A Lost Generation

Saw this dialogue at Goodreads (paraphrasing)...

"I don't get that LUMBERJACK book cover. What's up with that?"

"I think it's supposed to be a take-off on the 1980s Fabio romance covers."

"Who's Fabio?"

WHAT????????? 

DID YOU JUST SAY WHO'S FABIO?

(PENNY FAINTS)

OK. I do realize that I'm old as the hills. I do realize that many romance readers are young whipper snappers. But, come on! Fabio was like the King Of Romance Novel Covers! The big rippling muscles. The long flowing hair. And when he spoke (I Can't Believe It's Not Butter), his accented voice sent shivers down our spines.

Off to get some buttered toast,

Penelope

IT'S ALIVE!

No, it's not actually Christmas yet...

Yes, I sort of look like this right now...

Here's the Amazon link if you feel like reading a book about Santa Claus in September...(for the low, low price of $3.99)

Yes, I need sleep. And coffee. Because I'm not done yet!!! I'm formatting both LUMBERJACK and SWEET INSPIRATION for Create Space!

Create Space tried to kick my ass, but I turned into a formatting ninja and fought back. Hard.

Stay tuned for the conclusion to...

PENNY'S PUSH TO THE FINISH LINE!

COMING SOON TO A THEATER NEAR YOU

STARRING PENELOPE

HUGH JACKMAN (WITH BEARD)

LUCY THE WEENIE DOG

ERIC BANA (WITH BEARD)

and in a supporting role...

DANIEL CRAIG (WITH BEARD)

Have a nice freakin' day,

Penelope

Is It Christmas Yet?

Once upon a time, I thought I would be working on 3 different books over the course of 4 months.

Then it turned into 3 months.

Then 2 months.

And now, somehow, inexplicably, it is getting squeezed into a matter of weeks.

Photo of Penny with crazy eyes.

Well, LUMBERJACK IN LOVE is out. And something cool happened. Folks started reading it. And liking it. And then they wanted to read more of my books. And then they realized SWEET INSPIRATION was not available. And then they started bugging me. And then I figured...oh what the hell! I was going to wait until December, but I might as well re-issue it now.

So...it's off to JW Manus, Formatter Master O' Disaster. Got this banging new cover, compliments of Sharon Breitbart. It's GORGEOUS! And my eyes are only slightly crazy at this moment. 

I will let everyone know when SI is out. And then it's back to the weenie dog book.

Hope you are all happy, healthy and your eyes are only mildly crazy,

Penelope

Coming Soon...LUCY THE WONDER WEENIE!

Drum roll please!

I have been working on a super-secret (not really), hilarious, fun, adorable, inspiring, and humbling project for the last six months. For some kooky reason I decided to write a children's book. I was lucky enough to find an incredibly talented artist--Sara Pulver--who was also interested and shares my same quirky sensibilities. Her paintings for this book have brought me to tears on more than one occasion. We will be self-pubbing the print book with Lulu, and I will let you all know when it's out. Definitely before Christmas, hopefully a lot sooner!

Speaking of Christmas, for some insane reason I have THREE books on the docket which I am attempting to publish before holiday time.

(Yep, I got those crazy eyes going right now).

Anyhoo, LUMBERJACK IN LOVE is Book #1 and it's already out and doing extremely well. (My new favorite quote from Goodreads is this..."a good book low on the angst, and high on the cute.") What a great description! That's just how I like my romance novels.

Book #2 is LUCY THE WONDER WEENIE, a wonderful children's book illustrated by Sara Pulver and written by my alter ego, Nina Clark. It's the story of Lucy, a black-and-tan miniature dachshund who eats some magic beans and turns into a superhero. (Modelled after my very own super heroic doxie Lucy!) Sara's artwork is nothing short of magnificent. (See cover above! SOOOO AWESOME!)

Book #3 is SWEET INSPIRATION, the first book in the Klaus Brothers Series. I have the rights back from Wild Rose, and will be self-pubbing it this holiday season.

All of this means I will be not be blogging as frequently. But I will be drinking frequent martinis.

Coming up next week....a big bloggy celebration for LUMBERJACK IN LOVE. We'll be discussing favorite beardy dudes and giving away fun lumberjack-inspired gifts.

