Samba, and blogging elsewhere

Current work: French duo book 2
Listening to: Christmas compilation
Reading: Shirley Wells, Into the Shadows (cracking book and am enjoying it hugely – the setting’s done beautifully, the main characters are really interesting (lots of baggage so this is a series that has legs for a very long time), and as for the murder bit… I haven’t worked out who he is, yet, but he’s scary, and Shirley really gets into his head. And the nicest bit is that I’ve learned a lot about forensic profiling, but her research is so well integrated that it doesn’t show at all – it’s like learning by osmosis!)

Wonderful start to the morning yesterday. In middle school, they don’t do nativity plays as they do in first school, and I have to admit I really miss them. But daughter’s class has been learning Samba music, and they put on a performance for the parents. It was absolutely stunning, especially as they’d only done a term of lessons – the performance was really polished (as well as really loud!), and I found myself welling up a bit (as did Chloe’s best friend’s mum, and I bet some of the others might admit it today).

It was also about time I did my last ‘big’ Christmas present shopping, aka buying DH’s. He’s had his eye on an iPod Touch, so we went to the Apple shop to sort it out. I could’ve gone on my own, but I thought he’d rather choose his own case and the docking thing. And then of course we had to do all the synching and putting iTunes on my PC (which has been running like treacle all week, sigh). I have a feeling this is going to be Boy with New Toy all weekend, and I’ll be kicked off my PC and have to work on the laptop. (‘But I need to look at the Apps shop…’)

While we were out, I took a couple of pics of the lights in Norwich – and, because we’re in the run-up to festive season (and I’m out for Christmas lunch today and Christmas dinner tomorrow night), I thought I’d post them here.

This is our City Hall, just behind the market place (the latter has been here for more than 900 years). The colour of the lights changes every few seconds, which we enjoy watching.

And this is the 60-foot tree outside the Forum. This view includes the tower of St Peter Mancroft, which is the biggest parish church in the city (obviously excludes the cathedral) – and this is where Sir Thomas Browne (he of Religio Medici fame) is buried.

This is the view from the other side of the tree - showing the Forum (where our library is housed, along with BBC Radio Norfolk, a rather nice shop where they just happen to sell my books, the place that I think sells the best coffee in Norwich (and definitely has the best latte art - I checked that out while writing Breakfast at Giovanni's), and a very nice pizza restaurant where I sometimes meet friends for lunch). It's one of my favourite buildings in the city: light, airy, and I think it makes a lovely contrast with the ancient buildings surrounding it.

I’m also blogging elsewhere today: about Christmas lights (and confessing something terrible) over at the eHarlequin Medical Authors’ blog (where there's a chance to win a book); and about Christmas traditions over at the medical authors’ blog, Love Is the Best Medicine (where there’s also a chance to win a book); and about one of the nicest films I’ve seen this year over at the Pink Heart Society. So please go over and say hello!

Have a lovely weekend. As I mentioned above, mine is going to involve, um, Christmas dinner. (Twice, if you include lunchtime today…) What are you up to?

I’m a dragon

Current work: French duo book 2 (and seeing my accountant)

Listening to: Christmas compilation

Reading: Shirley Wells, Into the Shadows (cracking book and am enjoying it hugely)

Yesterday, on the school run, the sky looked amazing with this enormous sun. Got to my favourite viewspot – and this is how it looked (smaller, for some reason, even though there was only ten minutes between spotting it and getting to a place where I could photograph it).

And this is the colour-saturated version – which I love, because it’s so dramatic. (It’s the ‘sunset’ setting on my Lumix, if you want to know how I did it.)

And the dragon? My littlest made me laugh out loud yesterday morning (which was pretty good, because I was on the verge of tears all day). We were walking up the hill to school, chatting, and suddenly she burst out with, ‘Hey, Mum, look, I’m a dragon!’ and then huffed out a huge warm breath into the cold, cold air. Just lovely. And another reason why I’m so thankful for my children. They’re wonderful. (And yeah, that’s going in a book at some point. In fact, it might well be the Sussex one with the castle, the knight and the emergency doctor, aka the one due after this one. And yes, my editor does know about the jousting scene. She hasn't yet said if she's going to make me take it out, so I'm going to make it so utterly compelling and sexy that she lets me keep it.)

The kids are complaining about my Christmas compilation in the car. The first half is the poppy stuff they like (Slade, Wizzard et al). The second half is… um… advent type music. And they say my choices are weird.

Excuse me. Weird?

The Mediaeval Baebes with ‘Gaudete’ ; Christian Forshaw’s version of ‘Mortal Flesh’ (this gives me goosebumps and it would work well with just about any medieval-set film – sadly, not on YouTube, but you can hear the first little bit of it on Amazon here – Aimee Green’s voice is stunning); the King’s College choir singing ‘Gabriel’s Message’; and Bert Jansch’s version of ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’ (ha, that’s next week’s guitar lesson sorted, then – though a much more simplified version!).

So what out of that lot is weird? (At least it wasn't Sting singing Gabriel's Message. Though I have to admit to liking that. I foresee another CD arriving...)

Lovely morning planned today – mon petit dragon (hmmm… why are French dragons masculine, when in England a dragon tends to have female connotations?) is doing a Samba (music) display with her class this morning. Best of all, parents get to see this. Can’t wait.

Oh, and I do have some more good news. Seems I’m finally going to get to see Pompeii next year, after wanting to go there ever since I was really, really tiny. Am currently in discussion with DH and the kids about where we’ll stay; it’s summer, so my vote is for a two-centre stay – Naples and either Rome or Florence. Am a bit overexcited about this so will shut up...

congratulations in order

Current work: French duo book 2 (and seeing my accountant)
Listening to: Corelli (yup, stress puppy’s back)
Reading: Jan Jones, Fortunate Wager – read this in one sitting. I love Jan’s Newmarket books because she has the place spot on. I also love her characterisation (Caroline is a tad unconventional and utterly lovely – the kind you’d want to be your friend; and Alexander is just gorgeous), her dialogue, the way she writes the most horrible villains, and the rollicking good pace of her stories. (Jan, you’d better have the next one almost complete now. Impatient readers – i.e. me – want the next one…)

Guess I was a bit optimistic yesterday re Dad. Will gloss over the really upsetting stuff (which I have vented – am not bottling it up, and thanks to my best friend for ringing me last night to cheer me up) and instead focus on the good: the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Awards 2009 nominations have been announced. Some of my writing mates are on the list and I’m so pleased for them: Jessica Hart has a double nomination, firstly for the Career Achievement (Series) and secondly for the Best Romance; Sarah Morgan and Jennie Lucas for Best Presents Extra; Fiona Harper and Nicola Marsh for Best Romance; and Abby Green with a DOUBLE nom for Best Presents. Congrats to all of them.

(Oh, yeah. And I’m also listed for Best Presents with Surrender to the Playboy Sheikh. Special thanks to lovely Sarah Morgan for telling me yesterday evening when I was at a pretty low ebb.)

sunrise, sunrise

Current work: French duo book 2 (well, Tuesday isn’t an official working day any more as I’m visiting Dad and I have my guitar lesson, but… might get something done, even if it's only thinking while travelling)
Listening to: Seahorses, Do it Yourself (IMO one of the best albums of the 90s)
Reading: Finished Jane’s book – enjoyed it thoroughly!

Amazing sky this morning on the school run; the whole sky was pink. We get a fantastic view of the sunsets from our back garden, but our view east isn’t as good, so I had to wait until we were on School Road en route to littlest’s school after dropping off son. The sky had dulled a bit, but there were gold linings in the clouds, today. (I sincerely hope that’s a sign that Dad will be in a happier frame of mind and less aggressive with me today.) This is an unsaturated shot as I'd left the camera on normal setting, but gives you an idea of how pretty it was.

Just noticed the time; given that the traffic’s always heavy at this time of year, it’s time to go to my lesson. And five minutes of practising first (!).

Have a nice day – and nosey minds would love to know. What’s your favourite seasonal song (carol or pop)?

the best sort of weekend

Current work: French duo book 2 (finished revisions, yay! - well, muted yay until I hear my ed's reactions)
Listening to: Joe Bonamassa, The Ballad of John Henry (pinched from DH – like the first half very much as his voice is v like Paul Rodgers and guitar playing like Gary Moore at his best – good bit of blues)
Reading: Jane Jackson, Heart of Stone (another of her fantastic Cornish romances - see below).

Finished the revisions on Friday night so I had no guilt all weekend – just a lot of fun :o)

Fabulous weekend with my best uni friends. Lots of talking, lots of playing board games, lots of drinking wine, lots of laughing, bit of reminiscing… just the perfect sort of weekend. (And much needed after the recent family stuff.)

