September 30, 2006

Back Cover Copy

I received my shipment of Silhouette Desires and as I was reading the back cover copy (to see which one I wanted to read first)….I realized the power of that brief tease. I didn’t have any trouble picking which one I wanted to read. I’m going to post two of the four here and see if you chose the same one. If you don’t read category romance, pick the one that you feel is most intriquing.

1.
What’s the Bride Worth?
Wealthy rancher Mitch Ramsey had never given much of a second look to his neighbor Emma Davis, until an unexpected encounter led to a night of unbridled passion. Mitch figured their affair could be a discreet diversion, one they had both gone into with eyes wide-open.

Then Emma’s father made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. Marry Emma and Mitch would inherit what he had always coveted–the entire Davis ranch. But Emma was never to know….

2.
The Pretender
Successful businessman Ryan Bennett had agreed to masquerade as his wealthy cousin for a blind date. But from the moment Ryan saw Julie Nelson to the moment he should have said good-night, he was captivated and couldn’t resist an invitation to share her bed. In the hazy afterglow of their heated lovemaking, Myan confessed he true identiy, claiming the passion between them was real despite his deception, but Julie wasn’t buying it. Obviously she considered him the enemy.

Except now she was having the enemy’s baby…
Also if you have any back cover copy that you’d like to share….I’d love to see it.

I thought it might be fun for you to see what happens when I try to write a back cover copy for a proposal. For my first Avon book “When She Was Bad” which will be out in July 2007, here’s the back cover copy I wrote at the top of my synopsis to give them a flavor of what the book is about:

Living two lives has never been so much fun…

Being a bad girl is a blast until Jenny forgets the rules… and falls in love with the one man who can never be hers.

This is what I submitted at the top of the synopsis for my follow-up novel (tentatively titled “When She Was Good” which will be out in April 2008

She lives life in the fast lane…

Is their secret affair a recipe for disaster? Or for a happily-ever-after ending that will make even the most cynical believe in the power of love?

September 29, 2006

Swearing

Someone (a Brit) told me recently that the British swear more than Yanks. But I think we Americans swear a lot! When I was a teacher and told my students they could only use words in their stories that were on regular TV, I was shocked to see them using the B words. Yes, words…think about it—got them?

Apparently I wasn’t watching enough TV (silly me, spending all my time planning lessons and grading at night!). I couldn’t believe those words were allowed on regular TV.

I’m not a big fan of profanity, but I’ve used it in my books, and I believe it has its place in entertainment. Would a mob boss be very believable if he spoke like a priest?

But I don’t talk like that. I only swear when I get upset or mad. Probably because those are the times my brain shuts down and my vocabulary with it. But generally I can always think of a more effective word than a 4-letter one.

What about you? Do you swear a lot? Do Brits swear more than Americans? Who swears the most?

September 28, 2006

Boo!

Wow! I come out of my cave and what do I find? Almost another whole month has gone by! It’s amazing how quickly you can lose track of time when you’ve gone past your deadline. Grrrrr.

In any case, this is the time when I start gearing up for my favorite month of the year. I LOVE October! Not only is the area right around where I live really gorgeous with all of the fall colors, but there are tons of Octoberfests and Harvestfests to attend, where I totally go broke with all of the wonderful crafts for sale and all of the great food to to pig out on. October also hosts my very favorite holiday: Halloween. My niece and nephews like to visit around this time because they know Aunt Kim already has her Halloween candy sitting out in bowls for little hands to snack on, and I usually try to go big with the decorations. And right about now I usually start lining up my scary reads for the month alongside the movies that I will watch in my scary movie marathon.

I love romance novels, but if a book or movie can offer me a good scare right along with the love story, that’s a double thrill! I like to re-read Linda Fallon’s historical Ghosthunter trilogy around this time. Of course, I have Teresa Medeiros’s new vampire book on my list as well as Christine Feehan’s Carpathian Celebration. As for movies, there are the old classics: Halloween, The Haunting, The Shining, Poltergeist, and The Changeling along with new spooky favorites The Ring and Gothika.

