Wet Noodle Posse

How to Contact the Wet Noodle Posse

2010-03-26T07:47:00.003-05:00

Leave a message on our FACEBOOK site or comment here. We're still monitoring the blog. Individual Noodler's contact information is in the NEXT BLOG (Scroll down to end).

The Wet Noodle Posse

2010-01-09T20:01:00.037-06:00

In 2003, a group of about sixty women met each other online for the first time. They were finalists for the Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart award – the top measure of achievement for unpublished writers in the industry. Like finalists before them, they formed an Internet loop to discuss the upcoming awards ceremony at the national convention, held that year in New York.

Most of these online loops dissolve shortly after the convention, but something happened on the way to the Big Apple. This particular group found they had a level of camaraderie unknown to them before, and they stayed together. They even named themselves. When one member expressed doubt about her worth and talent, another threatened to cover thrash her with a wet noodle for doubting herself.

That’s how the Wet Noodle Posse was born.

We shared some of our thoughts and talent, first with an ezine, later with a blog, but our lives have become progressively busier and we've had to change our focus once again.

We're all doing different things. Many of us are published, most of us are still writing, and some of us have put other interests as primary. But we're still around!

We're on FACEBOOK! Come join us there.

Here's where you can find us individually:

Karen Potter
Website
Facebook

Merrillee Whren
Website
Facebook
Shoutlife

Trish Milburn
Website
Facebook
Twitter

Theresa Ragan
Website

MJ Frederick
Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter

Maureen Hardegree
Website

Terry McLaughlin
Website
Facebook

Diane Gaston
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Risky Regencies Blog Mondays

Prisilla Kissinger
Facebook

Delle Jacobs
Website
Wylde Wynde Designs, cover design
In Search of Heroes Blog
Facebook
Twitter
MySpace
YouTube
LinkedIn

Lee McKenzie
Website
Blog
Harlequin American Authors Blog

Colleen Gleason
Website Colleen Gleason
Website Joss Ware
Facebook

Debra Holland
Website
Facebook
Twitter

Stay Tuned!!!

2010-01-08T09:24:00.000-06:00

We're looking into a Facebook fan page for the Wet Noodle Posse, a place where we can keep you informed of our activities and books and you can tell us what is happeniing with you!

I'll post more here when we know for certain.

Auld Lang Syne

2010-01-04T00:02:00.001-06:00

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne ?

For auld lang syne, my jo,
for auld lang syne,
we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

Robert Burns adapted this song from an old Scottish folk song and since that time we've sung it on New Year's Day and other celebrations of new beginnings and fond farewells. So it seems fitting to start this blog with the familiar lyrics.

You see, we Noodlers have made the very difficult decision to say farewell to this blog.

Our decision did not come easily. We love the little community that's formed around the blog. We love sharing our thoughts about life, whimsy, and writing. We started a little over four years ago with lots of enthusiasm and lots of us participating. We've experimented with different ways of doing the blog, from whatever we felt like writing, to a focused preparation for the Golden Heart, to a year of writing, to a theme of the month. We've actually hit our stride with this last year, providing variety that well-suited our individual voices.

But the last four years have brought many changes. More and more of us have published books and, as all women in today's world know, our lives have gotten busier. The internet world has changed, as well, bringing its own demands of other social networks, such as Twitter, Facebook and My Space. We've all branched out, each moving in the direction best for us. As a result, we've had less time to devote to the Wet Noodle Posse blog.

So we made the decision that it was time to say good-bye.

Our website http://wetnoodleposse.com/ will remain up for the time being but that, too, will eventually be gone. If you remember our ezine days, all the articles are there, so go back and save the ones you want while you can still find them. We'll be keeping the blog up, too, at least for now, with links to where you can find each of us, our own personal blogs, websites, twitter, facebook , etc. We might also have special announcements, too, but nothing specific is planned, so best to check on us individually.

Before the posting with our new links, though, we'd like to take time to say good-bye to you, our readers. You have made this blog special to us and we will miss gathering together with all of you.

So please take a little time to say good-bye. Tell us what you liked about our Wet Noodle Posse blog. Did you have any favorite ones? Any that meant a lot to you?

We'll remember you and our time together. In fact, we'll tak a cup o’ kindness yet, for auld lang syne.
This version of the song conveys the proper mood:

Happy Holidays to All

2009-12-25T00:03:00.001-06:00

Happy Holidays
We wish you all a wonderful holiday season. We're taking a little holiday break and will be back January 4, 2010.
The Wet Noodle Posse

Nativity

2009-12-24T08:24:00.002-06:00

a poem by Roland A. Browne

I doubt He came to chants of angel choirs,
or that His birth was heralded afar.
We charge the tale as afterthought requires,
convert a feeble candle to a star,
bring Eastern kings to worship at the byre.

More like, some older woman from the inn
sent Joseph to heat water at the fire,
and helped the frightened girl to usher in
the wrinkled, squalling Babe, and tore a clean
old linen sheet to make the swaddling bands;
then, having finished, left the girl serene
and trudged back to her room to wash her hands.

I find the daily miracles of earth
sufficient portents for a Savior's birth.

A Holiday Video Card For You

2009-12-23T10:31:00.003-06:00

A Gift of Mercy has been given to Mercy Corps in the name of the Wet Noodle Posse and friends.
Click here to view:
http://www.mercycorps.org/mk/fulfillment/?id=10475788-1

May all your holidays be blessed.

Delle

Another Christmas, Another Year

2009-12-22T03:10:00.001-06:00

I love listening to Christmas music and watching holiday movies. There is something special about bells ringing, twinkling lights, and decorated trees to mark the end of another year. I feel a little melancholy to see the year end, but I am also filled with hope for the new year. I don’t like to look back and see that the year has passed in a foggy blur (been there, done that) so I now try to give each year a theme. For instance, 2007 and 2008 were filled with positive thoughts and gratefulness. Very exciting years for me. 2009 was about change, scary at times, but all good. I want 2010 to be about adventure…learning, exploring, taking risks. Sounds fun, doesn’t it?

How about you? Can you sum up the last year or two? What did you do? What did you accomplish? Or did you focus on family and your home? Are you looking forward to the new year?

Pictures: My house in Sacramento after it SNOWED!!! And cute snowman my husband made for me.

The Christmas Wish

2009-12-21T07:00:00.002-06:00

This is the short romance I sold to Woman's World that appeared in the December 20, 2005 issue. I hope you enjoy. And may all your Christmas wishes and dreams come true!

The Christmas Wish

Carrie finished her work and hurried outside to catch the last bus. She hated working late, hated standing in the dark, freezing, as she waited for the crowded bus. Tonight would be worse than usual since it was Christmas Eve and the bus would be filled with shoppers.

When it finally arrived, the bus looked as if it couldn’t hold another passenger. Carrie took a deep breath and pushed her way through the crowd.

There wasn’t a single seat left, and not much in the way of standing room. She smiled and grabbed a spot in front of a man decked out in full Santa gear. As a child she’d loved her holiday visits to Santa and still remembered her disappointment the year her mother told her she was too big to sit on Santa’s knee.

The bus lurched forward and almost sent Carrie flying. Santa grabbed her arm and held her in place. “Thank you,” she said. “This is going to be a long ride.”

Santa smiled. “I’d offer you my seat, but with this bulky costume, I wouldn’t fit in the aisle.”

His voice was deep and smooth, and he sounded younger than she’d expected. His blue eyes twinkled when he smiled, making Carrie wish he’d pull off the fake beard so she could see his face. “That’s okay,” she said. “I’m fine.”

That wasn’t quite true. She was far from her family on the night before Christmas, and she’d be spending Christmas day alone for the very first time. Unexpected tears welled in her eyes at the thought of the lonely night and day ahead of her.

“Hey, are you sure you’re okay?”

Too choked up to speak, Carrie just nodded. Looking around at the other passengers, she saw that most of them were with someone else, chatting animatedly. Only she and Santa Claus seemed to be traveling alone.

The bus pulled to a stop and more passengers crowded on. Carrie let go of the pole and scooted back against Santa’s legs to make room for a woman with an armload of boxes. When the bus pulled away, she found herself sitting in Santa’s lap.

Before she could scramble to her feet, the woman with the boxes had taken her place at the pole and blocked Carrie in. “This is so embarrassing,” she said to Santa. “I’m so sorry.”

“I’m not. You’re the best-looking female I’ve had on my lap all day. And as long as you’re here, why don’t you tell me your name and what you want for Christmas?”

Carrie laughed and brushed the tears from her eyes. “I’m too old to believe in Santa Claus.”

“It’s not a matter of age. It’s a matter of faith. Now what would you ask for if you could have anything?”

Carrie sobered as she thought of her greatest wish. “I’d wish I could be with my family for Christmas.”

“Where are they?”

“In Colorado. I just moved to Chicago to start a new job and I couldn’t afford to fly home. This will be my first Christmas alone.”

Santa looked thoughtful. “Well, my sleigh will be full tonight, so I can’t fly you home. But I might be able to offer you the next best thing.”

Carrie smiled at the thought of arriving on her parents’ rooftop in a sleigh. “And what would that be?”

“You could come spend Christmas with me and my family.”

Carrie turned to look at him, to see if he was serious. From the look in his eyes, he was. “I appreciate the offer, but I don’t even know you and your wife probably wouldn’t want a stranger in her house on Christmas.”

Santa shook his head. “I don’t have a wife—Christmas is at my parents’ home, complete with two brothers and a sister, and seven nieces and nephews. There will be plenty of chaperons, and I can guarantee you my mother would be thrilled if I brought someone home for the holiday.”

He grinned, and Carrie realized she’d seen that grin somewhere before. “Do I know you?”

Santa whispered conspiratorially, “I’m wearing this beard for a reason, but if you’ll promise not to say anything…” He pulled the beard down just long enough for her to get a good look at his face.

Her eyes widened. “You’re--”

He placed a finger across her lips. “Shhh. You promised.”

“What are you doing playing Santa Claus?” Carrie couldn’t believe she was sitting on the lap of a well-known news anchor and that he’d invited her home for Christmas. “And why are you riding the bus?”

“I played Santa for the kids at Children’s Hospital today, and I loaned my mother my SUV so she could pick up a large gift for my dad. So, do you accept my invitation?”

She had a choice between Christmas alone and Christmas with a large family and a man she’d admired each night on the evening news. It wasn’t a difficult decision. “If you’re sure, I’d love to accept.”

He nodded. “I’m sure. And if you’re not busy tonight, would you have dinner with me? And then could you help me wrap a bunch of packages I left until the last minute?”

“I’d love to. And I’m an expert wrapper.” Maybe there really was a Santa Claus after all, Carrie thought as she remembered his words. It’s a matter of faith.

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-12-20T20:41:00.003-06:00

Noodlers celebrate this last week of our Home for the Holidays theme with the following blogs:

Monday, December 21st: Tori Scott The Christmas Wish
Tuesday, December 22nd: Theresa Ragan TBA
Wednesday, December 23rd: Delle Jacobs Video Christmas Card
Thursday, December 24th: Karen Potter TBA
Friday, December 25th: Diane Gaston Happy Holidays to All

Q&A Friday!!!

2009-12-18T06:51:00.006-06:00

One of the things I enjoy doing during the holidays is buying books for myself and reading them. While my husband drives, I read. I picked up Diane Gaston's Gallant Officer, Forbidden Lady and Terry Mclaughlin's A Small-Town Reunion, which I'm saving for the trip to Louisiana to visit family and friends.

Diane Gaston

Gallant Officer, Forbidden Lady

The battlefields of Badajoz are nothing compared to the cutting tongues of polite society, but Jack Vernon has never been very "polite." A canvas is this brooding artist's preferred company—having once been the outlet for the horror he witnessed at war, it's now his fortune.

Painting the portrait of stunningly beautiful Ariana Blane is his biggest commission yet. Learning every curve of her body ignites feelings he thought were destroyed in battle. But he's not the only man who has Ariana in his sights….

Terry McLaughlin

A Small-Town Reunion

Addie Sutton's stained-glass window business may be this close to bankruptcy, but she won't give up, even if it means she'll have to see Devlin Chandler again. All right, so she's still in love with the bad-boy heir to the Chandler estate. Though Addie's too smart to go after a man she knows isn't right for her, especially with the tangled history between them.

But Dev's intent on pushing the envelope. He's always been attracted to the former housekeeper's daughter and wants to see where their relationship could lead. Addie tells him where—to heartbreak. Can he convince her that special something between them is worth taking a chance on?

What sort of books would you like to see on the shelves in 2010? Is there a particular time period, setting, or subgenre that you're hoping to see expand in the new year?

Christmas Baking

2009-12-17T04:38:00.005-06:00

Every Christmas we have three traditional goodies that we make. First, I make sugar cookies made in the shapes of bells, trees, Santa, snowmen, candy canes and angels. Then I decorate them. When my girls were little, they were thrilled when they got to help frost the cookies and put sprinkles on them. Now they consider it a chore when they come to my house because they have already made them on their own. Here's the recipe for the BEST sugar cookies around.

Basic Sugar Cookies

4 cups flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 T. milk

Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Cream together butter and sugar: add eggs and beat until smooth and fluffy. Stir in vanilla. Add flour mixture and milk alternately. Chill cough until easy to handle. Roll out dough on floured board and cut to desired shape with cookie cutter. Decorate as desired.

Another favorite is Chocolate Nut Caramels. My grandmother made them when I was a kid, and we've passed the recipe down through the generations. These are a tasty treat.

Chocolate Nut Caramels

2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups white corn syrup
2 cups cream
3 squares of bitter chocolate, cut in small pieces
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
2 tsp. vanilla

Combine sugar, syrup, butter and one cup of cream in a large pot such as a dutch oven. Cook over medium heat until the mixture comes to a brisk boil. Slowly add the remaining cup of cream so that the mixture doesn't stop boiling. Boil until a thread is brittle in cold water. Or if you have a candy thermometer, boil until it is a soft ball. Remove from heat and add the chocolate and nuts. Beat until the chocolate is melted. Add vanilla and pour into a shallow buttered pan to cool. When cool, but into 1 inch squares.

Finally, my husband makes Rozak. This is a nut roll that his dad used to make at Christmas. Since my father-in-law has passed away, my husband carries on the tradition. This is definitely a family favorite.

Rozak

1 pound of light brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 large can of evaporated milk
1 stick butter
1 tsp. maple flavoring
3 1/2 cups ground walnuts
1/2 cup coconut
My husband adds cinnamon to taste

Make roll dough mix or use Pillsbury dough from the dairy case. You will need enough dough for four large rolls. Roll the dough into a 9x14 rectangle.

Mix sugar, flour milk, and margarine and cook until thickened, about 10 minutes. Fold in remaining ingredients. Let mixture cool slightly before spreading on the rolled out dough. Roll up like a jellyroll. Pinch ends to hold filling. Place on a cookie lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Brush the with melted butter as soon as removed from the oven.

What are some of your favorite Christmas goodies?

Give an Early Party to Start the Holiday Season by Debra Holland

2009-12-17T04:25:00.000-06:00

For the last four years, my boyfriend, Don, and I have hosted a Christmas Open House on the first Sunday in December. By now, all our friends and family members know to keep that date in their calendars.

We invite about 125 people, so preparing for the party is a LOT of work. But it’s catered, so we don’t have to think about food--just all the other details. Don has a large beautiful house, and we have a Christmas tree in both the family room and the living room.

The green tree in the family room has colored lights and holds needlepoint and crocheted ornaments made by my grandmother. It’s a lovely tribute to her memory. The larger flocked tree in the living room has white lights and an assortment of bulbs and other decorations collected by both of us.

Before we began dating, Don and I had our own batches of Christmas decorations. But we’ve amassed a larger amount since we’re been together. Decorating the house and trees usually takes two and a half days and the efforts of both of us and several family members.

