Warning: Some Violence and Much Strong Language.HE WROTE: Heidi's DLD 2: The Swamp
Originally, the book was going to be set in Cincinatti. Somehow it ended up in South Carolina. With a lot of the action happening in a swamp.
The reason for this was that I wrote a lot of the action and I have to 'walk the terrain' when I write action. On the right side you have Tyler, the sniper, whose infamous opening lin was "In the darkness there is death." Which somehow got cut. But is now in my book LOST GIRLS which will be out next year from Tor.
On the left you have Pepper. With her binoculars. She didn't have the binoculars originally. One of the problems we had with Tyler was that he was too remote, too removed from the the rest of the characters because, well, he was in the damn swamp. O by giving Pepper the binoculars, we gave him a contact with someone.
Then there are the ding-dongs which Bryce kept throwing to Moot to feed her. I ended up getting a lot of ding-dongs on the book tour.
I'm not sure if there is a shell circle there as I can't see the detail, but there is a shell circle here on the barrier island I live on. And it is a neat place. You can actually something there. It's the first place where JT and Lucy 'do it'. And there were no mosquitoes. Although, interestingly, in AGNES, there seem to be one or two buzzing around.
So these pages are really the main setting of the book, which is critical to any novel.
112 Comments:
Glad to hear In the darkness there is death will be back.
It's interesting which details we, the readers, identified with. Were there any you expected us to jump on that we didn't?
I am in awe of the job Heidi did. It captures my experience of DLD so well.
Stay safe!
Blogger's back !!! (You know you're a Cherrybomb when you understand why that's a big deal....)
I like the way it worked out with Tyler. He was chilling.
Speaking of Blogger, why is it that this blog entry was posted at 5:38 PM? I was on multiple times well after that, and I'm sure I'm not the only one...The comment's written by Bob but posted by Jenny...so presumably Bob had Blogger trouble, too!
Very cool. It looks like there are a few pages to go yet. Maybe we'll get the shell circle. These pics look more like the early part of the book.
So, Bob does say "He Wrote" but I'm pretty sure that's Bob's POV we're getting. However at the bottom it says posted by Jenny. I guess because she has the pictures? Pretty cool anyway.
So Bob had your share of ding-dongs, have you? Jeez anyone who is anyone knows its hot chocolate and KitKats you really lust after.
Blogger back - DEFINITELY a big deal!
2007 has lots of months in it - when can we expect LOST GIRLS?
Pizza cheese, ding dongs, cheetohs, kit kats and hot chocolate. Knew this was a great place to hang out.
Mosquitos - I can hear them buzzing now.
lvwknkz - Blogger is back but really cranky!
Heidi is going to get tired of this but WOW. It does bring the story back to life for me. Now, I want to reread it too.
Nice to hear Bob's POV and thank you Jenny for posting it.
Blogger just gave me a blog index instead of the blog. Weird.
Oh, Bob, I was at the bookstore during my lunch hour and picked up Area 51. Now you can afford another KitKat.
Can you imagine Bob’s reaction when Jenny told him they’d be discussing Heidi’s altered book for the next several days?
J: Heidi made this wonderful creation out of DLD and I’m going to post pictures and we’re going to talk about it.
B: Huh?
J: Remember, you held it briefly before I snatched it away? Beads, ribbons, bottle caps. Pictures. It’s a work of art.
B: Art. You want me to talk about beads and ribbons?
J: You have something else you want to discuss?
B: Huh.
J: I’ll go first. Probably second, too. Then it’s your turn.
B: Just so you know, I can’t see the detail.
Heidi, I stand in awe of your genius: art and torture in one fell swoop. More CB history in the making.
bw
I think we cannot thank Heidi enough for the artful book because it will keep them blogging for a while, giving us new inspiration for comments.
Should we even think of getting a life? Out in the real world? Nah. What for?
This is really neat. Are we going to get to see the whole book? I want to know how she depicted the hotel ambush, the strip club, and the boinking. Because that could be a lot of fun to see and to make (the pages not the boinking) (then again...), and because I've got a sick mind like that.
ympreb yes my perverted reality embraces Bob
marcia sez: 2007 has lots of months in it - when can we expect LOST GIRLS?
I think 2007 has the usual number. Did I miss a memo saying there would be more or fewer than usual? I mean, a leap year is one thing, but when you start adding and subtracting months it gets really complicated. I'm having enough trouble just figuring out which day of the week it is today. I've figured it out for now, but I'm sure I'll forget again.
But, yeah, letting us know which SEASON Lost Girls is due out would help. I seem to recall someone saying spring, but maybe I'm confusing that with Agnes's launch date.
I think they (Him and Her) need to have a Collaboration Museum for Cherry Bombs. It will include all the cool stuff they collected and were gifted with (Except the chocolate which needed to be eaten). Then we could all see this cool stuff in person.
BCB--art and torture in one fell swoop? LMAO!
What CG said. Why, indeed?
You know, it occurs to me that given the amount of time we've known about AATHM, we must be about halfway to publication. (PLEASE???) (J&B, STAY CALM AND WRITE!) Me, eager for AATHM? Nah. I'm cool. Absolutely. You betcha.
Oh, and look at what Blogger gave me...GBZGGTMG. Goofy Blogger zings Glamour Geek (et. al), to many groans. (ducks and takes cover)
G-G - I'm easily confused myself, but 12 IS a LOT of months too me. Especially if I'm waiting for good stories to read.
LOTS of difference between waiting til March, and Waiting til November 2007!
zfljn
Zest for LOSTGIRLS just noticed.
RSS: I tried to post earlier and I was lost in the alternate blog index universe as well. If you ever find yourself there again, you can click on the links and look at the blog. You can also click on links that bring to you a bunch of pictures. I saw some pictures that were already posted and some of what I believe are the rest of the Heidi’s AB.
