Archive for category show and tell

five things: icy cold edition

Jan 25

Posted by kate in five things, new york, show and tell | No Comments

Weeeeekly wrap-up!

1. The last stop on the Show and Tell press tour was on Tuesday over at Babbling About Books, in which I discussed the brave new world of writing in a different genre.

And Joyfully Jay gave the book 4.5 stars!

I guess I have to sell another book now so that I have something else to spam you all with. Ha!

2. What is there to say about this week except that it was frickin’ cold. As I write this, it is a balmy 16°F in New York City. I get that it’s winter, and I guess our last few winters have been so mild that this seems freakish, but I am displeased.

I have often contended that my life would be perfect if New York could just be transported to someplace with a better climate, like San Diego. But I guess if we didn’t have awful winters and oppressive summers, it wouldn’t be New York.

3. I’ve been listening to the audiobook of Jacob Tomsky’s Heads in Beds, a memoir of working in hotels, and there’s a bit in the book (chapter 14, I think) when he talks about how New York chips away at you.

I’m sure this experience is different for natives, but that section resonated with me. Of course, then he says that you have to leave or the city will continue to chip away with you, but there, I think he’s wrong. There’s a hump to get over. No doubt, New York is a hard place to live, and I had some lean years in the mid-aughts when I was trying to pay for a studio in Manhattan on a publishing salary and I was in a romantic relationship that was falling apart. I had one bad winter in which I came very close to packing up and leaving. But I think if you can survive that, well, Mr. Sinatra explained that pretty well. You get through the worst of it and then suddenly a whole new world of possibilities opens up. I love this place, I really do. Like, the city really puts you through the wringer and if you can get through that, you can do anything and then finally, the city will start to love you back.

4. Last weekend I took myself on an “artist’s date” to the Brooklyn Museum which is, conveniently, a less-than-ten-minute walk from my apartment. I’ve been a little blocked creatively lately and I needed to refill the well, as a friend put it. The Brooklyn Museum is curated in a really interesting, modern way and is definitely worth the visit if you ever find yourself in Brooklyn. Highlights for me include: 1) The American art section on the top floor, and I recommend the audio tour; 2) The feminist art wing, especially Judy Chicago’s Dinner Party, is MUST SEE; 3) The Egyptian art department CAT-scanned some mummies a couple of years ago and the science is fascinating.

From the American Art exhibit, I really liked this painting—m/m writers, I think there’s a story there.

I love museums, as you may have gathered from reading my books. I actually had to rewrite a scene in Show and Tell wherein Dan and Malcolm go to the Met because the American Wing was remodeled in 2011 and all the stuff was moved around. The case of glass bottles they find is not real, but I could tell you exactly where I’d put it if I were in the museum. (Near the Tiffany glass.)

I also went to Vogue Knitting Live on Saturday with a few friends who are far more industrious knitters than I. But, man, if you are the sort of person who likes to go to yarn shops to molest the fiber (which I certainly am) the marketplace there was like heaven. Any kind of fiber in any color you could have dreamed of! I bought enough yarn for two projects. Well, I bought a 300-yard hank of some super soft alpaca blend with glittery thread spun into it that was just too pretty not to buy. (The lady at the booth said it’s enough yarn for two cowls, but I think I will just make a shawl or wrap or something.) And then I bought some superwash wool that was being sold in super bulk (so, cheap) that I’ve already started knitting into a cardigan. The colorway is nuts; I think the sweater will be insane and glorious in the end.

5. I finished the first draft of a short story last night—including the sex scene, which inspired a lively conversation with some fellow authors on Twitter yesterday afternoon in which we alternately celebrated/lamented having to write sexy times. I’m going through a phase right now where I really hate writing sex scenes. (Like, you’ll notice that Lead Us Not doesn’t even have one—I was like, This is a free short, it’s not like an editor will come along and say, “There should be sex here.” I can do what I want.) I don’t feel inhibited so much as I fear writing the same scene over and over again, and I worry my sex writing has gotten a little stale. Also in this case, I sat there and was like, “I don’t know what these boys like to do in bed together.” But the story seemed to call for it—it had to happen for plot-related reasons, and I guess I could have faded to black, but it seemed like a good opportunity to develop these characters and their relationship. So I wrote it. I am glad I did! I think it adds to the story!

