I went to lunch with 7 the other day and The Crush waved at ME from three seats down. ME! I was quiet excited until 7 explained the following to me:

1. He was trying to impress me because if Mama likes him, she will encourage the relationship.                                                                                      

           7 did not actually use the word “relationship.” Instead she smacked    her hands together demonstrating the boyfriend/girlfriend bond.

        2.  Mamas must act “cool,” otherwise The Crush will know something is up.

        3.  Mamas must NOT be too nosey.

In other news, 7 says that it is okay to:          

      4.  Bat your lashes at a boy. 

       It clues him in that you like him, but very subtly.                                               

       5.   Have daydreams about The Crush.

       But not while the teacher is talking. Mama gets mad when the grades slip.

Stayed tuned…7 had a playdate, who happily jumped on board, creating a long list of blog notes for us. The friend’s comments appear in the next episode.

Hey y’all! Happy Halloween! I was debating about posting The Romance Saga Part IV, but decided to take a detour because I’m curious if you have any good Halloween stories. Alas, I do not have anything overly exciting. I grew up in the country so we MAYBE had two or three trick or treaters, but my yard got rolled practically every year. I’d like to think it was because I was oh, so popular, but really I just had amazing oak trees. My best halloween experience was when I was a junior in high school. I invaded my best friend’s house and announced I would be the candy giver because I’d never gotten to do that. Then a bunch of my school buddies and I went rolling for the first time. (Don’t tell – it might mess up that good girl image I had in high school!). Now, my Halloweens involve sneaking Twix from my kids’ bags and wearing a t-shirt that says, “This is my costume.” I can’t even get my kids to crave a pumpkin because they don’t want to touch the goop. Seriously, I need to up my game on the whole Halloween experience.

Hi everyone! The Book Vixen here. I would like to thank Ms. Casey Crow for opening her doors and inviting me over to her blog today.

Here are 5 reasons I read romance:

1. It’s an escape.

I’m a stay-at-home-mom. Day in and day out I tend to my two young children. My 3 ½ year old stays at home with me while his older sister goes off to Kindergarten for half the day. One can imagine how exciting it can be to do the mundane tasks us parents do on a day-to-day basis. One way I like to escape is by reading and a genre I love to read is romance. The farther away a book is from my reality, the better. I don’t read romance where there are children in the picture; that wouldn’t be much of an escape, now would it?

2. You get to live in someone else’s shoes.

This is the fun part! I get to read and experience life from a different prospective. I can go from being Miss Goody Goody to a Vixen in a few pages flat! I get to read about someone doing something that I would never have the guts to do. I can be the vixen that sleeps with every gorgeous guy that I come across. I can be the woman who falls for the man that I wouldn’t normally go after. I can be that tough and fearless leading lady who makes not only the first move but is also aggressive about it. Reading romance novels is almost like cheating, without any of the hurt, guilt or consequences. It gives me a chance to do something that I might not normally do. Be someone I am not. Hook up with someone I would be too shy to approach. Be all that I can be, with a safety net. I am a happily married woman but sometimes it’s fun to imagine life as a single vixen.

3. You get to see and experience different places.

Here’s a little secret: I’m afraid to fly. So it’s nice to read about different places, especially places I may never visit. It could be a different state in my country or a different county altogether. I’m sick of the place I live in. I’ve been here all my life and would jump at the chance to move away. So I love to read romance novels that involve another place.

4. You get good use of your emotions.

When I read one of Nicholas Sparks’ novels, I will laugh and I will cry. I will feel just about every other emotion in between. My heart will hurt and ache like it’s been ripped out of my chest. And that’s why I enjoy reading them; he takes you through an entire range of emotions. You cannot know what it is to love someone until you have felt loss. And sometimes I need a good cry.

5. There’s a type of romance out there for everyone and for every mood.

My favorites are contemporary, paranormal and romantic suspense. Sometimes I’m in the mood for some realistic, yet different from my life, romance. Or I might be in the mood for some vampire and werewolf loving. I also love a good mystery surrounding a love story.

