Silent reading

That was always my favourite subject in school. ;)

I finished reading Lucy Monroe's Deal With This over the weekend. I must say the woman writes some damned fine sex. :D The hero and heroine were nicely flawed, you know what I mean? Each had issues to work through, but not such that they were crippling to either of them, nor were they tedious to me as the reader. I get tired of woe-is-me characters. These most decidedly were not that. Strong but flawed, yeah. Lucy Monroe is very good at finding that balance in these lead characters.

I really dug the secondary characters, too: the housemates and co-workers of the heroine, Jillian; her best friend and bestfriend's family; the hero's (Alan) boss (We don't really meet any of the other people in his life. He's undercover, after all.). They were well fleshed out, multidimensional, fun. In short, I would go out drinking with these people--and that's about the highest compliment I can give fictional people.

The stolen technology plot was cool, too. I wish there'd been more of that along with everything else, but that's my own bias in favor of spy movies and action/adventure coming through. I love that stuff. I suppose, though, that all the hot sex was a fair exchange. ;D

Lowering

Ever read a book where the term "lowering skies" is used? Well, if I'd ever had any question what that looked like, all I'd have to do is look out the window right now. That is one seriously lowering sky.

Cool. Maybe it'll snow some more. ::crossing fingers::

Oddity solved

I have a yoga injury. That finger that's been bugging me--turns out I damaged the tendon or tendon sheath doing yoga. D'oh! At least now I have a course of treatment: ice, aleve, and a straight splint at night.

Legitimate!

My copy of my Samhain contract arrived yesterday. I'm feeling like the bastard child who's been formally recognized by the king. ... Or maybe I've just been watching too much of The Tudors. LOL

In other news, I blogged over at Slash & Burn for the first time yesterday. Stop by and check it out. Just scroll down to Tuesday the 22nd and you'll find me.

Oddities, Part II

That left ring finger I mentioned that was improving is no longer improving. In fact it's worse today than yesterday. I can still type (mostly), but it's getting quite irksome and more than a bit disturbing. I've emailed a consulting nurse at my HMO. Hopefully he or she will be able to provide some insight and suggest a solution or two. Meantime, it's more ibu with my lunch.

Plug!

I just learned that my buddy Kate sold a book to Siren Publishing. Check out her blog and tell her congrats! (And yes, I do see the irony of plugging the work of someone with an established fan base on my own blog that maybe three people have ever viewed. ;-P )

Oddities

My inexplicably swollen right index finger is much less swollen than it was yesterday. Plus it's not hot like it was yesterday, nor has it continued to spread its effects to my right thumb. The most fortunate part is, while it still doesn't feel good to bend it tightly, it isn't hampering my typing. Now if only I were typing on my latest novel... Oh, and my left ring finger has also improved from the pain it was having on Wednesday. As long as it continues to diminish, I will continue to ignore it to the best of my abilities. But it's all very odd, if you ask me.

Progress report

I signed my contract and sent it to Samhain last Thursday. Whee! After watching the tracking number online Friday and Saturday like some sort of bird of prey, I proceeded to forget about on Sunday because Sunday there is no mail. So what occurs? It arrives at its destination on Monday, and I didn't know until Tuesday, and I didn't post about it until Thursday. Ain't linear time fun? ;P

In the meantime, I did some website shuffling--no, you won't notice any of it. This was a good thing and will save money. I like saving money. Did I mention I'm of Scottish descent? Yeah. "Cheap" is not a dirty word for me, although I admit to preferring "thrifty". Speaking of which, I'm in the mood to go thrifting. Maybe on Monday...

Origins and things

My friend Kate pimped my site on her blog (Thanks, Kate!) and it made me think two things.

One: I should link to Samhain's Best First Line Contest from last summer. See, that's how I won the opportunity to submit my manuscript. So here's that link. Samhain blog - 1st lines

Two: I should pimp my friend Kate's stuff, too. It is, after all, the only hetsmut that I read. ;) (Okay, I've read a few others, but hers are the best. And I'm going to read two more that I bought on her recommendation. I know she wouldn't let me down.) So first, check out her blog. Kate Davies Blogs! And next, go check out her books over on MBaM. Kate Davies' titles. She's got a new one coming out, too. If you've read her blog like I told you to, you know that already.

Thanks again, Kate!

New beginnings

Hello, welcome, all that sort of thing. I feel like I'm speed dating, which is ironic because I've never been speed dating. What would I say if I were...?

Hi! I'm Maia Strong. I'm a brand new author with Samhain Publishing. What? No. The book isn't out yet. It'll be sometime in the second half of this year. ... This year. ... 2008. ... Riiiiight.

*bing!*

Hi, I'm Maia. I like snowshoeing and playing snowshoe badminton. ... No really. It's way fun! ... Actually I love the rain. I mean, it's not so good for outdoor theatre, but otherwise, sure. Rain on! Gray skies are great even when there is outdoor theatre. ... You don't like rain? Or theatre? Or snowshoes? Buh-bye.

*bing!*

Hi, I'm Maia. Dogs are awesome, yeah. No. I have a cat. She, too, is awesome. You're allergic? That's a shame. And you don't drink coffee? [mutter]Where's that damned bell?[/mutter]

*bing!*

Hi. Maia. Wrote a book--gay fantasy romance. I have a cat and I am addicted to caffeine. I love Shakespeare and baseball. ... You're a Tom Cruise fan and you watch football? Next!

*bing!*

Hi. Maia. Gay romance. Cat. Coffee. Rain. Shakespeare. Baseball. Snowshoes. ... You do? Excellent. Call me sometime and we'll talk smut over lattes at the ballpark!