Charming inspiration!

Today is release day for my new Destiny Romance novella, "Charmed"! Charmed is a spicy hot read that's a contemporary romance with a magical twist - Melanie, the heroine, just happens to be able to read minds. And is that a blessing or a curse?? Well, you'll just have to read to find out. ;)

A common question for authors is where they get their inspiration. It sounds like a straightforward question, but it's actually got a complicated answer for me, because inspiration for my writing comes from so many different places.

In the case of Charmed, there were two things about the characters that instantly came to my mind. Let's talk about Michael, the hero, first.

He's an accountant. Boring, right? No way! He's the rockstar of accountants -- he's a surfer boy, an adventure traveller, and I'm sure he's done all those dangerous holiday sports, bungy jumping, jet boating, etc.

The thing that stuck in my mind when I pictured him was his hair. I saw him running his fingers through his hair as a gesture whenever he was confused, or overwhelmed, or thinking things through. (Or, possibly, being driven out of his mind by passion!) One actor, famed for his gorgeous locks, came to mind.

Jared Padalecki is probably most famous for playing Sam Winchester in Supernatural. He often runs his fingers through his hair in that role, and that's exactly what I pictured.

My heroine, Melanie, didn't come quite so easily to mind. That is, in terms of her looks. The one thing that I was clear on very early on was her wardrobe. A strange little bit of inspiration, I know! But I could very clearly picture exactly what she would wear, and it was exactly like Nina Proudman from the Aussie TV drama, Offspring.

Those filmy scarves, and jangly beads, and boho-gypsy chic were very clear in my head.

It's Melbourne winter during Charmed, so the weather is typically changeable. That means it's more about jackets and warm coats than flippy skirts, but the aesthetic would still be the same. (There is, in fact, a whole series of blog posts dedicated to helping you dress like Nina Proudman!)

 

Mel and Michael have a few challenges thrown their direction, and they're not just about haircare and fashion choices. There's an entanglement with the magic council, a big matter in Michael's past, and pesky Aunt Gertrude always getting in the way.

 

I hope you'll enjoy Charmed -- it was such fun to write, especially with two such quirky, inspirational characters at the heart of it!

 

Before I go, I just want to add one other little piece of news -- you may know already, but I'm about to head off on a new adventure, living in San Francisco. This is my last blog post with the gorgeous Lovecats, and I'm saying a sad but fond farewell to all the other kitties! I do hope to come back and visit with special news every now and then. In the meantime, my heartfelt thanks to the Lovecats for being such wonderful authors to work with, and my fondest wishes to all the Lovecats readers for you comments and interaction -- wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a great New Year!

 

 

When life imitates art...

Last month my first self-published novel hit the shelves: Dance With Me. The story was partly inspired by a trip I did a couple of years ago, travelling through Mexico and down into Guatemala. I took that trip because I had a business trip to San Francisco, and I figured why not take the opportunity to travel somewhere new and exciting whilst I was over on that side of the world?

The trip around Mexico and Guatemala was one of those "no frills, get to know the locals, stay in villages and backpackers, eat at the local markets" kind of tours. (I took a tour because I was travelling alone and figured it was safest, especially considering both countries can be kind of dangerous for tourists.) I talked about it last month on LoveCats, particularly some of the interesting food options I enjoyed! Generally speaking I prefer a more five-star style of travel, so while I enjoyed the experience I can't say I wasn't pleased when it was time to move on.

My next stop was the amazing city of San Francisco. (Also a location in Dance With Me!) I'd been there once before, when I was much younger, on a business trip with my mum. It was instant love-at-first-sight between me and the city and I couldn't wait to get back to it.

The universe decided to grant my wish, and for the next few years I had business reasons to go to San Francisco at least once a year. I got to know it pretty well -- its hilly streets, hidden bars, and friendly people. A friend and I even did the famous Pacific Coast Highway drive from Los Angeles to San Fran -- in a convertible, of course!

In Dance With Me, Polly ends up finding herself a with a new life, and all kinds of new opportunities in San Francisco by the end of the book. And, in a very strange twist, I'm about to do the same.

In January I'm moving to live in San Francisco. I've taken up a new day job, and I'm excited about it and about the chance for me to experience new places, people and adventures -- that will all no doubt end up being book fodder one of these days!

It does feel a little weird to have written Dance With Me and Polly's journey and then to be walking in very similar footsteps. Maybe I need to write a story about a girl who encounters a genie who grants unending wishes (and is super-dooper handsome to boot!). Can we see if that one might come to life too?

There are a few more details about my move over on my blog. But in the meantime I'm going to stay in touch with all you Lovecatters and if/when you read my next book and discover it's set in San Francisco, you'll be able to go, "A-ha! I know why that is!"

International culinary adventures!

Building on Sharon's post last week about culinary adventures, today I wanted to chat about international culinary adventures! Have you had any amazing food experiences while travelling?

