tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53972426023502635662024-03-13T10:51:32.926-07:00Bluestocking Impressions"We don't see things the way they are; we see things the way we are."
Anais NinLAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.comBlogger206125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-25715764415038105322020-03-02T13:35:00.000-08:002020-03-02T13:42:34.651-08:00BACK TO SCHOOL<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Let's see . . . life in the two years since I last posted: a couple graduations, both high school and college; CFO job for Chris; added a couple amazing women to our family (we love you, Jill and Abby!); became empty-nesters. </div>
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What is a stay-at-home mom/writer to do when her first job ends after twenty-six years and her second enters the no-contract, no current publisher stage? </div>
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This one goes back to school (it's an Andersen thing--we're very comfortable with homework and deadlines and such.) Being me, I only applied to one graduate writing program and thankfully got in: the Writing for Children and Young Adults MFA program at Vermont College of Fine Arts. It's low-residency, and my first one in January happened to start on my birthday. Because of course an introvert, insecure writer wants to spend her birthday in new surroundings with new people figuring out new things. </div>
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Anyway, my intent was to keep a diary of residency, because I found myself trawling the internet for personal accounts so I knew what to expect, but being me I only wrote it in twice and there's no real ending to the thing but what the hell--here it is for anyone thinking about VCFA and wondering what the ten-day residencies are like. </div>
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<b>VCFA: Residency 1, Winter 2020</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<u>Day Four</u></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Is it day four? Is it Monday? Is it still January?</span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Just looked out the window. It’s still January. Snow on the
ground, ice lying in wait, radiator pipes clanking like the building’s about to
fall down . . . Definitely January in Vermont. <o:p></o:p></div>
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“How are you?” everyone asks. Even a stranger this morning,
possibly a bit concerned by my apparently-vacant stare in the chapel. I was
actually thinking something (“I wonder if that organ is playable?”) but that
thought was a deliberate attempt to think something other than
“Aaaaaaggggghhhhhhhh . . .”<o:p></o:p></div>
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The first thirty-six hours were so crammed with people and
information it might have been leaking out my ears. Firsties (First Years
sounds so much better, but we’re only first for six months, so . . . shrug) met
as a group Friday night with Katie, the program director, half a dozen graduate
assistants, and all twenty-four of us that are meant to be a cohort through
graduation. The evening involved a distressing number of
activities/getting-to-know-you games, but I didn’t actually die so I count that
success. Saturday was pretty much twelve straight hours of orientation and
welcome and campus tour and ‘don’t you want to eat sausage and sauerkraut for
dinner’ and ‘I have not slept more than four hours in two nights.’ <o:p></o:p></div>
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By five o’clock on Saturday I had hit the “what the hell was
I thinking” stage of collapse. So much work! So many packets! Critical essays
and critical theses and at least one hundred pages of creative work each
semester and the whole faculty is so smart and at least half of my cohort is
young women in their twenties and please can I just go home to my bed! <o:p></o:p></div>
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Two reasons I didn’t. First, I knew Chris would only make me
turn straight around and come back. Second, Cory McCarthy gave the opening
faculty lecture on Saturday evening. “What if your madness is your method?” they
asked.<o:p></o:p></div>
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My madness is obvious: I Take to Flight. How can such a
disastrous, destructive impulse possibly be a writing method? <o:p></o:p></div>
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I cried, dear reader, sitting in the chapel listening to
Cory and asking myself that question. Because the answer came—pare that phrase
from four down to three words. Instead of my psychiatrist’s “you take to
flight,” what if it becomes “Take to Flight.” Not a description of running
away, but an invitation—or even a command.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<u>Day 6</u><o:p></o:p></div>
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Another 374 years have passed but at least I can say as of
tonight that we’re a bit more than halfway through. Today had a couple big
events. First up—my turn in workshop. It was super helpful, much less painful
that I feared, and when Liz Scanlon talked about how beautifully I conveyed
atmosphere in the paragraph with the girls walking to Notre Dame in their white
dresses and loose hair I thought I might actually die from happiness. (Yes,
that was attached to the “there’s an awful lot of exposition in these three
pages, look how you can accomplish the same thing with concrete details,” but
I. Will. Take. It.)<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment--><br />LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-51433693352604719432018-03-30T10:15:00.003-07:002018-03-30T10:15:48.507-07:0019 Days Down . . . 7 to go!<br />
<br />
I'll confess I'm greatly looking forward to this time next Friday, when I will be packing up my room in Spain in preparation for meeting Emma in Edinburgh next Saturday :) To be followed by 6 days in Ireland with my favorite daughter. In which I will not eat miso soup once. Or seaweed. Or even sauerkraut, which I've always liked. But having it twice a day is a bit much. I have been planning my favorite food haunts in Dublin, starting with hot chocolate from Butler's Chocolate, sipped while walking through St. Stephen's Green.<br />
<br />
So, random notes from the last 19 days:<br />
<br />
1. Massage therapists come in one of two varieties--those who treat the body as something to be appreciated and cared for, and those who seem to feel the body is the enemy and, by heaven, they will beat that pain or stiffness or fat right out of me. Fortunately, the former are the majority here. But there have a been a couple times I was convinced that the therapist learned their trade in the gulags of the former Soviet Union.<br />
<br />
2. If pain is fear leaving the body, then the colon hydrotherapy I had the second day must have suctioned out every horror film I ever saw or ghost story I ever read. I quickly afterward declined the remaining treatments of that sort . . .<br />
<br />
3. Yes, it is possible to taste in dreams. Five or six nights in, I dreamt of eating Gardettos--you know, the pretzel snack things with that spicy taste? It was lovely.<br />
<br />
4. In the first four days here, I heard some variation of "You are too much in control" from approximately 37 people. One massage therapist recommended I belly dance for my hips. While I appreciate the sentiment, it's quite clear that the control/relaxation issue goes far deeper than a few dance classes will solve.<br />
<br />
5. If one must receive disappointing news of any sort, it is not a bad idea to receive it at a place where one literally has TWO therapy appointments the very next day.<br />
<br />
6. Not drinking/smoking might in some circles be considered a character defect. In a wellness clinic, it is a huge positive. "Hey, I may be overweight and my diet might suck, but at least I don't have to give up alcohol!"<br />
<br />
7. I have beautiful blood. I have been told that four times now. "Beautiful color, so perfect, very healthy . . ." I'll take what I can get.<br />
<br />
8. Also, I did a bone density test and I don't mean to brag, but I have the bones of a 30-year-old.<br />
<br />
9. I didn't know it was possible to buy sweatsuits lavishly trimmed in fur. The majority of guests here definitely come from a different tax bracket/lifestyle then I do.<br />
<br />
10. I miss my family :)<br />
<br />
11. Coming here was definitely the right decision. It would be nice to leave next week completely healthy, but now I know that I have found the right path and I'm a decent ways along it. As long as I know what to do, I can be awfully persistent in doing it.<br />
<br />
Happy Easter!!! Eat chocolate for me.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-6355435294742375722018-03-10T13:54:00.002-08:002018-03-10T13:57:40.408-08:00SpainIt's March 10, four days since THE DARKLING BRIDE release. I'm sitting at Boston Logan Airport waiting to board a flight to Iceland. Which would be a terrible place to go right now, with six inches of snow in my front yard and going on our third day without power or internet. I mean, why would I want to be colder? Fortunately, I'm only in Reykjavik for four hours before boarding another flight to Alicante, Spain.<br />
<br />
And then begins an adventure: 28 days at SHA Wellness Clinic. It's no secret to those who know me that my health is not great and has been getting worse, especially since our move to Massachusetts. I cover pretty well in public--mostly because I'm not in public very much. I mean, even I can manage to be pulled-together for three hours of church on Sunday (after which I go home and sleep because I teach seven-year-olds for two hours--nine of them--and it's pretty much like herding cats. Extremely energetic cats.)<br />
<br />
If you want the dirty details about my daily life, I'm willing to talk. Just know that, on average, for the last four or five years I've averaged 15 hours of sleep and 9 hours awake every day. And awake means staying in my pajamas or managing yoga pants and working from my bed. I've cut down showering from every day to three times a week to conserve energy. If I have a lunch date or a phone call or an appointment--that's it, that's my one thing I can do that day. Clearly, this is not a sustainable way to live if there's any way to change it.<br />
<br />
Clinically, I have Hashimoto's Disease (hypothyroid), diagnosed when Matt was a baby. Genetically, my birth mother died at 64 of complications from rheumatoid arthritis, another auto-immune disease. I have had three debilitating bouts of mono, the last just before Jake had cancer. My doctor and I have been circling in on a diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome as the most likely (though I have a fair amount of pain, I don't have the specific trigger points most often found in fibromyalgia.)<br />
<br />
And I am So. Terribly. Bored. with myself and my health.<br />
<br />
