Ever wonder how Dayle and I collaborate?

Check out our collaborative post on collaboration on Lustbites!

http://lustbites.blogspot.com/2007/03/when-two-heads-are-better-than-one-and.html

In other news...there isn't much other news, other than, wow, my shoulders and neck have an almost infinite capacity for getting screwed up, and this leads to lowered productivity.

Today was not shaping up to be a good writing day. Yesterday I'd been flattened with what, if it wasn't technically a migraine, was close enough for me, and I'd started out the day able to do little things, but still feeling quite blah and disinclined to do much. Going out to run an errand awakened the slumbering headache. I was afraid. I called my chiropractor and made an appointment for later in the afternoon, in hopes that tweaking the neck would ease the headache. (It did, for what it's worth.)

I was somewhat green around the gills at that point, not sure that staring at a screen would be wise. But earlier in the day, before the headache came back but when I was being just a bit whiny about working, my darling husband had issued a little dare, a little challenge, with the prospect of a reward if I managed to hit even half of what I'd consider a reasonable day's word count. And because I'm a stubborn little coot, I sat down at the computer and opened one of my current projects. Yes, it's rather sad when he has to resort to dares and challenges, but there are days when the writing doesn't seem like its own reward.

Just over an hour and two thousand words later, when I had to leave for the chiropractor, I realized I'd finished my chapter and started a new one.

And the writing had been its own reward, for not only was I happier--but also my headache was much diminished.

Mind you, I still intend to claim that "reward"!

Back from Oregon...

All right, I've been back from Oregon since Monday night, but it's taken me a while to recover (because naturally I caught a cold on the plane!), catch up on various bits of work around here, and basically get my brain clear enough to blog again. I've actually been trying to write too, as in stuff I can get published, rather than blog on my (blush) two blogs.

The writers' retreat was an incredible experience. We were sharing a house in Lincoln City, OR with between 4 and 6 other writers. (Two showed up for only part of the week.) For much of the time, all the women gathered in the common area and just wrote away, in companionable silence. (The two men hid in their own rooms, possibly because they feared drowning in estrogen, partly because they'd arrived at the house first and had claimed the two coziest rooms.) Occasionally we'd stop to talk someone through a sticky point, show off pictures of our cats, or generally get silly, but mostly we worked.

And ate chocolate.

And walked on the beach, in awe of the power of the Pacific.

And did NOT play on the Internet, because there was no Internet access in the house. (This was briefly scary, then we adjusted.)

Every night we went out to dinner. Had some yummy seafood, some very good sushi, and several less memorable meals, but it was just a pleasure to be in such great company, to be with people who Get It.

Being able to sit down with Dayle and bounce ideas and crank away on writing was wonderful. We're within a few chapters now of finishing the draft of Out of the Frying Pan. I finished the first draft of Master Right (aka the Never-Ending Novel) and got a paranormal, tentatively called Lion Eyes, plotted and underway. We're hoping to get the proposal for Frying Pan out in the next few days.

And then I need to attack Master Right and try to turn it from a sloppy first draft into something an editor might want to read...

The good news is, the better work habits seem to be sticking now that I'm home. Sure, I have the part-time day job, and I can no longer avoid housework altogether, but I do seem to be doing a much better job not tooling away on the Internet all day long. (Okay, I've done a bit of that yesterday and today, but the cold peaked yesterday and I just couldn't focus on anything. Today, at least, I've managed story submissions, even through the headache.)

Soon, pictures.

Love books? Near Boston?

If you can answer yes to these questions--especially if you like romance and erotica, or if (for shame!) you don't yet own a copy of Cat Scratch Fever or want a signed copy to give a special friend--come to Natick on March 31 for a chance to meet authors and buy books for a good cause!

It's sponsored by Romance Writers of America New England Chapter (NECRWA) and proceeds to benefit literacy charities. Come meet local authors, including me in my Sophie Mouette disguise (someday I will get that cardboard cutout of Dayle but meanwhile you'll have to use your imagination), buy some books, have some fun. And remember, the proceeds go to help others learn to read, which is just a good and worthy thing all around.

NEC Book Fair for Literacy
Saturday, March 31, 2007
4:00-6:00 pm
Crowne Plaza Hotel
Route 9
Natick, Massachusetts