And so, until next week…

five things! red carpets, knitting, cat photos!

Jan 18

Posted by kate in crafts, five things, show and tell, WIP | 2 Comments

Hey, it’s Friday! That means it’s time for a weekly wrap-up…

(Given how giddy I feel, I think I can contribute the trouble I’ve been having sleeping all week to caffeine over-consumption. So! Apologies if this post is a little manic!)

1. Show and Tell red carpet events this week:

[I spent more time than I should have this week looking at fancy dresses from the Golden Globes. My new life goal is to at some point in my life be invited to an event that is not a wedding where I have to wear a ballgown made by a high-end designer.]

I did an interview with fellow Loose Id author Kay Berrisford, where we talked about the book. There’s a bonus photo of my cat. You can leave a comment there to win a copy of the book; the contest is open until the 22nd.

I’m at Chicks and Dicks today on the theme of new beginnings—I talked about being inspired to try new things outside of my comfort zone and how rewarding that is. There is also another bonus photo of my cat.

2. Kate’s Kraft Corner Remember the scarf I started here? I finished it! Photographic evidence ahoy:

Here is the finished scarf blocking in my living room floor.

Here is the finished scarf blocking in my living room floor.

The scarf is 8-ish inches wide and about 5.5 feet tall. (I used the highly scientific method of going, “Well, I’m 5’7″ and the scarf is not quite as tall as I am, so…”) I also made these cute fingerless mitts to go with it:

Look! Mitts! Ignore how messy my apartment is in the background.

Look! Mitts! Ignore how messy my apartment is in the background.

I still have 300 yards of this yarn left and no earthly idea what to do with it. (For perspective, the scarf and the mitts combined used a little less than 500 yards.) It’s a wool-nylon blend (Knit Picks Chroma, for anyone playing at home). A hat, maybe? Would the scarf-mitt-hat combo be too matchy-matchy? Suggestions welcome.

3. Speaking of knitting, an avid-knitter friend of mine talked me into going to Vogue Knitting Live this weekend. I have two sweater patterns picked out so that I might capitalize on this new-found desire to actually knit after not knitting for a while. Maybe that’s my new year’s resolution this year. Knit a little every day. I think it’s good for the soul.

4. I’m currently reading Heads in Beds, a memoir of working in the hotel industry. It’s funny and fascinating but maybe not the best thing to read as I’m booking a bunch of travel for the year.

I decided that I’m definitely going to the RWA national convention this year, so that’s TWO trips to Atlanta, since that will also be the location of GayRomLit. Add RT in Kansas City (already booked) and that’s a lot of travel to cities I’ve never spent time in before. That is perhaps one perk of conventions, although you end up spending all your time at the convention and not seeing the city. (In retrospect, I’m pretty grateful that the GRL organizers set up that excursion to Old Town Albuquerque last year, because I probably wouldn’t have seen anything outside the hotel otherwise.)

The other stuff I’m doing this year is all local, thankfully. Might be time to set up some frequent flyer accounts, though, if this trend keeps up.

5. My writing goal for the month is all skewed. I was trying to finish my WIP about the opera singer and the construction worker but then decided to write a baseball short instead! Ha! It’s only the middle of the month, so I think I can finish the baseball short and also make some headway on the opera WIP, but I may miss my self-imposed deadline of having a finished first draft of the latter by the end of the month. I’m kind of blocked with that story, but I think I just need to figure out how the various conflicts get resolved. I need a good Shower Epiphany; I have all my best ideas in the shower.

five things: release week!

Jan 11

Posted by kate in five things, show and tell | No Comments

What a week! Let’s review.

1. Show and Tell came out Tuesday! It is now available in all of the usual places, so you should be able to buy it at your ebook retailer of choice.

Here’s where I’ve been on the promotion trail this week:

+ I wrote a guest post for Joyfully Jay talking a little about the mythology behind the story. You can also enter to win a copy of the book by leaving a comment; the contest is open until Sunday, 1/13.

