I e-mailed a new book to my agent yesterday. Well, not really new. It’s called You Only Spy Twice and is the second book in my proposed urban fantasy series about Abby Tome, a Druid and bookstore owner who’s forced to become a spy to stop some magical terrorists.

I’ve been working on the book since last summer and had about 87,000 words. My agent wanted to see some pages, so I kicked it into high gear and finished the whole thing so I could have a break for the RT convention. Final word count: 98,000 and change.

My agent also wanted a bunch of synopsi for various projects we’ve been talking about. In addition to finishing You Only Spy Twice, in the past two weeks, I’ve also written:

1) Spy 2 synopsis — titled You Only Spy Twice

2) Spy 3 synopsis — titled A Spy Never Dies

3) Assassin 2 synopsis — titled Gin With A Twist

4) Heist synsopis — titled The Southern Cross Affair (about a group of Robin Hood-like thieves who steal from the rich and give to the poor)

I’d guess this all adds up to about 25,000 words total. Whew! My wrist needs a break before it, you know, actually breaks. :bubbles:

Now, my goal is to decide what I want to write next, while I wait for my agent to read and for other stuff to happen. I’m leaning toward Assassin 2 or Heist, although there’s one problem with Heist — I haven’t come up with a supercool way to do my actual heist yet.

Plus, I have two more ideas — a Southern romantic comedy about a high school reunion and assorted hijinks. That one’s called Do Me Over. Then, I have an idea for (yet) another urbanish fantasy titled Charm Queen. That one would have an Old West vibe crossed with fairy tales.

Argh! Too many ideas, too little time … What would you guys be interested in reading from me (or in general)? More fantasy or something else?

While I’m talking about events, I want to mention that I’m going to be one of about 25 authors appearing and signing books during Lora Leigh’s Reader Appreciation Weekend. The event will be held in September in Huntington, West Virginia.

I’ve never been to RAW before, but I hear it’s a lot of fun. There are lots of great authors attending, like J.R. Ward and Nalini Singh, and I know I’ll be just as much of a fangirl as anyone else. I’m looking forward to it! :cool: 

Guess what I have? Jinx bookmarks!

Here’s a picture of the front of the bookmark. The printer did a fantastic job, as always, and they look really good. The back is mostly text about the book, so I won’t bore you with that.

I got the bookmarks on Friday and spent all weekend bundling up 700 packets of them for the Bookstores that Care program that Romantic Times sponsors.

No Easter egg hunting for me. Just hours and hours of counting and bundling bookmarks. I finally got done yesterday afternoon. Needless to say, I’m suffering some serious carpal tunnel from twisting so many rubber bands. Ah, the glamorous life of an author. 😎

Now on to the important stuff — how to get the bookmarks. As always, I give away free bookmarks to readers. All I ask readers to do is send me a self-addressed stamped evelope big enough to hold the 2 x 8 bookmarks.

So, if you want some free Jinx bookmarks, send me an e-mail or leave your e-mail in the comments, and I’ll send you the rest of the info on how to get them.

Happy reading!

So I’ve finally finished updating the Web site. I’ve added the new mass market covers, tweaked the frequently asked questions and other features, and posted some character quotes from Jinx on the Links & Fun page.

If there’s some other feature about the Bigtime books or writing or whatever you’d like to see on the Web site, leave me a comment here. I’ll try to post another excerpt or two from Jinx a little closer to the release date (Sept. 2, less than six months away now. Where has the first third of the year gone already?).

Please forgive the typos. I’m sure there are many. But for now, enjoy! :buttercup: