Monthly Archive for July, 2010

Seattle: The Beginning

Hello everybody! I wasn’t going to blog until after my vacay, but then I realized that was dumb. I’m here for like a week and a half, and if I don’t keep up with the blogging it’ll be ridiculous. I’ll end up with a monster blog post that NEVER ENDS, plus I’ll have forgotten everything from the beginning of the trip by the time I get to the end of the trip.

So I’m going to be a Good Blogger and blog every few days or so, depending on what I’ve done and whether or not I’m sober. There will be no drunk-blogging on this site, let me tell you! Not after that last time, with the team of oxen . . . ;-)

To tell you the truth, I couldn’t have been happier to leave Pennsylvania when I did. It’s not the state: I’m actually really enjoying my new home. It’s the BOXES and the never ending unpacking that was getting to me. Plus, I made another move from a place where I had tons of friends, love, and support to another new place where I know virtually no one. I know I’ll make friends quickly and everything will be fine, but for right now I’m a bit lonely.

So this trip to Seattle is perfect. I got into my new place, and could (mostly) unpack while ordering the things I really needed right away. Then I left as soon as I started to get bored and feeling a mite solitary, to go to a city where I already know quite a few people, and to which a load of my closest friends will shortly be descending. Which rocks! Plus, I’m here till the day before my orientation at my new job begins, where I will (hopefully) meet some people to bother incessantly with my need for human contact and social drinkiepoos. Score!

Because I was feeling a bit morose the day I left PA, I indulged myself by eating a Platter o’ Fat from the Pittsburgh airport’s TGIFridays. It was horrifying and delicious, as only a platter of American appetizers can be.

I ate about a quarter of it, and felt sick for about an hour after. But I gotta say, there is nothing more glorious than a fried stick of cheese. And then I proceeded to eat even MORE cheese, that night. Cheese baked, whipped, and/or set on fire, but I’ll get to that…..

Miraculously, especially as I was flying through O’Hare, all of my flights were on time. Which meant I got to join Kat Richardson and Mr. Kat’s anniversary dinner. They were so sweet to invite me, and I really appreciated the invitation, the kindness of their friends, and the deliciousness of the restaurant, Panos Kleftikos. The food was amazing. I’m a big fan of Greek food, and in my time I’ve done my fair share of damage to the baked feta. But this place was really, really good and the homemade pita nearly broke me with tastiness. There was also a LOT of red wine consumed from little highball glasses, my favorite way to drink it. Here’s Kat and me:

And Kat’s friend Lance, doing a fabulous impression of how everyone should leave a Greek Taverna (ie, carried out by friends):

I had such a blast, and I really appreciated how welcoming everyone was on my first night in Seattle!

This morning I woke up, showered, and immediately headed to the Starbucks downstairs to write some Jane. On the flight over to Seattle, I got my outline all sorted for what should be a very tight, very fast-paced, and pretty awesome fourth book, Eye of the Tempest. I already have fifty pages I’m fairly in love with, but had gotten stuck as I had NO IDEA what the middle of the book would contain. Luckily, my amazing Ideas Factory, Christie Ko, helped me out and after a few powwows with her, I knew I was ready. So I got the book all outlined on the plane, and this morning I did a Shit Ton of writing. I’m loving this book, so far. The “point” of this book is Jane, alone, really coming into her own, which I find such an exciting and inspiring idea. There’s also a lot of shenanigans, and an early scene that I think will make all my Anyan fans happy.

Around lunch time, the ever fabulous Psynde came to pick me up from Starbucks. For those of you unfamiliar with Psynde, she makes amazing jewelry for Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy series and for Jaye Well’s Sabina Kane series. She’s also thinking of picking up Jane and doing some jewelry for my series. I loved her ideas (think a gothier, punkier Betsey Johnson look) and I think my characters (Grizzie!) could inspire some great looks.

What do you think? Do you guys like that idea? Would you buy some Tempest inspired jewelry?

I had a great time with Psynde. She took me to sign stock at the downtown Barnes and Noble and Borders, and we did some shopping (hello, Fluevogs!). We also went to the most amazing place for lunch, which I can’t recommend highly enough. It’s called Dahlia Lounge, owned by celebrity chef Tom Douglas:

I had the most delicious thing I’ve eaten in a long time while I was there: a super-posh grilled cheese with this absolutely gorgeous tomato soup. It was heavenly, as only really simple comfort foods made with the best ingredients can be. Here’s a pic:

After lunch we shopped around more, and Psynde took me to some other great places. We also had really delicious coffee at The Chocolate Box. All in all it was a fabulous day. Right now it’s early evening, however, and I am beat. Partly I’m tired from the time change, but partly because I think this is the first day I’ve been able really to relax in a while. I think I’m going into crash mode, which will probably mean watching a movie and falling asleep early. Both of which sound absolutely delightful.