+ I did an interview with Madeline Iva of Lady Smut. We mostly talked about m/m generally. I met Madeline and the Lady Smut ladies at the New Jersey Romance Writers convention last fall and they are super fun, so check out their site.

Not your college roommate's duck tape wallet!

Not your college roommate’s duck tape wallet!

2. Kate’s Kraft Corner I needed a distraction from the Internet earlier this week, because otherwise I would have obsessed over reviews and stared forlornly at my Amazon rank. So, I bought some fancy duck tape and made this cute little wallet. I used a pattern I found online, but I think if I had it to do over, I’d make one with more pockets. Also, duck tape is kind of frustrating to work with; did you know it’s really sticky?

3. Oscar nominations came out this week and I was surprised to see that I’ve actually seen a few of the Best Picture nominees this year, because I rarely go to the movies. Although my favorite movie last year? Pitch Perfect.

4. In writing news, I sent a novella off to my editor and now I’m hankering down to try to finish my current WIP, which is not going so well. I’m struggling a little with the conflict. These two men are into each other and get along well, which: boring, right? I don’t want the story to get super angsty, but I need to figure out how to add enough conflict propel the novel forward.

I read a ton over the holidays, and a couple of those books were relatively conflict-free love stories, but they still really worked for me. I think a sweet love story can be really great, but it’s only enough to sustain my interest in a short story or novella. I’m currently writing a novel, so I need some plot and conflict, but, man, my brain is a little fried this week.

5. So… a fifth thing? I dunno, this was a slow news week. I mean, aside from the obvious. I wasn’t feeling well last weekend, so I didn’t do anything interesting. During the week I mostly just watched a lot of dumb reality TV.

What’s the craziest thing you saw on TV this week? Mine was probably a cross between the episode of Millionaire Matchmaker I saw last night featuring a drag queen (crazy mostly because both bachelors in the episode chose exactly the wrong person for themselves) and that new Lifetime show about the women who own a lingerie shop (I was expecting What Not to Wear for underwear, but the show is far more surreal).

Show and Tell is now available!

Jan 8

Posted by kate in show and tell | 1 Comment

You can purchase it from Loose Id here or from the ebook retailer of your choice within the week, I’m hoping.

Happy reading!

Show and Tell excerpt

Jan 5

Posted by kate in excerpt, show and tell | No Comments

KM_ShowandTell_coverlgI posted an excerpt of Show and Tell over here. Go check it out! The book will be out Tuesday! Woo!

A taste:

He appeared at the back of the store. I recognized him, of course, and I saw also that he was even better looking in person, perhaps because he was before me in the flesh instead of an image on a screen. He ran a hand over his messy, curly hair and said something to one of the production assistants. Then he started to walk forward. Toward me. Malcolm Tell was walking toward me. The man of my dreams, the object of my fantasies, that man was walking, and then the producer was nudging me forward and I was going to meet Malcolm Tell.

I put one foot in front of the other, shaking with nerves the whole time. I was aware of everything: of Malcolm, of the cameras, of all the people milling about. But mostly I was aware of Malcolm, who didn’t seem to have noticed me yet, as he was still engaged in conversation with the PA. Then someone—a director maybe—shouted for quiet on the set. Malcolm got to his spot, turned toward the showroom, and grinned. He looked over at me, finally.

Our eyes met.

The world stopped.

five things: people singing plus favorite books of 2012

Jan 4

Posted by kate in books, five things, out in the field, show and tell | No Comments

Weekly wrap-up!

1. Show and Tell will be available for your reading pleasure on Tuesday!

2. I went to see the Les Miserables movie last weekend. I had FEELINGS. Here’s the thing: I love Les Mis. I saw it on Broadway twice. I have an ex who also loved it, and the original cast recording got a lot of play on long car trips, during which time we would both sing along loudly and badly. I own two different cast recordings. I watch the anniversary concert whenever it’s on PBS. I LOVE IT, okay?