Food market in Mexico

I'm definitely all about the food and wine when I visit somewhere new, so I'm blessed to have been able to sample some wonderful meals.

One of my "lifetime" highlights was a meal in the Rainbow Room at the top of the Rockfeller Centre in New York. It was a corporate function, and served buffet style, so my expectations were not high. And then I saw the sushi display... The colours, the variety... I wasn't sure if it was art, or food. And then I moved on to the carvery -- a very rare roast beef, served in thin slices with rye bread and mustard.

I'm drooling just thinking about it!

I also got a laugh, because as I was diving head first into the sashimi platter (not quite literally) I overheard a couple say to each other, "This food is awful! Why isn't any of it cooked?" I'm sure it's terribly rude that I just chuckled and thought to myself, More for me!

But not all culinary adventures turn out to be positive ones. The photo above is from a trip I did a few years ago to Mexico and Guatemala. It was a fantastic trip and so much of the food was wonderful. In almost every place we went to, as soon as you sit down a plate of sliced limes would be put in front of you.

There were more avocados available and served up than I've ever seen in my life. And mostly, the food was wonderful and all about fresh, zingy, delicious flavours.

BUT, then there was the dodgy tamale. I think it was from the food market that's pictured at the top of this post. You know how you kind of know something isn't right, even while you're eating it? Yeah. That.

It was a chicken tamale and really, I should have known better than to order chicken from a place that's probably not really taking care of that 'danger zone temperature' food handling practice. The dodgy tamale made my next few days in Mexico quiet ones, because I needed to stay pretty close to a bathroom. Luckily for me, once the nasty bugs had cleared my system I was able to get on with my trip and enjoy all that was on offer.

And, even better, that dodgy tamale (and my trip in its entirety) inspired my latest release, "Dance With Me", which starts off with Polly -- an Australian tourist -- running afoul of a Guatemalan market stall holder and having her own (albeit slightly more serious) experience with food poisoning.

Dance With Me is available now from Amazon. Tell me one of your travel-related food adventures (good or bad!) and I'll chose one lucky commenter to receive a free copy of Dance With Me.

Life-long story telling

I've just spend a wonderful few days with family, celebrating my father's 72nd birthday. At the heart of the celebration were my two "nieces", five and eight years old. (They're not exactly blood relatives, but our families have been celebrating birthdays together since their Mum and I were younger than they are now, so they qualify. Also, I've changed nappies and given baths and supervised homework, so I figure I've earned the "Aunty" designation.)

I was conscious of the fact that the whole weekend was full of storytelling. Our family doesn't get together terribly often, as we're geographically spread around, so there's lots of the "what's been going on" kind of stories that needed to be told. Then, like many dads, there's nothing my father likes than a long, drawn-out joke with a terrible pun as the punchline. There were also bedtime stories to read (I'd forgotten how wonderful and twisty that Doctor Seuss prose is.) And there were plenty of kids' stories too, often starting with a breathless, "Guess what?"

One of the new artworks destined for my refrigerator...

I asked my eight-year-old niece to write me a story because I was interested to see what sort of thing she might come up with. (Okay, so it might also have also been motivated by the need to keep her occupied while we prepared a birthday dinner for 12...)

She wrote me the most wonderful adventure tale. It was about Emily, a (nice) monster who lived in a cave by a river and who was out one day playing with a ball with her brother, Jack. But then the ball accidentally fell in the river! Jack went in after it, even though Emily told him not to and then, oh no, he started to get swept away! But Emily thought quickly and found a rope and threw it to Jack so he was able to climb out. And everyone chorused, "Hooray!" (She didn't know how to spell "chorused" but she gave it a good try.)

I know everyone thinks their own child (or nephew/niece/cousin/etc) is the smartest, most brilliant child in the world. But seriously, my author's little writing heart glowed and thumped as we read her story aloud. A gusty female protagonist! A hero's journey! A satisfying, happy ending! Awesome word use and vocabulary!

I'm going to start training her now to see if I can turn her into an author.

Reading her story got my mother telling another story. About the time when I was a similar age and I wrote a story on the back of a cardboard box at my parents' shop. They were part of a franchise and I wrote a story about how it had been founded -- a fantastical tale about pirates and deserted islands, apparently. And the head of the franchise visited their store and he saw it, and he told them he was going to see how it could be used as part of their advertising campaign. Which never happened. But still -- perhaps it was a foreshadowing of my future double life in PR and romance writing??

My favourite bedtime story over the weekend was Dr Seuss's "Yurtle the Turtle" -- so much fun to read out loud. Do you have a favourite you like to read to the littlies in your life?

Finding inspiration

The doctor is in!

I'm in the midst of writing a different kind of book for me. It's got more than two main characters and lots going apart from schmexy times (although there's plenty of that too!).

But this week, one of my characters just won't play ball. She's confused, and complicated, and possibly a little annoying. (A little annoying is okay, I think. A lot annoying is a problem, and sometimes it's hard to draw a line between the two.)