Tomorrow I’m seeing my friends who are getting married next week, and Sunday I’m headed out to Mark Henry’s abode to do some writing and play with his tiny, tiny dogs. I can’t wait to meet Yoda for realz! Maybe I can star in that day’s Yoda Break.

Don’t forget that Mark and I are doing a signing next Wednesday. It will probably be very, very inappropriate and very, very fun. So don’t bring your kids, but feel free to bring your potty mouths, snark, and maybe a bottle of cheap hootch in a paper bag.

Ciao for now!

Published on July 30, 2010 in Appearances, Eye of the Tempest, Food!, My Travels and Nicole Peeler. 6 Comments Tags: , .

Pimpage!

It’s that time of the month, folks. Time for me to bust out the pimp hand. Today I’m slapping some love onto both Stacia Kane and Kelly Meding. Way to release some books, ladies!

Stacia’s release is the latest in her Downside series. I haven’t had a chance to read these, yet, with the move and all. But I’m literally itching to get my hands on them. And because I’ve been handling a lot of Lysol wipes, but that’s another story. Here are all three books in the series, in all their beauty!

Yay for Stacia! Everyone says these rock, and I LOVE Stacia’s Megan Chase series. So I can’t wait to have time to read them!

Also out is Kelly Meding’s sequel, As Lie The Dead!

Let’s hear it for Kelly!

In other news, while I was moving everyone and their mother went to ComicCon. I’m not bitter at all that I didn’t get to go. Really. Truly. *dies a little inside* Next year, however, I am TOTALLY THERE. Oh yes. I am there. In the meantime, Mario Acevedo did a great job blogging about the madness, including a little love for TR from Orbit’s Lauren Panepinto.

As far as moving is concerned, I’m just about officially done. Not with unpacking, but in terms of my mental engagement. I’m about ready to start chucking boxes out of the window. Luckily, however, I’m nearly finished. I’m just waiting on some bookshelves and I can tackle my office. I hope they get here before I leave for Seattle . . .

Which is Thursday! I’m very excited to see all my Edinburgh friends, to hang out with my fellow Leaguers, and to see Seattle. I’ve never been!

But I’m also starting to miss my Shreveport friends, very much. So I’m wearing the Zombieland shirt that Wendell gave me, in honor of them. Miss you guys!

Published on July 27, 2010 in Pimpage!. 10 Comments

We Have a Wiener!

The Contest Can has spoken! Well, that’s actually a lie. The Contest Can WOULD have spoken, but I have no idea which box it’s packed in. So, instead, the internet randomizer has spoken, and I have a wiener for my Tracking the Tempest contest!

The wiener of all this good stuff:

Is Elie N! Yay for Elie! I’m very happy she won, as she’s been a huge supporter of Jane from the beginning. So, thanks for playing to ALL of you, and huge congrats to Elie.

That said, Elie, you won’t be getting your prize for a few weeks . . . it’s probably in the same box as the Contest Can. ;-) But I’ll send it as soon as I’ve unearthed it, I promise. Just email me your address to iheartselkies(at)gmail(dot)com.

And I’ll blog soon with some more moving updates, as well as my upcoming trip to Seattle. If you’re in that area, don’t forget Mark Henry and I will be doing a signing. There’s more info under  Upcoming Appearances, at the top of the page.

Published on July 26, 2010 in Appearances, Contests and Tracking the Tempest. 6 Comments

Pennsylvania or Bust!