Now that I’ve told you why I read romance, I want to hear from you. Why do you read romance?

7 would like to convey the qualities we should be looking for in men.
1. He makes your heart pound.
7 explained on Show and Tell Day the crush made her heart pound when he said he liked to be goofy. Why? Read on…
2. You must have things in common.
7 also likes to be goofy. (Her mama refers to “goofy” as “drama queen”) Plus, 7 and her crush love dogs and other animals.
3. He must tell good jokes.
That’s true, we all love a man with a good sense of humor.
4. He must give good presents.
Well, duh.

to be continued…

Anita Clenney grew up an avid reader, devouring Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books before moving on to mysteries and romance. After working as a secretary, a Realtor, teacher’s assistant, booking agent for Aztec Fire Dancers, and a brief stint in a pickle factory (picture Lucy and Ethel–lasted half a day)…she realized she’d missed the fork in the road that led to her destiny. She backtracked and started sprinting to catch up, spilling her heart and soul onto the page. Anita lives in Virginia with her hero and two kids, where she spends her days writing Paranormal Romantic Suspense about Secret Warriors, Ancient Evil and Destined Love. Book release dates are as follows:

Awaken the Highland Warrior, May 2011, Sourcebooks Casablanca

Embrace the Highland Warrior, November 2011, Sourcebooks Casablanca

Unleash the Highland Warrior, Spring 2012, Sourcebooks Casablanca

Hi everyone. I want to thank Casey Crow for having me as a guest blogger today. If you’re a writer, chances are you’re also an avid reader. All readers have their favorites. Here’s where it gets interesting when you’re a reader and a writer. Writers don’t just notice a good book for reading pleasure, but we notice what the writer is doing right, how they’re using the words, what their strengths are, and we can take inspiration from their work. So, writers tell your husbands you really are doing research when you’re curled up with a book…yet again.

One of my favorite writers is Janet Evanovich. Specifically, her Stephanie Plum series. This is one writer whose books I’ll rush out and buy hardcover, and I don’t generally buy hardcovers. I think she does so many things right. By the first or second page, she has me sucked into every story. I’m smiling, if not outright laughing, and I can just feel Stephanie and Lula and Grandma Mazur, as real as if I was there. Let’s not forget Ranger and Morelli. As if anyone could really forget Ranger. Janet Evanovich does a great job with her characters. She makes them feel so authentic, like they were neighbors down the street. But it isn’t just her characters. Her writing is deceptively simple. I read her book on how she writes, and she talked about how hard it is to get her writing to appear so simple on the page. Not an easy task.

Kristan Higgins is another wonderful writer. Her voice is simply incredible. She writes dialog that is to die for, and has an ability to have you laughing in one chapter and crying in the next. And I don’t cry easily. I’m amazed at how deep she can take the emotional level in what seems an ordinary, humorous romance. She’s a true artist. You are guaranteed a great read if you pick up a Kristan Higgins book.

Elizabeth Peters’ Amelia Peabody series has been around a long time. And there’s a reason why. It’s wonderful. Her characters, her setting, her voice. Amelia is a nineteenth century woman who’s tough, no nonsense, oozing common sense and with little patience for those who don’t possess it. Gruff, good-looking husband, Professor Radcliffe Emerson is just as engaging. When I read the first in the series, I immediately fell in love. No cardboard characters here. All of them are fabulous. I love it when an author makes the character and setting so alive on the page. And Elizabeth Peters knows her Egyptology. I have to say I bought the last in the series in hardcover as well.

Harlan Coben. Wow. This writer’s plot twists have their own plot twists. His writing is so gripping it’s hard to put down one of his books. He’s another one that can wring tears out of me. You can FEEL the emotions of the characters so gritty and real. He has a gift for understating something in a way that makes it hit you twice as hard. I remember in a class, someone said if the character cries, the reader doesn’t have too, because so often we writers spell out the emotions we want the reader to feel so they just accept it and ride along as an observer instead of feeling it. Harlan Coben does it in the right way. He doesn’t tell you what you should feel, but takes you right to the brink, so the feeling is all the stronger. He is the master of twists. I love getting to the last few pages of his stories and he totally surprises you with the ending, then you read on and guess what? There’s another twist. He keeps you guessing.

