Pot Pourri

Yes, I've been very quiet lately. There just hasn't been much to talk about. Which is kind of a relief! However, with November fast approaching, I do have a few fun things to share.

First up, I've decided to sign up to do Nanowrimo this year. I have my doubts that I can actually be a winner (which requires writing 50k in a month--my current maximum production in a month is about 35k), but it's great motivation and I've got projects I really want to complete. If you're doing Nano, please buddy me...I'm there under the user name Jackie_Barbosa.

I'm also (partially simultaneously) doing Seventy Days of Sweat. The seventy days starts November 10 and ends January 26 (they built in an extra week for the holidays--wasn't that sweet of them?). The goal is a minimum of 60k, which should be a lot more doable than 50k in one month.

Between Sven and Nano, I'm hoping to get a great jump start on my single title historical, as well as perhaps polish off a couple of smaller projects on the side. (Yes, I'm promiscuous when it comes to WIPs!)

Finally, I have a new release coming out with Cobblestone Press on Friday, November 14. Comrades in Arms is an erotic short story set at the end of the Peninsular Wars. Here's the blurb:

Amid the horrors of war, Lieutenant Heath Wetherill has found comfort in the arms of his commanding officer, Lord Charles Langdon. But now, the war has ended, and the two men must return to their civilian lives as upstanding members of the British nobility. There’s no room for their torrid, illicit affair in stodgy old Mother England, especially not with Charles’s wife waiting for him.

But Lady Isabella isn’t a conventional ton wife, and theirs isn’t a conventional ton marriage. Maybe there’s hope for a happy ending, after all.

And here is the beautiful cover, done by the lovely and talented Bree Bridges:

I love the intensity of the expression of the man on the left. He's Charles to a T. And the guy on the right--a very yummy version of Heath.

And the blonde in the middle? She's one damn lucky lady, that's all I have to say! Who wouldn't want to be caught between these two hotties?

But, of course, I couldn't be satisfied with mere cover art when I could have a book video. I have to say, the whole process of creating them can really be quite addictive.

Of course, you can spend (i.e., waste) oodles and oodles of time looking for images that fit your story and even more trying to find just the right music. And when you do, you squeal like a three-year-old girl who's just received her first Barbie.


So, after a few days of procrastination, a few dollars on images, and an hour at http://www.freeplaymusic.com/, I bring you:

Quick Check-In

Yes, I know I've been remarkably remiss in posting of late. If you've cruised by the Mavens blog recently, then you'll know I managed to complete Behind the Red Door and submit it to my editor on October 1st. This afternoon, I received confirmation that the book has been accepted, without revisions (though there will be copy edits and galleys, of course), and is scheduled to be released in June, 2009.

Woot!

Now, it's onward and upward. I'm writing a couple of shorts and then I'll be getting started on the proposal for my option book, which I can submit in 30 days from today. Since I have to write three chapters and a synopsis, I may not be ready to send anything until the middle of November, but it's nice to have a target date in mind.

For the next couple of days, I'll be off to San Antonio for the day job. The last time I was there was nearly twenty years ago, when I went to an SCCA conference there with my father (who passed away in 1998). I have very fond memories of that trip and am looking forward to a stroll down memory lane at the River Walk on Wednesday afternoon/evening.

YOUR TURN: Whatcha doing this week? Any fun plans?