I will be scarce online this week as I have a big chunk of alone time, thus an opportunity to get lost in the pages of my current WIP. I’ll be done with the draft within two weeks anyway, but if I’m diligent – and work as I do when on hard deadline – I’ll can finish within one. Please send good juju.
Incidentally, I’m always amazed at how my rough first draft takes on life and form as I comb through it in the second. The bones are down and now I’m seeking precision – to fill all the holes and round out the characters and descriptions. For me, writing is chaos, but rewriting is just magic.
So goodbye to the interwebs and social sites for now. I’ll be filling my time by:

1) dreaming with my eyes open

2) drinking tea

3) reading poetry to tune my ear

4) listening to my current musical obsession, The Killers

5) waiting for the arrival of my Louis XV ghost chairs (*squee!*)

6) and working out because I’ve been eating too many brisket f*cking tacos. (They are my kryptonite.)

Hold down the cyber-fort and see you on the flip side!

I recently had a contest on my Facebook page. In return for a chance to win a cover flat of the last book in the Zodiac series, The Neon Graveyard, readers told me their favorite lines from the series to date. The results were both surprising and confirming in that though I write fantasy, the aspect more commented on – and presumably enjoyed – was the relationship between Jo and others. I don’t think my readers are any different than me in that they enjoy an occasional snarky one-liner or a nicely turned phrase. As fantasy readers they also want to be whisked away to a world just a tad left of center from our own. But it’s said that while people may pick up a book for the story inside, they stick around because of the people they meet there. (I say people, not characters, because if the writer has done her job well, that’s what they become when coupled with the magic of the reader’s mind, and I generally trust that I’ve done this once they’ve become real to me.)

In any case, the compiled results of my contest let me know what really spoke to readers about the Zodiac world. It’s telling, too, to hear what they remembered off the top of their heads, as they’ll have consumed 775,000 words by the time they’ve read the whole of the series. And while I’ve had my own favorite moments while writing it, it’s the reader’s connection with Jo (in particular) that matters most.

So what was the one quote in the hundreds of thousands that touched my readers the most? It was, unsurprisingly, from my relationship subplot, spoken by Hunter to Joanna in CITY OF SOULS, in one of her greatest moments of personal despair:

“This is important. Don’t believe him. Warren, I mean. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with you. Not even in the darkest corner of that beautiful soul.”

As I said, this was incredibly clarifying. It reminded me that people care most about the human experience – love, joy, fear, sorrow and humor – and how we’re all connected through it (even if we aren’t necessarily stubbornly damaged superheroes).

You can bet I’ll continue writing directly toward this most personal connection in the future.

One of my readers just asked this of me on Facebook, and I gotta say, I share her impatience. I am so very ready to talk to my readers about The Neon Graveyard. I have actually heard from a reviewer who received an Advanced Reader’s Copy a couple of weeks ago, and the comments left me feeling like I gave closure where needed*, yet left her wanting more, and that’s a nice balance, I think. It means I’m ending the series at the right time, and that Joanna & Co. haven’t worn out their welcome.

Speaking of welcome, would readers in the following cities please throw out a welcome mat for me? Because this is where I’m going to be come June:

June 3, 2011 – Las Vegas
Borders/Town Square
6521 Las Vegas Blvd. S.
Las Vegas, NV 89119
7 p.m. (Tweet-up @ 5:45!)

Ah, a home town signing to both kick things off and to say goodbye. The world of the Zodiac is set in modern-day Vegas, so it seems only fitting to mark the end of the series with a signing and Q&A at one of the places I frequent most when in town. The event starts at 7 p.m. but I’d like to add a tweet-up at 5:45 in the Town Square Park where we can have some coffee together and chillax before the event. You understand I can’t sign books before 7 – that would be unfair to Borders, which is working hard to put on the event – but it’s nice to get face-time with my readers too, so if you think you’re able to make it, be sure you’re following my new account on Twitter (my old one was deleted so you may not be and not know it) so we can find each other once there.

