A Nano post

I found this cartoon at Inkygirl: Daily Diversions for Writers by Debbie Ridpath Ohi.

(Ahem, I deny being diverted.)

This certainly applies to my Nano WIP? How about yours? (Click on the cartoon to see a bigger version.)

A couple of things and a hiatus

At AotP, we are all doing Nano. At eight days in, we're having varying levels of progress, but all of us feel pretty good about our potential success.

That said, our blog, will be on a hiatus until December. If one of us is inspired with blog material, you might find a random post here now and then, but for the most part, we're turning all creative juices on Nano full force.

We're still reading, too. This month's book club selection is a young adult smash and a Rita Winner. We're reading Adios to my Old Life by Caridad Ferrer. I bought the book this weekend at a book signing. Caridad is super delightful. Go buy the book and read it with us!

See ya in December.

Macy and gang

Lights, Camera . . .

This week's question is which book would we love to see made into a movie. There's so many! In romance alone, by subgenre--

Historical:
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon.
Mr. Impossible by Loretta Chase
Lord of the Scoundrels by Loretta Chase

Paranormal/YA:
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
(Is this slotted for a movie already? Never mind. I just checked. It is.)

YA/Coming of Age Women's Fiction:
the Jessica Darling Series by Megan McCafferty
(I'm not sure how they'd do this, because I'm not sure the four books would make four movies, but I'd love to see Jessica and Marcus on the big screen somehow-- or maybe in a mini-series for TV and DVD like the Anne of Green Gables & Avonlea series)

Contemporary:
Match Me If You Can by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Okay, okay. Any book by SEP would work for me, but these two are my very favorite of my many faves by her.

Urban Fantasy:
something from early on in the Anita Blake series by Laurell K. Hamilton, probably the first book, Guilty Pleasures.

Or a fun, magical romp, a fairy tale for modern times, like those provided by Shanna Swendson in her Enchanted, Inc. series. I consider that urban fantasy, too.

Like a twist of mystery with your screwball comedy or vice versa?
Then All About Evie by Beth Ciotta would be a fantastic choice. Or, one of my new raves, Agnes & the Hitman by Jennifer Crusie & Bob Mayer. And, of course, there's always Stephanie Plum and company-- pick a book, any book, although I kinda (ahem) like the triangle. I like the heat Ranger projects. LOL.

I was going to mention my fave "chick lit" book, Rachel's Holiday by Marian Keyes, but lo and behold, it looks like it's going to be a movie.

Anyway . . . I could go on. But, I'm cheating on this question. I'm supposed to pick one, explain why it would make a great movie and pick a few actors to play the characters. So, I'm going to pick Mr. Impossible by Loretta Chase. Why? Duh. Because it has everything! A super smart heroine, a hunky hero, an Egyptian adventure, mystery, humor, heat, love. It's very, very fun, feel-good, say awww. And Hollywood would go bananas with all the chases and scrapes and danger around every Egyptian corner.

If you haven't read the book, (why in the heck haven't you read the book??!!?) here's a description from Publisher's Weekly:

Set in Egypt in 1821, Chase's romp of a romance possesses a fine sense of time and place. Solving the mystery of Egyptian hieroglyphics has been Daphne Pembroke's lifelong passion, one she has kept secret from everyone except her brother, Miles, who fronts as the hieroglyphics expert of the family. (Daphne's disapproving late husband believed that "intellectual endeavors put too great a strain on the inferior female brain.") When robbers steal a papyrus from her Cairo home that may lead to a vast fortune and kidnap Miles as well, Daphne knows the crooks have taken her brother so he can decipher the hieroglyphics. To find Miles before his captors realize he's clueless, she needs muscle in the form of hunky Rupert Carsington (a secondary character from Miss Wonderful, the previous book in the series), whom she springs from a local jail. Tracking the kidnappers takes Daphne, Rupert and their entourage down the Nile, where they face sandstorms, snakes and other perils. Comic relief comes in the form of a mongoose named Marigold. Though the book offers a fascinating glimpse into the workings of ancient Egypt, Rupert and Daphne's relationship, and the trials and errors thereof, remain the heart of the story.

So,
Rupert:Hmmm. I need someone, tall, hunky, athletic looking with a broad, broad chest, lots of muscles, dark hair, dark eyes, but still very English. Someone who could come across as the Brawn only in a Brawn & Brains situation, although he's not quite as dense as Daphne believes. A supersized Colin Farrell type? A darker, more English Jake Gyllenhaal? A younger, more English Goran Visnjic? Olivier Martinez? Brendan Fraser? The Rock? Oh dear, I'm really not that good at this . . . OH! Hugh Jackman, beefed up for the role, although I'm not sure he could come across as a lunkhead. Eric Bana?No, we'll stick with Hugh.

Daphne: Green,green eyes. Heart shaped face. Red, silky hair. Able to portray someone brilliant. The obvious choice is Nicole Kidman. Another interesting choice would be Kate Walsh from Grey's Anatomy and, now, Private Practice. She does romance well. Or, to make Hugh look really huge, maybe someone little like Reese Witherspoon with red hair? Just a thought. I'm actually thinking Nic or Kate.

Lord Noxley: Daniel Craig, or in a twist, Hugh Grant as a bad guy.
Monsier Duval:Vincent Cassell
Miles, Daphne's brother: a regular kind of guy, Toby Maguire?

Well, that's quite enough stream of consciousness on this topic. LOL. Thank goodness there are casting directors!

Cheers and happy Nanowrimo,
C. Alyson