Of course, I will probably have to wait until next week to make all of my October preparations, when I will–Hopefully!–finally be finished with Devil’s Temptation. (Appropriate title for this time of year, eh?) In any case, does anyone have a suggestion for a good scary romance novel? Or any suggestions for a recent scary movie to rent that I may not have seen? As Count Floyd of SCTV fame would say, “I vant to see something reallllllllllly scary!”

September 27, 2006

Anatomy of a book

Let’s talk about the fun stuff. The inside scoop on my release, Deliciously Wicked, because while the day itself might have felt anticlimactic, the fact that it’s in stores is still very cool. When I first came up with the Ladies’ Amateur Sleuth Society series idea, I had originally had only 3 women, but my brilliant critique partner suggested 4. Meg was the last added and truth be told the book of the series I was least excited about. Because Meg, herself, takes me out of my usual type of character. She’s spunky, well, that’s not out of the ordinary for me. But she’s really impulsive, which was new (although I have had heroines behave that way, they were a bit more aware of consequences). She’s one of those people who’s always late, no matter where they’re going, which is so NOT me. I’m habitually early. In any case, in the beginning, she felt different enough, outside of my character arsenal enough (I talked about this in my archetype blog back in April). Meg is a Free Spirit and I’m mostly equipped to write Spunky Kids and Librarians and Nurturers.

Once I dug in, though, and forced myself to deal with her head-on, I think I nailed it. I think she still feels like a Robyn DeHart heroine, but she’s different. I can honestly say that Deliciously Wicked was the most difficult book I’ve ever written. It presented challenges to me at every turn; completely changing the hero, which then changed parts of the heroine, then had to essentially rewrite the entire thing in 28 days. It was grueling and really difficult, and for months I’ve been unsure if I really pulled it off. But as the reviews started coming in and The Professor read it, I began to see the book, not in fits and bursts like you do when you’re writing, not in the pieces you had to put together or the sharp edges you had to smooth, but as the completed project, the book, the finished story.

Gareth was different for me as well – and I know some of you are out there going, “well, duh, shouldn’t all your characters be different?” Well, yes. And no. Different, but within the writer’s realm. It’s safe to say the characters in this book really pushed me as a writer, pushed my abilities. Gareth is angry and while he is not angsty in the way that a lot of dark alpha heroes are, he was pretty gritty – for a Robyn DeHart hero. I think the one thing that makes my heroes the way they are is their unrelenting need for the heroine, and their unwanted desire to protect them. Gareth has those qualities in spades. He’s different than what you might find in other books too because he’s poor. And he’s a layman. He’s a factory worker. But he’s a hard worker, and I hope his integrity and inner struggle win you over and you fall in love with him the way I did.

(by the way, I save most of the insider info for my website and those updates should be up on the 1st). The research for this book was rather interesting – and tasty.  It took a while to find the appropriate type of books for the research though because most books on chocolate are cookbooks. What I needed was the inside scoop of how chocolate had progressed. I finally found what I needed on eBay. It was a dry read, but if I ate it while enjoying a bit of chocolate, then it was far more enjoyable.

Did you know that they the chocolate Easter egg had already been invented by early 1800’s? Now keep in mind that none of the chocolate manufactured then tastes like the milk chocolate we have now. It was more similar to bakers chocolate, only the consistency was a little different. For the most part, when chocolate was introduced, it was used in the form of a drink, a warm drink, like hot chocolate. Spaniards were the ones to introduce the modern world to chocolate in the 16th Century. It was they who developed it as a drink. Countries like Sweden and France began experimenting with the chocolate to try to put it in solid form so that one could eat it as well as drink it. England quickly followed suit and confectionaries found their rank among other factories in the Industrial Revolution. In fact they were among the leaders in social awareness and instrumental in creating holiday hours, shorter hours, and other much needed benefits for England’s tired, and wildly overworked people.

I knew from the beginning that Meg’s father was in some sort of industry, wealthy, but from hard work, not inheritance. I originally thought I’d do some sort of shipping and have it set on docks, but that seemed like it would get Meg into the kind of trouble neither of us were prepared for. Consequently, I’d always wanted to set a book at the backdrop of the progressive chocolate factories, and voila, a perfect fit. I worried a lot in the beginning about not making this Willy Wonka: the romance. There was no place for Mr. Slugworth in my sexy romance.