Nothing but good times ahead.
Job news: I called today. (Hey, I waited OVER a week. Monumental show of patience there.) She said I was tied for top five, and they are planning on setting up extended phone interviews with the those of us in the top five soon.
So: not dead yet.
(BTW: No need to comment on current job stuff, I’m still overwhelmed from the last show of support. Y’all are amazing. I just wanted to keep those who are interested updated.)
BCB: Sent you email via Jen. Most of it is fodder for Moot now.
Heidi - Wow - totally amazing. I'm still in awe! You have an incrediable talent here and I've honestly never seen anything like it before. Great job capturing it all.
Bob/Jenny - Nice way to keep us distracted so we don't bug you too much to feed us details on the new book! What's happening to Princes! What the body count is?
Bob - yeah! LOST GIRLS, so flipping excited! Can't wait.
Okay, this is a must share. Like I told you all before, my book goes to print in September of 07 in Borders. Well, we just found out that Barnes and Noble will be carrying books from the publisher, which means my book too. I already know the two of the people in charge of order the books in two local stores, and of course they are gonig to carry local talent! yeah me.
Lori - didn't get e-mail for BCB - please resend.
BCB - please send paycheck. it's late.
Jen: That is GREAT news! For you and for the e-pub business in general. Congrats! We have a contact here at our local B&N who is extremely supportive of romance authors and I'll ask her about stocking it when the time comes. So exciting!
Now perhaps you can explain why you are holding my email hostage? And no, having a big deadline to meet tomorrow is not a valid excuse.
AH! Now I see she's demanding ransom.
bw
Congratulations, Jen! We're all proud.
Question: Are eBooks carried in stores? I thought they were distributed via websites. My ignorance is showing, and I hate it when that happens.
I just clicked on the January archive and ran across this fragment from Bob...
Agnes is due 1 July. No sweat...
Mind you, he doesn't specify what year. ;)
Mary, if I recall correctly, Jen's book is due in e form first in June 2007 and then we learned recently it will come out in hard copy as well in September.
Borders AND B&N ... GO JEN!!! You know of course CBs will require signed copies???
Margarita cherrybomb twirled around twice in her gauzy pink dress and whirled her magic wand three times to patiently enlighten Mary: "...it will come out in hard copy as well in September."
Geez, ya guys gotta exPLAIN these things to me. Don't trust me to get them from the blog. Besides, that's terRIFic news and bears repeating. Woo hoo Jen!
Way to go!!...JenT
Heidi...You are even more amazing
!
Bob...could you give us a little more exact time for "Lost Girls"?
Like maybe a month...not a year...
Looking forward to JJ and Bob's books.
okhecg...green
OK, how easily Crusie grins
Mary said...
Margarita cherrybomb twirled around twice in her gauzy pink dress and whirled her magic wand three times
See, now I'll never be able to wear that dress again w/o being self-conscious.
Mary revealed: Margarita cherrybomb twirled around twice in her gauzy pink dress and whirled her magic wand three times
Exactly! This is what she does to the law enforcement types, but she made me promise not to tell. How did you find out?
I did not say anything, I promise. Really. Lips are sealed over here.
Distracting as all hell when one is driving, however.
bw
wnasiwv: we're now approaching somewhere in WV (a direct quote from MCB -- as we crossed over into Missouri)
Hey! I've got an idea -- we can check Bob's website for the release date, because most published authors post that kind of stuff... never mind.
Bob, darlin', you know we love you, but really a little more information here would be a good thing. Some of us might want to mark our calendars, since we won't have the blog to remind us. Ahem.
TMI just does not apply to you. Ever.
bw
"Originally, the book was going to be set in Cincinatti".
Wondered how there was a He Wrote posted by Jenny. Then, I saw Cincinnati and knew it was a He Wrote after all. Sigh. Just like when people leave the "h" off of Pittsburgh (for PA, not others).
These posts are fabulous! I wish I hadn't been hiding behind a door when the good Lord handed out this type of talent. Thanks for sharing Heidi's work.
Bon Cheri Bomb queried thusly:
How did you find out?
Did I forget to mention that I got the X-Ray Vision feature on my computer? Yes, I know what all of you look like and it's amazing what a good looking group this is. And quite well behaved, surprisingly enough. Except for -- oh dear. Look, you two over in the corner, get a boudoir, huh? Anyway, as I was saying, you all look quite nice out in computer land. Louis, you never mentioned how handsome you are! Lori, you're looking quite blameless. Orangehands, dear, stop slouching. And clean up that room; it's starting to look like mine.
Wow, Heidi, it just keeps getting better and better, pure genius.
Be careful writing out their on the dock today Bob, hear rain is heading your way ... hope you've got galoshes.
Can't you picture Bob in his camouflage rainproof poncho, nice dark green galoshes and a big sou'wester hat sitting on the deck with his laptop?
Aww, Bob, all wet and fluffy, let's go make him a hot chocolate and bring him some ding dongs.
Congrats! Jen-T. You deserve it girlfriend. Put me on your mailing list for a reminder for next year, we won't have the blog :( I'm actually weaning myself off the blog so I don't suffer with withdrawal symptoms come December. It's a tough month to be depressed in. I've promised myself two entries a day, that's all. So, today I cheated, but who's counting?
rg
oops, another entry, that's five so far. It was a there not a their, see I know the difference. Had to catch that fast as Tal is taking notes.
rg
robena june has often caught zzzzz's (while supposed to be working)
Great news JenT
Lori thanks for the update. I know you don't want a show of support but tough. Rootin' for ya here.