Although I generally enjoyed the movie, I wanted to like it more than I did. On the plus side, Hugh Jackman is fantastic and has an even better voice than I expected. (I was a little worried. He totally pulls it off.) Eddie Redmayne totally won me over. I loved Aaron Tveit and Samantha Barks. (Someone please put Aaron Tveit in all of the movies, thank you.) It was fun to see something I’d only seen on stage brought to life with real sets and things. On the other hand, I thought Russell Crowe was horribly miscast. The problem with singing live instead of lip-synching is that there were a lot of scenes that were just close-ups of one character singing a solo, and that made the movie drag. (Also, I wanted there to be more singing and less emoting, especially on Anne Hathaway’s part.) Somehow I had also forgotten how unrelentingly unhappy the story is, and I walked away from the theater thinking, “Why was this made into a musical again?” (I watched Chicago again recently and had a similar reaction. Like, “Wow, every one of these characters is a terrible person. Why am I watching this again? Oh, right, I love the music.”)

I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m still going to sing all the parts from “One Day More” using different voices while I take a shower, but the movie fell just short of being awesome for me.

3. On New Years, I participated in a New Year’s Kisses Party. You can go on over here to read Matt & Iggy’s first kiss (from Out in the Field) and enter to win prizes. The contest was extended through January 7, so there are still a few more days to enter.

4. Just for funsies, I thought I’d pick 10 books I read in 2012 that I enjoyed. This is going to be a genre smorgasbord, so bear with me. I hesitate to even call these the best books of the year, because my reading habits were really odd, so these are basically A Bunch of Books that Kate Really Liked. (And somehow, I read 102 books in 2013, so it took some time to winnow down this list.) In the order I read them:

Nowhere Ranch by Heidi Cullinan. I had put off reading this one because I’d heard there was a big scene featuring a sex act that makes me kind of squeamish (I’m a wuss, okay?) but it wound up being maybe my favorite of Heidi’s books, and The Scene? It totally, totally works within the context of the book.

Bonds of Earth by G.N. Chevalier. Maybe the best m/m historical I read this year, a pleasant surprise given that I bought the book almost entirely because of the evocative cover.

What Binds Us by Larry Benjamin. This probably falls more on the gay lit end of the spectrum. There’s a love story, but it’s not the central arc of the book. Beautiful writing, emotional intensity, well-drawn setting. Highly recommended to everyone.

Armed and Dangerous by Abigail Roux. 2012 was the year I gave the Cut & Run series a second chance. (I’ll admit, I didn’t love the first book in the series. But I was looking for something to read in March and thought, “Everyone loves these. Maybe I missed something.” I did miss something, because this series is great, with a really wonderful emotional arc that spans the books.) This was my favorite entry in the series thus far. Can we have the next book now please?

A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin. I’mma finish this damn series if it kills me. I’m not a big epic fantasy reader, but I loved this book. Read in conjunction with Alison Weir’s book on the Wars of the Roses got me all excited for medieval history, too. [/nerd] (My youngest brother, actually, recently became a total GRRM fanboy, so I’ve been enjoying discussing the books with him. He and I don’t have a ton in common, so it’s nice to have something to bond over.)

The Murder of the Century by Paul Collins. Nonfiction book on a crime in New York in the 1890s that reads like a novel and is tremendously compelling.

Lover Awakened by J.R. Ward. 2012 was also The Year Kate Finally Got Around to Reading Those J.R. Ward Books. It’s a truth universally acknowledged that Zsadist and Bella’s book is the best one, right? (I am so dying for Lover at Last, I can’t even tell you.)

The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie by Jennifer Ashley. I think this one made everyone’s favorite romance novel list a couple of years ago, but I only got around to reading it this fall. No lie, it’s really good. If you’re a fan of m/f Regencies, this is required reading.

Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner. Speaking of things I finally got around to reading! It’s brilliant and unusual and though it takes a while to get off the ground, once the plot gets going, it makes a lot of interesting twists.

Ethan, Who Loved Carter by Ryan Loveless. If you want a sweet, feel-good romance, this is your book. A character with Tourette’s meets a character with a traumatic brain injury, and though there’s not a lot of conflict between them, I really liked it.

Bonus #1: A Rogue by Any Other Name by Sarah MacLean. I did a reading with Sarah in March and got to talk to her some, and she’s super fun. So, I read her backlist. She becomes a better writer with every book, and this was my favorite of her books so far. (I know my audience here, though. This is another m/f Regency. Put down the pitchforks.)