So I've been soaking up as many characters in the past few days as I can. Reading. Watching TV. Movies. Even jumping on Facebook and social media to look at the way different people talk and interact.

No one told me this writing caper would involve having to inhabit the mind of a psychologist! Or perhaps, maybe, I'm the one who needs the psychologist? Nah, that's what crit partners are for, right? ;)

I think I'm probably at a point now where I need to just keep writing. Write and write and write until I get her to make some sense. It feels wasteful, but I guess if it helps me to make her more believable and real, then it won't be wasted effort at all.

What do you guys do if you get stuck with a story? How do you bring your characters into line if they're playing up and refusing to stay in their neat little boxes? Let me know your tricks!

Deadlines are a girl's best friend

by Emmie Dark

Right now I'm working on my fifth published book, but I still feel (probably rightly so!) like a total newbie. Each day as a published author seems to bring a new piece of information, or challenge, or discovery that I need to take in.

My newest discovery is what it's like to write a book while a deadline is hanging over my head. Don't get me wrong -- I've absolutely had to meet deadlines for a long time. In my working life in PR and communication, deadlines are a daily fact of life. So I understand deadlines. I get them.

But I've been fortunate enough that up until this book, I've been well along the way to being finished writing the book (or, indeed, already finished) by the time it's been picked up by a publisher. This book is the first time I've had a deadline before I've had "The End" (or even a good idea of what "The End" might look like).

It's actually kind of fun. I know, you were expecting me to talk about stress and tearing my hair out, but it hasn't really been like that. Instead I've just been very disciplined. I'm pretty disciplined to start with (I think all authors have to be, really) but having a deadline means I know exactly what I have to have done, by when, in order to get there.

Perhaps I'm just a structure-loving person? Another discovery I've made on this published author journey!

And on that note, I'd better get on and get some writing done today. That deadline is breathing down my neck!

Indolent summer days in New York

by Emmie Dark

As you might have gathered from my regular contributions to LoveCats, I’m lucky enough to get to travel quite a bit. And right now, I’m writing to you from a very, very warm New York City. (I'm not sure what 93F is in celsius, but I'm guessing it's HOT!)

Thankfully earlier this week it was more reasonable – perfect weather for strolling the delight-filled streets of Soho, and exploring the history of Little Italy.

Right now I’m in Midtown, which is kind of the central business district of New York. There’s lots of concrete, and steamy sidewalks, and impatient cab drivers. And not really much in the way of green – unless, of course, you count the big stretch of grass and trees  just a few blocks up. (Central Park, of course!)

On Sunday I strolled with a friend through the wonders of Fifth Avenue. We popped our heads in at St Patrick’s Cathedral, which is one of the most stunning churches (even if it’s currently covered in scaffolding) and joined in the service that was underway for a short time. I'm not really a church-y person, but I do like that bit where you turn to people and shake their hands and say, "Peace be with you". I wished peace on lots of New Yorkers (and probably a few tourists).

Then we moved on to worshipping of a different kind. Saks Fifth Avenue was having a sale! Most of the merchandise in the store is well beyond my credit card's boundaries, but the sale in the lingerie department did prove a little too hard to resist.

And we had the most amazing fun in the shoe department. Unfortunately I can't connect my camera to the computer right now, because I took a photo of the most amazing gem-encrusted Louboutins! There were many beautiful shoes that really belonged on a shelf, not on feet. At least not on my feet -- I'd break an ankle!

Yes, I did make my last stop a Barnes and Noble where I rushed to the Romance section filled with anticipation, but alas, no. There was no copy of Just For Today sitting on the shelf. I chose to believe that's because it was sold out!

Sunday Smooch with Emmie Dark

Welcome to another LoveCats DownUnder Sunday Smooch!

The winner of last weeks Smooch is Nancy Crocker!
Congratulations Nancy....please contact Amy Andrews on amy (at) amyandrews (dot) com (dot) au to collect your proze! 


And now we have a smooch from Emmie Dark. 

She's not that kind of girl!

Veterinarian Jess Alexander doesn't have one-night stands with the best man at a coworker's wedding. But thirtysomething divorcée Jess is definitely in a rut that a night of reckless passion with a younger man just might break. And what better candidate than criminally good-looking Sean Paterson?

Being with Sean is exhilarating. But where could this relationship possibly go? Expecting anything more than a good time from Sean is a one-way ticket to heartbreak. Against her better judgment, Jess can't walk away from whatever this is…not yet.






The Set-Up: 
Sean Paterson, best man at his brother’s wedding has found someone else who’s not enjoying the long celebration. Jess Alexander, a vet and Sean’s new sister-in-law’s boss, vet Jess Alexander, just needs a little convincing to go for a drive in his hotted up car. But along the way it turns out that it’s not just a drive. And the sparks that sizzled between them at the wedding might be too hard to resist...