However, once the party’s over, we have a home that’s completely ready for the holidays, and we can relax and enjoy the beauty of the season. (Except for Christmas shopping and wrapping.) Many nights, Don and I turn on the tree lights and talk about our day while listening to Christmas music.

In the last few weeks, I’ve listened to several of my friends and family members bemoan that they hadn’t yet gotten their tree. I could see that still having “Decorate for Christmas” on their to-do list was causing them stress. Each time, I silently gave thanks that I had that major task behind me.

I’m not suggesting you have a huge party like we do. That’s probably too much work and expense for most people. A small party with a few friends or family members will still motivate you to get the house cleaned and ready for the holidays. If expense is a problem, invite a couple of friends over to enjoy hot apple cider or hot chocolate and some home-made cookies.

Once your party is over, you and your family will be able to enjoy the peace and joy of the season by relaxing in your own home.

Happy Holidays!

Holiday Giving

2009-12-15T11:20:00.001-06:00

‘Tis the season for giving. My favorite season—or, being a Florida girl who needs her sunny weather, my favorite holiday season. Christmas! Hanukah! Kwanzaa! Whatever your holiday celebration in December, it’s still a season of giving.

Most of us think about gift-giving at this time of year, but as much as I enjoy theh idea of presents, today I’d like to talk about a different type of giving. The one that involves your time, your compassion, and your desire to do good for others.

I’m talking about volunteering in your community. Whether it’s just something you do during the holidays (like, helping to serve Christmas dinner at a local shelter) or on a regular basis (like, weekly/monthly visits to a local crisis nursery or animal shelter), I truly believe it’s important for us to consider those who are less fortunate, and find some way to do our part to help them. We can’t all donate financially, and that’s okay. But we can find a few hours, at some point in the week or month or year, to count our blessings and do what we can to make someone else feel special.

As a writer and avid reader, I think about how life-altering it would be to lose my eyesight. The written word is an important part of my daily life. I’ve taken it for granted for many years, until I started volunteering at Minds Eye Radio Station for the Blind at Our Lady of the Snows Shrine in Belleville, Illinois. Find the station at www.mindseyeradio.org

Minds Eye provides special radios to the visually impaired in the metro St Louis area. These radios receive daily broadcasts of the written word, along with other special programs. Volunteers record or read live on-the-air segments featuring local and national newspapers, books, magazines, sale ads, and other articles or items of interest to Minds Eye listeners.

Naturally the station also reaches out to listeners and potential donors/volunteers in other ways as well, so it’s possible to give of your time in many ways. But for me, who relishes a stolen moment with a novel or my weekly Sports Illustrated, and who carves out time for textbooks and assigned reading in my master’s degree program, I find reading for those who can’t a rewarding endeavor.

Translating the written word to the spoken word is a blessing of mine that I can transfer to others. Giving two hours of my time on a weekly basis is one small gift I can give to someone who, if given the chance, would relish an opportunity to read for two hours themselves.

This holiday season, will you be able to find the time to show someone or a group of someones that they aren’t forgotten? Or take a few hours to do for another what you hope someone would do for you if the roles were reversed?

Maybe you already do. Maybe you need some help finding the right organization. Don’t sweat it, help is on the way. Check out the following websites and see what you can find.

www.serve.gov or www.volunteermatch.org

Happy searching. Happy giving. Happy Holidays!

Fondly,

Prisakiss

Favorite Christmas Songs

2009-12-14T00:00:00.000-06:00

My class and I have been listening to Christmas songs for 2 weeks now. Two local radio stations play them, and I created Bingo cards for each child. When a song plays, I tell the kids the title and they mark it. They started learning the names of the songs by the third day, which is great. We write the titles on the board, so they're learning spelling and correct capitalization of titles, too.

And we all have our favorites.

They like the Paul McCartney song that is played every five minutes and says the same thing over and over. And they like "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas," though we've only heard it once.

Of course they like the Chipmunk song and Rudolph and Frosty. Surprisingly, they like "Carol of the Bells" by Mannheim Steamroller. They say it's on Guitar Hero or one of those. They like "Sleigh Ride," though last year we graphed it and saw it was the most played.

My favorites are "Do You Hear What I Hear?" though it's incredibly overplayed, and "We Need a Little Christmas," which is incredibly underplayed. "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" was a favorite until that office supply store started playing it at back-to-school time. You might imagine I don't share that sentiment. I love anything from Bing Crosby because my mom used to play that album again and again.

What are some of your favorites? Which are some songs you wish you never heard again?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-12-13T21:19:00.002-06:00

Noodlers ring in the season of good cheer with the following blogs:

Monday, December 14th: MJ Fredrick Favorite Christmas Songs
Tuesday, December 15th: Priscilla Kissinger Family Reunions for the Holidays
Wednesday, December 16th: Debra Holland TBA
Thursday, December 17th: Merrillee Whren TBA
Friday, December 18th: Q&A : What sort of books would you like to see on the shelves in 2010?

Friday Q&A!!!!

2009-12-11T08:40:00.003-06:00

When a writer provides a sense of hope for the protagonist's future at story's end satisfies me most as a reader. That ending can either be full-fledged happiness or just the hint that happiness is around the corner.

How about you? What makes a novel's ending satisfying to you as a reader or writer?

Light up the Holidays with Lee

2009-12-10T08:10:00.003-06:00

Looking for some extra decorating ideas for the holidays? Need a last-minute hostess gift? Try making a festive little candle lamp from a wine glass.

This has my holiday DIY project and it’s turned out to be a lot of fun. I bought a bunch of thrift store wineglasses ranging in price from twenty-five to ninety-nine cents, sheets of vellum and semi-transparent holiday giftwrap, a package of tealight candles and a glue stick—and I was set.

I also have some decorative scissors and a cherub hole punch, and now for fun I’ve started to add some trim to the base of the wine glasses. It’s also a great way to use up stray beads and scraps of ribbon.

Want to try making some of your own? You’ll find lampshade templates here, here and here. Most shades can be cut from an 8.5" x 11" sheet of paper, although you’ll need to adjust the depth of shade to accommodate a taller glass.

Let’s light up the holidays together!

xoxo
Lee

PS: To celebrate the holidays and the July 2010 release of Firefighter Daddy, my next Harlequin American Romance, I’m running a December contest on my blog, The Writer Side of Life. The prize is an autographed 2010 firefighter calendar and other goodies to be determined.

What's in Your Stocking?

2009-12-09T07:04:00.004-06:00

For some families, Christmas is an elegant and refined celebration. For my family, Christmas is a little… different. It’s not that we don’t want to act refined. We even have the china and crystal set on linen tablecloths to prove it. But we’re scattered from Louisiana to Georgia to Florida and now to Indiana and don’t see each other often. When we do get together, we sometimes become a little too connected to our inner children. A few of us, namely my sister Eileen and I, love to tease our siblings, which often leads to a more raucous than refined celebration of Christ’s birth. Stocking stuffing has become one of our quirky family traditions.

This tradition devolved over the past decades, when we decided that the stocking opening, which often yielded staples like socks, chewing gum, and Chapstick, needed a little pizzazz. Or maybe the impetus was the Christmas that will live in infamy when my older sister and I, who butted heads constantly as teenagers, received super-sized onions in our stockings (what Santa used in the Byrnes household to express his displeasure since coal was unavailable). Some of the more spectacular stocking stuffings over the years include a gummy candy tongue, a toy reindeer that dropped brown jellybeans, and bacon bandaids. One year, we all tapped into the same wavelength and gave each other pickle ornaments.

Sometimes the desire to laugh spills over into the regular gift exchange among siblings. My sister Eileen and I especially like to give an additional odd gift to our older sister whose sense of humor, at times, is smaller than the Grinch’s pre-Christmas heart. Who knew an enormous bar of Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate and a small tub of double-salted Dutch licorice weren’t funny!

What would you like to find in your stocking Christmas morning? What, if anything, are you tempted to put in someone else’s stocking for a laugh?

Christmas cards

2009-12-08T02:00:00.002-06:00

by Terry McLaughlin

Whenever I hear the words "Christmas cards," two things come to mind. The first is the beautiful written greetings friends and family mail to each other at this time of year. The second involves memories of my family's favorite activity during the school holidays.

The game of Hearts was serious, cutthroat business. We rarely played it on weekends; we reserved it for summer and Christmas vacations, for long stretches of lazy days when rivalries could simmer and conspiracies could ferment. Two decks of cards made the play twice as complicated and doubled the fun. Another source of entertainment was my parents. They'd played highly competitive card games throughout their courtship; now they skipped proper parental examples and got down to our level.

Cheating was difficult but not impossible. I still remember the afternoon my sister and I stacked those two decks so that every seventh card would be dealt to one particular brother in a combination that would tempt him to shoot the moon but end in inevitable, crushing disaster. And there was always the agony of the dealer's choice of passing combinations before the beginning of play. Two to the right, twice. Or one to the left, followed by three to the right. Or the deadliest decree of all: play the cards you're dealt.

I developed an early and serious love–hate relationship with the Queen of Spades.

Another Christmas memory I treasure is a weekend-long Hearts tournament with some high school friends at a family ski cabin. One chaperone refused to play, at first, and his son told us to quit inviting him. Finally we convinced him to join our game...and then our friend's father proceeded to shoot the moon with every hand, just as his son had warned us he'd do. I still wonder how he managed that trick.

Does your family enjoy games of Christmas cards? What are your favorites?

Terry McLaughlin is celebrating her first Christmas-time release: A Small-Town Reunion. She's still bemused–and amused–by the Christmas décor on the cover of a story set in July.

Favorite Christmas Reads

2009-12-07T00:18:00.000-06:00

Last week I started my Christmas reading. My grandmother loved reading holiday romances, and she got me into it. Now, every year from Thanksgiving vacation to Christmas, I read Christmas themed books.

Last week I read the new Silhouette Romantic Suspense, with three novellas. The second one, about an undercover cop working as a mall Santa, was my favorite.

Now I’m reading a Superromance, Home for the Holidays by Sarah Mayberry, about a single dad who moves in next to a female mechanic after his wife died. So far not very Christmasy, though, and I’m halfway through.

Next I have Moonlight and Mistletoe by Dawn Temple, about a woman who’s the illegitimate daughter of a famous television personality and the lawyer who tries to get her to sign an agreement, only to become trapped at her cabin. So far, I love it.

Then there’s Silent Night, a collection of romantic suspense by Dee Davis, Evelyn Rogers and Claudia Dane. I have to say I have no idea what it’s about, but I love Evelyn Rogers, so I bought it.

Last year I’d read the Virgin River books and was excited about the Virgin River Christmas book, but honestly, this year I couldn’t tell you what it was about.

I read A Town Called Christmas by Carrie Alexander, I think, and I remember the heroine being a part of a family who had a Christmas business. I don’t remember who the hero was, but it was a sweet story.

My favorite—and I hope I have time to reread it this year—is Santa’s Angel, about a man doing community service (that’s not exactly right, but I don’t remember the details, something like that) as a store Santa and a woman who is Santa’s elf. She finds herself falling for the Santa, but doesn’t know he’s also the man who she finds arrogant in real life. He goes to great extents to hide his true identity and I love watching the two of them fall in love.

What are some of your favorite Christmas reads?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-12-06T11:04:00.002-06:00

Noodlers celebrate the Home for the Holidays theme with the following blogs for this week:

Monday, December 7th: MJ Fredrick Favorite Christmas Books
Tuesday, December 8th: Terry McLaughlin TBA
Wednesday, December 9th: Maureen Hardegree Stocking Stuffing Tradition
Thursday, December 10th: Lee McKenzie TBA
Friday, December 11th: Q&A: What makes a story ending satisfying to you as a reader?

Q&A Friday!!!!

2009-12-04T03:00:00.000-06:00

During this first week of December, noodlers, honoring this month's Home for the Holidays theme, have waxed nostalgic about television and movies celebrating the holiday season and about Christmas tree tinsel.

What are some holiday traditions you and your family follow?

Tinsel on the Tree

2009-12-03T08:53:00.004-06:00

When I think back on the Christmas trees of my childhood, I recall fat multi-colored lights, my dad wearing a hideous green and red paisley shirt the day the family decorated the tree, and tinsel.

Today, it’s hard to find people who decorate with it, let alone locate a box of icicle tinsel in the aisles of decorations available for purchase. This past week, I looked everywhere for it from discount stores to craft stores to import stores and came back empty-handed. My guess is that its popularity waned as we became more busy, and perhaps more conscious about the impact of Christmas on the environment. Picking strands off your formerly fresh tree before recycling or removing the tinsel from your artificial tree expends more time and energy than most of us want to commit for a little nostalgia. Thanks to the internet, however, if you have the time and you like the look, you can still purchase tinsel http://www.christmasdepot.com/.

The two dueling methods of tinsel decorating are Single Strand Draping and Free Form Tossing. Single Strand Draping requires drapers to stand close to the tree and carefully lay each individual strand on branch needles. Control freaks and mothers who don’t like to cut tinsel from their vacuum roller bars favor this method. Free Form Tossing requires decorators to stand several feet away from the tree and simply toss multiple strands at once, allowing them to fall where they may. Procrastinators, artistic-types, and most children of single-strand-draping mothers prefer the free form toss. Can you guess which camp my siblings and I belonged to?

Do you or don’t you tinsel? If you do, which method do you use?

Christmas Shows

2009-12-02T00:39:00.000-06:00

My Tivo to-do list is longer than usual this time of year, because of all the Christmas shows. There are the classic must-sees:

(My son watched The Grinch so much when he was little that I know it by heart. Except for the descriptions of the toys…)

I watched MERRY MADAGASCAR because I love King Julian and also the bush baby. Not as funny as I hoped.

I also love all the movies on Hallmark and ABC Family right now, especially the romances (duh.) Did you know there’s a Debbie Macomber one called MRS. MIRACLE? How awesome! The one I really loved last year was called The Christmas Card, about a woman who sends a Christmas card to a soldier and he comes to find her. Moonlight and Mistletoe was good, too.

What about the classic movies, you ask? Christmas Vacation is my favorite, and A Christmas Story (almost have that one memorized, too.) I like Elf and Miracle on 34^th Street, but can take a pass on It’s a Wonderful Life. I LOVE A Muppet’s Christmas Carol, so much that I hunted it down on VHS to show my class (we only have VCRs). I’m looking forward to seeing Four Christmases, too.

What are your favorite Christmas shows/movies? And does anyone besides me remember the show THE NIGHT THE ANIMALS TALKED? I loved that as a kid, but never see it anymore.

Home for the Holidays

2009-12-01T09:42:00.003-06:00

Some of us are lucky enough to have a home life that’s as warm and bright as a log fire on a cold night. In the spirit of the season, we’d like to bring a smile to your faces this December as we celebrate the holidays with good cheer at our writing home—The Wet Noodle Posse.

Noodlers will blog about their favorite holiday shows and music, about tree-decorating, stocking stuffing, and family reunions. Please join us.

“Oh, there’s no place like home for the holidays,
‘Cause no matter how far away you roam,
When you pine for the sunshine of a friendly gaze
For the holidays you can’t beat home, sweet home”

lyrics from "Home for the Holidays"

The Season of Giving by Debra Holland

2009-11-30T10:20:00.006-06:00

Christmas is the season of the year when people are the most generous. They not only give gifts to family and friends, but also to strangers and charitable organizations.

Unfortunately, due to the economy, charitable giving is down at the very time more people are in need. Perhaps you are one of those people. Or perhaps you aren’t able to give in the way you have in the past.

When I was in the fifth grade at Hope Lutheran School, we had to attend chapel every Wednesday. I remember one of the teachers delivered a sermon, using the analogy of a shovel. He said, when you give to God, God gives back. Only, he uses a bigger shovel. Meaning, the more you give to those in need, the more you receive in return.

