I had the pleasure of spending the weekend with fellow writers Leah Braemel, Christine D'Abo & Amy Ruttan and though there was chatting, we got an awful lot accomplished.
Personally, I was able to write 'The End' on Jump Zone, and though I've got a few segues to fill in, I can basically call Draft One done. Now the REAL work begins... getting it in some sort of condition suitable to pitch/sell!
And while I have my writing friends on the brain, I must give a shout out to Leah Braemel on her recent release of Private Property. I haven't read it yet but did get a chance to read the second book of her series (Personal Protection - coming soon!!) and must say that I look VERY forward to reading more about the fine men of Hauberk Security. Leah writes at a pretty high heat level which only serve to enhance her richly drawn characters and solid plotlines. During our weekend retreat, she shared some of the upcoming story lines and we're in for a treat :)
And Amy... well, she's cranking them out so fast I can't keep up!!! Not as a writer or reader - LOL!! The first book of Amy's Enchantress series, The Fey, is available now from Linden Bay and she also has a new release with Ellora's Cave, Hard Candy. As soon as i can catch my breath (how long until my kids are in college? ha ha) I'll be diving into these.
The kids were sick so I spent a few afternoons with them watching movies.
George of the Jungle: Brendan Fraser has the most gorgeous lips I've ever seen on a man. Lush, ripe, made for kissing. Yes, sick as that sounds, while he was entertaining my children with chest pounding, jungle calls and vine-swinging antics, I was staring at his mouth. Wow.
And he was pretty cut back then, too. Double wow.
Penelope: A movie about a girl cursed with a pig's nose. I didn't go into it with much hope of liking and suprised myself by LOVING! It's a great story about acceptance -- and an added bonus -- James McAvoy was in it, which I didn't even realize until his sad-eyed moppy haired character appeared on screen. *Squee!*
* * *
During my little hiatus I enjoyed the whole award-show experience. And I did watch the all... got to hear every f-bomb Mickey Rourke dropped during his many acceptance speeches.
I was happy for him... a great come back and all, but was a bit relieved when he lost to Sean Penn at the Oscars. As acidic and opinionated as Mr. Penn can be, he truly deserved the award, if not for this particular role, then for the cummulative career roles.
I thought this was one of the best Academy Awards shows I've seen (even with the cheesy song and dance bit in the middle). Hugh Jackman did an awesome job as host, everyone looked stunning in their black ties and gowns, and there were solid, first-class performances to celebrate. I'll sum it up with a few math equations:
The Brange = Royalty
Steve Martin + Tina Fey = LMAO
Ben Stiller doing Joaquin Phoenix > Joaquin Phoenix
Rob Pattinson channeling Edward Cullen while presenting = wee squee!
* * *
Random thoughts:
Does anyone else think POSH looks totally and ridiculously out of proportion? Why do they let her NEAR fashion?
Ghost Town with Ricky Gervais. See it.
Can Conan keep Jay's loyal fans happy? Hmmm...
George Cloony is short.
Lost ROCKS.
Today's date is interesting - 03/03/09 Don't you think?
