A thousand Thank you's

I'm finally crawling out of my NyQuil haze to take stock of everything that's happened in the past few days. But I still have to pinch myself to believe it. I'm going to get published! And best of all, I get to write another Bunco book!

When I sent The Church of Bunco off into the publishing void I built a little cocoon around my heart. I let the story go. I let Kitty and Steve go (hero and heroine) even though their story wasn't completely finished. I had to. There was no use writing another book about them because if I didn't sell the first one, then what was the point of another one? This defense mechanism worked pretty well through the holidays. I started another manuscript, only to abandon it after a few weeks in favor of another story. I was just getting my groove into the new plot, when the call came that I'd sold. And that's when I realized just how much I would have hated to have never finished Kitty's story the way I wanted to. I'm just so flippin happy and thankful about that;)

I'm also really happy and thankful that I can breathe again and that my voice sounds almost normal.

And last but not least, I want to thank everyone who took the time to congratulate me. You made me feel like a rock star!

I sold!!

The Church of Bunco sold in a 2 book deal to Wendy McCurdy at Berkley! Woo Hoo!! I couldn't be happier. It was my turn to blog at The Title Wave today, so I spilled the details (in an uncharacteristically long blog) here!

I've been tagged

It's not the first time. But I decided that today I would play. I mostly don't play Blog tag because, frankly, there aren't that many interesting things to know about me (if you keep reading, you'll see what I mean).

Here's the rules:

Link to the person who tagged you;Leave a comment on their blog so that their readers can visit yours;Post the rules on your blog;Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself on your blog;Tag 7 random people at the end of your post;Include links to their blogs;Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Okay, here goes:

1. I was born in Cuba and Spanish was my first language.

2. I detest most types of condiments (mayo, mustard, salad dressing, etc...) If a food can't stand on its own, it doesn't deserve to be eaten.

3. I almost didn't make my First Holy Communion. Sister Pius (yep, that was her name) caught me making "fun" of the mass during one of our many rehearsals in the blistering central Florida heat of May. After a few tears and numerous recitals of the rosary, she gave in and let me do it anyway.

4. I once confessed to a priest that I'd robbed a bank. I was 7 and none of my sins seemed very exciting to me, so I thought I'd make one up. He was speechless (but still made me say the rosary as a penance).

5. In every "test" I take, I come up as a Left Brained person. Huh?

6. My first car was an orange Pinto with a white vinyl roof. Despite the many exploding Pinto jokes (you'd have to have lived through the 70's), it was probably the most reliable car I've ever driven.

7. Despite 3 & 4, I'm probably the most rule driven person ever. If it says not to walk on the grass, then I don't (mostly).

Okay, now that that's over with, according to the rules I'm supposed to tag 7 people. I tag: Gina, Debra, Ruth, and Lucy. Yes, I know that's only 4, but see number 7 about me.

Love in the time of Global Warming

I actually thought this might be a good title for a book. At least, Leon, the cashier at Walmart thought so. But it was shot down by my fab cp Mel. Louisa (other fab cp) never got a chance to shoot it down, as I quickly came to my senses and crossed it off my list of TTBA (Titles to be announced) before ever mentioning it to her.


But as the title implies, I do have to wonder if the earth's thinning ozone has something to do with all the weirdo-ness going on out there.

I'm referring to my obsession with all things ala Tom Cruise. Those who have known me awhile know how I feel about Tom (Just ask Rhoda and Erin. PS- My locker still looks the same as when you 2 "decorated" it 3 years ago). I love Tom as an actor (Jerry Maguire and Rain Man are 2 of my favorite flicks) but let's get real. Tom is becoming almost as weird as Michael Jackson. Tom first came to my notice way back when he did "Risky Business". His dancing underwear scene was hilarious. But as cute as I found Tom in his tidy whities, I have to admit my Gay-dar went into overdrive. I won't even begin to speculate on all the rumors of Tom being gay, or bi, or whatever. That's between him and Mimi, Nicole, Penelope and Katie...



