His Good Opinion FREE Today!

If you always thought Mr. Darcy was outside your price range, today is your lucky day. His Good Opinion is free in the Kindle store--get him while he's hot!

And don't forget, the giveaway for a Kindle Fire is open until the end of March. Have you entered yet?

I hope to see all of you over at my new website.

New Website + Kindle Fire Giveaway

That's right, friends. After using the Blogger platform for a year, I decided it was time to have my own domain name. With a little help from my talented friends and family, I put together a great looking site over at nancykelleywrites.com.

I migrated all the old Blogger posts over, and most of the comments. (Wordpress glitched on that halfway through.) There's a page for His Good Opinion and room for more books as they come. *cough*

During my opening months, there will be several giveaways. I'll finally be giving away copies of my book, of course, and some of my talented author-friends will do guest blogs and giveaways.

I believe in starting with a bang, so my first giveaway is for a Kindle Fire. The giveaway is open through March 31st and there are several ways to enter--so why are you still hanging around here? Go on, enter!

Keeping Personal Things Private

There's a challenge in our modern life that's been building since the moment the internet was created. How do we keep our private lives--things we don't want to share with the world at large--from bleeding into the public world? Some people go the route of not creating a virtual identity at all, but for writers, that's not a choice.

It's been drilled into my head for the last two years that in order to promote my book, I need to be accessible online. I need to blog, I need to be on Twitter, I need...

But sometimes, we have to draw a line in the sand. Even an author needs a place where she can be a person, where she can just be herself, not accountable to the general reading public.

For me, Facebook is that place online. My Twitter account is public, my Facebook account is private. On Twitter, I'll follow pretty much anyone if they interest me. On Facebook, I'm far, far more selective.

This makes Facebook the one place I talk about work, or ramble about Doctor Who, or share my plans for the weekend. Some of that bleeds into Twitter, but only selective things. Very little of it bleeds onto my blog, which I try to keep mostly professional.

So you understand why I've struggled the last few months with the idea of creating a Facebook page for me as an author. Even though it would be completely separate from my personal account, it would still be business intruding in my home life, and that was a line I wasn't sure I wanted to cross.

I finally decided to do it. After all, I'm launching a new website next month (Have I mentioned that? keep an eye out for awesome giveaways!), and that's just a good time to get everything out of the way. Do it all at once, like ripping off a Band-aid.

That little analogy should tell you how I felt about the idea. Finally, Saturday night I realized that I just couldn't do it. It would be so easy to accidentally muddy the waters between the private account and the public page. Post something from the wrong account or... Who knows? I would just rather not go there.

This is me, drawing the line.

Hero Love

First, I have a confession to make: Darcy did not immediately win me over when I first read Pride and Prejudice as a teenager. His first proposal was disastrous and though his second was better, there just didn't seem to be much to swoon over. I was much more taken by Elizabeth's strength and wit. I wanted to be Elizabeth, rather than be with Darcy. 

That didn't really change until I decided to tell Darcy's story. To gain a better understanding of him, I read the novel once more with I had two questions in mind: 1) What made him so reluctant to give his good opinion to others, and 2) How did Elizabeth so easily gain it, almost against his own will? The answer completely won me over. 

Darcy prizes honesty above all else. As a man of position and wealth, he is accustomed to being used and pursued. Men want to be known as his friend and women want to be courted by him. His disdain of this is clear in his response to Miss Bingley in Chapter Eight: "Undoubtedly," replied Darcy, to whom this remark was chiefly addressed, "there is a meanness in all the arts which ladies sometimes condescend to employ for captivation. Whatever bears affinity to cunning is despicable." Caroline catches enough of his point to drop the subject.

Elizabeth never fawns over Darcy, and thus he cannot help but fall in love with her. Unfortunately, it does not occur to him that if she shows him the barest civility, she actually might not like him. This he discovers in his proposal, when that same admirable honest streak leads him to say things he perhaps ought to have kept to himself.