So this has been a dramatic few days. I’m gonna go ahead and bullet point this week’s events:

  • Movers came and packed up my house. I am now living with a card table, one chair, my pilates ball, and a blow up mattress.
  • While I was running, someone broke into the Hippie Spaceship, smashing my rear passenger’s window.
  • I received my publication money for Tracking the Tempest. Of which, I still haven’t actually SAT DOWN AND LOOKED AT A COPY because I’ve been so flat out crazy busy.
  • I received, signed, and sent back my contracts for books #4, 5, & 6.
  • I received, edited, and sent back my final pass manuscript for book #3, Tempest’s Legacy.
  • Had about a million lunches/dinners/farewell gatherings. I HATE MOVING AND I HATE SAYING GOODBYE. So I don’t! I say, “See y’all later,” because I will. ;-)

There was some other shit, but that’s the big stuff. I’ve managed not to have a nervous breakdown, although when I waddled up to find my window broken I nearly succumbed. But the good thing about always living on my own and traveling around on my own so much is that it has made me pretty resilient. . . mostly because if I do curl up in a ball, there’s no one there to poke me with a stick until I get back up. ;-)

(For those of you who know how commitment phobic I am, that’s actually the only reason I think I might one day settle down . . . so there’s someone around to poke me with a stick if I collapse. It’s on the same imagery-continuum as Bridget Jones’s “Eaten by Alsatians.” And, yes, my friends get mad at me when I say things like this.)

All in all and despite the car drama, I’m very well and very much looking forward to getting to my new apartment. That said, I’ll basically have enough time to unpack and maybe have a meal before I’m off to Seattle to do some book stuff (including a book signing with Mark Henry that y’all should come to) and attend my friends’ wedding.

But then I’ll go back to PA, and my new life! I’ll be really busy with orientation at my new college, as well as prepping my new courses. I’m going to have to do a lot of Computer Things for them, which makes me a bit nervous. But I think it’ll actually be straightforward once I sit down to figure it out. That said, I know there will be Much Swearing and probably a few Threatening Fist Shakes. Definitely some Moments of Panic.

So that’s me for the next few weeks: move, Seattle, prep for teaching. I’ll also be fitting in some Jane time. I’ve put Eye of the Tempest on hold, for a bit, mostly because I had abso-fucking-lutely NO idea what the middle bit was going to contain. I have the beginning  fifty pages (which I think is the strongest opener I’ve ever written. Although that doesn’t say much, as my openings have always sucked and gotten cut, entirely). I also know what a couple of scenes in the middle will be, and I know my AWESOME ending. But, yeah, that was it.

Luckily, I sent forth a plea to my AMAZING Ideas Factory, Christie Ko, who is beautiful and wonderful and BRILLIANT. She gave me some great ideas that have been percolating away in the dreaded brain pan . . . and I think everything is coming together. So I’ll work on my outline on the road, and then git to writin’ again soon.

In the meantime, there’s still people sending me adorable pics of Jane in the Wild. Here’s Angie’s pic of both books being guarded over by Tofu, the Vegetarian Zombie:

Is it a zombie meerkat, or am I seeing things?

As if to combat the last post’s iPad pics, Kristy sent in Kindle pics of Jane. She looks stunning even in black and white, if I do say so myself:

I think the most dramatic story about purchasing Tracking (besides the broken-car-cord-thingie) comes from Suzanne, who actually left the dentist’s office, after having something painful done to her teeth, and walked across the parking lot to the bookstore to buy Tracking. That’s real commitment, people! Here she is, nursing her sore tooth as she holds Jane, and with it a less-sore picture of Suzanne with TR. Glad you’re feeling better, Suzanne, and I hope the book didn’t make it hurt any worse!

Finally, we have pictures from Raelena and Katia, of Jane lounging about like the strumpet she is. But she’s our strumpet, and we like her that way!

Thanks to everyone who has sent in pics, sent in kind words about the book, and sent me message about my move. I appreciate it so much . . . you guys make everything worth it!

See y’all in Pennsylvania! ROAD TRIP! ;-)

Published on July 18, 2010 in Appearances, Contests, Eye of the Tempest, My Travels, Nicole Peeler, Tempest Rising and Tracking the Tempest. 6 Comments

RomConRiffic!

Last weekend I had the great pleasure of going to RomCon, in Denver. It was fabulous! I met loads of fans and had such a great time. When I first arrived, I immediately hooked up with the effervescent Heather Osborn, of Tor. I adore Heather, and we always have a great time together. Here’s us posing in a Romance cover . . . that inexplicably (to me, at least) involves a baby. I am the baby:

Besides Heather, loads of great peeps were at RomCon. On the shuttle bus from the airport, I ran into an editor from Grand Central’s Forever line (a sister imprint of Orbit’s), named Amy Pierpont. The first thing Amy said to me was, “Are you an author? You have romance writer hair,” which cracked me up. When I told her I wrote for Orbit, she was kind enough to invite me to dinner that night with other writers from Hachette (our parent company). The dinner was awesome. We went to this super swank place called 1515 that was rocking the nouvelle cuisine. Which is apparently French for “stick a fake syringe in that shiz.” For example, there was an appetizer of melon, prusciotto and cheese that arrived with a small syringe of balsamic vinegar stuck into it. But when I ordered my dessert–a root beer float–I was more than a little shocked to see this bad boy come at me:

That said, it was delicious. And I had a lovely time chatting with Amy and the other writers from Forever.

