I read Gone with the Wind as a teenager while on a trip with my family. I was about 40 pages from the end when Mom called curfew in the motel room we were sharing. I sat on the floor in the bathroom to read the rest, sobbing the whole time. I think you could say it had an impact.

I still love it, both the book and the movie, though I always wish she won him in the end. But Rhett Butler …. yum!

So, did you ever read GWTW or do you just know it as a movie? Did the ending ruin it for you or make it only more poignant? And did any of you read any of the Mitchell-estate-sanctioned sequels?

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Brenda Novak is the national bestselling author of 25 novels. Summer 2008 will see the release of her next three romantic suspense stories—TRUST ME, STOP ME, and WATCH ME. Visit www.brendanovak.com to participate in her annual on-line auction for diabetes research which takes place May 1 – May 31st. So far, together with her generous donors and shoppers, Brenda has raised more than $250,000 to help her son and others like him.

So without further ado, here is the awesome Brenda Novak!
As a writer, I always get asked whether I write from personal experience. In ways, I do, and the new series I’m kicking off this summer is a perfect example of that. TRUST ME (May 27^th), STOP ME (June 24^th) and WATCH ME (July 29^th) are based on a fictional victim’s charity in Sacramento called The Last Stand. The three heroines met at a victim’s support group after each one experienced a different kind of violence. They’re determined to heal, to fight back and to help others do the same, which is why they decide to start The Last Stand.

While my fictional charity is geared toward violent crime because I write romantic suspense and thought it would be fascinating to see these women tackle some very interesting and difficult cases, the concept of using personal passion to motivate came from my own desire to make a difference to those struggling with diabetes.

Six years ago, when my youngest son was diagnosed with Type 1, I felt hurt and wanted to fight back, too. Desperately. I just didn’t know how. I had five kids at home and some very tight book deadlines. But then I attended a silent auction at the local elementary school and realized that I could do a similar event on my Web site, where I could utilize the traffic I’d already established.

In my first three auctions, I managed to raise a combined total of $250,000, and the 2008 auction looks as if it will at least match that amount. A shopper’s paradise, it will have plenty items to fit every budget from a drumhead signed by a whole slew of famous music artists (Michael Jackson, Ringo Starr, Bruce Springstein, and far too many others to list) to a treasure trove of miscellaneous items donated by aspiring author Lauren Hawkeye. And that’s not all. For those who are aspiring to become a novelist or to advance their writing career, there will be AMAZING opportunities. Many of the most powerful agents and editors in the business have donated evaluations—some with the promise of a 24-hour response (which is unheard of in the publishing industry).

How does it all work? Just like E-Bay, except this auction runs at www.brendanovak.com and only through the month of May (May 1 – May 31^st). Visit that URL to register. When the bidding is over, you can pay with Paypal, credit card or personal check/money order. In most instances the donor even picks up the shipping. And the person who places the highest number of bids over all, even if that person doesn’t win a single item, will receive a fabulous prize package including a brand new camcorder (worth over $1,000), Your Name in My Next Book, an autographed copy of TRUST ME, and chocolate (lots of chocolate!).

Check out the auction, and while you’re at my Web site, enter to win a spectacular trip to Port Orchard and Bainbridge Island (sponsored by Allison Brennan, Debbie Macomber, Susan Wiggs and myself), and receive a $10 gift certificate you can use toward your auction purchases. Here’s to making a difference!

Have you ever wanted to fight back? How did you do it? Do you have any questions about the auction? What cool items have you won in past charity auctions? Do you prefer on-line shopping to brick & mortar shopping? Do you think this “wave of the future” will eventually overtake traditional fundraising? I’ll be giving away an ARC from TRUST ME to one lucky blogger today!

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Join us in welcoming the lovely and talented Brenda Novak to Mt. Oly on Monday, 4/28!!  Brenda will be sharing info about her new book TRUST ME (that starts a brilliant new trilogy) and her annual auction for Juvenile Diabetes. 

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Got Hugh?

Sigh. Sometimes a picture says it all.

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So last week I attended my very first Romantic Times Booklovers Convention.

For years, I’d heard to expect a lot of wild fun, and wow, was it true. The RT attendees do like to party! I only poked my head in the Faery Costume Ball, but I got down at the Vampire Ball (my dinner companion that night was one of the male romance novel cover models, who was truly charming and had an interesting day job as a bigwig in hotel management.)

