#RWA10, Linda Howard talks about sex

I had to attend Linda Howard's workshop at RWA last week. You see, I've always wanted to listen to Linda Howard talk about intimacy and sex. Because she does it so well.

Writing wise, I mean. Hey, she could be great in other arenas concerning that venture, but I'm interested in how she does it between the sheets... of her books.

So it was with a heaving breath (I was running late and couldn't find the room, which was the biggest challenge for me at RWA last week) that I ended up in her workshop. Settled down into a chair, opened my notebook and fished out my shiny new blue RWA pen to jot notes.

The fabulous Linda started off talking about prehistoric man, apes and sex. Fascinating. Then she mentioned a fact that was biologically interesting.

"The human male has the largest erect penis of all the primates."

So I tweeted this fact.

Now, for me, RWA was the first conference in which I tweeted. I'm interested in social media, and have finally linked my Twitter account to my phone. So texting a Tweet was easy!

Then I sent the tweet and realized, "I have probably just issued an open invitation for porno followers. Or zookeepers. Or both."

Oh dear.

I continued to take notes. Linda's talk is well worth it, if you've never heard her give this workshop before. She goes into the twelve steps of intimacy, the stages of attraction.

But what I liked best about what she said was how she mentioned the emotional bonding that takes place between a man and a woman. And how she gently, but firmly, advised all in the room to treat sex with the respect it deserves.

Thank you Linda for your workshop and for all the great books you write. Your workshop was one reason I'm glad I made it to RWA2010.

#RWA10 New cover!!

This is the Mills and Boon version of CHRISTMAS WITH A VAMPIRE, my HQN anthology coming out in the UK this November.

It will be released in the United States in December.

Wicked eyes, huh? I love the dark intensity.

I'm still in Orlando, got a late check out so I can relax a little before heading back home. After the RITA and Golden Heart awards, I went to Kimono's to hook up with Piks, Traci Hall, Kathy Love, Heather Graham & Co. again for karaoke.

It was lovely seeing all my peeps like Jennifer Ashley, CL Wilson, Cindy Holby, Renee Ryan, and Nocturne buds like Caridad Pineiro and Pam Palmer, and so many more people my tired brain can't recall right now.

RWA was great, lots of interesting things on the horizon for publishing, will do another blog later on what I learned. It's a fascinating time to be in publishing.

#RWA10, Karaoke with Heather Graham

Exhausted, but having a great time! Last night karaoke with Heather Graham was so much fun. Here they are, members of my chapter, some of whom braved the stage. Not moi.

The workshop Jennifer and I did on writing the novella went well. I was shocked at all the attendees. I had printed 50 handouts thinking we'd need only 25 and we ran out. I will be putting the handout on emotional conflict in a nutshell on my website.

Then it was dinner with the lovely Tara Gavin, Harlequin editor and director of the Nocturne line, and fellow Nocturne authors Barbara Wallace and Cindy Cooke. I was good and stuck to the grilled salmon, though the hazelnut crusted chicken sorely tempted me.

After, went to karaoke at the sushi bar, listened to Heather sing "House of the Rising Sun" and then left with Linda Conrad and her editor to attend the eHarlequin PJ party. Met Jayne from eHarlequin wearing the cutest sushi roll PJ's, and hung for a while. Saw Winnie Griggs and Margaret (can't remember her last name, but I'm sure she writes for LI) in matching Mickey PJ's. I hung for a while, then returned to karaoke.

I knew it would really be swinging by then. And I was right. I didn't brave the stage, but sang along with everyone else.

Now it's time for coffee and today I'm hitting a lot of workshops, including one Linda Howard is doing., R

#RWA10, I need a golf cart

Arrived at the Yacht Club around 5 last night. Wow, great hotel, very posh. Love my room and its quietness. I unpacked and then went to the Dolphin to register. It was a short walk, I was told by the front desk.

Ten years later, I arrived at the Dolphin, registered and then went to the booksigning. I ran into Sharon Hartley and she was sitting on a bench, a glorious bench! My tired feet joined her and then some of my chapter mates like Kathy Pickering, Ona Bustos, Debbie Andrews and Susannah Gautier came along.

Then I went into the booksigning to find a few specific people. One is Claudia Dain, whom I adore and is extremely smart. I always have to find her at RWA. I remember my first conference when I was newly published with Dorchester and she acted like a "mom" and invited me to lunch with herself and few others. I listened more than talked at that lunch, and learned about the business.

I also saw Susan Squires and a few others and then returned to my room to get ready for my little wine and cheese party. A few people I had invited couldn't make it because of awards or agency book dinners. But those that came had a great time! To name a few, Piks, Aleka Nakis and her son, Rose Letson, my fellow Chatelaine CL Wilson and her friend Kelly, Mike Meeske, Linda Conrad, Heather Graham, and I finally got to meet Marianne Strnad who is on FB with me.

Some left after a couple of hours to get dinner, and then Linda, Marianne, Aleka and her son and me went to find food at around 11:15. It's Disney. They shutter most restaurants at 11 so we ended up having pizza on the boardwalk. We took the boats. Boats are slow, but good.

And now the Disney birds are chirping, the sun is shining and I have a white wine hangover. Which is what happens when you stop drinking and then have three glasses of white wine.

Today I'm chilling by the pool, which looks like its own attraction, and this afternoon I'm giving a workshop with Jennifer Ashley on writing short stories. That's at 4:15. After, it's dinner with Tara Gavin, HQ exec. editor, and then after it's hitting the sushi bar for fun times.

Good news, just in time for RWA!