Speaking of sexy, I do believe that Deliciously Wicked is the sexiest book I’ve ever written. These characters pushed and pushed and I think the end result will please (and satisfy) readers. And to celebrate this release, I will give away two signed copies of A Study in Scandal to the first two readers who can email me with the correct answer to the following question: What are the first names of the members of the Ladies’ Amateur Sleuth Society? (hint: if you don’t know, you can find this info on my website).

September 26, 2006

Jaunty Quill Book Release

My book is out! My book is out!

Okay, not so professional as far as announcements go. *deep breath*

Robyn DeHart’s latest adventurous romance, Deliciously Wicked, hits stores today. Please read responsibly.

Gettin’ Stodgy?

While enjoying an impromptu party at a neighbor’s house the other night, we got into discussing things we like or don’t like. For example I can’t stand Bob Dylan’s singing. I think he’s a great songwriter, but please don’t make me listen to him.

My neighbor said she disliked Seinfeld. I happen to think Seinfeld is brilliant, but I guess the personalities and how each show is presented is a matter of personal appreciation or taste.

The thing that really flipped me out was one couple’s vehement dislike of the iPod. Mind you, Bob and Betty have never actually tried to use one. They both said it was too fussy, too much work to figure out, and they hated the very idea of it. Then Bob said it’s successful only because it was marketed to death. Huh?

I suggested they try it. They would quickly discover that this little unit needs no marketing. It works so well that it sells itself.

What’s not to like about the iPod? You choose every bit of music that goes on it. This means that when you download (or upload?) a CD to your iPod, you delete the tracks you don’t like. You never have to listen to those mediocre B-cut songs again. You can have playlists of certain kinds of music … All classical, for example. Or all soundtracks. All comedy routines. Maybe music from multiple CDs with a summertime theme. Christmas … Whatever you want! And I love being able to buy just one track from iTunes. For 99 cents, you can have a song you love, and not be suck with a $16 charge for a CD you don’t want.

I told Bob that I have a playlist that I listen to when I write. WHOA! Here’s the reaction this statement got: No! Music has its place! It shouldn’t be there as a distraction, or as background to what you’re doing. You put on a CD, you listen to it while you have dinner, and you enjoy it. (Yikes! A music Nazi!)

When I asked Bob (who is a writer, by the way) why he was so vehement about it, he said he’s not vehement. He’s emphatic. Ohhhhhhh. Right. I get that difference.

Then we got onto satellite radio vs commercial radio. Betty was pretty adamant about loving commercial radio. She would never want to switch! Those of us who have satellite couldn’t believe it. You have 100s of stations without commercials (including continuous traffic and weather if that strikes your fancy), and Betty would rather listen to a bunch of people blathering about products she doesn’t need? Come on. Sure, it costs 13 bucks a month, but that’s probably less than a lot of people pay for DVD rentals in a month. And think about how often you’re in your car…

I guess the point of my diatribe is that sometimes it’s a good idea to reexamine our POV on things to see if our opinions are actually logical and reasonable, or if we’re just getting stodgy. Maybe we just had a knee-jerk reaction to something when it was first presented and now we just keep mouthing the same old reaction. Or it could be something our parents told was good and right. Or it’s too … high tech and it scares us (but we can’t admit to it :)).

So I’m willing to give Dylan another try. Maybe.

September 25, 2006

Early fall movie lineup

I finally got my buns out of my computer seat and into a theatre one on Saturday. Sunday saw me looking through the movie lineup for the next few weeks to see what’s in store. There are some good things on the horizon, and as all good Oscar watchers know, the best is usually yet to come!

The Prestige - Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman and David Bowie…who cast this movie? My fantasies? Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman play competing magicians, and it looks quite dark. I’ve attached the preview below, for your viewing pleasure. It’s a Christopher Nolan movie, so my fingers are crossed!

Running with Scissors - a lot of early Oscar buzz on this one. Lots of big names and up and comers. Annette Bening, Brian Cox and Joseph Fiennes have top billing.

The Departed - what’s with all the “The” titles? Commercials for this bad boy have been on my tv a lot lately. I’m “waiting to see” on this one. Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson and Mark Wahlberg star.