I know I have lived a life that’s richly blessed. I’ve always had abundance, although some years I had financial difficulites. But through it all, I continued to support my favorite charities. And what I noticed was that my income often reflected my giving.

This principle of abundance has reflected strongly in my life in the last three years. I joined a church and made a committment to give a fixed amount every week. I’ve also continued to support charities such as Habitat For Humanity, Covenant House, and Orange County Mission.

What I found was that the shovel principle has definitely applied to me. Since I’ve been giving regularly, I’ve had so much work that I’ve had to turn away clients. And in this economy, with so much suffering around me, I don’t take my good fortune for granted.

If you’re thinking of cutting back on your charitable gifts this year, I’m going to urge you to rethink that decision. I’m going to ask you to think creatively about the ways you can give.

I remember hearing a sermon when I was young, where the minister outlined the three ways to tithe: time, talent, and treasure. If you don’t have much financially to give, you can still contribute something, even if it means tossing a few coins into the kettle of the Salvation Army bell ringer. It’s the gift from your heart that really matters, even more than the amount.

If you’re out of work, use some of your free time to volunteer. In addition to the help you give others, the satisfaction you receive from being of service will bring important meaning to your life, especially if you’re struggling with low spirits. Plus, you’ll find that there are always those who are worse off. Their troubles will put yours in perspective.

Think about the talents you have to offer. For example, many charitable organizations are in desperate need of someone with good writing and copyediting skills. Writing stories, articles, blurbs, and other copy could fill an important need.

Get your children involved with helping. Younger children can pick a name off a “giving tree” located at churches, malls, and hospitals. (I suggest you pick a child of a similar age and the same gender as your own.) Let the children choose the toys and/or clothes for the person and also help wrap and deliver the gift.

Older children can serve at soup kitchens, organize food or clothing drives at their schools, or donate part of their allowance to charity. Many times older children will gravitate towards a charity that feels meaningful to them or one that their friends are involved in.

And don’t forget to spread peace and good will to all. Being patient with a haried sales clerk, smiling at the shoppers around you, giving up your place in line to someone with cranky children are all ways to increase your Christmas cheer.

What are your favorite ways to give?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-11-29T19:23:00.003-06:00

Noodlers finish Giving Thanks month and begin our Home for the Holidays theme as November turns to December.

Monday, November 30th: Debra Holland TBA

Tuesday, December 1st: Introduction to Home for the Holidays Theme

Wednesday, December 2nd: MJ Fredrick Favorite Christmas Shows

Thursday, December 3rd: Maureen Hardegree Tinsel on the Tree

Friday, December 4th: Q&A: What holiday traditions does your family follow?

Q&A Friday!!

2009-11-27T06:26:00.001-06:00

Some of you may be spending Black Friday shopping, but for those writers and avid readers surfing the web, for this last Friday of November, the noodlers would like to know your thoughts about scenes that include a lot of people.

What are the challenges in writing a scene with more than a few characters, such as a scene set during a Thanksgiving Dinner? What makes a highly populated scene work?

Let us Give Thanks

2009-11-26T09:16:00.004-06:00

Let us give thanks for a bounty of people:

For children who are our second planting, and though they grow like weeds and the wind too soon blows them away, may they forgive us our cultivation and fondly remember where their roots are.

Let us give thanks: For generous friends with hearts as big as hubbards and smiles as bright as their blossoms;

For feisty friends as tart as apples;

For continuous friends, who, like scallions and cucumbers, keep reminding us that we've had them;

For crotchety friends, as sour as rhubarb and as indestructible;

For handsome friends, who are as gorgeous as eggplants and as elegant as a row of corn, and the others, as plain as potatoes and so good for you;

For funny friends, who are as silly as Brussels sprouts and as amusing as Jerusalem artichokes, and serious friends, as complex as cauliflowers and as intricate as onions;

For friends as unpretentious as cabbages, as subtle as summer squash, as persistent as parsley, as delightful as dill, as endless as zucchini, and who, like parsnips, can be counted on to see you through the winter;

For old friends nodding like sunflowers in the evening-time and young friends coming on as fast as radishes;

For loving friends, who wind around us like tendrils and hold us, despite our blights, wilts and witherings;

And, finally, for those friends now gone, who like gardens past that have been harvested, but who fed us in their times that we might have life thereafter;

For all these we give thanks.

Let Us Give Thanks from View from a Tree by Max Coots

A very happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

Eat Your Peas

2009-11-25T09:34:00.007-06:00

This is Frankie- newest member of our family. He is a perfect gentleman cat who has completely won over the unhappy Jinx by being so nice, so social, so friendly, and always giving her whatever she wants. He's won us over too. And I went looking for an entirely different kind of cat. He has almost perfect brown spirals on his sides. I wish I could get a picture of his beautiful pale blue eyes but they just won't photograph well.

But back to my story.

My mom was a terrific cook, and she completely lived for holidays when she could cook her wonderful turkey and dressing and all the trimmings. Naturally we lived for them too.

We had a wonderful dog, a Weimaraner named Greta, who Dad had gone all the way to Minnesota from Illinois to get. And she was perfectly trained when it came to family meals. Never begged or snitched anything.

One year a friend of my father's promised to bring us a wild goose from his hunting trip. Mom had never cooked a goose before, but she got out all of her cookbooks and even bought a new one, and she pored over them until she had a plan. A menu that had us all but drooling in expectation.

We all had to clean the thing- and we did it outside because cleaning fowl is a stinky business. But Mom did all the cooking. I was only allowed to do the extra things like setting the perfect table, sometimes peeling vegetables. It was a really big goose for a large family, and the preparations took all day long, but the final result was a beautiful sight. And the house filled with wonderful aromas that were different from anything we'd ever had before.

And so we gathered, all seven of us, and took our seats, napkins in our laps, ready for the best treat ever. Greta was probably salivating too, although none of us noticed her at the time. All we could think of was digging in. Dad carved. We passed our plates for the tantalizing meat. We passed around the dishes of vegetables, dressing, cranberry sauce, Mom's unforgettable Thanksgiving rolls. We said grace.

Then, like the big family we were, we dove in, all at once.

The first mouthful. In unison a huge groan of disgust roared forth. Shock registered on everyone's faces as we all looked at each other. Even Mom.How could anything that smelled and looked so fabulous taste so horrible? The most disgusting thing I think I've ever eaten! It was like biting and chewing a whole garlic clove all at once.

Poor Mom! "But I followed the recipe to the letter!" she said. I knew, because I'd read them with her, and she had done everything exactly as the cookbook said. It wasn't spoiled. It just tasted like pure wild garlic and onions. And the stuffing, my favorite part, was completely ruined by the giblets in it.

Dad did his best to console her, and even apologized. He'd heard sometimes wild geese feed on wild garlic, and it must have just recently had a lot of it. Mom thought maybe wild geese had to be cooked differently, but she hadn't found any recipes for game, so she'd used what she had. And we all agreed Mom was the best cook ever, so it couldn't be her fault.

So what were we going to do with the bird? Should we feed it to the dog? Greta sat a bit too near to the table for proper dog manners, her tail thumping wildly on the hard floor as we discussed the possibility.

Dad got up and took a slice of goose and laid it in Greta's dish. Sometimes we called her Hoover because of how she ate, sucking up food like a vacuum cleaner. We nearly changed her name for the way this piece went down.

And so Greta was taken out to her enclosure with a nice dog-sized helping of wild Thanksgiving goose, and we had vegetables for our Thanksgiving meal. And pie. The pie was great.

"Eat your peas," Mom said, like she always did. "There are children starving in China." I never quite understood that and quietly wondered if somehow those poor kids might like wild goose. But I always loved my vegetables and never failed to eat them. That year I was more grateful for them than ever.

And for a week after, nobody wanted Greta's attention because she smelled like garlic all over.

Cookies, Cakes and Pies…Oh, My!

2009-11-24T03:05:00.000-06:00

It’s that time of year again! Frosted cookies, pumpkin pies and gingerbread men with red sugary eyes!

As I’ve mentioned in the past, every year my sisters and I get together with our daughters and mother and sister-in-laws, and we bake cookies. Lots of cookies. After a long and wonderful day of stirring and mixing and tasting, we pack up plates of cookies for our friends and neighbors and always end up with enough cookies to freeze for the holidays!

I love cookies and it’s hard for me to pick my favorites, but I must say that the peanut butter cookies with the chocolate Hershey’s kiss in the middle are top on my list. I also love chocolate chip cookies packed with nuts and chunks of chocolate. I love adding extra dashes of cloves and cinnamon to the oatmeal cookie mixture…yummy!

The other day I looked in the Wet Noodle Posse archives for delicious recipes and found:

A wonderful recipe for Chocolate Nut Caramels Nut by Merrillee Whren: http://www.wetnoodleposse.com/archives/Dec_2004/stuff.html#recipes

Crunchy Peanut Butter Cookies by Lorelle Marinello, Pistachio Fingers by Trish Milburn, Almond-Rosewater Cookies by Janet Mullany and more recipes here!

Cookie day with my family this year will be on December 6th and I would love it if any of you have a delicious cookie recipe that you wouldn’t mind sharing. Any type of cookie would be great. I could really use a fabulous gingerbread cookie recipe. Something chewy and delicious!

Happy Baking!

10 Totally Frivolous Thank Yous

2009-11-23T00:01:00.000-06:00

We're usually serious and contemplative at this time of year, remembering to be thankful for things like health, freedom and plenty of food. And I am, indeed, thankful for all of those things. But I thought it might be fun to have a list of totally frivolous things for which I am, nevertheless, thankful. So here goes...

1. The wonderful experience of escaping into a story on the big screen. I went to see New Moon yesterday and had the best time. I'm already looking forward to Avatar next month.

2. Farmville, that crazily addictive farming game on Facebook.

3. Entertainment Weekly -- for my weekly dose of what's going on in the entertainment world

4. Whoever thought of putting TV shows on DVD. I'm currently on the 5th season of Gilmore Girls.

5. SyFy -- Thanks to this channel, I get regular doses of fun sci fi shows like Sanctuary and Stargate Universe.

6. Movie soundtracks -- I have lots.

7. The Bed, Bath and Beyond sales circulars that include 10% off coupons.

8. Twitter feeds from some of my favorite celebrities like Nathan Fillion and Misha Collins -- those guys are a riot.

9. Junior Mints

10. That J.J. Abrams decided to do a Star Trek movie. I saw it twice in the theater and already watched it again after buying the DVD last week. Tremendously rewatchable.

What about you all? What non-essential, totally frivolous things are you thankful for?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-11-22T16:18:00.002-06:00

Noodlers continue the Giving Thanks theme with the following blogs:

Monday, November 23rd: Trish Milburn/Tricia Mills TBA
Tuesday, November 24th: Theresa Ragan TBA
Wednesday, November 25th: Delle Jacobs Eat Your Peas
Thursday, November 26th: Karen Potter Happy Thanksgiving Poem
Friday, November 27th: Q&A: What are the challenges in writing a scene with a lot of people, such as a scene set during a Thanksgiving Dinner?

Q&A Friday!!

2009-11-20T06:40:00.000-06:00

One of the most wonderful aspects of Thanksgiving is the time we spend around the table with family and friends. Many books and movies include a feast scene, especially when there's a holiday setting.

One of my favorite feasting scenes comes at the end of the television special and movie The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. I love this scene because of the theme of forgiveness. I love how the Grinch comes to understand the true meaning of the season and is welcomed to the Who feast despite his previous behavior. He even carves the roast beast!

What is your favorite feasting scene from a movie and why is it your favorite?

Thanksgiving Napkin Ring Craft

2009-11-19T06:35:00.005-06:00

Here's one from the WNP Archives.

Thanksgiving Napkin Rings in Eight Easy Steps
(makes 8)

Materials:
1 spool of 1 ½ to 2 inch wide wired ribbon in a fall color
1 snap spool of Kreinik gold metallic cable thread (3 ply twist)
1 small spool of all purpose cotton-polyester blend thread that matches wired ribbon
1 sprig of silk fall leaves

Tools:
Needle
Scissors

These napkin rings are easy to make and look quite elegant. Get ready for the compliments!

First, unless you have these materials handy, go to your favorite local craft store to purchase your ribbon, metallic cable thread, all purpose thread that matches your ribbon, and sprig of silk leaves. Some great wired ribbon choices would be chocolate satin (like I picked), pumpkin velvet, or olive taffeta. Wired ribbon holds its shape better than regular ribbon. Keep in mind that the beauty of these napkin rings is in the quality of the ribbon you choose; so if you’re going to splurge, splurge on the ribbon. The chocolate wired lustre satin ribbon I chose runs about $4.99 per 12 foot spool. When selecting silk leaves, pick ones that show veining for the embroidery portion of the craft. I chose the Kreinik gold cable for the embroidery, but copper or silver would also be pretty.

Instructions:
1. Cut the smallest silk leaves from sprig.

2. Snip wired ribbon into eight 7 inch long pieces.

3. Cut a foot long length of 3 ply metallic thread. Separate strands. Thread needle with 1 strand of foot long metallic thread. Don’t use pieces much longer than 12 inches to ensure less fraying and knotting.
4. Center silk leaf in the middle of one piece of wired ribbon. Starting at the bottom of the center vein, outline stitch the veins on the leaf. Left-handed crafters will stitch right to left and will keep the thread below the needle. Right-handed crafters work from left to right, keeping thread above the needle. Bring needle up into the leaf at the beginning of the bottom center vein. Put the needle down into the leaf along the vein at about ¼ of an inch. Without pulling the gold cable all the way through, push the needle up through the vein about half way down the length of the previous stitch. Now pull the gold cable all the way through. Continue in the same manner, following the leaf vein up and out. Besides outlining the leaf veins, these stitches secure the leaf onto the ribbon.

5. Repeat Step #4 for all remaining ribbon pieces.

6. Flip ribbon inside out, fold ends about ¼ inch, press right sides together and hand stitch folded ends.

7. Repeat Step #6 for all ribbon pieces.

8. Flip ribbons right side out, and you’re ready to set your table.

Thankful for Airplanes

2009-11-18T10:47:00.019-06:00

Merrillee here who is thankful for a lot of things, especially my faith and family, but I'm also thankful for things like airplanes. This is a photo that I took a few years ago on a plane ride from Portland, Oregon to Spokane, Washington. As we left Portland, we ascended through the clouds and this is what I saw out my window. At that point, I was so thankful that I had my camera with me. I'm thankful for cameras, too. No one was there to tell me the name of the mountain that is protruding through the clouds, but it might be Mt. Hood or Mt. Shasta. The spectacular sight completely amazed me. This photo is only one of the reasons I'm thankful for airplanes.

My family is spread out all over the United States. When my little brother had his fiftieth birthday, I would have missed it if there were no airplanes.

I also would have missed this sunset. I took this photo from his back porch.

If not for airplanes, I would never have been to the Wimbledon Tennis Championships

or the Greek Isles

or traveled to Denver for my very first book signing

or get to see my daughters and their husbands. They are flying here for Thanksgiving.

And last but certainly not least, I wouldn't get to see my precious granddaughter on a regular basis.

What modern convenience are you thankful for?
Merrillee

Holiday Family Gatherings-- Putting the FUN in Dysfunctional

2009-11-17T11:39:00.002-06:00

My family is loud, funny, moody, talkative, expressive, exhausting, invigorating, stressful, delightful... I think you get the picture. A mixed bag, that's a blast to open.

We're spread out all over the US--from the Pacific to Mountain to Central to Eastern time zones. Boy, it's a bummer when my dad forgets about that and wakes you up on the only Saturday you have to sleep in all month. :-) But he calls with love.

And that's the big bow keeping our "mixed bag" tied together and looking pretty-- Love.

