Me Bad

The regular readers among you may recall my excitement a few weeks back when I started my new WIP. The whole story had arranged itself in my mind and, though I knew Alex and Freya would divert from the vague path I had chosen for them, I could not wait to go on their journey.
*Cough!*
Naturally, they chose their own path and in the process they BORED THE TITS OFF ME! (my apologies to anyone not familiar with this charming English phrase and please be assured that my mammary glands are still intact).
Twenty thousand words in and I was doing anything and everything to avoid going near the laptop and actually writing. I became topscorer on Diamond Quest and Bubble Speed and I finally got in the top three of Bejewelled Blitz. Happy days. And then I had a brainwave - rather than continue writing a book that was boring me, I could start a new one. After all, I'm not under contract with anyone. At the moment my writing is all for me and for my own pleasure. I can write whatever I like.
In my head I have fixed Alex and Freya's story and one day I will go back and rewrite it, but only when I get that spark that insists that I must.
I'm wondering how many authors get to the stage where their story is boring them so much they would  rather watch paint dry than go back near their characters. This has only happened to me once before. I got halfway through a story and literally could not figure what to do next with the characters. I put it to one side, wrote another MS and then went back to it and fixed it. And submitted it. And it is now patiently awaiting a yay, a nay or another tweak from M&B.
So now I have started Catherine and Jovanni's story (one day I will write a post about the inspiration for this one) and and have written eight thousand words over the past three evenings and one snatched afternoon. Again, I am letting them take their own path but their story is already breaking my heart. I couldn't turn it aside if I wanted to.
Take care all xxx

Goodbye to a Legend

I thought long and hard about writing this post but then decided I should - because without Penny Jordan there would be no post.

By now I am sure all my blog followers will know the sad news that legendary romance writer Penny Jordan passed away on the 31st December 2011 at the age of sixty five. I never met her or exchanged any form of correspondence but her death affected me profoundly. You see, she has been a part of my life since I was twelve years old. I remember it vividly - my great-aunt Myra came to stay for the weekend and brought her usual cache of romances. Already a voracious reader (I was coming to the end of my Sweet Valley High addiciton) I snuck one of my aunt's books to my bedroom and read by torchlight until the early hours. The book? It was by none-other than Penny Jordan and let me say, that book awoke me on many different levels. I have never forgotten it and managed to read it a second time before sneaking it back into my aunt's room. Because of that one book, I fell in love with romance. The next time my aunt came to stay, she caught me trying to sneak another of her books out and gave me a couple to keep - one of them I still have: Man-Hater by Penny Jordan. Now, twenty-three years later, I must have read thousands of Mills & Boon (and thousands of other books in genres from thriller to horror) but, for me, Penny Jordan remained the original Queen.

Over the years I forgot the title of that very first M&B but I remembered the plot and the characters vividly. When I heard the sad news of Penny's death, I was tweeting to another M&B author about it (the equally talented and extremelly lovely Maisey Yates) and decided to track it down. And I did. I went through her bibliography and started systematically googling the titles until I found the one I wanted. My very first M&B, my very first Penny Jordan book, was called Blackmailed. And a copy of it is winging its way to me as I write.

So now I am going to sign off by saying a massive thank you. Thank you Penny Jordan for all the years of joy you have given me and thank you for making me fall in love xxx

New Year... Same Goals

First let me wish all you lovely blog readers a very Happy New Year. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and over the festive period I sincerely hope you ate too much, drank too much and made a fool of yourself on at least three occasions. I was only a proper drunken fool once - on Christmas night my brother-in-law and I had lost three games of Trivial Pursuit in a row (I blame my mother for 'helping' my sister and my hubby). Ignoring their yawns and whines about needing sleep, I set the board up again. And played all by myself. Am pretty sure I lost that game too but to be honest it's all a bit of a blur. Other than that I was a model of good behaviour...

I had promised myself I would not blog again until I had finished my WIP. I completed the first draft a few days before Christmas and then immediately started on the second draft. Am very happy with it bar the ending, but have decided to let it rest for a while. Thus, I have now started a new book and am 3,000 words into it. It's one of those marvellous occasions when the whole premise - everything - comes to you in a flash. I know perfectly well that Freya and Alex, my h/h, will divert from my chosen path for them but that's half the fun in this writing malarky. When this book is finished I will then look with fresh eyes at the 'resting' one. Hopefully the ending will make itself clear to me then.

And so we come to the dreaded New Year's Resolution. I've never been one for making resolutions just because I'm supposed to and this year will be no different. My goals haven't changed. I love, love, love writing and the dream is still to be published by M&B. If the book with them (no, I haven't heard anything but thanks for asking) is ultimately rejected then so be it - I will simply bombard them with the next one. And the next. And the next. And the... you get my drift.

I wish you all a very Happy New Year and hope 2012 brings you much joy and happiness xxx