LOL at visual of MCB from Mary and then BCB putting her in front seat of car whirling. I believe Lady Luck from the Va Lottery better watch her back.
ozirfc This is the second OZ verification I've gotten. I'd like to believe Australia was in my future but
OZ invitation Robert fumes (The) Cherry
Bob, you didn't mention the anniversary once. i'd say something more, but, well, it was kind of expected. and yeah, when's LG coming out? i have to plan these things money wise, you know.
lori: see? that's really good. (even if they do make people wait days for an answer). i mean, not like it's rocket science. the obvious choice is you.
JJ: oh good. so, when you sending out signed copies to all CBs? no, no, it's our pleasure. seriously, we're happy to get them.
marcia and g-g: post about the months had me LMAO. BCB, your last one too.
Lynn said...
"Originally, the book was going to be set in Cincinatti".
Yeah. He says its because Jenny's bridge was too wimpy. But I think its because he couldn't spell Cincinnati.
RG asked ... Can't you picture Bob in his camouflage rainproof poncho, nice dark green galoshes and a big sou'wester hat sitting on the deck with his laptop?
No no. That's Jen. I know, hard to tell under the hat.
Well, maybe the hotel caper book can be set in Ohio somewhere. If the action all takes place inside, Bob can make the interior whatever he wants it to be, yes? And heck, Bob, you can travel to this exotic locations, and it's research, right? Isn't that tax deductable?
Mary Stella--Forgot to say this earlier. I believe you reside in the Keys. Hope you weathered the storm ok. Check back in when you can and crossing my fingers that you haven't lost power so you can check in. Take care.
On an unrelated topic, I was doing some genealogy research on my mom's family yesterday and it appears that some of my ancestors were from Ohio and SC, in addition to the more recent ones who are predominantly from TN, KY and Iowa.
I know feel even closer to The Cherry and the GAM. ;)
Maybe Bob was doing hotel research in Atlanta. He reportedly made reference to the layers of concrete waiting to collapse into the lobby. In truth, that was one scary looking hotel atrium.
You all might want to keep an eye on him in NJ -- see whether he's casing the joint, help him out with any research, tuck him in... nonono, that's Jen's job. Sorry Jen, didn't mean to impinge.
What are the dates for that trip? And when are they going to be in Minnesota? My mom is celebrating her 75th B-Day in October and it has been rumoured that I am expected to attend. Does that coincide? Nope. Just checked the dates on the C-M website -- they'll be in Surrey, BC that weekend.
Too bad.
Hey Jen, speaking of October, heard on the news tonight that the Hurricanes play Buffalo in the season opener on Oct 4. They're calling it a re-match. HA!
bw
To everyone: thank you so much for all the kudos, you guys are great. Disclaimer - shamless self-promotion - you guys could go to my website and sign up for the monthly newsletter, which probably won't really start for a few months, and then you won't miss a thing. Or you could just e-mail me and I'll put you on the list.
BCB - not holding it hostage, still no e-mail from Lori. Lori - when you e-mail make sure you put BCB as the subject line. I've got a fairly high sercurity, so it might end up in spam. I almost deleted an e-mail once from one of my favorite authors and when she responded, it went into spam and I well, thank goodness I double checked before hiting that button.
Mary - E-books are sold on line at the Publishers website. You download the book onto your computer in either easer reader type program or as a pdf. You can also read them hand held devices or PDA's. And I guess some cell phones. Some e-books then go to print and you can order them at Amazon and borders, B&N, whatever. These are the ones you can hold in your hands. I'm trilled that mine will come in both styles.
MCB - gauzy pink dress? You flamigo you!
MCB - No, that's Jen? I don't do camaflage. Ever. That green just isn't my color. Black I can do, and I don't sit naked on my dock with a beer. i don't drink! So naked with the a diet coke maybe, waiting for jaws....
BCB -October 4th! That's like right before NJ. Go Buffalo. FYI - my girlfriend and one of my roomies in NJ is looking for one of those coin belts. You remember those things, where someone taking money wears it for easy change? Well, she's cracking up over the vibrating bed, since she's actually seen the high tech room with the subwoofer thingy and all the speakers and stupid large TV. Anyway, she's going to buy me one and actually dared me to waer it in NJ. Ha! We all know I will. Change for the bed anyone?
mnmiqt - milk, not milk, in quarts, tin
I almost forgot - I GOT MY NEW CHAIR! My ass is so comfortable now!
Oddly, I miss Bryan.
you know, setting is very important. is it buildings or trees? a house or a mansion? some kind of body of water or flat, hot land? hills or mountians? damp or dry? city, town, or rural? snowy, rainy, or hot? cloudy or clear?
i started writing this post with a point. ummm, oh, yes, it was this. setting is very important. and how much time you focus on a setting is a writer's choice and a reader's turn off.
because i've been told about every grain of dirt for about fifty pages, and i must say, that's quite unnecessary.
i think i need to lay down. my head hurts.
Jen: I just sent it for the third time, and BCB has been the in the suject line of each time. Did you not get the first email I sent that was for you either? I sent sent one the night before I send you the card.
Crap: One track mind right now.
CONGRATS JEN!!
ljmthw: Like Jen, my teeth have whiteness.
I thought they had a hotel in Milwaukee picked out for the hotel caper book?
Lori - Got the one for BCB, and I forwarded it to her. I must not have seen it in the sea of e-mails. I didn't get your earlier one either, but I loved my e-card. You are so sweet. Between my writing loops, my personal e-mails, the dance studio e-mails, and the work I do for my husband, I probably get over 300 e-mails a day. I told my husband I was going to quit working for him, he laughed and said "Okay, honey, I'll stop paying you then." What money???? I wear too many hats. I need to hang up a few. Oh, and I volunteered for PTA stuff for each of my kids schools. Not a single one goes to the same school - what is up with that? Okay, off to bed!