June 4, 2011 – Houston
Murder By the Book
2342 Bissonnet
Houston, TX 77005
1 p.m.

This fabulous indie bookstore has been on my professional Bucket List practically since my first release. Signing at this store is a wonderful way for me to say goodbye to Jo Archer and the world of the Zodiac, though I already know I’ll walk out having bought more books than I sell. The only thing keeping the signing from being a total wash will be chatting with the wonderful book staff and you. So please stop by, support your local indie store, and let’s have an intimate little chat, shall we?

June 11, 2011 – Dallas
DFW Tea Readers Group
Hilton Garden Inn
Allen, TX 75013
1 – 5 p.m.

An annual event held by the DFW Tea Readers Group and Book Club – this one is gonna be fun. I haven’t worn a boa since leaving a Las Vegas production show, so you know I’m all over that. Even better, I get to don bling with readers who love romance, mystery, fantasy & sf. There will be a welcome reception in the Allen Ballroom of the Hilton Garden Inn Plano/Allen where we’ll mingle, shop for books, and fight over raffle baskets. Augmenting the latter nicely will be a high tea with champagne. (How civilized is that?)

After that, a book signing with: Nalini Singh, Rachel Gibson, Julia Quinn, Vicki Lewis Thompson, Dianna Love, Vicki Pettersson (that’s me!) Candace Havens, Dakota Cassidy, Michele Bardsley, Jaye Wells, Lorraine Heath, Nikki Duncan, Rachel Caine, Lori Wilde, and Farrah Rochon.

I’m excited about this one because it’s my first event in my adopted/part-time hometown of Dallas. So please come out and say hello.

June 28, 2011 – Tuesday – New York
Literacy for Life Autographing
RWA National Conference
Mariott Marquis Hotel
1535 Broadway
New York, New York 10036
5:30 – 7:30 p.m.

The “Readers for Life” Literacy Autographing will be held at the New York Marriott Marquis in Times Square, and it brings together more than 500 romance authors (and me too!) to raise money for ProLiteracy Worldwide. It’s a huge, exciting event, and the only time I’ll be on the east coast this year, so I’d love to see you if you can make it.
Not in June, but my only other confirmed signing for the year:

November 11-13 – Dallas
Readers&’ritas
Hilton Garden Inn
Allen, TX 75013

This is a reader’s conference held at the Hilton Garden Inn & Suites in Allen, Texas. I love events like this because they’re more informal than signings, and you really get to mix and mingle with your readers and other authors. Kicking off with pizza party on Friday night, Saturday is spent – from breakfast to margarita hour  – with readers and authors talking and breathing books. (Margaritas and books? Have I just died and gone to heaven?) There are also panels, book signings, and a masquerade ball Saturday night. Brunch and farewells are Sunday, but this event requires tickets, so please check out the link above if you’re considering coming.

Other authors include: Kerrelyn Sparks, Roxanne St. Claire, Candace Havens, Rosemary Clement-Moore, Dakota Cassidy, Michele Bardsley, Lauren Willig, Tara Taylor Quinn, Jane Porter, Gena Showalter, C.L. Wilson, Lori Wilde, Ann Aguirre, Nikki Duncan, Jade Lee, Marianne Mancusi, Jaye Wells, Julia Justiss, Alyssa Day, Monica Burns, Louisa Edwards, Vicki Pettersson (that’s still me!) , Kristen Painter, and Jill Monroe.

That’s all for now. I hope to see some of you on the road so we can send Joanna Archer & the Zodiac series off in style!

*Closure, of course, isn’t the same as total satisfaction, and cannot mean the same thing to all readers anyway. All I can do is my level best story-wise – what I believe is truest to Joanna and her world. It is folly to try for anything more.

