Youngest son 1 Mole 0

Should I feel miffed? My youngest declared his intent to lay mole traps when the mole appeared. He cited being a boy scout. I allowed him as the return of the mole made my heart sink.
He duly laid his traps (clw traps) -- yesterday. This morning he came rushing in, demanding I inspect as one had sprung.
I did and it was R.I.P. mole.
The mole has now gone to wherever moles go. And my youngest has become the mole catcher in chief.
His only comment was that if he was going to be chief mole catcher, he ought to be paid the going rate...

puppy mayhem

Dew on the grass + freshly dug mole hill + one author who has a good idea for a scene = two very happy puppies, one filthy kitchen floor and an acquaintance with a towel.

It is amazing how cute and innocent puppies can look when totally covered in dirt.

They are growing fast. And already I can see a big difference. But a solid foundation is what is about and they do appear to be learning. With writing, my cp is threatening her whip. I do suspect somehow though I will get the puppies in. Border collies as a breed were not recognised until the late 19th century -- before that they were simply sheep dogs, but they did come from the English/Scottish border region so it is feasible for a pair of tri colour pups to be there.

Venice redux

I am blogging about the allure of Venice today at the Pink Heart Society. Even after being back in the UK for nearly two months, I only have to close my eyes and I can be transported again. It is such a wonderful city to visit.

As part of its spotlight on Harlequin Historical, Eharlequin is doing a Carnival of Venice cyber masquerade ball. It should be outrageous and fun.

As Natasha Oakley asked when she was here, the mole is still digging in the back lawn. It has taken to filling in my traps. To add insult to injury, my youngest thought he was being helpful, refilling a hole but he managed to bury a trap. I note there is a new hill this morning...away from the traps and back where I put the original traps. Are moles intelligent?

Revisions in

I have turned in my latest set of revisions. They weren't hard and once upon a time, I would have done them in 48 hours. I took 2 weeks. Why? Because I wanted to take the time to go through the manuscript and increase the intensity. I wanted to examine what I'd written and to see if I could make it tighter. I finished putting the revisions on the manuscript yesterday and today, I read it out loud. Again hoping to find mistakes and hoping to make it better. For it is not about what you did on the last book but what you do on this one.

I learnt a few things. Save conversation. Keep the tension. Save the Cat! Some of which go to make the next book even better.

But now I have to sew my daughter's dress as that deadline approaches...tomorrow and it is all in pieces!
Oh and the mole is back. I put the traps down and the mole dug around one -- covering it with a molehill as he created a diversion in his tunnel. New traps have been laid. We just reseeded the lawn as well!

Return of the mole

My husband was warned, and so it has proved. The mole was not gone. It simply had gone to a lower level. In the summer particularly, they dig about 18 inches lower and so no molehills appear.
This morning saw two fresh molehills.
So it is mole traps at the ready. Some day.

The revisions continue.

Sudden inspiration

Sometimes, characters are just difficult. My heroine had been holding out on me. On the umpteenth time of reading my revision letter, I suddenly realised the problem and how she had to grow at the end, and why therefore as it currently stood, the ending felt flat.

Why do I hate opening my veins and bleeding on the page when I know it is what the story requires. The average reader will only get 10% of the emotion I feel. So I may be in floods of tears, bereft, wrung out and the average reader will go meh, okay. But knowing that does not necessarily mean I readily open my veins. It just means that I know I need to. And now I know why. Emotional stakes must be sky high. The heroine can not feel that she can just take up her old life. And she must be prepared to sacrifice something.

In other news:
Has an owl eaten the mole? My youngest heard the tawny owl in the back garden a few night ago. Tawny owls' favourite food is moles. Or he may have packed his bags and moved to greener pastures. In any case, no new molehills. The traps were undisturbed and so I have removed them. But they are in the greenhouse, ready for the next invasion.

Sun is shining

The sun is shining, the bees are flying and there are no new mole hills...in my lawn. Of course the field on the other side of the road is full of fresh molehills. Is it too much to hope for? Has the mole gone to pastures new?