I thought the Hotel Caper was going to be set at a resort so that B&J could take a trip to a resort of their taxes. Research, dontcha know?
ok, my head's ok now.
but setting does play a large portion into a book, it's just sometimes an author goes too far overboard.
hotel caper. i remember something about a resort. don't remember the name of the place the resort is in though. if it was me, i'd be going somewhere really nice. since it's tax deductable and all.
and Bob will probably complain about the walls caving in, the decor talking to him.
Congratulation Jen-T Now I'll be sure to get [The Book] from B&N when I visit the States. I have been reading a lot of romance lately and always wonder if it is written by a CB.
Mary...
Don't know about the "Handsome"...
I'm 6'1"...190 lbs...white haired with a very, very high forehead from all the knowledge learned here pushing the hair out.
And Bob, we still need that publishing date ... a little more accurate than next year.
cmbzxwbw...red
Crusie makes books zip Xceedingly well, Bob works
Congratulations jen-t. I tried to get on your mailing list for your newsletter and it wouldn't take my name. Have you got me locked out you dirty rat? /,D I also want to get a copy of your book. We don't have Barnes and Noble so you will have to tell me when it is coming out so I can send you the money for a copy or I could order it.
So it would seem your bed is going to be vibrating for more than one reason on Oct.4. What a lucky girl. Going to NJ and a hockey game too. Hurricanes versus the Sabres. Go Sabers. Here we go again. Hey bcb who's cheering for the Hurricanes besides you? Could there be an interested party on a barrier island near you? /.)
Hey BOB "you can actually something there" referring to the shell circle. And what could that something be says she, wiggling her eyebrow. (The other one is behind a patch at the moment) /,D
blue snanrt
So, no answered Nora Roberts telephone. ('cause she didn't give her number out on the blog.)
blue qadfh
Questioners always demand fair heartfelt (answers).
Congratulations jen-t. I tried to get on your mailing list for your newsletter and it wouldn't take my name. Have you got me locked out you dirty rat? /,D I also want to get a copy of your book. We don't have Barnes and Noble so you will have to tell me when it is coming out so I can send you the money for a copy or I could order it.
So it would seem your bed is going to be vibrating for more than one reason on Oct.4. What a lucky girl. Going to NJ and a hockey game too. Hurricanes versus the Sabres. Go Sabers. Here we go again. Hey bcb who's cheering for the Hurricanes besides you? Could there be an interested party on a barrier island near you? /.)
Hey BOB "you can actually something there" referring to the shell circle. And what could that something be says she, wiggling her eyebrow. (The other one is behind a patch at the moment) /,D
blue snanrt
So, no answered Nora Roberts telephone. ('cause she didn't give her number out on the blog.)
blue qadfh
Questioners always demand fair heartfelt (answers).
for Pity's sake blue ddbnvsg
Dirty dog, Bob. Never verified (he's on )safe ground. Watch out for Ernesto.
Robena wrote: Can't you picture Bob in his camouflage rainproof poncho, nice dark green galoshes and a big sou'wester hat sitting on the deck with his laptop?
Aww, Bob, all wet and fluffy, let's go make him a hot chocolate and bring him some ding dongs
. http://www.silverneedlect.com/prod_images/181.gif
Just read the latest book in one of my favorite series. The author killed off four running characters (including the hero!) and only brought one of them back to life. So far.
This is the hotel I suggested for the caper:
http://www.grandhotel.com/
hduyzs -- "How do U YEC?" Zaza says.
I thought that back when J&B were on the DLD tour, they stayed in a boutique hotel that they really liked, and thought would make a great setting for a book.
Or was it Madison? I can't remember now.
Okay, you know you're addicted to He Wrote/She Wrote when you stay up to try and track down something you remember in a long-ago blog entry. The hotel they liked is the Hotel Metro in Milwaukee. They talk about it in the May 3rd blog titled "Wisconsin takes its toll." But I can't find the blogs where they talk about doing a hotel caper book. And since I'm so tired I can't see straight, I think I'll say goodnight, Gracie.
Good thing I'm going to bed, look what Blogger gave me: VXFZGXLG.
Geez. Now even Scope Dope is worried about Bob riding out a little rain storm. You guys do remember this is a man who has jumped out of helicopters -- while they were in the air, one presumes -- and off of moving boats, and survived an RWA convention and evaded stalking CB's and any potentially lethal conversations with same?
Then again, he did make quite a big deal early on about not being a SEAL -- so maybe he can't swim.
Bob, yes I'm talking to you, being our egg does come with some responsibilities, it seems. It's not entirely a life of lounging about on a plush deck chair being hand-fed the choicest Kit Kats and supplied with cold beer while having the mosquitoes fanned away by scantily clad CB's who take turns running out to the nearest bookstore to buy your backlist.
So I guess you'd better check in, let us know what preparedness measures you've taken, whether you've battened the hatches and tied down all your precious belongings and backed up your computer files. And yes, you're probably going to have to check in again after the storm, too. We don't like it when Scope Dope gets worried.
What do you mean, what storm?
Hey, most of us are mothers. It's our job to worry. And stop rolling your eyes, young man, or you're grounded.
bw
Talpianna, the Grand Hotel would be great, and it's on a island in the middle of Lake Superior! That could make getaways interesting, or downright impossible, which is a good thing. Lots of woods (fabulous fall colors) and natural wonders to get lost in too. No swamps though. BUT they do have fudge. Plus it's in Michigan, so I could go visit them while they do research. (hint hint)
They made the movie "Somewhere in Time" at that hotel.
Everyone - Really guys, the hotel in Atlanta, the Atrium section was concrete and when I read that post by Jenny about what Bob said about it being ready to collaspe on itself, yeah, I had nightmares. That wasn't very nice of our egg.