Jess shifted in her seat and from the corner of his eye, Sean watched her skirt fall open again. She wasn’t wearing stockings or panty hose—the bare skin of her legs was a pale pinky-gold that he just knew would feel like silk. Her fingers grabbed the fabric and she tugged on it to pull it back into place.

“Don’t.” Sean covered her hand with his. The contact sent a warm thrill through him. He wanted to touch her all over. The arousal that had been echoing faintly through his body became an ache at the thought.

Jess halted and looked down at their hands and her bared thighs before sending a smile his way. “Hmm. You sure I won’t distract you from driving, sitting here like this?”

Sean tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, doing some quick mental navigation. “We’re only ten minutes from where I’m staying.”

“And that’s where we’re going, is it?”

“Well, it would solve the distraction problem.”

“Hmm, I see what you mean.”

It wasn’t much of an answer. “Unless you have another suggestion?” Sean took his eyes off the road for a moment to get a quick read on Jess. He wanted to end this evening with those gorgeous legs wrapped around him—he very much hoped she wanted the same thing. And, in addition to that seductive image, she was right. Her bare skin, her soft floral fragrance, the ideas that were circulating through his head—none of it contributed to totally focused driving.

“How long are you in Melbourne for?”

He frowned at the question. “Not long. Why?”

One shoulder lifted and then dropped in a nonanswer. “Hailey said you don’t stick around anywhere for very long. Where to next?”

“Sydney. I’m probably heading there tomorrow or Monday.” He had to be somewhere with a solid internet connection by Monday evening. For one of the most important meetings of his life. It’d make sense to set off on the ten-hour drive the next day; stop overnight somewhere halfway so he was fresh when he arrived.

“Is that a problem?” he asked when Jess remained silent. It was better she understood now that this wasn’t the beginning of something more than he could offer.

“No, no it’s not a problem.” Her voice was a little faint.

Sean steered onto an off-ramp and turned into a side road. As soon as he could, he pulled the car over to stop on a low embankment. He turned to face her and, before she could protest, lowered his lips to hers.

It was a gentle kiss, just lips and breath and the warm rich scent of her skin. Their noses and chins rubbed together as Sean kissed either side of her mouth, before settling on her lips again to just barely caress them.

He pulled back just far enough to watch as her eyes drifted back open, her expression dazed.

“Wow,” she whispered.

“Yeah.” He grinned, knowing it would be goofy, but that one kiss had been enough to make him absolutely positive about what he wanted next. He cupped her chin with one hand. “Jess? I really like you. I’d like to spend the night with you—if you’d like to spend it with me.”

Jess wet her lips nervously but her eyes didn’t move from his. “That was direct.”

He gave a small shrug. “Best to be up front about these things, I’ve found.”

Jess didn’t answer. Her eyes were round and her porcelain skin pale in the sulfuric glow of the streetlight.

“You look a little scared.”

She gave a weak laugh, shifting in the seat to pull away from him. Sean dropped his hand to rest on her thigh.

“I’m not scared,” she said. She met his eyes, a curious determination visible in them.

“If you don’t want to, that’s cool. Seriously. We’ll head back to the reception now.” It was the right thing to say, but he hoped to hell she wasn’t going to take him up on it.

She still looked nervous, but the smile she gave him was sure. “No, I was over the wedding anyway. Let’s go.”

For a chance to win a copy of Just For Today... and find out exactly what happens next, let me know what you think makes a particularly good (or bad!) wedding for guests -- not the bride and groom!

Emmie's Just For Today... Winner

The winner of yesterday's giveaway of a copy of Just For Today... is:

Lauren James! 

Lauren, drop Emmie a line at emmie(at)emmiedark.com and she'll organise to get your copy to you. Lauren was a fellow fan of The Following's bad boy, James Purefoy.

Just For Today hits the shelves in North America on 4 June and will be available in Australia a couple of weeks after that.

Are you a good-guy girl?

I have a confession to make. I like good guys. I know, as a romance writer, it's almost compulsory to like the bad boys. But I've never really fallen in lust with the bad guys.

I know there's a difference between a "bad boy" and a "bad guy". One has a cheeky grin, the other has a maniacal laugh.

But even still, I've always been more of a fan of the good guys. I have a friend for whom it's the complete opposite -- she loves the baddies. The villains  the bad guys, the evil schemer -- that's who floats her boat. I've never shared her interest.

That is until...

Meet James Purefoy from The Following. If you haven't been watching it, it's a TV show about a jailed, charismatic serial killer who builds a cult following and has his disciples exact his revenge against the world and, more specifically the Kevin Bacon FBI agent who was responsible for putting him behind bars.

I know movies and TV are full of "charismatic serial killers", but to be honest I've never found any of them particularly "charismatic". But this time, yeah, I can almost understand it. (Almost, because no matter how good looking and charming, I really don't think anyone could convince me to do some of the things he convinces his followers to do.)

James was also Mark Antony in the exotic series Rome. Apparently he was a contender for Bond but was beaten out by Pierce Brosnan. (Pity, that.)

