Hello! Thanks to Fresh Fiction for inviting me to blog today! As some of you may know, I write the Greatest Hits Series, featuring the Bombay Family – the first name in assassination since 2000 BCE. My first book, ‘SCUSE ME WHILE I KILL THIS GUY, featured Gin Bombay – soccer mom/assassin. My second book, GUNS WILL KEEP US TOGETHER is about her brother, Dakota Bombay – playboy/assassin. I love writing about this family of hitmen. The Bombays have kids to raise, bills to pay, PTA presidents to avoid, and so on. And they kill people. Well, bad people, really. A lot of people ask me where the inspiration comes from to write about this subject. I have to say that movies like MR. & MRS. SMITH and GROSSE POINTE BLANK as well as books like Hugh Laurie’s (yes, the guy from HOUSE) THE GUNSELLER rank pretty high on the list. I think it’s because the characters are ordinary people with extraordinary jobs. And it’s easy to write about family life because everybody can relate to quirky cousins and a mother who ignores the fact that you are no longer twelve and still buys you barrettes with your name on…
This one tiny word encompasses all from which romance novels are made. It doesn’t matter what genre, category or heat level. It all comes down to those four little letters. Now, the word itself may be small, but the concept is huge. The tiny flicker eventually turning into an all-consuming flame–now that is love…or at the very least, lust. As a romance writer, I have to admit that this fire is what sucked me into writing the genre. I love…love. The sex is great, but it is so much more than hopping in the sack. The thrill of the chase, the spark of the first kiss, the flame of the passion, and the sigh of the happily-ever-after ending make it the only category for me to read and write. There are many people who say romance is nothing but predictable, just because they end the same. I have one word for them: Duh! Mysteries end with a resolution to the mystery and horror stories are going to have gruesome scenes, yet for some reason, they generally aren’t lumped into one bunch and pooh-poohed as a whole. Writing a book is all about the presentation and figuring out how to flow…
It’s Valentine’s Day so of course the subject of the day is Romance. What is romance? Is it the perfect gift? The bouquet of flowers? The huge heart shaped box of candy? Or is it the little blue velvet (or whatever) color jewelry box from your favorite store? Seriously sappy cards? Or humorous fun ones? Before I answer or at least give my opinion, I admit to loving all of these things. I’ve been married almost 19 years and my heart still does a little leap when the florist comes. Honestly, my husband isn’t a “true romantic” and that’s okay. As long as there’s a way he remembers important dates, I’m happy.I think too much emphasis is placed on Valentine’s Day and even birthdays etc. A lot of men just aren’t wired to be romantic. Even if you’ve tried to retrain them, they just don’t think that way. Although how they can miss the T.V. commercials and radio ads is beyond me. Still, if they value you and have their own way of showing it, that should be enough. For me, I don’t need the big fancy gift or the flowers (although it’s nice when I get them.) We’re usually…
Authors are constantly asked where they get their ideas from. It’s probably the most commonly asked question. And here in the UK and Ireland Mills & Boon (Harlequin’s UK division) is celebrating it’s Centenary, so we’re seeing a lot more press coverage – hence I’ve been asked this question about a half dozen times in the last week alone. One of the next things they asked was ‘Do you get your ideas from real life?’ to which I consistently answered with a burst of laughter and ‘I WISH!’ But that’s probably not the real answer. Because the initial spark of inspiration *does* come from real life and the things we see and hear around us every day; a song, a movie we hated the end of, the sight of two people talking in a street café, a photograph that captures a moment we want to know more about. And then a chain reaction begins. The who, what, when, where and why starts to find answers inside our heads – the part of our brain in charge of creativity rubbing its hands with glee and setting to work with gusto! (We hope…) For many it’s the best part of the job…
They say you should be wary of working with children and animals, but what about friends? This was a question I probably should have addressed when the Desire senior editor suggested a down-under continuity series back in 2006. I had worked on three continuity series before then, but each was an editor-led series. The overview of the series, the characters, the broad storylines were developed by the editors who invited the authors to participate. This series, however, was to be author-led. In other words, the development of the series from initial concept to completion would be in the hands of the six authors. The idea of collaborating on a project like this excited me. So much so, I jumped right aboard that train while yelling encouragement to the others to join me. “Come on,” I cajoled to those dragging their feet. “It’ll be fun! We’ll brainstorm and bounce off each others’ energy and we won’t have to work in isolation as we usually do. Plus developing a whole series arc will be brilliant!” Six strong-minded women who are used to operating in creative independence working together as a team… How would that work? Would we still remain friends after all…
