Hodgepodge title, but that’s the way my brain is working these days.

In case you’re interested, today I blogged about my reaction to getting the call at my chapter blog – the Mid-Willamette Valley RWA Blog. Stop by and say hi! I’d love to see you there.

My daughter’s 9th birthday is Monday, and tonight’s her big slumber party. The boys are going to a girlfriend’s house and I’m taking the band of pre-teens to see the Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus concert movie. Ay ya ya…wish me luck. There’s only so much Hannah Montana I can take. After that, we’re off to dinner (hopefully somewhere cheap), then home to watch videos until all hours of the night and have a pedicure party. (By the way, big thanks to Connie for giving my daughter that pedicure kit that started this whole thing…)

And finally, HELP!!! I need a new tagline. Something to do with romantic adventure which is what my books will be pegged as. Spellbinding Romantic Suspense isn’t going to cut it anymore. So let’s have a contest. Leave your suggestions in the comment section of this post or email them to me at emcamp99 at yahoo dot com and I’ll pick one from the hat randomly on St. Patrick’s day. The winner will get a copy of Alice Sharpe’s March Harlequin Intrigue release, Avenging Angel. I bet I can even get Alice to autograph it.

I have news to share.

This morning I accepted an offer for a three-book deal from Dorchester Publishing!!!

The offer was for my 2007 GH finaling manuscript – Make Me Believe – and two more. It’s been a crazy couple of days filled with agent phone calls, contract negotiations and a bit of stress, but it’s finally starting to sink in.

I sold!!!!

I still can’t believe it.

I haven’t done this in a while, but I figured, what the heck. I’ll give it a whirl.

13. Coffee with a dollop of sugar-free whipped cream on top.

12. Jell-o 60 calorie pudding packs (double chocolate is my favorite).

11. Lean Cuisine meals (hmmm…I’m seeing a pattern here). Salisbury steak is the best.

10. Pedicures. I love pretty toes.

9. Running. (I blame Connie…though thanks to her I’m in better shape than I’ve been in 3+ yrs. If I go to Nationals, she’s talking me into running the SF half marathon with her the morning after. EEK!)

8. IMing with my writing friends. I feel lost if I go days without getting my fix.

7. A clean car! I spent several hours cleaning mine on Monday (when it was sunny and 63 degrees!) and now the gremlins aren’t allowed to touch anything inside lest they lose a finger (or hand, or foot or…you get the idea.)

6. WSOP on my phone. I never win. But it’s fun, esp. when you’re sitting around waiting for the Gremlins to finish their dentist appts or basketball practices, or swimming lessons. The 5 yr old can beat my socks off.

5. The Goo Goo Dolls. I don’t know why it took me so long to discover them. (What can I say, I’m slow!) I recently downloaded a ton of their music and keep listening to it over and over. Good stuff.

4. Small boobs. I know, I know. That one sounds racey, doesn’t it? But it’s purely not. Now that I’ve lost 15 lbs since Thanksgiving, I’ve finally lost those giant knockers I’ve been sporting since Gremlin #3 was born. (Yes, I pretty much lost all my weight in my boobs. LOL) I never thought I’d say this, but it’s sooooo nice to have my normal size B’s back. Granted, they aren’t like they were pre-kidlets, but I’ll take them. Bras that fit…ah! Now that’s a glorious thing.

3. Twenty-One! Played this in Reno over Super Bowl weekend. I’ve never been a big “table” player, but I had SOOOO much fun! I’m totally addicted!

2. My laptop. (DH says it’s a sickness…I tell him it’s a business. Or will be, one day soon.) Now, if only my time at my laptop would add up to a finished wip, I’d be tickled pink. (Or orange).

1. Centergy – it’s a class at my gym, a mix between yoga and pilates. I just love it and feel so good after.

What things are you addicted to these days?

That’s the question I’m grappling with these days.

I’ve done three so far – Reno, Atlanta, Dallas. All have been great. I’ve had a wonderful time, learned a lot, networked, networked, networked. I know the networking in and of itself is invaluable, but this year I’m still undecided. The first year I went it was all new and exciting (and Reno was cheap!). Atlanta was worth it because I won the conference registration in a contest and extended my stay to visit relatives in Alpharetta. And Dallas was a yes because I was a GH finalist. This year – San Francisco – is close, but expensive. The conference registration fee is higher, hotel is higher, and since I haven’t sold yet, I’m not sure it’s worth it. In addition to that, as great as Nationals is, the novelty of the whole thing has worn off. Until I sell, I don’t know if it’s worth the money. So I’ve decided to wait another month and see what happens before I make my final decision. I’d love to go…but…but…but…

Yeah. Lots of big ol’ butts in there.