So, if you, like me, are a good-guy girl who needs her horizons expanding, I highly recommend checking out The Following and James' cute-yet-diabolical charm.

There aren't any real baddies in my June release SuperRomance, Just For Today..., although I did have a lot of fun with my heroine's ex-husband and a little revenge scene.

Tell me your favourite on-screen villain and I'll chose a comment at random to win a copy of Just For Today...

The tricky task of giving advice...

Source

Someone asked me the other day what was my best piece of advice for newbie writers. First, of course, my ego responded with a chuckle and a straightening of my (non-existent) tie. Ah-ha! Yes, of course! I am published now. Which entirely gives me the right to give advice.

Well, not exactly.

In the scheme of things, I'm still pretty much a newbie, too. Yes, I've had the good fortune to have a few more experiences than someone who's just starting out, and I'm more than happy to share what I've learned in my journey.

So I mumbled something to that effect, but the person wasn't entirely satisfied with my response. "What, then," they asked, "was the best piece of advice you received when you were starting out?"

Ooh. That's a tough one. But it did make me reflect on the kind of information I was seeking out when I was new to the whole writing thing.

Mostly, I think, I wanted to know the "how". Not so much technically how you write a book (but that too) but more logistically and practically. What do authors actually DO? How long do they spend at the computer? How many words do they write a day? How many books do they write a year?

I listened intently to the stories of other authors, the confessions of their routines and struggles and approaches.

The ONLY way to write a book, I learned, was to sit down and plot it all out on note cards and pin them to the wall. But no, the ONLY way to write a book, I was then told, was to let it grow organically and not kill the life of the story with a too-structured plan.

Hmm. I was already realising that there might be more than one ONLY way to write a book.

I remember being told, frequently, that it was an absolute crime to re-read your work from the day before when you begin writing for the day. You must NEVER re-read, you must get straight into writing the new material. Editing is for after.

Then I read that Susan Elisabeth Phillips reads her ENTIRE book from the start before she starts writing each day. (I'm still spun out about that.)

I read Stephen King's book On Writing and for a short while thought I'd be famous in no time, because his habits were the closest I'd heard/read to my own. That . . . ah . . . didn't quite happen. (Yet.) But it was reassuring to read that such a successful author approached the task of writing in a similar way to me.

So what have I learned? What advice do I pass on when asked? I have boiled it down to two tidbits:

1. Ignore anyone who says NEVER and ONLY. They're wrong.
2. Ignore item 1. There is ONLY one right way for you to write a book, and that's the way that works for you.

If pressed, I could add a number three. (Because stuff like this is always better in threes.)

3. Read and learn from others, take inspiration from them. Keep what works, discard what doesn't. Keep reading and learning. Repeat.

Hmm. I don't think there's a craft book in that. Well, not a very long one, anyway. :)

Giveaway winner

The winner of Emmie Dark's giveaway last week is Tammy Yenalavitch! Yay Tammy! You'll receive a copy of "Just For Today" from Emmie as soon as it's available.

Please shoot Emmie an email at emmie(at)emmiedark.com and she'll sort it out.

Covers, characters and a giveaway!

by Emmie Dark

Hi Lovecatters! It's an exciting month for me. Not only has my brand new novella Spellbound hit the e-shelves with Destiny publishing, I've also just received the cover art for my June SuperRomance!

I've totally been blessed by the cover fairies this month. Check out Spellbound:

Isn't it gorgeous? Sexy, a little mysterious, and somehow magical -- perfectly in sync with the quirky spice of the story. Personally, I also think that guy has one very sexy shoulder/chest. I think, maybe, it's because he's wearing a singlet and not showing just bare skin. What do you think? Are we in the romance world a little weary of naked-chested hunks? (Is such a thing possible??)

And here's the cover for Just For Today...

I've got a story about the cover for Just For Today. It's funny how different books can be. For me, most of the time when I'm writing, I don't usually have an exceptionally strong sense of how my characters look. I mean, I know what color their hair is, and their eyes,  as well as any quirks like scars, etc, but when I picture them in my mind's eye, I don't often have a crystal-clear image of their faces.

That was totally different with Just For Today. I knew exactly, right from the start, what my hero and heroine looked like.

My hero was the spitting image of Jensen Ackles from the TV show Supernatural. He seems to be a perennial favourite with romance authors -- I do see his mug pasted up on Facebook more often than most.

And I think you can see why.

Apart from the jaw and chiselled chin, the hair was a big thing. My hero, Sean, does his hair exactly like that. And it gets referred to a lot in the book.

My heroine, Jess, also sprang into my mind's eye just as quickly and fully formed. She was Erin Karpluk from the TV show Being Erica. (If you haven't seen it, you absolutely must! It's wonderful!)

Jess had that same long, flowing hair and very natural, down-to-earth look. She's also a little older than Sean (a little more world-wearied, too) and I thought the two of them worked perfectly together. (I was thrilled to discover, long after the book was written and submitted, that Jensen and Erin shared screen time in the show Dark Angel -- unfortunately not romantically!)