However, Darcy is not just honest with others, he is also honest with himself. After the immediate sting of Elizabeth's rebuke dulls, he sees the truth in her words and he resolves to change. He respects her opinion enough to trust her insight, even when her words hurt.

An honest man who wants nothing more than to be deserving of an honest woman? Swoon. Then he takes Lydia's rescue upon himself to save Elizabeth the pain of having a fallen woman for a sister and his character is fixed as the noblest man in Derbyshire. I could not help but fall in love with him, as generations of women before me have done.

When I started writing His Good Opinion, that honesty and disdain of falsehood drove the opening chapter of the story. Listen to the conversation between Bingley and Darcy:

"I will never understand, Darcy, why you insist on going out in Society only to be displeased with everyone you meet."

Fitzwilliam Darcy poured two glasses of brandy and handed one to his friend before he took the chair opposite him. "I go out because it is expected of me, Bingley. You know that."

Charles Bingley pointed at him. "Ah, but that does not answer the question, does it?"

Darcy conceded the point with the barest shrug of his shoulders. Here, in the comfort of his own study, there was no need to pretend. "I admit that I find little in Society of which to approve."

"Only because you are determined to disapprove!" Bingley protested. "What of the young lady you sat out with tonight? Let me hear your opinion of her."

Darcy ran his fingers down the side of his glass. "Her aunt approached me and said her niece had sprained her ankle, and would I be willing to keep her company? Courtesy forbade I refuse, though you know how little I enjoy making conversation with someone I am not intimately acquainted with. I have not your ease of speaking on subjects in which I have little or no interest." His lips curled in disdain, and he took a sip of brandy to wash the sour taste from his mouth.

"That is a commentary on your own character, not the lady's."

He ignored the familiar needling. "After two minutes of idle chatter, I inquired after her injury."

Satisfaction gleamed in Bingley's blue eyes. "Ah, you are capable courtesy after all!"

Darcy leaned forward, his forehead creased in a frown. "Perhaps you will not be so victorious, Bingley, when you hear the rest of the story. She did not understand what I spoke of. When she returned to her aunt shortly thereafter, she did not have a limp. The entire incident was manufactured so she could gain my attention. No doubt they have heard that I do not dance often —"

"Or ever."

The leather chair creaked in protest when Darcy stood. He took Bingley's glass and strode to the table, glad to have something to do, even if it was only refilling their drinks. This topic never failed to rile him, and he could not sit still. He poured the amber liquid and found a measure of calm in the action.

"They sought a way to get time with me, and they found it. You wish to know why I so seldom give my good opinion to those I meet; it is this dishonesty, this deception of which I cannot approve. I cannot — I will not — marry a woman I do not trust."


And there you have it: Fitzwilliam Darcy, an honest gentleman searching for an honest lady. Might I volunteer, sir?

His Good Opinion can be purchased in e-book format from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Amazon FR, Amazon.IT, and Amazon.ES. The paperback is available from Amazon.

How Editing Is Like Car Repair

I took my car to the shop last Monday to have the turn signal fixed. Three hours later, they called with The List. You know what List I mean--the one with every possible thing that's wrong with your car, with a horrendously scary price tag attached.

The turn signal was an easy fix, but in their diagnostic test, they discovered my brakes are leaking (knew that) and my oil is leaking (knew that). When they went to fix the door, the realized it wasn't just a quick "reattach the pieces" but the handle was actually broken (didn't know that).

Grand total? $955.

I hesitated for a moment, until I realized that I have the money right now and I had planned to get it all done anyway. If I'm going to fix something, I might as well do a complete job of it.

When I started editing Col. Fitzwilliam, I thought I had one minor problem, but when I dug into it, I quickly realized that my lack of direction was symptomatic of larger problems. I axed an entire plot line, and because of that I had bring in some other elements and completely rearrange the novel. I went from my post-NaNo word count of 51,000 to 34,000 is the space of an evening.

