• Like sand through the hourglass …

    6 Comments

    Where the heck did January go?

    Seems like just yesterday, we were ringing in the new year and making resolutions and stuff. Now, I’m already turning the page on my calendar over to February. And realizing I need to get into high gear and get some things done before March. Sigh.

    Here’s what I’d like to get done in February:

    1) Write a rough draft of Spy 2.

    2) Update the Web site and add some info for Jinx.

    3) Finish looking at the page proofs for the mass market versions of Karma Girl and Hot Mama (coming in July and August!).

    4) Think about what I want to write in Assassin 2. I’m kicking around a couple of different story ideas right now. I need to pick one.

    5) Write something new. There’s a new fantasy book I want to write this year (with a working title of Charm Queen). But I think I’m also going to try and write a romantic suspense next. Again, I have ideas for that — I just need to pick one.

    We’ll see how many of these I mark off my to-do list … :wood:

    What about you? What do you want to accomplish this month?

  • Fun with photos …

    6 Comments

    It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s an Internet sensation. It’s … I Can Has Cheezburger?

    This site has fun with animal pictures (mostly cats) and photo captions. My significant other is totally addicted to the site. He’s a huge cat person. The folks over at Dear Author also use lots of pictures from the site to great effect.

    Anyway, go check it out. Enjoy. Laugh. :ww:

  • ·

    It is done … again …

    7 Comments

    So, this weekend I buckled down and finished revisions on my assassin book, Gin on the Rocks.

    It’s about an assassin who can control the elements of ice and stone (the other two are fire and air in my world). My assassin, Gin, goes to do a job and gets double-crossed and almost dead. Soon, she’s on the run from the cops, a Fire elemental who wants her dead, and lots of other people.

    This book is a little grittier than what I usually write, and there’s lots of blood. Seriously. Gin kills something like ten guys in the first ten chapters. The girl is really handy with knives. 😉

    It’s also set in the South and has a nice regional flavor to it. There are barbecue restaurants and fried chicken and Southern movie references. I even mention Dr. Enuf at one point. That’s a soft drink, for all you Yankees out there. Tastes like a weak version of Sprite, but it’s really good.

    I’m always amazed at how right my agent is when it comes to revisions. She sent me some suggestions, and we talked about some other things on the phone. As I went through the book, I saw how much sense her ideas made. I’m really excited about the book now — I think it’s one of the best things I’ve written. And I’m really looking forward to writing Assassin 2, after I do some page proofs and other stuff.

    I got such a high when I finished the revisions last night. I’m still smiling this morning. Good times. :bub:

    Now, we’ll see if the book sells. Fingers crossed!

    What about you? What did you do this weekend?

  • Oh, James …

    8 Comments

    According to an Associated Press story I saw, the title for the next James Bond film is … drumroll please … Quantum of Solace.

    According to the AP story, the title is the name of a Bond short story written by Ian Fleming.

    Interesting, but that doesn’t make it suck any less. Quantum of Solace? What is that even supposed to mean?

    Titles are important, especially when it comes to books and movies. Catchy titles make people want to read the book or watch the movie.

    Most of the Bond titles are awesome — The Spy who Loved Me, Casino Royale, The World is not Enough, You Only Live Twice, From Russia, With Love.

    Some are merely average — License to Kill, The Living Daylights, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.

    And some make no sense at all — Thunderball, Moonraker, Goldfinger, Octopussy.

    But Quantum of Solace? I think that’s one of the worst titles I’ve ever heard. It’s hard to just say. It definitely doesn’t trip lightly off the tongue. And I’d be very interested in knowing how a musician can work those words into the theme song. Have you ever heard the word solace in a song? 

    I really, really, really hope the producers change the title. How about something like Cold Solace? Or something, anything but Quantum of Solace. Ugh.

    On the bright side, the movie is set for a Nov. 7 release. Less than 10 months away. Yeah! 😎

    What about you? What do you think of the title?

  • 855 and counting …

    4 Comments

    Finished The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. This is a young adult book and the first in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.

    Percy Jackson always knew he was different. He just didn’t know how different until monsters started trying to kill him, including the Minotaur. Percy soon discovers that he’s a demigod or the son of Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. And he goes to Camp Half-Blood, where he meets the children of the other gods, along with satyrs and other creatures straight out of a mythology textbook. Soon, Percy is given a quest to find Zeus’ stolen lightning bolt and prevent a war between the gods. Too bad every god he meets wants to kill him …

    I’ve heard lots of good things about this series, which is why I requested it for Christmas. Summer camp for the kids of the Greek gods? It’s a great concept, and it’s well executed. Percy is funny, brave, frightened, and sarcastic. He misses his mom and wishes he could change a lot of things about his life. The secondary characters are also well done and entertaining.

    But as I was reading Lightning Thief, I was thinking a lot about the Harry Potter books. Young boy discovering a magical world, a wise mentor to guide him, a distant parent, secrets and betrayals … Lightning Thief contains a lot of the same elements as the Potter books.

    Also, some of the stuff Percy does (like get on a plane and fly across country) seems a little too mature and outright implausible for a 12 year old in this day and age. Seriously, could anybody get on a plane with no ID? But it’s a fantasy. I’m willing to overlook it.

    Overall, I enjoyed Riordan’s world and the clever ways he used the various Greek myths, gods, and monsters. If you’re looking for something fun for you or your kids to read, you’ll probably enjoy Lightning Thief.

    So, thumbs up.

    Up next: I’m not sure. Maybe Warprize by Elizabeth Vaughn.