When I turned 49 at the beginning of the year, I decided that this was the year to do something. I don't want to turn 50 feeling the same or worse. I don't want to end up confined to bed like my birthmother at the age of 54. So with a lot of research and prayer, I started looking for some kind of retreat where I could go and cover a lot of ground in a condensed period of time.<br />
<br />
Hence SHA. Of all the programs I looked at, their 28 Day Life Reset was the one that spoke to me. I know that I'm ridiculously privileged to a) be able to pay for it and b) be able to take a month out of my life to go through it. I hate leaving Chris--this is the longest we'll have been apart since I returned from my mission to Haiti in 1991. And Spencer is still just 16 (although driving himself now, which considerably lessens the strain of me being gone.) But there is so much I want to do with my life. I had my kids young--my fourth was born when I was 32--and I've long looked forward to turning 50 and getting my youngest graduated from high school. I love to travel, especially with Chris. And oh man, the books I want to write! I want to be healthy when my kids get married and I have grandchildren. And since our experience with addiction and AA, I've had a great desire to help other families walking a similar path. And I can't do hardly any of that without significantly improving my health.<br />
<br />
So . . . 28 days of lab work and neurological testing and sleep studies. Of acupuncture and personal training. Of a strict macrobiotic diet and my own willingness to deal with the emotional weight I still carry from the times I pushed through trauma and pushed away the things that would derail me.<br />
<br />
I intend to tweet and/or instagram the next four weeks, for the sole purpose of pretending I'm accountable to anyone but myself :) My goal is to return home in April able to get by with, say, 10 hours of sleep a night. Or even 12. Either would be a victory.<br />
<br />
P.S. (Yeah, yeah, yeah, I want to sleep less and do more and have more energy and be able to accomplish more than one thing a day . . . but seriously, if I spend 28 days strictly macrobiotic--no caffeine, no sugar, no meat, no dairy, no processed foods--and don't lose a single pound, I will be seriously put out.)<br />
<br />
P.P.S. (In all those health things, I didn't even begin on the perimenopause symptoms that have been kicking my butt for two years. Terrible cramps, heavier periods, PERIODS ONLY 22 DAYS APART!, hot flashes that are killing me, night sweats, mood swings . . . honestly, it's adding insult to injury to spend however many years of menustrual cycles, pregnancies, childbirths, etc. only to be slammed by EVEN WORSE SYMPTOMS before you're done. There are some serious design flaws in the female body. Number one is having the bladder directly beneath the uterus. Just saying.)LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-61784469648549222922017-12-15T16:08:00.000-08:002017-12-15T16:08:29.800-08:00Friday FiveBecause a Facebook memory reminded me I used to do this . . . and I always write well with a structure :)<br />
<br />
So my Christmas month Loves in this week's Friday Five!<br />
<br />
<b>1. Book:</b> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7070576-1415">1415-HENRY V'S YEAR OF GLORY</a> by Ian Mortimer. An ingeniously (month by month, almost day by day) structured examination of the year that lead to the battlefield of Agincourt. Makes me want to watch Kenneth Branagh as Henry V again . . .<br />
<br />
<b>2. Netflix:</b> I keep toggling between two shows: <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4159076/">Dark Matter</a>, a sci-fi with some Firefly undertones, and re-watching The Office when I need to laugh--or smile sentimentally at Jim and Pam.<br />
<br />
<b>3. Gift-giving:</b> my love language. Few things make me happier than finding a the perfect surprising gift (rarely expensive) for the people I love. From the seven-year-olds I teach at church to my awesome kids and husband, I'm a lot like Leslie Knope. Gift giving is my sport!<br />
<br />
<b>4. Writing:</b> I'm definitely looking ahead to 2018 and a return to publishing with <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34019139-the-darkling-bride?from_search=true">The Darkling Bride</a> release in March. After a couple quiet years while motherhood took a great deal of my available emotional energy, I also have a YA book on submission that I ADORE and I'm creating a proposal for my next gothic that has me dreaming at night.<br />
<br />
<b>5. Star Wars:</b> if only I loved my children less, I would have already seen <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0CbN8sfihY">The Last Jedi.</a> But our family is under strict orders for no one to see it until all six of us are gathered at home on the 22nd. (Sidenote--this will be the first Christmas all my kids are home in three years!)<br />
<br />
Love to all my family, friends, and readers!LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-76164216413590237202017-03-07T13:44:00.002-08:002017-03-07T13:45:24.675-08:00Teaser Tuesday<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>With only the littlest bit to go before I turn in revisions on my contracted book, I thought today I would offer a peek at my next historical WIP. Background to the scene: girl dressed as boy to travel without harassment, trouble in a tavern, help from an (unwelcome) source :)</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Boy? Are you really that blind?” spoke
the elegant, skeptical voice of the man whose table I’d knocked into. From his
tone, I would never have guessed he was anything but cold sober. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Before either Weasel or Brawler could object to his intervention, the
man stood and pulled the shapeless felt hat off my head. With deft fingers, he
found and released the pins so that my hair fell in a mass of twisted plaits
about my face and shoulders. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Brawler gaped at me as though I’d sprouted horns, and Weasel hissed a
vicious breath. The surprise was just enough for me to free my left hand and elbow
Brawler across the chin. I stomped for Weasel’s foot, but his grip had
tightened round my wrist until my fingers were numb and I knew I couldn’t hold
onto my blade much longer. So I let myself go limp, my dead weight dragging
Weasel off balance while my free left hand reached for the second blade
strapped beneath my tunic. I brought it up and under his chin . . . where it
met and matched with a second, longer, deadlier dagger. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The stranger with the courtly voice didn’t say anything. He didn’t have
to. Weasel narrowed his eyes, but let go of me. Not without a twist that made
me wince, but he and Brawler retreated under the stony gaze of the man who had
come so unexpectedly to my aid. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When they were gone, I found the stranger staring at me. His expression
had not altered from indifference. “You’re welcome,” he said. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The arrogance and detachment were too much for my frayed temper. “I
didn’t ask you to interfere. I’m old enough to take care of myself.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He raised a skeptical eyebrow. “And how old is that?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Twenty-two,” I said defiantly. Then, at his look of open disbelief, I
conceded, “Eighteen.” When he continued to stare at me, I added, “In three
months.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“I suppose you would take it amiss if I suggested that disreputable
taverns are not the safest place for a solitary young woman.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“I suppose you would take it amiss if I suggested that drowning your
sins in wine is the refuge of a coward.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He had a stare like ice, the kind that froze in England and provided but
a thin covering to the depthless water beneath it. Here was someone much more
dangerous than the thugs who had just been run off. This, I thought with
sinking heart, was not a man to cross swords with. Perhaps politeness would be
the better part of valor.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But then he spoke again. “You were nearly quick enough, I grant you. But
‘nearly’ will get you killed. Perhaps if your skills were as formidable as your
tongue you wouldn’t need a stranger’s intervention.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite the drinking and choice of tavern, I noted the marks of quality
about him: the diction and music of his voice, the grace of his every movement
despite the slight hesitation of the seriously drunk, the shirt that—though
aged by hard use and indifferent laundering—was made from the finest linen. So
fine that one could almost see the outlines of a well-conditioned body beneath
it . . . <o:p></o:p></span></div>
LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-40494845783154572822017-02-28T13:20:00.000-08:002017-02-28T13:20:55.350-08:00Teaser Tuesday<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Deeply in revisions for the new book, and thought I'd give you a glimpse of my main character, come to Deeprath Castle to catalog the library, and her initial impression on the castle owner she has just bumped into :)</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman";"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-size: large;"> Carragh did not believe in ghosts, not in the traditional sense. She was
not afraid of the Woman in White or the Darkling Bride or any number of ancient
monks who might drift down the slopes from Glendalough. She was not afraid of
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looked like that? She’d seen a few pictures of the viscount, as she’d scrolled
the internet looking for information on the Gallaghers, most of them of Aidan
paired with various formidably fashionable women. But the combined effect of
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standing so close she could have touched him . . .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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not for ghosts.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the painted pond’s reflection, the Darkling Bride stared back at
Carragh in disbelief. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-27042862379687121092017-02-17T16:08:00.002-08:002017-02-17T16:08:33.265-08:00Last night I attended a 12 Step meeting at which my son, Matt, received his one year sober coin. I'm not going to lie . . . I cried :) This time last year I could not have imagined who he would be today--and imagination is my job.<br />
<br />
Part of the meeting last night was a speaker with three years sobriety sharing his story. Something he said has really stayed with me. He shared about the day he called his dad and told him, "I need to go to rehab." And to this day, he says his dad talks about how that was the proudest moment of his life. The young man told us last night, "I know what he's trying to say there, but it always makes me a little sad that me becoming a slightly less shitty person is his proudest moment."<br />