I could have chosen to only  handle one issue at a time. It might have been less intimidating. However, I'd rather cut everything that needs to be cut and move forward with a solid draft. As long as I'm working on it, I might as well do a complete job of it.

Awake: A Fairytale

Publishing a book is a little like falling in love. It’s so amazing that once you’ve done it, you want all your friends to experience it too. Yesterday, my friend and Indie Jane co-owner Jessica Melendez (AKA Jessica Grey) published her YA fantasy novel, Awake, and I am almost as excited as she is.

It’s the last summer before college, and Alex Martin is looking forward to spending it… in a museum. No, she’s not a normal 18 year old, but she and her best friend Becca Ward have interned at LA’s Gem and Mineral Museum every summer. This year however provides one crucial difference—her childhood friend, Luke Reed, has joined the geeky rock squad.

Alex and Luke haven’t really talked since their freshman year of high school, when Luke’s status as a baseball star put him on a different social level than Alex. She is none too pleased by the thought of sharing her favorite place with him, especially since she was kind of hoping to catch the eye of their advisor, the dreamy Nicholas Hunt.

But when Alex finds Luke lying on an enchanted bed, trapped in a magical slumber, suddenly all her summer plans are out the window. She and Becca are joined by Lilia, a 12^th century princess who’s been asleep for 850 years. Yes, Luke tried to wake up Sleeping Beauty with a kiss, but instead, he simply took her place.

Now the three girls have to figure out exactly what the spell is, who cast it, and how they can save Luke from the evil fairy behind it all. To do that, Alex and Becca will have to come to terms with the fact that magic actually exists, and accept their own ability to use it.

Awake is a phenomenal story. It takes all the familiar elements of Sleeping Beauty and twists them into something that is both recognizable and new at the same time. The dialogue between the three girls sparkled, and the relationship between Alex and Luke was romantic and real.

The magic scenes were my favorite parts of the story. Jessica Grey invented an entire system of magic for her book, and it is brilliant and consistent. Even though I know diamonds and precious metal have no magical qualities, I could easily believe Alex and Becca were able to work spells with them. 

I read Awake in one day, which is not something I often do anymore. My brain usually starts to wander after about five chapters, and I’ll switch to another book or a movie. This time though I was too eager to find out how it all turned out in the end to put it down.

Grey’s style is smooth and easy to follow. Her characters are real, and her story is delightful. I can’t wait to read the next book in this trilogy. 

Awake is currently available from Smashwords, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon. A paperback is coming soon.


Jessica is also giving away two copies over at Indie Jane. 

When Does It Feel Real?

Being an author is a strange thing, sometimes. You dream about it and work toward it for so long, when it finally happens it seems like something out of a dream. I've had several, "Wow, this is real!" moments in the last two months, and each one is just as special as the one before.

First sight of your book available for sale:  Smashwords, 11/16.
First review: Jessica Melendez for Indie Jane, 11/18
First surprise review: Love Letters to the Library, 11/23
First time holding the paperback: 11/30

Despite all those things, and the way sales have just taken off, the reality of my new life is still sinking in. I got another reminder on Thursday--first royalties payment! But even with that in my pocket, the awe hasn't worn off. I'm living the life I always dreamed of, and it's just as amazing as I thought it would be.

Yesterday, I blogged at Indie Jane about some of the lessons I've learned since publishing His Good Opinion. I felt a little strange writing something like that after only 75 days, but so much has changed and I've learned so much, I wanted to share it all before I forgot.

If you're a published author, when did it become real to you?
If you're still working toward publication, keep it up--it's absolutely worth it.

His Good Opinion can be purchased in e-book format from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, Amazon FR, Amazon.IT, andAmazon.ES. The paperback is available from Amazon.

Productivity 101

If you've read this blog for long, you know that I am capable of getting a lot done in a very short amount of time. (You also know that I can waste time like nobody's business, but that's a topic for another day.) When I'm having a good day, people often ask how I do it.

