02. How does your hair look currently?
What hair? Short, as to hide the lack thereof.

03. What’s new in your life right now?

My horse, tentatively named “Shy.” He’s a four-year-old, not gelded, not broken. He’s a black-faced bay who, at this time of the year has only one thing on his mind. Guess what that is!
04. How many colours are you wearing now?
Gray sweatpants, white shirt, blue and white New York Giants ball cap.

05. Are you an introvert or extrovert?
Um, depends on the surroundings.

06. What was the last book you read?

“The Secret Knowledge of Water,” by Craig Childs.

08. Who is your favorite super hero?
Right now, today, it is Matthew Shepard.

09. Is there anything that has made you happy these days?
My horse, of course.

10. What’s your current obsession?
Writing.

11. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
To get ready for what? Writing? No time at all. Half a cup of coffee and I’m off to the computer.

12. What websites do you visit daily?
Facebook. MLR. NY Times.

13. What was the last story you wrote?
“Tucker Beene.”  A short story about a cowkid in East Texas who doesn’t give a shit about what others think.

14. What’s the last thing you laughed about?
My next door neighbor refusing to let me shovel snow off her sidewalk because, “Weed seeds are in the snow. If you throw the snow on my grass, I’m assured of weeds!”

15. What’s the last song that got stuck in your head?
“Closing Time” Leonard Cohen 

16. What’s the last movie you saw?
Gawd! So many are so awful. Not awful, is HBO’s “Gray Gardens.” Wonderful movie

17. Do you buy or download the movies you watch?

Buy.

02. How does your hair look currently?
Wet. But these days it’s shoulder-ish length and auburn-ish.

03. What’s new in your life right now?

G and I are taking the kids on an eco-adventure for our twentieth anniversary. Yes I was a child bride!

I’m concerned about snakes and malaria, but otherwise I’m bouncing in my chair, ready to go.
04. How many colours are you wearing now?
Blue jeans, white t-shirt.

05. Are you an introvert or extrovert?
I can be either.
06. What was the last book you read?
Yikes.

08. Who is your favorite super hero?
Robin. With Batman on top.

09. Is there anything that has made you happy these days?
Playing softball with my daughter. The wine of the month club. G. The weather.
10. What’s your current obsession?
Writing.

11. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
I pumped gas while wearing my daughter’s slippers this morning, so maybe I should take more time.

Usually, if I’m going out in public, thirty minutes. Is that a lot?

12. What websites do you visit daily?
Google reader!

13. What was the last story you wrote?
Men of Smithfield III–well it’s mostly revised.

14. What’s the last thing you laughed about?
Uh. A swine flu joke.

15. What’s the last song that got stuck in your head?
Miley Cyrus The Climb. (Which I thought was called Decline).

16. What’s the last movie you saw?
State of Play with the master and commander himself– Russell Crowe. Next weekend, I’m going to see Star Trek.

17. Do you buy or download the movies you watch?
Rent.

I don’t have any that I know of. Laura is kind of short to start with. If I am called anything else, it’s probably not printable.

02. How does your hair look currently?

Long, past my shoulder, dark brown, almost black, straight but very full and thick. My hair is one of my best features. It frames my second best feature, my dark eyes.

03. What’s new in your life right now?

Chaos, but that’s not new.  I’m rearranging my office so I can set up a workstation for my eldest son to help me out with time-consuming tasks for the press. It may sound small but the room is large and is filled with computers, four printers, external cd burners, table space, shipping supplies, bookcases, books, promo material, booth supplies, office supplies, fax machines, scanners, and phone lines, cables and enough power cords to reach to town. I do not attempt this job lightly! It will easily take days to accomplish without disrupting work too much. Plus I’m getting ready to make our new bookstore feature live for the press. Lots of work going into that one.

04. How many colors are you wearing now?

Two. Lilac nightie and black dressing gown. Sorry, it’s 2 am. I like to be comfortable when I write.