Flags of our Fathers - Directed by Clint Eastwood with Ryan Phillipe starring and Iwo Jima as the backdrop. There’s been buzz here as well. Has anyone read the book? The quick movie blurbs don’t really give an idea as to the nature of the story, other than it is about the company that raised the flag. I’m sure there will be more plot given as time draws closer. Or after I turn this book in, perhaps I will go a-scouting.

Man of the Year - Robin Williams as a talk show satirist turned presidential candidate. Kind of a “The Daily Show goes on the campain trail” sort of thing. Could be great, could be horrific. Great cast though — also stars Laura Linney, Christopher Walken, Jeff Goldblum and Lewis Black.



Movies already out:

Little Miss Sunshine - fabulous, fabulous movie. I just saw it and really loved it. I cried. I laughed until I cried.

The Illusionist - I love Edward Norton, and I’ve been given a ringing endorsement for this movie (I’m looking at you two, Robyn and Margo), so I plan to go see it after I turn in my book. Looking forward to it!

Jackass Number Two won the boxoffice this weekend, so there really is something out there for everyone!



What is out now that you’ve enjoyed (and recommend! videos count too!), or what are you looking forward to seeing?

The Prestige trailer:
If you have a slow connection, click on the pause button until the buffer line changes all the way to red. Then click it back to play.

September 24, 2006

Pirate factoids

In honor of Pirate Week (Tuesday was National Talk Like A Pirate Day, and today was Portland’s Pirate Festival) I thought I’d share some pirate info. When I was researching for Kiss From A Rogue, I found a great deal more info available on pirates than smugglers.

Much of our modern perception of pirates can be traced directly to Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, Treasure Island, published in 1883. He introduced most of what are now clichés –treasure maps, buried plunder, parrots, wooden legs, eye patches, and “Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest.” J.M. Barrie introduced a few more with the play Peter Pan in 1904, especially the tricorn hats adorned with skull and crossbones symbols.

Hollywood, of course, has introduced a ton more myths. Douglas Fairbanks Sr., starring in The Black Pirate in 1926, was the first pirate to stick a knife in a sail and slide down to the deck on it. Orlando Bloom looked pretty good doing that this summer in Dead Man’s Chest, too. Real pirates were much more likely to subject prisoners to pistol target practice or other forms of torture than make them walk the plank. But what would Curse of the Black Pearl have been without Elizabeth Swann walking the plank (Keira Knightley did her own stunt) or Captain Jack diving from the plank after his effects?

We can’t blame all the clichés on Stevenson – novelists, poets and playwrights have been romanticizing nautical thieves and killers with questionable hygiene since at least 1684, when writer Alexander Exquemelin conducted research by living and working with his subjects — taking part in pirate raids — and wrote Buccaneers of America, which became a runaway bestseller.

Piracy has existed since man first started going to sea in dugout canoes, but most of what comes to mind when we think of pirates is from the Golden Age of Piracy, which only lasted 40 years, from 1690 to 1730. Most of the pirates the average person could name were active during just one decade, 1714-1724.

Fun facts:

Gold hoop earrings. These served a dual purpose. Up until early Victorian days many people, including doctors, believed piercing the ear could improve one’s eyesight, and being able to see land and potential prey as soon as possible was a good thing. Most sailors purposely did not know how to swim – they’d rather drown right away than be live food for sharks in the event of a disaster. If their body washed up on shore, the solid gold hoop earring was payment to assure they’d receive a decent burial.

Grog. British Admiral Edmond Vernon (1684-1757) wore a grogram cloak, giving rise to his nickname Old Grog. In 1740 he ordered his sailors’ twice-daily ration of rum to be diluted, supposedly after griping that most sailors had joined up mainly for the free rum. In an age and profession where fresh water was at a premium, sailors were generally issued one pound of hardtack and two rations of alcohol per day in addition to whatever the cook served up. Some navies used whiskey, while the British generally served rum.

Democracy. Those serving on board pirate ships lived in a true democratic society, possibly some of the earliest recorded. Everyone was entitled to a share of the plunder based on his rank and contribution. If the majority did not like the captain, he could be, ahem, voted out of office.