There is only one trick I've discovered to staying on track. It's so simple that you might wonder if it actually works, but it does. I use a timer.

Let's say in a given morning, I want to spend some time catching up with social media and reading blogs, working on my novel, and reading. The problem is, once I start with Twitter I can easily spend two or three hours doing nothing else without even realizing it. So, I set a timer for 30 minutes and when it goes off, I move on to the next thing and set the timer again.

But what if I have a two hour block of time to devote to writing? How do I keep myself on track and remind myself to get up and stretch occasionally? I break the time up into half hour blocks. Setting the timer for 25 minutes, I write as much as I can, get up and move a little, and then start over at the half hour. The knowledge in the back of my brain that a clock is ticking keeps me from wandering to non-writing things like email (always so much more important when I'm trying to avoid work).

Timers are also useful for challenging other writers. Get a group of you together, either in person or virtually. Set a timer and see who can write the most words or edit the most pages in that time. Once again, the competition encourages you to stay on track.

So that's how I stay on target. Do you have any productivity tips you can offer?

The Food of the Heroic

Yesterday was one of my favorite holidays--National Pie Day. That's right, there is an entire day dedicated to that delectable combination of flaky crust and delicious filling we call pie.

When I discovered this amazing holiday two years ago, I immediately decided we needed to celebrate it at work. Tomorrow will be our third annual observation of National Pie Day, and I've been on a strict no-sugar diet for the last week to prepare.

This quote from the New York Times ca 1902 is the best explanation for my deep and abiding love of pie. An Englishman had suggested that Americans--who at the time ate pie on a daily basis--might want to limit themselves to twice a week. This was the editor's response:

"It is utterly insufficient, as anyone who knows the secret of our strength as a nation and the foundation of our industrial supremacy must admit. Pie is the American synonym of prosperity, and its varying contents the calendar of the changing seasons. Pie is the food of the heroic. No pie-eating people can ever be permanently vanquished.”

No pie-eating people can ever be permanently vanquished.

What other food can claim that? Does cake help with longevity? Do cookies lead to national unity? No! Only pie does those things. It is truly the food of the heroic.

Do you have a favorite pie recipe you'd be willing to share? Post it in the comments, along with any fun pie-related stories.

Lesson Learned

What happens when you force your story to be something it isn't? What happens when you force yourself to write a genre you're not confident in? You spend three weeks trying to figure out how to edit your book, that's what.

My first, first draft of Colonel Fitzwilliam was primarily a spy novel, with romance thrown in. Halfway through November, I realized I wanted to write more romance, so I split it 50/50. Part of the struggle in editing has been to find where I made that change and how to create one unified book out of all the bits and bobs I've got written. The other struggle is that... well, honestly, I hate the spy parts.


The first assignment on my outline is to write a one-sentence summary of the story. That sentence then serves as a mission statement for the book. Any time you wonder if a scene belongs,  you can measure it up to the summary--does it support the mission of the book? If not, chuck it. I puzzled over the summary for about five minutes, wondering how on earth I could fit both the spy story and the romance into twenty five words or less.

That's when I realized I was going about this from the wrong angle. If I'm not that great at writing spy scenes, and I wanted to write more of the relationship between Georgiana and Richard, then maybe... maybe it didn't have to be a spy novel. Maybe it could be historical romance instead.

I still need to get Richard's spy mission figured out, at least in broad strokes, so I can allude to it throughout the book. However, this is not Lord of the Rings and I am not J. R. R. Tolkien. It's okay if I don't know the last thousand years of Fitzwilliam family history before I begin writing. Historical fiction requires a depth of understanding of the period, not of the characters' back stories. (If that analogy makes no sense to you, well, now you know what goes on in my head.)

I'm still working on the rest of the outline, but it should be much easier now that I know what genre I'm writing.

Identity Crisis

Not me, my book. Yes, I'm still struggling with Colonel Fitzwilliam's story. However, I think I finally figured out why.