Jeri Westerson’s Crispin Guest series really impressed me. I’ve read the first two, and there’s another one coming out this month. Heck, maybe it’s out now. I’ll have to check. It’s about a medieval knight who’s been stripped of titles and land and is forced to live the mean streets of London solving crimes with his young sidekick, Jack Tucker. Jeri’s writing is really strong, her characters so alive, and can this author ever do setting? She’s brilliant with setting, something I have a hard time writing. Even as a reader, if there’s a lot of setting, I’ll start skimming. But she does it beautifully, just the right amount. I can almost taste the place, smell the odors. I adore Crispin Guest and his sidekick. Wonderful series.

Nobody does love scenes like Linda Howard. She’s a master at love scenes, because she understands the power of sex, the primal, earth-moving, life-giving qualities. I recently attended her workshop on the Twelve Steps of Intimacy. Brilliant! But it isn’t just her love scenes that are so well done. She’s an incredible writer. Honestly, her plots aren’t the material that I might choose as a reader, but she’s so amazing, that whatever story she’s telling, the emotion is so high, you’re there, immersed in the story alongside the characters. You’re invested in them and in her plot. It’s all done so well, it leaves me feeling satisfied as a reader and a touch envious as a writer.

Diana Gabaldon is another favorite. Her Outlander series is great. I haven’t read them all yet, but I will. She does a great job with history and her characters. Jamie and Claire are two of my all-time favorite characters. So three dimensional, so real you feel like you can reach out and touch them. And the bond between Jamie and Claire is so strong. If only husbands and wives had half this connection, the divorce rates would plummet. This writer is another who intimidates me. Her writing is so different than mine. My stories are much faster paced, but still I’ve learned from her writing. She can wring more interest and drama out of a plot than most writers. From her writing, I’ve learned to not rush too quickly over those emotional scenes that need extra time and attention.

Nora Roberts is another amazing writer. Not only that she can crank out so many wonderful books, but she’s great with plots and characters. She can do almost any genre and do it well.

All these writers mentioned are very different. Some are romance, some aren’t. Some faster paced, some slower, devoting more words to the setting or things happening inside the character’s head. But they’re all brilliant in my opinion. We all differ. What one reader likes, another won’t, but these are some of my favorite writers. I’d like to hear some of yours, and what is it about their writing that compels you.

Well, the good news is that 7 (my daughter) was delighted to learn that she will be teaching the world all about romance. She would like to impart on us her findings of the past week:
1. Nice boys are gentlemen.
The crush gave up his seat to her at lunch so she could sit by a girlfriend. Awww…how sweet.
2. Get a friend to get the scoop.
More on this later, as the testing period is still underway.
3. Liking a boy makes you feel kinda weird. You get butterflies in your tummy like you’re about to throw up and when you see him, you freeze.
7 poses like a statue here for effect. The freezing is the equivalent of your breathing hitches, which I’m sure has all happened when the crush walks in – especially when his appearances was unexpected and you are hopefully looking your best.
4. You have weird dreams about him.
I figured it wise for my mental health not to delve too deeply here as 7 is quiet imaginative and her stories go on and on and on and on. But, the kid makes a good point because who among us hasn’t awaken a little hot and a little bit sweaty?

To be continued…

Hello, everyone, and thank you, Casey for the opportunity guest blog with you today! 

Prior to discovering my love of writing, I was a librarian for several years.  I love doing research, but as writers, writing is our first priority, not research.  And sometimes we end up wasting lots of time looking for information that we thought would be relatively easy to find. 

If you’re a member of Romance Writers of America and have a copy of the October 2010 Romance Writers Report, you can read an article of mine entitled, “Research: Utilizing Human Resources.”  Today I’d like to share an example of how an expert helped me, so research didn’t become a time drain from my writing!