What I do find fascinatingly bizarre is the supposed rumor from the unauthorized biography of Tom written by Andrew Morton (same guy who wrote the stuff on the Royal family) who claims that:



1. Tom is the # 2 guy in the Scientology Church and his "mission" (should he chose to accept it) is to recruit David Beckham.



2. The Church of Scientology is blackmailing Nicole Kidman to keep quiet about Tom by threatening to expose a series of "sex" tapes they have on her.



2. And best of all, that Suri Cruise is NOT Tom's long awaited bio-child after all. Morton claims that Suri was conceived with the frozen sperm of L. Ron Hubbard. OKAY. This is the one that I actually Don't believe.

I mean, really.


Is it the heat that's doing this to us?

My Un Resolutions

I love the New Year. It's a time for beginnings, but I mostly love it because it means Christmas is over, and while I love Christmas (or at least the idea of it) every year it seems to become more and more stressful. This year was no exception. It was my turn to work Christmas, and while I usually don't mind, it was a very depressing 3 nights (I'd violate Hippa laws if I got into it any more than that). I'll just say I'm glad it's all over.



Which brings me to the dreaded New Year's resolutions. I mentioned a few resolutions to my cps, which I do hope to keep- like trying to write 2 books this year (instead of the usual 1 or less). But as for other resolutions (which for me have always been about trying to change something about myself) I refuse to make any. Mainly because I fail year after year to keep them, which in turn only adds to my Catholic guilt in making me feel like a total loser. I've decided instead to make this the year of the Un Resolution.


So this year, I give up trying to diet. I'll eat when I'm hungry, thank you. Ditto for trying to keep my finances in order (that's what Mike Geraci is for), or trying to be more organized. If it hasn't happened after 48 years, it isn't going to magically happen overnight simply because it's January.



I am going to try a couple of new things. I'm going to journal (in the beautiful leather-bound book Mel gave me) and learn how to use the awesome Canon camera I got for Christmas. I've never been interested in photography before, but I'm completely obsessed with the Canon commercials featuring Maria Sharapova and her little dog Dolce.

Watch for future uploads of Maria Geraci and her little dog, Chewey:)

It's Party Time!

The Knight Agency is throwing a party! Everyone is welcome and there will be free give aways. Don't miss it! It starts at 12:30 pm EST today. Here's the link that will take you to the chat room: TKA Party.

On another cheery note, my good friend and fellow American Title 2 finalist Gina Black's book The Raven's Revenge came out last week. I just started reading it and it's fabulous. It's available now from the The Wild Rose Press. Isn't the cover gorgeous?

Worth staying up for....

I love finding new authors to read. So when I was browsing through my local Borders a couple of weeks ago and spotted Forget About It, by Caprice Crane, I thought, why not?

I was more than pleasantly surprised. What a fun read! To make it even more interesting, the author is the daughter of Tina Louise. Remember her? Ginger from Gilligan's Isle? I sooo loved Ginger. Mary Ann and her pigtails made me puke. But Ginger. I mean, there was glamour. Forget that they were on a deserted tropical island. Ginger had plenty of blue eyeshadow and sparkly sequined gowns to last a lifetime of being marooned.

I can't recommend this book enough. Next time I hit the bookstore I'm going to pick up her first book, Stupid and Contagious. Great title, huh?

Fed Ex that Puppy!

I mailed off my Golden Heart entry today. Woo Hoo! Afterwards, I called Mel to celebrate and while we were talking, it occurred to me that this friggin contest has so far cost me almost 100 bucks- $50 for the entry fee, $21 to run off copies at Kinkos, and another $20-something bucks to fed-ex the package to Houston.

Of course, I could have probably saved at least 10 bucks if I'd mailed the thing anytime other than the last minute.

Why I waited till the last minute, is a Freudian mystery. I finished the manuscript almost 2 months ago, so I could have had it in snail mail, no problem. But I concluded a long time ago that I'm somewhat of a thrill monkey. Not the kind who likes roller coasters. The kind who likes waiting till the very last second to turn something in. Plus, I think a part of me was hoping that I'd be ineligible for the GH. But alas, no takers yet. As of today I've received 4 rejections from publishers on The Church of Bunco.

