Here’s what Amazon had to say about what 4 million looks like: “We’re incredibly excited to announce that Amazon has purchased J.K. Rowling’s The Tales of Beedle the Bard at an auction held by Sotheby’s in London. The book of five wizarding fairy tales, referenced in the last book of the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, is one of only seven handmade copies in existence. The purchase price was £1,950,000, and Ms. Rowling is donating the proceeds to The Children’s Voice campaign, a charity she co-founded to help improve the lives of institutionalized children across Europe. Read the rest of this entry �

I had been having a rough time getting into the holiday spirit this year. The weather has been off and on and today it’s majorly off. Cold — which I hate — and the threat of snow.

Plus, I’ve been running around like crazy, trying to finish a proposal, working on an assortment of deadlines . . . Read the rest of this entry �

I’m back from my short road trip to Philadelphia and the talk at Swarthmore College. It’s snowing today and so I’m taking a moment rest, do lots of writing and catch-up work. Read the rest of this entry �

Today’s Thoughtful Thursday is all about Romance Coming Out of the Closet and was inspired by a number of things that have happened lately, but really have blossomed this week.

During the last year or so, I’ve had the chance to speak with at least three young women who decided to do a thesis on Romance. Imagine, literary tomes about romance novels — a genre that some consider to not even rate the title of literature. Read the rest of this entry �

Oh the weather outside is frightful . . . Okay so maybe it isn’t so frightful yet, but the cold is definitely here in NYC . . . Well, at least for today. Yesterday felt like spring.

But despite the weather yo-yo, one look around New York City and you know it’s Christmas. Actually, it’s been Christmas since before Thanksgiving since everyone seemed in a rush to get up the holiday decorations. This is a shot of the front of the Lord & Taylor store on Fifth Avenue. During our annual Christmas in the City jaunt, this is one of our must stops to check out the windows. Read the rest of this entry �

We’ve got a special guest blogger today to give us our Tuesday Tip! Please welcome Maureen Fisher whose debut novel is The Jaguar Legacy. Maureen will be discussing something that strikes all writers at one time or another — Writer’s Block! Read the rest of this entry �

I think the one question that’s asked more often than any other question when I do any kind of event is “How can you write, work full time and have a family?” Read the rest of this entry �

This Wicked Wednesday is all about Nora Roberts who will be chatting TODAY ONLY at Romance Novel Television. So, if you’ve ever wondered what makes this amazing woman and novelist tick, here’s your chance. Click here to visit the Romance Novel TV Forum and chat with Nora! Read the rest of this entry �

For a number of years, I’ve done workshops on the state of Latino fiction and as I am going to be doing a number of talks on this topic in the coming year, I wanted to update some aspects of the discussion. It occurred to me that it might be good to broaden the fact-finding to include various kinds of multicultural fiction and not just Latino fiction.

Armed with that intent, I’ve developed a survey (click here to access the survey) as a way of allowing you to offer your opinions on the state of multicultural fiction today. As the survey is intended to reflect current publishing trends, I am asking only published authors or those with books that are to be released shortly, to offer their comments on the survey.

As this is my first attempt at a survey of this nature, I also beg your indulgence if it’s lacking in any way.

Here’s a link to the page with the survey: http://www.caridad.com/state-of-multicultural-fiction/

Feel free to share this link with any other authors that you think might be interested in offering their opinion on this topic.

Thanks so much!

They say confession is good for the soul, but have you ever confessed a secret and ended up feeling worse than before? What kind of secret was it? A sexy kind of secret, like that crush you have on a fellow co-worker? Or a business kind of secret, like when you called in sick, but actually took a mental healthy day?

Wondering what other people’s secrets are? Ready to hear them confess?

Well, here’s your chance! Read the rest of this entry �

Today’s Tuesday Tip is from my friend and fellow author, Mayra Calvani. Mayra’s latest release is DARK LULLABY from Whiskey Creek Press. So without further ado, here’s Mayra!

Writing Great Blurbs

A great blurb can make the difference between a customer taking out his/her wallet to buy your book or putting the book back on the shelf. Great blurbs sell books. Read the rest of this entry �

Last Sunday, we spent a hot but delightful day at the Red Bank Street Fair. Here’s a shot of the intrepid writers from NJ Romance Writers who attended the fair. We had a great time, sold lots of books and handed out fliers for NJRW’s Annual Literacy Fair on October 6th at the Sheraton in Woodbridge. NJRW has over 90 published authors signing. The fair is from 4:00 to 5:30 and is open to the general public. For more info on the book fair, click here! Come meet us and remember — a portion of the profits go to stamp out illiteracy in NJ. Read the rest of this entry �

“A relationship, I think, is like a shark. You know, it has to constantly move forward or it dies. I think what we have on our hands is a dead shark.” –Alvy Singer (Woody Allen) to Annie Hall (Diane Keaton)(quote courtesy of Rotten Tomatoes) Read the rest of this entry �

I hope you will forgive my lack of contact this week, only it has been a hectic week punctuated by lots of shopping and packing as well as dropping my one and only at college and then dealing with the aftermath — Cleaning her room! Read the rest of this entry �

A few weeks ago I made my shoebox for Operation Shoebox and dropped it off. I hope whichever GI got it is enjoying the goodies I put inside.

This video hit the news a few weeks ago as well, which really lit a fire under my butt to go through with my plans to help our GIs and not forget them. Forget their sacrifices.

So this video is about our GIs. The sacrifices they make. Please think about them and do something, even if it’s just filling up a shoebox care package. If you want to consider what else you can do, please visit the America Supports You site, where you can find other ways to help out.

This is a long video, but don’t cut away until it’s done. And make sure you’ve got your hankies ready.

Staying sane involves remembering a long list of things that have to be done before I head out again since I am taking my daughter on a Girls’ Vacation next week. So here goes:

1. Tell everyone who won the Jane Green Contest — Lisa Avila! Please send your postal address to cpsromance@att.net Read the rest of this entry �

I have a very special Guest Blogger today — Lynn Voedisch — a Chicago journalist and fiction writer with many years of experience working for newspapers and magazines.

Lynn’s latest release is Excited Light, “a story of magic and second chances.”

Thank you for providing this Tuesday’s Tip, Lynn!

Without a Net

There are writers who like things tidy, all neatly arranged and indexed. They probably have neat and organized houses, too. Then there are those of us who are called seat-of-the-pants writers, who work without a net and let our subconscious be our guide. I’m one of those writers who doesn’t use an outline. (My house is a mess, too.) It’s officially Not Recommended, but please understand that those of us who prefer this sort of free-form writing aren’t just flailing in the dark; we, too, have methods. Read the rest of this entry �

Wicked thoughts for this Wicked Wednesday thanks to the New York Observer who recently ran an article titled “The Book Deal That Ruined My Life”. The reporter interviewed several authors whose book deals had made their lives go south. One of the authors was a sex blogger who wrote about her sexual experiences on her blog. Another was a man who spent three years writing about his dead father who heard voices. Yet another spent ten years on his second novel, lost track of friends and had trouble dealing with everyday things. Others interviewed mention the loneliness of barricading themselves in farmhouses or their apartments while working on their novels.
Read the rest of this entry �

Anita Blake. Eve Dallas. Buffy Summers and last but not least, Diana Reyes. What is it about these heroines that appeals to modern women? How do you create such a sometimes perplexing heroine and once you do, what do you do with her?
Read the rest of this entry �

And so tired. Two conferences in one week was a lot to handle! I’ll be posting more pictures tonight, so check back tomorrow.

Exciting news is that Part 2 of my interview is up at Romance Novel Television. You can also click on this link in case you can’t see the video below.