05. Are you an introvert or extrovert?

Extrovert. I think.
.
06. What was the last book you read?

Deadly Dreams by Victor J. Banis. Wonderful read!

07. Who is your favorite super hero?

My husband. He’s amazing, strong, brilliant, handsome and rock solid. A good man. Good father and great lover.

08. Is there anything that has made you happy these days?

My ten-year-old made me breakfast as a surprise—even if it was 2 in the afternoon. It was supposed to be eggs over easy and ham but the eggs broke and he couldn’t find the ham so he scrambled the eggs and fried baloney thinking I wouldn’t notice the difference. I got an unexpected meal and a big old “I love you, mom.” Awesome. And fried baloney isn’t bad.

9. What’s your current obsession?

Finding comfortable shoes for all the upcoming promotional events I have scheduled. I’m short, I need height but height is uncomfortable for standing in for 14 hours. Why is it shoes are either ugly and comfortable, or awesome and painful? All right, I admit it. It’s not a current obsession.  It’s a continual obsession. I love shoes.

10. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

For an ordinary day –5 minutes. For a going out in public day—one hour. Hair, face, clothes—they all take time to do at my age, so much to cover up.

11. What websites do you visit daily?

My author site, the MLR Press site, all the distributor sites, my stats site, my various gmail accounts, my local emails, my upload sites for text and art work and the Rainbow Romance Writers site. I try to work in a visit to Elsia Rolle’s site, Jessewave, and NoseinaBook if I have time. I visit all the google alert sites I get notified about. And I hit youtube in the evening to find music video’s to listen to.

12. What was the last story you wrote?

I’m rewriting Genetic Snare right now but the last story I completed was a piece of gay erotica titled WET SHEETS. Part of the WET SKIN anthology.

13. What’s the last thing you laughed about?

My ‘to do list’. I looked it all four pages of it and just laughed out loud. Then I got a cup of coffee. Then I did one thing on the list. This questionnaire.

14. What’s the last song that got stuck in your head?

Be Your Man by Josh Turner. I love that song. Makes me think of Bram and Jamie.

15. What’s the last movie you saw?

I watched the latest James Bond on payperview over the weekend.

16. Do you buy or download the movies you watch?

Buy. My husband  would have a stroke if I downloaded things like that onto my machine.  He’s a programmer like in missiles and satellites. It’s a fear of having to do CPR on my business computer like he’s had to do on my sons’ computers multiple times from all the downloads they do.

01. What are your nicknames?
Oh God. They call me Clarabelle at work (note my gritted teeth). Then at school I was Clarence, after the cross-eyed lion in Daktari (which dates me hideously) because my eyesight was so bad before I got glasses.

02. How does your hair look currently?
Shoulder length, dark red, curly, fringe. Yes of course it’s entirely natural *cough*.

03. What’s new in your life right now?
My new book Freeman, here at MLR Press. Great response from readers, even though it’s not my typical m/m get together romance. A book I am immensely proud and fond of.
My podcast interview at Jordan Castillo Price’s site http://packingheat.net/. I sound…well, let’s move on.
My new bridge (teeth) where I used to have a gap and was too self-conscious to grin.

04. How many colours are you wearing now?
About 20! Jeans and jacket and striped shoes, then a t-shirt that I had printed myself with some art work I was gifted with in my fanfiction days.

05. Are you an introvert or extrovert?
Well, I’d say introverted because my husband has to drag me out to events, but most other people just laugh at that. And I did do the podcast LOL. So probably a mix of both.

06. What was the last book you read?
Like Alex, I have several on the go, I have a mix of print by the bed and e-reader on the move. LA Heat by Pat Brown, SoulMates 4 by Jourdan Lane (which I’ve rather abandoned now, disappointingly), Oblivion 2 by Jordan Castillo Price, Regeneration by Pat Barker, Beyond Black by Hilary Mantel (fab read, but also for research for a new fic about mediums). Oh, and In Yer Face (art) by Ismael Alvarez (does that count as ‘reading’? LOL).

