I’m on a really tight deadline, and my mind went blank when I sat down to write this blog. So I decided to treat you all to some video of Brian Regan, one of the funniest comics in action these days. His humor is completely clean, so it’s safe for work or with family. I guarantee you’ll laugh out loud at this one:

If you enjoyed those, I recommend that you search here BrianRegan youtube and pick any one of his improv routines. I especially like the “Dumb in School” one, but it’s not great quality, so I didn’t want to post it here. Let me know how you like Brian. I’m going to draw the name of one poster and send her a signed copy of one of my books!

Some of the best books I read in the past year were books for teens. Seriously, some of these books just blew me away. (Okay, J.K. Rowling has been blowing us all away for years, but you probably know about her.) So I thought I’d share the love and give you the low down on the fabulous books beyond the Harry Potter universe. 

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

This book takes place in a Victorian girl’s boarding school and seamlessly weaves elements of gothic paranormal with backstabbing girl politics. If you thought Voldemort was evil, wait till you get a load of these rich girls. Beautifully written and completely engrossing. Give this series a try.

City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau

Sure the movie was okay. But just okay. It lacked the taut suspense and claustrophobic fear of the book. Like all great post-apocalyptic fiction, this book is gritty and grim, but still retains the hope that basic human goodness will get us through the tough times. 

Good Ghouls Guide to Getting Even by Julie Kenner

Blood sucking monsters, petty cheerleaders, and hunky guys. Isn’t that what high school is all about? This book is both fun and funny. Sure it lacks the earnest romanticism of Twilight, but Kenner handles the highs and lows of battling the undead while beefing up your college applications with grace. It’s a teen vampire book with (pardon the pun) bite!

One of the things I like best about being a writer is imagining what it would be like to live somewhere else. I’ve lived in Connecticut most of my life and am a New Englander through and through, but I dream about living in other parts of our great nation all the time. Sometimes you visit a place that just strikes you as being not just a place that you love, but a place you could live, and that happens to me all the time. Funny, my grandmother never lived more than half a block from where she was born and never felt the remotest desire to experience life elsewhere (unless it was on a cruise ship). But I’d love to live somewhere else, as long as I could come back to my little house here in the woods and sit on my front porch, listening to the wind in the trees.

An editor at Harlequin recently told me that the towns in my books are like characters, one of the the nicest compliments I’ve ever received. Maybe that’s due to my wanderlust. When writing a book, I try to pick a town that means something to the plot or reflects my protagonist’s character somehow. In Catch of the Day, for example, I needed simply for the heroine to have a hard time meeting marriagable men. Choosing a town on the northern Maine coast with a population of 1500 did that just fine. In Just One of the Guys, I wanted a backdrop for Chastity’s physicality…she rows, runs, hikes. She’s a strapping lass, our Chas, so the mighty Adirondacks were perfect. Too Good To Be True has a theme of unrealistic perfection in it…I figured a picturesque, wealthy little town in Connecticut was just the ticket.

If I had to choose a setting from one of my books to actually live in, I think I’d pick Eaton Falls, New York, from Just One of the Guys. What a pretty town! The Hudson River, the architecture, that gorgeous City Hall, all the little Craftsmen bungalows…yep, I could live there. Or Mackerly, Rhode Island, the setting of my upcoming book The Next Best Thing, which is based on Jamestown, a sweet little island just south of Newport. Absolutely darling.

There are actually quite a few places I wouldn’t mind spending some serious time. Pacific Grove, California, is probably the most beautiful town I’ve ever seen, flowers and gardens bursting from every inch of space, Monterrey Bay as a backdrop. I love Brooklyn and Manhattan and can spend hours — days, really — just wandering the different neighborhoods, gawking at the gardens and buildings and views. Maryville, Kansas, has such charm and sweetness, brick streets and buildings surrounded by miles and miles of farmland. The light in Portland, Maine, is unlike anything I’ve ever seen anywhere else, this clear golden luminosity that is downright magical.

What about you? Do you love a strong sense of setting in a story, or does it not matter so much to you? Have you lived in the same place most of your life, like I have, or have you moved a lot? What places have you visited that just spoke to some part of your soul? If you could choose to live anywhere, where would it be?

Most of the time when you talk about re-igniting an old passion the words bring to mind hooking up with an old boyfriend or girlfriend. But that’s not what I’m referring to at all. I’m talking about a passion for an activity that we may have put away that we pick up again with renewed enthusiasm.

It could be cooking…

Or perhaps knitting…

Or, in my case, golf.