So what about you? Going for sure? Still undecided? Or definitely no?

My revisions are out the door and off to my agent. (Woohoo!!! Thanks to J for reading and critting for me so fast – J, you’re da bomb!) Feels good to get those done. Now I’m back to the grindstone on the wip – which I haven’t looked at in probably a month – ay ya ya. I’m halfway done and want to get through the first draft by the end of March.

Since the house is a pit and laundry’s been neglected for over a week, today is catch up day. But hopefully I’ll get some time to reread the last few chapters on the wip and get my head back in the game. (So I have something to think about while I’m folding, folding, folding…my life is so exciting. LOL)

Next week is my chapter meeting – which I haven’t prepped for yet – then our annual beach writing retreat the weekend after. I’m looking forward to that – and to making some serious progress on the wip while I’m there. And in the meantime, my daughter signed me up to teach a tie-dying science unit to her class of third graders which I need to plan and shop for. (Read: SUCKER!) I taught junior high science for nine years. And this unit specifically – so it shouldn’t be a big deal. But…third graders? Oh boy….I did my student teaching in a 2-3-4 blended classroom and swore I’d never teach elementary school again. ESPECIALLY something as messy as tie-dying. Wish me luck…

), but the Giants are the only NFL team I’ve ever loved. It started in high school when my English teacher used to do soda can bets on the Sunday games. I picked the Giants and have stuck with them since. My mother loves to tell the story of the time (in my sophomore year) she took me to NY and spent the whole day showing me the sites…you know, The Empire State Building, Ellis Island, The Statue of Liberty, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Tiffany’s…and I, being oh-so-wise, was more impressed driving by Giant Stadium on the way into the city than I was on anything she had to show me. So when I found out the Giants were going to be playing in the Super Bowl this year – even better times. And when they won? Amazing. You can’t help but love the underdogs. (And that Eli – wow…)

In other news, after I got home last night I stayed up and finished my revisions. (I can hear the collective cheering from you all, yeaaaaaaah!). No idea why I stayed up until 2 AM doing revisions after a weekend of very little sleep, but I had the bug, so I went with it. Now I have to read the thing from beginning to end and figure out if it makes any sense with the changes I made. Cross your fingers for me. Hopefully I’ll have this ms out the door to my agent by early next week.

The Man Rules­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Finally , the guys’ side of the story.( I must admit, it’s pretty good.) We always hear ‘the rules’ From the female side. (At last a guy has taken the time to write all this down.)

Now here are the rules from the male side.
(Please Note: These are all numbered ’1 ‘ ON PURPOSE!)

1. Men are NOT mind readers.

1. Learn to work the toilet seat. You’re a big girl. If it’s up, put it down. We need it up, you need it down. You don’t hear us complaining about you leaving it down.

1. Sunday sports: It’s like the full moon or the changing of the tides. Let it be.

1. Crying is blackmail.

1. Ask for what you want. Let us be clear on this one: Subtle hints do not work! Strong hints do not work! Obvious hints do not work! Just say it!

1. Yes and No are perfectly acceptable answers to almost every question.

1. Come to us with a problem only if you want help solving it. That’s what we do. Sympathy is what your girlfriends are for.

1. Anything we said 6 months ago is inadmissible in an argument. In fact, all comments become Null and Void after 7 Days.

1. If you think you’re fat, you probably are. Don’t ask us.

1. If something we said can be interpreted two ways and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one.

1. You can either ask us to do something or tell us how you want it done. Not both. If you already know best how to do it, just do it yourself.

1. Whenever possible, please say whatever you have to say during commercials.

1. Christopher Columbus did NOT need directions and neither do we.

1. ALL men see in only 16 colors, like Windows default settings. Peach, for example, is a fruit, not a color. Pumpkin is also a fruit. We have no idea what mauve is.

1. If it itches, it will be scratched. We do that.

1. If we ask what is wrong and you say ‘nothing,’ we will act like nothing’s wrong. We know you are lying, but it is just not worth the hassle,

1. If you ask a question you don’t want an answer to, expect an answer you don’t want to hear.

1. When we have to go somewhere, absolutely anything you wear is fine… Really.

1. Don’t ask us what we’re thinking about unless you are prepared to discuss such topics as baseball or golf.

1. You have enough clothes.

1. You have too many shoes.

1. I am in shape. Round IS a shape!

1. Thank you for reading this. Yes, I know, I have to sleep on the couch tonight; But did you know men really don’t mind that? It’s like camping.