08. Who is your favorite super hero?
Silver Surfer.

09. Is there anything that has made you happy these days?
The response on Freeman, I must say.
A recent trip to New York to attend a book fair and meet some fellow authors.
Son#1 coming home safely after a 3 day ‘Lost Weekend’ with friends.
Agreeing the cover art for a new novel I have coming out next month at Dreamspinner.

10. What’s your current obsession?
It’s still collecting pencil board art, has been for years now. They let me display some at work, else I’d never get to look at them.

11. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
Twenty minutes. Honest.

12. What websites do you visit daily?
Oh God (she says again). No wonder I’m not getting any writing done. LJ, all email addresses, Bloglines for my blog list. (I’ll ignore all the mandatory work ones like HM Revenue and Customs and the dreaded A-book-retailer-place!)

13. What was the last story you wrote?
I recently finished a short story ‘Muse’ and subbed it to MLR for the Red anthology. No, this isn’t a crafty way of me asking if it got anywhere J.
I also wrote a short story called ‘Right Choice’ for the Dreamspinner series ‘To Have and to Hold’, out in June. It was extra special to me because Son#2 suggested (indirectly!) the plot.
Currently I’m starting a novel (novella?) about two men in a traveling gypsy camp with a complement of paranormal powers and a healthy passion for each other.

14. What’s the last thing you laughed about?
A gardening programme on TV last night where the theme was – 30 minute gardening. It was going ok until the presenter said ‘use a dozen or so hazel twigs of around 4 foot long’. Hubby glanced around the living room to see if, coincidentally, we had any to hand, then remarked dryly ‘well, that’ll add 4 hours on to the 30 minutes while we battle the garden centres of South London’. I know, you had to have been there, but I’m still laughing about it today.

15. What’s the last song that got stuck in your head?
New Shoes, Paolo Nutini. We’re word-perfect on it in this house and even if we only hear a snatch on the radio, we’re singing it all day. I know, TMI.

16. What’s the last movie you saw?
Vicky Cristina Barcelona. On DVD, Vantage Point.

17. Do you buy or download the movies you watch?
Both. We have a huge selection, some of which I’ve never even got around to watch. Maybe this should be the ‘obsession’ question too.

Hmm… I seem to have missed #7 somewhere LOL.  I’m sure therapists would make much of that…
Have a great week, everyone! :)

02. How does your hair look currently?
Dripping wet. But at least I got the cough syrup out.

03. What’s new in your life right now?
My novella, One Good Turn, came out a week ago in paperback (SMART ASS: Close Quarters) and not long before that in ebook form (TURNER & TURNER: One Good Turn). The ebook made the top ten sellers list at All Romance eBooks, which is gratifying, and has garnered a couple of nice reviews.

04. How many colours are you wearing now?
Two: beige and periwinkle. (Nothing matches periwinkle.)

05. Are you an introvert or extrovert?
I finally read an explanation of this dichotomy that made sense. Introverts are enervated by crowds, while extroverts are energized by them. I like being around people, but crowds exhaust me.

06. What was the last book you read?
Fearless Fourteen, by Janet Evanovich

08. Who is your favorite super hero?
Kitty Pryde

09. Is there anything that has made you happy these days?
Oh, my–yes! One thing stands out for being predictable, which makes me very happy. We stopped to pick up a wrist-corsage for my son’s Senior Prom date, and when my son went to the restroom both the shop ladies came over to me and heaped compliments on him–so thoughtful!–so polite!–such a NICE boy!
I also attended a Teen Poetry Slam this week. Only one girl showcased her ignorance. The others chose words with verve, precision and and no little sophistication. The MC also introduced me to a call-and-response word game he calls Staccato, which was fun. While we’re listing things that have made me happy, did I mention One Good Turn came out?

10. What’s your current obsession?
Writing.

11. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
Ready for what?