The lawn will recover in time, but for now, I swear I could see the molehills on google earth...
However my youngest son begs to differ.

Holding my breath

I checked the mole traps -- they were all fine. No moles, no collapsed tunnels. Nothing. There are no new mole hills either. This has been the case for a couple of days. Hopefully the mole has packed his bags and decided to visit a water vole or something.

The revisions are coming on. I am trying to make sure that the conversations are not over long and actually do have a point...the relationship does need to move.

moles again

The ground finally defrosted and this meant that I was able to dig up my mole traps. The mole had carefully filled each hole. SIGH.
I have reset the traps. This time trying the traps the way they appeared to go in the news clip I saw on catching moles.

However, I see there are several fresh mole hills this morning...in a part of the garden that is far away from the traps. Moles are tricky.

I also finished New Moon which is the second in the Twilight series. Some parts of it are slow. It is always difficult to write characters who are numb from grief. The last third got much better but Bella at times does border on too stupid to live. Edward however rocks. I totally agree with India Grey's daughter -- I don't want to see the movie as my picture of Edward is not like the man who played Cedric Diggory.
I shall be reading the next book, but my cold is getting better and so I actually have to work. But it is important to remember that sensual tension is built up in little details. It is not the full frontal that is important but the tiny bits. What is noticed and the little touches. It is possible to stay in the first 9 stages of the courtship ritual (as Myers does) and still create a sensual book -- full of longing and desire. Sometimes because authors go from 0 to stage 10 within a few pages, this message gets forgotten.

The Six Degrees Game

I am blogging today at Tote Bags about the Six Degrees of Charlotte Bronte. I blame Nicola Cornick for the procrastination. Anyway, there is a chance to win a copy of Impoverished Miss, Convenient Wife.

I discovered yesterday that bees do not see red. Their primary colours are ultraviolet, blue and yellow. They see red as black. Green tends to be more grey, but the ultraviolet really stands out. Of course, humans cannot see the ultraviolet. So the world must really look different.
Research has into bee sight has been done as scientists want to know why bees go for certain types of flowers.
Also some flowers such as tomato flowers, and honeysuckle are buzz flowers -- in other words they do not easily give up their pollen to the honey bee. Bumblebees with the way they collect nectar are the type of bee that these flowers need. It is one of the reasons why it is important to encourage all types of bees and hover flies in one's garden.

In the absence of checking my hives, I have been reading the British Beekeeping Association newsletter.

And there may be a reason why the mole has been winning. I think I put the mole traps in upside down...From seeing a clip on the news about the Devon molecatcher, it would appear the trap needs to go as the roof of the tunnel rather than as the base. However, I was comforted by the fact that he said moles were tricky and he did use the same sort of trap. When ground defrosts, I shall try...My husband and children found this most amusing...

Mt Molehill

We have snow -- about a foot. I had assumed the mole would be quiet. But no, Mt Molehill had just broken through the snow...The children think this is funny.

The children are also pleased -- no school and they will be going sledding. One of the Christmas presents was a sled, with brakes.

It will take a lot more snow though to equal the winters here in the 60s. Apparently people were cut off for weeks on end. Currently the traffic is flowing. But blizzard conditions have returned and I am pleased not to have to go out.

The traps will have to wait until the snow clears. However, based on the Mt Molehill evidence, I suspect the mole has not been caught.

Mole 13 Me 0

The title says it all. My daughter has pointed out to me that I am being outsmarted by a rodent who does not have a university degree.
A resetting of traps and this time, I have tried to make sure the traps can be easily sprung. My final trap is at a conjunction three tunnels. I live in hope.

Thus far the poltergeist appears to have given up electrics tricks. I have hidden the remote controls for the cd player in the kitchen as a few years ago the cats had taken to turning it on in the middle of the night. I am still attempting to figure out how they did it. They liked a certain jazz station (neither my husband or I could ever quite figure out how they got it to this one station)...But if we do have a poltergeist, I am do not want to give it the opportunity.