Now go back and look at the cover for Just For Today -- don't I owe the talent scouts in the art department at Harlequin a beer??

I haven't got my advance copies of Just For Today yet. But leave a comment and I'll send one lucky commenter a copy as soon as they arrive. You'll be among the first in the world to read it!

How much notice do you take of the way characters look on the covers as compared to how they're described in the book? How clearly do you picture your characters when you're writing?

Health Food?

by Emmie Dark

Hi Lovecatters! As you might remember from my last post, I've recently been lucky enough to have spent several weeks in the USA. In fact I'm only just back, still struggling with the jetlag -- I'm bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 4am, but at 4pm I want nothing more than to crawl under the doona...

I mentioned in my last post that I enjoyed some fantastic food while I was in Texas. I actually had amazing food everywhere in the States. But when you're travelling it can't be beer and ribs every night, so occasionally you do need to seek out healthier options. Luckily that's pretty easy to do in California, where places like Cafe Gratitude not only cook vegan, organic food, but name all their dishes as "affirmations" so every time you place an order, you're putting out good vibes into the universe.

I was (still am!) in love with the "I Am Grace" smoothie. I'm not a dairy person, so smoothies have never been my thing. But this smoothie (made with coconut milk) was so amazing -- like drinking cake!! I've bought all the ingredients to see if I can replicate it at home -- although I doubt I'll be able to get that true LA vibe right in my kitchen.

(I have an idea to set up a Cafe Gratitude for Authors. The dishes would be called things like "I Am Published" and "I Have An Amazing Agent" and "My Book Is On Shelves Now".)

In LA, I had no problems finding cafes and restaurants cooking vegan, vegetarian, organic -- and, most importantly, making it absolutely delicious.

On the flip side, you can't always be so righteous. And sometimes, deliciousness must rule. Like arguably the best brunch spot in Palm Springs: Cheeky's. (Unfortunately the website doesn't provide you with the logo that appears on the waiting staff's uniforms. It features two monkeys and it's, well, very cheeky.) Check out the totally awesome offer from Cheeky's:

You've heard of a wine flight, right? Well, how about a BACON flight from the BACON BAR to keep your breakfast not only delicious but educational as well?

Hmm, maybe that's what I need this morning to get my jet lag under control. Some bacon. Mmm. And a smoothie. Yes, that's what I need. And it'll be healthy, won't it? The healthy smoothie and the less-healthy bacon cancel each other out, don't they?? ;)

G'day Y'all

by Emmie Dark

Hello lovecatters! As you might have guessed from my posts on LoveCats, I tend to travel quite a bit and I'm often posting from different places in the world. Well, it's the same deal this month and that's why my post is a little delayed -- after all, it is still Wednesday (morning!) here in Los Angeles!!

And I have to say, winter here in LA beats the stinkin' summer weather at home in Melbourne right now. We've got blue sky, sunshine, about 25 during the day. Chilly enough at night to need a jacket, but that also means snuggling into bed with the doona. Quite frankly, it's no wonder the rich and famous choose to base themselves here.

Venice Beach. Yes, it is winter.

Spotted my first celeb yesterday -- Jason Segel from "How I Met Your Mother". He was just walking down the street with his arm around his girlfriend, all casual-like. (I imagine his girlfriend is probably someone famous too, but I don't pay enough attention to the right kind of magazines to know that. In fact, I have probably walked passed dozens of celebrities but I just don't know who they are!)

Last weekend I went to Texas to visit with a friend. I got to see Dallas and the gorgeous city of Austin. The slogan for Austin is "Keep Austin Weird", and it's definitely my kind of weird. The city is full of food, music and quirky peeps. It's also the home of the Texas Longhorns (college football team) of whom I have become a serious and loyal supporter (at least, I own a lot of merchandise now). One of these days I'll actually get to see a game, but at least this time I got to meet Bevo, the team mascot -- not surprisingly, a longhorn steer.

G'day, y'all.

Texas is definitely a place for good food and lots of it, if you're so inclined. My friend (a native Austonian) took me to the secret, best barbecue place in the whole of Austin. Do you remember the opening credits of The Flintstones? Where Fred pedals his car into the diner and gets served a rack of ribs that are so huge they tip the car over? Yes, that.

Just a small dinner for me, thanks.

I had the "junior plate" which consisted of two ribs. TWO. I managed to eat one. It was delicious and I kept eating way beyond "full" because it was so yummy. (Oh, and FYI, the beer I drank is a local brew called Shiner Bock, a brewery that's been around for decades which was formed by European immigrants who definitely knew how to made a decent lager.)

The only thing I missed out on in Texas? I did not once see any sexy cowboys. I didn't even see any non-sexy cowboys. Still.... that's just a reason to go back!!

PS -- My good news is that while I'm over here I'm working on the copy edits for my brand new erotica novella, "Spellbound", due out with Destiny Romance in March! I'll keep you posted.