Through all the comedy film highlight reels of family disagreements or fiascos, the lost child at Disney (don't worry, we found her, getting the ride of her life on a circa 1940's car, driving down Main Street calling out for us on a megaphone), the adolescent attitudes, the aging process and all it's delights ... you name, or write about it, and we've probably experienced it... when push comes to shove, I know my family has my back. They know I've got theirs.

Did you ever see that Disney show called "Even Stephens"? The siblings were at each other's throats more often than not. Yet let one outsider try to pull a punch, and the entire family rallied around each other. Just like mine.

So, are your family get-togethers reminiscent of "Leave It to Beaver", "The Brady Bunch", "Roseanne", or a conglomeration of several?

I'd love to hear about your crazy family, or your normal family (though, who's to say what exactly IS normal?), or what you're looking forward to doing for FUN with your dysfunctional family this holiday season.

I'm thankful for my crazy bunch, and even excited for the 14 hour drive to see them. :-)

What about you?

Thanks to Harlequin!

2009-11-16T09:19:00.010-06:00

In this month of Thanksgiving, I thought I'd say a special Thank You to Harlequin Enterprises.

1. Thank you, Harlequin, for supporting genre fiction for over 100 years. Mills & Boon, the UK branch of Harlequin, celebrated their 100th anniversary in 2008, and Harlequin is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year. Think of all the pleasure readers received because of this commitement to genre fiction. My The Vanishing Viscountess was a featured book in Mills & Boon's 100 year celebration, and The Diamonds of Welbourne Manor was a featured book in Harlequin's "Diamond" anniversary.
In honor of their 60th anniversary, Harlequin has released some of its vintage books, and vintage office products to go witht them. These are available in bookstores and at eHarlequin.

2. Thank you, Harlequin, for embracing romance fiction. "Harlequin Enterprises sell over 130 million books worldwide each year - approximately 4 books per second" (from
Mills and Boon Australia ). By embracing romance fiction, Harlequin has spread the joy and optimism that are hallmarks of the genre. They have sent the message out over and over and over that love can heal; love can triumph over adversity. They've provided models of what good romantic relationships should be, based on respect and equality.

3. Thank you Harlequin for providing the means for so many authors (Amanda and me, included) to tell their stories and to make money for it. Harlequin has over 1,100 authors worldwide, and has given such industry giants as Nora Roberts an opportunity to break into print and hone their craft.

4. Finally, thank you, Harlequin, for giving me my chance. The day I received "The Call" from Mills & Boon was one of the happiest in my life. Not every day does someone make your dreams come true.

I didn't learn to love Romance by sneaking my mother's Harlequin books, like so many of us. I didn't realize what a wonderful wealth of fiction there was at Harlequin until I started writing and actually started reading Harlequins. (I found some of those early Nora Roberts books and loved them!) I always sign up to judge the series categories of the RITA contest, even though, you know me--the world's worst read romance writer--, I don't read much more than my friend Darlene Gardner's Superromances nowadays. And Harlequin Historicals, of course.

What role has Harlequin played in your life? I'll bet it's touched you somehow!

Come visit my website and see what's new. Enter my contest.

My latest, Gallant Officer, Forbidden Lady is available at eHarlequin right now. On store shelves Dec 1.

This Week on The Wet Noodle Posse

2009-11-15T15:59:00.002-06:00

Noodlers continue their Giving Thanks theme with the following blogs:

Monday, November 16th: Diane Gaston Thanks to Harlequin
Tuesday, November 17th: Priscilla Kissinger Family Get-Togethers—Even the Dysfunctional Ones
Wednesday, November 18th: Merrillee Whren Thankful for Airplanes
Thursday, November 19th: Maureen Hardegree Thanksgiving Napkin Ring Craft
Friday, November 20th: Q&A: What is your favorite feasting scene from a movie and why?

Q&A Friday!!!!

2009-11-13T07:35:00.003-06:00

For our second Friday of Giving Thanks month, I couldn't help but think of food. That might have something to do with the fresh cranberries, sweet potatoes, and frozen turkeys starting to fill the bins of my local grocery. Or maybe it was the tower of canned pumpkin that caught my eye as I pushed my grocery cart down the aisles this week.

Which foods can't you pass up on Turkey Day?

The Lighter Side of Life

2009-11-12T02:00:00.003-06:00

posted by Lee McKenzie

I was going to write about something serious today but I'm not feeling at all serious. Instead, I’m feeling thankful for creative people who make me laugh. I think it’s very cool that YouTube provides a venue for creative people to express themselves, and I’m especially grateful that I get to enjoy it.

So instead of trying to be serious, I decided to share some of my favorite YouTube videos.

To start with, have you seen the Simon’s Cat series? I think “Cat Man Do” was the first one posted a year ago. It’s been viewed more than eleven million times!

Simon’s Cat “Fly Guy” was posted three months ago and it’s already been watched more than three million times.

If you go to YouTube.com and do a search for “Simon’s Cat,” you’ll get the complete list of all his videos. Great fun, and now there’s even a book!

And are you, like me, one of the more than thirty-one million people who have watched the JK Wedding Entrance Dance?

This video went viral this summer, resulting in a Today Show appearance by the entire wedding party.

And the TV show The Office did a fun take on this when Jim and Pam got married a few weeks ago. The gang at The Office have a long tradition of playing pranks on one another, and their colleagues’ wedding was no exception.

Ah, yes. Love and laughter. They work for me every time.

There must be millions of videos on YouTube, and I know I'm barely scratching the surface. Do you have a favorite YouTube video? Please share, because I would love to watch it!

Until next time,
Lee
The Writer Side of Life
www.LeeMcKenzie.com

Top Ten Tips for Writing a Thank You Note

2009-11-11T08:21:00.001-06:00

1. Use a high cotton content paper or notecard. Think simple and elegant.

2. Handwrite your thank you. Handwrite the addresses on the envelope, too, rather than use printed address labels.

3. Write a rough draft on scrap paper first.

4. Be specific about what the gift is and why you are thankful. If the gift is a critique, then tell the person who wrote it what specific advice you found helpful and plan to use to improve your writing. If the thank you is for birthday money, tell the giver how you intend to use it.

5. Keep your note succinct. Most thank you note stationary provides an expanse of 4” x 5” in which to express yourself. If you keep the thank you from three to five sentences, you should be okay. Leave enough room for your signature, too!

6. Be sincere in your gratitude. If you don’t plan to wear the sweater Great Aunt Margaret knitted, don’t lie. Thank her for the love and care that went into every stitch.

7. Revise your draft.

8. Proofread for grammar and punctuation errors. Correct them.

9. Pen the final draft on your nice stationary.

10. Don’t wait too long to send your thanks. According to most etiquette gurus, thank you notes should be sent within forty-eight hours. With wedding or graduation gifts, thank you notes can be sent as late as four to six weeks after the event.

What other tips can you add to the list?

Life's lessons

2009-11-10T02:00:00.003-06:00

by Terry McLaughlin

I was blessed with parents who placed a high value on education. They sacrificed for private-school tuition, and donated hundreds of hours of volunteer service, and spent an incredible amount of time transporting us to the best possible schools.

Occasionally, they'd supplement our school days with additional programs--music and dance classes, foreign language tutorials, symphony tickets, college extension courses, travel opportunities. One of my favorite family traditions was the annual Christmas-break visit to a museum.

Two sets of extracurricular lessons I'm especially grateful for are those my mother arranged for me the year I was in the seventh grade. She felt that some practice with public speaking would help me conquer my shyness. And since she'd always wished she could sew, she decided I should learn that skill.

I wasn't interested in sewing, and I really didn't want to stand in front of strangers and make speeches. I whined and complained and made a preteen fuss over both after-school activities. But my mother was stubborn--and she was right, as mothers so often are. By the end of the year, I'd discovered I had a talent for speaking, and I'd begun to compete in city-wide forensics tournaments. I'd also begun a lifelong love affair with needle and thread.

Since that time, I've spent thousands of happy hours creating costumes, gowns, quilts, curtains, and upholstery. I designed and made my own wedding dress and veil, and one for my sister, too. I find fabric stores every bit as tempting as bookstores.

There's a box in the attic filled with medals and trophies I won in speech contests, and some of my happiest teaching memories are the afternoons I spent with my high school Speech & Drama students. After so much practice, I've never been uncomfortable speaking to a crowd of any size.

So thanks, Mom, for the lessons. They gave me far more than knowledge and skill--they brought me contentment and confidence.

What lessons are you grateful for?

Thankful for the Little Things

2009-11-09T00:10:00.003-06:00

Isn't it odd how we seem to devote one day a year to being thankful and then forget to give thanks the rest of the year. We all get busy and begin to take things for granted. But sometimes it's nice to slow down and really think about what all we're thankful for on a more regular basis. For example, in just the weekend alone, here are the things I'm thankful for:

1. Warmer-than-normal November weather -- It's been beautiful the past few days, allowing me to get in some yard work and nice walks around the neighborhood. And the longer it stays warm now, the shorter the winter will seem.

2. My laptop -- I do most of my writing on my laptop, and just this weekend alone it's allowed me to finish up a chapter on one book and get a proposal put together for another series to send to my agent.

3. The scent of cinnamon that seems to be in all the stores now, putting me in the mood for the holidays. Same with holiday decorations.

4. Homemade pizza -- Yesterday was the hubby's birthday, and what he wanted was the homemade pizza made from his Mom's recipe. So that's what we had, and it's the best pizza around.

5. My TiVo -- I've said it before, and no doubt I'll say it again, but I love my TiVo. It allows me to record shows I like while I'm working. Then, when I finish up my writing for the day, I can kick back and watch, zipping past all the commercials. This weekend, I've fit in Extreme Makeover Home Edition, two episodes of Heroes, Smallville and the season premiere of The Seeker.

What have you experienced in the past few days that you're thankful for?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-11-08T17:11:00.003-06:00

Noodlers continue exploring Giving Thanks month with the following blogs:

Monday, November 9th: Trish Milburn/Tricia Mills TBA
Tuesday, November 10th: Terry McLaughlin Lessons
Wednesday, November 11th: Maureen Hardegree Top Ten Tips for Writing Thank You Notes
Thursday, November 12th: Lee McKenzie TBA
Friday, November 13th: Q&A: What foods can’t you pass up on the Thanksgiving table?

Please join us!

Q&A Friday!!!

2009-11-06T08:59:00.002-06:00

On this, our first Friday of Giving Thanks month, noodlers are curious about which novels and what characters our readers are most thankful for. What novels and characters make you want to shout thanks to the person who wrote them?

I, for one, am thankful for Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series and the characters of Claire and Jamie. Her writing transports me!

Movies with a Theme of Thanks

2009-11-05T08:22:00.007-06:00

When it comes to holiday movies, Christmas may have other holidays beat. But if you’re looking for a Thanksgiving movie to put you in the proper frame of mind for your holiday gathering, here are a few to consider. Some of these films feature the actual holiday; others provide a theme of “being thankful.”

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving—Charlie Brown and the gang learn the true meaning of Thanksgiving after Peppermint Patty boldly arranges for everyone to celebrate the holiday at Charlie's house

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles—Caution** f-bombs at the rental car counter unless you get the sanitized version. En route to Chicago to spend Thanksgiving with his family, easily annoyed businessman Neal Page finds his first-class plane ticket has been demoted to coach, and he must share his flight with obnoxious salesman Del Griffith. A sudden snowstorm in Chicago forces the plane to land in Wichita. Unable to find a room in any of the four-star hotels, Neal is compelled to accept Del's invitation to share his accommodations in a cheapo-sleazo motel. Driven to distraction by Del's annoying personal habits, the ungrateful Neal lets forth with a stream of verbal abuse. That's when Del delivers the anticipated (but always welcome) "I don't judge, why should you?"-type speech so common to John Hughes flicks. The shamefaced Neal tries to make up to Del, but there's a bumpy time ahead as the mismatched pair make their way back to Chicago, first in a balky train, then by way of a refrigerator truck. We know from the outset that the oil-and-water Neal and Del will be bosom companions by the end of Planes, Trains and Automobiles, but it's still a fun ride.

Pieces of April—Family outcast April Burns lives in a beat-up apartment in New York's Lower East Side with her boyfriend, Bobby. In order to spend some time with her dying mother, Joy, April invites her conservative suburban family to her place for a Thanksgiving feast. She discovers that her oven is broken the morning of the big day, so she goes around her tenement building trying to find a sympathetic neighbor with a working oven. Though she doesn't know them, neighbors Eugene and Evette offer the use of their oven, but only for an hour. While she frantically tries to complete the meal, the family drives in from Pennsylvania sharing less-than-pleasant opinions about April's lifestyle. Dad Jim tries to think positively, while daughter Beth flaunts her good-girl status and son Timmy captures it all on film.

Pay It Forward--Pay It Forward movingly conveys a simple yet profound message: We all share responsibility for making the world a better place. That's the lesson young Trevor McKinney of gleans from the social-studies class taught by Eugene Simonet. So he comes up with an ingenious concept: When someone does you a favor, don't pay it back, pay it forward -- in other words, do a favor for someone else. Trevor's enthusiastically implemented idea yields remarkable results, but not all of them are beneficial.

What’s your favorite Thanksgiving movie?

Brownies--A Recipe Sure to Garner Thanks

2009-11-04T07:49:00.002-06:00

This is my all-time favorite brownie recipe. It's easy and will earn you many a compliment.

Brownie Recipe
(Based on the Recipe from The Fannie Farmer Baking Book)

Ingredients:
4 ounces (4 squares) unsweetened baking chocolate, chopped
½ cup salted butter (1 stick), chopped into pats
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup flour

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease and flour an 8 inch square pan. DO NOT USE A RECTANGULAR PAN! Place the butter and chocolate in a sauce pan and melt over low heat. Stir frequently. Once the butter and chocolate are melted and combined, take the sauce pan off of the heat and set aside for a few minutes to cool. Once cool, add vanilla, sugar, salt, and eggs. Stir until combined and glossy. Add flour to the chocolate mixture in sauce pan and stir until incorporated. The batter should be thick. Spread batter evenly in square pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the pan comes out BARELY CLEAN. If the toothpick is totally clean, you’ve over-baked the brownies. Cool, then cut into 16 squares and enjoy!

What recipe earns you thanks?

Five Things to Be Thankful For

2009-11-03T06:54:00.002-06:00

Most days are a blur for many of us. We don’t cross off everything on our lengthy “to do” lists, and these do’s carry over to our lists for the next day. As it is Giving Thanks month here at the posse, crazy as it sounds, I wanted to add one more thing to my list, something I don’t often scribble amid the grocery shopping and bank treks—counting my blessings. How often do we slow down enough to realize how much we have to be thankful for?

As a group, the wet noodle posse is thankful for the writing contracts we have, the agents who represent us, for the readers who enjoy our books and short stories, and for our families and friends who support us in our creative endeavors.

As an individual, here are the top five things I am thankful for today:
1. family
2. friends
3. health
4. a sound roof over my family’s head
5. a local dance supply store calling Grishko for me last night and getting them to send a few pairs of my daughter’s pointe shoes, needed for Nutcracker in three weeks. They’re on back order at my usual on-line store. Whew! Thank you, Center Stage!

How about you? What’s on your list? What are you thankful for?

Giving Thanks

2009-11-02T07:58:00.003-06:00

If all thoughts turn to holiday celebrations in December, then surely many turn to Giving Thanks in November. Thanksgiving, officially celebrated in the U.S. at the end of November and in Canada in October, is unofficially celebrated all over the world in many cultures for successful harvests, for the end of long droughts, for surviving an illness, and even for finding or keeping a job in a depressed economy.

Giving Thanks essentially is about finding the good in our lives and being grateful for it. Sometimes that includes roasted turkey, pumpkin pie, a televised parade in NYC, and a tryptophan-induced nap. Sometimes it doesn’t!

