FUN STUFF

MISCELLANEOUS

Would you believe that I got an email from Magnus Eriksson in Denmark?  I'm not kidding.  Who would have thought when I named my hero in THE VERY VIRILE VIKING that he would have a namesake in modern times?

Then there's the woman who admittedly hits the dating sites and her headline is "Where is my thunderbolt?"  You have to have read my Cajun books to get the humor.

I also smile a bit when some readers tell me that their husbands or significant others now call them "sweetling" or "heartling."  I melt just thinking about having established such a trend with my Norse endearments. I fully expect after fans have read KISS OF PRIDE that they will use the word ‘Wowzer!’ in a new, hilarious way.

Okay, you're not going to believe this, but when I wrote the book, THE LAST VIKING, I pictured Kevin Sorbo (in his TV role of Hercules) as the hero.  In fact, when Meredith first sees Rolf, she says, "Oh, my God!  It's Kevin Sorbo."

So, I was at the recent DragonCon conference in Atlanta where, yep, Kevin Sorbo was signing memorabilia, and ta da!  Here I am with Kevin Sorbo.  I must say, the boy does age well.  This is what he said when he signed the book, "No, that's not me on the cover, but it should be." <g>

Also while at DragonCon, which incidentally can only be described as the world's largest Halloween party, 50,000 people strong, I finally met up with Chris Roberts, a well-known supporter of the romance genre.  And what a sweetie she!  Her daughter, too.

Four of us authors, calling ourselves Bump in the Night Central had our own booth at DragonCon.  Here I am with Lori Handeland, Susan Sizemore and Sue Kearney.

Another case of "It's a small world."  There I am at our DragonCon booth telling passersby that I write (among other things) about time-traveling Viking Navy SEALS, and this guy stops, looks at me, and says, "Whaaat?"  Yep, a former Navy SEAL,  Unfortunately, not a Viking one, but, hey, not so bad.

Here's a typical fan from Dragoncon.

And did I mention running into John D'Salvo at the Romantic Times Convention this year?  John has been the cover model on a dozen of my books.  I must say, he is even better looking in person.

That's me with Rosemary of Rosemary's Book Store in Australia.  Rosemary is an incredible supporter of the romance industry.

Me signing books at RT.

Me (in the tan jacket) with the Mystery Chix at RT.

TRULY, MADLY FUNNY

So, there's this young man who writes me a letter.  He tells me that, as an entering freshman at the exclusive Pomona College in California, they were required to write an essay on the book MENDEL'S DWARF.  A literary novel, this book detailed the sexual frustration, in very graphic detail, of a midget scientist who idolized the scientist Gregor Mendel and was in love with a librarian.

It was an odd choice, this young man from the conservative northeast thought, but then he had this image of Californians as being free-spirited, progressive, sun-bathed hippies (his words).  The faculty must be part of those wild Californians.

Lo and behold, several weeks later, he and the other incoming freshmen got another letter.  This one stated that due to overcrowded classes, students could be exempt from the writing requirements if they provided a second essay, this one comparing MENDEL'S DWARF with, you guessed it, TRULY, MADLY VIKING.

Again, this young man (embarrassed to find himself in the romance section of a bookstore) thought it another example of those odd Californians.  In some ways, he found lots to compare.

But, oops, another letter followed.  Turns out some pranksters got hold of the freshman mailing list and the comparison to TRULY, MADLY VIKING was a joke.  But meanwhile lots of students had already written the comparative essays.

The young man wanted me to know that somewhere, on dozens and dozens of book shelves, are dog-eared copies of TRULY, MADLY VIKING and that literary essays have been written about it.  Even more amusing, when that class graduated, their class shirts read:  "Truly, Madly Graduated."

Most pleasing to me was the fact that this young man, who never would have read a romance novel otherwise, said he really enjoyed the book.

Don't you just love this story?

SPECIAL PEOPLE

On another note:  These authors have been especially kind in giving me quotes for my books.  Please check out their websites and tell them I sent you:

Christina Skye - www.christinaskye.com

Susan Wiggs - www.susanwiggs.com

Christine Feehan - www.christinefeehan.com

Karen Moning - www.karenmoning.com

Lysay Sands - www.lynsaysands.net

Also, I got the neatest email from a guy after hearing about A TALE OF TWO VIKINGS.  He is in a band called, yep, TWO VIKINGS.  Check it out and tell them I sent you:  http://www.twovikings.com.

Also, look at the wonderful tribute one of my fans put on her website.