I think I live in a constant state of “almost caught up.”  Deadlines, promotional projects, house cleaning.  You name it, and I’m almost done with them.  Almost.  It’s not a good place to live, but I can’t seem to change it.  Sigh. 

So as usual, I’m behind on even announcing exciting things in my career.  First of all, the reissue of Fangs For The Memories was out the beginning of this month.  I love the new cover. 

I also want to post the trailer for my book, Any Way You Want It, coming in January 2008.  This is my first trailer, and I think it is fantastic.  NovelTeaser made it for me, and they are good!  I wanted to upload it to this page directly–but it ain’t workin’.  So please go here and check it out.  Any Way You Want It Book Trailer

The rock portion of the music was performed by The Sonny Kane Project, who also act as The Impalers for Erin McCarthy and me.  They actually played Heather Graham’s Writers for New Orleans conference for us–and were a big hit.   Erin and I were so pleased.

So for the last of my announcements, Erin and I are actually celebrating the success of The Impalers LIVE by running a contest at The Impalers site.  It’s a fun trivia thing with the winners receiving advanced copies of Any Way You Want It, and Erin’s Sucker Bet, neither of which are available until January–and you also get a CD of The Impalers singing Any Way You Want It and I Want You To Want Me. 

Free books and great 80’s tunes sung by vampires.  You got to check this out, right??  Just click to learn more…The Impalers Contest.

There I got a little caught up. 

Hello Everyone!

Okay, I just so totally disappeared this summer.  Not just from The Midnight Hour, but pretty much from everywhere and everyone.  Except for from my kid.  I did take her along–she’s five, so she gets a little anxious if I vanish on her. :)

I was at my parent’s place in Maine for several weeks–which means no internet, no cell, even a limited long distance plan on their house phone.  You know, at first, it was just awful.  I felt so disconnected from the rest of the world.  I literally checked my cell phone several times a day–knowing full well that I didn’t have service.  No, really, I did.

But after the initial shock–and there was even this awful irritable and testy phase like giving up caffeine or smoking–anyway, after the first unpleasant shock, I really enjoyed the sense of freedom that having none of these devices gave me.  I did a few things I haven’t done in a long time.  I worked on my WIP using a pen and paper.  Long hand, yes I know, it’s crazy.  I allowed myself to read for pleasure, with no guilt that I should be doing something else.  I took long walks to think about my story ideas.  I taught my daughter to swim and how to catch frogs.  Sometimes I just floated on the lake in an innner tube and listened to the loons (water fowl–not my relatives).  It really was lovely.

But that all being said, it is nice to get back to my beloved DSL and T-Mobile, too.  I feel back in the loop.  But my trip did give me a lot of time to just relax and think and create.  I feel calm and happy.  And I feel like writing, which is always a good thing.

Did anyone else do anything this summer that helped them relax?  Please tell me I wasn’t the only one to give up technology cold turkey? 

I know, I know, occultishly so isn’t a word.  But you get the idea.

I threw a birthday party for my daughter yesterday.  She is turning the big 5 on July 5th.  And she is way excited.  I think the party went well.  Her theme?  Sesame Street Under the Sea.  She tends to be an alternative thinker–a little bit like her mom.    Which brings me to the real point of this blog entry (yes, there is a method to my ramblings.) 

One of my dear writing friend and critique partners came to the party to help me out.  Ten young children hopped up on sugar can be a little overwhelming.  Anyway, I have known Lisa for, hmm, at least four years now.  We talk on the phone, meet a least once a month for crit, we often just got to dinner, we’ve been roommates at conferences.  We are close friends.  (Obviously, she volunteered to help at a five year old’s birthday party–that is friendship.)

Well, I’m trying to convince her to go to Heather Graham’s conference in New Orleans.  She wants to, but may have some family obligations that will prevent the trip.  However, she did say to me, “If I do go, there is no way I’m going with you to get my tea leaves read or tarot or whatever weird thing you go do.” (which I do always do down there.)  I was stunned.  I’ve known Lisa for years, and not once had I realized that the occult bothers her.

When I asked her more about it, she said that she finds all that stuff too strange.  Again, I was floored.  I didn’t know the paranormal and occult really weirded her out.  I guess because she never minded reading my paranormals, I just assumed she was interested in the supernatural.  Maybe not as much as I am, but still interested.  And while I respect her feelings, I cannot image not finding psychics and ghosts and voodoo and all the cool things about New Orleans infinitely fascinating.

We certainly agreed to disagree, but it stunned me.  Do you have a friend that you’ve known for a long time who has surprised you with their beliefs?  And do you have friends who don’t get your interest in the occult? 

