Welcome to Elizabeth's Blog

Never lacking for something to say, Elizabeth shares everything from All My Children to Writing and all the life that's in-between . . .

What Does 4500 Miles in a Car Look Like?

August 25, 2010 – 2:32 pm

Like the car has never been detailed. Enough bug carnage on the front bumper to make an entomologist jealous. And by the exhausted smiles on the faces of four happy Boyles, like they’d just had the trip of their lives. For three weeks, we camped, hiked, swam and explored our way across seven states. Just where did we go? Here it is:

Seattle to Montana. Montana to Yellowstone. Yellowstone to the Grand Tetons. Across Wyoming. Into the Black Hills of South Dakota. Across South Dakota. North to North Dakota. Went to a wedding. Dipped our toes into Minnesota so we could say we “went” there. Crossed North Dakota. Camped by the Missouri river. The Badlands. Montana. More Montana. And just when you think there isn’t enough Montana, believe me there is more. Idaho. Washington. Home.

Now most people who know me will laugh at the idea of me camping. Believe me, my usual mantra is that any hotel without room service is camping, but that is probably because as a child we always went camping. Always. And I had forgotten how much fun it is. How wonderful it is to be outside. The joys of a campfire. Swimming in a clear, clean river. The stars on a dark night. The unexpected visitors–we saw bears, bison, elk, deer, prairie dogs, wild turkeys, antelope. The incredible majesty of the Grand Tetons.

I have flown over my nation, going from one coast to the other and always looked down and thought it was just empty. But the beauty and incredible landscapes that spread across those “empty parts” will take your breath away.

I daydreamed endlessly as we passed fields of sunflowers, high cliffs, remarkable Western vistas. Marveled at the life of Buffalo Bill Cody, revisited every John Wayne movie I’ve ever seen, hummed the theme song to Bonazana, sat on great big boulders and looked at sparking waters and let the views just fill my heart. And every time I thought we couldn’t see something more breathtaking, we’d roll around a corner and see something else.

As for living all of us in such close quarters for all that time? We learned to laugh with each other, got to the heart of things that have been unsaid for too long, and just shared the joy of exploring hidden corners well off the beaten path.

By Elizabeth | Posted in Travel, Vacation | Comments (4)

On a little vacation

August 13, 2010 – 7:52 pm

Turned in my book two weeks ago and promised the family some summer Fun away from work. So I might seem a little absent, but I will be back very soon with lot’s to share very soon. Hope you are all enjoying a little summer fun.

By Elizabeth | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (0)

Manga Me

July 26, 2010 – 4:42 pm

Yes, the Japanese manga versions of This Rake of Mine and Something About Emmaline have started to arrive, starting with the two volume set of Emmaline. I have to admit that of all the things that have happened in my career, this really tickles me. I don’t know why, but it just does. Perhaps it is just the fact that I sit in my office in Seattle and spin my words into sentences and paragraphs, and now my stories are finding new lives all over the globe. It is humbling and leaves me awe-struck.

Thank you to everyone who has picked up one of my books. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Something About Emmaline

As I told my husband, if someone had told me years ago that my books would end up as comic books, and in Japanese no less, I would have thought them mad. But here they are and I adore them! I’ve put all the scans from the covers up on my Facebook page. Check them out!

By Elizabeth | Posted in Reading, Regency, Romance Novels, This Rake of Mine, Writing | Comments (8)

My GLEE inspired RWA Conference Tips

July 21, 2010 – 2:51 pm

Hey, I’m not going to Orlando for the Romance Writers of America conference next week. I hadn’t planned on going when it was in Nashville, and as I told my editor, I had no desire trade a swamped hotel in Nashville for a hotel in a swamp. But then again, after nearly twenty years of attending RWA National conferences (Gads, I must have started going when I was like, 12) I’ve come up with my Glee inspired Top 5 Tips to keep you from going mad in the rushed, harried craziness that is “National.”

1) Conference is not Sectionals, Regionals or even Nationals. It is not a competition no matter what the big-haired barracuda across the luncheon table tells you. Let the mean girls have their club. We all know who they are and really, do you want to be in Sue Sylvester’s clique? Here is the best advice I can give you–find your friends and hold onto them. Laugh, sing your own song and enjoy the friendship that is at the heart of RWA. This will let your light shine through–don’t let others put a shade over it. Believe me, after twenty years of going, the mean girls usually end up as back up singers for a reason.

2) Don’t Listen to Gossip. Not so much listen, because, heck as writers we are practically given a license to eavesdrop and gather information on the human condition all in the name of research, but if you must listen, don’t take it to heart. Learn to step back and measure what is being said around you with an air of detached reason. Because writers love to sing out loud even when we can’t hold a note. We love the spotlight. I’m not saying we are all a bunch of liars trying to get our solo, but we do get caught up in the competition that seems to take on a life of its own every year about this time. I’ve seen good writers literally melt down and let themselves be derailed by gossip or even, believe it or not, another’s good fortune. Stay focused on your dreams and goals, like Rachel does episode after episode. Even with a slushy in her face, she is remains a star in the making.

