Jan 23 2012

All the little birds on Jaybird Street

I enjoy following several sports on TV, so I’ve seen quite a bit of football during the past couple of months. I’ve watched college bowl games and professional play-offs, and I’m looking forward to the upcoming Super Bowl (and, by the way, I totally called the teams who would be in it).  I also follow NASCAR racing (though not as faithfully as I once did), enjoy the “other” football, as it’s called here in the South — soccer, and am glued to the television every two years for whichever season’s Olympic games are being aired.

“Competitive reality TV,” as it’s dubbed on the website Television Without Pity, sort of continues the sports theme. I’ve never seen “Survivor” or “The Amazing Race,” but I do enjoy “Project Runway,” “Face Off” and some of the talent competitions – “So You Think You Can Dance,” “The Voice,” “American Idol” (which I haven’t watched much for the last couple of seasons). And though my husband teases me mercilessly for it, I absolutely love competitive cooking shows. “Top Chef,” “Chopped,” “Iron Chef,” various food network challenges — something about those flying knives and leaping flames and frantic shouts of “behind you, behind you!” just get my blood pumping. They’re fun, and I enjoy rooting for my favorite contestants to win.

Which made me think — how boring would a competitive writing show be? Let’s face it — while we all hope our product is interesting and exciting, writing itself is not a compelling spectator activity. We sit in a chair, stare transfixed at a glowing screen, pound on keyboards — hitting the backspace and delete keys repeatedly — occasionally argue with the voices in our heads. While some writers perhaps look beautiful and camera-ready as they work, I’m not convinced those exceptions are among my closest group of writer friends. Many of us confess to working in comfy, grubby clothes (p.j.s being the uniform of choice admitted in whispers), with hair tumbled every which way, no make-up and plenty of coffee, soft drinks and chocolate near at hand. Even when those sports or competitive reality programs I enjoy are blaring from the television, my computer is usually in my lap and I’m writing or editing or researching or making notes (while also keeping up with my Facebook friends). Despite that less-than-glamorous description of my career, hunky Mike Rowe is unlikely to visit me for his “Dirty Jobs” show (darn it) — because, handsome as he is, watching him sitting in a chair and typing for an hour would hardly be riveting TV.

Writers on television are often shown attending glittering parties, chasing criminals, meeting with long lines of adoring fans — but that’s not showing them at work. In fact, I often wonder when do those fictional authors actually write? Few of us can make a living scribbling a page or two a week — or even a day, for that matter. All kinds of adventures are taking place in our imaginations, but to share them with our readers, we have to separate ourselves from others and take on the solitary task of putting words to paper — or screen, to be more contemporary. Definitely not a spectator career.

Like all modern writers, I’ve been encouraged to have more of an on-line “presence.” This blog, the flashy website I’m going to have someday (really), a Facebook page and Amazon author page (both now in place – check them out!), and — gulp — Twitter. So, I started a Twitter account, wilkinsgina (the reverse already being taken). Other people seem to tweet often, finding interesting things to say and report. I stare at that blank screen that faces me so routinely, and try to think of something fascinating to send out into twitterspace. I’m enchanted by my artistic husband and our three brilliant offspring, of course, but I realize not everyone shares my enthusiasm for my family. I don’t care to discuss politics or religion, because those are private for me, and I’m not exactly a scholar of either, anyway. Some people seem to tweet their every move during the day, but that hardly seems appropriate for me:

“Sitting in my chair under an afghan, drinking tea and trying to convince my current hero to stop being a stubborn jerk.” Is that too many letters? Not exactly fascinating, anyway.

“Just wrote a complete paragraph and it’s a keeper!” Well, no. Only another writer would see that as a noteworthy accomplishment.

“Actually met my word-count goal today so I’m rewarding myself with a bag of M & Ms and the newest J.D. Robb thriller!” Big deal, I hear you all say with a groan.

So. I have a Twitter account. And a blog. And a Facebook page I also struggle to make interesting. Someday I’ll have a real website. Maybe. I hope you’ll all visit me in those places – I promise to do my best to find something worthwhile to say, at least occasionally.

But mostly, I hope you’ll enjoy the books I produce during my noncompetitive, undramatic work routine. My latest Harlequin Special Edition, DOCTORS IN THE WEDDING, is still available in stores, and the next, HUSBAND FOR A WEEKEND, will be released in April (click the Books Available Now! tab for details). Soon I’ll be able to announce the release of a Kindle-exclusive paranormal suspense novel entitled WAKE ME — I’ll tweet that release date as soon as it’s confirmed. Can’t wait to share details with you of that somewhat different story I so enjoyed writing as a challenge to myself.