<br />
Yes, it was funny and meant to be. I laughed with everyone else. But as a mom, there were a couple things I've wanted to say to him since. Things I suppose I want to say to my own son.<br />
<br />
I have been proud of lots of things in your life. How could I not be? You're the oldest :) I've been proud of your intelligence and your curiosity. Of your gentleness and your sensitivity. I was proud when your Knowledge Bowl team was getting crushed when you were in 5th or 6th grade and you cried in the bathroom after a round in which your team did not answer a single question . . . and then you dried your tears and came out and competed in the next round anyway. I was proud that you were in the Gifted and Talented science/math program in middle school. I was proud of you going onstage for the talent show and doing "White and Nerdy." I was proud of your acceptance to the University of Washington and the good grades you got in the physics program.<br />
<br />
Nothing has made me prouder than watching you this last year. Not because you were "becoming a slightly less shitty person." But because you are doing work that most people in our society avoid--honestly and unflinchingly looking at yourself and your life. Admitting your mistakes. Making amends. Doing things every day that you don't want to do. Like talk to new people and reach out to strangers and make phones calls (yes, you are my son!) And every day you are doing these hard things without the coping mechanism that still has the ability to sing the siren song of relief.<br />
<br />
How hard is that? Well, I've never been able to stick to a diet for longer than three weeks. Or a serious exercise plan for more than six months. And I still look for ways to avoid honestly evaluating my mistakes and weaknesses. Or, if I do evaluate them, I rarely go to great lengths to change them unless forced into it, usually by trauma. And I certainly don't do it publicly.<br />
<br />
So this year, what you have accomplished? It's required more than the intellectual gifts you were born with. It's required more than our family had the ability to give. It's required that you wake up, every single day, and do the work. You. Not me. Not anyone else. You have chosen to do this work and, with the grace of God and those He sent into your life, you continue to choose.<br />
<br />
And that is why I have never been more proud.<br />
<br />
<br />LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-81814041668659014092017-02-07T15:28:00.002-08:002017-02-07T15:29:56.823-08:00Teaser Tuesday<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hello, gentle readers! I have learned far too much in the last ten years to tempt fate, but I find myself cautiously optimistic about living in the world. Witness a third blog post in less than six weeks :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With the happy news this week of my first royalty check from Random House--and with my mind and heart thoroughly involved in revisions for my 2018 release--I thought I'd share a bit from that upcoming book. It's not Tudor. But I do love it. Enjoy!!!</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> <span style="font-size: large;">Laughter, tears, joy, sorrow, love,
hatred, birth, and death—every beat of every Gallagher heart resounded in the
stone and wood and plaster of the castle, so that those sensitive to such
things could feel the thrum of centuries through their bodies. Any animals
brought into the house as pets must needs learn to live with the echoes, or be
driven out. The castle knew her own, and jealously kept their secrets. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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thousands of books in their bays. Books in glass cases, books on open shelves,
books and manuscripts and journals and maps stored in great Renaissance
coffers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: large; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The library had secrets aplenty to reveal . . . to those who knew how to
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<!--EndFragment-->LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-86583665056695258942017-01-30T17:13:00.002-08:002017-01-30T17:20:53.287-08:00Favorite Books of 2016I was aiming to write four blog posts this January--I'll gladly settle for two :) And, hey! I thought I'd return to my blogging roots and take a look at some of my favorite books of the last couple years.<br />
<br />
CUCKOO'S CALLING/Robert Galbraith<br />
Also the subsequent two books in the Cormoran Strike series, written by JK Rowling under her chosen pseudonym. Mysteries are my genre of choice and I fell hard for the former military officer turned London private detective. I believe my initial response was: "Holy crap, this woman can write!" The only downside is once more being at the mercy of how fast Rowling can write . . . but hallelujah! It's being adapted for TV in Britain, and Cormoran Strike is being played by Tom Burke, my favorite ever Musketeer :)<br />
<br />
I'LL GIVE YOU THE SUN/Jandy Nelson<br />
Brilliant YA novel about once inseparable twins torn apart by their mother's death. The story goes back and forth chronologically, slowly revealing the individual miseries and gradual attempts at moving forward of the brother and sister. Contemporary YA is a hard sell for me, but this one really worked on all levels.<br />
<br />
THE CALLING/Inger Ash Wolfe<br />
First in another new mystery series (of which, yes, I have compulsively read the following four), starring police officer Hazel Micallef in a small Canadian town with crimes darker than the surface might indicate. Hazel is late fifties, divorced, living with her eighty-something-year-old mother and often at odds with authority. I love her :)<br />
<br />
LET'S PRETEND THIS NEVER HAPPENED and FURIOUSLY HAPPY/Jenny Lawson<br />
Known as The Bloggess online, Jenny Lawson writes intimately and hilariously about mental illness, anxiety, unusual families, and her love of ethically-taxidermied animals in costume. (Seriously, her first book has a mouse dressed as Hamlet on the cover; the second has a rather terrifyingly happy raccoon.) A friend sent me the first one in the aftermath of our son's admittance to rehab and never has laughter been more welcome. I recommend her blog as well as her books--look for the post about the dead duckling that showed up on her bedside table without warning, and Lawson's subsequent attempts to dress it as Marie Antoinette.<br />
<br />
LADY MIDNIGHT/Cassandra Clare<br />
The first in The Dark Artifices series, part of Clare's Shadowhunter world. Considering that my favorites in that world are The Infernal Devices, set in Victorian London, I didn't expect to love this contemporary, LA-set addition. But Emma Carstairs is an amazing heroine and I heart Julian Blackthorne.<br />
<br />
WHEN CHRIST AND HIS SAINTS SLEPT/Sharon Kay Penman<br />
It's no secret that Penman is one of my all-time favorite historical fiction writers and she does not disappoint in this novel of England's first civil war, fought in the mid-12th century between cousins King Stephen and Empress Maud. The title comes from a chronicle of the time, noting how England fell prey to destruction and death during those nineteen years. This novel ends with Maud's son being named Henry III as Stephen's successor--and then Penman launches into more books covering the tumultuous marriage and family of Henry and Eleanor of Aquitaine.<br />
<br />
DIFFERENT CLASS/Joanne Harris<br />
Harris's novel GENTLEMAN AND PLAYERS is one of my favorite boarding-school set mysteries of all time, and Latin master Roy Straitley is a brilliant character. After surviving the attacks against the school in the fall semester (from GandP), Straitley is not convinced the new Headmaster--a former student--has the school's best interests at heart. As the two of them clash, Straitley must return to a tragic event in the school's past and consider it from a new angle.<br />
<br />
ROAD TO LITTLE DRIBBLING/Bill Bryson<br />
I would--and, I think, have--read anything Bryson writes, but I have a soft spot for NOTES FROM A SMALL ISLAND. In LITTLE DRIBBLING, Bryson once more travels his sometimes-home country of England to examine how both it and he have changed over the years. From the very first paragraphs, in which Bryson is hit on the head by a descending parking barrier, I laughed and loved the whole way through.<br />
<br />
IN THE DEEP, DEEP WOOD and WOMAN IN CABIN 10/Ruth Ware<br />
These books by new novelist, Ware, are brilliant additions to the field of stand-alone psychological thrillers. Atmospheric, claustrophobic settings (an isolated cabin in winter and a luxury yacht, respectively) add to the unsettling sense of peril that stalk the main character. From the time I was little and started reading Agatha Christie, I have loved closed-setting mysteries and I will read everything Ware releases from now on.<br />
<br />
TRAITOR'S BLADE/Sebastien de Castel<br />
First in the Greatcoats fantasy series, de Castel takes the Musketeer tradition, with all its adventure and swashbuckling, and sets it firmly in a kingdom falling apart. Here's the review I wrote on Goodreads after the first book:<br />
"Yeah, it's pretty good. I mean you can't go far wrong with swords and disgraced scoundrels and a quest to honor a dead king's final wishes. I see the point, but it's nothing to shout about--WAIT? WHAT?! WHAT EVEN IS LIFE AND THIS STORY AND FALCIO VAL MOND AND I AM ACTUALLY CRYING AND CHEERING . . ."<br />
<br />
KING HEREAFTER/Dorothy Dunnett<br />
This was a re-read, as I tend to re-read all of Dunnett's books at various times. I picked it up again after my trip to England with my daughter last summer. We saw Macbeth at the Globe Theater, so it seemed a good time to go back to Dunnett's story of Thorfin, Earl of Orkney, and his doomed attempt to unite the various battling kingdoms of Alba (now Scotland.) She makes a convincing historical argument for Thorfin as the real-world basis for Macbeth, then takes such elements as the woods of Dunsinane and turns them into ingenious and realistic plot points in the 11th-century world. If you're not ready to launch into her 6 book Lymond series or her 8 book Nicolo series, then give this standalone a try.LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-85976851142248752132017-01-10T19:09:00.001-08:002017-01-10T19:09:26.707-08:00For Heaven's Sake . . .Nine months? Nine months since I posted?! What kind of writer am I?<br />
<br />
Today is my birthday. Yay, not dead, another year survived, blah, blah, blah . . .<br />
<br />
Except life is mostly lived in those blah, blah, blahs. So here are a few of mine:<br />
<br />
1. Know what I was doing one year ago today? Returning at dawn from an overnight flight out of Seattle. Where parents, grandparents, girlfriend, and two professionals staged an intervention for a twenty-two year old. It was not pretty. It was, basically, hell. And it was not immediately successful. This time last year I'd left my son on the Seattle streets. I spent my 47th birthday afraid he would die before he accepted treatment.<br />