My editor at Nocturne loved The Shadow Wolf and it's scheduled for release September of 2011! Woot!

The Shadow Wolf is the fourth Nocturne paperback about my Draicon werewolves. The Empath was the first, followed by Enemy Lover and then last year's release of Immortal Wolf (which finaled in this year's Maggie Awards).

The Shadow Wolf is Gabriel's story. Gabriel is one of five Draicon werewolf brothers (Damian, Raphael, Indigo, Alex are the other four). He is the most dangerous of all the brothers, and hides a terrible secret. Gabriel meets his match in Megan, an outlawed Shadow Wolf who turns invisible to hide from enemies pursuing her.

When I return from RWA, I'll be tackling a new proposal for Nocturne. This proposal is about Alex, the widowed brother who lost his mate and child in a terrible tragedy. Alex finds a new lease on life and facing a ticking time bomb from a demon threatening to destroy those he loves.

Tonight I'm packing and trying to figure out how I can get everything into a single suitcase. I solved the problem of walking back and forth from the Yacht Club to the Dolphin with a pair of white flip-flops, and will change into "professional" shoes when I get to the Dolphin. I've worked out my schedule and I'm pretty sure I know where I should be at what time.

First on the agenda after tomorrow night? Poolside at the Yacht Club! I'm taking Thursday morning to relax and recharge after Honduras last week.

Then Thursday at 4:30 I'm helping the multi-talented, best-selling Jennifer Ashley present a workshop on writing short stories. Look for me there if you don't see me at the pool!

Back from Honduras, packing for RWA

Home and getting ready to leave again for RWA. Exposed to dengue fever (big outbreak there) and TB, but I feel good and healthy! Just tired. Honduras was a tiring trip, spent each night in a different city.

I'm leaving Wednesday to drive to Orlando and I have a list of stuff to pack, things to bring, and stuff to do. It's a weird transition, going from a developing country and visiting poor villages to the fun and frantic pace of a national romance writers convention.

Here are some photos from Honduras. This photo is of a woman and her children standing before the "house" they lived in for more than 15 years. They couldn't afford anything else. We are building them a new concrete home. The entire community is so excited about getting houses.

"The donkey's hideaway" is the name of the community. Very nice people, they hold church services in each others' homes twice a week. We stopped to see their outdoor service held on the foundation of the house we are building for them. As I stood in the road, a herd of cows started coming toward me. Running fast.

"Stampede!" I had to get in front of the truck to avoid getting run over. By cows. Like I was an extra in a Wild West movie, lol.

This is a mother and her severely malnourished baby whom we are helping. The mom got a supply of formula and the baby is being enrolled in a nutrition program at the local hospital. Honduras has a lot of caring, committed people determined to help those who are poor.

My next post will probably be from RWA or just before I leave.

News

I've received word that COURAGE OF THE WOLF is officially approved for publication. Woot! This story is the first featuring my immortal Justice Guardians. Michael, a Phoenix, must convince Sabrina, a Draicon werewolf, to fight the demons that killed her family.

As soon as I hear of a publication date, I'll post it here and on my Facebook page. Here's the link to my FB page. I've been updating it on a regular basis with news of projects and information like links to the free online read I did for Harlequin, so FB is a good way to get news from me the fastest on current writing projects.

I'm also finishing a short story for my chapter, Florida Romance Writers, to raise money. Our brilliant former president, Kathleen Pickering, came up with a great idea that has some of us writing stories. More later on this as details emerge. My story is a werewolf/zombie short.

Short stories dovetail nicely into the workshop I'm helping Jennifer Ashley present July 29 at RWA. It's titled "Put on your shorts" and it runs from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Jennifer's a fantastic, talented and NY Times best-selling author who has all sorts of wonderful advice on writing shorts. I'll be presenting tips on emotional conflict for your characters.

All next week I will be in Honduras for the day job and after that, off to Orlando for RWA! Honduras promises to be very interesting. The region we're visiting on the second half of the trip is a remote, mountainous area that promises to be very very hot. Jungle-like. I am most excited about the women's development program we are finally going to launch. This has been a dream of mine for two years since I first came up with the idea, and it's wonderful to finally see it come full circle.

RWA National in Orlando, bring an umbrella

In three weeks, I'll be at RWA in Orlando, helping Jennifer Ashley present a workshop on "Putting on your shorts." No, it's not a workshop related to the image here, but we'll be talking about writing short stories for publication.

The workshop is 4:30 - 5:30 p.m. Thursday.

RWA was a last minute decision for me. I was saddened to hear of the tragic flooding in Nashville, but when the conference was moved to Orlando, I gave it a second thought. And made a decision. Mickey World is only a three-hour drive, so no plane fare, no struggling with baggage and trying to pack light.

If I truly wanted, I could pack a U-haul and take it with me to the Yacht Club where I'll be staying.

However, the one essential I plan on tucking into my purse is an umbrella. You need this during Florida summers. Every afternoon, rainstorms gather on the horizon and the downpours start.

I'm in the middle of organizing my schedule of where I need to be, and need to do, and need to pack (comfortable shoes for the walk to the Dolphin, where the workshops will be). It will be a bit hectic the week of RWA, because the previous week I'll be in Honduras for the day job. I'm excited about visiting Honduras, because the first half of the trip will be to set up and outline the parameters for a new women's program that's been a dream since I came up with the idea two years ago.

The program will not only provide food for poor single mothers and their children, but teach the mothers skills and give them their own businesses so they can become self-sufficient.

So I'll be in Honduras, come home, and barely be unpacked before packing again for RWA. Should be an adventure!