I also made a cherry almond cake as we are drowning in eggs. 15 duck eggs this morning...the only problem is that once I get accustom to the eggs -- the ducks will either start laying in strange places in the garden, build nests and have duckings or stop laying altogether. But I will enjoy the surfeit while I can.

Harlequin is 60

Yesterday the venture that the Bonnycastles started to keep the presses rolling turned 60!


To celebrate Harlequin released 16 books from its backlist as FREE downloads. One book from each line currently published in the North American market. I found it impossible to get on yesterday and thought that people from outside North America could not download the books, but this morning, it was not a problem. The list showcases books that the editors feel represent the Best in the Line from recent years. So for historical, there is Elizabeth Rolls His Lady Mistress. For Superromance there is Janice Kay Johnson's Snowbound which won the Rita last year. For Kimani, there is a Brenda Jackson. I am looking forward to them and to trying a few of the lines that I have not tried. You can get the downloads here.


All sorts of other events are planned, including the draw for a Diamond necklace to celebrate the Harlequin Romance Diamond Brides series.

In other news:

I fond a hen's nest yesterday. A dozen eggs. I tested them -- dunk in cold water, see if they float. All stayed firmly at the bottom so all are good. It is a matter of a surfeit of eggs again. Baking appears to be the order of the day. The children have not had egg salad sandwiches recently so this might do as well. I forget if they like egg salad sandwiches. They did once but may have rebeled. The problem with a surfeit of eggs is that you know the hens and ducks will keep laying given the time of year...

The mole continues to elude me. The mole hills are less frequent. Sincerely hope that this does not mean the mole is preparing to give birth...apparently they go deeper then...Much easier to think of the Mole as a he than a pregnant she.

The Mole and I

I am now in the midst of trying to catch the mole, a beginning mole catcher facing a cunning foe as it were. The mole is fairly intelligent or perhaps I am not a good catcher. It has managed to back fill the holes where the traps are and go around. The back lawn bears a certain resemblance to trench warfare. You need cunning to catch a mole and you also have to move away from the mole hill and pick a run between two hills. Moles are good diggers and the holes they make are well constructed. Traps need to be checked daily and kept free from clogging dirt. The mole (or something) has sprung one or two traps, but have I caught it? I live in hope. Some day. Its days in the back lawn are numbered...

Kim S who does the Harlequin Historical My Space is doing a contest until 31 Jan where one of the possible prize is a copy of Viking Warrior Unwilling Wife. She also writes about her own inspiring life and her struggles after a car crash. You can read about it here.

I am working on my single title historical romance. It is fun to write but this paranormal keeps calling. It is a matter of taking notes. I am over page 100 with the single title and I hate not completing stories when I get to that point. And yes, I know both my critique partners' whips are out.

Mole update

Or why the back lawn is looking like a model of the Somme. I did try to phone the mole catcher. He did not return my phone calls. I have now turned to mole traps after doing research online.
My traps are currently curing in the compost heap so that they can have the proper earthy smell. They need to smell like the earth. Moles are known to dig around traps...
On Saturday, I will find the mole run, put the set trap in, and carefully cover over the trap. Then I wait, having marked the trap with a stick. You apparently can lose traps. Also it takes practice. I am hoping to catch the mole alive and be able to give him a happy home, somewhere a long ways away from the back lawn. If the mole dies, then unfortunately it has happened.

After doing the research, I discovered that vibration does not work, nor does pouring Jeyes fluid down the holes or a host of other methods. The best answer is to trap them. Then you know. You want more than one trap. Persistence.

And I need to discover a duck's nest as the white duck was out again last night. No quacking until about 7, but it was still out of the duck house in the morning.

Revisions are coming on. It is little tweaks to increase emotional intensity.

Moles don't hibernate

I gave the mole a reprieve over Christmas as he sent a card via my dh. I even thought the cold weather would mean hibernation. No, he has continued to dig mole hills. I do have the number of the mole catcher. He will be phoned as the back lawn is now a series of excavated hills. I have bought my dh a stuffed mole as they do far less damage...

