And there was great rejoicing throughout the land

Thanks to Treasia, the baby slept last night from 8:00 until 2:00 a.m. I elevated his crib mattress a little more by putting a pillow under it, and he slept so much better (and so did I!). Treasia, e-mail me your address and pick a book of your choice! We’re still not sleeping through the night, but I will TAKE 8:00-2:00 over 8:00, 11:30, 2:00, 4:00, etc. Happy, happy, joy, joy.

And in other good news, yesterday my editor accepted Wedded to the Enemy, my Victorian manuscript, as the second book in my contract. That one should be published in 2009 (will let you know the date later on). I’m excited since I really had a lot of fun with that story.

Let me tell you, this has been a great Friday so far!

Guest Blogging Today

I’m guest-blogging today over on Magical Musings about how music inspires me when I write. Come over and say hi!

I broke down and took the baby to the pediatrician yesterday to see what’s been causing the constant wake-up calls at night. She said he has reflux and recommended I try an antacid like Mylanta. I tried it, praying for results…and he still woke up every two hours. I swear, he’s just playing me. But at least I know he doesn’t have anything serious like an ear infection or strep.

In good news, I e-mailed my revised book to my editor and am now plotting another. Should be fun!

The Philosophy of a Six-Year-Old

Me: What do you want to be when you grow up?
Eldest son: I’m not really sure. But I know I don’t want to be a leader.
Me: (puzzled) Why?
Eldest son: Because leaders always seem to die or get killed.

I’m guessing they’ve been learning a bit about Martin Luther King Jr. and Abraham Lincoln in kindergarten. We had a little discussion about how leaders are not always assassinated and what being a leader means. I think he understood.

But oh, the hardest dinner discussion came when he confessed another truth.
Him: (girl’s name) had a bad day. Her family is splitting up.
Me: I’m so sorry to hear that. It must be hard on her.
Him: How can a family split up?

I could see the worry on his face. But the hardest part for me was trying to explain how some adults just don’t love each other any more and they decide to live apart. He replied, “Well, that’s not very nice. You should always love each other.”

Oh, the death of innocence. They never tell you how to answer these sorts of questions. It makes me want to squeeze him tight and shelter him as much as I can.

Baby’s first words

Thanks to all for your suggestions on getting Little Man to sleep better. I did something slightly different on Friday. He gets rice cereal at breakfast and baby food at lunch. I used to do cereal and baby food at night, but this time I did two jars of baby food–no cereal. It seemed to cut back on the gas pains. He did a 5 hour stretch for me before waking up.

This was a weekend for milestones. He rolled over from his stomach to his back and said his first words. Of course, it was, “Da-da.” I swear, this is the universe’s way of laughing at mothers everywhere. We stay up with our babies, nurse them, cuddle them, change them. And what words come first? Da-da. What is up with that? Not Mama or Mum-mum. Nope–it’s all about Dad. Yesterday, he was muttering Da-da-da to himself, grinning away.

Yeah, pal. Just wait until Da-da is the one to stay up with you.

Hey, maybe that’s the solution to my sleep deprivation. Wean the baby, go on vacation alone, and leave the kids with Dad.

Despite everything, I’ve managed to get my act together in regard to book revisions. I nearly finished them last night. Tonight I hope to revise the epilogue and then maybe Tuesday do a final read-through. After that, I’m hoping to get started on something new!

Hitting a Growth Spurt

The past three nights have been grueling. The baby has woken up usually around 11:30, then 2:00, then 5:00. Last night, he was up from 1:00-2:30 a.m. There’s something disconcerting when you realize that you’ve had about 4 hours of sleep over the course of two days.

I’m starting to wonder if this is another growth spurt. He’s almost five months old, and I just question what I’m doing wrong. Is he not getting enough to eat? Is his room too cold at night? Has he been “conditioned” to wake up in the middle of the night, whether he’s hungry or not? With my firstborn, I was able to coax him into taking a pacifier instead of nursing. With this baby…he rips the pacifier out of my hand and tosses it across the room. Let’s just say that my little man knows what he wants and it ain’t a pacifier. I’ve also tried giving him water in a bottle.

What did you do when your baby kept waking up in the middle of the night? I’m open to any and all suggestions. And if whatever you suggest happens to make him sleep from 8:30 p.m. until 5:30 a.m. with no interruptions, I will send you an autographed copy of every book I’ve written. Plus, you’ll have my undying gratitude.

Babies at 3:00 a.m.

This morning at 3:00 a.m., my darling baby decided that it was time to play. In the still darkness, he rested on my chest, gazed me with those big blue eyes, and proceeded to coo and sing.

I swear, it’s survival of the species. Otherwise, we’d sell them on Ebay.

Tomorrow I’m guest-blogging over at Romance Vagabonds. They’re featuring authors from Harlequin Historicals all week and I’m on Medieval Monday. My wonderful editor Joanne will be there on Friday to answer questions as well. Stop by and enter to win an autographed copy of Her Warrior King.

How Romance Covers are Made

This link shows the video of how author C.L. Wilson’s newest cover was made. I find it fascinating since I’ve always been interested in cover art and how it happens.

After I write a book, I have to fill out an Art Facts Sheet that includes a questionnaire on everything from hero hair color, eyes, clothing, etc. to the mood and tone of the story. There are also places where I can describe two key scenes. I’ve started putting in book excerpts instead of just a scene description, and I think it makes it easier for the artist to get the right mood. I’ve been very lucky with my covers, but Connor’s cover (shown) will always be my favorite. Why? Because it looks exactly like the man in my head. It’s so rare for that to happen, and I was very happy with it.

Now if only they had invited me to THAT photo shoot.

Have you got a favorite book cover? What are some things that catch your eye?

Why Grandmas are the Best

1. They believe that there’s nothing wrong with chocolate for breakfast.
2. They can play checkers, Candyland, and cards with the kids all while balancing a baby and planning dinner.
3. They don’t mind when I isolate myself in Starbucks for five hours and revise 100 pages.
4. Grandmas love your children as much as you do.

I have about 100 pages left to revise and 3,000 words more to add, in order to bring my wordcount back up. Can I revise 100 pages in 3 days? It’s doable, as long as my characters cooperate.

I had coffee and a sugar cookie for breakfast. Feeling a little jittery at the moment, but I’ve made my way through almost 30 pages so far. The goal is to do 44 more pages today.

I just bought two books yesterday that I’m holding over my head as rewards. One Real Man by Jan Kenny which I’m really looking forward to. Jan writes such fabulous westerns, I can’t wait to try out her cowboy.

And then there’s my friend Julie’s new book Mistress in Private. Julie writes funny, upbeat books that are just so much fun to read. Apparently this book involves surfing on an ironing board. Can’t wait to try it!

What are you reading at the moment? I just finished Blood Brothers by Nora Roberts and it was scaring the bejeezus out of me. Good book but it probably wasn’t a good idea to read it right before bed.

I’m Here

Have not slept in four days. Baby = eating every 2 hours (aka growth spurt).

Have deleted 87 pages of the book I finished in January.

Have written 31 new pages in 2 weeks.

Am planning to run away from home, leave the kids with my mother, and write like crazy.

Oh, and sleep.

Otherwise known as: Spring Break!

On the bright side, I’ll be blogging over at Romance Vagabonds on April 14th. It will be a week featuring Harlequin Historicals, so bring any questions you want me to answer!