I try to keep my posts here, and on Facebook and Twitter, as focused on books and writing and my writer’s life as possible. I figure that’s what people who don’t know me personally are most interested, as it’s what drew them to these sites in the first place. Yet it seems as though there’s a lot of bad news right now. I’m naturally talking about Japan, now ever in our thoughts, though many of my friends – personal and professional – are struggling with their own intimate crises – illnesses, deaths, injuries … all of which deserve much thought, prayer, and helping hands.

I also had a particularly unpleasant run-in with someone on an airplane yesterday, which is not surprising given the trying state of air travel today, and that everyone was a bit cranky due to daylight savings. I only mention it in context with disaster because it would be great if we could all get outside our own heads for a minute, and make an effort to be kind to each another. Life is hard enough. Being judgmental, being selfish, may keep your own head and heart safe, and your world relatively predicable, but you never know what’s going on with someone else just by looking. They could be struggling deeply, and even a mere moment of thoughtfulness on your part would help. Besides, you never know when your relatively predicable would is going to be rocked by a personal earthquake. It’s nice, when it happens, if someone is there for you.

I personally don’t want to feel like this is a ‘looking out for number one’ world. It’s gross, and I refuse to act like that. There’s a lot of anger and fear right now and the best way to help alleviate it – other than, yanno, helping – is simply not to contribute to it. So today, on a day when I’m still reeling from an unkindness – reeling too from all the tragedy in the media – I just want to encourage anyone who took time to read this to please tread softly around other people’s feelings. It’s okay to be tough, and to go out there and make your mark, but it’s not okay to do it at the expense of someone else’s heart.

Meeting awesome-sauce people is one of the things I love about my job. It’s especially lovely to unexpectedly cyber-bump (I know that sounds naughty but it’s not) into fellow scribblers who use their time and words to build up both the genre and other writers. I discovered firsthand that Nicole Peeler is one of those people when she paid me an unexpected, but much appreciated kindness (she probably did it on a whim, but it meant – and still means – a hell of a lot to me).

I tell you this because I know I like to buy products from people I like – whether it’s watching a movie, going to a concert, or yeah, buying a book. (Not being an asshat goes a long in getting me to part ways with my money, but I guess I’m just easy that way).

All of this is a long way of saying that Nicole Peeler is good peeps, and if you haven’t heard of her already, then here’s your chance to key into a wonderful writer with a fantastically unique Urban Fantasy series, and who is a good person to boot. With her first book being offered up this month as a $2.99 download (more info below) you’d be silly not to pick her up asap.(And, seriously, aren’t these the most amazing covers?)

So to my lovely readers, here’s an equally lovely author whom I’m thrilled to introduce to you…please take a moment to say hi and chat with us in the comments!

Viva Las Vegas!

I like a lot of things about Vicki. She’s got red hair, coupled with a wicked sense of smarts and humor. I’m also weirdly obsessed with long people, being that I’m only an inch or two away from midget-hood.

I also like tons of things about Vicki’s books, including that they’re set in Vegas, baby!

Besides height, I also have a weird obsession with Vegas. It’s extra weird considering that I (a) don’t gamble, (b) have never actually been to Vegas and (c) am not a fan of Celine Dion.

And yet, I love Vegas—although I suppose it’s very much a theoretical Vegas, based on a half-baked mixture of conjecture, dreams, and movie images. In fact, my mental-Vegas looks rather suspiciously like this Killer’s video:

I imagine everyone’s super out of this world (a la Vicki’s version, no?), glamorous, and louche. And I want to play!

What do you think of when you think “Vegas”?

Nicole Peeler is a professor of English literature and creative writing at Seton Hill University, in Greensburg, PA. She also writes urban fantasy novels for Orbit Books. Her third novel, Tempest’s Legacy, just hit shelves in January.

For those American readers interested in Nicole’s fiction, Orbit Books is offering her first book, Tempest Rising, as this month’s Orbital Drop, downloadable on multiple platforms for only $2.99. Click here for more details.