Bonus #2: Pressure Head by JL Merrow. I’m a sucker for a story about a psychic. It’s not flawless, but Merrow has such a wonderful writing voice that I just want her to keep writing books forever. I want for there to be a sequel to this one.

Bonus #3: Know Not Why by Hannah Johnson. I read this whole book on New Year’s Day when I was recovering from my hangover and I loved it to pieces. It’s sweet and cute and laugh-out-loud funny.

There’s a lot of m/m on this list, which is funny considering I read many fewer m/m books in 2012 than in recent years past. I did read A LOT of just-okay m/f Regencies. I love them, but they become sort of same-y and interchangeable, particularly if you, like me, tend to read, like, six of them in one go before wandering off to read something else. I found most of the ones I read this year fun and entertaining but forgettable.

5. Now that it’s 2013, my official tenure as Vice President of the Rainbow Romance Writers has begun! Honestly, I am feeling equal parts “Let’s do this!” and “What the hell did Heidi and Damon talk me into doing?”

I was jotting down resolutions and yearly goals in my offline journal yesterday, and one of them was simply, “Be awesome.” I think that is my general command of 2013. Be awesome, 2013!

The Show and Tell Stories: “Revolution”

Dec 20

Posted by kate in shorts, show and tell, stories | No Comments

KM_ShowandTellShow and Tell is a story about past lives of a Celtic god and his mortal lover. The past lives are unlocked by objects discovered by Dan, a history student, and Malcolm, a reality TV show host. A number of these are shown in the novel, but I didn’t have space for all of them. So, over the next couple of weeks, I’ll be presenting these stories here on the blog. Think of them like deleted scenes. These will eventually be available as one collection in a few different ebook formats, if you want to wait until they are all posted.

—

Dan and Malcolm visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art and stumble upon a glass bottle made by a colonial American glass artist named Henry Danforth. Getting near the bottle unlocks the memory of a past life of Aengus and Caoimhin, the Celtic god of love and his mortal lover. Read the rest of this entry »

Show and Tell cover and blurb

Dec 17

Posted by kate in show and tell | 2 Comments

KM_ShowandTellOne of the few joys in Dan’s life is the TV show Junk Shop, a reality show about antiques hosted by the handsome and charismatic Malcolm Tell. Then an old music box turns up, and Dan’s sister encourages him to try to get on the show and meet the object of his affection. He does, and his life changes completely.

When Dan and Malcolm first meet, they have a sudden vision of a couple from the past. Is it a glimpse at a past life or something else entirely? They agree to work together to figure out what is going on, and they stumble upon a forgotten Celtic myth that may explain everything. If the myth is true, then Dan and Malcolm could be a pair of lovers who have been reincarnated over and over again over two thousand years. That seems impossible, but it’s hard to deny that something very strange is happening.

As Dan and Malcolm work to find the truth, they fall for each other hard. But searching for who they really are puts them both in grave danger, and they find themselves racing against time to keep their happily ever after.

Available January 8 from Loose Id.

five things: we need more scarves

Dec 14

Posted by kate in five things, show and tell | 1 Comment

Weekly Wrap-Up Post!

Before we get into it, I want to say: I got the news about the shooting in Newtown, CT, as I was typing this post. My heart aches for those kids and parents. It’s a completely horrifying tragedy; there’s something especially gruesome about the deaths of children. It’s sort of making it difficult to finish writing an upbeat post, but I’ll try.

1. In reading news, this week I devoured Amy Lane’s knitting series. These fall pretty low on the Amy Lane Angst-o-Meter, but they hit a sweet spot for me this week, conveniently being exactly the sorts of books I was in the mood for. There’s a little bit of insta-love, in the last book especially (the main couple’s first meeting is basically, “Hello, I am your soul mate, and we will be having a romance now”), but Lane manages to sell the relationship over the course of the book, so at the end, I was all in blubbery tears, like, “Of course, they totally belong together” and, yeah.

Scarf! Almost!

Scarf! Almost!

