New Year’s Day… now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual. - Mark

Which is why I haven't made a true New Years resolution in years.

Without a New Years resolution I lost 10 pounds in 2010, go to the gym at least 2 a week, and haven't eaten at a McDonalds in ages. Yes, I need to work on my other dietary habits but I'm more aware of what I put in my mouth - however I do not worry on holidays because lets face facts - it's not what you eat on Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Easter, and on Fourth of July that make you fat - it's all the days in between.

Without a New Years resolution I've written and submitted - not as much as I would have liked but I'm a slow writer - and I probably will have to face the fact that I'm more of a short story writer than a novelist however I'm not quite ready to give up.

Rather than resolutions for 2011 I will envision this: I will be another 10 pounds lighter by 2012 and will sit at the computer at the very least an hour day to write.

I'm lucky that this is the only issues that I feel that need improvement ( Okay - so I really should envision a cleaner house but I'd just be kidding myself).

Happy and Healthy New Year to All!!!!

I think all this talk about age is foolish. Every time I`m one year older, everyone else is too. - Gloria Swanson

Married 6 times, Gloria Swanson started her career in silent films and is best known for her role as Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard in 1950. She has 2 stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame - one for movies and one for television.

Do you remember Carol Burnett's character based on Gloria Swanson?

Anyway - here are some more quotes for Gloria Swanson.

Money was fun only until you ran out of things to buy. Gloria Swanson

As Daddy said, life is 95 percent anticipation.
Gloria Swanson

I always anticipated difficulties in order to avoid scenes.
Gloria Swanson

I've given my memoirs far more thought than any of my marriages. You can't divorce a book.
Gloria Swanson

“A girl needs a backup plan in case Prince Charming stumbles.” Brenda Starr

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

It can’t be! After 7O years Brenda Starr, Reporter the comic strip will be no more. Not that I’ve read it since my teens but STILL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A testament to the times (1940) the creator Dale Messick submitted her work under a male first name (her first name is Dalia) otherwise editors wouldn't even look at her work never mind publish it.

Like the creator taking on the male world of comic strips, Brenda Starr took on the male dominant world of journalism (hell everything back then was male dominated). Starr had it all - glamorous, fab career, and men. Even for a young girl in the 1970's (things like Title 9 hadn't passed yet) she was larger than life.

And who could forget the mysterious Basil St John - tall, dark, handsome, romantic, wearing an eye patch - well now this totally explains my fascination with Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow.

(Yeah, I definitely going red for my 48th birthday - lol)



Though her and Basil St John did not have a happily ever after (HEA). Why? In the words of Brenda Starr -

"Well, it WAS romantic until we got married."

Live each day the fullest you can, not guaranteeing there'll be a tomorrow, not dwelling endlessly on yesterday.” Jane Seymour

I'm a big fan of Jane Seymour - How can I not be when I'm a romance writer and she was in 2 of my favorites romantic films - Somewhere in Time and The Scarlet Pimpernel.

I purchased this book in 1986 (gulp!) - Guide to Romantic Living

The book is more of an auto-biography – with numerous tips thrown in – like

Take your life in hand and be your own heroine.

In good, lasting relationships you don’t stare into each other’s eyes all the time: you together in the same direction. You share a life together

It should only be in a romance novel that marriage marks the end of romance: marriage should be the beginning of a richer, deeper romance based on shared memories, shared family: on listening, flirting, paying attention to his feelings as well as his words. Don’t behave like a wife, behave like a mistress.

Of course, one must remember that when she wrote this she was already on her third marriage (which she talks about in the book) and since then on her fourth….but it’s still an enjoyable read and I love the fairy tale like pictures in the book….

Gee…I’ve been married 25 years – maybe I should write a book about it – but it won’t be called Guide to Romantic Living…-

perhaps

Marriage: Confessions From the Trenches

I can use pictures of me in my flannel-lined jeans and talk about using my feminine wiles to get a new kitchen floor.

I smell a bestseller.

Six Sentence Sunday - 12/12/10

This week I’m selecting my six from Chapter 2 of Playing For Keeps, which was rejected this week by Carina Press. (long suffering sigh...)

Playing For Keeps is about a woman sportswriter and a professional football player.
Here Samantha’s police detective brother – who Ryan went to college with - has just told Ryan not to pursue Samantha but also ask him to make sure none of the players give her a hard time in the locker room. Ryan agrees but is angry thinking the brother doesn’t think he is good enough for Samantha.


“I’ll be your watchdog for now, but don’t expect me to roll over and play dead.”
“As far as my sister is concerned, there is one part of your anatomy that better be dead.”
“Don‘t worry about it.” Ryan climbed into his car and closed the door, shaking his head in disgust. When it came to Samantha, that part of his anatomy didn’t understand the command ‘play dead’. He'd need anti-Viagara pills to keep his promise to Samantha's brother.

Six Sentence Sunday - 12/5/10

Here are six again from Playing For Keeps (woman sportswriter/pro football player)

Going back to chapter 1. Here my heroine Samantha Jameson (yes I named her after my favorite Irish Whiskey - LOL) is war correspondent turned sportswriter. She waiting to interview the players in the locker room. She knows one of them from college and here is what she is thinking/remembering....

Ryan Terell. The thought of him evoked vivid memories.
Shoulder length hair falling in waves like rumpled satin, eyes the color of a fairy tale forest, and hands made for more than catching passes. Much more. Sure, great packaging, but underneath the chiseled exterior was a man who hadn't socially evolved from dragging his knuckles on the ground. If only he worked as hard on his interior.

"Just livin' our love song...."

Love songs can be like a mini romance novel. They can touch ours hearts. Leave us open to love.

It may be hard to believe that my favorite genre of music is rock and hard rock. We're taking AC/DC, Guns&Rose, Springsteen-and on and on.

But I'm a sucker for a good love song. So I plan to share some of my favorites in the coming weeks. I like this one because it happens 10 years after the 'happily ever after'.

But the singer really needs to lose the 'thing' underneath his chin.