Spoiler alert: he accepted treatment. He is eleven months clean and living just two hours from us in a wonderful program. He is working and volunteering and applying to transfer to a college on this coast to finish his degree. After that . . . well, we live one day at a time in gratitude. Today is a good day :)<br />
<br />
2. Finished a book. (Writing one, that is. I finished reading 120 of them in the last year.) A book I was terrified to write, certain that I could not switch gears and do something a little different from my lovely Tudor characters. But I wrote it. And now I'm revising it. And my editor loved the bones of it, so already I'm less afraid than I was last year.<br />
<br />
3. Worked on a second book, a spec manuscript probably for the YA market. About a hundred pages in and getting close(er) to submitting. I love this project with unshakeable passion--so much so, that I told my agent I would write it whether it sold or not.<br />
<br />
4. Went to Dublin, London, and Edinburgh with my daughter. Best part was very possibly the night train from Euston Station to Waverly. Why is there romance in sleeping in a steel bunk bed bolted to the wall in a space smaller than a walk-in closet? I don't know. There just is :)<br />
<br />
5. Went to Iceland for Thanksgiving week with my husband and two high-schoolers. Who knew spending days muffled up in coats and hats and gloves could be so fun? Sunrise at 10:00 am, sunset at 4:00, three days exploring glaciers and ice caves and two extraordinary nights of the Northern Lights . . . I count myself so lucky to have been there.<br />
<br />
6. And what did I do the rest of those 366 days? Sleep. The bare minimum in housekeeping and food procuring required to keep my family alive. Netflix. Working with doctors and therapists for myself and others. Cuddling the stuffed black sheep I brought back from Ireland. Slowly emerging from darkness into light. Which brings me to my favorite image of 2016:<br />
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I took this photo at Pingvellir National Park in Iceland. I call it "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." </div>
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Here's to dawning joy for all of you!</div>
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<br />LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-85522056176548859802016-04-07T14:38:00.001-07:002016-04-07T14:40:57.518-07:00Hello from Sodden New England<br />
Which is slightly better than Snowy New England, which we were just three days ago. Five inches of snow on April 4?! Seriously, we've had more snow since the official first day of spring than in the whole of winter. Today, at least, is rain. And rain melts snow. So sodden it is.<br />
<br />
Besides, good practice for my upcoming trip to Ireland :)<br />
<br />
I keep drafting elegant, witty posts in my head and never manage to get them out my fingers. Random it is.<br />
<br />
<u><b>What Irritates Me These Days</b></u><br />
<br />
1. Memes that say things like "The best way to stay happy is to let go of what makes you sad." What if what's making you sad is that your oldest child, your firstborn little blonde boy who loved cookies and Star Wars and aliens has been doing hard drugs for several years? What if you're traumatized from an intervention day on which you could see your child's death as clearly as if he were lying in his coffin? What if he screams at you and walks out and lives on the streets for a week rather than go to treatment? What if he believes that drugs are not the problem--the problem is you and dad? How do I let go of my child?<br />
<br />
(Edited: no need to give me advice. Really. I know that the answer is to let go of my fears and hopes and blah, blah, blah . . . and believe me, I have done that as much as any human mother is capable of. I let my son stay on the streets even while he texted that the needed me, that he had nothing to eat, that he was scared . . . I didn't break because he had an option, the option of treatment, and because I knew without a doubt that if we gave in short of treatment, he would die. Sooner rather than later. And I absolutely refused to let him die while using my money to kill himself.)<br />
<br />
(Also, he is safe now. In a year-long residential program just two hours from us designed for young men his age. He is safe, he is clean, and he is in the best possible place and with the best possible people to get healthy. He might still be mad at us, but I can live with that. But if I see one more image of letting go of a balloon or curlicued script urging me to be happy by walking away from whatever is bad . . . I might punch something.)<br />
<br />
2. Snow in spring. See first paragraph.<br />
<br />
3. Meds that make me gain weight, and make it incredibly hard to lose it again.<br />
<br />
4. College prep for my daughter. I REFUSE TO BELIEVE SHE WILL BE EIGHTEEN THIS FALL AND LEAVING HOME NEXT YEAR.<br />
<br />
5. Car accidents. In the midst of the parental trauma of the winter, I managed to total my car. My pretty little Kia Soul that was the first personal thing I bought with book money. Hit a car in front of me when it stopped suddenly and next thing you know I'm on a stretcher going to the ER (I'm fine) and my car is being towed off never to be driven again. It was really just an awful winter. I think I aged ten years in two months.<br />
<br />
<u><b>What Makes Me Happy These Days</b></u><br />
<br />
1. A new car. Another pretty little Kia Soul, this one in Alien Green that my kids hate. But they're not invited to drive it, so there.<br />
<br />
2. Being able to sleep at night without fear a ringing phone will tell me my son is dead.<br />
<br />
3. Spring. Even sodden. Crocuses, daffodils, and tulips are the best flowers in the world. I get giddy when I see them coming up through the winter dirt.<br />
<br />
4. Travel. After seeing our son safely into treatment, my husband and I took a week-long trip to Orlando. Stayed on property at Universal, went to the parks, ate really good food, spent several days in a rented pool cabana doing nothing but eating and sleeping . . . it was perfect. And for spring break, my daughter and I are going to Ireland for a week. Mostly Dublin, though we'll take a couple trips outside the city. The primary reason is for her to visit Trinity College and take a tour--it's among her top choices for university.<br />
<br />
And . . . let's just say my husband is planning to write off the expenses of this trip as research. Which is all I can say at the moment. But perhaps by the time I return I can elaborate :)<br />
<br />
5. BOOKS MAKE ME HAPPY! AND BOOK PEOPLE! AND THE KINDNESS OF READERS EMAILING ME!!!! I have so much to make up for these last months of absence. I can only say that my neglect of my readers is no more than my neglect of every person in my daily life. I have been an awful daughter, an awful friend--we won't even get started on how long and deeply I've dwelt in guilt about my mothering--and an awful author. Writing has been . . . tolerable. Which is to say some of it happened. But the other parts of authoring? Not so much.<br />
<br />
I can't promise to be who I'm not. But I can promise that I'm tired of living in the exhaustion of hour to hour fear. I'm tired of thinking about nothing but keeping myself and my family alive. It's time to love things again. To participate in the world again. To remind myself that isolation can become permanent and crippling if allowed.<br />
<br />
I like the world. Thanks for still being here :)<br />
<br />
<br />LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-20176985323412185402016-02-14T15:35:00.000-08:002016-02-14T15:38:38.450-08:00My Top Book Boyfriend<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;">Look, this game could go on for quite some time. I am 47, and I have been reading since I was 4. I have been falling in love with boys in books as far back as Frank and Joe Hardy solving crimes and Almanzo Wilder wooing Laura Ingalls with his gorgeous horses. If I had unlimited time and energy, here are some of the men I could write about at length if pressed. (If we ever meet in person, feel free to ask me to expand.) </span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><b>Ramses Emerson</b>: The Peabody Egyptology series by Elizabeth Peters</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><b>Hugh of Harrowfield</b>: Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><b>Will Herondale</b>: The Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><b>Locke Lamora</b>: Gentleman Bastard books by Scott Lynch</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><b>Thomas Lynley</b>: Elizabeth George's Lynley mysteries</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><b>Levi</b>: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;">And that's leaving out fictionalized accounts of historical figures, like Sharon Kay Penman's <b>Llewellyn the Great</b> in Here be Dragons or <b>Richard of Gloucester</b> in The Sunne in Splendour.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;">But back to the manner at hand, that of naming my number one, best of the best, favorite book boyfriend of all time: </span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">Francis Crawford of Lymond, Master of Culter, Comte de Sevigny, and Marshal of France</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;">In Dorothy Dunnett's six book series The Lymond Chronicles, she wanted to create a genius fit for the turbulent world of the mid-16th century. In an overall story covering the years 1547-1558, enter the slender, blue-eyed, golden-haired Scotsman known most familiarly as Lymond. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">I
think I might love him for his titles alone--there aren't a lot of great titles in
today's world. The first time I read The Lymond Chronicles, it
took me to the end of the third book to fall for Francis Crawford. He's the
epitome of a riddle wrapped in an enigma, something the author perpetuates by
only very rarely using his point of view. He's a Renaissance man in the Tudor
era, who can fight and love and deceive in multiple languages and across
continents. He's charming, clever, athletic, cruel, loyal, dangerous, and
vulnerable. And he recognizes a good woman when he meets one--even though it takes years for him to understand. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">On this Valentine Day, allow me to quote what I think is one of the most romantic declarations in literature--from Checkmate, the sixth and final book. When the woman he loves dares him to make her believe that he is "more amorous of her body than curious of her soul," Francis answers: </span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;"><b>"Gold bydeth ever bright. That is one blasphemy I cannot bring myself to commit. I love you . . . in every way known to man."</b></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">May your life--and books--be full of people to love this day and always :)</span></div>
LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-85055417927661573072016-02-12T16:45:00.001-08:002016-02-12T16:49:52.097-08:00Fictional Crush Number Whatever . . .How far back in time can I find honorable, damaged, too moody for their own good men?<br />
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How about Athos, Comte de la Fer, in 1620s France? I've long known the story of the Musketeers--it's one of those woven into our culture, especially if one is a lover of stories. And I've seen various filmed versions, but I had (shamefully) never read Dumas's book. Not until I stumbled across the BBC's current version of The Musketeers just over a year ago. Once I'd devoured the first season, off to Dumas it was for a binge reading of Porthos, Aramis, d'Artagnan, and . . . be still my heart . . . Athos.<br />
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Honorable? Check. Damaged? Check. Moody? Ha, ha, ha, ha, triple check. And a brilliant swordsman? What's not to adore?<br />
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Okay, I'm cheating a little bit with this one, because it's as much Tom Burke's interpretation that I'm in love with as the written version. But it's my blog, so I'll pick the fictional men I want to crush on according to my own terms, thank you very much. I mean, just watch him. It's like the character was created exactly for me:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/F-A3vtOm10U" width="480"></iframe><br />
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Also, lest you think my husband likely to resent these posts, I have only to mention that, for my birthday, Chris gave me a photo of Athos signed by Tom Burke. My husband is the best, your argument is invalid.<br />
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Happy Friday!LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-36435542831714797562016-02-10T13:33:00.001-08:002016-02-10T13:33:19.519-08:00Fictional Men 2 and 3<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<b><span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">Faramir, Captain of Gondor (THE LORD OF THE RINGS/J.R.R. Tolkien)</span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Times;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">In
the film versions of Lord of the Rings, Aragorn is far and away my man, but
before the films were the books and in the books, first read when I was 17,
Faramir has my heart. What to make of a man who can resist the One Ring? Who
fights for a father who torments him? Who lets Frodo go? Who falls in love with Eowyn . . . (I'll
get to her in another post--Fictional Women I Wish I Could Be). So Faramir it
is.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Times;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">Peter
Wimsey (The Wimsey Novels/Dorothy L. Sayers)</span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Times;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1d1d1d; mso-bidi-font-family: Georgia;">Younger
son of a Duke, army captain in WWI who "had a bad war", collector of
rare books and solver of mysteries in 1920s and 30s England. He babbles about
anything and everything, sings like a professional, and has beautiful hands. He
also has the good taste to fall head over heels for a mystery novelist the
first time he sees her, as she's standing trial for her life. It's Harriet Vane
who makes Peter human and crushable--I re-read the Peter/Harriet stories more
often than the Peter stand-alones, just for the sheer pleasure of their interactions.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Times;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-19195844443238536222016-02-08T16:50:00.001-08:002016-02-08T16:53:16.897-08:00Men I Love on Valentine's Week . . .Fictional men, that is.<br />
<br />
Look, it's been a long and traumatic and incredibly stressful six months for me. In the last eight weeks, I have walked through the level of hell reserved for parents whose adult children are throwing themselves into a world of pain and madness and fight kicking and screaming every attempt to help them.<br />
<br />
So that's very Valentine-y, isn't it? But perhaps a teensy bit of explanation for my longggggg silences online even when The Virgin's Spy released in November. And rest assured--I have not stayed in hell. Though it's there, threatening, living in a constant state of panic and despair accomplishes precisely nothing. So I'm clawing my way back into a world beyond my own home and family, and look! There are so many wonderful book people out here! Just what I need to remember who I am :)<br />
<br />
Anyway, back to the matter at hand. It is Valentine's Week. In honor of love, I'm going to post each day about a fictional crush. Not necessarily in any sort of order--although I am leaving my Number One Crush for the last day.<br />
<br />
For today, let's take a look at JOHN TREGARTH from the Vicky Bliss mysteries by Elizabeth Peters. Better known for her Amelia Peabody Egyptology series, Peters wrote six books about art historian Vicky Bliss and the mysteries she more or less falls into investigating. <span style="color: #1d1d1d;">I
fell in love with John the first time he ran away from a gun in THE STREET OF
THE FIVE MOONS. Art thief and avowed coward, John is apt to break into bad
jokes at the most inopportune moments. He is not averse to defrauding the rich, but he has zero interest in risking his life. He also has a bad habit of leaving Vicky
to pay the bills and, although she never knows when he'll show up, she does
know that he'll bring trouble with him. (When John is presumed drowned at the end of one book, Vicky proposes as his epitaph: "He hath no drowning mark upon him; his face is perfect gallows.")</span><br />
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;">But she can't resist his insane sense
of humor and his esoteric knowledge of English poetry--until he shows up with a
pretty little wife and in the company of dangerous men in NIGHT TRAIN TO
MEMPHIS. I defy anyone to read that book and not fall for
John.</span><br />
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;">As a bonus, for fans of the Amelia Peabody series, the last book in the Vicky/John cycle links these two series in a hugely satisfying manner. Elizabeth Peters knew how to write clever, witty, stubborn men and John Tregarth is a great example. </span><br />
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;">Tomorrow . . .</span><br />
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;">I haven't the faintest idea. Tune back in to find out.</span><br />
<span style="color: #1d1d1d;"><br /></span>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-53176046748519338662015-10-28T05:27:00.003-07:002015-10-28T05:32:09.472-07:00A Peek at VIRGIN'S SPY<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><b><i>Just 13 days until THE VIRGIN'S SPY joins THE VIRGIN'S DAUGHTER in the wild!! For all my very kind readers who have made these last few months bright in times of trouble, enjoy this teaser scene between Anabel and Kit :)</i></b></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Anne Isabella, Princess of Wales, had
learned from her earliest years that she could nearly always get her way. Not
many people had the power to say no to the daughter of two reigning monarchs,
and so nineteen-year-old Anabel, when she was being particularly honest with
herself, admitted that she was a bit spoiled. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The trouble was, one only tended to realize that when one didn’t get
one’s way. As now, with Kit Courtenay staring her down in refusal. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“What do you mean ‘no’?” she demanded. “I have appointed you my Master
of Horse. It wasn’t a request.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Unless you mean me to operate in chains, than I am telling you that I
very kindly decline the appointment.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“What is wrong with you, Kit? You’ve been irritable and difficult for
months.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Because I have a mind of my own and a wish to do more with my life than
follow you around and offer you compliments? ‘How lovely you are today, Your
Highness,”” he said in deadly mimicry of court sycophants. “‘The very image of
your royal mother, but is that a touch of Spanish flair in your dress?’”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Anabel’s temper went from raging to white-hot in a moment. In a chilly
tone reminiscent of her father’s Spanish hauteur, she said, “Long acquaintance
does not give you the right to insult me to my face.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Most unusually, Kit did not immediately respond. Anabel was used to his
ready tongue and the quick wits that could spin any conversation a dozen
dizzying directions without warning. But in the last months, his irritability
had been accompanied by these bouts of reflection before speech. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Kit did not apologize; she had not expected him to. But he offered
something of an explanation. “I am growing older, just as you are. I do not
have a throne waiting for me, nor even a title. Stephen inherits my father’s riches.
I must make my own path. And I would prefer to do it without undue favoritism.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“And what of due favoritism? Do you expect me to appoint strangers to
serve in my household?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“I am not insensible of the great honour, Your Highness. But I have made
other plans. The Earl of Leicester is bound for Dublin and has appointed me his
secretary. I leave for Ireland in two weeks.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“You’re going to Ireland with Brandon Dudley? To be a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">secretary</i>?” Anabel laughed in disbelief.
“Why not at least go as part of Stephen’s forces?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“If I’m not going to accept your favours, Anabel, I’m hardly likely to
go begging to my brother.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That at least sounded like the Kit she had always known—irreverent and
occasionally insolent. Although Anabel was as close to the Courtenay children
as anyone, the princess occasionally studied relationships as an outsider and
wondered if the pleasures of siblings outweighed the resentments. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“I don’t suppose there’s any chance you would reconsider?” There was a
wistfulness to her plea she had not expected.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His quick, rueful grin was answer in itself. “You’ll be happier with
someone more biddable, Your Highness. You and I should only spend our days
arguing.”</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 200%;">But those are the best parts of my days, Anabel thought forlornly.