Oh, all right. Lots of eating, too. I made veggie soup for lunch on Saturday, followed by a bacon, avocado and mozzarella salad in a lime vinaigrette, served on a bed of rocket (this is ALL diet food, note – and we’ll gloss over the chocolate biscuits mid-afternoon). Dinner was ‘early Christmas dinner’, i.e. roast turkey with sausages wrapped in bacon, roast sweet and ordinary potatoes, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower and swede, followed by strawberry cheesecake and home-made strawberry ice cream. Oh, and then a selection of crackers with Cornish cheddar, Brie and French goats’ cheese; followed by decaf French vanilla coffee. (We’ll gloss over the amaretti biscuits and the Belgian truffles dipped in flaked chocolate that accompanied the coffee and with which I have been tormenting my Medical author mates.) And Sunday was chicken Dijon with jacket potatoes and lots of veg, followed by lemon roulade and more nice vanilla coffee (note to self, buy more next Monday when in town for car service).

Almost forgot about the entertainment. Daughter did us proud with a guitar recital. And son just has this lovely dry humour and a great sense of comic timing, so he had us in stitches – is a v good double act with his dad. Dog just pattered about and couldn’t decide who he wanted to sit with, so flitted from one person to the next (carrying the inner tube from a large roll of wrapping paper – the things that make him happy). Oh, and the silly Santa pressies. Mrs Santa sorts them all except her own – and Best Friend Santa brought her some proper vanilla pods and saffron - wonderful :o)

Sunday evening, after everyone had gone home, I finished writing the Christmas cards and parcelling up things that need to be posted.

I had planned to have an early night, but then I went back to Jane's book (and I started again from the beginning, because I'd been distracted when I started reading it). DH moaned so I had to turn the light off before I wanted to (admittedly, this was pretty late) but the first half is fantastic and I know the second half is going to be even better. There's a really unusual set-up in that the heroine is a single parent AND the owner of a quarry – Jane gets the social difficulties of these factors in Victorian England off to a tee. The hero is scarred (both physically and in his past) and is such a lovely character – you really feel for him, and understand why he won’t let people close. Then there’s the community, and Jane does this so well: the sheer warmth of people juxtaposed with social snobbery and righteousness (i.e. very rounded, realistic secondaries), plus the pressures of being a parent in the Victorian age, the fear of sickness (scarlet fever - am so glad we live in the present age), and the heartbreak of being unable to produce an heir. Add in greedy entrepreneurs, the same kind of male attitude that had me steaming mad as a student while reading George Moore’s ‘Esther Waters’ (I really, REALLY want Philip to get his comeuppance in this book), and … it’s just great and I'm going to have another (cough) early night tonight so I can finish it.

I adore Jane’s books because they’re so well rounded. Sarah Govier is a really strong heroine and easy to warm to, and the same is true of James Crago, the hero. Sarah’s little boy, Jory, is a real scene-stealer. And I loved learning so much about granite and gunpowder – her research doesn’t show because she weaves it in so well, but I know she's meticulous about details (and they're fascinating) so I tend to look for them. Highly recommended (and you can go and read a bit for yourself over on Jane's website).

Plan for today is book car in for its first service, write lots of French book 2, and go to post office on way home from afternoon school run. And also write up the blogs that are due this week. Eep. Where is the time going?

Publication day (aka seven different books in fifteen different countries…)

Current work: revisions – French duo book 1;
Listening to: Boston and Kansas (guess which two songs, on loop? Ahh, the joys of classic rock)

Reading: (no time!!!)

Today’s the official publication day for Falling for the Playboy Millionaire in the UK. If you’ve enjoyed the Penhally series, you’ll be pleased to know that this is part of it – and I had a lot of fun with this book. In particular with the puppies (planned meticulously by Margaret McDonagh and me), the dancing (I’d just got into Strictly Come Dancing at this point - and I think the waltz is so romantic), and the proposal scene.

I should warn you that you WILL need tissues for this one, though. It made me bawl my eyes out, especially Kate’s part in the continuity. (That’s why the book is dedicated to my mum as well as to my friends and colleagues who made the series such fun to work with.) It's also out in Australia and New Zealand next month (or at the Aussie Mills and Boon website right now). There isn't a widget on the sidebar because M&B doesn't have one (it's part of the Penhally series), but if you want to read the first few pages it's on my website - just click on the book's title above to read more about the book.

Temporary Boss, Permanent Mistress is out on shelves in Australia and New Zealand this month, and you can get an early copy of the book from Harlequin.com in the US (due on the shelves at the end of the month).

I’ve also had some translations come through my door, and was amazed to discover that how many different ones there are in Europe. You can get Surrender to the Playboy Sheikh in Germany and Holland, The Doctor’s Very Special Christmas in Italy, and Seeing Stars in France. Oh, and next month (so you can get hold of it this month on the Harlequin websites) there’s Their Christmas Dream Come True in Denmark (which means it’s about to be in Sweden, Norway and Finland as well – the Nordic editions tend to be released together). And somewhere about now there’s The Spanish Doctor’s Love-Child in Poland.

There are translations outside Europe, too – Surrender to the Playboy Sheikh is also newly released in Brazil, and Their Christmas Dream Come True in Japan.

Blimey. I don’t think I’ve ever had so many different titles, in so many different languages, out in the same month before! Very exciting.

Off to the osteopath this morning. And then I have to tidy the house (including my office, which is our second spare bedroom) as we have ‘early Christmas’ with my best friends from uni, aka the children’s godmothers. Turkey defrosting? Check. Crackers ready? Check. Wine chilling in beer fridge? Check. Pressies from Santa wrapped? Um, almost – will be later today. Decent choccies in? That’ll be ‘check’ as I’ll drop in to Hotel Chocolat after the osteopath.

Hope you all have as nice a weekend as I’m planning. (Whatcha up to? Enquiring minds aka Kate Nosey would love to know…)

codeine, ice packs, and appropriate songs

Current work: revisions – French duo book 1; plus proofs for Neurosurgeon… and Mum! (the screamer is in the title, not my addition)
Listening to: Def Leppard/various French piano music
Reading: (no time!!!) (and those screamers *are* mine)

Every so often, my lower back gives me a bit of gyp. (Probably because I spend way too much time chained to my desk.) It’s been three or four years since the last episode but, when it plays up, the only thing to do is see the osteopath; a session of manipulation usually sorts me out. Unfortunately, the earliest they can see me is tomorrow morning. Tuesday was a bit grim – I was unable to concentrate on work because my back hurt so much, paracetamol didn’t touch it, and the hot water bottle didn’t help much. Lovely DH went to get me some codeine in the evening – took the edge off the pain and meant I got a bit of sleep, but codeine makes my thinking too fuzzy to let me work effectively. Then my lovely Meds author mate Caroline Anderson reminded me that you’re supposed to use ice packs for sprains (it’s a muscular thing). And that helped enormously.

DH was off yesterday and dragged me into town with him, because my phone had to go back (and, as it’s my phone, he said it would be easier for me to explain the problem just once instead of to him and then on the phone to the shop). The battery went from full to dead in the space of about 18 hours, despite wifi/Bluetooth being switched off and the phone itself on standby for most of that time, and nothing running in the background. All I did was to send two very short text messages, receive ditto, then take a photograph and send that in a text message. Hardly enough to warrant such a huge drain on the battery. Checked online and seems it’s a known problem. (Hmm. Would’ve been nice to have a warning. Caveat emptor, eh?) Luckily the Carphone Warehouse were nice about it and swapped the phone. They’ve said if the replacement plays up they’ll change it for a different phone. So far the signs are good, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the last one had a duff battery/power management system which isn’t going to affect this one as I do like the phone – it has a nice weight and feel to it, and the touchscreen’s lovely to use.

I also worked out how to transfer music to the phone – and that I can use the full tracks as ringtones. (Thank you, lovely Julie Cohen.) Working out appropriate songs for the people on my phonebook will be huge fun. Currently, the kids and school are ‘Sweet Child of Mine’, DH is Badfinger’s ‘No Matter What’ (well, OK, the Lepps’ version of it), and I’m thinking about adding ‘Pictures of Home’ as the ringtone for home. (Everyone else is ‘Pour Some Sugar on Me’. But that will probably change daily, according to my mood.) This is what technology is for, in my view: making life easier and/or more fun.

Question of the day: which songs/ringtones would you find appropriate for your nearest and dearest?

rainbows

Current work: revisions – French duo book 1
Listening to: Def Leppard/various French piano music
Reading: (no time!!!)

Busy with revisions, so here’s a pic from Monday morning. There was a brighter rainbow on the actual school run, but I didn't have the camera on me - and I haven't yet installed the software to transfer files between my new phone and PC, so I can't post that pic yet. But, while the computer was booting up, I was making myself a cup of tea... and spotted this from the kitchen window.

What's caught your eye recently?

Happy December

Current work: revisions – French duo book 1
Listening to: Def Leppard/various French piano music/Nirvana
Reading: (no time!!!)