12. What websites do you visit daily?
My email, my crit group (RWU), a Charlaine Harris forum, and Pandora.

13. What was the last story you wrote?
I’m finishing up Turner & Turner: Turncoat, the sequel to Turner & Turner: One Good Turn.

14. What’s the last thing you laughed about?
I shook a bottle of cough syrup, opened it, got distracted, set it down, took care of other things, got back to the cough syrup and — you guessed it — shook the bottle again. It’s elderberry-based, so that stain will be a permanent reminder. Might as well laugh. (Yes, I bellowed some unprintables before I got around to laughing.)

15. What’s the last song that got stuck in your head?
Silent Running, by Mike and the Mechanics.

16. What’s the last movie you saw?
Last theater movie I saw was probably Goblet of Fire. Don’t remember, really. (No, I don’t get out much.)

17. Do you buy or download the movies you watch?
?

I thought I’d post a quick meme just for fun and to get to know us all better.  The rules are simple: if you’re tagged, answer the questions, post the answers on the blog, and tag someone else (not the person who tagged you).

Meme

01. What are your nicknames?

I was called ‘Sarnie Bucket’ at school, for reasons that still elude me.  Recently one of my friends on Livejournal has taken to calling me ‘Beery’, which is an improvement.

02. How does your hair look currently?
I’m growing it out of a short layered style, so it’s currently shoulder length, straight at the top and curly round the bottom.  Auburny-ginger in colour.

03. What’s new in your life right now?
My book, False Colors, just came out a couple of weeks ago, so that’s still my biggest new arrival.  But I’ve also recently joined a morris dancing side (the Ely and Littleport Riot) and last Sunday was the first time I went out and danced in public for an audience.  This is a bad YouTube video of us, if you’re interested, though I’m not in it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRwUE6ssTJw

04. How many colours are you wearing now?
Three: blue jeans, black and grey T-shirt.

05. Are you an introvert or extrovert?
Strongly introverted.

06. What was the last book you read?
All the way to the end; Transgressions by Erastes.  I’m currently half way through ‘A Strange Place in Time’ by Alyx Shaw, ‘Deadly Nightshade’ by Victor Banis, and ‘Gaveston’ by Chris Hunt.  (I read whatever book is to hand at the time, so I usually have several going at once.)

08. Who is your favorite super hero?
The Mighty Thor

09. Is there anything that has made you happy these days?
Getting my cover art for ‘The Mysterious’ accepted.  Getting the first draft of ‘Boys of Summer’ finished and sent out to beta readers, and of course the launch of False Colors, which has been getting a load of inadvertent publicity from Amazonfail.  I find it delightfully ironic that the attempt to disappear the m/m genre altogether has ended up giving it massive promotion

10. What’s your current obsession?
I wish I had one.  I miss being enthused about something.

11. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

Not more than five minutes.

12. What websites do you visit daily?
Daily, only Livejournal.

13. What was the last story you wrote?
I’ve just finished ‘Boys of Summer’, which is a m/m rich boy/poor boy surfer romance.  And I’ve just started ‘Fool for Love’ which is an Age of Sail novella.

14. What’s the last thing you laughed about?
My husband trying not to scatter polystyrene packing beads over the floor while unpacking a steering rack for the car this morning.

15. What’s the last song that got stuck in your head?
‘Country Gardens’.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVjYBtrHc8Q Every time we dance it, I go home with the Terry Wogan version as an earworm and end up singing

“How many lovely flowers grow

in an English country garden?

I’ll tell you now of those I know,

those I miss I hope you’ll pardon.

Daffodils, heartsease and flox

something something hollyhocks…

and then I have to start again because I don’t know any more of the words.

16. What’s the last movie you saw?
At the cinema, Monsters v Aliens in 3D.  On the TV, X-Men2.

17. Do you buy or download the movies you watch?
Buy mostly.  I’m still waiting for a chance to see Hellboy 2: The One With Elves, which I bought for myself for Christmas.

LOL!  And forget the tagging business.  I tag anyone and everyone who wants to do this!