Please join the Wet Noodle Posse as we explore the theme of Giving Thanks throughout November. We’ll provide our top ten tips for writing a thank you note, we’ll discuss lessons in thanks, and we’ll share recipes that’ll garner thanks. Feel free to borrow those recipes for your family feast.

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-11-01T21:50:00.002-06:00

Monday, November 2nd: Introduction to Giving Thanks
Tuesday, November 3rd: Five Things to Be Thankful For
Wednesday, November 4th: Brownies: A Recipe Certain to Garner Thanks
Thursday, November 5th: Movies with a Thankful Theme
Friday, November 6th: Q&A: What are some novels and characters you’re thankful for?

Q&A Friday!!!

2009-10-30T08:58:00.002-05:00

Happy Halloween!

For our last October blog, noodlers would like to know: What are you giving out to trick-or-treaters this year? Tootsie Rolls or Toothbrushes? Nerds or Necco wafers?

A Few Last Words About Breast Cancer Awareness Month

2009-10-29T09:07:00.002-05:00

Breast cancer.

There’s not a woman alive who isn’t terrified of those words.

The good news is that breast cancer can be caught early and treated successfully just by paying attention. Yet, many women don’t monitor the condition of their breasts, don’t have annual mammograms and don’t bring problems to the attention of their doctors.

Some of the hesitation comes from the age-old taboo against a woman touching her own body. Ironically, the first step in beating this disease is to, quite literally, take matters into your own hands. Doing a breast self-exam regularly is a good way to get to know how your breasts normally look and feel. This way, you can more easily notice changes. The best time to do a breast self-exam is when your breasts are not tender or swollen, such as a few days after your period.

Two weeks ago I had my third surgery in ten years to remove a lump from my right breast. For the third time in 10 years I received the news every woman wants to hear...“You do not have breast cancer.” Each of these three times I discovered the problem myself during a regular breast self-exam.

I’m not a breast care fanatic but there is a history of cancer in my family (though, thankfully, not breast cancer), and it makes me aware of the importance of taking care of myself. I’d rather experience these little speed bumps in life and get them taken care of now than ignore signs of trouble and spend my remaining years asking “what if.”

As important as they are, self exams should not take the place of regular screening mammograms or clinical breast exams which are done by a doctor. If cost is a factor, call your local health department or library to ask for information about groups in your area which assist women with medical needs.

Most of all, don’t be afraid. Yes, you may find a lump or other abnormality, but the sooner it’s discovered, the better. Turn anxiety into action.

Take this message to heart and help spread the word. Leave a message for our readers if you like, share your story, pass along some wisdom or encouragment.

The Almost- November Month

2009-10-28T00:00:00.010-05:00

There's an old English ballad called "The World Turned Upside Down" that legend says was played on fife and drum at the surrender of Cornwallis to Washington at Yorktown. The song originated in 1651 ,when Cromwell banned the traditional celebrations of Christmas in England because of their pagan connections.

http://www.contemplator.com/england/worldtur.html

It probably wasn't played at Yorktown, though. There is no historical mention of the song in connection with the event until 1881, a hundred years later. Of course we know Lord Cornwallis declined to attend his own surrender, and his representative refused to surrender to Washington anyway, handing over the sword to the French commander Rochambeau instead. Washington didn't seem to mind, apparently viewing that last piece of denial in the overall perspective of victory.

Yorktown did change the world. And whether one little song was played on that day, or whether it merely came to be symbolic of the spirit of the day, we can't tell now. Maybe some soldier in the back of the ranks slyly whistled a few bars and was told to shut up before he messed up the whole deal- we'll never know.

I often think about this little song this time of year, because it seems to me the world is turning upside down. It's not that I dislike autumn- I don't. It's just that everything about my focus changes. It's that the year is winding down, just as winter is winding up. And it always seems to come on much faster than I had intended. It's almost Halloween already, and I'm not quite used to the fact that the sun comes up too late and the rains are making the days dark and chilly. Seems like it ought to still be September.

The Almost-November phase for me also means I re-evaluate my life, priorities, and particularly my writing. Inevitably I've slipped over the summer. I'm behind schedule once again. True, I'm one of those people whose mood sags in the winter months, sometimes badly, and I don't look forward to that, but when I'm in gayer spirits in the warmer months, I have this sometimes unfortunate tendency to do lots of fun things instead of what I "should" be doing.

So October starts the catch-up time. I used to be in a rush to complete my manuscripts in time for the Golden Heart. Now there are deadlines, promised submissions, and the need to complete stories has become a compulsion all by itself. It's like getting the house ready for winter. Got to get things done before the snow falls (which in this part of the country can be any time between November and next year). I'm like that really fat squirrel that has been testing my bedroom window screen lately.

I suppose it's just a natural part of the yearly cycle. you'd think I'd be used to it by now. At least the squirrel has been storing pine nuts all summer. You can tell by the size of his belly he's pretty well prepared for the coming cold. So maybe I'm a little late, but I guess you'd say I'm storing up nuts for the winter.

Does autumn put you in a different frame of mind? Does it have these same plus-minus feelings for you?

Turning Leaves

2009-10-27T03:52:00.008-05:00

Merrillee here hoping that these photos will give you even a little taste of the spectacular beauty we saw this past weekend in the mountains of North Georgia. The following photo was taken from the top of Brasstown Bald, the highest point in Georgia. I barely had time to snap this picture before the clouds rolled in and obscured the view.

I took the photo below just as the clouds started to cover the top of the mountain. A few minutes later, a sea of white lay between us and the colorful trees below. If we had gotten there five minutes later, I wouldn't have been able to see the fantastic colors. On a clear day, you can see Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee from the top of the mountain. There is a lesson in these photos. Take advantage of an opportunity when it first presents itself. If you wait, the opportunity may be lost.

I took this last photo from the deck of our friends' house. They live near the top of a road that winds up the side of a steep hill. Making the trek to the top yields a fantastic view of the mountains and the lake. I took another lesson away from this experience. Taking the high road is better in views and in life.

Where do you like to go to see fall foliage?

Turning Gray

2009-10-26T12:43:00.002-05:00

To color or not to color that is the question, or maybe it used to be. I notice a lot more women out and about who’ve made the choice to let their gray show. Is it the whole Dove natural beauty campaign? Is it the tight economy? I suspect it’s a lot of different reasons for different people. Here are my reasons for letting the gray come as it may, and I’ve been letting it go since my daughter entered kindergarten. She’s now fifteen.

1. I like being different. The sparkling silver strands I sport are hard if not near impossible to duplicate in a coloring process. If it can’t be duplicated except by nature, I am somewhat unique.
2. I am lazy when it comes to covering the skunk line (the white/silver line of regrowth that forms between two to four weeks after your last dye job, revealing the true color of your graying head). Because gray hair resists color, if you have over 40 % gray, you’ll end up with permanent color. Talk about a line of demarcation when it grows out!
3. Occasionally, I get the senior discount even though I’m years away from being eligible. I like saving money more than I care about teenagers thinking I’m older than my birth certificate states.
4. The money and time I would have spent on hair color can go toward something I enjoy like a pound of good coffee or a bottle of wine.
5. My husband finds it attractive, and that, my friends, pretty much says it all.

By the way, if you’re thinking of letting your gray hair shine in all its glory, make sure to condition your hair every time you wash it, wash it less frequently to keep it from frizzing, and don’t use one of those violet-based shampoos more than once a week—unless you want a lavender tint to your gray.

Will you age gracefully with or without the gray showing? Why do you think more women are making the choice not to color their hair?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-10-25T15:31:00.002-05:00

Noodlers explore the following topics this week:

Monday, October 26th: Maureen Hardegree Turning Gray
Tuesday, October 27th: Merrillee Whren TBA
Wednesday, October 28th: Delle Jacobs The World Turned Upside Down
Thursday, October 29th: Karen Potter Breast Cancer Screening: Early Detection and Biopsies
Friday, October 30th: Q&A: What are you giving trick-or-treaters this year?

Q&A Friday!!!

2009-10-23T07:35:00.003-05:00

We've explored some fun topics this week. Now let's switch gears to writing.

What can writers do to improve their stories' turning points?

Favorite Scary Movies

2009-10-22T00:54:00.001-05:00

This time of year I am crazy for scary movies. The evenings are cool and I love turning the lights down and snuggling up with a good scary movie.

The Ring—I think this is the scariest movie I’ve ever seen. I’d not seen the creepy movement of the well girl before, and the associated urban legend—“Watch this video and you die”—still gives me shivers.

Scream—I loved the humor mixed with terror in this movie. Also, a major movie star was killed in the first act—anything could happen from there.

The Blair Witch Project—The buzz for this was amazing. Our son was small, so we waited until it came on Pay-Per-View. I think we were both confused, so we watched it again with closed captioning. The last scene was so haunting, and raised so many questions. We talked about it for days.

Halloween—I can watch this over and over this time of year.

The Thing—Back when VCRs first came out, the dh and I (we were dating at the time) rented this movie. While it wasn’t the scariest thing ever, the isolation in the movie did make for some tension.

The Pit and the Pendulum—I remember watching this Vincent Price movie when I was a kid and actually sucking in my stomach as the pendulum descended.

American Werewolf in London—my first R rated movie, very bloody, lots of fun.

Amityville Horror—I read the book when I was in middle school and the first movie scared me to death.

The Fog—I really enjoyed both the original and the remake with Tom Welling. The child in danger, the fact that they couldn’t leave the island, the encroaching fog….creepy!

Salem’s Lot—I don’t remember if I read the book before or after the miniseries aired, but I LOVE the original with David Soul, Bonnie Bedelia and James Mason. The floating Glick boys, the movers bringing the coffin back into town, James Mason, all had me on the edge of my seat.

Poltergeist (1 and 2)—Sweet-faced little girl, floating corpses, CREEEEEEEPY old man. Another one I’ll watch over and over.

The Messengers—A family in a haunted old farmhouse, isolated from everything, threatened by spirits of a murdered family. It got awful reviews but I loved it.

Creepshow—The zombie dad coming for his birthday cake—ACK!

The Believers—Martin Sheen investigating the religion of Santeria, Jimmy Smits as the bad guy. Sad and scary. Lots of snakes.

Funny:

Abbott and Costello—We watched these movies on Saturdays when I was a kid. I loved “Meet Frankenstein” best, but “Meet the Mummy” is a close second.

Mystery Science Theater—We watched these movies on Saturdays when I was a young mom. I loved the ones with Joel most of all. All that delicious snarky humor.

Eight Legged Freaks—David Arquette can be annoying, but I notice I have 2 of his movies on my list. I thought this one was a good chuckle.

Love at First Bite—Best. Vampire. Movie. Ever.

Lake Placid—Bill Pullman was so charming, the sheriff had the best one-liners, Oliver Platt was a hoot. Also, Betty White!

I want to see Paranormal Activity, but will wait for DVD and hopefully avoid spoilers. What are your favorite scary movies?

Easy, No Sew Halloween Costumes

2009-10-21T07:47:00.004-05:00

Here are a few ideas for those of you looking for something a bit different this Halloween:

1. 50’s beatnik: black turtleneck, black slacks, black beret if you have one. A copy of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road or Allen Ginsberg’s poetry. Use a little beatnik slang: cool, man, hip, strictly dullsville, Daddy-O.

2. Frazzled mom: High-waisted mom jeans or pleated khakis, hair standing on end courtesy of Aussie freeze spray, dark circles under the eyes. Big purse with everything in it. Large bottle of fake Exedrin coming out of the top of the bag along with a Starbuck’s cup and a diaper.

3. Trash: Cut holes in the bottom of a trash bag. Step in. Stuff with newspaper. Duck tape to shoulders and strategically stick items like empty cans, crumpled newspaper around shoulders. Bobby pin crumpled paper to head and some uncooked spaghetti noodles.

4. A member of your family: Who can you best mimic? Your wife, husband, daughter, son, mother, father. Use the family member’s accessories, exaggerate the mannerisms, immitate the fashion sense. For example, if I wanted to be my husband, I’d stuff my hair under one of his baseball caps. Draw on a goatee. Wear glasses, his sandals, and a UGA shirt or sweatshirt. I have plenty to pick from in his closet.

5. Golfer: A cap, straw fedora, or visor. A collared short sleeve shirt. Khaki shorts or pants. A putter. Wear oversized logos from your sponsors, made from colored duck tape. Nod at people, touch the brim of your hat, and mouth “thank you.”

6. Bridesmaid of Frankenstein. If your mother or a neighbor doesn’t have a bridesmaid’s dress hiding in the back of the closet, go to a thrift store. You’ll be sure to find one—the more hideous the better. Create a wacky hairstyle. Overdo your make-up. Create a bouquet from silk flowers. Walk like you’re a monster created by Dr. Frankenstein and ask how many groomsmen are single.

7. Cafeteria Lady: Big dress stuffed with pillows. White Apron. Plastic gloves. Hairnet. Large slotted spoon. Panty hose with sensible shoes. Name Pin: Mabel, Gastronomic Engineer, Local grade, middle or high school name.

8. Blood clot: Safety pin red and burgundy balloons to a red or burgundy sweat shirt.

9. Unmade Bed. Sheet, pillow, pillow case with eye holes cut out, afghan or half an old bedspread. Option 2: don’t cut holes in the pillow case. Use a knit cap same color as pillow case and face paint.

10. Crossing guard. Dark sweatshirt and pants. White reflective duck tape to create over the shoulder and belt, stripe down side of pants. A whistle on a lariat. White gloves. Periodically stop and direct the trick-or-treating traffic.

Can you think of some other costumes that wouldn’t require sewing skills?

PERSEVERANCE

2009-10-20T02:04:00.000-05:00

Fifteen years and 151 rejections later, a writer friend on my 2008 Golden Heart loop made a sale to Steeple Hill. That’s what I call perseverance! This blog is for those of you out there who want something so badly you can taste it. For those of you who wake up early or stay up late into the wee hours of the night to make your dreams come true. This is for those of you who might have felt angry or bitter or resentful at times because you haven’t reached the destination you set out for so long ago. This blog is to remind you that it can happen, and I, for one, believe it will happen to you if you don’t give up. If you’re a writer, you need to submit your stuff…get it out there! You have to take risks and be aggressive and most of all you have to believe in yourself.

If you have watched Oprah lately (I record the shows and then watch when I can) you’ve seen the girl from skid row who took a bus 2 ½ hours every day to get to high school. She spent her free time in the library because it was a heck of a lot better than sitting on the streets of LA. She read books, a lot of books, she studied, and eventually she was accepted into Harvard.

And what about the son of migrant farmworkers whose parents never graduated past the third grade? Jose Hernandez wanted to grow up to be an astronaut, but the odds were against him. He never gave up his dream and at the age of 41 he became an astronaut candidate for NASA. Jose could very well be the next human being to step on the moon!

My oldest daughter, Morgan, has always wanted to be in front of a camera, not as an actor but as a host…the next female Ryan Seacrest. Despite not knowing a soul in LA, she recently moved to Los Angeles. She quickly got a job at a restaurant and a second job at a mall while taking hosting classes in Santa Monica. She also found a room to rent. After only six months, she told me she knew exactly where she wanted to work, and so she quit her job at the restaurant and told the company where she wanted to work that she would intern for no pay. To my surprise, they gave her a desk. The company manages celebrities and runs auditions for misc. shows, etc. For six weeks she ran errands and answered the phone. Every morning on her way to work, she told me she was determined to get hired permanently. Never mind that they never said they needed another employee. It was a place Morgan felt she needed to be so she could learn and grow. Needless to say, her money soon ran out and she needed to eat. We told her she had one month before she had to go get a real job that paid. She said, “Don’t worry, they will hire me before it comes to that.” I knew all about putting timeframes on dreams and I was worried, but a week later she was offered a full time job with a good salary! She’s just another positive story out of many. The kind of story that tells you that sometimes you just need to go for it!!