I have a very precise method I follow when writing. After I get a new idea, I spend about a month fleshing it out in a very detailed outline. I'm talking scene by scene, who will be there, what important props are used--the works. Then I write the draft in a month of madness known as NaNoWriMo. I take December off and let the draft sit, then I come back to it and begin editing.

I didn't follow that pattern this time around, and I'm paying for it. As has been pointed out, I was a bit busy in the weeks leading up to NaNo this year, so I didn't take the time to outline. I spent the first three days of November trying to shove all the ideas I had about my story into a haphazard storyboard, but that shoddy piece of work fell about around the 10th. I sort of managed to figure out what I wanted to do then and restructured my story... but thanks to the lack of direction at the start, I have several dangling plot lines that no longer belong, and no real awareness of what should stay and what should be cut or moved to a different part of the timeline.

It's time for me to go back to the drawing board. This morning, I'll pull out my trusty copy of Book in a Month and follow that step-by-step outline. I won't skip worksheets, I won't leave anything undone. I have to figure out what my story is before I can figure out how to fix it.

I think I've known from the start that this is what I needed to do. I tried to find other ways to fix the problem, because this is going to take quite a bit of time. I hope to finish the outline by the end of this week, and then I'll need another three weeks or so to go through and move things around. I really don't think this book is going to be ready to publish in September like I wanted, and that disappoints me.

However, it's more important to end up with a book I can be proud of than to end exactly on time. I do hope I can manage to get it published before November though, because I seriously never want to do that craziness again.

Wish me luck!

Tolkien Reading Challenge

As I confessed in December, I am a hardcore Lord of the Rings nerd. I try to re-read the book once a year, but last year I just didn't have time. This year, however, I am making time.

More than that, I am launching my very own personal reading challenge. This year, I will read The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, and The Silmarillion. If I have time, I will also read Children of Hurin. The first three are all re-reads; I have not yet read Children of Hurin.

Why? Well, because The Hobbit is coming out in December for one thing, and I like to re-read books before going to see the film. And for another, these works collectively form one of the most amazing exercises in world-building. There is nothing like Lord of the Rings. Nothing.

In fact, on Saturday I'm going to a showing of the entire Lord of the Rings film trilogy. It's something one of the local theaters does every year in honor of Tolkien's birthday (January 3). This is the first year I've been able to go, since I used to work on Saturday.

Would anyone like to join me in my re-read?

Sticking With What Works

I started the year with a Plan. I would go through the rough draft of my NaNo novel (Colonel Fitzwilliam), adding the scenes and chapters that I skipped over in November. Then, when the draft was complete, I'd print it out and begin my editing.

January 1st came, and I didn't write. Then the 2nd and the 3rd passed, and soon I'd lost the whole first week of the year. I was now definitely behind schedule--and the schedule is vital, if I'm going to get this book published before the AGM in October.

Finally, I forced myself to open my file on Sunday. I took one look at it and had a full-fledged meltdown. "It's horrible, I can't write, why did I think I could do this," and etc. The whole cycle of panic and calming down took about four hours.

In those four hours, I realized something important. The problem wasn't my book or my writing. I was trying to force my brain to work in a way that it does not. I can't look at a book and begin adding and fixing without first getting a solid grasp on what's wrong and how I can fix it. Looking at it without the list, all I could see was the insurmountable task of finding the broken bits--like needles in a haystack. (Okay, they are probably very large needles, but just as unfindable to me.)

The funny thing is I did this last year too. I spent all of December thinking I would dig in on edits for His Good Opinion without first reading the draft. I realized my error after Christmas and sent my book to my Kindle, then spent January reading and taking notes.

That's what I've done now. The NaNo draft of Colonel Fitzwilliam is on my Kindle, and after reading only two chapters I discovered a few things, much to my relief. I can write, my book doesn't suck, and I actually love my main character.