Can’t believe it’s December already. And I am way behind. Haven’t written cards, haven’t posted presents – arrgh. Need to get revisions finished. (And somebody has decided to take time off this week. Yes, I’d love to take time off with him, but why couldn’t he do it next week instead? Why are men incapable of synchronising diaries? And why can’t men play the X-box QUIETLY?)

Had son off sick yesterday, too, installed on sofa with Star Trek, blanket, dog, glass of iced water and bowl for throwing up. (I looked in on him frequently, but it also meant I didn’t do as much yesterday as I’d intended.)

Today is usually guitar, but lovely Jim has been très accommodating and moved my lesson to Thurs. (Also have a blood test on Thurs, so guitar will be good for relaxing me before needle goes in arm. Ah, the joys of an underactive thyroid.) Am not visiting Dad this week, as the last two visits have been pretty fraught. Anyone who has someone close with dementia will know exactly what I mean by needing time to regroup before the next onslaught.

Today… nose to grindstone, and probably working on the laptop to avoid the distraction of the internet. Here’s this month’s calendar pic – and may December be a kind one for you.

Santa arrived early

Current work: revisions – French duo book 1
Listening to: Def Leppard/various French piano music
Reading: (no time!!!)

Friday was spent planning how to fix the book and discussing it with lovely ed (who didn’t go for version 2, but liked version 3, so I do at least know what I’m doing).

I had planned to have Sunday off (DH’s mum’s bday so we were sorting the party, and I guess it would’ve been a tad rude to work). Saturday was going to be full-on work – except DH decided to do his Christmas shopping. He only has to buy for one person (i.e. me) and he really didn’t have to do it on Saturday, because there was only one thing on my list this year. But I guess he knows that the best way to distract me when I’m stressing (still family stuff, not the book) is to give me a new gadget – and so Santa arrived early. (It’s either that or he’s trying to guilt me into giving him his Christmas pressie early…)

Santa did have a bit of a brainstorm in the shop and rang me up to see if I wanted an Android phone – well, yeah, course I do, because then I could use it to replace the PDA and synch it with my desktop (hmm, except email because I’m very bad and tend to use it as a filing cabinet). But I don’t want to be tied to a contract; as I work from home, my mobile is ‘for emergencies’ and a bit of texting to family members not on email, so pay as you go is the best option for me. And I really didn’t think he should spend that much money on a phone. (Have to admit, though, if I were still in my ratrace job, I would’ve had an Android already. I’ve always been a bit of a tecchy fiend, and my first mobile phone was dinky back in the days when they were brick-sized, so it’s a huge joke in the family that I have such an old-fashioned mobile phone nowadays.)

Anyway, Santa had my shortlist and a list of questions to ask (primary one being whether I could use my existing SIM, as changing networks and phone numbers would be a pain). And now I have this wonderful touchscreen phone (and the screen swipes just like an iPhone). The camera’s not bad (though obviously not up to the standard I need for work, so it won’t replace my camera), the radio works nicely, and I can browse the net on it. (I think that’s free with Wifi?) Now I have the delights of working out how to get MP3 tracks on to the phone (won’t use headphones, but could hook it up to car stereo).

And then there are ringtones. I don’t mean the polyphonic nightmares – I mean the ‘realtones’. Oooh. I could have a Blackmore track for DH (probably Highway Star) , ‘Sweet Child of Mine’ for the kids/school (you see how my mind works? baaad), and… oh, do I go for Zeppelin, Whitesnake or the Lepps as my main one? Does anyone out there have experience of Jamster? If I’m reading the T&C correctly, it seems that I can sign up to their plan, download my three tracks for my first week’s plan, then cancel the plan immediately and won’t get sucked in to a subscription. Anyone tried it, and does it work like that or is it too good to be true? Or does anyone have recommendations for a reliable, non-pirate site? (Take the piracy rant as read.)

Distractions, distractions. Dear Ed. I am not sitting on the internet, looking up ringtones and playing with my new phone. I am doing my revisions. Really…

how to revise a book

Current work: revisions – French duo book 1
Listening to: Bach cello sonatas
Reading: (looking forward to going back to Jane Jackson’s new one – am in a better frame of mind, though it’s still been a turbulent week with one lot of bad news hot on the heels of the next. Am hoping that today I might get some nice news from someone...)

Revisions came in yesterday. I need to make my hero and heroine’s motivations a bit clearer – and revisit the conflict because it doesn’t work for my ed. The big sticking point was finding a reason for my hero and heroine to split up ten years ago – something that’s both their fault. No babies or miscarriages (done that), no health problems (that’s in the next book – and it’s not a fatal one, it’s something that will ruin the hero’s career and dreams).

This means thinking time. Some of my writer friends resort to ironing for this one, but I have a better solution.

First, take one pile of bags and boxes into the kitchen, along with scissors, wrapping paper, sellotape and labels, and set them all on the breakfast bar. Remove Christmas stockings from wardrobe and put them there, too.

Next, ban everyone from coming into the kitchen or else Santa will be going on strike. Dog is included in this because he has a tendency to place on delicate paw on edge of breakfast bar, spy goodies, steal them, and cart them off to his bed.

Add soothing, very regular music. (Needs to be classical, or will sing along instead of using this as thinking time.) Preferably cello. And preferably Bach, though Haydn will do.

Then think about the big question that needs answering for the book. Keep thinking. Wrap presents and label them. Keep wrapping. Keep thinking.

The theory is that the answer will come when your fingers are sore, you never want to see another piece of sellotape again, and you’re about to panic that the book will never work…

(I’ll confess that it didn’t work – though on the plus side I have done most of the Christmas wrapping. But I did bounce ideas with one of my writer mates, who is SO going to get the dedication for this book because she pointed out what was staring me right in the face. It’s so true that in this business you can be far too close to your book to see the obvious. Doesn’t matter whether you’re a newbie or this is your forty-second book for your publisher... the traps are still there and you can still fall right into them!)

If music be the food of love...

... it means that a romance author is talking about a 'soundtrack' to her book over at the Pink Heart Society.

That's where I am today, talking about the music inspiring my French duo. It's quite an eclectic mix. (And yes, it involves lovely Joe Elliott...) Do go over and have a listen, and tell me what you're listening to right now (here or there, don't mind which!)

the little things

Current work: slash and burn job (still)
Listening to: Bach cello sonatas
Reading: (still not quite there - watched House last night instead, because sometimes I just need a cuddle with DH on the sofa)

Let’s just say that Tuesday afternoons are fast becoming the low point of the week. (Some of the conversations with Dad are so surreal it makes me want to laugh. And then it makes me want to weep because it’s so damn sad.)

But the little things keep me going. Tonight, it was the fact that son wanted a hand with his Food Tech homework. Turned into a really enjoyable foodie discussion, and then a request to help me cook dinner. So he did. (I’m quite pleased that he’s showing interest in cooking as well as being the typical teenage boy, aka permanently hungry and shooting up at a rate of knots. At least I know when he goes to uni/leaves home he’ll be able to fend for himself. It’s also a good bargaining tool if the people you live with can’t cook – gets you out of washing up duties *g*)

So what are the little things that keep you going?

ring, ring…

Current work: slash and burn job on first three chapters
Listening to: Corelli
Reading: (still not quite there)

Fairly turbulent weekend so am skipping over most of it. (Still standing. Still smiling. Bags under eyes, though.)

One good thing about this weekend is that we have a new phone. Bliss. The one in my office was corded (yes, I KNOW that’s very old-fashioned) and was combined with the fax machine. I haven’t sent or received a fax in I don’t know how long. And to answer the phone I had to move my tower fan, negotiate the box(es) of filing I’ve been promising to do for nearly a year, and then hope the cord wasn’t twisted. Not to mention the fact that I couldn’t alter the volume on the receiver and it was a little difficult for me to hear. So I’d taken to pinching the cordless one from the living room – and leaving it on my desk. Which is a tad messy (yes, we know, just like the rest of my office), so DH complained that he could never find the phone.

We had to go to the electrical warehouse anyway to get a new steamer (ours finally packed up on Friday night, and as I use it every single day it had to be replaced immediately). It just so happened to be 10% off day, so I suggested looking at phones – and we found a one we both liked, with four handsets. (I had already scoped this out, but hadn’t got round to dragging DH off to the warehouse.) Which means there is now a phone on my desk and the one in the living room will stay put. And now there’s one in the kitchen, too, so if I’m cooking I can hear the phone. (I’m not in denial about my deafness, as such. I just forget I can’t hear.)

