour a day, and it's great to hear that they've turned into successful adults. (Not that I ever had any doubt, except for maybe a few.)

I also blog over at www.harauthors.blogspot.com

Blogging takes a lot of time. I'm here in my computer chair 15 minutes after I'd planned to start on something else. I admit to really liking blogs. Here I'll tell you a little about me, some background on my books, and a bit about what I'm reading. I promise to be frank and forthright, but not necessarily an open book. (A girl should always have her privacy.) I'll try not to bore you with laundry lists or how I spent my day. I'll also try not to hit you with endless promotion. You can also follow along with me as I work on my goal to exercise at least 30 minutes a day. That's related to writing this way: writing is very sedentary, and as I've become more prolific and publish more often, the amount of chair time has increased. So I need to increase my exercise.

That said, I'm off to the treadmill.

Michele

The Camel Club

I just finished David Baldacci's The Camel Club. It's the story of Oliver Stone (a former CIA agent turned squatter) who heads a group of conspiracy theorists. I had to admit, at one point in the book it was like being on the beginning of a roller coaster going click, click, click. You know that moment when you are full of anticipation waiting for the thrill ride and your patience begins to stretch?

The wait was worth it. Once the plot to kidnap the president all came together, the book was a non-stop thrill ride and I held on and found myself quite satisfied with the book once I'd finished. I also found myself impressed at how the author pulled everything together and tied up the loose ends. I also liked how the details were impeccable and wished that I could write so well. (Sigh.)

Up next for me is a Dick Francis novel. Oh yeah, and I need to get working on mine as well (I don't read in my genre when I'm writing.)

Michele

Tis the season for sales

My friend Julie called me today to tell me that Wal-mart in Union, MO, only had two of my books left on the shelves--meaning I'd sold eight out of 10 in a store I usually only sell half. I was thrilled.

Every time a book gets into the stores I worry about it. The books that I think will do really well sometimes don't. Case in point, Legally Tender, my January 06 American, didn't sell as well as predicted. Maybe it was January, when everyone is broke from holiday spending and making those resolutions to cut back. Maybe it was because it was of the cover. I know I read one blog where the woman loved the book, but she bought it only after someone recommended it to her. She blogged that she hated the title, and had it not been recommended, she never would have bought the book--just because of the title.

So The Wedding Secret is out there now. I can't fix anything about it and I am already writing my November 2007 American. But a book is like a baby, once it's born, you can't send it back if it's not what you expected. However, I love this book. It's one of my favorites. So I hope everyone will love my baby just as much as I do. I hope they'll spare a few Christmas dollars to pick up a little romantic escape. Until the January Americans arrive, I nervously check stores, Amazon numbers and pray. You'd think that after 13 times I'd stop worrying. But I won't.

So I'm like the stores holding their breath on sales numbers. Only time will tell. And come April, when Nine Months' Notice hits the stands, the butterflies and nerves will take flight again. I guess it's all part of the process.

Michele

The Hollow Men

One of the most influential pieces of literature on my philosophy is T. S. Eliot's "The Hollow Men." I taught this in class the other day and hope that my students get it.

Even though I read (and explained) the poem three times in one day, the ending still gave me chills. (This is the way the world ends, not with a bang, but a whimper.)

Even after more than 80 years, the poem is just as true today as it was then. Al Gore was on Oprah talking about global warming. He said (and I paraphrase) that the thing that worried him most was that people wouldn't take action. And I thought, hollow me.

Every day all of us have to make the decision to be men of action. We must decide if we are going to do something, or if we are going to be hollow men who do nothing at all.

I encourage you to look up the poem. I'll warn you, it's a bit dark, hard to follow, and at times depressing. But there's hope for hollow me. As we come into the holiday season, take some action even if it's as small as donating to the red Salvation Army bucket. I wrote my check today.

Michele

What am I reading?

I went to the Missouri Romance Writers of America (MORWA) holiday party on Saturday and one of the questions that came up was to share the best book we'd read in 2006. Frankly, I went blank. I know I've read over 100 books. I'm a voracious reader, and just like I write in large spurts, I also read in large spurts.

When I couldn't remember one specific book, I rationalized that books are like wedding reception food. No one will remember if it's good, but everyone will remember if it sucked. Unless a book is so truly exceptional that it really resonates, it's just a like a movie. A diversion. Entertainment. Something to discuss, mull over, and then move on.

One that really got to me was Mitch Ablom's The Five People You Meet in Heaven. I knew how it ended. I knew the entire storyline. But I still cried. I still found myself moved and thinking about how we are all connected to one another. I thought about how my books might allow people 2-3 hours of diversion and feel good moments before they move on back to what is going on in their world.

So, from here forward, I'm going to share every now and then the books that really got to me. I'm going to let you know here what I read that I liked--allowing myself to create a record before I, myself, move on.

Michele

No day like a snow day

I've been off work for the past two days. The first day my school dismissed early and the second one the district I work for called off the night before.

I love snow days. Thursday I took mulitple naps and worked on feeling better. By the evening I walked one hour on my treadmill--the first dedicated exercise I'd had in a long time.

On Friday I talked to my agent first thing and hammered out the details about my new contract. So December did start off on a happy foot! I'll have two releases in November 2007 and one in April 2007. The other two books will be in 2008. It's thrilled that my readers have brought me to this point.

As for the snow, four inches covers everything. Since I live in the country, everywhere I look is a blanket of white. I have the best neighbors as well. They got my mom (who lives 1,000 feet from me) out of the snow drift and they also plowed the entire road--getting me out to run some much needed errands. I had to do part of my driveway, but the exercise felt good.

By Monday, life will be back to normal. Back to work, with the winter break and finals looming on the horizon.

Until then, I'm loving the white.

Michele