Do you tweet? What do you like to read from the tweeters you follow? Feel free to contact me at any of the mentioned sources or leave a comment here. I love hearing from readers!

Jan 10 2012

A Fire beneath the tree

I received a Kindle Fire from my husband for my birthday/Christmas gift this year (those of us born in late December use that slash a lot). I don’t do product reviews often, but since this is both directly related to my writing career and a technological advance for me, it seemed relevant to discuss it here.

I’ve mentioned before that I’ve never owned an e-reader and that I had my doubts about reading “on screen,” considering my deep love of books. Then I tried reading a few times on an iPod touch — and discovered that I loved the freedom of having a book with me at all times, especially in the various waiting rooms where we all seem to spend so much time. The iPod screen is tiny, certainly, but it was still surprisingly easy for me to read on it. Our oldest daughter carries her Kindle reader with her on her bus commute to work — almost an hour each way — and has commented often about how it makes the travel time pass so much more quickly. John decided it was time for me to have a Kindle of my own, and he choose to order the Kindle Fire from Amazon.

The first accessory I bought was a cover. I choose a black leather cover with a bright blue lining from Belkin (approximately $35 from WalMart)  that also folds into a stand. I like this cover because it’s very slim, adding little bulk to the Fire, and had a good feel in my hand. I have to confess, I like the fact that when it’s open and I’m reading inside the cover, it feels like I’m actually holding a book. The photo above is a little dark, but you get the idea. Cover and all, the Kindle Fire is about the size of a paperback, fits easily into my purse (average size, I don’t like to carry the extra-large ones that make my shoulders ache), and weighs about a pound. Not bad at all.

It was ridiculously easy to download a book from the Amazon Kindle store (maybe a little too easy! It’s like living in a bookstore – dangerous for us book lovers). I had no trouble going to facebook or accessing my email. The settings were easy to find for brightening and dimming the screen, turning wi-fi off to save battery life and so on. On the whole, easy enough for even this techno-challenged mom to figure out. I’ve already read two books and two novellas on it, and honestly, I lost myself in the stories just as easily as I ever have. I’ve also read a hardcover book since Christmas (I’ve been on quite a reading binge), and I still love reading from a “real” book — but I wouldn’t carry it with me out of the house the way I can my Fire.

One of my favorite uses may very well be in the kitchen. Using the stand, I can display a recipe from allrecipes.com or one of the other sites I visit very often, set the little Fire out of the way on the counter, and refer to the displayed recipe as needed. I’ve done that several times already.

The Fire came with a free month’s subscription to Amazon Prime. One of the books I read was “borrowed” from the Amazon Prime library (you are entitled to borrow one book a month from the eligible titles), and I streamed a movie from the free choices offered. The film looked fine on the seven-inch screen and the sound was very acceptable from the speakers. Will I renew the Prime membership? Probably not, at least for now. I don’t order enough to make the free two-day shipping worth the (admittedly reasonable) cost, and I wasn’t excited enough by the range of book or video offerings to make it worthwhile for me, though that could change in the future. But I tried it all while I have it.

The battery life has been sufficient for me so far, though of course I haven’t really put it to the test. I had plenty of power to watch the two-hour film and then read a while before I noticed it was getting low. I think it said it would get seven or eight hours of use on one charge. Fine for my uses.

The only quibble I have so far?

That shiny screen and the resulting fingerprints make my somewhat OCD soul cringe! I spend a lot of time polishing with a microfiber cloth. Colors really pop on screen, but it does take some effort to keep it shiny.

If you don’t have a Kindle device, the Kindle app is a free download from your phone, iPod or iPad or PC from Amazon. Books are reasonably priced, and there are many, many free titles available! All in all, I can give this product two thumbs-up (and then scrub the resulting thumb-prints away with my handy polishing cloth). Thank you for my gift, John. I know I’ll get many hours of enjoyment from it (and thanks to the “kids” for Amazon gift cards — which will be put to good use in the Kindle bookstore!).

♥♥♥

Look for my Harlequin Special Edition, DOCTORS IN THE WEDDING, in stores, at Harlequin.com and for e-readers now! (Click the Books Available Now! tab above for details).

And be sure and “like” my facebook page (link at right) for occasional updates and comments.

Jan 2 2012

New year, new opportunities

Available now in stores, for e-readers, and at Harlequin.com.

Click Books Available Now! tab above for details.

