Out in Germany....

Woohoo! 

Just heard from my fellow Modern Heat author Nicola Marsh that I have my first book out in Germany. How exciting. The title 'Nur eine rasante Affare?' translates as (I think) 'Only a Quick Affair?' but is actually my first book Bedded by a Bad Boy (which I only know from the character names - as my German's about as good as my Dutch!).

Also, got my June copy of Romantic Times Book Reviews today and spotted a Top Pick for Trish Wylie and a four-star review for Natalie Anderson. Well, done ladies, you wrote two cracking books.

Nights in Rodanthe

Hey all,

Just thought I'd pop my head out of the writing cave and point over to the PHS where I will be pontificating today on the Must-Watch-ish experience that is the romantic weepie Nights in 

Rodanthe.

Also had to show you the extremely hot cover for my first ever Italian book (a translation of The Tycoon's Very Personal Assistant, I think). Notice, my heroine seems to have turned into a Spanish Flamenco dancer and my hero has become a Brazilian footballer. Cool. 

Or those could be Trish Wylie's characters (but I thought they were Irish??)

Oh, and doing another little happy dance here, cos Pleasure, Pregnancy and a Proposition has just hit the top spot on Waldies for a second week running... And it got a great review from Marilyn Shoemaker at Marilyn's Romance Reviews (cheers Marilyn, the chocolate's in the post!)

Confessions of a Conference Virgin. Part Two

Part Two: Or How I Was Having Far Too Good a Time to Bother Blogging

Sorry, have been terribly remiss again. I've been back from Frisco for almost a week and spurred on by my experiences to get stuck into my latest story (a workshop with Susan Elizabeth Phillips will do that to you, you know) haven't even bothered to download the few photos I actually managed to take.

First up, here's me looking totally petrified before the literacy autographing. Please note my RITA finalists flag which I took home with me and it now has pride of place on my desktop (well, a girl can dream right, you never know I might get nominated again one day).


And here are a few more of my personal highlights: Sightseeing at Haight Ashbury with Abby Green and Sharon Kendricks, going to the Top of the Mark before dancing the night away at the Harlequin party at the Four Seasons (apparently right next to Nora Roberts, but noone bothered to point that out to me, thanks again Biddy Coady, grrrrr), Sandra Marton's lovely pizza party with a lot of the Presents authors and our own Trish Wylie, the RITA awards in my posh frock (which I forgot to take a picture of, I know, what was I thinking), high tea with the Presents editors and authors (and a chance to meet my new ed for the first time face to face) and a really wonderful dinner with Sharon and Sandra and Abby at the lovely Annabelle's restaurant.

And just in case you think I spent my whole time partying and didn't actually bother to do any workshops I did manage SEP's fab talk on how to write a Bestseller ('Follow your instincts, but don't get stupid!'), SEP and Jayne Ann Krentz's one about the Secrets of the Bestselling Sisterhood (are you beginning to see a theme here?), Linda Howard's showcase at the PAN retreat (I'm never keeping Llamas that's for sure) and a chat with Nora Roberts (who I'm glad to say had bickering sons, too!)

Now all I've got to do is keep my fingers crossed that I can go to next year's bash in Washington DC, which I guess means getting back to writing this darn book.

Confessions of a Conference Virgin

Part One: How to make Friends under the Influence of Jet Lag...

So it's the first day of the Conference, proper, after an 11 hour flight yesterday and I'm already getting into the swing of things - and I have conclusive proof. Here's me sitting next to Kate Walker and Susan Stephens after I muscled in on their little group at Starbucks and insisted on having my photo taken with them. They were kind enough not to say 'go away you mad woman' and posed accordingly. Have had some top tips from Trish Wylie on how to schmooze - and she is the queen of schmoozing so I feel like I'm learning from a pro. 

The Literacy Autographing starts in an hour and it will be my first ever book signing (I've already checked out the venue and it is, rather dauntingly, in a room the size of a football field!). My box of books looked awfully large, but I'll be waving my RITA flag like a pro (and poking a few eyes out with it if need be) to flog as many as I can. Right, now I'm off to try and decide what to wear. According to Kate it's supposed to be 'smart, professional attire' which I'm thinking means no Converse or jeans. Bummer.

AFter that I'm off to the Newcomer's Orientation and then the RWA online party where I won't know a soul by sight. But no need to panic, everyone here has their name, psuedonym and publishing history emblazoned across their chest and colour-coded. Useful, for a woman who's still tripping on jet lag and can never remember anyone's name. 

Right, time to go raid my wardrobe.

PS: Pop Over to the Pink Heart Society....

Just a quick word to say I'm blogging on the Pink Heart Society today about the wonderful chick-flick PS, I Love You. Which, frankly is all the excuse I need to post a piccie of Gerard Butler in all his glory. Okay he's a corpse through most of the movie, but do I let that stop me... No way. After all, nothing like a good flashback.

Can you tell I've had a great few days on my latest ms. The words are just flying off my keyboard. Wrote a whole chapter yesterday, where my hero blackmails my heroine into spending two weeks on a luxury trip to New York posing as his fiancée. Now as he's a wild, uber-sexy Irish hunk, I'm thinking she's going to get over her shock and indignation fairly fast. What d'you think? 

PS: Only four more days to go till I hit Frisco, and my Wonderbras arrived today from Figleaves.com (thanks for that tip Trish). So now I'm all set. Plane ticket? check. Hotel booked? check. Posh Frock packed? check. And cleavage sorted? check.

Good news week!

Got an email a couple of days ago from Donna at CataRomance to say that The Mile High Club has won a Reviewers Choice Award. I was so chuffed, especially when I checked out the full list and found fellow Modern Heat authors Nicola Marsh, Trish Wylie, Ally Blake and Sue Stephens there as well. You can check out the full list by clicking here.

Then I heard via the grapevine not one but two of my Modern Heat colleagues - namely Julie Cohen and Kate Hardy - have been nominated for RNA's much coveted Romance Prize this year. And I've got to mention Romance author Fiona Harper (who very nicely came up to chat to me last year at the RNA lunch so I consider her a friend) and who has been nominated twice (isn't that a bit greedy Fiona?). I'll be rooting for all of them come Feb 4th (if I can get a late ticket for the Awards Lunch at the Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington, which I, of course, forgot to book! Duh!). For the full list of nominees click here.

And then to really make my week I got an email from my editor Bryony to say that Bedded by a Playboy got into the Waldenbooks Top Ten Bestsellers in series romance for the week ending 12th January and here's the proof. Yippee. I'm a happy camper. So happy in fact that I will admit to falling off the wagon ever so slightly last night. Luckily I didn't hit the ground too hard.

As my reward tonight I'm off to see No Country for Old Men, the new Coen Brothers movie. Anyone seen O Brother Where Art Thou? George Clooney in a hairnet - now that's what I call a movie. I'm expecting to be thoroughly entertained. And I'm expecting to tell y'all about it at a future date - unless it turns out to be rubbish, in which case I won't.