Not long ago I asked my husband for input on a scene I’d written involving a dynamite explosion. My husband knows explosives, but he’s not an expert–he just built bombs as a kid, and miraculously still has two eyes and ten fingers. After I read my scene to him, hubby ripped it to shreds. Granted, at that point, I hadn’t done any research. I’d only used what I’d seen on TV as a guide–never a good idea. My husband couldn’t answer all my questions regarding dynamite, so I turned first to the encyclopedia, and then the Internet.

Although I found lots of information (including the fact that Alfred Nobel, of the Nobel Peace Prize, created dynamite), I couldn’t find the answer to every single question I had in order to write a believable scene. Instead of going to the library, checking out books and investing more time, I decided to locate a human resource–someone who’d give me more than I could find in a stack of books for the particular episode I had in mind. After playing around for a little while online, I located the International Society of Explosive Engineers. With local chapters all across the country, I called the chapter chairman closest to me.

Understandably wary, the gentleman informed me that he usually wasn’t allowed to answer questions unless someone had gone through the proper channels. After trying to convince him that I really wasn’t a terrorist, he asked me to explain what I was looking for, and then told me he’d decide what he could or couldn’t answer. After the first few minutes, he realized I was safe and literally had no clue, whatsoever, about explosives.

This explosive engineer taught me more about dynamite than I’ll ever need to know. He even provided me with a more realistic scenario for what I was trying to describe, as well as a way to kill off a bad guy in the aftermath of an explosion, while the good guy survives.  In the end, my source gave me 45 minutes of his valuable time, answered all my questions, and let me pick his brain!

Nothing like communicating with a human resource through the good old fashioned way of talking! Sometimes that’s the most useful research out there!  Next time you run into a brick wall, pick up the phone and call an expert so you can get back to more important things—like writing!

Do you have an exciting research adventure to share?  And as far as research goes, do you love it or hate it?

Thanks again to Casey for a chance to guest blog here today!  I invite you to visit my blog any time at www.mariamckenziewrites.com.  If you don’t have access to Romance Writers Report, you can read my complete article attached at the end of the October 6, 2010 blog post, “Can’t Find and Answer? Call an Expert.”

It all started two weeks into second grade. My seven year-old-daughter whispered in my ear that she likes a boy. I did not panic because in the summer between 4K and 5K, she and her “boyfriend” actually mailed love letters back and forth. First grade brought on a nice reprieve of “ewe, boys are yucky” but that mentality apparently was short lived as we are now in full crush mode. Therefore, I did what any over protective mama would do. I went to lunch with 7 (my kid) – Friday is Pizza day, so I waited till then – and finagled the seating chart so I sat by the crush. Okay, let me just stop right here and say my daughter has excellent taste. The little dude is cute as can be!

My kid would probably be horrified knowing I’m discussing her personal business to the world, but she makes good points, which got me thinking.
There really isn’t much difference between love at age 7 verus 37 (I’m really 35, but 37 is a catchier title).

According to 7:
1. You do not simply announce you like a boy. You let him know with eye contact that lingers a little too long.
Hmmm…dido for the 37 view.
2. You know a boy likes you when he stares back. (7 has confirmed success here!)
37 agrees.
3. A boy also likes you if he is mean to you.
Following an extensive Q&A, 37 learned at “mean” means he teases you, which is the equivalent of flirting for adults. As a side note, I took great pains to clarify that boys should never be “mean mean” to girls.
4. Boys like it when girls are “mean” back.
True, flirting isn’t fun if it’s not reciprocated.
5. Boys like girls in bikinis.
I’m not kidding, my child spoke those words and however true they may be I’m a little worried now!

The saga shall continue as information becomes available, but get this – 7 tells me, “I thought I knew a lot about romance, but I just don’t get it.”

Neither do I sweet girl, but that’s the beauty of it.

Writers are often asked why they write, and if they’ve always known they wanted to be an author. I ask almost every author I interview for my blog, ChickLitPlus.com, that question, and I am genuinely curious to hear the answer. For myself, I knew I wanted to write since I was about nine years old. I became fascinated in my world of books, and the library quickly became my favorite hangout. I wrote my first book when I was nine, ten chapters I wrote out by hand in my favorite pink spiral notebook. More books followed over the years, and I eventually switched to typing and saving my work to floppy discs. I still have all those discs and that first pink notebook stashed away in a shoebox under my bed.