So what is everyone reading?  I’m actually sneaking a little reading time in, although I have to say, summer isn’t the easiest season for me to find a moment to settle down with a good book.  Between family vacations, birthday parties, my daughter’s summer camps, and watering the darned flowers (can I just tell you gardening is hard work!  Those plants seem to need more water than a blue whale!), I’m not getting as much reading done as I’d like.

But here is my list thus far…I just finished Claiming the Courtesan by Anne Campbell.  Good read, not as dark as I’d hoped.  I was in the mood for really dark, I guess.  (Probably because of the darned flowers.)  I also read If You Deceive by Kresley Cole–very good.  And now I’m reading New Moon by Stephenie Meyer. 

If you have not read Stephenie Meyer, she writes vampire YA, and they are fabulous.  As a dedicated romance reader–usually romance on the steamier side–I wasn’t convinced I’d enjoy her stories.  But you know what?  I cannot gush enough about Ms. Meyer’s books.  With a single kiss, she creates so much chemistry it is amazing.  I love her characters, and the sexual tension between them is just electric.

Earlier on the blog, Stephanie mentioned Marliss Melton’s books.  Marliss just came to speak to my chapter, the Maryland Romance Writers, and she was great.  Very funny and informative.  I’m going to check out her books next. 

So what are you all reading?  And would this be a tactless time to add that My Sister Is A Werewolf is in stores now?   

(…oh wait, I think the flowers are crying out for more water.  Ack.)   Happy reading–and avoid gardening!

Well, I’m just back from New Orleans.  Yay!

If you’ve read any of my posts over the last year, you may see a pattern.  I’ve been there a lot.  I adore this city.  Love it, love it!  I went with Erin McCarthy to do some research on an idea I have for a dark paranormal.  But my primary reason for going was because Erin and I are hosting the Welcome Party at Heather Graham’s Writers for New Orleans conference. 

I attended last year–the very first year Heather held it, and I cannot say enough good things about this get-together.  Great writers, wonderful readers, lots of mingling and chatting, and all done in the setting of the Big Easy.  There is no downside, I’m telling you.  If you can afford to attend, this is one conference to hit–writers and readers alike.

So, as part of the Welcome Party, Erin and I want The Impalers to play.  Yes, our fictional vampire band is going to make their first live (or undead, I guess) appearance.  Fictional, yet appearing live.  That alone should make this endeavor sound a little difficult.  Well, The Impalers are all actual musicians who work on Bourbon Street.  So they are indeed real.  Erin and I don’t have to try to conjure them.  (Sorry, that also means they aren’t really vampires, either.)

But here’s the thing…  While they are all real, they are not really in the same band.  They are, in fact, in three different bands.  Which makes organizing these guys a tad tricky.  So that was part of our goal last weekend.  To get all the guys to sign contracts, know where and when they are supposed to perform and with whom.  It was truly like herding cats.  If you know any musicians, you know what I mean.  But Erin and I persevered. 

And we pulled it off.  And we know the guys will be great.  Hey, they’ve already agreed to be fictional vampires.  I think they’re up for anything. 

So please check out Heather’s conference and come see The Impalers perform.  They really will be fantastic–or should I say fangtastic.

(Fill in the blank.  I know you can.)

I was thinking about titles today.  And the fact that there are so many titles out there that we just know.  Maybe we never even read the book, but we immediately recognize the name.  And I also started to think about the romance industry titles–and that so, so often you will hear someone say, “It was a great book.  But I can’t remember the title.”  I think I hear that more in the romance genre than in any other genre. 

Why is that?  I’ll admit I’ve never read The World According to Garp.  But I did recognize the title even before the movie came out.  Now, a book becoming a movie does immediately spread the recognition of a title, to be sure.   But think of all the titles you know (pre-movie).
Me Talk Pretty One Day
Salem’s Lot
The Time Traveler’s Wife
Kite Runner
Life of Pi
The Secret Lives of Bees 

Now granted, these books have gotten a lot of acclaim, which obviously makes the titles more memorable.  But again, I’m confused as to why a person can love a book and forget the title.  That very thing has happened to me many, many times with romance novel titles. 

Do you think they are sometimes too generic?  Too similar?  And does that happen to you within the romance genre?  More than other genres?

Last week, I missed my blog day, because I was at the Romantic Times Convention. Yes, I could have timestamped a post so it appeared on my proper Thursday, but that would have taken planning and foresight, and I got none of that.

So I will update you today. I had a great time! I got to see Chey in person. That is always nice. It was great to see you, Chey!

I spoke on a few panels. One about dialogue for the Aspiring Authors track.
My advice: Dialogue. You should have it.
No, I did actually say more than that. But that was the general gist.