Melissa from the Romance Reader Connection did a lovely review of Viking Warrior, Unwilling Wife which I got to see this morning. TRRC has just revamped its website and it looks great! Instead of having an author of the month, they have a new blog where authors will be appearing. Anyway, I do enjoy TRRC so I wish them all the best.

The part I liked best about Melissa's review was: The depth of characterization combine with the scope of the story and provide the reader with a profoundly rich historical romance experience not always found in the Harlequin Historical line. The author has quite a flair for strong females as well as noble and compelling heroes, each character right for their time and space.

It quite made my morning!

And as I haven't mentioned it -- Philip Glenister who did provide the inspiration for the hero of Viking Warrior, Unwilling Wife has a new tv show out -- Demons. His accent is somewhere over the mid Atlantic, but he is supposed to be an American mentor to an English high school student who has a talent for fighting demons. Wonderful Saturday night fare for the entire family. Or at least my family enjoyed it.

It will be interesting to see how the characters grow and develop and the mythology used. Yes, I know that Buffy the Vampire Slayer etc has gone before, but hopefully they will be able to take this new directions. Actually as I do rate Philip Glenister as an actor, I think they will be able to. It is just going to take time for the relationship between the two main protagonists to grow. Part of the thing that carries a tv series like this is the relationship and conflicts between the characters. It is what brings people back.

Snow and moles

There is a light dusting of snow on Mt Molehill this morning. Even my dh who is partial to moles has agreed, it is time to call in the mole catcher. At least a quarter of the lawn has now been turned over to the mole's excavations...

My dh's one condition is that I wait until the cold snap is over. So we continue to level the hills and I hope Mr Mole decides to find a new place of residence. Of course, he could be busy inviting his friends and relations in for the holidays as well...

The new wip (which is not a M&B) is going slowly. As it is a bit more plot heavy, I have had to do a lot of thinking and rejigging.

This has been compounded by the fact that I discovered Lady Worsley's Whim An Eighteenth Century Tale of Sex, Scandal and Divorce by Hallie Rubenhold. It is thoroughly fascinating account of one of the first celebrity divorce trials and happening as it did at the end of the American Revolution and with one of Lord North's most loyal supporters embroiled in a sex scandal, it may have influenced when the end of the war came.

My imagination has been sparked in many directions, BUT this is also when I have to apply discipline. There are other ideas who are screaming to be written. On the strength of this book, I did get Rubenhold's other book -- The Covent Garden Ladies which tells the tale of the Harris Book of Courtesans and its beginnings. Research can be fun. It is one of the reasons why I write historical romance.

Mole reaction

When informed of our velvet coated gentleman caller, my husband became absolutely delighted. He is hoping to see Mr Mole...In the meantime, we shall just be stamping down the molehills. As my husband pointed out, the lawn can never be called perfect... How long this state of affairs lasts, we shall have to see... there again can a mole do more damage than a flock of free range ducks and hens? As long as Mr Mole keeps out of the veg patch, I think he will be left in peace.
My youngest saw a barn owl on the way up from school. My fingers are firmly crossed that we have one in the village and I get to see it. We do get tawny owls, but barn owls are something special.

Ginger Simpson kindly included me on her I love the blog roll of 7 blogs.
7 blogs that I read every day include:
Unusual Historicals
Tote Bags
Pink Heart Society
Carrie Lofty
India Grey (who is currently trying to choose a new hero)
Donna Alward
Nell Dixon

I also read other blogs but these will do for the moment.

Moles

I have just opened the curtains and a horrible thought struck me -- a mole has invaded the garden. The back lawn now has several piles of fresh dirt. Mole hills. You could never say that the lawn is prestine -- the ducks and hens are often on it, but we have never had a mole invasion before. It is slightly disconcerting to have a velvet coated gentleman come to call.
The question will be how to discourage his return visit. I have no wish for Mr Mole to set up a permanent residence in the lawn. It is supposed to be a lawn after all.