SDCB and others who have tried to put their name on the list on my website - not sure what is wrong - my mother got an error, but her name is there. I'll put you on the list myself - SDCB already done, same with Sheryl - anyone else just e-mail and tonight I'll try and fix it. Thanks.
Speaking of hotels - My husband and I stayed at the hotel where the movie CADDY SHACK was filmed. He took me there for a "romantic" getaway. He played 18 holes in the morning, I lounged. Then we played in the afternoon together. We kept looking for Bill Murray to pop out and try and blow up the Ground hog, but he never showed. The hotel was okay, but not great. The trip was nice, and I suppose you could consider it "productive" since about nine months later child number three showed up.
Jenny said that Bob used up all his adrenaline for life while in the military, so he's probably eyeing the approaching storm from his dock, beer in one hand, and going "oh wah". And didn't Bob talk once about training with the SEALs? Anyway something about learning to move through the water. Actually now I think about it that with British SF he was talking about, wasn't it?
ME - I loved that movie. And staying on Lake Superior would allow Moot to come along.
Forgot to mention that I found two copies of DLD at the Borders store yesterday placed awkwardly in the general literature section. I mention this because we've talked before about the odd places booksellers choose to shelve books. Anyway, I left them in general literature since the computer said that's where they were. But they are both now face out.
Shameless self-promotion!!!! My contemporary gothic, Beyond the Shadows (a witch story) has finalled in the Haunted Hearts contest and is on it's way to St. Martin's Press.
I'm so thrilled. I've never won anything before, not even a pack of gum or a recycled book in our chapter's monthly drawings. : )
Even if SMP don't like the story I'm still happy. Doing the snoopy dance ...
Must be a lucky time of the month for me, just found Vegemite yesterday in the specialty store in the desert. I couldn't even find it in Los Angeles and had been craving it since my trip to Australia. Had two slices of toast with vege for breakfast. Yum!
rg
Oh, sorry, forgot why I posted that, this is the story I took to Bob's retreat and he critiqued the first few chapters. It was then called Wicca of Orange. So thank you, thank you Bob.
rg
Yay, RG!!!! Do let us know when it hits the shelves ... WHEN it hits the shelves so that we can help with the shameless promoting.
RG: That’s wonderful! This so much better than winning a pack of gum or tons of those other silly prizes because it is recognition of your hard work and talent. Congratulations!
RG: congratulations! Our writing CBs are certainly doing well these days. Keep up the excellent work!
In the meantime, Tal, the Michigan hotel is lovely, but MICHIGAN? I mean, if you're going to do a hotel set in a resort, let's make it a RESORT. The Keys? Not Hawaii, because they've been there and met there. Maybe the Caribbean? Sedona, AZ? Ojai so Jenny can get spa treatments while she does research? Cannes? Monaco? Santorini? The possibilities are endless...
Yup, I'd rather travel than do pretty much anything else. If I won the lottery, I don't know if I'd buy a house, but I'd definitely be planning my Mediterranean tour. And trip to NZ and Oz. And trip to the Caribbean. And back to Costa Rica. And back to Greece. And my friend wants to go on vacation to Vietnam. And...
G-G said: Maybe the Caribbean? Sedona, AZ? Ojai so Jenny can get spa treatments while she does research? Cannes? Monaco? Santorini? The possibilities are endless...
Oooooh, how about the famous La Quinta Resort here in the desert? It's a fascinating place and locals say it's haunted by several long deceased actors and actresses who frequented the place. Great history, too. It's all private little villa accommodations so Bob and Jenny can email from villa to villa.
And OH can come down from L.A. and Tal from Arizona and they can stay with me. We can find a big tree where we can climb up and use our binoculars to keep tabs on them.
Tal can take the night shift, I know she'll be able to round up some night vision goggles ...
rg
Lots of room for capering at Talpianna's Grand Hotel. Nothing wrong with Michigan - it's beautiful up there! I think J&B should definitely look into it - maybe stay at the "cottage" (it's only $3K/night). But you get a discount on the ferry for that, and, if you rent for a month ($57K - big savings!), they pay your airfare, too.
Clearly I need to enter a different income bracket.
Congrats to all on publishment and job prospects! Maybe you, too, can stay at the cottage...
Another awesome page, Heidi!
pmrdagy: sorry, not in that mode today.
What's wrong with Michigan? I mean besides the cold and the snow and the fact Mackinac Island gets isolated during the winter when the lake freezes over...
OK so maybe GG has a point.
RG: CONGRATS!!! that was wonderful. and this i'll finally be able to read one of your books if it's published. very cool.and i would love to stay with you. it'll be a blast.
tal: what book? geez, don't you know by now to be specific?
BCB said "Then again, he did make quite a big deal early on about not being a SEAL -- so maybe he can't swim."
LMAO. well, if he didn't remember you before this may do the trick.
my friend works at a very nice hotel in Santa Barbara that celebs stay at all the time. and she'd upgrade you for free if i ask. i think you should stay there. (makes visiting you so much easier).
gone all day/night so don't worry, scope dope.
I was on SEP's website and she has a very nice photo with Jenny and refers to her as "incomparable".
Seems like a nice thing to say..
christina - My sister is big on researching our family tree. I was reading some of what she found out and an alarming number of ancestors were apparently offed by falling trees in the late 1700s. Which made me think, "STAY OUT OF THE @#$%! FOREST." Oh well, Darwin and all that jazz. The other side of the family is not much better, as the definition of my maiden name roughly translates to "I don't know." I can't exactly see that written on a family crest or a coat of arms (or whatever they are - the brain is fading fast today. Or I Just Don't Know).
jen-t: congrats and glad to hear your tushie is comfy now. I am actually quite jealous of your new chair as I am using a folding chair for my computer. Nothing quite like trying to get an idea down before both legs fall asleep.