I also spoke on a vampire panel entitled, Vampires: Cold-Natured, Hot-Blooded. We talked about why vampires are so sexy. We talked about the appeal of preternatural creatures falling for mortals. All that good stuff. And readers got to tell us what they liked and disliked in a paranormal romance. That panel was very informative for all. Everyone was very chatty. I like that.

And the other thing I did was the Totally Rad 80’s Trivia Contest. Erin McCarthy and I hosted it together. We dressed in our 80’s finest. I donned leggings, a petticoat, and a t-shirt with Molly Ringwald and Michael Anthony Hall on the front that read, “I can’t believe I gave the geek my panties.” Erin wore a Gremlins t-shirt and had a side ponytail. She of course had on leggings too. We looked very professional.

We asked questions about 80’s movies, music and romance novels, and gave away prizes like a t-shirt that said “No one puts baby in the corner,” a Sixteen Candles keychain, a CD of 80’s hits, and of course our books. It was a lot of fun, and we had many incredibly good sports who were willing to come up, buzz in with a flashlight (the first to turn on their flashlight was the first to answer–very high tech), and take a walk down memory lane. We laughed, reminisced about the Me decade, and just generally had fun. And you know, more people came up to me at the book signing and talked about how great the trivia thing was than any of my other promotions or panels.

So what do you recall as the best promotion that an author has done? Something that really stuck with you?

Okay, I’m totally taunting you, because I’m not actually going to post my new cover, because it has a typo in the mock up, so I will wait for that.  However I will share the title and the back cover blurb.

Coming in January 2008…

ANY WAY YOU WANT IT

IS THAT A TREBLE CLEF IN YOUR POCKET—

OR ARE YOU JUST GLAD TO SEE ME?

Maggie Gallagher spends her nights with lots of men. Of course, they’re all dead composers, but why nitpick? Her love life is just like the musical compositions she researches—undiscovered. It’s time for Maggie to get loose and go wild. In a dive bar on Bourbon Street, Maggie makes a real find in the house band’s keyboard player. He’s hot. Sexy. Flirtatious. Soulful. And she could swear he’s playing an unknown piece she’s been researching, which is impossible, unless he’s dead…

Centuries before he was a bad-ass vampire with a rock-star wardrobe and Big Easy charm, Ren was Renaldo D’Antoni, a composer on the verge of great success until he was betrayed. No one could ever know that, but tonight, the shy redhead with the big eyes and obviously borrowed outfit actually seemed to recognize his long-lost composition. Now, she wants to know about the composition, and Ren wants to know her…intimately. But what starts as attraction—and distraction—just might lead to the biggest discovery of their lives…

I’m super excited about this book.  I really loved writing it, and I love the setting and the subject matter.  I was so pleased Kate, my editor, didn’t bat an eyelash when I told her I wanted to write a hero, who is a singer in cover band on Bourbon Street.  Especially since we’ve all heard that musicians are one of the romance no-nos.  But I guess the fact that he was once a classical composer was a good loophole.

What do you think?  Are there any careers that should be avoided in romance? 

I’m sorry it has taken so long to announce the winners of The Impalers contest.

I was called out of town unexpectedly, and well, I didn’t get a chance to tell you.  So to make up for the delay, I’m picking three winners.  Two will get books from Erin McCarthy and me.  And the third will get an Impalers t-shirt.

And the winners are…

Of the books-
Joel Berger
and
Ellie Lewis
Of the t-shirt with the rockin’ Impalers logo-
Jennifer Yates
Please send your mailing addresses to me at kathy@readkathylove.com, and we will get these in the mail to you. Congratulations and thank you for your patience.  

And for all the people who entered, thanks for playing and for checking out The Impalers’ site.  I hope you enjoyed the vampire boys!

Best,
Kathy

Hey All,

I know I’ve told you about this really cool project that Erin McCarthy and I are doing together, which is the fictional vampire rock band, The Impalers.

Well, The Impalers have updated their website.  They’ve added new bios, new blogs, music of them playing live, even video.  It’s all very cool.

And to celebrate The Impalers being such an industrious group of fictional vampires, I’m going to run a contest today.

I’m going to ask three questions which can be found on The Impalers site.  Email me personally at kathy@readkathylove.com with the answers, and you will win a signed copy of my newest release I Only Have Fangs For You and a signed copy of Erin’s High Stakes.

Here are the questions…

1. Which two members of the band are related fictionally?

2. Which two are related in real life?

3. What is the first song Ren sings on the video of them performing live?

Easy, huh?  Also please sign the guestbook and all that fun stuff.  That includes the ladies of The Midnight Hour, too. 

Now, go on, get Impaled.