Of course, reading the books got me excited about knitting in a way I haven’t been in a while. This whole year has been tough for me just because I’ve had so much going on that I didn’t have time to just… sit and knit. But this month, I decided to take it easy, kind of. Luckily, I binge bought some pretty pink and purple yarn last week, so I decided to knit myself a scarf (progress so far pictured at right). I think one of the reasons the Amy Lane books resonated with me so much is that I learned to knit 7 or 8 years ago during a not so happy time in my life, and the repetitive movement really does ease stress, and then you have something pretty at the end to show for it. (Although, there is much made in the books about having people to knit for. I have knitted many gifts over the years, but this one is just for me.)

Our view of the Stones concert. We were... not close. Still a good show, though!

Our view of the Stones concert. We were… not close. Still a good show, though!

2. Last Saturday, I went with my dad to see the Rolling Stones at the new Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Basically, he called me about a month ago and was like, “I’m doing this thing in your neighborhood, you want to come with?” and really, who am I to turn down Rolling Stones tickets? The Stones are my dad’s favorite band of all time, and he really enjoyed the concert. (He said the last time he’d seen them live was in 1966. He would have been 17 then, if my math is right.) It was a good show. Mick Jagger basically danced around like a crazy person for two and a half hours, and I admire that man’s energy, given he is twice my age and I got tired just watching him.

3. Work on Show and Tell continues apace. I saw a cover mock-up last night. I look forward to showing you the final! (Early next week, I think.)

Covers are always a funny thing. I have such a specific idea of what my characters look like that the cover models never look quite right (although this cover designer got Dan pretty closely, so some applause is warranted). I’m not one of those authors who “casts” my novels because, well, actors look like actors, not like my characters. (And I’m always confused when movies based on books I liked are cast. I know Stephanie Plum, Katherine Heigl, and you are no Stephane Plum.)

4. Some other writing news:

• I’m currently working on a novella for an open call. It’s a comedy! I gotta tell you, I like some angst in both my reading and writing, but I also appreciate an opportunity to be funny.

[Although, we should clarify angst, maybe? I think Four Corners is my angstiest book, because there's a lot of longing and "I love you but I can't be with you" going on in it, and that's not going to be for everyone. However, I get the impression that this is lowercase angst and not, like, ANGST as happens in this genre sometimes, what with the tortured childhoods and dark themes and all that. I don't see myself ever writing the latter kind of ANGST.]

• I’m going to be posting some short stories related to Show and Tell in the lead up to the book’s release. I am a dirty tease. Actually, the shorts are scenes that it almost killed me to cut out of the novel, but in the end I agreed with my editor that they screwed with the novel’s pacing, so we took them out and then I got permission to post them as free shorts. I’m still revising those, though, so I don’t know when I will post them. Next week, maybe. (There are two, at least. I’ll try to get those up in a couple of different formats for your downloading convenience.)

• I wrote a little flash Christmas story earlier this week, in case you missed it.

• I saw a new review of In Hot Pursuit over the weekend. It was an odd experience. That book came out almost three years ago! I’m glad people are still buying and reading and enjoying it, and certainly Noah and Harry will always have a very special place in my heart, but whenever I see reviews, I think, “Hey, check out my more recent stuff! I’m a much better writer now!” That’s silly, I know. I mean, I still like that book a lot. But I’ve learned a lot, about writing and everything, in the time since I sold it.

5. One of my other dastardly writer plans is to (finally) do some website updating, so this place might look a little different if you come back next week. On the agenda: making the top banner a little sexier, updating my events calendar with all the places I will be this year (a lot of places!), and adding social media stuff to blog posts so you can tweet them with ease.

Bee tee dubs, I heard from Loose Id that they are creating a customer loyalty program wherein you can earn points by spreading the word about new books on social media, so if you are down with that, maybe give Show and Tell a little love after the new year. (This book is so crazy, you guys. Reincarnated gods! New York! Historical flashbacks! A reality TV show! My critique partner thinks it’s the best thing of mine that she’s read, though, so that is a RINGING ENDORSEMENT, because she is a harsh mistress. January 8!)

five things, on friday this time!

Nov 30

Posted by kate in five things, show and tell | No Comments

Hey, how are you, how’s it going? Here’s my weekly wrap-up.