3) Pack Light. Really, you don’t need a sparkling new outfit for every event of every day. You are not Lady GaGa. You don’t see the editors and agents wearing outfits to dazzle. They wear comfortable clothes and sensible shoes. Take a cue from them. Having a small, well coordinated suitcase of clothes takes away the stress of what to wear. At least it does for me. Besides, that saves more room for bringing home goodies. And like Rachel, bring a nice cardigan. You can never go wrong with a good cardigan.

4) Pitching. If you disregard everything I’ve said, hear this. If you have a chance to pitch, but are shaking like a sapling in a Florida hurrican, remember this:  that junior editor across the table is sweating bullets that someone is going to cry if she refuses their pitch, so she’ll most likely say yes to everything. So go in and think of yourself as a sure thing. If you have issues with being easy, then cry. Your choice.

5) You are not there to sell a book. Yeah, you heard me correctly, you are not there to sell a book. So why go? To grow as an artist. To learn, to listen, to make new connections, to take the pulse of what is happening in the industry. If you go like my barracuda friend above, prowling the corridors in your perfectly coordinated suit and heels, and shooting down the competition by throwing slushies at other people’s dreams, you will miss opportunity after opportunity to meet some really great people, to gain priceless advice in workshops, to gather around you the energy that will carry you back home ready and excited to get writing again. Besides, no one likes the slushy tossers.

Meanwhile, I’ll be home, watching Glee reruns and missing all my good friends. Now, did I miss anything? What is your best advice, Glee inspired or not?

By Elizabeth | Posted in Conference, Life, RWA, Romance Writers of America, Television, Writing | Comments (1)

And then the Unpacking

July 14, 2010 – 2:00 pm

Okay, I am not all that fond of the unpacking either. My husband is a restless sort who cannot rest when we come home until he is completely and utterly unpacked. Everything has to be sorted out and put back in place. I don’t know how we ended up married sometimes, because I linger over unpacking as much as I linger over the original packing.

Rochester's Belles

But what I shouldn’t be lingering over is the story:  Please let me say outright that RomCon rocked! It was bar none, the best reader’s conference I’ve ever attended. Wonderful readers, great organization (I mean, hey, whoever thought about having the authors’s schedules printed on labels and stuck to the back of our name tags was brilliant!) and fun events. My favs included the Build a Hero workshop, where we all divided up according to interests and brainstormed our perfect hero.

Working with Anna Campbell, Cynthia and Kati, we came up with Sir Rochester deVale. Yes, we were making a nudge and a nod toward that Rochester, but we had a hilarious good time poking at the conventions of the genre (his greatest fear: a lighted match), his big . . . wait for it. . . nose, (and you thought I was going to say something else) and of course, he was tall dark and handsome. What I found interesting about the whole workshop is that nearly every hero created (including ours) had a military background and was emotional scarred by some previous experience. Oh, girls, we loved our damaged heroic goods, don’t we?

The Elizabeths

The signing was a kick of a good time, including meeting so many new readers–and by that I mean, younger readers. Please don’t be insulted, but by the time you reach my age, anyone under 25 is young. Okay, anyone under 40 is young. But what made my heart go pitter-pat was all the young women who are discovering romance. Having come of age reading Harry Potter and Twilight, they are the emerging generation embracing romance with abandon and boy are they enthusiastic. Here I am with the Elizabeths. They were hilariously fun–best friends named Elizabeth and they came to meet me, the other Elizabeth. Hanging with these gals, and getting the opportunity to go out to lunch with Kati (up above) really sparked the old muse. (Truly, the old gal needed a bit of kick start.)

Why, yes that is me. The Devils Mistress. Or DM for short.

Why, yes that is me. The Devil's Mistress. Or DM for short.

As for the rest of the weekend, the intimate chats, the panels, and the games, ok–the Saturday night in the bar laughing over Missy the Missing Cat until I really just embarrassed myself by laughing so much–made the weekend rollicking. My cheeks hurt by Sunday.

So I hope everyone is putting RomCon on their to-do list for 2011–mark off September and plan on getting yourself to Denver. It was worth every penny. If you want to see more, I’ve uploaded a bunch of pictures on my Facebook page.

And btw, Julia Quinn is a great traveling companion. We sat together flying down and talked nonstop the entire flight, and when we discovered the free wi-fi chatted on Facebook together while sitting next to each other, which was vastly amusing to us, probably not so much to the rest of the rows around us. And on the way home, she got me upgraded with her to First Class and we again finagled seats together, but we were both so tired we just sort of sat there, each in our own tired daze–her doing Suduko and me knitting. Both of us agreed to two things: the weekend was great and we are going back next year!

By Elizabeth | Posted in Uncategorized | Comments (2)