But the thing that REALLY impressed me was the phonebook. Putting in all the numbers is a faff. Doing that on every handset – frankly, it wouldn’t happen. But this phone migrated the phonebook to all the handsets at the touch of a button. How very cool. And it has a speaker phone so if the person on the other end has a really soft voice I can switch the phone onto speaker mode and have a better chance of hearing them. Colour me happy. (Doesn’t take much to please me…)

Kindness (aka what goes around, comes around)

Current work: slash and burn job on first three chapters
Listening to: Corelli
Reading: (not concentrating enough to read and don’t want to waste Jane’s book as it’s so good – on hold for the time being)

Kindness. I think it makes the world go round. And people were definitely kind to me yesterday. A friend sent me her new children’s books (nonfic). My daughter was invited to a friend’s for tea yesterday, and her friend’s mum gave me a doggie bag when I went to pick up daughter (she’s Indian so it was a PROPER biryani, and very nice too). Son shared his chocolate with me (measured amount because he said he didn’t want to crash my diet, but I looked stressed enough to need it). Another friend sat me down (well, by email) and asked me some questions that went straight to the heart of one of the work issues, and then it all clicked together in my head (so I can at least stop worrying about that one!). And I’ve had some really sweet emails (the one from a friend’s daughter made me cry, in a nice way).

Thanks to everyone who’s been so lovely – am still worrying about the family stuff, but things will hopefully start to sort themselves out a bit over the next few days.

So when the world is a bit off kilter, remember this: kindness makes the world go round.

And I’ll definitely be passing it on.

Something to smile about

Current work: should be revisions on the first three chapters (can’t concentrate)
Listening to: Radiohead
Reading: (not concentrating enough to read and don’t want to waste Jane’s book as it’s so good – on hold for the time being)

What started as a nice week is rapidly turning pants. Not going into details (worrying about various family members and some work stuff) but I really could do with something to smile about.

This is what I came up with today. (He knows he’s not allowed on there. Look at the twinkle in the eyes and the waggy tail. That expression says, ‘Awww, but I love you. You’re not really going to make me get off, are you?’)

So tell me something that makes you smile. Let's make the world a nicer place (because, right now, it doesn't feel like one).

The land of ice and snow…

Yesterday was a bit of a stressy day (not blogging about it, as it’s to do with Dad – dementia is so bloody cruel. And I came home to a savage review - well, I guess that makes the string of three, after some other news about one of my publishers, last week). Though the lovely Modern Heat girls cheered me up with a string of messages about a fabulous review. Er… what review would this be, then? My mate Heidi Rice was a superstar and told me the full story.

And it was something that really pleased and relieved me (I'm a tad paranoid about this book, because I know I was pushing the envelope re settings; before I talked my ed into it, she said that Presents readers like their stories set in exotic – i.e. hot – climates, and this is about as far as you can get). So I’m doing some trumpet-blowing and sharing here. This is what Romantic Times had to say about Temporary Boss, Permanent Mistress:

Corporate lawyer Lydia Sheridan longs to be a working artist. She's ready to resign her post, but CEO Jakob Anderson needs her assistance on a weeklong job in Norway. Then, if she still wants to leave, he'll wish her the best. Although the two have their own personal baggage, they find they're wildly attracted to each other and indulge in a whirlwind affair. But after Norway will they be able to go their separate ways? This tale begins as a fun and flirty romance that deepens emotionally as Lydia and Jakob open up to each other. Interwoven descriptions of the sights and sounds of Norway add a wonderful ambiance to the story.

Oh, yes – and they gave me FOUR AND A HALF STARS! (I think that deserves a screamer.) Thank you very much, Sandra Garcia-Myers. You made my horrible day a whole lot better.

Have also updated my website – new book, new excerpt, new recipe. (And it's a nice one. Strawberry and rhubarb crumble. Scrummy.)

designing perfume

Current work: research for French duo, book 2
Listening to: Radiohead
Reading: Jane Jackson, Heart of Stone (enjoying this very much so far – Jane’s books are always a treat and her characterisation is superb – more on this later)

The ‘design your own perfume’ session yesterday was utterly brilliant. Dale Evans was so nice and gave me lots of information that will be very useful in certain scenes. It was an amazing experience.

I had eighteen blends to sniff (via little card sticks dipped into the scents), and the idea was to put them into three piles – ones I really liked, ones I wasn't sure about, and ones I absolutely didn't like.

We started with the middle notes – these give an idea of the type of perfume you’ll eventually end up with, as they’re the notes that last for a few hours. Knowing what kind of perfume I always buy (florientals with a vanilla base), I asked if she’d tell me the numbers rather than the names, so I wouldn’t be biased by the names... But I still ended up with the florals!

Then we did the top notes – these are the ones you smell first and which vanish after an hour or so. I absolutely LOVED the amber. (Was my second-favourite out of the eighteen.)

Then we did the base notes – the one you can still smell on your skin at the end of the day or the next morning. Out of the four, I didn’t like the mossy one at all; I didn’t mind the musk and woody (sandalwood) ones; but one was utterly glorious and made me say, ‘Oooh, yes, I LOVE this one!’ Its official name was ‘balsamic’ - and the major component was gorgeous French vanilla.

The next stage was to do the initial blend. My top note was amber, the base note was balsamic, and we added a couple of the middle notes I’d liked. This time, I had to wave them past my nose really quickly, so that I’d pick up all the scents together. It was a matter of adding in some to bring out the notes in others, and taking out ones that didn’t work for me. And then, when I thought I was happy, tried them outside (where they smelled different again, and I took out the aldehyde because it felt wrong – ummed and ahhed a long while about the sandalwood, too).

So in the end:

• the base was a double dose of balsamic (vanilla, bergamot, tonka and jasmine), woody (sandalwood) and musk (angelia root and coriander)


• the middle was ‘floral floral’ (night blooming jasmine, mandarin, violet leaf and blackcurrant - described as ‘narcotic’) and ‘gentle floral’ (bergamot and sage - described as ‘very easygoing and gentle’)


• the top was citrus (yet more bergamot, with mandarin, lemon and grapefruit – described as ‘easygoing and fresh’) and amber (even more bergamot (!), cardamom, geranium and clary sage – described as ‘warm, sensual and sexy’).

And this is what it looked like once bottled.

The ostrich feather has been spritzed with my perfume and smells gorgeous. (Oh, and the name? I did think about calling it after my heroine, but then had a very narcissistic moment and called it ‘Pamela’. Well, hey. It’s my blend. And it’s quite sophisticated so I thought it deserved the full first name rather than the diminutive everyone uses.)

It was a really enjoyable, fascinating experience and I’d definitely recommend it. A whole hour of me-time. (Actually, it wasn’t strictly me-time – in this case it was work, because it’s all background stuff to the book. But you can see why I love my job. Especially the research side.)

And the verdict of ma famille? Son said it smelled very nice. Daughter tried to waltz off with the feather and then begged a spritz. And the twinkle in DH's eye told me he liked it, too…

hide-and-seek, and the joys of research

Current work: research for French duo, book 2
Listening to: Green Day (latest album, pinched from son)
Reading: Liz Fielding, His Desert Dream – excellent book. Gorgeous hero, very strong heroine – can’t say too much without plot spoilers, but it’s Liz’s trademark fabulous characterisation, wonderful dialogue, and a plot that really works. The bit where he teaches her to count in Arabic is wonderfully romantic, and the proposal scene had me in tears. This one’s a contender for my favourite Liz Fielding book (and yes, we all know that I think ‘Gentlemen Prefer… Brunettes’ is the best category romance ever)

Had a bit of a lazy weekend – catching up on sleep (why DO men wake up in the middle of the night and feel obliged to see if wifey is awake, instead of leaving their partner to sleep while they creep downstairs and go play on the internet instead?). Oh, and some Christmas shopping. The phone I’d like to check out isn’t out yet, but DH – mindful of years when we’ve had to search for hours for the ‘must-have’ toys that ours wanted – decided we should buy daughter’s phone. And of course she did the thing with the eyes, and he turned to mush. ‘Yes, darling, of course you can have it now…’

This morning was a game of hide-and-seek with the dog. No, he hasn’t gone missing – but daughter’s PE kit has, and so has one of my shoes. He has this habit of ‘borrowing’ things and cuddling them. Then he gets distracted by something and drops them. We’ve turned the house upside down. No joy. (I did point out that I’ve been suggesting for months that the kids should get their school stuff ready THE NIGHT BEFORE to save all this angst, but do they listen???) (The shoe thing is different. It was in the shoe rack. Dog still stole it.)

Plan for today: well, I’ve had polite requests to tidy my office (it’s full of Christmas presents… unwrapped, so it’s currently supposed to be a banned area in any case), so I guess I’d better do that. And this afternoon I have my perfume course – of which more, tomorrow. Suffice it to say that I am SO looking forward to it!

Wild, windy and wet

Current work: working on outline for next Med (which I didn’t start yesterday)
Listening to: Diana Krall
Reading: next on TBR

Seems appropriate than on Friday 13th, the forecast for the East of England is wild, windy and very, very wet.

I did think about doing phase 2 of the Chr*stm*s Sh*pp*ng – I have my list, broken down by shop, so it should only take a couple of hours.

But it’s cold and really, really wet. Not shopping weather. I did suggest walkies to dog. He stuck his nose out of the back door, gave me a look that clearly questioned my sanity, then went straight to his bed and hid his nose under his paws. I’m guessing that’s a no.