What inspiring stories have you heard lately? Or maybe you know of someone who never gave up on their dreams. If so, please share your story!

pictures 1) Morgan moving to LA 2) Morgan working at Bubba Gump 3) Morgan taking charge of her life while trying on hats!

Turn to A Treasure Trove of Golden Heart Advice

2009-10-19T00:06:00.001-05:00

This is Golden Heart season, the perfect time to force yourself to finish that manuscript and enter it in the Golden Heart. We at the WNP are great believers in the power of the GH contest; we came together because of the contest, after all!

We have some great advice about the GH for you to turn to. In 2007, our blog focused on the Golden Heart and we had some pretty spectacular advice to offer. The great news is, it's STILL available to you.

Keep in mind, though, that this is 2007 advice. Pay close attention to the 2010 Golden Heart rules to make sure that what we said is still true.

Here's why you should enter the Golden Heart:

Why Enter the Golden Heart? by Debra Holland Oct 1, 2007
Good Things Can Happen from The Golden Heart by Diane Gaston (moi!) Oct 2, 2007
Using the Golden Heart to Your Advantage by Anne Mallory Oct 11, 2007

Okay. That's the why. Now how about WHERE to enter your manuscript?
(Remember, this was 2007, so be alert for any changes in the categories)

Strong Romantic Elements Category by Esri Rose Oct 16, 2007
Contemporary Series Romance by Jill Monroe Oct 17, 2007
Historical Categories by Diane Gaston Oct 18, 2007
Inspirational Category by Merrillee Whren Oct 19, 2007
Paranormal Category by Esri Rose Oct 20, 2007
Young Adult by Trish Milburn Oct 15, 2007
Romantic Suspense by Trish Milburn Oct 217, 2007

Writing Tips for the Golden Heart:

Opening Lines by Trish Milburn Oct 22, 2007
Writing Tight by Theresa Ragan Oct 23, 2007
Synopsis by Delle Jacobs Oct 24, 2007
Be Kind To Your Judge's Eyes by Karen Potter Oct 25, 2007
9 Mistakes Contest Entants Make by MJ Frederick Oct 31, 2007
Dialogue by Norah Wilson Oct 29, 2007

That should get you started! There is more, though. To find our previous Golden Heart advice, scroll down all the way on this page and look at the right for Blog Archives. Our Golden Heart focus was Oct through Dec 2007, but there are some under Oct 2008, too.

I urge you to turn to this treasure chest. You won't be sorry.

If any questions arise, ask them here and I'll try to answer. It will help if you reference which blog your question is from. Or ask a general question. I'm easy....

My website now has an excerpt of Gallant Officer, Forbidden Lady and a new contest!

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-10-18T20:48:00.003-05:00

Monday, October 19th: Diane Gaston Turn to A Treasure Trove of Golden Heart Advice
Tuesday, October 20th: Theresa Ragan TBA
Wednesday, October 21st: Maureen Hardegree Easy No Sew Costumes
Thursday, October 22nd: MJ Fredrick Favorite Scary Movies
Friday, October 23rd: Q&A: What can writers do to improve their stories’ turning points?

Please join us!

Q&A Friday!!!

2009-10-16T06:26:00.001-05:00

Like many Halloweenies, I like most things associated with the holiday--the excuse to eat candy, carving pumpkins, dressing up. In fact, picking out a costume for Halloween or creating one of my own has always been and continues to be a lot of fun for me.

I think that fun all started with a Cinderella costume that came in a box with a plastic mask and an outfit that resembled a hospital gown more than the finery available for purchase at the Disney Store. If I close my eyes, I can still feel my eyelashes brush against the plastic as I peered through the cut-outs; I can still feel the condensation of my breath against the plastic.

What was your favorite Halloween costume from childhood?

Fall favorites

2009-10-15T08:13:00.004-05:00

This month we're celebrating changes, "turns, turns, turns". For this Florida girl who's been transplanted to the Midwest, this time of year isn't exactly my favorite, weather-wise. I live for the first warm days of spring and the dogdays of summer. Funny though, my favorite holiday is a winter one--Christmas-- but while I think a white Christmas is pretty, I wouldn't mind if the temp rose on Dec. 26th. :-)

As I sit at my kitchen table typing, wearing fleece, a thick robe, and warm socks (still shivering) I'm wondering how why we bypassed autumn and jumped right into winter. Does that mean spring will come earlier, too? Somehow I doubt it.

While we don't see many leaves changing in central & south Florida, I've come to appreciate the beauty of fall leaves and their glorious new wardrobe here in the Midwest. I'll actually miss it if the dreary weather keeps up and the leaves don't get the sun the weatherman tells me is needed for those beautiful colors to appear.

My favorite part of fall is probably the celebrations (homecoming for my high school daughters, costumes for Halloween, family gatherings for Thanksgiving) and knowing that soon the Christmas season will arrive when I'll be baking, shopping for others, and anticipating spending quality time with family and friends. Forget the cold winter weather, a Christmas on the beach in Florida sounds lovely, much better than goosebumps and chills. But really, if family is together having a good time, I guess I wouldn't mind being a little cold, as long as there's plenty of hot chocolate with marshmallows. :-)

How about you? Care to share what gets your groove on as your favorite part of fall?

Works in progress

2009-10-14T02:00:00.001-05:00

by Terry McLaughlin

My husband and I returned home this evening after several days of travel. And what did we discuss during all those hours on the road? The same thing our conversation inevitably turns to when we're far from home: remodeling projects. Somehow it's easier to get enthused about fixing up the house when we're hundreds of miles away from it.

Our changes to our surroundings tend to be ambitious. Witness our latest project: the dining room. Here are some before, during, and after views of the same corner. Quite a transformation, don't you think?

The room was originally a basic beige box. We cut a hole in one wall, bumped out a boxy bay, and installed a stained glass window we had made to fit above the buffet. After layering on wide white trim, beadboard wainscotting and wallpaper, we painted the ceiling and added a frilly medallion. We're still shopping for an antique chandelier, some old blue & white platters for the walls and an area rug–those finishing details will come in time.

In turn, this remodeling project inspired several important elements in my upcoming December release: the gentleman who made our window and the business he owns became the models for my heroine and her stained glass window shop. And since I'd always wanted to learn how to work with stained glass, I enjoyed taking the classes he offers as story research.

What changes have you made to your house? What changes would you like to make? Do you find yourself more interested in home improvement projects as holidays draw near?

The Golden Heart Contest

2009-10-13T13:43:00.005-05:00

By Debra Holland

It’s Autumn, the time of year for unpublished writers to consider entering the RWA Golden Heart contest. The entry forms are due on November 16. The Golden Heart is RWA’s most prestigious unpublished contest. Finaling not only opens doors for your writing career, but is a LOT of fun.

When the GH call comes, the good news gives you a happy, bubbly thrill. It’s a great feeling to share with your family and friends. The high can last for weeks.

The days after the GH results are announced are a good time to send queries to agents and editors about your finaling manuscript. Finaling makes your queries stand out, leading to quicker responses. It also gives agents and editors more of a reason to request your book.

If your manuscript is already with an agent or editor, it’s good to call or email with the news. This can motivate the agent or editor to hunt through their slush pile to find your manuscript, instead of waiting the months, or even years, it might take them to get to it.

It’s not uncommon to have five to ten finalists sell their books in the months between the announcement and the national conference. During that time about the same amount of writers also sign with agents.

Sometimes an editor who is judging the contest likes what he or she is reading and directly buys the entry--before the winners are even announced at the awards ceremony in the national conference.

The finalists organize themselves into a yahoo group and begin to get to know each other. They share stories of their “call” and of their books. They support each other through rejections and acceptances and celebrate if one of them sells. By the time the conference rolls around, the group has become friends.

At the national conference, GH finalists get to wear pink finaling ribbons on their name badges and be princesses for five days. The ribbon identifies them to other conference attendees, agents, and editors, and they get a lot of people asking about their entry. There is also a special reception for the GH and Rita finalists.

At the awards night, the finalists dress up in beautiful formal gowns and sit in reserved seating in the front of the theatre. As each finalist’s name is announced, two overhead screens show her professional photo and the name of her book--a great way to build name recognition.
Winners receive a beautiful necklace with a golden heart. Once a winner places that necklace around her neck, she is forever a Golden Heart winner. The necklace is a symbol of her accomplishment that other writers can recognize whenever she wears it. However, it’s also a tangible reminder when future doubts creep in--yes, she is a good writer.

As I see it, there’s only two cons to entering the GH. One is the entry price. $50.00 can be a bit steep on an unpublished writer’s budget, especially in this economy. Multiple entries can really add up. Make sure you follow all the rules. If you break a rule, your manuscript will be disqualified, and your money won’t be refunded.

The second drawback of the GH is that the only feedback you will receive are numerical scores. You’ll never know why you received a 9 from one judge and a 4 from another.

How do you know if you are ready to enter the Golden Heart contest?

Is your manuscript completed or nearly completed? A completed manuscript is a requirement for the GH, making it different from RWA chapter contests. This weeds out the people who have completely polished the first few chapters and synopsis of their books, and enter them in all the local contests, but have never completed the manuscripts. These entries might be multiple winners in local contests, but the GH is for finishers, which gives you a different caliber of competition, and much more respect when you final.

I have used entering the Golden Heart as a spur to completing a manuscript. As a finishing-the-book tool, this has worked very well. Actually there have been several years when I was writing right until the deadline to overnight the entry in order to have it arrive the next day. In other words, the ending was done, but not polished. However, one of these books still finaled, and the other finaled the next year when it was polished. But don’t do this unless you are confident you can finish. Otherwise, your entry will be disqualified.

Make sure the first fifty-five pages, including your synopsis, are polished. Have a critique partner or two or ten go over your entry. In the first round, it won’t matter how much you’ve edited the rest of your book. The first round of judges only sees the first fifty-five pages, which includes the synopsis. You probably won’t win if the quality of the rest of the manuscript isn’t as good as the beginning, but winning is just a bonus to being a finalist.

So challenge yourself. Get out those manuscripts, finish them, polish them, and enter the Golden Heart Contest!
***
Debra Holland is a three-time Golden Heart finalist. In 2001, her book, Wild Montana Sky, won the short historical category.

Turning to Family Traditions, Again and Again...

2009-10-12T09:03:00.010-05:00

Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada, which means I’ll be revisiting a lot of family traditions. I spent most of the weekend in Seattle for the Emerald City Writers’ Conference, but I’m up early this morning to prepare a holiday feast.

My family loves the old standbys—turkey with bread stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy. Today it’ll be roast chicken because only four of us are sitting down to dinner. There’ll also be buttered carrots, brussels sprouts and, of course, pumpkin pie for dessert.

One of my favorite side dishes is baked squash, a recipe I modified from my Grandmother McKenzie’s old cook book—the Modern Priscilla Cook Book—which has been passed down to me. The cover is quite shabby and the copyright page is missing, but I believe it was published in the 1920s.

I’ll start with the original ingredients for the original recipe.

Squash au Gratin

2 cups mashed squash
2 tablespoons melted butter
salt, pepper
2 eggs
1/3 cup grated cheese
buttered crumbs

Yes, this cook book uses a lot of butter. And the recipe says that if the squash is very dry, “a little cream may be added.”

I substitute a little olive oil for some of the melted butter, add a sprinkling of nutmeg for flavor, and replace the buttered crumbs with chopped cashews. But the egg and squash combination still create the original souffle-like texture that made this side dish so appealing.

Squash qu Gratin (Lee's version)

2 cups cooked, mashed squash (butternut is my favorite)
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
a generous grating of nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste (optional)
2 eggs, beaten
finely chopped cashews

Here are my instructions, modified from the original, as you can tell by my use of a microwave!

Cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds and place the two halves cut side down in a shallow, microwaveable dish. Add enough water to cover the bottom of the dish and microwave on High. Cooking time will vary, depending on the type of microwave you have. You can also bake the squash in the oven for half an hour or so.

Let the squash cool, scoop the pulp into a bowl, and mash it. Stir in the olive oil, nutmeg, and salt and pepper. Add the beaten eggs and mix thoroughly. Put this mixture into a baking dish and sprinkle the top with the chopped cashews. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes. Serves 6.

Either version is very tasty. I hope you enjoy it!

Until next time,
Lee

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-10-11T22:17:00.002-05:00

Noodlers continue To Everything, Turn, Turn, Turn month with the following blogs:

Monday, October 12th: Lee McKenzie TBA
Tuesday, October 13th: Debra Holland TBA
Wednesday, October 14th: Terry McLaughlin TBA
Thursday, October 15th: Priscilla Kissinger TBA
Friday, October 16th: Q&A: What was your favorite Halloween costume from childhood?

Friday Q&A!!

2009-10-09T10:56:00.004-05:00

Happy Friday to all our readers!!!

Many of our readers are also writers pursuing their dream of publication. We noodlers, Golden Heart Class of 2003, wouldn't be here if it weren't for Romance Writers of America Golden Heart contest.

What's the best reason why unpublished romance authors should enter this year's Golden Heart contest?

Writing Turning Points

2009-10-08T07:43:00.003-05:00

What drives the plot in a story are the turning points or the places where your main characters make decisions that propel the action forward. If I’ve learned anything along this journey to publication, it’s that a story’s plot must include major and minor turning points if you as a writer want to keep your reader interested and the pace lively. Each scene should have one, and these turning points should build on each other to create the arc of your story. Turning points without connection to anything else stymie the action.

Two writers who explain the concept better than I are Michael Hauge and Jennifer Crusie.

Michael Hauge, who will be conducting a workshop in Atlanta in October 2010 during Georgia Romance Writers’ Moonlight and Magnolias Conference, believes there are five key turning points in a screenplay or novel. They are opportunity, change of plans, point of no return, major setback and climax. See http://www.screenplaymastery.com/structure.htm for a complete discussion.

Jennifer Crusie also provides a wonderful explanation and handout from the 2009 Romance Writers of America conference on her website. http://arghink.com/2009/07/29/turning-points-handout-from-rwa-national

Can you think of any other resources that explain turning points available to writers on the net? What are some books that you’d recommend?

Hot Buttered Cider Recipe

2009-10-07T10:01:00.002-05:00

One of my favorite hot drinks for fall is cider. This recipe, on page 51 of the Better Homes and Gardens Heritage of America Cookbook, is fabulous.

Hot Buttered Cider Sipper
(Makes 6 servings)
1 quart apple cider or apple juice
3 tablespoons of honey
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 teaspoon whole cloves
1 teaspoon whole allspice
4 inches stick cinnamon, broken
¼ to 1/3 cup brandy
3 teaspoons butter or margarine (butter is better—my suggestion)
100% cotton cheesecloth

In a medium saucepan (or your crockpot—my suggestion), combine apple cider, honey and lemon juice. Make a spice bag by cutting your cheesecloth into a 6 inch square. Place spices in the center of the cheesecloth and tie ends, corner to corner. Add bag to cider mixture. Cover and heat through but do not boil. Once cider is hot, discard spice bag and stir in brandy. Ladle hot cider into mugs; float ½ teaspoon butter atop each serving.

What’s a beverage that says autumn to you?

Top Ten Tips for Turning a Pumpkin into a Jack-o-Lantern

2009-10-06T11:47:00.002-05:00

1. Create your design on paper first. Sketch until you achieve the look you’re after. Save that piece of paper. You’re going to need it later.

2. Pick a pumpkin with a shape and color that works best with your sketch. A warty skin and round orange shape may be perfect for a witch face design. A ghost face may work best with a tall, slender white variety.

3. Spread newspaper over the table where you’re working for easy clean-up.

4. Assemble your tools. You can purchase a carving kit, or you can create your own with kitchen utensils. You’ll need a big metal spoon for scooping and scraping out seeds and membrane, a grapefruit knife for carving curves, a nut pick for piercing an outline of your design on the pumpkin, a medium sized butcher knife for cutting the top, and a serrated steak knife for cutting straight lines.