But I'm not discouraged.

I love that story, my cps love the story, and my agent loves the story. One publisher is very interested and my agent has yet to hear from the six or other so editors that still have it on their desk, so there is massive hope in the air. Keeping my fingers crossed!

I'm Not a 9-1-1 Girl

Honestly, I function really well as a nurse.

And I've never shied away from the occasional kid's emergency of broken bones, etc... But there's something about fire that brings out the worst in me.

So last night we had our first real cold weather of the year. 50 degrees is cold in Florida. I was feeling pukey and was laying down on the couch, when I decided that a nice little fire would help soothe my stomach. Mike was still at work, so I yelled for the 16 year-old to emerge from his room and his Guitar Hero to make me a fire. (This consists of bringing in a Duraflame log from the garage) Now, 16 year old is enchanted with anything that produces a spark so he is more than happy to do my bidding.

The chemically treated log immediately set off a beautiful and warm looking little fire. I was content to simply lie on my couch and watch it, until I realized the room was getting smoky.

Crap! The chute (right word?) was closed.

I ran and tried to open the chute. But of course, the chute was friggin hot (as there was this nice little fire blazing) so I couldn't open it. I grabbed for the fireplace instruments, all which proved totally useless in helping me get this chute open. The 16 year old was trying his hardest to open the chute, and my oldest was tossing Morton's salt onto the flames in hopes of extinguishing it.

"Call your dad!" I yell pathetically. "He'll know what to do!"

Mike Geraci's advice consisted of this, "Maria, calm down and open the chute."

Yeah. Easier said than done. Now the fire alarms are going off. Lot of help you were, Mike Geraci.

But it's good to know those fire alarms work.

At my wit's end, I grabbed a large pot from the kitchen, filled it with water and tossed it into the fireplace. Yes! Half the fire extinguished. One more potful of water and my fire was out. Of course, now my living room was filled with smoke and my fireplace was a mess, but I didn't have to call 9-1-1 because my living room was on fire.

The funny (or not so funny) thing about this is that this exact same thing happened to my parents last year.

They really ought to put warning labels on fireplaces for us Floridians.

My Friends Can Write

It's Day 5 of my mini-break from work and I'm almost converted back to being a day person. I've slept, read, caught up on some tv and even have some color in my cheeks. I really have to find a way to keep this mini-break going...

Last night I finished reading Kate's new manuscript, Simply Sinful (soon to be pubbed by Kensington). Wow. It's fantastic. Better than fantastic. And even though I'm not completely sure a couple of the sexual positions are doable (Kate says they are, and I'll take her word for it) it's one of the best, most emotion filled erotic reads ever. I can't wait for the first book Simply Sexual to come out. I only got to read 3 chapters of that one, but my appetite has definitely been whetted.

A couple of weeks ago, I finished Terri Garey's debut book, Dead Girls Are Easy. This one is another wowser. I especially loved the voodoo scenes. Very spooky, yet, funny too. I want to know who comes up with Terri's titles. She has some great ones. A Match Made in Hell, and If You've Got It, Haunt It are the follow ups to Dead Girls.

And now, last but not least, I'm reading fellow AT sister, Gerri Russell's Warrior Bride. I'm only a few chapters in, but already I can see why Gerri is making a name for herself in historical romance. I'm totally drawn in to these characters. The hero, Wolf, ( very sexy name for a very sexy guy) is exactly my type of hero. Mysterious, quiet and all alpha male. I'm having to pace myself on reading this because I'm determined to savor every bit of it. It's been awhile since I've read a medieval I could get into.

What Would Jane Do?

So yesterday was my Birthday. I always feel so blessed (for lack of a better word) to have such great friends. My phone rang off the hook yesterday with well wishers. Thanks everyone!

Mel sent me this very cool Jane Austen doll.