Years ago–before I began writing books–I was passionate about golf. I took lessons, both group and individual. I golfed on several leagues. I golfed with friends. It was a sport I really enjoyed. Walking, talking, being outdoors in beautiful settings…what’s not to like?

But once I started writing, something had to go. When you work full time, write and have a family, there’s only so many hours in the day. Sadly, golf had to go.

I missed it, but I got over it. Then today I golfed in a tournament (a scramble) as part of my day job. There were business people from all over the state there. Both men and women….more men that women.

I was a bit apprehensive. I hadn’t picked up a club in ten years. But I did surprisingly…okay. And with each ball I hit, I found my passion for the sport returning. When one of my foursome told me she thought I could be “really good” if I played more, I began to wonder….maybe I could find some time to play occasionally.

Have you ever have a similiar experience? Where you came back to an activity after being away from it for awhile and found your passion re-ignited? I’d like to hear about it.

It’s a great pleasure to welcome Toni Andrews today! Toni’s the author of several books, including the Mercy Hollings series — Beg for Mercy, Angel of Mercy and the latest release, Cry Mercy. Throughout the series, the title character struggles to control and profit from her unusual gift — the ability to convince people to do just about anything.

Thanks for joining us, Toni! First question…How the heck did you come up with the idea for Beg for Mercy (book one in the series)?

You know, I was just trying to figure that out. I think it started with a name—my original working title was Mercy Killing. I remember hearing that phrase and thinking what a wonderful name it would be for a book. I decided it would have to have a character named Mercy and she would have to kill someone!

When I first started, Mercy was actually sort of a gleeful sociopath, like the character played by Kathleen Turner in Serial Mom. But it never felt quite right, so I changed her into the darker, self-doubting Mercy, who fears her power and struggles to control it. She became much more interesting and, from there, the book practically wrote itself.

You often clarify that your books aren’t true romance, but for those of who lurrrve romance, talk about the struggle Mercy has with relationships, as well as why she won’t give up completely in the love wars.

You’ve plotted with me, so you know that I always start off by defining a few things about the characters, including their “Relationship Barrier.” I got that term from Discovering Story Magic, a workshop taught by Robin Perrini and Laura Baker. Mercy’s is pretty huge—she’s not certain she’s human. She tells herself that she’s afraid if she lets anyone get close that she will hurt them. What she’s really afraid of is that they’ll find out she’s not human, and reject her. Having been abandoned at birth and then, later, given up by her adoptive parents, Mercy has some SERIOUS relationship issues.

Of course, her innermost desire is to have a “normal life.” That includes love, of course. And, just because she and sexy Sam don’t get together in Cry Mercy, I wouldn’t count him out indefinitely. Sam will absolutely be appearing in future installments.

The reviews for Cry Mercy have been fabulous (and congratulations on that!). What surprised you as an author when you were writing this particular book?

You’d think that, as a plotter, I wouldn’t be surprised by my own plot twists. But the earth-shattering revelation that Mercy has at the end of Chapter Three (I won’t include a spoiler here) was a complete surprise to me, too. There I was, blithely writing along, and wham!

I love it when that happens.

You’re widely known as a crazed workaholic who gets more done in a day than most of us do in a month. You write novels, have a television show promoting fellow authors, write articles, critique manuscripts, belong to half a dozen writers groups…Your secrets to success, please?

I’ve been cloned.

I’m trying to cut back. Seriously I am. I mean it. Really.

Okay, actually I’m launching a manuscript critiquing and analysis business called “Book Rx” and I’m in the process of designing some on-line workshops that will be offered through various writers’ organizations.

The secret is to be very, very organized. And not to get too crazy when the laundry piles up.

Who are some of your favorite authors?

I talked a little bit about this Wednesday on Danette’s Chatting Lounge. I have so many, and it changes all the time. I love James Lee Burke, who is such a master that he breaks all the rules and still writes stuff that makes my jaw drop open. I hope he’s taking his vitamins, because if I don’t get a new JLB book every year, I will be very unhappy about it. Stephen King remains a favorite, for his ability to create memorable characters and then really mess with them.

For romance, I love Jennie Crusie and a certain upstart named Kristan Higgins—maybe you’ve heard of her? Also, some good rip-snortin’ old bodice rippers by Teresa Medeiros and gothics by Allison Chase. Janice Mott Davidson makes me laugh out loud with the Queen Betsy series, as does Janet Evanovich with Stephanie Plum. And I’m working my way through the books of my fellow Deadline Dames (www.DeadlineDames.com) and having a wo-o-o-onderful time with that.

What’s next for you in terms of writing?