Just as well, though, because I’m shattered – I ended up doing 19k steps yesterday. No, it wasn’t Christmas shopping. I was dragged out again last night because DH wanted to go to the Apple Store and show me what he wants for Christmas. Now he’s actually played with an ipod Touch, I’m getting all the “I don’t mind not having anything to unwrap on the day, if you want to give this to me early. And you don’t want to risk them selling out – remember the hassle of trying to find a DS Lite for the kids, a couple of years back?” (The saying about “like a kid in a toyshop” – oh, yeah. That was him.) But we did at least have dinner out. (Steak and salad, with Moroccan tea. I was sooo virtuous. Mainly because I want to repair last week’s diet damage.)

Anyway, I’m cold and I’m tired and I want a cup of tea. So today’s schedule is put the kettle on, write my outline, tidy my office, then review my outline. With lots of tea in between.

The joys of Chr*stm*s Sh*pp*ng

Current work: working on outline for next Med
Listening to: Silje Nergaard (waves at Nina, who introduced me to gorgeous CD)
Reading: next on TBR

I used to be incredibly organised. All Christmas shopping was done and wrapped by half term. All cards were written and ready to be posted. I was incredibly focused.

Nowadays… uhh. Christmas has got out of hand – take as read the grumpy old woman rant about how everything’s too commercialised and the real meaning of Christmas has been lost. (Well, it is and it has.)

I braved the shops and did most of my shopping today. Now it’s a matter of ticking things off the main list, wrapping them (sadly, that’s my job – I’m not good at it but DH claims he’s worse and then proves it by wrapping something deliberately badly), writing my ‘final bits to get’ list, writing cards (and I am SOOOO glad I spent the time one year to put everyone’s address on a file I can print straight on to labels – saves so much time now), and doing the post office run.

Of my remaining bits, some can be done online, and the rest I’m leaving to another day because I’m shopped out.

So come on. Fess up. How far are you along the Christmas treadmill?

Armistice Day

Current work: Modern Heat (beginning of French duo, book 2)
Listening to: Norah Jones
Reading: next on TBR

Today is Armistice Day – and it’s especially poignant in 2009 as the last three surviving soldiers from the First World War passed away this year.

They will not be forgotten.

(I’m also blogging over at the e-Harlequin medical romance authors’ blog today, on a rather lighter topic.)

learning new things

Current work: Modern Heat (beginning of French duo, book 2)
Listening to: Diana Krall
Reading: next on TBR

Radio show was great fun yesterday. Listeners were ringing in/emailing the most interesting phrases. It was all to do with a book on forgotten words – and etymology is so fascinating.

Could go off at a tangent, but I have an early guitar lesson so had better stop here. Oh, except one thing – I’ve booked my perfume course. Monday. Have spoken to the lady who’s teaching me and explained why I want to know about perfume; she sounds really nice, so I think we’re going to have a lot of fun.

Question for today: has anyone out there tried electrolysis? And does it hurt more than tweezing? Ever since I was pregnant with my eldest, I’ve, um, joined the Three Little Pigs. (Think about it…) Not that I’m vain, but I’m conscious of it, and it’s high time I descruffed and did something about it. (Waxing is absolute no-no. Bleaching - I have fair hair anyway so it won't make a difference. Might consider threading – but again, does it hurt?) (And now there is this lightbulb in the back of my head saying, ‘You could write a romance about a beautician …’)

forgotten words

Current work: Modern Heat (beginning of French duo, book 2)
Listening to: Eva Cassidy (hmm - this book's soundtrack appears to be jazz. Interesting...)
Reading: next on TBR

Nice weekend. Lunch out with good friends on Friday (I made sensible choices), which put me in a better mood. Saw the head when I met son from school on Friday – am very impressed that he came over to check that son was OK and hadn’t had any more hassles. (Very nice man as well as an effective leader – that’s a good combo, and I’m even more sure now that we made the right choice of school. The hassles probably would’ve happened anywhere, but they’ve been dealt with well.) Sorted out the flowers for my mum, which also helped (not commenting on the fact that my “push pot” for fresh flowers has gone missing, yet again - have bought another and written Mum's name on it with a permanent marker).

We had fireworks on Saturday night:

Today, am on the radio (BBC Radio Norfolk) at 12.15, talking about words that have dropped out of use. Lovely Graham Barnard and Karen Buchanan are the presenters, and my co-interviewee is Sarah Bower, author of ‘Needle in the Blood’.

Am also toying with the idea of changing my mobile phone (mine is several years old and the sound isn't brilliant, not to mention irritation of slow texting). Am too much of a cheapskate to buy an iPhone (as I work from home, I really only need a pay-as-you-go mobile for emergency purposes - an expensive contract would be a waste and pointless!), but I do like the idea of a touchscreen phone. If I have time today, I'll mosey in to Carphone Warehouse and see which I like more: the Samsung Tocco Lite or the LG Cookie.

In between I’m having fun with book 2 of the duo. I’m really enjoying the beginning of this one, though I might be breaking a rule or two…

Pollyanna

Current work: Modern Heat (beginning of French duo, book 2)
Listening to: Def Leppard (X – love this album)
Reading: next on TBR

Thanks to everyone who commented yesterday or sent me a private message about my difficult week. The bullying was serious enough for the headmaster to be involved, but school has been brilliant and acted swiftly. I had a long conversation yesterday with the head of year and hopefully things will be easier for son now.

Dad is still not well, and the nature of his illness means that he never quite pulls back from these blips: we lose a little more of him each time. Sadly, it’s just not fixable. All I can do is be as supportive as possible.

The other thing that’s affecting my mood this week is the fact that my mum would’ve been 64, this Sunday. It’s not regrets for things done, but for things we didn’t have time to do. I’ll feel better when I’ve put new silk flowers on her grave, to keep it nice and colourful over the winter, and fresh freesias (her favourite flowers). But in the meantime I’m not particularly good company.

As for the diet disaster – I’m going back to phase 1 for the rest of the week, to help me break the cravings cycle again. That means no coffee, even decaf, because I’m a comfort eater and will hit the chocolate or biscuits to go with said coffee. I don’t, however, do that with peppermint tea, so I’m going to keep myself on the straight and narrow with that.

Went to the post office yesterday with lots of parcels, including the new book, so I’m really supposed to be tidying my desk today. It’s possibly my most-loathed chore, so I’m putting it off for a day or two. Instead, I’m starting the new book, as the heroine is talking to me and I’d like to capitalise on that.

Have a nice weekend. And hopefully I will be back to being Pollyanna on Monday. (I might even feel like celebrating the eighth anniversary of being an M&B author – which was actually on daughter’s birthday. Just finished M&B #42 and starting #43. Not bad in eight years…)

Chinese curses

Current work: Modern Heat (final readthrough of book 1)
Listening to: Chopin nocturnes (bleak enough to suit my mood)
Reading: next on TBR

Isn’t there a Chinese curse along the lines of ‘may you live in interesting times’? Well, whoever stuck that one on me, I’d appreciate it if you could lift it for a couple of months, please.

Am pleased to report that the book is done. Doing the final readthrough this morning, then printing it out to post to my agent. Let’s hope it makes it through the picket lines. And that my agent and ed like it. (Yup, am at THAT stage of the book. Happens every time – which is probably a good thing as it stops me from being complacent and cheating my readers.)

The ‘interesting’ stuff? Dad’s having a blip (so might not be up to visitors today) and son is falling foul of the monsters again. (I accept that the ringleaders probably have a horrible life. But they need to learn that being spiteful to other people isn’t the right way to deal with it. And, as most of them are OK on their own, maybe the little groups need to be split up.) Plus news of one (possibly two) redundancies in close family.

Apols for the doom and gloom. I may be in a better mood later. But I crashed my diet badly yesterday (was definitely an ‘in need of chocolate’ day), so I have to break the sugar cravings again and I’m cross with myself for being weak. Guess the remedy is to start the next book… (Or tackle my accounts for this year, or tidy my desk. Urk. Make that start the next book.)

party-party-party

Current work: Modern Heat (finishing off book 1 of the duo)
Listening to: Def Leppard/Debussy

Reading: next on TBR

Really, really busy weekend.

Friday: briefly into town, then catching up with work, then out bowling (it was Glow Bowling, i.e. everything was fluorescent, so littlest was delighted – and I was totally shocked to get the best score of the night. I mean, I’m hopeless! But I got a spare followed by two strikes, one of which won me a “glow torch”… oh, and the fact that our team had the bumper bars up might’ve helped – but anyway, it was my personal best and I was so chuffed). Then everyone came back to ours for dinner (jacket potatoes, chicken breasts, ratatouille, salad – and I was very good and had a very small piece of birthday cake and NO pudding).