Another busy holiday season has ended — all the decorations put away, too many sweets made and consumed. Although I very much missed having our daughter, Kerry, and her husband, Justin, with us this year (she was on call in Mass.), John and I still enjoyed having Courtney home from Seattle and David here for the holiday weekend on his medical school break. This was the first Christmas in her whole lifetime Kerry hasn’t spent with us, and her traditional place on the carpet in front of the tree seemed awfully empty. We understand the demands of her medical residency, and are so proud of her accomplishments — but we still might have pouted a bit to have one of our brood missing on Christmas. Still, we were able to connect by phone, so she was here in spirit. We did find out who’s been responsible for the before-dawn Christmas awakenings — without Kerry here, the rest of us slept in a couple extra hours that morning! And she always tried to blame her sister and brother …

David starts his second semester of medical school tomorrow. Later this week, Courtney will return to her busy scientific research career. It’s always hard to drive her to the airport and say goodbye until the next visit, but we’re proud of her for forging on in her work despite the challenges she has faced since her stroke on October 30, 2010. Still primarily confined to a wheelchair and with very limited use of her right hand, she still manages to live on her own and to make advances in her research. With post-stroke fatigue a constant challenge for her, some days are so hard for her that she wonders if she can get through them — and yet she continues to display courage and determination when it must be tempting to just give up. There are no words to describe how proud we are of her, and how grateful we are to the excellent doctors and therapists who work with her and encourage her. We know she will continue to make advances both in her recovery and her research during the coming months.

I have lots of plans for the coming year. My new Harlequin Special Edition release, DOCTORS IN THE WEDDING, is available this month, to be followed by HUSBAND FOR A WEEKEND  in April and BEYOND THE MORNING (title subject to change) in August. The latter two books, as well as the as yet untitled one I’m just starting this week, were inspired by the therapists we’ve met during the past year who’ve worked with Courtney. The previous medical-themed books were inspired by our other daughter’s adventures in medical school. My husband teases me about using our kids’ lives as material for my always-active imagination; I remind him that everything in life we see, read or hear is fodder for a writer’s busy fantasy life!

I’ll also be re-releasing quite a few of my early titles soon for Kindle (I’ll let you know when they’re available). And stay tuned for information about the release of my first paranormal suspense novel, WAKE ME. Can’t wait to share the details about that one with you!

May 2012 be a special and fulfilling year for all of you. I hope you’ll come back to visit me here and that you’ll find a few hours of escape and entertainment in the stories I so love telling for you.

Dec 12 2011

Harlequin Open House and Live Chat

 

I’ll be participating in a live chat with other Harlequin Special Edition authors from 7 to 9 December 14 at Harlequin.com. Those of you who know me through this blog are aware that I can be technologically challenged, so cross your fingers that I hit the right computer buttons during that hour — and feel free to join us to monitor my success! I’m sure it will be fun. I always look forward to chatting with readers and other writers.

Click the Books Available Now tab above for information about my next Harlequin release, DOCTORS IN THE WEDDING, which will be available January, 2012. And don’t forget to enter the drawing to take place on my birthday — December 20. Click the Enter to Win tab for instructions.

 

Dec 9 2011

A special teacher earns her wings

A week ago today, my husband and I delivered our daughter and son-in-law to the airport for their return to Massachusetts after a lovely week-long Thanksgiving visit with us. On our way back home, we stopped in to a local store to do a little Christmas shopping. While we stood in line to pay, we were greeted by a long-time friend, Elaine Payne, a recently-retired schoolteacher who was on her way for a luncheon with other retired teacher friends. It was obvious that she was looking forward to that gathering. Telling her to have a good time, we added that we would see her again soon. Two days later, her husband called to tell us that Elaine had suffered a massive heart attack. Yesterday, we stood by her bed in the cardiac critical care unit to share in a prayer with her pastor and several dear friends as we bade her a final goodbye. She was 59.

Elaine and her husband, Ken, have been our friends for more than twenty-five years, and we’ve spent many pleasant hours with them, even taking a few nice vacations together. John and Ken are especially good friends, sharing several hobbies and community activities. When our daughter was ill, when John’s dad and my mother passed away, when our house was hit by a tornado — all the difficult times in our lives — Ken and Elaine were the first ones there to offer help and support. A little less than two years ago, they lost their only child, their son, Thomas, and we grieved with them, having watched Thomas grow up along with our own children.

For twenty-eight years, Elaine taught special education in local public schools. She dealt with sometimes very difficult students, but she loved her job and I know she made a difference in very many young lives. If you’ve read my earlier posts, you know how much respect and admiration I have for dedicated teachers, and Elaine was certainly among that elite group. Even after her retirement, Elaine continued to work in the school, spending countless unpaid hours volunteering in the library. She was also very active in her church and other community organizations. She will be missed by many.

During this busy, bustling holiday season, I hope you’ll all take the time to appreciate each fleeting moment with your own family and friends. Thank you for letting me share a few memories of my friend with you here.