Mario Acevedo, my fellow Leaguer and a native of Denver, met me at the restaurant during dessert then took me on a tour. Of course, it was a Denver Tour, Mario Style, which means it involved stories of murder and mayhem, the most memorable of which was the murder of a midget crackwhore named Lil Bit, whose body was discovered shoved in a box behind some bar. Mario claims her death was investigated by a detective named Snowhite, something so entirely ridiculous it has to be the truth.

On the second day of the con, we were really busy. I met Meljean Brook, who was really sweet and interesting. I also hung out with Nalini Singh, which was super fun as I’m a HUGE fan of both of her series. At the Con, itself, I did speed dating, charades, and tons of other events that meant I got a lot of time to chat with readers and fans. We also did a huge signing, which was very fun except for a wee mix up with my name:

That Friday night I was a bit of a bore and went to bed really early. But that was partly because we had big plans for the next day.

On Saturday, Nalini was nice enough to do a signing with me, Carolyn Crane, and Jeanne C. Stein at the Broadway Book Mall. Heather Osborn came along, and she took us out for a gorgeous lunch. The signing itself was very fun, and we signed lots of stock. Heather took this fab picture of us all in action:

The ladies in action! on Twitpic

After the signing, Mario had made huge plans for us involving a restaurant called d Bar–which specializes in desserts–and the absent-but-attending-in-spirit Juliet Blackwell, who was represented by a parfait. Basically, Mario’s intentions were to get us to act out eating Juliet’s parfait, because he’s subtle and not pervy at all. Ever. Right Mario?

Here’s the action sequence, involving Carolyn Crane, Juliet’s Parfait, and moi. We go from diving into Juliet’s parfait, to a little post-parfait snuggle, to an empty parfait glass wearing a witch hat (which is obviously a metaphor for something very suggestive, and stuff).

Needless to say, there was much shenigans. After dinner, Jeanne took Nalini and Heather back to the hotel, while Carolyn and me went out with Mario. We went for a walk in this gorgeous park, then I found my ultimate dive bar, called the Satire Lounge. Yes, Satire. Amazing!

It was absolutely hilarious, with PBR on tap for only $1.75. My inner hipster came out to play. I also had the honor of sitting next to the craziest sumbitch in the bar, who was filthy and bearded and doing some serious chair dancing to Michael Jackson.

Carolyn and I stayed at the Sheraton in Downtown Denver, and it was a very, very nice hotel. Seriously swank. on Sunday morning, Mario was so sweet as to pick us up to take us to brunch, then give us a ride to the airport:

Full service Mario! Both Jeanne and Mario were unbelievably hospitable to us, and I know we all had a great time hanging out with them and attending RomCon. I loved meeting all my old and new fans, and talking with the Romance community, in general, about what they read and why.

So thanks for inviting us, RomCon! And I look forward to attending next year, hopefully. Not least because I absolutely loved Denver and would love to see some more of it.

Up next is my move to PA and my trip to Seattle. Never a dull moment… ;-)

Published on July 14, 2010 in Appearances and Conventions. 16 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Jane and You are Friends!

Hello my friends! Everything is pretty hectic here at Casa Peeler . . . mostly because Casa Peeler is being uprooted to Greensburg, PA. I hate the actual act of moving, obviously, but I’m very excited for my new job and my new apartment. It’s HUGE:

I have been trawling furniture stores looking for dining sets, and of course I’m obsessed with two from Needless Markup. I could sell a kidney and maybe buy the chairs! Who needs two kidneys?

Before I sell any of my organs for hoity-toity furniture, however, I will be in Denver, for RomConvention 2010. I’m super excited to bond with my fellow leaguers Mario Acevedo, Jeanne Stein, and Carolyn Crane. I’m also ridiculously excited to meet Nalini Singh, because I’m a huge nerdy fan of hers.

