We have a pair of sandhill cranes that have a nest near the lake behind our house. Where you see one bird, the other is always close by. They strut around the neighborhood, and when they return from a journey, they always announce themselves as they swoop in.   I love their quirky, rusty squawks. It’s such a strange mournful (and loud) cry,  I’m always compelled to get up and look out the window when I hear them.

Something about them tickles me.

According to Wikipedia: “Mated pairs of cranes engage in “unison calling.” The cranes stand close together, calling in a synchronized and complex duet. The female makes two calls for every single call of the male.”

Imagine that. I guess some things are universal no matter the species.

We named the birds Wacky and Nunu after a ridiculous local appliance store commercial where this guy jumps around and says, “If you didn’t buy from us, you paid too much! And that’s wacky-nunu!” I have no idea what  the literal translation of wacky-nunu is, but our daughter and her friends found it hilarious, and we ended up naming the sandhills accordingly.  That was five years ago. Since then, Wacky and Nunu have become members of our family – well, more like distant cousins, but we adore them nonetheless.

Before they built their nest, they used to come and go, sometimes disappearing for months at a time. But about a year ago, Wacky and Nunu decided to settle down. They built their lake-side nest in our backyard and started their family.  Just the other day, I got my first look at their baby. She was out walking around (it seems Wacky and Nunu aren’t very good parents and frequently leave her alone while they gallivant). I was so excited to get a look at the baby, I took a picture of
her and immediately texted it our daughter (who is away at school). I meant to say, “Look, it’s Wacky and Nunu’s baby!” Somehow my phone autocorrected to, “Look, it’s Wacky and Nunu’s Judy!” So, yes, you guessed it. We named the baby Judy. Wacky, Nunu and Judy are a happy family. I’m so glad they decided to settle in our backyard.

Do you have any strange obsessions? If not, what tickles your funny bone? I’m giving away a $10 Amason.com or Barnes & Noble gift card (winner’s choice) to one person who posts.

I watched the movie Possession last night. It’s based on the book by A.S. Byatt. In it, two modern scholars research (through happenstance and creative digging) the lives of two 19th century poets. The poets seemed to have little connection in the beginning, but our modern couple discovers that the two had a torrid affair and a great love, which they managed to conceal from the world. They had one month together and then they had to return to their lives, never to be together again. I won’t give away the entire plot, but there are surprises thrown in, and some wonderfully bittersweet moments. The historical couple is played Jeremy Northam and Jennifer Ehle. The modern couple is Gwyneth Paltrow and Aaron Eckhart. The two of them grow closer over the course of the investigation, and the whole theme of the movie seems to be — in my opinion — is if love is worth the risk of giving yourself to another person. In the case of the poets, he is married to a lovely, but seemingly frigid woman. Being with his lover risks ruination for them both, and so they have their time together and then go back to their lives.

For a romance author, you can see where this would be heartbreaking. Frustrating. I would have found a way for them to be together. Of course, adultery is frown upon in the romance world, so I would have had to make the wife the heroine, which sort of defeats the point.

Anyway, while I really enjoyed the movie, I lamented their lost love (as I was supposed to). And I think I wasn’t so upset by their lack of HEA because the main couple seems to have a good thing going by the end. Nice ploy on behalf of the author and those who wrote the script.

So, I want to know what YOU — romance readers and writers — think of the lost love plot. And please, fans of Byatt let me know what I should pick up by her. I’m ashamed that I have not read her yet!

Last night my husband and I went out to dinner to celebrate an anniversary. When I told him we needed to go out, he said, “Why?” To which I replied, “It’s November 17th.” That was all that needed to be said. He chuckled, and pretended not to know what I was talking about, but it was obvious he did.

You see, on November 17th, 1995 we had our first date.

We were thrown together by mutual friends based on the fact that both Steve and I liked comic books. I suppose it was as good a base as any. The first time we met I thought he sounded like John Lovitz (He does a great impression), and was not terribly impressed. Imagine my disappointment — I had seen a photo of him a year earlier and thought he was cute, only to find out he was married (he married quite young). When I discovered he had gotten a divorce and was coming to visit this friend, I was a little eager to see if he lived up to expectations. Physically he did, but that VOICE! lol.