1. I missed posting last week because I grossly miscalculated how much time I’d be spending with family over Thanksgiving. (This is a problem I have. Every year I lug my computer to whichever family member is hosting thinking I’ll get some writing done, and every year my family is all, “Spend time with us! Why are you getting your computer out?” and then I get nothing done. I should learn to accept this.)

2. NaNoWriMo ends today. Here’s a round-up of what I’m working on:

a. A romantic comedy novella about a guy who gets invited to his ex’s wedding. This was a tremendous joy to write and I pounded a complete draft out in a week, which I think must be some kind of land-speed record. I was playing around with the tropes from every Julia Roberts movie you’ve ever seen. I think it’s funny. I have to do some revision work on it (I mean, I wrote it in a week) but I do really like this story, so I will keep you posted on when/if it will be available on an ereader near you.

b. A short novel about two damaged characters, a misanthrope and an extrovert. This was actually kind of torturous to write because I started with a not-fully-fleshed out idea and I had to really push myself to get past the 25K hump, which seems to be my writing problem of late. (That is, I get really excited about a new story idea, write 25K in a blizzard of activity, and then promptly lose all interest in the project. This particular malady has been plaguing me since August.) I think forcing myself to write until the end of the story was probably a good exercise, but I can’t say the story itself has much going for it. I especially failed in making the novel have the emotional resonance I thought a story like this should have. Not all of my books are winners, I guess. I think it’s salvageable and I maintain that the premise is a good one, but this manuscript is rough. To the editing board!

c. On Tuesday, I spent my lunch break freewriting whatever popped into my head and came up with an idea for a m/m Regency. I’ve written about 5,000 words so far. We’ll see if I get it over the 25K hump.

Aside: I worry about discussing my WIPs publicly, because some (a lot) of the things I write will probably never be fit for human consumption, and how much of a dirty tease am I if I’m all, “I’m writing this thing!” and you go “I want to read it!” but then I never finish it? Also, talking about what I’m working on seems to be the death knell for my creativity. Like… talking to readers about a sequel to one of my books? Pretty much kills all desire I have to write said sequel. No idea why this is. Pressure to actually do it, maybe? I have at some point sat down and started a sequel to every one of my novels, with the exception of Out in the Field, but I’ve never actually finished one. [OitF ties everything up quite tidily and I never felt the necessity to revisit those characters. I sort of blew my baseball wad there, I think.])

Will any of the abovementioned projects make it to bookstores? Who knows?!

3. I successfully (?) finished reading Fifty Shades of Grey. Then the woman who runs my book club came down with the flu and we canceled our meeting, so I haven’t really gotten to talk to anyone about it yet. Although, actually, a few people I know have essays in Fifty Writers on Fifty Shades, so I went to a release party for the book on Wednesday. I did talk to a few people! I have the same opinion I had before I read the book, which is that, generally, the phenomenon is a good thing because it has opened up the conversation about erotic romance and, I think, indirectly gotten people talking about LGBT romance, which, you may know, is relevant to my interests. The contents of the book are kind of irrelevant. But I can say now that I’ve read it that the book’s chief flaw (IMHO) is that Ana exhibits a profound level of naivete that I could buy in a 16-year-old but not in a 22-year-old grown woman. When you consider that her personality is basically Bella Swan’s elevated to an age when it’s not creepy to think about her in a sexual context, it pulls you out of the story. (Also, the creepy stalker push-pull dynamic between Ana and Christian—wherein she would weep about how he was all wrong for her but he would bully her into liking him again—was off putting to me personally, but the same dynamic is in every Harlequin Presents I’ve ever read.) (I wasn’t really a fan of the first-person present POV, either, but I have less of a leg to stand on there.)

4. I saw Lincoln right before Thanksgiving and really enjoyed it! It’s surprisingly engaging for a movie that is pretty much about political process. I spent some time this week reading cerebral essays picking apart the history presented in the movie, which the nerd in me has been enjoying.

5. Otherwise, work on Show and Tell is moving right along. (January 8!) I’ve got a bunch of stuff on my schedule over the next couple of weeks that I’m looking forward to (parties! concerts! readings!). I totally splurged on a gorgeous handbag at a sample sale the other day, and that was sort of the highlight of my week, because sometimes I’m shallow.