Don't forget all the pretty horses up at Mack, since there are no motorized vehicles (at least they still didn't when I was there last several years ago).
wtcugmf: Wacky thoughts come under guise (of) meddling fruitcakes.
Funny, I don't recall drinking my lunch today ...
wkpkgry: as in wacked packagry
for pete's sake
ibaga:as in "I baga your pardon lady, but you just sat on my duck."
Maybe blogger's telling me I need a drink ...
Oh you people make me dream. I would love to stay at the cottage at the Grand Hotel. I have dreamed about that place several times since seeing the movie "Somewhere in Time". I loved that movie in spite of the fact it made me realize that I would never have a young man look at me like that again. It really is a romantic place so it would be a perfect venue for a book but of course you would have to do the research and check it out for interiors and exteriors.
I used to drive through the state of Michigan going from Niagara to Wawa, Ontario and passed close enough to Mackinac Island to see the hotel perched on the hill. I stayed on the road of course, not in the water, like bcb and mcb would do.
Robena, big congratulations. Good for you.
Thanks OH for warning me you would be gone for a day and a night. You know I would worry. I care about you.
green phkeijvr
Please help keep energizing individuals. Jenny's very right.
green lxzwxncb
A new name for the Polish Nail Polish , translated to Grand Canyon Sunset.
Jen-t and rg - Major congratulations!! Woohoo!!! As everyone else has said - we expect signed copies!!
OS - BCB, if you are still interested in tight jeans and butts (or is that tight butts in jeans...hummm) below is the link to the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association website. They have the finals in Las Vegas every year in November. An entire city full of tight butts, tight jeans, and cowboy hats - paradise!!
http://prorodeo.org/
nqdre
numerous quirks define reader's eclectic (choices)
uxfey
unusual eXcitement for easy YEX
Jen-t and rg - Major congratulations!! Woohoo!!! As everyone else has said - we expect signed copies!!
OS - BCB, if you are still interested in tight jeans and butts (or is that tight butts in jeans...hummm) below is the link to the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association website. They have the finals in Las Vegas every year in November. An entire city full of tight butts, tight jeans, and cowboy hats - paradise!!
http://prorodeo.org/
nqdre
numerous quirks define reader's eclectic (choices)
uxfey
unusual eXcitement for easy YEX
eosov
O.K., I'm done - blogger is messing with me
Lou thanks for entertaining me on my lunch break. I went on the Cowboy bio page on the Pro Rodeo sight, and some of those guys have great names.
I picked out Buster Record Jr. for BCB. Then I read he was married.
Tommy Guy had some potential, but Ora Taton was married too. I’d steer (hehe) clear of Stockton Graves. Oddly, Bo Casper’s file couldn’t be found.
I’m holding out for Rowdy Rieken or Josh Peek.
Jen-t, what kind of chair did you end up getting? Something fancy or just something comfy? Also, congrats on the harcopy release date.
Robena, congrats on your contest and hope SMP takes the book!
The Grand Hotel - well, for your money, the cottage includes all meals, even a personal chef to cook them there, and cocktails in the evening. I mean, what more could you want. And, TBH, if I ever found myself with a spare $60k sitting around, I'd go for it. What a great place to write a book. ;+)
fxcaawf (green)
no idea
zmihsu (red)
I think I bought something from this guy on eBay.
Lou taunted: BCB, if you are still interested in tight jeans and butts
Geez. Now you're doing it, too. And I never said anything about tight jeans or butts, or vice versa. Louis was the one who told us he had GAM sons (FOUR OF THEM) who had been raised up right by their mother, so I figured they were a lot like Louis, who is definitely a GAM (do you remember him quoting poetry?), and then he went and told us they were also cowboys! Well hell, what's a girl supposed to do but swoon all over the place? And they're really not cow cowboys, but horse cowboys. Who wear dusters and gunbelts. Sigh. And I'll bet they're tall, too, since Louis is 6'1". Sigh.
Yep. Those boys just captured my imagination and still haven't given it back. Not that I'm complaining. Louis, why don't you send one or two of them over here to talk to us?
RG: Congrats on the final! Hope they love it and buy it and we see it in print soon!
bw
Thanks so much everyone for your congrats and well wishes.
For anyone who doesn't know how this works, I only finaled, didn't win. The finalist entries go to SMP where the editor reads them gives them a first, second, third placement. If she's interested in any of the entries she might request more of the story and take a closer look, but that's a long shot.
I'm happy enough with a finalist placement because I never really knew what I was writing. It was just a story I personally enjoyed writing and I never thought about marketing it in advance of outlining. Oh yeah, back in those days I didn't outline. Heh.
When I tried a couple of other contests I couldn't find a fit for it. It wasn't a romantic suspense, it wasn't a mystery, but it had elements of both, plus a thread of paranormal but not dark enough to get placement against all of the vampire and darker stories. Plus it wasn't that woo-woo stuff it was about the Wicca faith.
So, from now on I look at how my book could be marketed, if I should be lucky enough to sell. No more of that "I'm just writing a story b.s." The current one is a romantic suspense.
rg
Yep, bon cheri bomb, they are in the six foot area.
And I like to watch rodeo!
flwhxg...red
flogging leaves welts, have Xcited girls
Mary Stella--Forgot to say this earlier. I believe you reside in the Keys. Hope you weathered the storm ok. Check back in when you can and crossing my fingers that you haven't lost power so you can check in. Take care.
Christina, thanks for checking. I'm sorry for not reporting back sooner. As you all know by now, Ernesto failed to intensify when he left Cuba, so he was a weak tropical storm when he arrived by me in the Keys. The storm dumped a few inches of rain, but no super winds.
The biggest negative impact is to the Keys economy since the tourists were evacuated on Sunday. Since there's only one road out of the Keys, the non-residents need to go early to make room for the rest of us if we have to leave. Oh well, better to be safe.