A lazy, post-Christmas day

Hello Love-Catters, I'm writing to you today from the lazy day that my family enjoys on Boxing Day (the day after Christmas). Around here today it's all about three things:


Reading
Books are always a popular gift in my family and usually everyone has at least one to fill in their day after the Christmas festivities are done. I've got a few to choose from, but I think the one I'm going to open first is "In the Pleasure Groove: Love Death and Duran Duran". It's by John Taylor, the bass player from Duran Duran and as I've already shared previously, I'm a bit of an 80s music tragic -- a fact my family knows well. I can't wait to read the inside story of some of my music heroes -- although I'm a little apprehensive about learning some things I might prefer to not have known!

Eating
Of course we had a massive feast yesterday. And as per usual, a  massive feast means a large amount of leftovers. So despite the fact that I went to bed last night vowing that I was never going to eat another thing ever, today I'll be getting stuck into all the remaining ham, turkey, roast potatoes and much more, along with everyone else...

Napping
All that food tends to result in one thing: a need to nap. There's at least one nanna nap in my future -- possibly two. :)

I hope all of you are looking forward to similar lazy days filled with fun and food and family!

When girls go wild -- well, on holiday, anyway...

I'm just back from a girls weekend away in Queensland with two of my besties. It's the first time in a long time I can remember getting a on a plane for totally non-work reasons.

One of my dear friends moved to Queensland a year or two ago. She used to live in the next suburb over. That was quite a loss. My other friend has lived interstate for many years now, so we've adapted to the distance thing. But getting the three of us together is rare and very special.

What did we do?

Not much, to be honest.

Even my feet got to relax.

There was a lot of talking. And eating. And some drinking too: cups of tea out in the backyard under the shade of a tree with books (or Kindles), then a late afternoon gin and tonic.

It seems that in any girls' gathering I'm involved in, I somehow end up adopting the role of bartender. I don't know why that would possibly be. ;) But I perfected two new drinks this trip. One, a refreshingly icy cocktail I'm definitely going to be making more of this summer. Mix roughly the same amounts of vodka (or gin), lime juice and elderflower cordial in a glass over ice. Top up with soda water. Drink. Yum!

Lest you begin to think it was a total booze fest, I also made a wonderful non-alcoholic fruit punch.

I can't be held responsible if someone "accidentally" tipped a little
gin into it while I wasn't looking, can I?

We did do a little sight-seeing too. There was plenty of beach and sea to look at, which is always wonderful. And an amazing array of other people's homes to view and discuss and critique and lust after. There were several waterfront properties that I'd quite happily call home, should Mr Tattersalls ever decide to bless me with a jackpot.

And, being Bundaberg, we of course had to visit its most famous export.

I think I'm meant to be tickling his tummy. That's
what polar bears like, isn't it?

Can't say I've ever been a fan of the stuff, but the marketing is out of this world. There was an entire shop of stuff that has this critter on it in some shape or form.

Now, the hardest part following a week of fun like this is getting back into the swing of things! Luckily Melbourne has decided to put on some warm weather, so I'm not having too much trouble adjusting. Although my out-of-control "to do" list might tell a different story!

Vicarious pets

by Emmie Dark

Unfortunately, one of the downsides of all the travel that I do is that I simply can't justify having a pet of my own. The poor thing would be in kennels or with babysitters more often than it would be with me, and I just don't think that's fair. But the upside is that I have lots of vicarious pets! They might not know it, but all my friends' pets belong a little bit to me too. :)

So when a friend of mine announced on the weekend that she'd adopted a new black kitten from the shelter and called him Samson, it wasn't long before I was quickly asking, "When will Samson be taking visitors?"

Lucky for me, Samson was pretty keen for visitors, even if he was a little bit shy at first.

Visitor? What visitor? I'm snuggled here with some milk, and
I'm not overly fussed with anyone else.

Samson was bought to be a companion for Audrey, a lovely little kitten (also from a rescue shelter) who gets a bit lonely during the day when her mama's at work. Although we're sure Samson and Audrey are going to be the best of friends eventually, their first couple of days together have been a little bit fraught. Audrey, like any older sister with a new baby in the house, is quite put out that she's no longer the centre of attention. (For most of the time I was there, she sulked in the bedroom.)

When I visited Audrey when she first came home, she was the most curious cat I've ever known. Not only did she have no problems with cuddling up to stranger, she was off exploring every corner and crevice of her new home. And that little toy mouse I'd brought as a present? It didn't stand a chance.

No hiding under the sofa for Audrey. "Now I've got you, mouse! "

Samson is quite different. We know from the shelter that he was found at the back of a fast-food outlet, scavenging. So it's understandable he might be a little wary of people. While he was comfortable snuggling with his new mama, he wasn't in the least interested in exploring his home. And that big sister of his? Eek, she's a little scary.

I have a mama? And a sister? It's all a bit much for a little kitten to take in...