One of the most important parts of a book—besides the conflict of course LOL—is your character’s names. I put as much effort into naming a character as I did my kids…okay, probably more since I don’t have to consult anyone else. However, it’s not like you can just go around throwing out names willy-nilly. I once named a secondary character only to have my WIP to come to a screeching halt. And I’m talking painful! I had to back up and change his name. Then ended up with a fully formed secondary character who had the hots for the heroines best friend. In HANDS ON (June 2007) I gave all my heroines names that could have male or female nicknames to represent their dual lives. In Make U Sweat (Aphrodisia September 2008), the heroine in the first novella is Reece—and she made sure to give her daughter a name that’s decidedly feminine. Her sister’s name is Roberta. I must say, if my name was Roberta, I might go by Robbie Jo too. In NAILED (Aphrodisia, June 2008), I was presented with the challenge of giving my heroine not one, but two names! Convinced that her sister’s death is no accident,…
In one of my favorite films last summer (Paris, je t’aime, which is actually a series of short films about love, set in Paris), there is a vignette in which a long-married man is about to leave his wife for his mistress. Years of mutual apathy have rendered the couple’s marriage stale and wilted. All of the little idiosyncrasies that he once found charming and endearing about his wife have become irritants that make his skin crawl. He fairly loathes the woman. Nothing short of an injection of a serious dose of “I actually give a care about you” could save it. But (without spoiling it!) the husband learns something that completely alters his approach to their relationship. As their relationship evolves, the narrator intones, “Once he began to act like a man in love, he became a man in love.” I love this line, and the concept behind it. It is, in fact, this very kernel of an idea that grew into my novel, SLEEPING WITH WARD CLEAVER. So I found it interesting to hear it verbalized in the movie. There is, to me, such a simple truth to it. Most everybody starts out in a marriage happy (I…
Do blondes have more fun? Having had two or three other hair colors over my lifetime, I should be a good judge as to whether a blonde has more fun than a brunette. However, I haven’t been able to see any difference. I do know when confronted with something beyond my immediate understanding, I can point out that I’m blonde or say I’m having a blonde moment. I am always granted a smile and unbelievable understanding and patience. The truth be told, I tried to make it as a brunette, but it just didn’t work because people expected me to know things. To be honest, this blonde writer’s ignorance doesn’t have to do with hair color as much as the fact that I’d never befriended an author and hadn’t a clue of what being a writer entailed. Without a writer’s group in the early years to steer me along, I had to learn things the hard way. I set out to write the perfect inspirational book. I had a hard time thinking about changing anything I’d written as it came to me upon inspiration. Which is all well and good, but was told after my first critique that people didn’t…
My mother is so mad at me. She’s in the midst of reading Face Time, the newest Charlotte McNally Mystery. It’s just been named a Book Sense Notable Book, and it’s on the Boston Globe Best Seller list. I say: Hooray. And I expected the same reaction from my mother. But Mom, who has only read the first ten pages or so, actually said: “I’m sure that’s lovely, dear.” You have to imagine the “Mom” tone. Maybe you’ve used it a time or two yourself. Or perhaps, you’ve heard it. I’m thinking all daughters have. Turns out, Mom is unhappy with Face Time. To be sure: Mom is terrific. She’s almost 80, and is absolutely beautiful. An artist, a reader, a wonderful intellect. (She doesn’t have a computer, so she’s not reading this.) I’m her oldest daughter, and any psychologist will tell you that can cause some friction. So anyway. Why is Mom mad? She thinks I’ve “used her for art.” It’s true: Charlie McNally’s mother in Face Time is a bit—persnickety. She’s opinionated. She thinks, for instance, that Charlotte might want to give up her very successful 20-year TV career to marry some tycoon and become a tycoon wife….
Happy New Year, everyone! It’s great to be here so I can wish you all the very best for 2008. I’m thrilled to announce the release of 3 books in January and February.The first, Laying Down the Law, is particularly dear to my heart, because it tells the story of a young trainee barrister and her bad-boy American Italian pupil master, Lorenzo Domenico. I can’t deny this UK Modern Heat release was inspired by my daughter training to be a lawyer- but she now complains she never got to meet anyone remotely like Lorenzo! Bought: One Island, One Bride, is a Harlequin Presents release in February, and was inspired by my meeting a passionate environmentalist while I was holidaying in the Greek islands. It was impossible not to be inspired by the romantic promise of such a fabulous setting, and by the passion of Jamie, the young man who opened our eyes to the vulnerable eco-systems surrounding us. (I only hope Jamie hasn’t minded my changing him into my heroine, Ellie Mendoras!) My third book, The Tycoon’s Virgin Is a Harlequin Presents 2nd cycle release in February, which means it will be shelved near the Desire titles, and a little…