Isn't she awesome looking? (okay, and just a tad bit scary, too) LOL.

She's sitting in a place of honor in my writing closet so I can look up at her for inspiration. Would would Jane Do? Or Write? or Say? is the new mantra of the week.

I'm off for a week now from the House of Horrors (aka: Labor and Delivery). We've been incredibly busy at work lately. Don't these women know that Oct/Nov are low birth months?? Apparently not, as they are coming in in droves. I was supposed to fly out to Texas to visit Rhoda, but I cancelled and I feel like a shit for doing that, but I'm literally exhausted. After spending the last few weeks working, doing kids' activities, and polishing up my manuscript to send out, I'm so sleep deprived I'm not sure what sleep is anymore. Last night I took some Tylenol PM and that helped. I slept for about 6 hours (the longest I've slept in one cycle for weeks). I plan to spend the next 6 days cleaning my pigsty of a house, gearing up for the holidays, sleeping, and reading Kate's fabulous new manuscript. Woo hoo!

Have You Voted Yet?

Voting has been going on for the past 2 weeks in the newest American Title Contest. Round One ends tomorrow, so don't forget to put in your two cents worth! Go here to vote.

On another note, it's my turn to blog on the Title Wave Blog where I talk about best one liners. Go check it out:)

The Best New Shows

Now that the new TV shows are out, I've found a few I definitely have to add to the DVR schedule.

First, there's Dirty Sexy Money. Before I knew a thing about this show, I decided I was going to have to watch. I mean, with a title like that, how could you not have a hit? I was pleased to find that the show's star is Peter Krause, who starred in one of the best TV shows of all time, Sports Night. I nearly cried when Sports Night was cancelled. Honestly.

So back to Dirty Sexy Money. It's about a family of mega millionaires called the Darlings. The patriarch (Tripp Darling) is played by Donald Sutherland. And Nick (Peter Krause) is coerced into becoming the family's lawyer. It's funny, sexy and yes, at times, dirty. I think my favorite character so far is the Reverend Brian Darling. He takes the phrase "I hate you!" to new heights.

Next is Pushing Daisies. This was another show I was immediately drawn to by the previews. It looked campy and fun and the lead guy was cute, so I thought, why not?

The premise is this: Ned (cute guy, or also known as Lee Pace) can bring back the dead with a single touch. The hitch: If he touches them again, they die. And if he doesn't touch them again within a minute, then someone else dies in their place. Ned works as a piemaker in his shop called, The Pie Hole (don't you love it?). Things get complicated when a PI discovers Ned's talent and blackmails him into bringing back murder victems long enough to discover who killed them to collect the reward money. Things get real-l-l-l-y complicated when Ned brings back his first love, Chuck (I know what you're thinking, but her real name is Charlotte. It's not that kind of a show...). Of course, he can't touch Charlotte, or she'll die again, permanently. Talk about romantic conflict!

I've watched the first two episodes of Private Practice. It hasn't totally sold me yet, but I'll keep watching. For awhile. Another good show is Journeyman. Although I'm ticked off that they showed one episode and then didn't have another new episode the next week. Haven't the marketing people heard of striking while the iron is hot?

Following Mel's Lead

I've decided to sweat with Sven.

Every once in awhile, Mel comes up with a great idea (okay, more than just every once in awhile). We're going to power write though the next 3 months.

While my agent is shopping around The Church of Bunco, I'm going to be working on my next non-bunco book. It's tentatively titled, "He Loves Me Not". So far, I've finished up a couple of chapters and I think I see a direction. Hopefully, the muse will be kind and stay with me:)

My goal is to have the rough draft completed by Jan. 15.

Whew

I finally finished my manuscript, The Church of Bunco. CP's have read it and approved and it went to my fab agent, Deidre Knight last week. Hopefully, I'll hear that she approves too. I should hear something by the end of the week (fingers crossed!)

I learned so much about my writing process with this story. I used to think of myself as a plotter, but the plotting is what actually got me in trouble and delayed my finishing it for so long. Once I let go and just let myself write, the story sort of wrote itself.