Thanks again!
iosen: It's only storm Ernie now.
Louis, I swear to Bob, if I were 20 years younger and had some hope of keeping up with you I'd track you down and... and... well, you'd stop taunting me, that's for sure. You and the horse you rode in on. Please give my best to your DS's -- and be sure to tell them that my best is very good. Nice, even. [grin]
Mary Stella -- glad you're ok. All the rain you didn't get? We're getting it here. Good thing I live on a hill (no flooding concerns) and there's another house between mine and the creek, now a raging torrent, so if we start to slide there will be something to stop us from splashing in.
But it's ok because, unlike Bob, I can swim.
bw
Mary Stella:
Glad to hear everything is okay.
Are you the one who wrote that really cute book about the keys and had an exerpt on your site?
I just took a look but couldn't see it. I always wanted to say how much I enjoyed reading it but couldn't remember who's site I'd been to. Then tonight I read the above and went, Florida Key's, it must have been Mary Stella.Was it?
rg
Louis spoke modestly: "I don't know about handsome"
Ah, but I do know. I mean, all we know about you is what comes through the words you type. From these words we can draw the obvious inference that you are intelligent and charming, so it goes without saying that any cherrybomb would find you handsome (okay maybe not Bryan... whatever happened to Bryan? Did we scare him off with too many cell phone messages? BCB, I told you not to leave that kind of message! Sheesh.)
I don't know what most of you look like, but I picture you in my head when I read the blog. I think my subconscious put Margarita CB in pink gauze and holding a wand because she has some resemblance to the Good Witch of the North. Or was it of the South? Oh bless my heart it could be the Good Witch of the Midwest; it's been that long since I've watched the Australian Wizard movie.
hey! where'd my verification word go?
RG Congratulations on your finalling. That is so great. I hope they first ask to see more and then beg you to sell it to them. Then you can let us know when it will be published so I can buy it.
Mary Stella Glad to here you are ok.
Thankfully we got some rain over the last two days and are supposed to get more today.
Read JE's 12 Sharp yesterdeay. As so many commented here it's very good and I love the way she is developing the characters. Funny as all of hers are.
Spent the day doing as Jenny suggested a few posts ago. You know finishing buying school supplies, taking DS11 to get locker assignment, schedule etc for middle school. I think he feels better about it now.
Funny thing happened. Ran into one of the mom's. We have two kids the same age with the same names and they have been on same sports teams, in same classes etc. She walked up said hello and said she'd heard I'd written a novel. Huh. And where could she buy it.
I think I stood there with my mouth open for a few minutes before I explained that no publisher had bought the book. Yet;) Really strange.
Mary said ... I think my subconscious put Margarita CB in pink gauze and holding a wand because she has some resemblance to the Good Witch of the North. Or was it of the South? Oh bless my heart it could be the Good Witch of the Midwest
Its actually the mid-Atlantic. I tried for a posting in the Hawaiian Islands but apparently paradise does need another fairy godmother.
Oh wait. That should read paradise doesn't need another fg. Dang it all anyway.
RSS - see you are a legend before your time!
Gotta go mainline more coffee.
nfnoldh
nuffin' old here
Oh wait. That comment two posts up? That was me. Good ol' vjobgcaw.
Where the hell's my caffeine!
MCB A new you know you're a CB if...You recognize the person posting even if they use the verification for their name. I had to go back twice to look at that post because I couldn't figure out why you had to tell us it was you.
I think it was the reference to needing caffiene or maybe to the pink gauze.
You are bringing your wand and pink gauze to NJ aren't you?
ooh, lookit that, I've started a rumor about MCB... tee hee...
Thank you Mary. Just what I needed is more stuff for people to talk about behind my back.
But I love you guys. I really really do. I love you soooo much that I am going to share with you some hard won truths I have discovered just this morning.
1. Don't inhale while you are eating pineapple. Your lungs won't thank you for it.
2. If you use your fork to improperly spear a ripe blackberry, said berry may have reason to squirt juice on your pale gray and white short-sleeved argyle sweater. ('sokay, I was able to oh so carefully blot it up)
3. Don't tell people you know how to do stuff. They'll make you do it.
Robin. My wand has been confiscated for improper use. Difference of opinion on that one. They say tomayto I say tomahto. I say I waved it with enthusiasm, they claim I smacked someone upside the head. Either way somebody's wish got granted.
Btuda wrote: christina - My sister is big on researching our family tree. I was reading some of what she found out and an alarming number of ancestors were apparently offed by falling trees in the late 1700s. Which made me think, "STAY OUT OF THE @#$%! FOREST." Oh well, Darwin and all that jazz.
he he. My relatives just died from health issues...non-tree-induced ailments. ;) We seem to have a few ministers, a shoe cobbler and a ton of farmers in the family. The last coincides well with the large number of men named George in the family (George comes from the greek word for farmer). We also have some fun names like Temperance, Permelia and Mince. Can't wait to see what else I can dig up.
Mary Stella--Glad to hear you are ok. Please stay that way. ;)
Mary Stella: glad you are safe and sound.
btuda: LMAO about the trees.
rss: see. your talent has been spreading. people all over will know it.
christina sez: We also have some fun names like Temperance, Permelia and Mince.
These are much more entertaining than the names on either side of my family. But I'm still glad my mother did not let my father name me something that could only be spelled in old Norse characters.
As I child, I thought it was bad enough that I got a BOY'S name, and a freaky one at that, for my middle name. Now I actually think it's pretty cool because I was named after my godfather, but back then it was tragic.
GG--I have my father's first name for my middle name, so I hear you on that.
christina: I'm betting mine's weirder. :)
GG--I have no doubt. Mine's a male name, but it's pretty standard.
