Duffy

Listen to and watch this remarkable Welsh singer!

Stepping Stone

Simply.

Fabulous.

Christmas: And now for something completely different.

Ah, the sounds of Christmas!

I was introduced to this song by a lovely Midlands couple who sing it every Christmas Eve at karaoke. It is special.

The quality isn’t the best, but watch and enjoy!

Hey, Christmas is a very sweet time, but a bit of tartness adds to the sweet!

Close to my heart.

I love animals. Sometimes I love animals better than I love people. I’m only partially joking.

But veterinary care is expensive, so pet ownership is problematic for some people, especially low-income seniors and those on disability pensions… in other words, the very people who can best care for an animal in other ways (the time and love a pet requires) and are most in need of pet companionship, can’t afford to properly care for a pet.

Fun site of the day!

If you need a laugh in these gloomy financial times, and with two federal election campaigns going at the same time, watch Peek Freans ‘As The Cookie Crumbles‘, a webisode soap opera of the residents of Glamora County.

I think it is genuinely funny, and I don’t say that often!

http://www.asthecookiecrumbles.ca/home.php

Oh… and the cookies are pretty good!

Is courtesy out of fashion? Is the f-bomb funny?

So, in the fallout from LLB’s Desert Isle Keeper plea for credit, some bloggers and commentors have taken Laurie to task for being, among other things, over-sensitive and proprietorial. It seems they consider worse those who have come to Laurie’s defense, though, especially anyone who suggests that the mean-spiritedness directed at Laurie is something other than hilariously funny.

I want one of these!

I just had to share… isn’t this the cutest thing you’ve ever seen?

Jane Austen Action Figure

I want one, to go on my desk for writing inspiration.

Also of interest… many of use who love to read and write fiction set in England fantasize about the perfect English village, knowing full well that we have to set our world in a historical period (Regency, Georgian) to make our story believable.

However… it appears that there is still an English village – church, shops, manor house etc., – surviving, and it is called Chettle, in Dorset! Read this article in the Daily Mail!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1042432/It-crime-employment-cheap-housing–owned-lord-manor-So-perfect-English-village.html

Cool, how the owners are as committed to the village as the rest of the people who live there!

Laurie Gold of AAR – Barnes & Noble Star!!!

Hey, all this is too cool…

Check out ‘Book Obsessed’, a new Barnes & Noble offering.  It features video interviews of readers, and the very first is Laurie Gold, webmistress extraordinaire of All About Romance, the very best romance review and forum site on the internet.

On a personal note, I think I spotted (woo-hoo) my own very first Regency novel on Laurie’s shelf; Lord St. Claire’s Angel is at 37 seconds.  I think.  Not positive ’cause it’s a little blurry!

So, Click Here and watch the video, shot in Laurie’s Texas home!

Congrats, Laurie!

And check back; they are going to have weekly videos with other book fans of all genres!

All About Romance Reader Poll

Hey, all,

Just a note to say, for anyone who doesn’t visit them often, AAR has an annual reader poll for romance fiction. It is a great place to let folks know what books YOU enjoyed this last year, and once it is published – or even among the interim results – it’s a great place to find out what books others have enjoyed.

So… visit! Vote!

Remember, only books published in 2007 are eligible!

Reality TV News Flash – February 2008

All right, so the writer’s strike sucks, especially since Dave and Jay have not been on. I miss Dave’s annual pizza & meatball-topped Christmas tree. But being a writer, I do understand what the strike is about.

However…

Romance Fiction Articles @ Suite 101

I started a few weeks ago writing articles on romance fiction; writing it, publishers, websites, etc.

Have a look around… I’m up to ten articles so far, covering romancenoveltv.com, Circle of Seven book videos, and lots about romance fiction.

Check it out!