Sort of :)

I'm working on a blurb for the query letter. This is the version I have so far:

Kitty Burke lives for Thursday nights. That’s when she, her two best friends, and the rest of the Bunco Babes of Whispering Bay, roll dice, drink frozen margaritas, and catch up on all the gossip in their small north Florida town. Kitty is thirty-five and the only Bunco Babe who’s still single; not that she hasn’t tried to find Mr. Right. But Kitty’s version of the ideal man is Crash Davis, the character Kevin Costner played in her favorite flick, Bull Durham. And men like Crash Davis don’t exist in real life. But that’s okay. Kitty has everything she needs in her bunco group. If Susan Sarandon can worship at the Church of Baseball, why can’t Kitty worship at the Church of Bunco?

When Kitty meets Steve, she finally finds a guy who curls her toes. Too bad her closest friends don’t approve. Steve’s three failed marriages make him more a candidate for a Jerry Springer episode than potential husband material. Kitty decides to go against her best friends’ advice and dates Steve anyway. What they don’t know can’t hurt them, right? But it’s Kitty’s heart that’s on the line when she finally learns that woman cannot live by bunco alone.

I just didn't Love it

I almost died when I woke up this morning (about 3 am-but that's what happens when half the time you sleep days and work nights...) and discovered it was my turn to blog on the Title Wave Blog. I mean, crap, I haven't had time to blog here, but I can't diss on my fellow AT 2 sisters, so I had to come up with something. I frantically looked around for some inspiration. Found none, and opened up my email.

Aha!

Multiple emails asking me to judge the Golden Heart contest again. Instant blog material.

In a nutshell, "I just didn't love it" is what I learned from judging last year. The full explanation behind that is in my Title Wave Blog. Go check it out:)

American Title 4 already!

It's hard to believe that it's already time for the American Title 4 contest to get under way. Go check out Theresa Meyer's interview with Dorchester editor, Leah Hultenschmidt on the Title Wave blog. She's got some interesting things to say.

Oh, and if you haven't already read it, make sure you read Mel's first author blog over at the HEA Cafe. As usual, my girl does not let down.

My Big Fat Cuban Baby

That's the title to a book I might write in the future. The fact that I DID have a big fat Cuban baby (Kevin weighed 9 lbs) makes it almost seem autobiographical, but I think it has potential. My friend Sybil actually came up with it :)


Of course, I can't write anything new until I finish the revisions on "Church". I got stalled out when I tried to make it into a series. Just like me to think of a series when I haven't even gotten the damn thing published yet, but it seemed like a good idea at the time. Now I'm having to go back and add back all the stuff I'd put in originally because a book has to be as best as you can possibly make it. Plus of course, you know I have to add in some more stuff as well. But at least I'm listening to some good music when I do it. Go check out Colbie Caillat's Coco album. It's awesome.



Next week I'll be off to Cancun with the family. I'm taking my iPOD and my laptop with me and hoping I'll come back with a polished manuscript I can give to my cps.

Check this out

I'm being a blog pimp today and telling you to go to the Title Wave Blog. Ruth Kaufman has done a great interview with Anna Campbell, the author of Claiming the Courtesan. I had the opportunity to first meet Anna during the National RWA conference in Atlanta last summer. She had recently sold on auction to Avon (!!!) and was on cloud nine. I met up with Anna again in Dallas this month and she's so incredibly sweet and warm. A real bundle of energy and just so inspiring!

In Which Maria Shows Out

If white girls have hissy fits, and black girls "show out", what do nice Cuban girls do? Personally, I kind of like the term 'show out'. It really describes what I did better than hissy fit. And besides, hissy rhymes with prissy, and I'm definitely not prissy.