The convention wasn’t all play, however, since they also devoted many hours to professional tracks. Every day was packed with different workshops and panel discussions for readers, unpublished authors, published authors, booksellers, publishers, and the press. And since it was RT’s 25th anniversary, they pulled out all the stops.

I don’t have any pics yet, but if you want to check it out, here are links to videos and blogs with great shots and descriptions of the convention, plus the latest issue of the RT e-newsletter by publisher Carol Stacy. (And in case you’re interested, the next RT Booklovers Convention will be in Orlando next year so start planning your costumes early - go to romantictimes.com for info.)

RT Booklovers Convention

RT Publisher’s Newsletter
 
I had a great time and was busy every minute. I hung with my long-time writer and reader friends and got to meet lots of people I’d only known through e-mail and publicity (including our fellow goddess Charina, who is beautiful and loads of fun.) I gave a workshop on writing love scenes (wonder why they asked me?) and participated in a panel on Regency historicals. And I was honored to receive the 2007 Career Achievement Award for Historical Romance.

I was even more thrilled when at the Friday awards luncheon, they recognized some of the dinosaurs — er, long-time writers — who started their careers in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s — as Pioneers of Romance, and they included me.  It was amazing to be up on stage in front of 1200 people in the romance industry with the likes of such legends as Jennifer Blake, Roberta Gellis, Beatrice Small, Mary Balogh, and Mary Jo Putney.

Then at the huge book fair on Saturday, I snagged a signed copy of Mary Balogh’s latest for my mother, since Mary is my mom’s fave author. And Cathy Maxwell asked me for a signed copy of a Nicole Jordan book for her mom, since she says I’m her mom’s fave author, which tickled me greatly.

But to bring my ego down to size, at the awards luncheon, one leg hem of the expensive pantsuit I bought just for the occasion fell out ten minutes before I had to go up on stage to make an acceptance speech. Panic nearly ensued, but thankfully one of the authors at our table had some promo buttons/pins, so I was able to pin up my hem with her buttons before I killed myself climbing the stage stairs wearing heels for the first time in over a year.

So my question today is:

Have you had any clothing disasters or near disasters happen to you?  Were you able to salvage the moment using promo buttons or something else?

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I was just reading another blog about comfort reads and re-reads, and it got me to thinking. I read A LOT of books as a kid, from kindergarten all the way up through high school and college. But there are a couple of books that I read, mostly between ages 9 and 15, I would say, that truly struck a chord with me. They literally influenced my life and the kind of person that I am. And the fact that I’m a writer.

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee – I remember feeling like I was Scout, and I could almost touch those warm, lazy days of summer.

Dragonflight, by Anne McCaffrey – I still to this day want to be able to ride a dragon. What an amazing world she created. I own all of the Dragonrider books, and they’re all tattered and frayed.

The Crystal Cave, by Mary Stewart – the first book in her trilogy (the other two are The Hollow Hills and The Last Enchantment), all of which turned me into a fan of the whole King Arthur and Merlin legend, and an Anglophile. Hm. Whatever happened with that?

Which books do you remember from when you were a kid/young adult? Why were they important to you?

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I don’t know about you all, but I want a Taser gun. I want to carry it in a holster strapped to my hip like John Wayne.

Okay, so maybe people shouldn’t be allowed to run around Tasering each other, but I swear to God some people need a good Tasering. I was at Panda Express last night and the woman in line in front of me insisted on tasting a sample of everything on the menu before she could decide what she wanted to order. If I’d had my trusty Taser, I would have zapped her, stepped over her flailing body, and ordered my Kung Pao Chicken. I’d have been in and out of there in five minutes.

I’ve made a list of people who need Tasing

1) People who sit through green lights
2) People who cut in line
3) Jim Carrey for subjecting me to The Mask and The Cable Guy
4) People who act deaf when their children scream in the grocery store
5) The neighbor’s dog for crap in my front yard all the time and the neighbor for letting him

Who or what would you Tase? Or are you a lover not a fighter?

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This past weekend I rented a car and drove to Wales from London.  It was a great adventure!  I have friends in a village called Ystrad Mynach (the ch at the end is caught in your throat). 

I met them years ago when DH and I were in the UK on our 10th wedding anniversary trip.  We’d visited Caerphilly Castle that day and came back to the car park (parking lot) to find our car had been broken into and everything stolen!  We reported it to the police right away, but we were stranded for the evening as the thieves also damaged our car.  The sergeant came out with a list of local hotels, but in a surprise move, offered to let us stay with him and his family that night!  I’ll never forget his words:  “It’s not fancy, but you’ll have a friendly face in the morning.”  And so we went.