So, my point is this: If there's something that works for you, don't try to change it. I thought this other method would be more efficient, but wasting a whole week because I was too scared to look at my story is not efficient. Now that I'm doing things my way, I should be able to get this read-through done by the end of the week--which actually puts me ahead of my original schedule.
 

101 Things--Update!

I haven't blogged about my list of 101 things in several months. It seems almost cliche to talk about goals in the first week of January, but here I am.

Obviously, I knocked several things off the list in November. I published His Good Opinion and started work on my next novel, the as-yet untitled Colonel Fitzwilliam story. I began reworking that story on Sunday, and I can't wait to see how it turns out--and what it ends up being called. (Offer your suggestions in the comments!)

This month, I want to finish off the organization category. I think that'll set me up in a much better position to tackle some of the FiNancy goals in February and March. Oh, this is just so boring boring boring, but these domestic things are a part of life too, aren't they?

In a more fun vein, I'm knocking off Shakespeare's plays right and left. I've been listening to them on my way to and from work, and I'm really enjoying it. I've also begun another fun reading challenge, which I'll share with y'all next Thursday.

What kind of goals do you have for the year? Are you going to spread them out over 12 months, or will you try to do everything at once?



His Good Opinion can be purchased in e-book format from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Amazon UK, Amazon DE, and Amazon FR. The paperback is available from Amazon.

Blogiversary!

Happy One Year Blogiversary to Me!

What I have learned in my first year of blogging:

1. Blogging takes time. I don't just mean the actual time to sit down and write a post, or even the time I spend reading other blogs. Building a readership takes time--months, even. 
2. Fun events draw people in. I got a huge stats jump last February, thanks to my Romance Title Generator. People who don't read my blog on a regular basis came by every day just to see what the new category was, and to offer suggestions.
3. You get out of it what you put into it. If you want people to read your blog, you've got to read theirs. It's as simple as that.

And the biggest thing I learned this year?

Shakespeare Sells.

Yep, Madison Avenue is wrong. It's not sex that sells, it's Shakespeare. Last April, I wrote a blog post about how to write like Shakespeare. That post has received far, far more page views than any other. Part of that is because I discussed the authorship controversy, right before Anonymous came out in theaters. That was just dumb luck, frankly.

I am amazed, however, at the number of people who've found my site by searching for variations of "write like Shakespeare."

So what's in store for 2012? Well, the biggest news is that I'll be moving to a Wordpress blog in February, with my own domain name. I've been putting this off for a while, but with some help from my brilliant cousin, it's finally going to happen.

That's the only real plan for the blog. I've got a set of goals for the new year though. Why don't you share yours in the comments?

1) Pay off my credit cards. (Gotta put the boring one first.)

2) Revise and publish my Colonel Fitzwilliam story.

3) Go to NYC for JASNA this October.

4) Go to San Francisco for the Night of Writing Dangerously in November.

5) Write book 3.

6) Plan a trip to England for fall 2013.

ETA @ 12:00: Cause for even more celebration! I just passed 2500 sales! *cue streamers and balloons*

Review: Jane Austen Made Me Do It

The world of Austenesque fiction is filled with talented authors. With such an embarrassment of riches, the only logical thing to do is develop a project to involve as many of them as possible. Edited by Laurel Ann Nattress of Austenprose.com, Jane Austen Made Me Do It is just that. Twenty-two authors, all telling stories with one theme: their tales must be "inspired by literatures most astute observer of the human heart."

I was absolutely delighted with the entire book. There's a short story in Jane Austen Made Me Do It for every kind of Austenesque lover. Sequels, retellings, modernizations; Jane Austen Made Me Do It has them all. There's even a ghost story or two--all written in a very tasteful, Jane-like manner of course.

As a brand-new author myself, I was most anxious to read Brenna Aubrey's "The Love Letter." As you may know, Brenna won a contest last year to be included in this volume. This is her first publication credit, and I have to say, it was an excellent way to begin her career. "The Love Letter" is a fresh, modern take on Persuasion which I absolutely loved, and I cannot wait to read her next work--perhaps a longer piece of fiction?