The Friday before I went to Nationals, my husband decided we had to buy a car. We knew we had to get a new car by the end of summer, and Mike Geraci decided that the Friday before one of the busiest weekends ever, was the perfect time to do it. So we set out with a blank check (from the instution we had gotten our pre-approved loan from) and hit the car dealerships in Tallahassee. I had narrowed my choice down to 3 minivans. The Toyata Sienna, the Honda Odyssey and the Nissan Quest. As Mike repeatedly said, "This is your car, honey. Get what you want." Translation: Get you want as long as you get the Toyota. (Mike Geraci's first car was a Toyota and he has a thing for them).



After doing a preliminary search at the Nissan and the Honda dealership (really to humor me) Mike led me to the Toyota place.



"Now here's a minivan," Mike says, admiringly. "It's the #1 minivan for reliability according to Consumer Reports."


I nod silently. The fact that I'M the one who told him this doesn't stop him from repeating it over and over. The salesman also has a case of parotitis, as he also feels compelled to repeat this statistic over and over as well.


I tell the saleman that I want a 2007 Sienna with a DVD player with the cordless headphones and I that I don't want to pay over $30,000 (Mike and I had agreed on this price earlier). At first, he looks at me like I'm crazy, but after sighing heavily, he nods and says something to the effect of "I think we can work something out."


We then test drive the Sienna, and Mike and I both think it drives just dandy. We're now ready to deal. After spending another half hour convincing the salesman that we do not want to finance through Toyota, we get to the haggling phase. All of a sudden, the "we think we can work something out" becomes more like, "well, it's unrealistic to think you can get the best selling, most reliable minivan on the market for the unreasonable price of $30,ooo. Oh, and the DVD player? No way. That will cost an extra 2,000 bucks. "


Up until now, Mike Geraci and the salesman have been doing all the talking. So I interject with, "But I want the DVD player. And I don't want to pay over $30,000."


The salesman barely glances at me and says, "You can get one at Sam's for way cheap and plug it into the cigarette lighter."


"But I don't want one you plug in the cigarette lighter. I want one with the screen that comes off the roof and the wireless headphones."


By now, the "Finance Manager" has come to help out the salesguy in explaining to us that we're being totally unreasonable in our demands. He goes over the list of the options in the car, including a $1000 option that includes road side assistance.


"Why do I need to pay $1000 for road side assistance? I can get AAA for 50 bucks a year. Besides, isn't this the 'most reliable minivan on the market'"? I ask, making quote marks with my fingers.


Finance Manager and Salesguy now begin to look at me with hostility and throw Mike Geraci sympathetic looks.



Mike Geraci sees the strom brewing and smartly shuts his mouth.


"Ma'am," says Finance Manager, "I don't think you understand the price breakdown."


"Oh, I understand all right. You guys are full of bullshit." I glare at Salesguy. "What's the first thing I said to you when I came on the lot over 2 hours ago? I said I wanted a 2007 Sienna with a DVD player and I didn't want to pay over $30,ooo and you said we could work something out."


This flusters Salesguy to the point of muteness.


Mike is now trying to hold back his laughter.


Finance Manager looks aghast as if he's never heard a woman say bullshit before. "Ma'am, I don't want to get short with you."


Short with me??? Is this guy serious?


I'll leave the rest up to your imagination, except to say that I calmly explained to them that they had wasted over 2 hours of my time and that I was the customer and I wasn't going to settle for anything less than what I wanted at the price I wanted to pay and that I was very happy they were selling the Most Reliable, Best Selling Minivan ever and that I'm sure they could find another chump to sell it to.


With that, I nodded to Mike Geraci, who jumped from his chair to silently follow me out to our car.


"Wow," Mike says, looking a little turned on. "I never knew you had it in you."


Really? Considering we've been married almost 22 years and his nickname for me is "Mal Genio" (sp?) ('bad tempered one' in Spanish) he should have known.


To make a long story short, I took my business 30 minutes north to Thomasville, Georgia, where the lovely George from Thomasville Toyota sold me a 2007 Sienna WITH a DVD player for $ 6,000 LESS than the price they wanted in Tallahassee. I soooo want to drive my new minivan past the Tallahassee dealership and stick my tongue out at them. But I'm much too polite for that.