As a writer, I think my most important asset (or tool, depending on your perspective) is my imagination.

My mom has always said that I had a big imagination when I was a kid. I had an imaginary friend (Heggy)–we ate together, told secrets, and played for hours. I actually loved to play by myself when I was a kid. I could sit and imagine…well, just about anything. Even when I played with my best friend (the boy next door), imagination was key. Luckily, B. had a great imagination, too, and when I’d say things like, “Hey, let’s go dig for dinousaurs!”  Well, he was ready with a shovel. (True story:  To my mother’s horror, she did walk into the backyard one day and discover that B. and I had vanished. Closer inspection revealed that we had just dug a hole about twelve feet into the ground and were in the middle of discussing the merits of continuing to dig for dinosaur bones or changing our plans and using the new “hole” as a secret room. That was one unhappy mother…)

Anyway…back to present times…my son turned two in December, and, since then, I’ve noticed that his imagination has kicked into serious overdrive. The boy can pull a magic key out of his pocket any time, any place. He creates entire cities–complete with a library, Bruno’s (grocery store) and all of his friends’ houses–out of his wooden blocks. He builds castles, he phones his friends, he has dog parties. (Yep, I said dog parties–I blame Dr. Seuss for that one. )  I love watching his imagination develop–it’s a really beautiful thing. Each day, I wonder…what is he going to do next?

That wonder…that’s the feeling that I like to have when I read a book. I like to wonder–what is the author going to do next? Because when an author makes me wonder…well, I’m sure appreciating her/his imagination!

I must be off now–got a cake baking in the oven. (Can’t have a  dog party without a cake, now, can you?)

February is agent month over at Magical Musings.    Here is the scheduled line-up:

9 February: Kevan Lyon of the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency
14 Febraury: Tamar Rydzinski of the Laura Dail Literary Agency
16 Febraury: Jennifer Jackson of the Donald Maass Literary Agency
18 February: Pam Strickler of Pam Strickler Author Management
21 February: Jennifer Schober of Spencerhill Literary Agency
23 February: Laura Bradford of Bradford Literary Agency
27 Febraury: Holly Root of Waxman Literary Agency

If you’re looking for an agent, check out the posts over at Magical Musings.

When the doorbell rang at 11:30 a.m. today (ahem, by the time most folks read this, it will have been “yesterday”), my husband and I both raced to the door (and, um, had a small scuffle as we each fought to be the first to open the door). Nick was hoping the FedEx truck he could see from the window was there to delivery his much anticipated camping tent. I was hoping to get my grubby hands on the ARCs that the Magnificent M told me would be coming soon.

Guess who the delivery was for? 🙂

Yep, that’s me in the picture, my previously mentioned grubby hands holding an ARC of WHEN HE WAS BAD (featuring Shelly Laurenston’s Miss Congeniality and my Wicked Ways). Oh, and, hey–that’s my new haircut, too! I know–you don’t care about the hair so much, but aren’t the ARCs cool? Jeez but I love getting those.

By the way, wanna read an excerpt of Wicked Ways? I’m in the process of updating my site–I’ve added excerpts for Wicked Ways and Blood Hunt, and on Friday, I should add more new info.

Hi!! Today I’m guest blogging over at the Romance Vagabonds. I’m talking about promo. If you’re a writer (published or pre-published), stop by–you might find some of my tips helpful!

Amber Leigh Williams has tagged me to reveal 6 unimportant facts about myself.

Here are the “Tagged!” rules:

1. Link back to the person who tagged you.

2. Post the rules on your blog.

3. Share six unimportant things about yourself.

4. Tag six random people at the end of your blog entry.

5. Let the tagged people know by leaving a comment on their blogs.

And, now, on to my unimportant facts:

Fact one:  At one point, I had a scar on my knee that resembled an airplane. Time has faded the scar, so it now just looks like a line. A line doesn’t make for an interesting story, but an airplane–that got more attention.

Fact two:  Last Halloween, I dressed up as a pirate for a my son’s party.

Fact three:  I like to go to the aquarium in New Orleans and watch the sharks swim. They soothe me.

Fact four:  I’ve broken several of my toes. Sexy, huh?

Fact five:  My favorite color is black.

Fact six:  I just got a new haircut so that means that I keep touching my shorter hair, about, oh, every two minutes.

Done! Thanks, Amber!

Now, I shall break the rules a bit (I should have said I was a rule breaker in my list!). If you’ve read this, yep, you’re tagged.