Honor among thieves. Anyone who’s watched either of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies has heard a reference to the Pirate’s Code, a set of rules for conduct. Hollywood isn’t making this up. Most pirate crews did draw up a set of rules, and one of those surviving was written by Bartholomew Roberts. Many other crews simply adapted his version rather than drafting their own. The rules were mostly to avoid disputes over the division of plunder and the behavior expected of crew members, but they often included provisions for compensating those injured in battle. Losing a limb was worth “800 pieces of eight from the common stock,” according to Roberts.

I’ll leave you with one of my favorite pics of my favorite pirate. I don’t know how authentic the beads, braids, dreads and eyeliner is, but the scarf is very authentic. Headcovering was vital, especially in the tropics. (Btw, most of the pistols in the two movies are props or replicas, but Captain Jack’s barker, shown here, is the real deal. His was made in the 18th century and bought by Disney from an antiques dealer.)

September 23, 2006

What Inspires You?

I was driving home from a conference in another town (not a writing related one, but one related to my day job) when different songs playing on the radio made me pull out a napkin (where is a sheet of paper when you need one?) and jot down some possible titles for future books. Last summer I was at a weekend outdoor music festival. As I listened to one group play, I pulled (yes, you guess it) a napkin from my bag and wrote down some plot ideas. By the time I left that weekend, I’d plotted out a whole new book.

I never know when inspiration will hit. But it usually is at theatre or music events….or my favorite….driving in the car. Long stretches on the interstate are especially helpful. Sometimes I’ll dream a plot or an upcoming scene for my current work-in-progress. Occasionally ideas will come to me in the shower.

For much of my adult life, I didn’t write. But once I started, it seemed that ideas that had lain dorment all these years clamored to the surface. It seems to me that creativity breeds creativity.

Sometimes I wonder what other people who don’t write think about….I can’t imagine not being able to make up stories….and I thank God every day for giving me this wonderful gift.

September 22, 2006

Deal or No…

Have you seen that show Deal or No Deal? Of course you have. What do you think? If you were up there with Howie would you go for the big bucks or cash in for the sure thing? I am so not a risk taker. I would take the sure money every time. Hey, even if I walked out with $500, that’s more than I came in with!

But I guess to win big, you have to take risks. Think about all the people who are millionaires. They didn’t get that way by playing it safe. I’ve been thinking about millionaires lately. Last week I had the chance to tour a house that’s on the market for over $18 million. Can you imagine that kind of money? Can you imagine that house?

Let me take you on a little tour…
You enter through a gated drive. The gate only opens if your fingerprint is approved when you touch your finger to a pad.

When you enter, you’re surrounded by Carrera marble, hand-carved mahogany and a high-tech set up. Everything from the lights to the A/C to the windows operates at a touch of a button. There are 5 full kitchens, a butler’s pantry, a wine cellar, a silver room, an elevator, 3 saunas, a salon room (so your hairdresser can come to you), more bathrooms than I could count (8?), a gym, a walk-in closet the size of my last apartment, and a garage that does (and has) fit 9 Ferraris.

Oh, did I mention the natatorium? That’s the room that houses the salt water pool. Why salt water? One of the owners wanted to have sharks swimming in there while hosting parties. Did I mention that one of the owners had the dining room ceiling converted to the night sky? Guests could program in any date—their birthday, for example—and the stars in the sky would rearrange themselves to the order of the constellations on that night. There’s also a Tiffany glass dome in the living room.

Yeah, that’s a lot of cool things—though, really, who needs 5 kitchens? The sad part is that these people with so much money had so little taste. One owner had some particularly interesting proclivities. He turned a small room into a sex dungeon and had a stripper’s pole added to the home theater room. Oh, and let’s not forget the 12-person shower with a two-way mirror. Or, have you ever seen those mirrors that when you stand in front of them you can see your reflection like a thousand times? He had one of those.

In front of the toilet.

Yuck.

What a gorgeous house, but what a waste of money. Now if I had $18 million to build a house, I could really do something beautiful. Heck, for like $1000 I could build a closet that would actually fit all of my clothes! Who needs $18 million?

What about you? What’s in your dream house?