Needless to say I eventually heard him speak in his own voice, which turned out to be surprisingly pleasing. I asked him out — he was only newly single, after all — and he said yes. He was late and I had decided to engage in experimental cooking, so it’s a miracle we ever made it to date #2. However, when he left later that evening, he gave me a kiss good night. As I watched him walk down the street my heart was in my throat. I knew right then and there that he was him — the guy I was going to end up with. Of course I didn’t tell him that. lol.

You know, later on we discovered that his divorce had been finalized two days before that first date. I’d like to take this occasion to thank his ex for being such a cow that I looked like a princess by comparison.

So, every year we do something to mark the date. Sometimes I think we put more effort into that anniversary than the one that marks our wedding day. And you know what? I think I like the look of him even more now than I did back then. And yes, I still engage in experimental cooking, and his impressions are a hit at parties. I’m extremely lucky to have found not only a great husband, but a best friend as well.

Now I’ll stop bragging and start the conversation. Are there any special milestones or anniversaries that you and your significant other celebrate? Or maybe you have something in your family or with an old friend instead? Spill!

I haven’t been around much. I wish I could say it was because I was running around Europe having a grand ole time, but it’s not. It’s because I’m on deadline with a book due Nov 1. It’s the second in my YA Steampunk series and it’s giving me a hard time. Plus, I’ve been sick as a dog, which has slowed me down. So, now have to accept that the book won’t be as polished as I like when I turn it in — unless I’m late.

Here’s the thing. I don’t like to be late, even if it means the book will be better. The hubby and I are often late to gatherings because we have to drive almost half an hour to get to most of our friends’ homes. It drives me nuts every time.

Thankfully, writers have the revision process to help ease this feeling of  ‘Oh no, I just turned in a crap book’. I don’t really think the book is garbage, it’s just not going to have the atmosphere I want it to have. I tend to vomit the book onto the page, laying the ground work and plot down fairly thickly and precisely. The stuff that I come back to do once that foundation is laid is mostly setting, ambiance, and making sure I don’t have six characters with spastic eyebrows, gazing at each too often.

Still, even though I know the plot will be strong when I pass this book in (and plot is one of the most important aspects), I wish the rest of of it could be as firm. Meanwhile, my darling hubby is concerned about me pushing myself too hard since I’m still under the weather (I’m one of those people who gets sick in stages, so it can take me a couple of weeks to get over a simple cold). But, the book has to be written. I gave my word that it would be done on time, and I really, really, really hate going back on my word.

So, as I crawl back under my rock and attempt to meet my page count — while battling a head cold — I ask that you all forgive my low profile. I promise I’ll be more attentive after Nov 1.  I will also go one step further and ask you to indulge me. Do you hate to be late? Or maybe there’s something else that drives you nuts? Maybe you have a code to which you hold yourself but not necessarily others?

Okay, so this post has nothing to do with Cheech and Chong, or Dave for that matter. As you’re reading this me, and many other Jaunty authors are at the Romance Writers of America’s annual conference. So technically — I’m not here. Man. Since it’s *almost* the weekend and I’m next door to the Happiest Place on Earth, I thought I would simply leave you with the following:

Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester on the CW’s ‘Supernatural’. Fave show. Fave smarta*s hero. You’re welcome.

Some women look forward to a new season for the shoes. I look forward to the new lipstick shades. To me, spring is all about bright color, as proven by the shocking pink lip gloss I picked up recently at the cosmetics counter.

When I was quite young my mother was an Avon Lady. She was good at it too because she loved product and knew how to use it. I remember she had this pale blue/green sample case that had all these tiny little lipsticks in it — just the perfect size for 4 year-old hands. My mother couldn’t cut hair to save her life — and I had the bangs to prove it — but boy howdy could she wear/sell skin care. Thus, my own love affair with cosmetics began.

By the time I was 12 I was wearing makeup to school. I believe I was the only girl in grade 7 whose foundation matched her skin tone. I was moisturizing by 15, and very much aware of skin care. Mom had gotten out of the Avon biz, but she wouldn’t go to the end of the drive without lipstick, and she swore by face cream.