Arguing with you.</span></div>
LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-46087944641539306372015-09-09T07:16:00.001-07:002015-09-09T07:16:05.425-07:00Childhood Cancer Awareness MonthSeptember is Gold.<br />
<br />
Gold for Children with Cancer. Those in treatment, those in remission, those who have survived and the too many who have not.<br />
<br />
Childhood Cancer is not the only significant affliction of our family past and present, but it is--perhaps ironically--the simplest to talk about. Or, in my case, write about.<br />
<br />
Seven years ago, I had four children between the ages of seven and fifteen. Three of those children lost a great deal of my time and attention that year of 2008. All four of my children lost a bit of their innocence. And what was gained?<br />
<br />
Jake's life. Compassion. Empathy. An awareness of how the sweet and the bitter of life are much too entangled to ever separate.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;">
LAURA
ANDERSEN<o:p></o:p></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-align: center;">
WRITTEN FOR CHRISTMAS
2009<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Monday, January 21, 2008 was a holiday, Martin Luther King Day. It was
also the day I’d been dreading since the moment I heard the word cancer. (Did I
ever hear the word cancer? Interesting, now that I think about it. Did any
doctor use that generic word? I don’t think so. It was always specific. Always
Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma.)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I get the feeling I’m going to be digressing a lot while I write this. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Hair should not have been one of my biggest concerns at this point. It
had only been nineteen days since Jake’s diagnosis, nineteen days in which we’d
been bombarded with information and emotions and experiences we’d never
expected to have. What’s the big deal with hair? <o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ll never forget the first bald child I saw in ICS at Primary
Children’s. It was the day of Jake’s diagnosis, January 2<sup>nd</sup>. A
Wednesday. I hadn’t slept since Monday night. Tuesday night was spent in two
ERs and driving and waiting. We began Wednesday in the surgical unit expecting
a biopsy later that day. By Wednesday afternoon we were officially part of the
Immune-Compromised Service on the 4<sup>th</sup> floor. My husband drove up. I
was, apparently, functioning enough that I still had to do things like drink
and pee.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I walked out of Jake’s room in the B-pod to get a drink and at the
charge nurse’s desk there was a father with a little girl, maybe four or five,
with a bright pink fabric headband on her bald head. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I wept. Because no little girl should be bald. Because no child should
lose their hair from toxic drugs. Because my son was a cancer child and someday
soon, everyone would know it just by looking at him. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I played it brave. We suggested to Jake that he preemptively shave, that
he get a mohawk, that he choose a pattern to shave into the side of his head
while he still could. He wouldn’t talk about it. He just said he’d wait. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He didn’t have to wait long. By January 21<sup>st</sup>, he’d had one
complete round of VAC in the hospital and two clinic visits for vincristine and
d-actinomycin. How much damage could three treatments of chemo drugs do? I
thought we’d have longer.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jake came to church on Sunday, January 20<sup>th</sup>, the first time
since his diagnosis. His friends were delighted. They sat on the back row, all
these brave, smart, handsome 11-year-old boys. As I finished music time, I
walked to the back of the room. And then I heard voices: “Sister
Andersen, look!” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jake had pulled out a clump of his hair. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You know what I remember about those boys? That they thought it was
cool. And I loved that. They weren’t afraid, or freaked out, or disgusted. They
thought it was cool. So I swallowed and smiled and my heart broke one little
bit more. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Which brings us to January 21<sup>st</sup>. Thank goodness it was a
holiday, because my husband was home. I couldn’t have done it alone. I didn’t
want to do it at all. Jake’s friends wanted to shave their heads, too. I
suggested we get everyone together for a party. When he said no, I suggested I
take him to a salon. He said he wanted to be alone and he wanted me to do it. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So I shaved my son’s head. His head of beautiful, straight,
exceptionally thick hair. The only one of my children who had my dark hair. On
the floor. Caught on towels. Drifting through the kitchen so that for the next
week I’d see bits of it wafting in a draft. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I don’t know how Jake felt. I can guess, in his desire for solitude, in
his devout wish not to anticipate the moment, a hope that maybe it wouldn’t
happen. Maybe time would turn back. Maybe none of this was really happening. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>His friends did shave their heads several weeks later during a scout
activity. Jake was there and I think (thought it’s only a guess) that he felt a
little more in control because he’d done it already and he was still
functioning. Heaven knows he had precious little control of anything much; I
couldn’t begrudge him what he did have. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When I looked at that row of brave, smart,
handsome, bald 11-year-old boys, I wept again. Because they saw Jake, and they
didn’t flinch. He was a cancer child—but he was their friend first. I told
them: “Someday you will have children, and when you do you will know how I feel
about you today.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>On the Friday of Jake’s first stay in the hospital, a little boy checked
into the room across the hall. He was there for a follow-up stay, as Jake would
be fourteen times in the coming months. As little as this boy was, he knew the
drill. He’d already grabbed a tricycle and he walked around the halls without
fear. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>On top of his bald head was a beautiful blue arrow edged in red, painted
there by his mother. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--StartFragment-->
<!--EndFragment--><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did I think cancer child when I saw him? Yes. But only for a moment, and
then I saw the child himself and knew that cancer wasn’t who he was, it was
something he was doing. And he was doing it great. And I hoped, someday, we
could say the same. <o:p></o:p></div>
LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-37279912170381828112015-05-18T15:55:00.001-07:002015-05-18T15:55:13.621-07:00Winners!!<br />
<b>And the winners are . . .</b><br />
<br />
<br />
Emily (Jake) Hutchings<br />
<br />
Brenna<br />
<br />
Kristie Hanley<br />
<br />
Morgan<br />
<br />
Sutton Carter<br />
<br />
Jess<br />
<br />
The li'l phat farm<br />
<br />
Torch<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>And the two who also get an ARC of Virgin's Spy . . .</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
Hamish Patel<br />
<br />
Mellifluolus Mommy<br />
<br />
<br />
Thank you all! I had the best time reading your choices--and your description words :) I wanted to give a book to every single one of you.<br />
<br />
Please send an email to :<br />
endlesstobereadpile@gmail.com<br />
<br />
With:<br />
<br />
1. Your name and address<br />
2. Who you'd like the book signed for<br />
<br />
I shall do my best to ensure the books reach you before the actual release date on May 26th :)<br />
<br />
Now back to drafting book three . . .<br />
<br />
<br />LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-21814897440987613092015-05-11T16:46:00.004-07:002015-05-11T16:50:46.572-07:00The Virgin's Daughter Introductions and Giveaway!!!!<br />
<br />
Fifteen days until THE VIRGIN'S DAUGHTER releases! Time to celebrate (and for celebrate--read panic.)<br />
<br />
To distract myself from nerves--and the fact that the third Virgin's book is due in three weeks--It's Giveaway Time!!!!!<br />
<br />
<b>What's On Offer:</b> I have 10 signed copies of The Virgin's Daughter up for grabs . . . and 2 luck(ier) winners will also get a signed ARC of the sequel, The Virgin's Spy :)<br />
<br />
<b>How To Win:</b> comment on this post and tell us your favorite historical character (real or fictional) . . . and describe them in 3 words. To get you started, I've listed some of the characters in THE VIRGIN'S DAUGHTER below, with their own 3 word intros!<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Lucette Courtenay</b> (22, English): stubborn, brilliant, passionate<br />
<br />
<b>Stephen Courtenay</b> (20, English): subtle, canny, dispassionate<br />
<br />
<b>Philippa Courtenay</b> (18, English): bright, artless, uncanny<br />
<br />
<b>Christopher Courtenay</b> (18, English): charming, lighthearted, kind<br />
<br />
<b>Anne Isabella</b> (18, English/Spanish): brave, focused, willful<br />
<br />
<b>Nicolas LeClerc</b> (31, French): quiet, thoughtful, deliberate<br />
<br />
<b>Julien LeClerc</b> (29, French): subversive, reckless, romantic<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>When:</b> Through Friday, May 15, at midnight (eastern)<br />
<br />
<br />
I can't wait to share some new--and a few familiar--characters with you all!LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-76585060915080806982015-03-18T13:50:00.000-07:002015-03-18T13:50:16.705-07:00After the Ides of MarchHow can it almost be spring?! There's still five feet of snow in my yard. Sigh.<br />
<br />
My current life is:<br />
<br />
<b>Drafting</b> book 3<br />
<br />
<b>Copyediting</b> book 2<br />
<br />
<b>Publicity</b> for Virgin's Daughter<br />
<br />
<b>Watching</b> The Musketeers season 2<br />
<br />
<b>Reading</b> . . . lots of stuff, like always :) My problem is that I binge re-read Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles during all the blizzards and both Dunnett herself and Francis Crawford tend to ruin me for other historical worlds (and, let's face it, fictional men.)<br />
<br />
So I decided now was a good time to finally pick up a book that's been on my TBR shelf for years: THE SUNNE IN SPLENDOUR by Sharan Kay Penman. Penman is by far my favorite living writer of historical fiction, and very nearly as good, in my opinion, as Dorothy Dunnett. Next to The Lymond Chronicles, my favorite historical novel is HERE BE DRAGONS, about Llewellyn the Great of Wales and his English wife, Joanna.<br />
<br />
THE SUNNE IN SPLENDOUR is the story of Edward IV, Richard III, and the last twenty years of the Wars of the Roses. With the mortal remains of King Richard being laid to rest this next week in Leicester, what better time to immerse myself in his story? Especially in the hands of a writer I trust.<br />