Saturday: supermarket to sort out shopping for Sunday’s party, work, and then “trick or treat”. DH always has a giant pumpkin – and this shot of the dog will give you an idea of how big. (Dog was not pleased at being used as a marker. That sulky look says very clearly, “There had better be treats involved, for doing this.”)

Sunday: family party. Sadly, Dad wasn’t well enough to come, so I sent a goodie bag via my stepmum. Madam entertained us all with her guitar playing – she’s getting very good.

Yesterday: inset day, so in to town so Madam could spend some of her birthday money. She bought a DSi (which is great fun – I love the voice recorder, and the fact you can play things backwards) and a camera (Nikon compact – it’s tiny and she’s delighted with it). Sneaked in a bit of work, then out to dinner at Yellows – birthday girl was very pleased with that.

Today: guitar lesson, then finish as much as I can of the book, then school run and Madam’s two best friends are coming home with her for dinner.

Righty. I’m gone. Lots to do.

happy November

Current work: Modern Heat (finishing off book 1 of the duo)

Listening to: Sheryl Crow
Reading: Sarah Morgan duo – Snowbound: Marriage Miracle and Christmas Eve: Doorstep Delivery (absolutely brilliant – Alfie, Patrick’s son, is just hilarious. Sarah’s secondaries are always a treat, and there’s snow, and gorgeous heroes, and really nice heroines you’d like to be mates with, and walk-on parts from characters from her previous Lakeland books, and… Highly recommended!)

Happy November; and may it be a lovely month for you.

Today is an inset day (teacher training) so I’m busy doing stuff with the kids (Madam is desperate to spend her birthday money) and finishing off my book, but I’ll be back with reports of this weekend’s partying tomorrow.

In the meantime, my mate Sarah Morgan has a sparkling new website, so do go over and have a look.

Llamas

What with birthday party preparations (i.e. tenpin bowling tonight, trick-or-treating tomorrow, family party Sunday, Inset day etc Monday) and a screaming deadline, I barely have time to breathe, let alone write anything interesting on my blog.

Instead, I will leave you with a link to a YouTube song that my children made me watch. Made me smile, too. The Llama Song.

Oh, and the Harry Potter song. Loved this. Very clever - YouTube at its best.

Enjoy. I'm off to make cookies.

star

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: (kids still asleep so peace and quiet…)
Reading: next on TBR

London was fab but tiring! (I did 19k steps on Tuesday and 13k on Wednesday.)

We had dinner before the theatre at Adam's Rib; wish I’d had the camera out when Madam’s meal arrived because she was so pleased with it. The look on her face made the fact that I’m now behind on my deadline completely worthwhile.

And her little face when we emerged at Piccadilly Circus and all the lights were everywhere – normally, we’re on the train home by that time of night, so she was stunned by it all.




Grease was great - the choreography was fantastic, especially Cha-Cha’s dancing (the high kicks were unbelievably high). Travolta and Newton-John are a v hard act to follow, but Ray Quinn and Emma Stephens did a good job. I did feel though that the actors playing Doody and Rizzo had better voices – for me, Natalie Langston (Rizzo) was the standout in the show. The special effects were good (the car was great – banger one side and sparkly the other) and the staging transitions were very smooth.

The one thing that did surprise me was how quiet the audience was. Maybe it’s because I’m from the provinces rather than a sophisticated West End theatregoer, or maybe I’m just a groundling at heart, but at a musical I’m used to audiences clapping and singing along to their favourites, maybe dancing in their seats (especially to some of the numbers in this show - ‘We Go Together’ in particular). But the audience was so quiet, it felt a bit embarrassing to clap (even when you were being encouraged to do so). Madam said she sang along in her head, bless.

On Wednesday, we went to the Natural History Museum. There was an ENORMOUS queue to get in, so we stayed in the Earth Sciences side rather than join another huge queue to see the dinosaurs. Which of course meant going up this escalator to the volcanic section...

Some of the gem specimens were gorgeous. (This is zoisite.)

Then home to two surprises from my RLH. I really wasn’t expecting flowers when he met us from the train. Or that he’d have done the job I’ve been putting off for too long (cleaning the oven, since you ask). What a star. :o)

Grease is the word...

London bound, this morning - and am not sure which of us is the more excited, littlest or me. This will be my first musical in the West End (I normally do serious drama, preferably Renaissance), and daughter's first ever West End performance. Dinner out (also in the West End), staying overnight at her godmother's, and then the Natural History Museum tomorrow. Plus complete and utter attention from me. Endless games of I-spy, Hangman and other paper games...

Actually, from the squeaks I can hear even without sound in and the 'Oh, pleases' from her brother, I'd say littlest might be the more excited. :o)

Back tomorrow (or possibly Thursday) with a full report. Hope your day is as nice as mine's going to be.

half term and peacocks

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: Beethoven piano sonatas
Reading: Trisha Ashley, Sowing Secrets (enjoyed this thoroughly – very witty, great characterisation, and an excellent feelgood read)

Busy week lined up – London tomorrow, bowling and friends round for dinner/birthday cake on Friday, family party on Sunday for the birthday girl, and in between I need to clean the oven, nag DH about either painting the living room and then putting the stuff back, or just putting the stuff back temporarily because I am tired of everything being out of order.

Not to mention finishing the book.

Both kids are in bouncy mode. At the end of half term, littlest got her swimming certificate, eldest got a certificate for his 12th kyu with a red belt (some martial arts thing he was doing at school), and littlest discovered that her two best friends are both able to come to tea on her birthday. (Well, late birthday. The family party’s on her actual birthday and we have an Inset (teacher training) day on Monday, so Tuesday is the first possible time.)

I have promised them a cinema trip today: ‘Up’, in 3D. And then it’s lunch out, running errands and a chilling-out afternoon (for them – j'écrirai mon roman).


Was nice to see Dad on Friday. Hopefully he’ll be well enough to come to littlest’s party, but if not I’ve promised a doggy bag. Also a nice view on the way to Dad’s – just by the village green in East Tuddenham. The second one I think looks particularly proud... (and what a glorious colour!)

Yeah!

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: Def Leppard, Yeah!
Reading: next on TBR

Celebrating today with a rather good covers album (the title of which is today’s post title, including the screamer). DH bought me this as – wait for it – the diet is actually working. He’s being brilliantly supportive and buying me a non-food treat for every 14lbs off. (Monday’s weigh-in was actually 13.5 lbs and he made me wait until the next 0.5lb came off before he ordered it. I can see it disappearing into his car, though, as there’s a Badfinger cover.)

Favourite track? Definitely Waterloo Sunset. Joe’s voice sounds just lovely. I have the original on vinyl, but this is a really excellent cover. (You can listen to it here on Youtube.)

Bit that surprised me? 10538 Overture. I never really listened to much ELO (apart from the obvious, ‘Mr Blue Sky’, which was played just about everywhere when I was 12), so this was a new song to me – and at first I was waiting for Joe to start singing Weller’s ‘Changing Man’. Absolutely identical opening. But where are the credits to Lynne and Wood on Stanley Road? Tut, tut, Monsieur Weller. And considering that Radiohead were sued for the chord progression in ‘Creep’ (which I still don’t think sounds like ‘The Air that I Breathe’)… Hmm.

Could go into a rant here about plagiarism but won’t, as I’m in a good mood because of said diet. (If anyone reading this suffers from similar difficulties in losing weight, it’s the Zoe Harcombe diet. Easy to stick to, no cravings or misery, and fits in with what the rest of the family eats – plus it’s ‘real food’ so it’s a cook’s dream. The five-day ‘phase one’ (which helps kick a few bad habits, e.g. caffeine) is here – this was the bit used in She magazine. I borrowed the books from the library – interesting reading but could’ve done with a wee bit more editing to take out the repetition and the muddle.)

And, as it’s a glorious autumn day, I’m leaving you with a pic from today’s school run – the last morning run of this half term (where does the time go?). This is Costessey Weir. The other side of the river (i.e. to the right of what you see here) contains a field of cows, who were grazing in the mist this morning; sadly, couldn’t take a pic of them as this was the only safe place to stop.

birds upon the wires

Current work: Modern Heat

Listening to: Dire Straits

Reading: Michelle Styles, The Viking’s Captive Princess (late night last night because I couldn’t put it down – I had to know how what would happen next. Flowed beautifully, and the hero and heroine were perfectly matched. Really enjoyed the Viken court scenes, and it was nice to see some familiar characters play a part. The baddies in here are utter stinkers (and the Viken queen is incredibly complex – still haven’t decided if she’s nice at heart or a complete cow). Her author notes at the end are always illuminating, too. Definitely recommended)

On screaming deadline so I’ll leave you with a pic I took on the way home from school earlier this week (obviously NOT yesterday, which was rain, rain and more rain). Care to guess which Dire Straits track I’m listening to? (the clue is in the title AND the picture *g*)

a sense of self

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: Debussy
Reading: next on TBR

Watched a really interesting documentary yesterday about the sense of self by a mathematician/philosopher, Professor Marcus du Sautoy. (More about it here on the BBC news site, with link to iPlayer.) How do you know what is ‘I’ and what is consciousness? I’m fairly sure I’ve already read something about the experiment in Sweden to make you feel as if you’re sitting behind yourself, thereby separating body and consciousness – and it goes further by tricking the mind into thinking that you’re the other person – but it was still fascinating.