See you soon!

Penelope

Who's In The Mood For A Sweaty Lumberjack?

Still celebrating the release of my novella LUMBERJACK IN LOVE! It is currently #2 on Amazon's list of Hot New Releases in the romance anthology category, and #35 on the bestseller list for romance anthologies.

✵I made up an ETSY Lumberjack In Love collection. Check it out!

✵I also have been researching lumberjack cocktails. Here's one if you're interested in drinking like a lumberjack....

SWEATY LUMBERJACK COCKTAIL: Shot of rum, shot of Tabasco, shot of tequila. Drink like a lumberjack, then pass out in your plaid shirt.

✵Some more quotes are trickling in about LUMBERJACK IN LOVE...

From Smexybooks: "...a light romp through the Vermont mountains...plenty of smexy times and memorable scenes..."

From Kate at Babbling About Books: "Adorable, funny, sexy..."

"Made me smile." -- Jen, at Goodreads

And KarLynP posted some awesome "pics" of Marcus and Ami on her review at Goodreads. Check it out! I love this quote from her... "Lumberjack In Love was a HOT, funny, small town romance with great chemistry and quirky characters."

✵The book cover is getting a lot of attention. Folks either love it or hate it. Which is good. It definitely stands out from the crowd. Since my book has a lot of humor, I wanted the cover to be tongue-in-cheek and funny, too. I had Anne Nydam (an amazing artist who lives in my hometown) make a block print-style cover referencing the hilarious 1980s romance covers with the kneeling, adoring heroine staring up into Fabio's eyes. We just substituted our modern-day characters in a silly way. This cover totally captures the cute, funny feel of my story.

✵For all of you who have a NOOK and want to read my story (which is only available for Kindle at the moment) please see this FABULOUS blog piece about how to convert the Kindle format for a NOOK or other e-reader. Huge thanks to Kris at Deeply Dapper for this kick-ass post!

✵ETA: Babbling About Books is doing a give-away for LUMBERJACK IN LOVE today! Please stop by to enter, and check out Kate's kind words about the story.

On today's agenda: order promo stuff. I'm thinking plaid bookmarks and naughty T-shirts. Hooray!

Have a happy day,
Penelope

Monday Morning Updates

Monday morning updates!

1. Thank you to everyone for the well wishes on release day.

2. I finished book #3 of the Louise Penny mystery series last night. Oh. My. God. I will be writing up a review this week when my brain converts from mush back to grey matter. (If my brain was a book right now, it would be 50 Shades of Grey Mush).

3. We have some new activities on the horizon this week. My son is starting rowing team! Cool! And my daughter is starting art class. And I am jumping back to my kiddy book, LUCY THE WONDER WEENIE.

4. I got a few bits of initial feedback on my book. Waiting for the first few reviews to roll in is always a nerve-wracking experience. Here are a few snippets so far...

"I want me a lumberjack! The humor was hilarious, likable characters in a small town setting, super hot chemistry..." (KarLynP)

"A BIG hairy 5 stars to your book and your fantastic storytelling skills, Ms. Watson! Clearly, you are a genius, because you have managed to achieve the unachievable in my opinion; you made a big, hairy lumberjack SEXY AS HELL! YOWZAH!" (Sheryl)

"Ms. Watson has such a unique style of writing. I love when humor is injected in a story...LOVED THIS STORY!" (Tracy)

And here is the full quote from Carolyn Crane, author extraordinaire:

"The delicious beard! The magnificent log! This city-girl-meets-lumberjack tale is a crazy sexy, hairy delight. Woodland animal ahoy!" (Carolyn Crane, author of the Disillusionist Trilogy)

Love these quotes! Yippeeeeeee!

LUMBERJACK IN LOVE is now available for Kindle for the low, low price of $2.99! Purchase now and I'll throw in Hugh Jackman looking like a lumberjack with his plaid shirt and Wolfman beard.


Well, maybe not Hugh. But I will be giving away some fun T-shirts later this week.

Hope everyone has a great week!
Penelope

RELEASE DAY FOR LUMBERJACK IN LOVE!

It's finally here! LUMBERJACK IN LOVE is now available on Kindle!