<br />
And always, of course, <b>My Family</b>. Oldest son immersed in studying physics at the University of Washington and writing/performing beautiful music. Second son finishing his freshman year in public health/pre-med--and waiting to see where he will spend the next two years as a missionary for our church. Daughter studying hard (AP U.S. history this year), learning to drive, and fending off friends who have decided they are in love with her. Youngest son registering for high school (eeeek!) and working hard on the perfect swoop of his hair across one eye.<br />
<br />
I learned to write seriously when these kids were between the ages of ten and two. Writing with half of them at college and two teenagers at home should be simpler, right? In some ways. But, just like everything else in life, there are always benefits and drawbacks. Am I ever going to be able to write 9000 words in one day, like Sarah J. Maas? Not for the foreseeable future. But guess what I can do? I can write in fits and starts. My beginning trained me to write in journals, to write in school hallways, doctor's offices, late at night, in fifteen-minute increments between making dinner or giving baths or cleaning up disasters. There are times when longer periods of focus are required, but for the most part I can work however I have to.<br />
<br />
That doesn't mean I won't appreciate it when my days belong more wholly to myself. Days (and nights) when my husband and I can do what we like without recognizing school hours or vacation weeks or having to shut doors :)<br />
<br />
I may celebrate then by seeing how many hours straight I can write. Or, more likely, how many hours straight I can read. Either way, life will be good then.<br />
<br />
How do I know that? Because life is good now.LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-17590862341985020022015-01-28T15:22:00.001-08:002015-01-28T15:22:17.608-08:002014 ReadingBefore January ends--and with ten-foot snowdrifts outside my door--I shall try to make up for my lack of mini book reviews these last months with a spotlight on my reading statistics and favorite books of 2014.<br />
<br />
Total Books Read: 138<br />
<br />
Non-Fiction: 24<br />
<br />
Historical Fiction: 36<br />
<br />
YA Fiction: 17<br />
<br />
Speculative Fiction: 30<br />
<br />
Mystery Fiction: 44<br />
<br />
(Don't try to make those numbers add up to 138--some books fit multiple categories.)<br />
<br />
No huge surprises in the genre/category breakdowns. Every year, mystery fiction leads the field of what I read. My dream is to figure out how to write a sustainable, suspenseful mystery plot. The first two manuscripts I ever wrote were historical mysteries. I figure fate had a hand in landing me with Kate Miciak as my editor (after my first two editors left Random House), seeing as Kate is Mystery Editor Royalty. Lee Child, Elizabeth George, Laurie R. King, Susan Elia MacNeal, Alan Bradley . . . the list of writers she does/has edited is brilliant. Someday . . .<br />
<br />
Historical fiction, not surprisingly, rose this year and YA went a little bit down. Clearly I am an eclectic reader. I do not have absolutes about what I will or won't read. Anytime I've thought, "Oh, that topic/character/genre isn't for me," I'm guaranteed to find an exception.<br />
<br />
With that said, here's my highly eclectic and highly individual Top Ten (in no particular order):<br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9780385353304">1. STATION ELEVEN/Emily St. John Mandel</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9780553418026">2. THE MARTIAN/Andy Weir</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9781619630659">3. HEIR OF FIRE/Sarah J. Maas</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9780316204262">4. WHERE'D YOU GO, BERNADETTE?/Maria Semple</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9780385741262">5. WE WERE LIARS/E. Lockhart</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9780385344050">6. THE DEAD IN THEIR VAULTED ARCHES/ Alan Bradley</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9780670026326">7. THE SECRET PLACE/Tana French</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9781476731902">8. THE SHORT AND TRAGIC LIFE OF ROBERT PEACE/Jeff Hobbs</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://store.wellesleybooks.com/book/9780765326362">9. WORDS OF RADIANCE/Brandon Sanderson</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.dorothydunnett.co.uk/dubiblioniccolo.htm">10. HOUSE OF NICCOLO SERIES/Dorothy Dunnett</a><br />
<br />
So, yes, I cheated on number ten, seeing as the series is eight books long. But, come on! It's Dorothy Dunnett! Just trust me :)<br />
<br />
And just to narrow it slightly, my favorites in each genre/category I listed above:<br />
<br />
Non-Fiction: THE SHORT AND TRAGIC LIFE OF ROBERT PEACE<br />
<br />
Historical Fiction: Hands down, HOUSE OF NICCOLO<br />
<br />
YA Fiction: HEIR OF FIRE<br />
<br />
Speculative Fiction: STATION ELEVEN<br />
<br />
Mystery Fiction: THE SECRET PLACE<br />
<br />
Hope your 2014 in books was as satisfying as mine--and here's to an awesome 2015!LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-90797151993340074312015-01-23T13:49:00.002-08:002015-01-23T13:54:37.986-08:00Writing Life/Family Life<i>"I begin to understand why the saints were rarely married women. I am convinced it has nothing inherently to do, as I once supposed, with chastity or children. It has to do primarily with distractions . . .woman’s normal occupations in general run counter to creative life or contemplative life or saintly life." </i><br />
Anne Morrow Lindbergh, A GIFT FROM THE SEA<br />
<br />
I have no hope of being a saint, but at times I find myself sinking in the chaos of distractions and jealousy--Oh! I'm so bone-achingly jealous!--of younger writers, those with fewer family responsibilities, the kind of writers who can draft an entire book in the month of December.<br />
<br />
What did I write in December? Less than 5000 words.<br />
<br />
From jealousy follows doubt and self-criticism: I started too late. I was too lazy when young. If I had been more motivated and harder-working, I would have had a book published before I hit my forties. How many books will I never write now? Also, I'd be so much cuter at book events if I were fifteen or twenty years younger. No one cares about a writer who looks like--and is!--a suburban mom.<br />
<br />
Then I take a deep breath. And I remember that December brought the only two weeks of the entire year when all my children were home, when I would wake in the morning wondering what we would do and went to bed at night secure that all my baby chicks were in one place.<br />
<br />
And I also find the veins of gold that run through those twenty years of motherhood. What did I, personally, gain from writing seriously and publishing only after I'd had four children? (And I do mean personal! This is NOT, I repeat NOT, in any way a treatise on how any other writer in the world can or should live!)<br />
<br />
I gained patience. Everything in publishing takes forever. So does potty-training. Four times.<br />
<br />
I gained perspective. Before 2008, I received some rejections that so shook me so badly I teetered on the edge of quitting. And then my second son was diagnosed with cancer at the age of eleven. Ever since, no professional rejection could ever again have the power to break me. Ironically, only after I accepted that writing would never be the single most important thing in my life, was I free enough to write precisely as I liked and damn the consequences.<br />
<br />
Do you like to be in control? So do I. Publishing is one long path of things NOT in a writer's control. You know what isn't in a mother's control? If your baby sleeps at night. If your toddler eats anything other than string cheese (you can put food in a child's mouth, but you cannot make her swallow!) If your pre-teen fights with her friends. If your child gets cancer. If more than one of your teens inherits your own major depressive disorder. You cannot make your child happy. You cannot make them not suffer. You cannot give them a perfect future. When they need you, they need you right that minute--whatever you happen to be doing.<br />
<br />
Compared to that? Well, for me at least, it means that I am very much more Zen when it comes to things like reviews and how well my books are selling.<br />
<br />
So December was not a stellar professional month for me. So what? We went out to dinner and movies, we baked cookies, we read poetry and biographies and personal letters on Christmas Eve. We laughed at the fact that I bought my oldest son The. Exact. Same. Book. I bought him for Christmas last year.<br />
<br />
All that joy at the cost of four weeks of writing time? That's not such a bad trade-off.<br />
<br />
(NOTE TO FAMILY: That is not a bad trade-off ONCE A YEAR. There is a reason I am spending January locked in my bedroom with my laptop. Feel free to interrupt me for fire, blood, or vomit. All other interruptions will be met with violence!)LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-83461278665335338502014-12-09T16:26:00.001-08:002014-12-09T16:28:15.119-08:00Virgin's Daughter Snippet<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<i>It's Christmas time! And my book is done! And my big boys are coming home in ten days! Christmas is my favorite holiday because I. Love. Giving. Gifts. </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<i>And now I have readers to whom I can give gifts! Yesterday I made public my inspiration board for <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/laurasandersen/the-virgins-daughter/">The Virgin's Daughter on Pinterest</a>. And today I'm offering up one of my favorite scenes from the book. Very early on in the drafting of this story, I knew I had wonderful flirtation between my are-they-or-aren't-they possible lovers. Even before I started drafting, while doing revisions on The Boleyn Reckoning, the two of them were speaking to each other in my head. At one point I believe I tweeted, "Stop flirting at each other! It's not your turn yet." </i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<i><br /></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<i>In the scene below, Julien has found Lucie in a tavern at a French inn. The lines I bolded are the earliest exchange I ever heard in my head between the two of them. Happy Christmas :)</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
She never got the chance. On her
next quick peek to the corner, Julien was looking straight at her, horror writ
large on his face. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She at least managed to meet him on her feet, stepping away from the
table so hurriedly that she upset her chair. Julien reached her in five strides
and gripped her arm above the elbow. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Hey, now!” One of the merchants she’d been talking to protested. “Hands
off, she was here first.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Julien glared down at him and slowly, through the haze of drink, the man
recognized the lord of the manor. Julien’s cultured voice didn’t hurt, either.