When I was younger, I couldn’t tell you why I was so fascinated by books. I just knew I loved to read, loved learning new things about life from these characters. My favorite series for years was the Baby-Sitters Club by Ann M. Martin, and I read every single title, even the mysteries and travel specials, at least three times, probably more. It wasn’t until last year, when I decided for the first time to really pursue my goal of becoming a writer, that I realized why I loved reading and why I loved writing.

I didn’t have an easy time growing up, dealing with abuse and addictions, and eventually being left on my own when I was sixteen. With no one to guide me and help me figure out life, people often say they are surprised how I turned out. It was difficult, but I graduated high school and college with honors, paid my own way through four years of business college, secured a fantastic government job, and never let any obstacles bring me down. Now that I am trying to tackle the writing world, I had to step back and ask myself: why do I want to be a writer? And the answer was simple: because books helped me tremendously growing up. Without the girls in the Baby-Sitters Club, I’m not sure I would be the same woman I am today. Those books guided me through life when I didn’t have a parent to turn to, and I read about young girls learning how to grow up, how to stay on the right path, and so much more. I learned about broken families from Ann M. Martin, about dealing with death, with boys, how to handle failing classes, traveling, periods, even that the Tooth Fairy wasn’t real. And when I grew out of the Baby-Sitters Club books, I dove right into Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal, and learned even deeper lessons that high schoolers face- sex and drugs and how all your decisions can shape your future. Without these lessons I learned, I’m really not sure where I would be today. Those books gave me guidance, stability, and the tools to learn, grow, and succeed as a young girl struggling on my own. I hope to do the same with my writing. I hope I can help others who may need it, who may not have the two parents and a white picket fence growing up. I want them to identify with characters and see how making the right choices will further their lives. That’s why I won’t give up this dream. I’ve written and re-written my manuscript three times, and maybe the fourth time will be a charm, where some agent or editor will tell me they love it and can’t wait to publish my novels. I hope to write a series for young girls about young girls, and give them inspiration to keep pushing past obstacles and overcome any adversity they may face. Perhaps someday another young woman will look up to me and my stories the same way I still admire Ann M. Martin and Francine Pascal.

Mary and Myles sittin’ in a tree. K.I.S.S.I.N.G. First comes love, then comes marriage. Then comes Mary with a baby carriage. Remember that? My seven-year-old daughter thought she was hot stuff singing it the other day, until I popped her bubble when I said I too used to sing it. Never fear. She got me back saying, “It’s THAT old?!?!” Uh…yeah, but that’s beside the point. The song got me thinking though about first crushes, first kisses, and first…you know. Mostly, I started remembering regrets, and what would happen if given a second chance.

We all have things we wish we could change. Some folks say they’d change nothing because their pasts made them who they are today – stronger, wiser, but are they happier? That’s the million-dollar question. Still, it’s a nice dream to imagine what might have been. And, on those rare occasions the impossible happens. You are given a second chance. It may be something as simple as apologizing to right a wrong or something bigger like falling in love all over again.

In Carly Phillips’ LUCKY CHARM, Derek thought he could outsmart the Corwin family curse by breaking up with his first love, but of course true love wins out over superstitions. In DAISY’S BACK IN TOWN by Rachel Gibson, the heroine returns to her hometown to find the bad boy she left behind is still sexy as ever. Isn’t it great some things never change? Authors use second chance premises all the time and why? To give us hope that maybe someday we too may have an opportunity to circle back and walk down a new path.

I’m a firm believer in if it’s meant to be it will be, so I wholeheartedly believe in second chances. What about you? Do you have a story? Even if it didn’t end happily ever after, I’d still love to hear about it. Hopefully though, most of you are now stronger, wiser, and definitely happier!
BY: CASEY CROW
**Author’s note: This post first appeared on Sept. 24, 2010 at htttp.www.thebookvixen.com