It’s stunning how far science has come already. The fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) scan is a case in point – not just showing the brain, but also the regions of activity. The thing that I really hope develops from of this? A way to help degenerative brain conditions (I’m thinking specifically Parkinson’s and the various forms of dementia – and yes, of course it’s personal, for the same reason I’d love to see a cure for cancer). I guess the first step is identifying areas of the brain and how they respond, and then scientists might be ale to find out how to stimulate that same response if those areas of the brain are no longer able to work effectively.

I think for writers, a sense of ‘I’ is an even greyer area than it is for most people. Given the nature of our job (and I’d say it’s a vocation, too), we voluntarily put ourselves inside the heads of other people. Otherwise how would we be able to write realistic emotions and dialogue? How would we get rounded characterisation? And then there’s the question of which ‘I’ are we talking about: public or private face? And is Kate the romantic novelist the same as Pamela the historian? Same corporal body – but same person? How much blurring is there between the two?

And that leads me on to asking whether there’s a difference between the way someone is at work and the way they are at home. Is it a physical change (measurable by neuron activity) or a social change – and, if the latter, how can we measure it and how far is it affected by the expectations of other people? ‘Freedom is a cage, the bars of which are other people’s freedoms’ (that’s a verrrrrry loose translation from Rousseau’s Social Contract – anyway, it’s France leading up to the Revolution) – wonder if that’s also true of the self? Does our behaviour shift, say, when we’re with our parents and siblings, so we take on our accepted ‘position’ in the family, even after we’ve grown up and that’s no longer who we are?

Sadly, deadline beckons, so no time to go into this in proper depth. But I wonder. Question for writers out there: when you’re working on a book (and assuming you’re not the omniscient narrator), do you have a sense of yourself still, or do you slip so far into the heads of your characters that you’re somebody else (even if only temporarily)? Do you have any views on the questions I’ve raised above? I’d love to hear them.

sundog

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: Debussy
Reading: Anne McAllister: One-night mistress, convenient wife (enjoyed this one – especially the Brazilian grandmother. Anne writes wonderfully rounded heroes – very realistic characterisation)

Every so often, my nerdy streak appears here. Last week, it was prompted by seeing the crepuscular rays (scroll down to see the pic if you missed it – it really was that good).

This week, it’s the sundog I spied yesterday morning, at about 8.45. I’m back to taking my camera around with me, so – with a little help from my sunglasses as a temporary lens filter (and thank you, thank you, O traffic lights at a spectacularly busy junction, for turning red so I had time to take the pic) – here it is.



The official name of a sundog is a parhelion (Greek: beside the sun, which describes it perfectly). It’s formed by refraction of the sun’s rays through hexagonal plate ice crystals formed in cirrus clouds, and you’ll often see two of them (one either side of the sun), at the same distance above the horizon as the sun. Sometimes you’ll see it as a proper ice halo round the sun (and when it’s combined with a sun pillar, it’s spectacular – so far, I’ve only seen pictures, but I live in hope).

In 1461, just before the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross, apparently the parhelia were so bright that it looked as if there were three suns. Edward of York convinced his troops it was a sign – and they went on to victory. From then on, he adopted the ‘Sunne in Splendour’ as his emblem (and the novel of that name by Sharon Penman is utterly fantastic).

This is actually work-related, as there’s a scene in Temporary Boss, Permanent Mistress where Jake and Lydia talk about clouds and ice haloes. (Yup. Kate’s Northern Lights obsession does indeed extend to other atmospheric phenomena…)

Today's question: what's your favourite atmospheric phenomenon - and, if you've seen it in real life, do tell about the experience.

Righty... back to the Ardèche and the heat of the midday sun...

a breath of fresh air…

Current work: Modern Heat

Listening to: Debussy

Reading: Kelly Hunter, Revealed: a Prince and a Pregnancy (Kelly’s books never disappoint – enjoyed this thoroughly)

Fresh air was something desperately needed in our house over the weekend. All I’ll say in explanation is that daughter got son’s bug on Saturday, and we had to buy a new rug on Sunday. (Sadly, one is indeed a correlation of the other.)

Both kids are on the mend now. I am hoping that the dog doesn’t get it next...

As for my deadline…. My little girl was white-faced, tearful and asking for a cuddle to help make her feel better – no way was I going to tell her I was too busy. I’ll catch up later this week.

And I’ve worked out another reason why the book was stuck. My heroine needs a dog.

When is a Springer not a Springer? When it’s a Brittany. The puppy pics I found on the net look so much like my boy as a baby. Hmm. Is this enough of an excuse to post puppy pics? Yeah, I think so. This is Kleptodog at eight weeks. Enough to melt anyone’s heart.

(I should perhaps add that my heroine is after a rescue dog. Doesn’t happen. And it’s not fair to get a puppy before the busiest time on the vineyard, so… my hero is going to do something really nice. And said puppy is going to bounce through the second book in the duo, too. I have a name, too: Beau. Perfect for a French dog, non? )

Florence, redux

Current work: Modern Heat (and ministering to son, who has a bug)
Listening to: not (am listening out for sounds of throwing up, aka mopping of face needed)
Reading: Kate Walker, Kept for Her Baby (another of Kate’s trademark emotional reads – full of passion and depth)

It really is Lurgy Central around here. I’ve had DH off for two days with a gastric bug (stupid man has gone back to work today, even though he's not really well enough - which means he'll be sick all weekend, sigh); and then school rang this morning asking me to to collect son as he’s thrown up everywhere. Take washing up bowl with me just in case (luckily not needed), pick him up, send him upstairs to change into PJs while I cover sofa with sheet and then bring down pile of pillows and the fleecy blanket, install him in front of a film he likes with said bowl and a glass of cool water for sipping, and keep sound on so can hear if he needs me.

And yes, I still have my evil cough (throat semi-sore but from coughing, not lurgy).

This lot has 11 days to be gone (and daughter absolutely can NOT pick up any of the lurgies in the meantime - we both need to be fit for London).

And I have 7 days until deadline.

Am so glad am female, so can multi-task...

a thousand words

Current work: Modern Heat (and ministering to DH, who still has a bug)
Listening to: X, Def Leppard (this album is SO underrated)
Reading: next on TBR

One of the wonderful things about living in this part of the world is the sky.

This morning, Madam and I spotted some spectacular crepuscular rays, just after we’d dropped Son at school. Luckily there wasn’t a huge queue at the usual nightmare junction, and the clouds weren’t moving that swiftly, so we were able to get a pic at the top of the road to her school.

So instead of babbling from me today, here’s a pic to paint my (usually less than a) thousand words:

and another fabulous review

Current work: Modern Heat (and ministering to DH, who's home with a bug today - not the same one as mine so it's TLC from a distance!)
Listening to: Satie and the Lepps
Reading: next on TBR

And this is what the Pink Heart Society had to say about my Northern Lights fantasy. (Note, it scores very highly in their weepy factor, for a good reason…)

Two scarred souls find romance under the breathtaking Northern Lights in the latest romance by best-selling author Kate Hardy: Temporary Boss, Permanent Mistress.

Lydia Sheridan has finally decided to stop pleasing other people and to start pleasing herself. A passionate artist, she's always repressed her desire to be a painter because of her parents' insistence that she go to university and study economics before qualifying as a lawyer. But Lydia has finally had it. She cannot bear to spend another minute working in a stuffy office so she decides to quit her job at Andersen's. But her boss, Jake, is not going to let her slip through his fingers...

Jake has had his eye on Lydia for quite some time and he's determined to get to know the real person behind the capable professional. When he needs a lawyer to accompany him on a trip to Norway, Jake asks Lydia to go with him, and although her every instinct is telling her to quit her job once and for all, she cannot help but be drawn to her handsome Norwegian boss...

As fate throws them together, their attraction begins to simmer and Jake and Lydia soon give into temptation and begin a seven-day affair. But as the seventh day approaches, they soon begin to wish that their seven days could turn into a lifetime!

When you pick up a novel by Kate Hardy, you know that you're going to get an emotional and dramatic tale full of warmth, charm and heart and Temporary Boss, Permanent Mistress is no exception. Poignant, moving and wonderfully romantic, Temporary Boss, Permanent Mistress is just the thing to brighten up the cold autumn nights!

***

Thank you, PHS. I'm delighted. (And I might have to change my strapline. Here am I, kidding everyone that my books are all about drama, passion and danger. They're not. It's warmth, charm and heart, mixed up with a bit of heat...)

fabulous review

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: various French piano music
Reading: next on TBR

I have to admit to being slightly nervous about my Northern Lights book. According to my ed, Presents readers like, um, hot climates.

