Anybody got big reading plans for the long weekend? I’m going to be holing up and writing, myself, but I plan to take reading breaks. Kate Hoffman’s new Blaze is calling to me (Doing Ireland! With a name like that, how can you not buy it?). And so is Ilona Andrews’ Magic Bites, which I bought but have not yet read. My TBR shelf is a thing of beauty and I’m going to begin working my way through that sucker.

I’m finishing off the edits on Miss Lonely Hearts, which weren’t really huge, but some of them required thought and some backtracking and rereading to see how to make the changes smooth. I’m almost there, and it’ll be winging back to my not-so-evil editor so that she’ll have something to read this weekend.

And then it’s back to demons and druids and Nephilim, oh my (Wicked Hot). It’s funny but a few years ago I made a crack to my writer’s group about how I’d never get to write angels the way I see them, big scary dudes with swords who lop off heads, and now here I am writing about supernatural battles and angels with big swords…which just goes to show that you should never say never.

1. As aliens, they have no idea what the human norm is. Possibly they think cellulite is a mark of beauty.
2. Aliens have inhuman stamina.
3. Telepathic aliens know EXACTLY what women want.
4. If they run out of good pickup lines, an abduction is always an option, and it beats talking about the weather for an icebreaker.
5. Aliens have cool spaceships and high-tech gadgets. (I am lusting after the writing setup Keelan gives Micki in I Was An Alien’s Love Slave, which you can read about Sept. 21.)
6. Tired of the same-old variations? Zero-G sex.
7. They boldly go where no man has gone before…
8. They do not leave their alien socks on the floor for the women to pick up and wash. See high tech gadgets.
9. Ditto leaving the seat up.
10. Aliens can master languages that have nothing in common with their own, and establish diplomatic relationships with races that have evolved along entirely different paths. Coexistence with a woman is a piece of cake.
11. Want to see the galaxy and explore strange new worlds? Aliens get directions and do not get lost.
12. Tired of cooking? Replicators do the dirty work.
13. Since nobody has to cook or do the dishes, there’s plenty of time for other things after an alien day at work…

The alien invasion has begun…Earth Girls Aren’t Easy is on sale today!

“Earth girls aren’t easy,” the hunky stranger from another planet tells Angie when she puts the brakes on their erotic encounter. But what else can she do when she finds out just how far out of town he’s from?

Danek had two reasons to visit planet Earth. One was straightforward—deliver a package for the woman his lord commander had whisked away without stopping to ask if she had any unfinished business to wrap up first. The other was more complicated, continuing his search for his bondmate among the women of that world.

The package errand led him to Angela Robbins, where Danek discovers two things. First, that he’s found his bondmate, the woman whose psychic wavelength matches his and who has the latent psychic ability to receive his telepathic thoughts. And second, that convincing her of this will take all his considerable seductive skill along with new heights of ingenuity. He might be alien, but Danek’s all male and determined to win his woman with pleasure that’s out of this world!

Not entirely work-safe excerpt after the jump… (more…)

Edits for Miss Lonely Hearts are underway, and Earth Girls Aren’t Easy releases tomorrow. Talk about juggling genres. Meg Cabot has a hilarious description of the revision process in her blog, and she’s so right about starting a new book when you finish the old book. Of course, that leads to juggling con artists, aliens, and demons (Wicked Hot) in the same week, possibly also insane mathematicians if another set of edits appears this week, too.

So anyway, that’s my Tuesday. Editing the con artist caper and preparing for tomorrow’s alien invasion. It’s not just a job, it’s an adventure!

Photo by Patrick Teglia

Summer’s ending and you can really feel it up on Hurricane Ridge. The wildflowers are almost done for the season. An awesome vista, well worth the drive, with a nice walking trail around the top to keep visitors from disturbing the fragile meadow flora. There is something about getting a new perspective. Hurricane Ridge gives you the view from the top of the world.

Pretty much the entire current issue of the Forks Forum revolves around the possibility of using Forks as the location to film the upcoming movie Twilight. I think this is a great idea, and so here are my top ten reasons why Forks should be used as the setting for the movie instead of British Columbia.

1. It’s authentic. Nothing says “real rain forest” like a real rain forest. You don’t have to try to create the atmosphere, just point and shoot. We got your gloom. Even the most cheerful soul will imagine vampires popping out from behind every cedar and Sitka Spruce after a few days in Forks.

2. It’s cheap. It’s about the only place in Western Washington, let alone the Olympic Peninsula, that a full-time writer can afford to live, which means that housing and feeding the crew here will cut beaucoup bucks off your budget.

3. We’re the only stoplight on Highway 101, population 3,000 (which probably includes our two cats). Nobody will ever be late for filming due to being stuck in traffic.

4. If we can handle lost hikers, bear attacks and Bigfoot sightings, we can handle an influx of movie people.

5. All that film equipment will be useful to capture the crew’s Bigfoot sightings.

6. We are a six-hour round trip from the nearest shopping mall and and a three-hour round trip from the nearest movie theatre. Your crew will work always be hard at work because what else are they going to do?

7. We have the cleanest air on the planet and with twelve feet of rain a year, we have ions like you would not believe. Ions stimulate creativity, guaranteeing stunning creative performances from the cast and strokes of brilliance for the director.

8. The Pacific wilderness coast in Olympic National Park will stun you with its raw power. There’s a scene in Twilight on First Beach. If you film it on First Beach, the footage will be magnificent.

9. Did I mention Olympic National Park? It’s a World Heritage Site. Other world heritage sites include the pyramids of Egypt, Serengeti National Park, and the Great Barrier Reef. It’s a place outside the ordinary world and an ideal setting for bringing fantasy to life.

10. Forget to pack something? You can buy anything at Forks Outfitters.

Jordan tagged me, so today you get meme.

Four jobs I’ve had or currently have in my life:
Current: writer and mom. Have had: technical support, production director for weekly newspaper

Four countries I’ve been to:
US and Canada. Yep. That’s it.

Four places I’d rather be right now:
Rialto Beach, Hurricane Ridge, Cape Flattery, Lake Ozette

Four foods I like to eat:
Chocolate, pineapple, stuffed grape leaves, moussaka

Four personal heroes, past or present:
Michael Faraday, Albert Einstein, Richard Feinman, Jet Li

Four books you’ve read or are currently reading:
Now reading: Write For Your Life by Lawrence Block, Pick Me Up by Samantha Hunter. Recently read Exit Strategy by Kelley Armstrong and Agnes and the Hitman by Crusie/Mayer.

Four words or phrases you would like to see used more often:
Please, thank you, you’re welcome, I love you.

Four reasons for ending a friendship:
Lost touch, grew apart, discovered he/she was nuts, or he/she hates my writing.

Four smells that make you feel good about the world:
chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven, freshly baked bread, the smell of the sea, the smell of forest

Four favorite activities you did as a kid:
Climbed trees, read books, sang, made up stories

I’m too lazy to tag anybody, but do the meme if the spirit moves you.