I’m working on a straight women’s fiction book with four unique point-of-view character. My agent calls it “Sex in the City meets The First Wives’ Club.” I have a contemporary romance proposal making the rounds as well and, of course, I’ll be working on the continuing adventures of Mercy and her gang.

Thanks so much for having me Kristan! If you’re not already, follow me on Twitter, where I’m @toniandrews. Now, what’s next on that to-do list….

Great to have you, Toni! Get back to work! To buy Toni’s latest, learn about the TV show or follow Toni on cybertour, visit her website: http://toniandrews.com/

Yay!  I’m so glad another school year has come to a close and that it is summertime.  One of my favorite songs is the George Gershwin classic Summertime.  The living is easy in those long months of June, July and August.  The days are endless because the sun sets later and there seems to be no end to the days of leisure.

This year summer seems a little bittersweet to me.  My daughter, my oldest child, who we refer to as awesomeness-in-human-form in our house, will be a senior in high school next year.  I know that this is truly my last summer with her as a child and not as a woman.  And I want to make the most of it.  I’ve planned trips that we’ve all longed to go on–a trip to London for her because she loves Harry Potter.   A family vacation with my sisters, their families and my parents to Yosemite.  A beach trip because we’re Florida-girls at heart and love the beach.  But I know that the trips won’t define the summer instead it will be those moments I spend with my daughter.

This summer is will be marked by what we do as a family.  I’m a woman who loves traditions and preserving the past for the future but looking to the future often scares me.  I prefer the comfort of the past and the known over the unknown.  And while I know that there will be other vacations and other long summer days spent with awesomeness I also long for this summer to never end.

What about you?

Katherine

Lately I’ve noticed a trend with younger couples and the number of men who do most or all of the cooking. Now I’ve only been married for a little over four years, but I guess I do consider myself an old married lady who is mostly traditional. Don’t get me wrong I’d love to have a man who cooked regularly, not that I’ll be trading The Professor in for a different model. And he does have some culinary skills, but they are mostly limited to grilling hamburgers and making scrambled eggs and pancakes. Needless to say I do the vast majority of our meals and meal planning and shopping. It works well for us and mostly I don’t mind because I enjoy cooking and I’ve just about mastered the art of cooking quick, healthy meals for the two of us.

I have a variety of favorite cooking shows where I get recipe ideas and technique assistance. But I don’t like a lot of the shows hosted by men. I don’t think it’s a conscious decision on my part, I like men and there are some guys on there I do like – I dig Guy’s Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives, but that’s not a cooking show per se. So all of this got me thinking if maybe I’m WAY traditional when it comes to the kitchen. I find myself shaking my head if I’m watching a show with a younger couple on there and the woman can’t cook and leaves it all to their man. Ideally I think it would be very nice to cook WITH your guy, but that doesn’t happen much at my house.

So what about you? Is your family traditional when it comes to the kitchen or can your guy cook an eight course meal? Do you wish your partner did more to help with meal preparation or do you like having your kitchen all to yourself?

Thanks to all who offered money-saving tips. I need to clip more coupons. The winner of the signed copy of Blackthorne’s Bride is Quilt Lady. Email me at shana@shanagalen.com with your address and who you’d like the book signed to. I’ll have it in the mail to you later this week!

Recently Ultimate Sportsfan read an article about saving time and money. The time portion dealt with house-cleaning, so naturally he was not interested in that section But he was interested in saving money, and I think we can all relate to that.

The article was about how to save money when grocery shopping, which is something we all do. USF and I have been used to going to the store every week, buying what we need for that week, then repeating again after 7 days. The article suggested that a family might save time and money by only going grocery shopping every two weeks.

I could see the benefit in doing this, if only that it would mean 2 trips to the store a month, as opposed to 4. The article also recommended shopping at warehouse stores for staples. I am not a big warehouse shopper. It’s only USF and I. What are we going to do with 10 pounds of pasta sauce? Plus, we have a storage issue at our house—no storage. Where do I put 30 boxes of pasta?

But I was game if USF was, so off we went to our local warehouse store. Indeed, we did find the staples we were looking for, and I think they will last us longer than two weeks. As for perishables like fruits and vegetables, we went to our regular grocery store and stocked up for two weeks. The final total was heart-stopping, but it’s for two weeks, right?

So what about you? Do you have any money-saving tips? Share them by commenting below and I’ll pick one reader to win a signed copy of my Rita-nominated historical Blackthorne’s Bride. What could save you more money than a free book?

Someone just pointed out that I never picked a winner for my Good Geeky Fun raffle.

The winner is Ellie. You can email me your snail mail address at 

EmilyBMcKay at gmail.com

Everyone else, keep reading for Shirley’s post today!

Thanks!