I bought Vogue on a regular basis. I’m sure this got me made fun of. Here I was, stocky and weird with dyed orange hair who liked to wear strange clothes and tried styling my hair like the super models of the day. At 14 I hadn’t quite grown into my looks or my sense of self, but I was trying.

By sixteen I was doing makeup for my friends — sometimes to their mothers’ horror! I had a set of brushes I’d saved up to buy. I had gotten my ‘Colors’ done — this was the 80′s after all! — and would often help friends pick out the right shades of makeup for their skin tone. By this time I had ‘blossomed’ a little. I’d lost some weight, grew out my hair and wore it brown. I feathered it and then got a spiral perm (shudder). Lo and behold — I got a boyfriend! Yay me.

I think everyone thought I’d go to Cosmetology school, but as obsessed as I was with makeup, I was more obsessed with writing, so off to journalism school went I. Of course, by the time I entered the real world I realized journalism wasn’t for me. Still, I didn’t go to ‘makeup school.’

So here I am — a little over 2 decades later — and I still haven’t taken that course, even though I’ve thought of it. I have books on makeup, books on skincare. I’ve even made my own! In fact, I recently made an eyeshadow that is a dead ringer for a M.A.C. shade I wanted. Now my excuse isn’t that I don’t have the money or even the time, but that I can’t justify taking a course in makeup artistry when I have no intention of making a career of it.

(The model on the Vogue cover is Renee Simonsen. She was one of the supermodels of the 80′s and girlfriend of John Taylor from Duran Duran. To say I wanted to be her is something of an understatement. )

I get offered jobs at makeup counters all the time — only because I know what the product does, not because I look so fab when I go to Macy’s. Sure, I can contour, highlight and cover my brows with fairly decent ease, but it’s so much work! Still, can I confide that sometimes I’m tempted to take a resume to the M.A.C. or Benefit counter, even though I vowed never to work retail again? (And let me clarify that I spent 10 years in retail. The world and its shoppers are safer with me on the buying side of the counter). I’ve been pricing courses too. Will I take one? I dunno, but oh! The discount product is soooo tempting! Stay tuned — you never know, I might finally cave.

BTW, my oldest sister became an Avon Lady for a while as well. And is it coincidence that I write for AVON? I think not!

There you have it — my not-so-secret addiction. Now I want to know YOURS! Do you love makeup? Jewelry? Shoes? Tell me and I’ll pick one person to win a trio of mineral eye shadows made by yours truly, in colors inspired by WHEN MARRYING A SCOUNDREL, coming out on May 26th!

Let’s get one thing out of the way: I’m an iTunes junkie. Seriously. I’ll haunt that store searching for new music like a ghost with a grudge. Recently in my quest for steampunk music I discovered Emilie Autumn who describes her music as ‘Victoriandustrial’. She plays the electic violin and harpsichord on many of her songs and sings about Victorian asylums. She’s had a pretty hard life from what I’ve heard, and speaks openly about her battle with bipolar disorder.

courtesy of Emilie Autumn online

She’s pretty, she has a wardrobe I’d kill for, sings like I want to,  and I would like for her to be my new best friend.

Now that I’ve downloaded practically everything iTunes has to offer, I’m contemplating going to see her live in December. Although, I have to wonder: Am I too old for this sort of thing? Granted EA is 30, but I’m closer to 40 and the show is at an all ages club. Might be too much for my nerves! Besides, it’s not as though I’d get to meet her and even if I did, you can’t have much of a conversation which a room full of other people trying to get to her as well. How in the world will we become BFFs in such a setting?

So, I guess I”ll have to sit this one out and stick to my iTunes. Recently I made a CD for my niece and was thrilled to discover that I had introduced her to entirely new to her bands! I am still cool! I am hip despite my undying love for John Taylor of Duran Duran and grey roots (which are now a delightful, and artificial, shade of red). Some bands I’ve discovered other than the delightful Emilie Autumn are: Rasputina, Hiersonic, Amanda Palmer and Hannah Fury, just to name a few. I’m listening to all of these as I work on my current ms.

So what bands have you discovered recently? Who do you look for on iTunes? What song have you listened to so many times people are threatening to harm you if you make them listen to it again?