That was 12 years ago.  Over the years I’ve visited them every time I was in the UK and this time it had been about 8 years since I’d seen them.  It was a lovely visit!  

These wonderful people changed what could have been a nightmare into an event we’ll always remember fondly.

So have you ever had a vacation not go as planned?  Have you ever met friends under strange conditions?  Tell me all! 

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After six months of diet and wogging, I’ve lost the 25 pounds Jack London made me gain by whining for full meals. He knows he did it. He’s had to pay for it by eating stuff like edamame and butternut squash.

So the good news is, I get to buy some new clothes! I followed someone’s advice and got rid of everything that didn’t fit-no saving that favorite pair of shorts in case I gain weight. If I gain weight, I will have to lose or buy new. Hoo-ray! Buy new!

I did a little shopping last week-couldn’t wait-but I was really disappointed. First, its already hot here, so all the little sweatery-things they put out for spring are not appropriate. Second, all the handbags have short handles (I know, not exactly new clothes, but I can’t help my handbag problem). I hate those short handles. And third, all the summer dresses come in one length (short) and one style (looks better on your three year old than a grown woman).

I ask you, what is up with the dresses? I’m all for dresses - I love them in the summer. But there is only so much of my leg people should have to see. Who are the people who wear these skimpy baby doll dresses? There must be squads of them because they’ve made enough of those dresses to outfit a small female nation. All I am asking for is a dress that comes to the knee. Preferably mid-knee. Is that too much to ask? In other news, I am loving the shoes this season!

I came home with a pair of shorts that fit, a new, fancy pair of flip-flops (my uniform) and some shoes for a nightlife I don’t really have, but will be prepared for in the event. If anyone knows where one can buy skirts or dresses in size grown-up, please let me know.

What’s your spring fashion fave? Your spring fashion disappointment?

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It had to happen. Here I am, the lone girl on an eight man crew, training every day with another eight man crew. What did you expect? That I wouldn’t date one of them? I basically had the pick of the litter, right? Is a girl not supposed to take advantage of a situation like that? Hey, I’m a goddess. I know what to do with a guy in shorts.

I dated the Stroke of my boat, the rower who sets the pace for the rest of the rowers. The Stroke is the only rower a coxswain can see face to face, the rower I communicate the most with. Plus, he was a six foot tall, turquoise-eyed, platinum blonde. I’m not blind.

Then there was the Stroke of the other boat. Light red hair, light green eyes, and six feet three inches of pure muscle. Player? He was a total player. A complete rake. Being a rake, he couldn’t resist stealing the other Strokes girl. It wasn’t me, it was the situation. (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.) It was Alpha Male against Alpha Male. Stroke versus Stroke.

I resisted him for as long as I could, I swear. At least 5 months. He was relentless, and obvious. I finally asked Stroke #1 what he thought about the situation and he told me I should go out with Stroke #2. Yeah, he was that confident. Idiot.

So I did. Rakes get to be rakes for a reason. Did I mention that Stroke #2 was relentless?

It got ugly. It got tense. The coach was not happy that his team was churning with Alpha Male snarls and bites. The other males watched from an interested distance, the way wolves do when Alpha status is being challenged. That fascinates me about male behavior; how they stand back and watch to see who’s going come out on top. Exactly like a pack of wolves.

That’s how I think back on it, an anthropological study into what happens when there are sixteen males and only one female. Being the Lone Female in a pack of Males is a lot to handle. I managed it. I’m a goddess, after all, but it was intense for awhile.

Being a writer, I use this experience as fodder for my writing. How men act. With each other. Around women. With each other about women. It went in as experience and comes out as character arc and scene development. In my Courtesan series, I’ve used this dynamic often. Funny how those scenes nearly write themselves. Ahem.

In the end, I stayed with Stroke #1. He and I left crew since the situation with Stroke #2 made it impossible to stay. But Stroke #2 prowled the edges of my life, even after Stroke #1 was gone. In fact, Stroke #2 hunted me down a month before my wedding and sniffed around. How often have you read a scene like that in a romance novel?

Do you enjoy reading scenes where the heroine is caught between two powerful men? Do you like scenes where men struggle for the right to claim one woman? Do you like it when you experience it in real life?

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