This week has been totally nuts, and I have a huge new-found respect for all authors self-pubbing their books. I sure hope it gets easier and less traumatic for the next book. ;^)

As many of you know, I had a heart attack a couple of years ago, and it really threw me for a loop. I wasn't able to write for a long time after that. My writing habit of sitting for long, consecutive hours and not moving definitely contributed to my heart condition, and I was paranoid, scared, resentful, and angry. I had to learn a new way of doing things. Short bursts of writing. Lots of long walks, being active during the day, eating a heart-healthy diet. 

But I still couldn't write. My heart attack had taken the fun out of it, and I was totally uninspired.

And then one day on Twitter, Kate from Babbling About Books teased me "Why don't you write a book about lumberjacks since you love them so much?" And I thought, "Why the hell not?" Why not write something short, sweet, fun and sexy, with a bearded hero and a sarcastic city slicker, set in Vermont (my favorite place in the world). I'll throw in some quirky characters. And some plant stuff (since I have a background in botany and horticultural science). And Kate said "And the lumberjack should have an English Bulldog." And so I added that in, too!

And I started having fun again. Which is why I write. I didn't do a dedication in the book, so I'd like to do one here.

Thanks to Kate (KT Grant) for inspiring me to write about something I love.

Thanks to The Quirky Ladies for supporting me every step of the way. Even when I'm surly, bitchy, and difficult. Your encouragement means everything to me.

Thanks to Julia Barrett who listens when I'm angry, irritated, silly, and cussing like a sailor. For pushing me when I'm hesitating. For supporting me no matter what. For believing in me. For having my back.

Thanks to Helen Hardt, my editor, who opened my eyes and did an exemplary job with this manuscript. 

Thanks to JW Manus, who is the Master of Formatting. Fast, efficient, and willing to put up with this newb's copious questions and panic attacks. My ebook looks gorgeous, and it's all thanks to her.

ETA: Thanks to Carolyn Crane for her stupendous book quote!

Thanks to NECRWA for your love and support. 

Thank you to all of my blogger friends, reader friends, neighborhood friends, author friends, and long-suffering family members.

Just in case you're in the mood for a quick, sexy, beardy read, here's the book blurb for LUMBERJACK IN LOVE...

City slicker Ami Jordan was just dumped by her back-stabbing boyfriend, has no job prospects, and can't find a decent cup of coffee in the entire state of Vermont. The last thing she needs is a sexy, bearded lumberjack complicating her life. Even if he’s smart, talented, and has the hottest ass she’s ever seen.

Tree house builder, environmental champion, and Bulldog owner Marcus Anderson has no patience for flatlanders with an attitude. But when landscape designer Ami Jordan shows up at his log cabin,  he suddenly develops a hankering for a high-maintenance city gal. Now his house looks like a jungle, his recycling is in disarray, and his libido's on fire.

He's a lumberjack in love.

✵✵✵✵✵

And here are a few preview quotes about the book...

"The delicious beard! The magnificent log! This city-girl-meets-lumberjack tale is a crazy, sexy, hairy delight." - Carolyn Crane

"It's a hell of a lot of fun." - Michelle Picard

"A satisfying romp." - Victoria Morgan

For an excerpt and more info, see my website page for LUMBERJACK.

To buy a copy for Kindle, here's the purchase link. 

Stay tuned for more fun and give-aways this week on my blog. (I'm having T-shirts printed up with the cover on the front and GOT WOOD? on the back...hee hee! Seriously).

One more time with feeling....

THANK YOU!

Have a lumberjacky day,

Penelope

Today's A Day, Just Like Any Other Day...

Today's a day, just like any other day...

But not like any other day...

A SPECIAL sort of day...

A day in which to say...

HALLELUJAH! 

It's the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!

Brushing a tear away from my eye,

Penelope

It's Easy To Stick With Your Diet...

...when your food choices include scorpions, centipedes, millipedes, tarantulas, starfish, silkworm larva, crickets and more fun stuff.

This is a photo my sister took of a novelty snack bar at the Dalian Beer Festival (in Dalian, China). She liked the cricket legs, but said the larva feels like you're biting into an eyeball.

*thunk*

How do you say "I'm a vegetarian" in Chinese? Just wondering.

Happy Weekend!

Penelope