Overall, this volume delivers exactly what it promises: a respite from today's busy world into the heart of Jane Austen. Five stars.

FTC disclaimer: Review copy provided by publisher.

True Confessions, pt 3

Me at Shakespeare's Birthplace

After the geek-out confession posted, I received a tweet from someone wanting to know why Shakespeare didn't make the list. Well... Shakespeare is his own post. That's fitting for the man who is the only author to have his very own classification number in the Dewey Decimal System. Shakespeare, and Shakespeare alone, is 822.33.

Here's a secret for my Austen friends: I started reading Shakespeare before I read Austen.

And a secret for my Shakespeare friends? I still haven't read nearly as much of his works as I feel I should have.

That's why I devised a plan shortly after my return from England last spring. I will read all of his plays in reverse alphabetical order. The one exception is that I'm planning to read all the histories in one go, chronologically. (I am willing to be talked out of that madness, if anyone would care to knock some sense into my head.)

More than any other author, Shakespeare formed the English language. I used to own a little book called Coined by Shakespeare, which detailed all the words and expressions he invented. Granted, he had the good fortune to live in a period when the language was still fairly elastic, but I think there's something to be said for that level of creativity and imagination, no matter what era he lived in. If the word he needed didn't exist, he simply created it.

I may not be able to invent words, but I hope I can be even half as imaginative as he was.

Fan Vaulting, Fan Base

The outside of Bath Abbey is absolutely, breath-takingly gorgeous. Everything about the structure is impressive--its size, the high walls, the stone carvings on the outside of the building. Then you step through the doors, and the inside is just as lovely. Surely, you think, beauty like this doesn't happen on its own.

Something causes you to look up, and suddenly you realize that, no, it doesn't.

Fan vaulting was an invention of Gothic architecture designed to support the high, high ceilings of the period. The ceiling itself is actually the vault, and the fans are the support system. As impressive as the ceiling is, it could not remain where it is without the fans.

That's how I feel right now. This amazing ride with His Good Opinion owes so much of its success to you. I only wrote the book--you, my friends and family, have been the ones to support both it and me in a way that has absolutely astounded me.

Thank you so much for this beautiful, beautiful ride.

ETA: I just sold my 100th paperback! Yet another milestone to be thankful for. :)

True Confessions, pt 2

Last week I admitted my deep and abiding love for all things geeky. Today I want to share something even more important to me: Christmas.

I love everything festive. I am the annoying person who places Christmas music in July. I used to start itching to decorate right after Halloween, but in recent years November has been too busy with NaNoWriMo for me to even think about Christmas trees. I'm not entirely convinced my mother didn't have something to do with that.

And oh, the baking! Mint cookies, molasses crinkles, fudge, homemade caramel! The calories go on and on, but it's only for a few weeks, right?

I have a collection of Christmas headgear. The first piece was a regular Santa hat, of course. Then I got the reindeer, with little jingle bells attached. A few years later I bought a very stylish Santa hat, trimmed in leopard print fur. And finally, last year, Heather bought me this awesome penguin Santa hat.

And of course, there's always the Christmas baking. This is what I'm really known for in my family--cookies, candies, fudge, and more. In fact, as soon as I finish typing this I'll be making molasses crinkles.

What about you? What are your favorite parts of the holidays?

Happy Birthday, Jane!

Over two hundred years ago in a small Hampshire village, Jane Austen was born. She died before her 42nd birthday, but in those four decades, she changed the course of English literature. The novel as we know it was birthed in her keen observations and clever wit.

More than most authors, I owe my own literary career directly to Jane Austen. I wrote stories before finding the niche of Austenesque fiction, but I never finished anything that was remotely publishable. Today, on her 236th birthday, I can say that I am a successful author thanks to Jane.

I've said my thanks before, but I wanted to once more: Thank you, Jane, for sitting down at that little table and writing books that would change my life. Happy birthday.