I’ve had the same style hair for a decade—short bob that the kids didn’t grab or bury in peanut butter. My clothing style was comfortable and hardy. And my home décor has been decided by the previous owners of the furniture I inherited. But I’ve been empty nesting for a few years now. Life has slowed down and my husband and I are earning enough to have a little extra. And here’s the clinker. My twenty-something daughters have emphasized that “Style” isn’t a dirty word. Now if you’ve met me at a conference, you know I have some beautiful clothes. Flowy fabric often with an Asian flare. Beautiful right? That’s style, right? Of course it is. And it fit perfectly with my penname Jade Lee. Except I’m also Kathy Lyons who is publishing more and more contemporary fun books. Laugh out loud books, some with paranormal twists, but all with distinctive modern humor. So…style update. Guess what I’ve changed. (Hint: can be more than one) Long blonde locks. Yup, grew out the hair, bleached it until it’s almost white, and then added some curls. Red highlights. I’ve got dark hair so that shock of red…well, it’s not so shocking. In…

Most Wednesday mornings, I have breakfast with my bestie who is NOT a writer. She’s a finance professor and we used to live across the street from one another. Guess what we talked about this morning: A. Aliens in my backyard who pooped oil. Or maybe it was an oil-like disgusting substance that is now all over my yard. B. How her son and my daughter look great together in pictures but would be disastrous together in a relationship. Or maybe not… C. My daughter’s cat vs. mouse adventures. Or was that how do you get a mouse away from the cat who caught it? D. How to corner the commodities futures market in…er…something. Answer: All of the above — but mostly D! Our conversation wanders wildly all over the place, but the bulk of our conversation this morning was on the commodities futures market. Seriously. She had to explain it to me (about three times) before I understood. And then we developed a bad guy conspiracy to corner the market on something. So what market will be threatened by my bad guy? A. A true to life story from the headlines: treasury bonds B. A sexier true to life…

  Guess what??? A. Martians have landed in my back yard and they’re pooping gold! B. My 3 year old niece has just created the formula for the cure for cancer in crayon! Or was that cancer in crayons? Not nearly as exciting. C. Her dog Molly insists on putting her nose in my suitcase and slobbering on my clothes. D. I turned in the manuscript for my Nov 2015 book on time!  Er…assuming you add 2 months to my deadline. Answer D!  And honestly a month ago the Martians were more likely. As for C, I managed to close the suitcase so poor doggie is foiled! So after this miracle created thru hard work and coffee was emailed to my editor, I celebrated by… A. Dusting my house from top to bottom. B. I took a shower. Believe me, I needed it. C. I went grocery shopping for something other than chips and chocolate. D. I watched a marathon of a new TV show called Get off your Couch, you fat slob. Answer: B. Yes, needed to bathe desperately. As for dusting? Hahahahahahaha. Grocery shopping? What do you mean? There’s nothing I ever eat except chips, chocolate, and coffee. And I…

A couple weeks ago, I finished my contracted book. It’s a great book, coming out next year, titled (for the moment) The Duke’s Cunning Plan by Jade Lee. It was a ton of fun to do, but before I dive into the next one, I decided to do something weird. I’m now writing a book just for me. I’m making it as fun and quirky as I want. No thought of contracts or market or even genre. Whatever comes out, that’s what I’m writing. Now you have to understand, I’ve been a professional writer for two decades. The idea of creating something with no eye toward selling it? Something just for me? Well, that’s…like going to your job on your vacation. Except writing isn’t just a job for me, and somewhere along the road, the magic got buried under the technique and business of writing. But there is good and bad with this process. The great thing about writing just for fun is… A. No deadline. If I don’t feel like writing today, I can sleep in and read Pride and Prejudice. (Actually, I’m listening to it in audio which is making it much more fun) B. We’ve entered conference…

I leave for a writer’s retreat on Wednesday. It’s a week at a Tennessee cabin with fellow writers Cindy Dees and Elizabeth Hoyt. I’m sure those on FB will see all sorts of interesting #Squidge pictures there. So here are a few interesting musing in (what is to become) my standard format. 1. We found this cabin a) while hiking. Elizabeth Hoyt broke her ankle and Cindy and I carried her to the door and met a god of a lumberjack who nursed her back to health. b) by googling “random cabin somewhere to hide and write.” Also known as drink and talk about fantasy men c) cabin choices are always filtered by superimposing Starbucks locations in a 2 mile radius. No retreat is possible without mochas. d) at the Brenda Novak auction Answer: D In truth, the idea of retreat in Tennessee sounded so good, we just bid without looking too closely at it. We’re not exactly sure how rustic it will be. Fortunately, there is a Starbucks nearby, so at least we’ll have coffee. Also…(A) did happen, but only in Elizabeth’s …um… nighttime musings… (And OBVIOUSLY, the god of a lumberjack was Mr. Hoyt. And she reminds me…