5. Tape your design onto the pumpkin, then use the nut pick to punch the design into the pumpkin. This method works much better than trying to draw on a rippled surface.

6. After the design is pierced into the pumpkin’s flesh, cut the top. If you’re using a real votive candle, make certain to cut a 3” by 4”slot into the back of your pumpkin below where the top sits for air flow, so that your candle flame doesn’t fizzle out due to lack of oxygen.

7. Using the big metal spoon and your hands, scoop out the seeds and membranes and set them on your newspaper.

8. Carve the design following the punched outline. A sawing motion works best. Place your discarded wall pieces with the seed mess. When you’re done, roll up all the mess in the newspaper and throw it in the trash.

9. With your spoon, scrape a flat surface on the bottom center of your pumpkin interior where you will place your votive candle.

10. Use a long fireplace match or a fireplace lighter to light the votive wick inside the pumpkin so you don’t burn your fingers. Sit back and admire your work.

What do you usually carve? A traditional Jack-o-lantern face or something unique?

Candy Corn Isn't What It Used to Be

2009-10-05T08:22:00.006-05:00

When I think of candy corn, I picture the white, yellow and orange striped triangular candy of my childhood. I was amazed to discover this weekend that candy corn has gone gourmet. While at a book signing, I tried crème brulee candy corn, and it prompted me to wonder what other flavors were out there. I found that not only are there many flavors, but there are also triple-sized corn, gummy candy corn, candy corn Dots, and candy corn Hershey Kisses.

Different Flavors of Candy Corn
1. traditional (vanilla)
2. chocolate
3. cinnamon
4. gingerbread
5. peppermint
6. caramel
7. caramel apple
8. crème brulee
9. apple cider
10. blackberry cobbler
11. pumpkin spice
12. raspberry lemonade
13. cherry
14. green apple
15. tangerine

If you like the traditional vanilla flavor but want a more colorful corn for holidays other than Halloween—bunny corn (pastels), cupid corn (pink, white, and red), and reindeer corn (red, white and green) are available.

Are you a candy corn fan? Have you tried any of the alternative flavors? If so, which did you like best?

When not researching different flavors of candy corn, Maureen Hardegree writes for BelleBooks and Bell Bridge. Critters of Mossy Creek is available now. Look for her first paranormal young adult novel Haint Misbehavin' on bookshelves in June 2010.

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-10-04T22:43:00.002-05:00

We hope the first full week of October has you healthy and happy. In the spirit of the monthly theme To Everything Turn, Turn, Turn, we're blogging on the following topics:

Monday, October 5th: Candy Corn Isn’t What It Used to Be
Tuesday, October 6th: Top Ten Tips for Turning a Pumpkin into a Jack-o-Lantern
Wednesday, October 7th: Hot Buttered Cider
Thursday, October 8th: Writing Turning Points
Friday, October 9th: Q&A: What’s the best reason why unpublished romance authors should enter the Golden Heart?

Q&A Friday!

2009-10-02T11:18:00.003-05:00

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. Noodlers get their mammograms as do our readers (we hope). After my annual squishing, I treat myself to lunch and a dose of ibuprofen.

How do you reward yourself after your mammogram?

To Everything, Turn, Turn, Turn

2009-10-01T11:05:00.002-05:00

From ballerinas to plot points, most everything including the earth’s axis turns. Sometimes these turns take us to new places we aren’t quite sure about. Sometimes turns take us and our characters to places we’d never thought we’d go.

This month, noodlers embrace the turning leaves and the crisp autumn air. Please join us as we tackle topics such as how to reward yourself after a mammogram (October is Breast Cancer Awareness month!), how to turn a pumpkin into a jack-o-lantern, and how to polish a Golden Heart writing contest entry. We’ll also share our favorite scary movies and some ideas for no-sew Halloween costumes.

Enjoy!

Falling for Niagara Falls

2009-09-30T04:45:00.016-05:00

Canadian Falls

Merrillee here reporting in after a whirlwind trip to Niagara Falls. I knew this would be a perfect topic for our "falling" theme. When our younger daughter told us that a very good friend was getting married in Buffalo, New York, at the end of September, our daughter suggested that we make a family trip to Niagara Falls after the wedding. So we put the plans in motion. My husband and I have never been to Niagara Falls, so this seemed like the perfect trip. I'm going to share some photos I took, but photos can't begin to capture the magnificence. Even the not-so-great weather couldn't dampen the spectacular display.

Mist rising from the Canadian Falls

American Falls

Falls forming a rainbow.

Maid of the Mist tour boat

View of Canadian Falls from the Maid of the Mist

The weather wasn't the greatest, but we managed to dance between the raindrops. The ponchos (glorified garbage bags) that we were given on the Maid of the Mist tour and Journey Behind the Falls served a duel purpose, as we used them to keep dry on the boat ride and walking back to the hotel. We also used them on our tour of Niagara-on-the-Lake and the wineries in the area.

Can you tell us about your favorite water fall?

A NANO Success Story

2009-09-29T06:37:00.006-05:00

By Mary Eason

Most writers have heard of NANO – The National Novel Writing Month. Some have probably even participated a few times. But for those unfamiliar with the concept, NANO is a yearly challenge that takes place each November and runs through the entire month.

National Novel Writing Month is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to novel writing. Participants begin writing November 1. The goal is to write a 175-page (50,000-word) novel by midnight, November 30.

If you’ve ever participated in one of these challenges, you know it can be very daunting, but if you stick with it, you’ll have the beginnings of a novel that can be polished with any luck into a published novel. Trust me it can happen, because that’s what I did with my first NANO challenge and my The Wild Rose Press release, Free Falling.

Free Falling is a romantic suspense spy novel that I found exigent long after I completed NANO. Bringing Agent Rainie McClain’s story to life and showing the heartbreak and fear she faces every day on the front lines in the War on Terror was something that I found extremely rewarding. I was proud of the final version of Free Falling.

If I had to do it all over again would I do the NANO challenge once more? You bet. I will be at it this year and if fact, I’m happy to say my last year’s NANO, Root Of All Evil, will be published October 15th through Cerridwen Press.

You can visit Mary at http://www.maryeason.com and at her blog http://maryeason.blogspot.com

Free Falling

2009-09-28T07:22:00.009-05:00

By Sandy James

I’m not really a Tom Petty fan. He was one of the 1980s singers I could take or leave. Good enough I’d probably not change the radio channel if one of his songs popped up, but not good enough to run out and buy his latest CD. Which probably raises the question, “Why in the world would you use one of Tom Petty’s best-known songs as the title of one of your books?” Because to me, titles are as important as the plot. Yeah, I know. That doesn’t answer your question, but please bear with me. As I tell my students, there’s always a method to my madness.

Every now and then, a title comes easy. A good example would be Turning Thirty-Twelve. That was the first book I ever wrote around a title. More often, I complete several chapters of a book before the title makes itself known. And the titles choose me, I don’t choose them. Free Falling came to me that way.

Murphy’s Law was the third book I wrote. At the time, my son was a senior at the high school where I teach. As a result, I was really close to the seniors that year. I’d watched most of them grow up, and they were all very supportive of my first endeavors into writing novels. To thank them for all their encouragement, I named several of the characters in Murphy’s Law after some of my students. One of my favorite students begged me to name the villain after him. So Ross Kennedy was born. But I immediately encountered a problem. My Ross, my character, simply wouldn’t let me write him the way I wanted. I tried. I really did. But Ross just couldn’t be a bad guy.

The character slowly evolved into a strong man who tried to do the right thing, even if it included getting hurt in the process. He loved Katie Murphy, the heroine, but in the end, he lets her go with Seth Remington so she can be with the love of her life. Ross sacrifices what he believes will make him happy to ensure her happiness. With such a wonderful character, how could I possibly leave him all alone? As I wrapped up Murphy’s Law, I decided that Ross had a story of his own to tell, so I set out to create for him a heroine who would not only complement him, but complete him.

Ross was already well characterized, but when you thrust a secondary into the spotlight, you have to add more layers. A history. Quirks. Emotional baggage. Ross became the superlative Type A. Always working. Always planning. Always trying to control every aspect of his life. Into his regimented and orderly world, I dropped Laurie Miller.

Laurie was such a joy to write. She was just as committed to her career as a psychologist as Ross was to his career as a lawyer. (And by the way, my student Ross has decided to study law because “his” character was a lawyer. How neat is that?) But even though Laurie was dedicated to her job, she had more “balance” to her life than Ross. She knew how to stop and appreciate the important moments rather than plot and plan all the moments yet to come and missing out on real life. She knew how and when to just let go, something Ross had never learned. She was exactly what he needed.

I was a good third of the way into writing the book before the title finally made itself known. As I wrote the scenes where Laurie and Ross get to know each other, as their relationship developed, I realized that she was giving him a marvelous gift, that she could help Ross finally learn one of the most important lessons of his life. She gave him the ability to live in the moment, to – for once – let life come as it may. To…free fall. The Tom Petty song suddenly popped into my head, and I knew the book had a name. The rest of the story came so easily, the book practically wrote itself. Okay, that’s an exaggeration. It was still a lot of work, but the focus “made” the story.

I suppose that each of my books offers a sort of lesson that I hope enhances readers’ lives. In Turning Thirty-Twelve, I hope people can follow Jackie’s lead and learn to love themselves. In Murphy’s Law, I hope people catch onto Seth’s changing circumstances and realize that there are more important things in life than money. In Free Falling, I hope that people watch Ross learn to let go and perhaps learn to appreciate the little things in their own lives.

And wouldn’t it be great if we could all learn how to free fall?

Visit author Sandy James at her website http://www.sandy-james.com

What are some of the best titles you've chosen? What was the process you went through in choosing them?

This Week on The Wet Noodle Posse

2009-09-27T16:23:00.004-05:00

We finish up Free Falling month and head into October with our new theme To Everything, Turn, Turn, Turn. Please join us!

Monday, September 28th: Guest Blogger Sandy James Free Falling
Tuesday, September 29th: Guest Blogger Mary Eason
Wednesday, September 30th: Merrillee Whren Falling for Niagra Falls
Thursday, October 1st: Introduction to October’s To Everything, Turn, Turn, Turn theme
Friday, October 2nd: Q&A: How do you reward yourself after a mammogram?

Friday Q&A!!!

2009-09-25T10:11:00.002-05:00

On this last Friday of September, our Free Falling month, we noodlers would like to address the following question:

How do you make deadlines work for you rather than against you?

Fall Snacks

2009-09-24T00:17:00.000-05:00

When I was a kid my mom always made a big deal about the new TV season. We’d take our baths early and snuggle in our pjs in front of the TV, either on the couch or on a pallet on the floor. And Mom would have snacks. Maybe we'd have the same foods throughout the year, but these are the ones I relate to this time of year.

1) Marshmallow pumpkins and candy corn. Mix them with peanuts, and yum!

2) Apples with caramel dip. Okay, in those days, it was the cubes of caramel, and they'd maybe be melted, but now there's the dip you can buy, and, well, yum!

3) Popcorn. My favorite flannel pjs have pictures of popcorn and bottles of Coke on them. So me!

4) Chocolate Reese's cookies. I rarely bake anymore, but this time of year brings it out in me, and these are a favorite.

What are some of your favorite fall snacks? Are you watching any new shows? Impressed with any returning ones?

FALLING - IN LOVE AGAIN

2009-09-22T23:57:00.006-05:00

Hooray! I've got my laptop back again! It's got nice new insides- a 500 gb hard drive with go-faster wheels!

Now don't go laughing at the pic I've posted. I did this cover design years ago, back when I was just beginning to figure out how to "paint" digitally. and I had only a vague idea of how to go about making a cover. In fact, I knew so little that I had to figure out how to actually paint the balloon and its gondola, over a photo I took of Warwick Castle in 2004. But I sort of thought it fit with what I'm gabbing about today.

Theresa was talking yesterday about taking a break. I sure know what she's talking about. I think I started taking my break around 2006, and I'm just now putting myself back together as a writer.

The truth is, I did a lot of writing during that time, but it was writing that didn't seem to be going anywhere. I set out to try all kinds of things and explore new avenues. And I really didn't care a lot whether I sold anything. I didn't do much submitting at all. But I'd never done any fiction except my beloved historicals, and that, only as Regency or Medieval. So where was I going to go? Contemporary just wouldn't work for me. But maybe paranormal, if it was historical. Could I do erotic? No, but I could try really hot romance. And how about short, maybe novella length?

I actually tried not writing. And I succeeded pretty well with that. For awhile. Funny how many other things a person can do to fill up time. But it's an addiction, and it just kept preying on me, so I kept coming back to it.

Exploring both very sensual and paranormal historicals has followed a very rough and twisting road. Writing short was a whole lot harder than I thought. I hadn't read a lot of paranormal romance, and had often not liked what I read- maybe I wasn't finding the right stuff. Every idea I turned into my agent, she didn't like. And I was seriously thnking I had completely lost my edge. Old age. Alzheimers. Out of touch. Over the hill...

I was really groping in a drk tunnel that seemed to have a thousand branches, at a time when I was trying to get around with the fading batteries in my Itty Bitty Book Light. My friends and CPs said they loved the stories, but to me, I had a bunch of fragment pieces that I just couldn't join together. I just couldn't find the emotional pull I'd always loved about writing romance.

I think traveling helped. Seeing places in the world I'd been afraid I'd never get to see was giving me new perspective. Florence and Pisa opened up ideas, and so did that tiny medieval mountain village, St. Paul de Vence. Last summer, Hawaii took on new meaning for me when I began writing places I already knew into a sea fantasy romance.

The new writer in me finally started emerging this last spring. I went back and looked at all the old stories that have lain in the dust, either unfinished or unsold, and decided I wasn't wrong about them after all. I started revising and finishing. And the more I work, the more I work.

What's really been surprising to me is the story that had seemed to be so many disconnected fragments. I had extremely strong feelings that those pieces (which had totally confused one of my CPs) really needed to be part of the whole, but I couldn't see how. Then the connecting tissue began to grow. And the big shock is, my gut instinct had been right all along. It's an extremely surprising story, yet it all fits.

My big discovery, though, is that I can't (can't speak for anyone else here) write romance if I can't be in love. In love with my hero, my heroine, my villain, in love with every character, and the place where they belong. If I can't do that, then the story has no vital organs. But once I find that love again, my story begins to live. Funny thing- it's true with my cover art, too. When I can fall in love with it, it comes alive. And so do I.

And so, here I am. It's fall. And I'm falling. Falling in love again.

What about you? Are there times when you can't fall in love with romance? Do you have to be "in love" with your story when you write it? Have you ever had to leave in order to find your way back?

Taking a Break

2009-09-22T03:06:00.000-05:00

I have been writing for over fourteen years. I have written nine full length novels and too many partials to count. I have finaled in and won contests. I have six golden hearts to show for my hard work and progress. But the biggest prize of all…the publishing prize…still eludes me. Am I bitter? No. I am more determined than ever to become a published romance author. But recently, what I realized I needed, more than anything else, was a break. And I’m not talking about a long walk, a day at the mall or even a vacation. What I needed is/was a few months away from reading and writing romance novels. So, I decided to take a break and do something different. I registered for a Spanish class at a local junior college. And guess what? I like it. I like it a lot. I am studying everyday. I am also making jewelry as a creative outlet, and writing blogs, and visiting with my kids, and playing the piano. I’m spending time with my husband, too. I am having fun. It wasn’t easy taking a break from writing at first. I didn’t feel whole any longer. Who am I if not a writer? Stories still call to me but I’ve been ignoring the voices. The stories in my head will have to wait until I’m ready.

How about you? Do you need a break? What’s the longest break you’ve taken away from something you love to do? Did you feel refreshed afterward?