And there I was, planning to set my book in Norway. In the winter. Hot? Er...

Now, I happen to think that cold can be utterly glamorous. Ice hotel, Northern Lights, amazing whirlpools… so I persuaded her into letting me do it. Oh, and the reindeer. The deal was that I was allowed ONE. I was a bad girl and sneaked a few in to the ice hotel, where they couldn’t be chipped out. (Sculptures. Ha. Author being too clever for her own good.) And then, when I revised it and decided the wedding was going in, four more sneaked in. (If you’re going to get married in the snow, then surely you have to go by sleigh – drawn by reindeer…)

But as publication day drew near, I had a teensy panic. Supposing readers hated it? And supposing I went too far with the art stuff? And it was a bit dark in places (I made myself cry). Oh, yes, and there’s this thing I have about Scandinavian jewellery. (OK, so Pandora is Danish, but hey, my great-grandmother was Danish – she was a midwife – so that counts as heritage, yes? And maybe explains why I’ve always been so drawn to the north… as long as I don’t have to drive in snow.)

The big question was: had I written a turkey book?

Well, this is the first review, courtesy of lovely Julie at Cataromance. She gave it four and a half stars.

And this is some of what she said…

I love Kate Hardy’s books and Temporary Boss, Permanent Mistress is certainly one of this award-winning author’s best romances for Mills and Boon! Kate Hardy not only manages to recreate the beautiful Norwegian landscape in this book, but she has also created two wonderfully humane characters that just leap off the page and capture the reader’s imagination instantly. With a believable conflict, poignant drama, powerful emotional depth and enchanting romance, Temporary Boss, Permanent Mistress is yet another terrific romantic tale from the pen of this talented award-winning author! Don’t miss it!

You can read the rest here. I’m thrilled to bits. Thank you, Julie. You've made my week.

little voices

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: Satie
Reading: Jessica Hart, Under the Boss’s Mistletoe (enjoyed this one: Jessica writes warm, vibrant heroines, and I loved her bad boy grown up)

Apols for absence on Friday. Busy running errands and being dutiful daughter-in-law. (Would’ve been dutiful daughter, too, but when I spoke to the home they told me to stay away until I was completely clear of lurgy. Which is absolutely right – don’t want to spread this among vulnerable people - but frustrating, and I feel terrible that I’ve missed a week's visit.)

Anyway. The little voice inside my head on Friday told me why I’d stalled on the book and what the problem was. Yup, it was the huge info dump known as chapter one. Which meant that the hero wasn’t on the page for a whole chapter and didn’t meet the heroine for half a chapter after that.

You’d think that as this is my 42nd M&B, I’d know better, right?

So I was pleased with the little voice on Friday. And I duly threw out the whole of chapter one.

Saturday, the little voice said, ‘You’re going clothes-shopping with the kids. You do not need your camera.’ So what happens? I discover it’s the French market in the middle of Norwich. Rats. I could’ve taken pics as an aide-memoire, because I think a market is going to come into this book or the second in the duo. Ah well. (I was so good. I stayed away from the boulangerie stall. And the coffee stall. And I resisted the crêperie. I was marched past the cheese, which is probably just as well.)

Sunday was a quietish day. Just got rid of one lurgy, and – bam, here’s another. So ‘little voice’ is quite appropriate for me today. Squeaky AND husky at the same time… Sadly, it’s more risible than sexy. So today is back on honey and lemon and Strepsils.

But I do have some good news to share, tomorrow...

dogs and dogwood

Current work: Modern Heat

Listening to: Satie

Reading: next on TBR

Yes! My temperature is almost normal! And I have some of my bounce back. (Have at thee, foul lurgy. I shall banish thee with peppermint tea.) Many thanks to everyone who's been sympathetic over the last few days.

Today’s one of these glorious autumn days, when the sun is shining and there’s a bit of a nip in the air. We saw an amazing contrail this morning on the way to school, almost in the shape of a question mark (with the moon sitting smack in the middle of the curved area): sadly, my camera was on my desk. Note to self: put it back in Radley’s care. Second note to self: time to change over bags as it’s autumn and time for Radley in his sports car.

Here are two autumnal pictures to make up for my remissness over the contrail. Firstly, the dogwood at the bottom of the garden, which always looks fabulous at this time of year. (I love the deep, rich ruby of the leaves.)

Secondly, my partner in crime (ha, actually caught him napping – normally, he wakes up when the camera switches on and gives me a look as if to say, no WAY are you putting an undignified pic of me on the net. Note to dog: too late, AND I've got one of you on the sofa, lying on your back). He thinks this is what people should do in autumn (preferably in a nice sunny spot). Yes, dog, great idea: sadly, I have a deadline and things to do...

lurgy and blogging elsewhere

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: Satie
Reading: Liz Fielding, Christmas Angel for the Billionaire (fantastic read – as Liz’s books always are – with beautifully rounded characters, a believable plot, wonderful secondaries and a well deserved happy ending. Made me well up in a couple of places – the way she describes the week before Christmas for her heroine is just how I feel about it – and made me laugh out loud in others because her humour is spot on: warm, witty and like having a big hug.)

Lurgy - picture me yesterday, freezing cold so I had a fleecy blanket wrapped round me at my desk… and my head was a furnace, despite paracetamol. Sigh. It will go, eventually.

But it also means I’m not writing a proper blog today. Instead, there’s one I wrote earlier (scheduled for today) over at the Pink Heart Society, about productivity. This week, it hasn’t worked out that way (because I have the lurgy), but otherwise… definite advice to writers. Find your timesuck and a way round it!

Oh, and still on the lurgy – thanks to mpe for an utterly brilliant pastiche of Keats (the one I was waffling about doing on Monday but didn’t have the energy to follow through). Made me smile through my sneezes!

Soup

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: Satie (quite discordant and just perfect for a dusty chateau - oh, did I not mention that my heroine plays the piano? This is my excuse for loafing off in our dining room: Method writing)
Reading: next on TBR (I have a treat lined up for tonight – hot bath, early bedtime and a Christmas book by one of my very, very favourite authors – more on this tomorrow)

Am still sneezing/coughing. Actually needed a coat on the school run today (also useful as it had pockets for conkers – Madam is still obsessed with them).

I was going to do a skit on Keats’ Ode to Autumn (Season of coughs and soggy handkerchiefs...), but I really don’t have the energy. So take it as read, and instead I’m going to give you a recipe for a really comforting (and immensely virtuous) soup.

900g butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and chopped
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
900ml water
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander

Put the lot in a very large pan, bring to the boil, simmer for 25 mins (until squash is tender), cool, then puree in a blender. Reheat and serve with a swirl of sour cream. Enjoy.

Nero’s rotating dining room

Current work: Modern Heat (well, thinking about it between sneezes and coughing)
Listening to: Satie
Reading: next on TBR (still feeling too rough to read)

Following the excitement of discovering the Anglo Saxon hoard in Shropshire is another wonderful archaeology story, this week – the discovery of Nero’s rotating dining room. According to Suetonius (in Lives of the Caesars), there was a revolving wooden floor (or maybe it was the ceiling – it’s not that clear); guests could look at a ceiling painted with stars, and there were panels in the ceiling which allowed flower petals and perfume to shower onto the tables below. It’s thought that the mechanism was driven by water, similar to a water mill. (Full story at the Telegraph here.)

This is giving me some grand ideas. But I guess another archaeology/architect book would be too much for my ed, right now…

Happy October

Current work: Modern Heat
Listening to: Sheryl Crow
Reading: next on TBR (too dopey and full of cold to read)

Happy October; and may it be a lovely month for you.

I think the bowls in the pic might be chocolate mousse, which means my name is therefore in cream. Tres cool, though in real life I would politely refuse the pudding. A teensy bit too rich for me. And yes, I'm aware that it's weird that I love puddings and chocolate but loathe chocolate puddings. (Unless it's white chocolate - which isn't really chocolate at all, so QED.)

My dear children have given me their cold, so I feel dopey today and as if my head is full of cotton wool. A day for paracetamol and hot lemon, methinks. I also have mint and eucalyptus tea, which might help to clear my head - if I can face it. Mint tea, I like. Particularly the one with a bit of cinnamon in. But I'm having big doubts about the camomile, nettle and eucalyptus varieties. Perhaps I should've stuck to buying a box of plain or cimmamon and mint tea...

Having said that, the giving-up-caffeine lark is going quite well so far. I even have decaf Earl Grey. (When I’ve finished my current box, and I like my tea so weak that I think I’m getting more bergamot than caffeine or tannin in my cup. However. I’m playing by the rules.) Until the children's cold zapped me today, my energy levels were definitely improving.

Righty. Now to convince my head that we're in France and I can smell lavender, instead of having a blocked nose...