It’s been a long day of writing blogs, so I’ve gotten a bit punchy. What does that mean for you? YOU GET THE FUN BLOG!!!! Yes, the later it gets, the more bizarre I get. So we’re going to do some multiple choice about my book WHAT THE GROOM WANTS alternating with JADE LEE TRIVIA! 1. Radley (the hero of WHAT THE GROOM WANTS) is looking forward to a bright career as captain of his own ship when he steps off the boat and (a) is met by solicitors who tell him he’s suddenly become a duke! (Because that always happens) (b) celebrates his promotion with a dozen prostitutes of questionable age and gender. (c) rushes to Wendy’s house (she’s the heroine) and drags her to his loveshack where he makes mad, passionate love to her for 800 pages. (d) looks at the author and says, “Truly were you drunk when you wrote this?” Answer: D! Okay, A because soon after he steps off the boat, yes he’s told that he’s inherited a dukedom. 2. Jade Lee has multiple names and personalities. Which ones of the following are true: (a) She’s porn star Jade Lee and don’t you forget it!…

So we writers are generally a normal lot. No really! Yes, we talk to the voices in our heads. They’re characters, I swear! And yes, we spend hours staring into space and then claim we’re working. Imagination needs to be exercised! That takes time and chocolate. And last but not least, we envision in gruesome detail all sorts of murders, mayhem, and ugly things. But we also spend lots of time on the color and shape of fairy wings. And whether to spell that fairy or faery. (Or at least I do). That is the writer in her normal balanced state. But sad to say, there is an alternate state, one my friend Eileen Dryer coined as DEADLINE PSYCHOSIS! That is when a deadline approaches and we have half the book to write in a month. Or less. Like a weekend. Yes, I actually knew an author who had one weekend to write half her book. She got it in and it was great, though it took her another few days to come off her caffeine high. So what characterizes this dread disease? It begins with subtle symptoms. Any email that comes in is ignored or dealt with in the…

Some book are written from inspiration. Some books are written because there is a contract. And then there are books that simply won’t shut up!!!!! I write historical romance. That is the core of my career. Historicals set in the Regency era. Historicals set in China. Historicals set wherever my muse and the market wander. And then, because it’s fun, I’ll write contemporary sexy (as with my Blaze books) or paranormal (as with Crimson City or These Boots were Made for Stomping!). But those are just fun books and come along when someone offers the possibility to me, not because I go out searching for them. Don’t get me wrong, they’re good books, but they are written because the opportunity found me, not the other way around. As you may imagine, the above keeps me very busy. So the last thing I needed was a fantasy romance series. Sure, I grew up reading Tolkien like everybody else, loved the Thomas Covenant chronicles (talk about an anti-hero!), and wrote my undergraduate thesis on Narnia. I have adored fantasy for years and mourned the absence of a decent love story in all those coming-of-age-with-magic books. But…and I’m going to put this in…

Thanks to Jade Lee for sponsoring this week’s blog contests! Jade is giving away a $10 Amazon gift card to some one who comments on the blogs posted from Monday, February 8th to Sunday, February 15th. So drop by every day and check them out! And don’t forget about THE CONCUBINE, on shelves now! A new historical from Blaze about the original contests to be the Empress of China! And you thought it was all just invented with “American Idol!” Quick jump to blogs Quick jump to blog contest Visit FreshFiction.com to learn more about books and authors.

My mother always stressed accessories in dressing. Me, I wanted to be DOING something, not fussing with finding the perfect earrings (which always fell out) or the best necklace (which banged against things when I played). The worst, of course, was when she criticized my footwear. I was a sneaker girl. Actually, I didn’t mind nice shoes. A good pair of heels could give me a lift. But I HATED pantyhose. And since every good girl (in my mother’s mind) wore nylon stockings with her shoes, I became all about the sneakers. She allowed me to wear footies with athletic wear. (Remember footies? Cotton socks with little balls on the end or low socks that weren’t even seen beneath your Keds? Much better than pantyhose!) Well, childhood habits (or traumas) shape the adult persona. I became one of those women who silently abhor her LACK of a shoe fetish. I never understood the desire to wear 5 inch platforms or those spike heels that left pock marks in the linoleum. Pedicures felt good, but why get the nail polish when no one ever sees it? In short—I wore athletic shoes. Good, closed toed, comfortable, arch-supported New Balance footwear. And then…