The Grounding of Group 6 courtesy of jezebel.com

I fell in love with Young Adult fiction a few years before I officially became a young adult, and oddly enough after I’d discovered romance! One of the first books I remember reading and loving at that age was The Grounding of Group 6 — about a group of teenagers whose parents want them dead — only the kids don’t know that at first. Loved that book.

After that I moved into Sweet Valley High, about twins Jessica and Elizabeth

Sweet Valley High courtesy of chud.com

Wakefield. I loved these books despite not being able to relate to being beautiful, blonde or a twin. Or driving a Fiat, for that matter.  This is when I began writing Young Adult. I remember being, oh… 13 or 14 and thinking that SVH simply wasn’t that realistic. No one ever seemed to really get in trouble and everyone had cars. Most of the kids I knew weren’t rich, and we often got in a lot of trouble! I decided it was time for me to set the record straight and I started writing my own books about a place called Whitney Bay.

Oh. Dear. God.

My idea of realism was a nerd who transformed himself ala Grease II into John Taylor from Duran Duran  for a heroine who dressed an awful lot like Madonna, but was secretly me. Oh, the drama! I wrote 3 books in that series at a little over 200 pages each. I gave them to a friend in my class. I hope she had the good sense to burn them.

from kurushimi.org copyright Neil Gaiman

After that, Young Adult and I lost touch for awhile. I read Sydney Sheldon and Jackie Collins. In my twenties I discovered Neil Gaimon and his Sandman comics. I fell in love with the character of Death, who was old as humanity but looked like a teenage girl. My favorite ‘version’ of DeeDee as she was called, is the one drawn by Chris Bachalo as the photo here.

This got me back into what I consider Young Adult fiction. Gaiman’s stuff was geared for older readers, but it got me interested in what else was out there with ‘teen’ protagonists.

I sold my first book to Avon in 1999. It wasn’t due to come out until 2001, so my agent and I discussed other projects. Around this time Avon started the now defunct True Romance line out of its Young Adult division. I wrote two books for that line Anna and the Duke and Emily and the Scot. I had so much fun writing those books, and had plans for a third when the line closed (sob!). After that, I got caught up in other things and I didn’t have a chance to do another YA.

These days there’s a wealth of YA fiction out there, and I’m happy to say I’m soon going to be part of it again. Recently I sold my Steampunk series to Harlequin Teen and I couldn’t be more thrilled. It won’t debut until early 2011, but that’s okay. I have to write them! I’ll be doing these books under a new name as well, Kady Cross. I’m not the only ‘adult’ author to make this leap. Look at Gena Showalter, Rachel Vincent, Kim Harrison and Kelley Armstrong, just to name a few!

I think the real appeal of Young Adult is that there are no rules. You can pretty much make them as sweet or not sweet as you want. The only thing that is a no-no, in my opinion, is graphic sex. Other than that, it’s a free and wonderful world. Teens love to read, they want those stories. And they want to get involved with them. I’m excited about the possibility of fan art and fan fiction! lol. I want girls to love my characters and send me hand-written notes on looseleaf again! I don’t think you can beat teenagers for sheer enthusiasm.

Do I hope to do more Young Adult? You bet. Do I have any plans to give up my adult books? Not at all! But writing this book makes me feel like I did on the first day of high school, entering a building with more than 2000 other kids — a little scared, a little nervous and unsure, but full of the excitement of a brand new adventure. I can’t wait to join the ranks of all the fabulous YA authors out there!

So, any other adult YA fans out there?

A list of authors to try if you’re new to YA:

Faeries/Vampires/Paranormal/Dark:

Melissa Marr, Rachel Vincent, Claudia Gray, PC & Kristen Cast, Richelle Mead

Paranormal Light:

Tera Lynn Childs, Rosemary Clement Moore,

Sweet YA:

Rachel Hawthorne, Meg Cabot (both RH and MC also have paranormal books)

Historical:

Libba Bray (paranormal elements), Sarah MacLean, Anna Godbersen

Contemporary:

Melissa Walker, Cecily von Ziegesar

I’d love to hear your suggestions!