Any hints as to yours?
I'll give it to you for free: Wystan
It goes along with the famous, Pulizer-prize winning poet godfather W.H. Auden, who was a friend of my father. He did not live long enough for me to be able to remember him in the slightest. But quite a bit to try to live up to. Which I'm not doing. :)
GG: I think that is a wonderful middle name with so much meaning to you and your family.
One of my distant cousins had the unfortunate luck to end up with the middle name Babyface. His last name was Nelson. How awful. He eventually had his middle name removed.
Babyface Nelson. One is reminded of Davy in Faking It when he says "Someone named a helpless baby Scarlet Hodge!?"
What are parents thinking???
hey, i like the name Scarlet!
i know some great names jokes. if only i wasn't secreted to silence...
OH: You're secreted??? LMAO!
MCB/OH - secreted in CC's hole-in-the wall? Or (different pronunciation) FROM something?
GG - that is SO cool! Auden is one of the few poets who makes sense to me - though I had no idea his name was Wystan.
Christina - any info on "Permelia" or "Mince"? made-up? obscure language? mis (er) conception?
Glad to see y'all still down here - I needed something to read while I ate!
no idea what it would mean, but
qztoqff would be a great name.
Diane said...
MCB/OH - secreted in CC's hole-in-the wall? Or (different pronunciation) FROM something?
It does all depend on the pronunciation. I didn't know either could be used as a verb, though.
MCB: looking it up,they may both be pronounced the same way; one meaning to hide or conceal, the other to separate and emit as a secretion. I thought the hiding one was pronounced more like secret (I get this a lot with words rarely used in conversation - it took me years to connect the word "facetiously" with its pronunciation).
However- sorry, OH - it isn't normally used as a verb the way she did!
Diane said ... (I get this a lot with words rarely used in conversation - it took me years to connect the word "facetiously" with its pronunciation).
LOL. My mother is like this. I get my love of reading from her and she has an amazing vocabulary. Show her any word and she can give you a pretty good definition off the top of her head. However SHE CANNOT SPELL. Not if her life depended on it. And since her vocabulary comes from the books she's read over the years, she has no clue how they are pronounced. Makes things pretty interesting.
And I have a facetious story. No really. In highschool, my history teacher was pretty cool. He encouraged us to really discuss things rather than just learning the facts. And he was a pretty funny guy who would come off with some comment now and again and follow it with ... "but I'm just being facetious."
So we get to the end of the year and our final exam which was pages and pages long and included essay questions and so forth. And among the questions was "Define facetious." What can I say, he was one of those teachers who DID expect us to think.
Looking back I had a number of teachers like that. The public school system didn't do so badly by me.
Diane asked: Christina - any info on "Permelia" or "Mince"? made-up? obscure language? mis (er) conception?
No info as of yet. Though my great aunt Gerry had first written down Permelia as Pamela, but it is in fact Permelia. Lots of people in my family can't spell to save their lives, so maybe it is genetic and these are just distortions of other names. I think Mince, which was used as a middle name, may actually be a surname, but I have nothing concrete to support that at the moment.
diane sez: GG - that is SO cool! Auden is one of the few poets who makes sense to me - though I had no idea his name was Wystan.
Not poetry I happen to like, but that's ok. I don't have to tell him that since he died in the 70s.
W.H.=Wystan Hugh. For the next time you need some random bit of trivia.
Christina: my family has a friend named Micheal (not Michael) because the nurse who wrote it on the birth certificate couldn't spell. *shrug*
diane said "However- sorry, OH - it isn't normally used as a verb the way she did!"
you should see how many words i make up/twist to suit my needs on a regular basis.
GG wrote: Christina: my family has a friend named Micheal (not Michael) because the nurse who wrote it on the birth certificate couldn't spell.
he he. That happened to one of my friends in high school. His middle name is Brain, not Brian as it should be. His father misspelled it.
RG: CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And why are you mentioning the Mole and "vision"--night or otherwise--in the same sentence?
Glamour-Geek: The Grand Hotel is a famous summer resort for the Very Rich and Private and has been for over a century, IIRC. And when I originally proposed it, LaFavre was going to be the hero and the heroine was going to be a wildlife biologist from the Purdue U. wolf research project on Isle Royale.
Santorini? Since that's supposed to be the original site of Atlantis, there could be one hell of a surprise ending to a book set there....
(BTW, I know know what the vultures wanted with Jenny and will be posting it soon on my blog.)
OH: I deliberately didn't name the book or give away any identifying details because I'm pretty sure at least one other person on this blog is reading the series and I didn't want to spoil it. I'll e-mail you the name.
mcb whined: Its actually the mid-Atlantic. I tried for a posting in the Hawaiian Islands but apparently paradise does [not] need another fairy godmother.
Ah, Margarita, the Normally Well-Intentioned Witch of Rockall:
The fleet set sail for Rockall,
Rockall,
Rockall,
To free the isle of Rockall,
From fear of foreign foe.
We sped across the planet,
To find this lump of granite,
One rather startled Gannet;
In fact, we found Rockall.
So, praise the brave Bell-bottoms,
Bottoms,
Bottoms,
Who saw Britannia's Peril,
And answered to her call,
Though we're thrown out of Malta,
Though Spain should take Gibraltar,
Why should we flinch or falter,
When England's got Rockall.
http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/rockall/images/Rockall%20wave.JPG
fhywu -- Five happy young women ululated.
eietk --e-mail from a 'roo auditioning for a part in "Old MacDonald Had a Farm"
TALPIANNA HATH RETURNED!!!!!
Tal said: And why are you mentioning the Mole and "vision"--night or otherwise--in the same sentence?
Umm ... gee ... I can't remember. Oh, I know because you are the smart one. I knew you'd know where to buy the night vision glasses an