After he snuggled for a while, he went to his favourite place--under the sofa. Audrey is too big to fit under there now, so he was safe and could have a little time-out from the overwhelming new environment. And given that's he's completely (and beautifully, fluffily) black, when I peered under the couch, all I could see was a couple of little eyes staring back at me. Not scared, not frightened. Just taking it all in. In his own time. While Audrey is a little actress, Samson is more of a thinker. 

I'll just sit right here for now.

Welcome Samson, to the menagerie of Emmie's vicarious pets. I know that once you get settled you're going to feel right at home.

The morning after...

Meh.

by Emmie Dark

I think I need to poll writers to see how they all feel on the day after deadline day. 

I think the poll would be multiple choice, and I think the options for answering would be along the lines of:

• Quite sad.
• Very sad.
• Extremely sad.
• Am crying into my fish fingers and custard right now.

Is it just me, LoveCatters, or is it a writerly thing? To me, it’s kind of like saying goodbye to house guests. You know, the really good kind of houseguests: the ones that do the dishes, provide entertaining company, and don’t make a mess in the bathroom. You stand in the driveway, waving goodbye as they back their car out into the street, and then you go back inside. But something’s missing. The house is too quiet. There’s a subtle kind of energy missing.

It’s a futile feeling, because of course my characters haven’t really gone anywhere. I could just open that document and visit with them all again instantly. But that special time has passed – the time when it’s just me and them, when I get to learn all about them and play with their lives like a devious, capricious god.

When I visit them next time, with my editor’s and copy editor’s revisions, it’ll be different. It won't be just us, and what will be happening will be far more "work" than those lovely first weeks we spent together discovering what was going to happen. 

I've just said "farewell" to my biggest book ever. It involves a wedding, dogs, vampires, Twitter, household accidents, a 1970 Ford Falcon XY GT, and quite a bit of steamy hawt stuff. I always love whichever book I'm working on at the time best. But I really really love this one*. 

And I've hit send. It's off to my editor. And now I'm here, at my 'puter, wondering what to do. The fact that I have a "to do" list as long as my arm filled with all the things I didn't do while I spent every waking moment writing (and some of my sleeping moments too), seems, well, irrelevant. Thank goodness I had you guys to come and chat to. Otherwise I don't know what I would have done! 

Luckily, Melbourne town has put on some sunshine today. I think I might peek out, blinking hard, and see what the outside world has got up to while I've been locked inside the deadline cave. Maybe go find a cup of tea somewhere in the sun. And then, maybe -- if I get really desperate -- have a go at attacking that "to do" list. 

Wish me luck! 

*Watch me say the same thing about whatever I write next in a couple of months' time!

Travel all over the countryside...

by Emmie Dark

Hello from Singapore! August has been a big month of travel for me -- starting with a trip to Perth for work, a wonderful visit to the Gold Coast for the RWA Australia conference, and, now, a short trip to Singapore. I often joke that I'll do anything to escape Melbourne's chilly winter, but this is getting ridiculous!

Me and Hugh and Zoe
at Balthazar wine bar!  

Perth was a primarily for work, but my second SuperRomance, In His Eyes, hit the shelves while I was over there. (In His Eyes was the Sunday Smooch this week -- don't forget to check it out!)

And when your second book is released, what's a girl to do but to head out for some celebration?

I found a gorgeous wine bar called Balthazar and had a lovely chat with the wine waiter about my wine choices. He ended up bringing me something that wasn't on the list -- a Spanish something-or-other -- and it was delicious. Just the thing to toast Hugh and Zoe!

Then it was home for a few days before heading to the Gold Coast. There are plenty of reports on line from the conference (including my own daily blog updates) so I won't go into too much detail, except to say that it was an amazing time. The organising committee deserve a big glass of champagne and then a nice lie-down for all the hard work they put in.

We managed to get a few of the LoveCats (but unfortunately not all who were there) together for a portrait on the night of the cocktail party which had the theme of fifties glamour.

A few of the lovely LoveCats! (I hope Sharon doesn't mind me sharing the photo!) 

I flew home from the conference and had a few short hours to reacquaint myself with home (and wash the smalls) before heading back to the airport for Singapore. It's a work trip, but my sister, G, has joined me for a little holiday while I work. It's really lovely to have some company and she's absolutely loving it here.

G and I visited the foreshore food market
and then wandered around taking in the view
of the amazing Marina Bay Sands.

The light and sound show -- quite amazing! 

We've been pursuing most of the typical Singaporean delights - food and bars. :) But there's still plenty more to explore.

And G went to Little India today and had a gorgeous henna tattoo applied. I think I might want one of my own when the work stuff is done!

G's henna tattoo!

There's a few more days of work ahead for me, and then a couple of days rest. And then all my focus is going to be on getting book number three wrestled to the ground!

For those of you returning from RWA conference, I hope life has settled a little. And for those who didn't go away at all -- hope you are enjoying sleeping in your own beds! ;)