Starting a New Manuscript by Diane Gaston

2009-09-21T00:01:00.002-05:00

I'm continuing with my September theme of New Starts (See my blog of Sept 7). I think September is a perfect time to start a new manuscript, like starting school.

I don't have any consistent way of starting a manuscript. Sometimes I start with a story idea; sometimes, a character; sometimes, just an initial situation.

The Mysterious Miss M, my first book, started with a desire to sell a book. I was entering lots of romance writing contests at the time. Most contests are judged on a first chapter so I decided I needed a first chapter with a big WOW factor. What could be a better WOW factor than starting with a sex scene? From that idea the characters came to mind and then the story.

Other books started with a character. Both A Reputable Rake and The Vanishing Viscountess began because the heroes in those books were secondary characters in earlier books and they simply would not stop trying to take over the book. I had to promise them books of their own.

This time I set up a trilogy involving three soldiers. The original idea grew from watching The Lives of a Bengal Lancer but all I took from that was the idea of three soldiers who all experience the same traumatic event that affects each of their lives from then on. I'm working on the third book so I had the hero and heroine who appear in the first book, only I didn't really know much about them. (shown is Gallant Officer, Forbidden Lady, the first book in the trilogy, to be released Dec 2009)

Before I was published I started a book with whatever idea or character that gave me a beginning. I was the classic seat-of-the-pants writer and I liked discovering the story as I went along. Now that I'm published, though, I have to write a proposal. So to start a book, I have to have enough of the story to create a synopsis. No more "pantsing."

Do you start a book with a situation, a character, or something else? Do you plot out the story before writing, or do you fly by the seat of your pants?
If you like a story, what captures your attention the most-the characters? the plot? or something else?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-09-20T17:38:00.003-05:00

Noodlers continue their exploration of September's Free Falling theme with the following blogs:

Monday, September 21st: Diane Gaston Starting a New Manuscript
Tuesday, September 22nd: Theresa Ragan TBA
Wednesday, September 23rd: Delle Jacobs TBA
Thursday, September 24th: MJ Fredrick Favorite Fall Snacks
Friday, September 25th: Q&A: How do you make deadlines work for you rather than against you?

Please join us!

Q&A Friday!

2009-09-18T09:06:00.003-05:00

For some people, nothing but a PB&J would do. For others, it had to be cookies and milk. What was your favorite after school snack?

Coupons: Take a Little Free Time—Save a Little Money

2009-09-17T07:44:00.001-05:00

The saying goes “nothing in life is free.” That’s true of most things, even coupon savings. But if you’re willing to put in the time to clip or fill out forms on-line, you could save money on groceries, restaurants, entertainment, and office supplies.

Deals in the Newspaper:
If you have the newspaper delivered or you purchase a Sunday paper, don’t throw away the ads and coupons. Read through the grocery ads so you know what you can stock up on (such as buy one/get one free boneless chicken breasts), what produce is on sale, and which items you might want to hold off on purchasing. Some grocery stores, such as Publix, will match competitor coupons.

Deals for Frequent Shoppers:
Many stores from groceries to craft stores offer frequent shopper cards. If you sign up for one, you can get additional savings at the register and, in the case of my grocery store, ten cents off each gallon of gas at the pump. My local craft store mails me a bi-weekly circular on deals that includes a 40% off coupon on a non-sale item. I also receive coupon savings in the mail from the office supply store where I have a frequent shopper card. I saved about $20 on school supplies for my daughter in August. Your local PTA may also have deals with groceries and other stores and restaurants. These companies will make donations to the schools based on how much participating parents spend at their establishments.

Deals On-Line:
If you’re willing to fill out information on-line, companies will send coupons directly to your e-mail inbox or will add the savings onto your frequent shopper card at your grocery (that’s right directly onto your card, so you don’t have to spend time clipping). You can also sign up to get free products shipped to you in the mail. Who wouldn’t want free Aveeno shampoo? Some on-line sites to check out are Kroger.com and shortcuts.com.

Because I put in the time to find bargains, I typically save between twenty and thirty dollars on weekly groceries. Because I frequent a particular grocery store, I pay ten cents less per gallon at the gas pump each time I fill up my van. Join me this month—after all, September is National Coupon Month—and see how much you can save.

Do you use coupons? What are some other ways you typically save money on your purchases?

Five Things Freshmen Shouldn’t Say to Their English Instructors

2009-09-16T08:23:00.003-05:00

Although September is synonymous with school for many of us, for those who’ve taught and moved on to other endeavors, the month may bring back memories of student excuses and bold statements that to this day make me and other former teachers scratch our heads. At the very least, dear freshmen, be smart enough to avoid saying any of the following to your English Instructors this fall.

1. “My parents don’t pay the university what they do for me to get C’s.”

2. “I missed over the number of permitted absences because my (fill in grandma, uncle, or third cousin twice removed) died suddenly.” FYI—instructors will require verification.

3. On a voicemail message on a Friday morning, “I can’t come to class because I’ve got the stomach flu.” Odd, isn’t it, how those bugs hit every Friday after all those Thursday night drink specials at campus bars.

4. “The reason the essay I turned in was written by someone else was out of concern for you and your eyesight. My handwriting is illegible. I swear I really wrote the paper. I just dictated it to my friend.”

5. “Can I reschedule this final? My fraternity kept me awake for two days straight, and I can’t think.”

Do you have any tips you’d like to share with college freshmen?

Falling in Love Again and Again and Again...

2009-09-15T00:41:00.000-05:00

Whenever I’m asked why I write romance, my response is that’s it’s like falling in love again and again.

I’ve been married for 22 years, to the boy I loved in high school. We have a son in college (WAH!!!) and are halfway through our mortgage. This is all wonderful, but it lacks….newness. So when I write romance, I get to experience it all again.

I get to experience the first meeting, the first spark of attraction. I explore the uncertainty and the tension, which in real life isn’t so much fun, but in a romance novel I know it’s going to end well. I relive the first kiss, the first intimacy of a couple exploring new sensations and new emotions. I play with doubts and drama more intense (thank goodness) than any I experienced.

I play with timelines—how quickly can a couple fall in love? What does it take for two people to trust each other? What does it take to break that trust? What does it take to bring two people back together?

Writing is hard, definitely, but the resolution of a romantic journey is its own reward.

I tried something different in my latest Samhain release, Beneath the Surface. I have a couple who are estranged. They’d fallen in love in college, had a passionate courtship, a passionate marriage. Their passion tore them apart, and now Mallory, the heroine, is ready for a stable life, a real home. Before she can move on, she needs the divorce papers signed. She has to chase him down to a dig site on the Caribbean to get him to sign them.

Getting these two to fall in love again was hard because they’d both felt betrayed by the other. But playing on their good memories, on the remembered trust, helped bring them back together.

Because it’s all about the happy ending.

Why do you read or write romance?

FREE FALLING: USING SONG TITLES FOR INSPIRATION

2009-09-14T06:24:00.004-05:00

By Dr. Debra Holland

When Tom Petty’s song, Free Falling, plays on the radio, I like to sing along. “And, I’m Freeeeee. Free Fallin’. I don’t think much of the rest of the lyrics, but I sure do like the chorus. Some editors must too. A quick search showed three romances titled Free Falling: Stoble Piel, 1999, Mary Eason, 2008, and Sandy James, 2009. I’m sure there’s more.

Editors frequently assign song titles to books. For example, Jenny Crusie has two: Crazy For You and Tell Me Lies.

Song titles make great books titles because there’s instant recognition. The title may make a book more memorable or cause someone to pick up the book who might not normally.

Much of the time the working titles authors use are not kept by the editor. Instead, a new title is chosen. And since titles can’t be copywrited, the title may be used over and over. I have no idea if any of the above three authors used Free Falling as a working title. Yet, maybe they did have the title first and drew inspiration from it.

Have you ever listened to the radio and heard a song and thought, “That would make a great book title?” Maybe the song is one you’ve never heard before. Maybe it’s an oldie, but something about the lyrics sparks a story idea.

I mostly listen to the radio when I’m in the car. I don’t know about you, but I tend to think about my writing when I drive. I work out scenes and snippets of dialogue come to me, especially when the freeway is clear, and I can easily drive without much conscious thought. The other times are when I’m stuck in traffic (common in Los Angeles) and need to engage my mind to contain my frustration and pass the time. In fact, one of my books originated as a story idea while I was driving to my office.

I keep a notebook right next to the driver’s seat. If it’s possible to drive semi-safely and jot down the ideas, I do so. Although sometimes the writing isn’t too legible.

Sometimes I play with song titles, trying to create a story out of them. Then when I arrive at my destination, I write it down. Or if I don’t have time to write, I’ll probably forget about it. I’ve never actually developed a book from a song title, but I do have a list of potentials in my notebook. If I ever need some inspiration, I plan to play with them.

What about you? Have you ever written a story based on a song title?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-09-13T14:18:00.003-05:00

Noodlers continue exploring the month's Free Falling Theme with the following blogs:

Monday, September 14th: Dr. Debra Holland Song Titles as Inspiration
Tuesday, September 15th: MJ Fredrick Falling in Love, Again and Again
Wednesday, September 16th: Maureen Hardegree Top Five Things College Freshmen Shouldn’t Say to Their English Instructors
Thursday, September 17th: Maureen Hardegree Buy One Get One Free and Other Coupon Deals
Friday, September 18th: Q&A: What was your favorite after school snack as a kid?

Q&A Friday!!

2009-09-11T07:12:00.002-05:00

Since we're exploring the free falling theme this month, let's discuss how it relates to writing. To me, writing the first draft is a free fall of sorts if you don't stop to edit.

How do you stop yourself from editing when writing your first draft?

Falling out of Touch

2009-09-10T01:22:00.012-05:00

posted by Lee McKenzie

I love sending and receiving mail.

Not email, voice mail, twits, texts or pokes...I’m talking about real mail. Snail mail. The kind of mail that requires a little thought and a little time and a little effort.

I have a box of stationary filled with note cards, pens, stickers and stamps, and I enjoy sitting at my desk with a cup of tea and writing a note to a family member or friend. I enjoy the walk to the post office to mail it. I know exactly when mail is delivered to my home, give or take ten minutes, and finding a note from a family member or friend is the highlight of my day.

Tucked in my filing cabinet are several file folders filled with cards and letters I’ve received over the years. I still have a bundle of letters my grandparents sent thirty to forty years ago, and from time to time I take them out and read that familiar old handwriting. When I do, I still feel connected to them.

There’s no denying that electronic media provides instant gratification, but with all that typing, sending, replying and deleting, I can’t help wondering if we’re actually staying in touch or mostly keeping busy. Call me old fashioned, but I really hope the post office never goes out of business.

Until next time,
Lee
The Writer Side of Life

Letting Go

2009-09-09T08:01:00.005-05:00

If you’re like me, you like being in control—not that I’m a complete freak. I’m learning, though, to let go. In fact, it’s become a goal of mine to relinquish more and more things that, quite frankly, aren’t that important in the grand scheme.

Helicopter Parenting
Okay, I admit I haven’t completely succeeded with eliminating this tendency. But the helicopter has shrunk to a little toy size. My daughter succeeds or fails. My job is to help her process the success or failure. As much as it kills me not to badger her into telling me when I know something is bothering her, I stop when she says she doesn’t want to talk about it—most of the time.

Volunteer Work
Several years ago, I assessed how much time in the day I had to accomplish my goals, and I discovered that volunteering was sucking away my writing time. I whittled down my list to only things I loved, like sewing for my daughter’s ballet company and volunteer opportunities that helped my career. Are people disappointed in me when I say “no”? Probably. But since I no longer feel the need to be perfect, I’m fine.

Perfectionism
This is has been the cornerstone on the foundation of change for me. I am not perfect, and I no longer expect it of myself. I don’t expect it of others. I make mistakes. Some people dislike me, and that’s okay. Unless I have guests arriving, my house is messy, my office needs a good dusting, and there is clean laundry not yet folded sitting on my dining room table.

What are some things you’ve let go of to have a richer, happier life?

Because she's let go, Maureen had the time to write "A Tale of Two Kitties" for BelleBooks' Critters of Mossy Creek, Book Seven of the Mossy Creek Hometown series. Critters will be released on September 28th ! Visit Maureen's website at www.maureenhardegree.com

Writing: A Hobby Out of Control

2009-09-08T00:05:00.001-05:00

by Terry McLaughlin

I've often said I never wanted to be a writer. It just sort of...happened. However, I can trace the genesis today's blog post to two accidents (or, in writing lingo, inciting incidents).

First accident: taking a class I didn't need. But that class was in the right building at the right time on the right day of the week, so I signed up. That's how I met the professor who told me to write a book someday.

Second accident: reading a book I thought was a mystery. But I discovered it was a romance when I asked a bookstore clerk if the author, Nora Roberts, had ever written anything else. That's how I discovered the romance genre.

And so, with a nudge from a teacher and a craving for love stories, I decided to give writing a shot. Once I'd written a couple of chapters of my very first story, I challenged myself to finish the manuscript. And once I'd finished, I challenged myself to get it sold. It was a huge dare, the biggest trick of my life, and I wanted to see if I could pull it off.

But I still didn't consider myself a writer, not even after I attended a weekend seminar presented by a novelist who came to town. When my husband asked me what I'd learned, I told him I'd learned there were twenty-two local people willing to pay $200 to find out how to get published. I figured as soon as I sold a book, I'd travel around and get rich giving my own seminars. After all, I was a teacher, not a writer.

And then I discovered writing conferences. Pahrr-teee! I got my first manicure, and then my first pedicure, and I jetted around the country having tons of fun. At last I'd found a reason to write: writing conferences! Although my writing took a vacation while I vacationed with my new writing buddies...until my husband threatened to ground me if I didn't finish the current work-in-progress. I wrote the final 100 pages under duress, enduring my first deadline ordeal. But that story was my first Golden Heart final, my ticket to the Wet Noodle Posse and, two years later, my first sale. (I dedicated it to that college professor.) As you can see, another series of accidents.

I remember telling one of my conference roommates that I wanted to sell just one book, just to see if I could do it. Once I'd pulled off my big trick, I could retire.

Seven books later, I'm still at it. Go figure. And not only did I get myself an agent, not only am I giving novel-writing classes at the local library (for free!), I'm a member of the board of directors of Romance Writers of America. What in the world happened? I have no idea. This whole writing thing has spun completely out of control.

And the craziest thing is that when people ask what I do, I tell them I'm a writer.

A New Start by Diane Gaston

2009-09-07T00:01:00.001-05:00

This is the time of year our children return to school. In fact, tomorrow is the first day of school in our area.

I remember so well the excitement --and fear--of a new start. A new classroom. New classmates. And, for me, often, a new school.

New binders, spiral notebooks, pens, pencils, pink erasers, scissors, crayons...

A week or so ago I was near Staples and thought to myself, "I ought to be buying something new." I think I was responding to the ingrained notion that now is the time for new supplies for a new beginning.

I am starting something new. A new book, just in the initial plotting stages, soon to be a new proposal for Harlequin Mills & Boon, a book I hope to finish by December.

I have a new resolve, typical of me this time of year, to work harder, to use better work habits so I don't fall behind. It feels a little like starting school!

I have other new things to announce:

My new bookcover for Gallant Officer, Forbidden Lady, coming December 2009.

New stuff on my website

A new contest

What new starts are you up to?
Anyone starting school?

This Week on the Wet Noodle Posse

2009-09-06T11:48:00.005-05:00

Noodlers continue their free fall into September with the following blogs:

Monday, September 7th: Diane Gaston A New Start
Tuesday, September 8th: Terry McLaughlin Writing: A Hobby Out of Control
Wednesday, September 9th: Maureen Hardegree Letting Go
Thursday, September 10th: Lee McKenzie Falling Out of Touch
Friday, September 11th: Q&A: How do you stop yourself from editing when writing your first draft?