“I think I’ll exercise my <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">droit de
seigneur</i>,” he said cuttingly, and pulled Lucette after him out the tavern
door. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“What do you think you’re doing?” She pulled her arm away and turned on
him, half-furious and half-humiliated in the inn yard. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“You’re welcome,” Julien said with elaborate insult. “Those men do not
care who your father is, all they saw was a likely wench who was in way over
her head.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>With her arm free, Lucette reached behind her back and, with a practiced
move, had her dagger out and in Julien’s face before he could insult her
further. “I know what I’m doing,” she said clearly, hating that her head felt
so fuzzy. “I was not over my head.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He eyed the tip of the dagger, eyes nearly crossed, then smiled that
seductive, mocking grin of his youth that she’d hated.<b> “Where, Lucie mine, did
you learn to wield a dagger so handily?”<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Without moving it away, she said, “My father does not trust men with his
daughters. He required us to be able to defend ourselves.” From somewhere below
the fuzziness of her brain and the sinking hollow of her stomach, she realized
she’d used the word father.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“A
wise man,” Julien said.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“A dangerous man.”</b> Finally she let the dagger drop, her hand feeling
suddenly too heavy to hold up. “And don’t worry about the tavern, those men
didn’t know me, they thought I was . . .” She hesitated over the description.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He smiled grimly. “You think you can disguise your nature with a little
paint and none-too-clean skirts? Not in a thousand lifetimes could you ever
pass for a . . .” It was his turn to hesitate, as though unsure how to proceed,
which Lucette found amusing considering his Paris reputation.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“A whore,” she said it for him. “Men will say things around a whore that
they won’t around a lady.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Damn right they will, and not a word of it do you want to hear. If my
father finds out where you were—”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“He’d be angry.”<br />
<span style="line-height: 200%;"> “He’d be furious! But if </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">your</i><span style="line-height: 200%;">
father knew? Your extremely dangerous father that makes his daughters carry
daggers? If [he] hears of this he will hunt me the length and
breadth of Europe and string me up like a dog!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-8699329677254539632014-11-30T16:56:00.000-08:002014-11-30T16:56:05.116-08:00My Only Daughter . . .. . . is sixteen today.<br />
<br />
In her honor (and because my book is due before the workday starts in New York tomorrow and I don't have the emotional ability to write something new), I am posting a list I made for her twelfth birthday to read at a sixth-grade class party. With a few contemporary comments.<br />
<br />
Love you, Emma Cate!<br />
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
Twelve Things You
Should Know About Emma<o:p></o:p></div>
<br /><div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
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<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Emma
would rather read than eat. Or sleep. Or possibly even breathe.</li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Emma
is the most enthusiastic writer I know. And I know a lot of writers. She’s
got motivation, she’s got persistence, she’s got a million ideas, and
she’s got a voice that’s all hers. <o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Emma
will tell you that she’s lived in the same house her entire life. That is
not actually true. We didn’t move into our house in Saratoga Springs until
she was ten weeks old. So she’s lived here her entire life—minus ten
weeks. (UPDATE: now she has lived in Massachusetts for more than three years. So two houses, minus ten weeks.)<o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Emma
embraces weirdness. <o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Don’t
mess with Harry Potter around Emma. (UPDATE: Still true.)<o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Or
Percy Jackson. (UPDATE: Or Maze Runner.)<o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Or
Artemis Fowl. (UPDATE: Or Agents of Shield. Or Once upon a Time. Or about a dozen other things.)<o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Every
summer for the last three years (WHICH MEANT 2008-2010), Emma has spent a week at Camp Hobe. No
doubt you’ve heard her talk about it. It’s one of the good things that
came out of her brother’s cancer . . . going to a camp where other kids
her age either have cancer or have a sibling that has. Plus, the cute cute
counselors don’t hurt.<o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Last I
heard, Emma’s dream is to live in Portland when she grows up so she can go
to Powell’s bookstore often. (Yes, she is definitely my daughter.) She
also dreams of owning a multi-story restored building in which the first
floor is a bakery, the second and third floors are living quarters, and
the top floor is a writer’s retreat. (UPDATE: For Portland, read Europe. Not sure about the bakery, though she did make her own brownie cupcakes for her birthday.)<o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;">Emma
is never, ever apathetic. She is fierce in her emotions. Sometimes that is fabulous . . . and sometimes her brothers run for cover. <o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She has three brothers: Matt is a senior
in high school, Jake is a freshman, and Spencer is in Mrs. Zito’s class
down the hall. Emma used to ask when she would have a sister, but she
doesn’t anymore. She has learned to appreciate the wardrobe benefits of
being the only girl. <o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Emma is our only daughter for one simple
reason: Because she’s the best there is. Opinionated and curious and passionate—a
believer in dreams and an idealist who wants to do something real in the
world. (STILL TRUE!)<o:p></o:p></li>
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LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5397242602350263566.post-19553133269463979792014-10-23T06:46:00.001-07:002014-10-23T06:51:55.119-07:00Summer Books I LovedFIVE DAYS AT MEMORIAL/Sheri Fink<br />
An account of Hurricane Katrina at one New Orleans hospital. Like watching a train wreck in slow motion: an avalanche of weather, weak infrastructure, poor planning, and traumatized decision-making.<br />
<br />
THE ASSASSIN'S BLADE/Sarah J. Maas<br />
If you follow me on Twitter, you know how I adore the Throne of Glass series--epic fantasy with a fierce and damaged YA heroine. This book comprises several novellas set prior to Caelena's introduction in The Throne of Glass, showing her rise and fall as Adarlan's star assassin.<br />
<br />
THE OUTCAST DEAD/Elly Griffiths<br />
One of my favorite mystery series right now is this one featuring forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway. This story weaves together a possible Victorian murderess whose bones may have been unearthed with the contemporary death and abduction of local children. The title comes from an Anglican service held yearly in London in memory of those buried in mass paupers' graves.<br />
<br />
A DARK AND TWISTED TIDE/Sharon Bolton<br />
Another favorite series is Bolton's featuring Lacey Flint. Now working with the River Police rather than homicide, Lacey is drawn back into murder when she finds a body in the Thames. Was it left for her to find? How is it connected to the cases of young foreign women being smuggled into England? And could undercover detective Mark Joesbury be a suspect?<br />
<br />
WE WERE LIARS/E. Lockhart<br />
A slim but powerful YA novel about loss and friendship and first love. Cadence spends every summer on the Sinclair family's private island with her cousins and, eventually, a friend who might become more. As the three adult daughters quarrel with and over their aging father and his estate, the teens draw tightly together. Except for one summer--one that Cadence cannot remember. After two years of debilitating pain and migraines, Cadence returns to the island to piece together what happened.<br />
<br />
NEVER LET ME GO/Kazuo Ishiguro<br />
Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy were raised at Hailsham, a somewhat idyllic childhood at a beautiful school in the English countryside. From the beginning, Ishiguro lets the reader know not all is right with the children or their lives now--I would call this a literary dystopian novel. As Kathy moves between her life today and remembering Hailsham, the reader falls into a seductive story of what it means to be human.<br />
<br />
A THOUSAND LIVES/Julia Scheere<br />
The story of the Jonestown massacre, beginning with Jim Jones's meteoric rise in Indiana to the beginnings of his paranoia and brutal control in California. Scheere tells many smaller stories of the individuals and families caught in the web of Jonestown and, though a reader knows how it all ends, it's still a tense experience akin to watching a horror film and wanting to scream, "Look behind you!"<br />
<br />
WHERE'D YOU GO, BERNADETTE?/Maria Semple<br />
On my bookshelf for over a year--now I'm wondering why I waited so long. This is the story of Bernadette, once a noted architect, who disappears from her Seattle home leaving her husband and daughter to wonder what happened. Fifteen-year-old Bea tries to find her mother by piecing together emails, old articles, official documents and secret correspondence between her mother and a virtual assistant in India. Wonderfully comic and moving story of one girl's search to understand the secrets adults keep.<br />
<br />
HERETICS AND HEROES/Thomas Cahill<br />
The subtitle says it all: How Renaissance Artists and Reformation Priests Created Our World. Cahill writes the Hinges of History series, of which this is the latest, exploring those periods in time which changed the course of the world as we know it. Particularly apt for me as I am writing my new trilogy set in the 1580s, as the Renaissance and Reformation began to reap their rewards.<br />
<br />
THE UNICORN HUNT and TO LIE WITH LIONS/Dorothy Dunnett<br />
I am obsessed with Dorothy Dunnet's historical sagas. I started the House of Niccolo series a little diffidently, confident that it could never replace The Lymond Chronicles in my heart. Well, it doesn't replace it--but it wonderfully, magically, stands beside it. In books 5 and 6, Nicolas's plots in 1470's Europe reach their apogee as he schemes against his vengeful wife and sets Scotland on a collision course with history. I am now halfway through the 8th and final book in the series . . . and find myself reading slowly because I don't want it to end. I suspect when I finish I will pick up The Game of Kings and read The Lymond Chronicles once more too sooth my broken heart.<br />
<br />LAURAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14543901710565418004noreply@blogger.com0