For those of you attending RomCon, here’s my schedule:

Friday

2:00 PM 2:50 PM Q&A Author Chat – UF/RE Authors Steamboat

3:00 PM 3:50 PM Memory Lane Convention Center E

Saturday

9:00 AM 9:50 AM Speed Date an Author Steamboat

10:00 AM 10:50 AM Monsters & More Semi-Charades Breckenridge

12:00 PM 2:00 PM Book Fair

3:30 PM 4:20 PM Betwixt and Between–Paranormal Authors Tea Breckenridge

Sunday

9:00 AM 9:50 AM Author Avenue Convention Center

Denver signing with Nalini Singh, Carolyn Crane, Jeanne Stein and me. Details are here, and there’s a Facebook invite, here.

In other news, Tracking the Tempest has been out for over a week now. I think she’s doing pretty well, and it also seems like a lot more people have picked up Tempest Rising because they’ve heard of or seen Tracking. Which Nikki likey. And I trace this success to my readers. I know you guys talk about the books, lend them to friends, review them, et cetera.

So I heart you guys! And I love when you send me your photos of Jane.

Here’s Aimee’s Corgi, Wilson, with Jane. That’s an adorable dog! I love how his paws frame the books perfectly. He’s like a fluffy book stand!

In a dramatic turn of events, Amber Y. suffered a broken alternator something or other (not much of a car person!) on the way to buy Tracking. Here’s Jane with the evidence:

Becky sent a picture of her cat with Jane, and Heather C. sent one of Jane with her pup, Harley:

Dawn sent pics of Tracking from North Dakota. Here are two with the capital building, or, as Dawn called it, “The Penis on the Prairie” framed in the background. I’m still giggling.

Qwill took a picture of Tracking with two of her own sows:

Jessica S. and Zita sent in pics of their books, as did Jessica W. Hers was autographed!

Melissa already has Jane housed in her very crowded bookcase (very nice!) and Lauren B. made it look like Jane is swimming on her sheets.

Finally, here’s Jane on an iPad. She’s so fancy!

Very cool! Thanks, you guys, for all the pictures and all the support. I really appreciate you taking the time to let me know you enjoyed the books.

Viva la Jane! ;-)

Published on July 8, 2010 in Conventions, Pimpage! and Tracking the Tempest. 5 Comments

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRACKING THE TEMPEST!

I am more than happy to announce the official launch of Jane True Book 2: Tracking the Tempest! YAY!

I still can’t believe I have one book out on shelves; the idea of having two just makes me giggle. And I couldn’t have done any of this without all the amazing fans who’ve made writing Jane so satisfying.

So I’m holding a contest. This time, it’s all organized around Things Jane Likes. Here’s a picture of the prize pack:

As I said, it contains Things Jane Likes, which can be broken down (in no particular order) into: Swimming, home, food, sex, and reading.

Swimming: You get a postcard of the Old Sow, direct from Eastport.

Home: A pirate-themed T-shirt in Large from Eastport.

Food: A cookbook from my favorite celebrity chef, Ina Garten

Sex: Saucy post-it notes, From Him and From Her

Reading: A 25$ gift card to Barnes and Noble

There’s also a little map of Boston, so you can follow Jane’s adventures in Tracking the Tempest.

All very fun, and all very Jane.

You can enter the contest in the following ways:

(x1 entry) Comment on this post to be entered automatically

(x5 entries each for each copy) Show me proof you’ve bought Tempest OR Tracking (email to iheartselkiesATgmailDOTcom a photo or screenshot of a receipt or a picture of the book at home–let me know whether or not I can post it on the blog if it’s a picture of the book at home)

(x3 entries each) Provide in comments links to reviews of Tracking the Tempest OR Tempest Rising you’ve done on your blog, Amazon, Goodreads, etc.

(x2 entries each) Follow me on Twitter or Facebook (if you already follow me, just let me know)

(x1 entry each medium) for pimping this post (Facebook, Twitter, blog post, etc)

I will choose a winner at random on Monday, July 26th at 12:00 AM Eastern time. Contest is international, cuz I love my non-American fans just as much.

To my established fans (all 13 of you :-) : thank you SO MUCH for your support and kind words. You guys make this writing gig worth it!

And to people new to my site: Thanks for coming by and I hope you like it here. Jane’s got lots of adventures to come, and I hope you’ll come along for the ride!

HAPPY RELEASE DAY JANE AND COMPANY! *pops the bubbly*

Published on July 1, 2010 in Contests and Tracking the Tempest. 76 Comments