Hello, dear friends!
I’m so happy to be able to visit with you on the day of the release of “Smooth Talking Stranger.” Some books require a little more soul-searching and deep thought than others, and with this one, I often found myself going into what my husband and children call “the stares.” I would be having dinner with the family, or doing the laundry, or sitting in the car, and a particular idea or question about the characters would send me into a virtual trance until I had worked it out. Alas, my family is not very respectful of my trances. My son and daughter wave their small hands in front of my face, make robotic noises, and repeat the phrase “Earth to Mom” until I snapped out of it.
But I had a lot to think about while I was writing STS. The basic set-up is that Ella Varner, my heroine, has to take care of her younger sister Tara’s illegitimate baby, while Tara goes through rehab. Because of their upbringing, Ella has never wanted to be a mother, and she’s completely unprepared for the sudden appearance of a baby in her life. And her relationship with this infant changes everything.
(Incidentally, I have a confession to make: I have never been a huge fan of the “secret baby” plot. Don’t get me wrong, I have read some amazing secret baby books. But I’ve also read others in which the plot seems to exist as a setup for the heroine to suffer, martyrlike and uncomplaining, and take care of the baby with no help, no money, and no appreciation, often enduring the scorn of the hero until he finally finds out about the baby. Having had two children of my own, I can tell you that I was neither martyrlike nor uncomplaining when I was taking care of a newborn. Just ask my husband Greg. And if I were in that secret-baby-heroine’s position, I would be at the hero’s door, shouting, “Hey, buddy! This is your baby, I want some emotional and financial support, and by the way, it’s your turn to change the diaper while I take a frickin’ nap!”)
I have written before about characters who are afraid of emotional connection. But I think even though Ella is a responsible, smart and caring woman, she is more fearful of attachment than any other heroine I’ve created. The thing is, babies don’t care about our fears or hang-ups . . . they want to be held, loved, fed, cared-for, and they are so vulnerable and their needs are so enormous, there is no choice but to love them. In Ella’s case, once she lets her sister’s baby into her heart and her life, it opens up a new world of possibilities . . . including a relationship with Jack, the Travis brother who made appearances in my two previous contemporary novels, “Sugar Daddy” and “Blue Eyed Devil.”
I hope you’ll get a chance to read “Smooth Talking Stranger,” and please feel free to ask any non-spoilerish questions– I would love to answer them. And if you have some great secret-baby-books to recommend, please do share!”
Loading ...
gg'smom
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:11 am:
I wish I hadn’t pre-ordered it on amazon, now I have to wait on the post and I want it NOW!
Fedora
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:37 am:
Lisa, I tend not to be a fan of the secret-baby thing either, for all the reasons you mentioned. (When I first saw this post, I confess I initially thought, “Yikes! Is STS a secret-baby story?” Of course, I’ll be reading it either way, but it did give me a moment’s pause
) As for recommendations, nothing comes immediately to mind–in general, it takes a great author to write the story in a way that I can understand and forgive the secret keeping… definitely not an easy task!
gg'smom
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:46 am:
Lisa what are you working on right now?
orannia
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 4:41 am:
HI Lisa *waves*
But I think even though Ella is a responsible, smart and caring woman, she is more fearful of attachment than any other heroine I’ve created.
I was already REALLY looking forward to reading STS, but after that comment I want it like….yesterday
Am I right in assuming that Ella has some deep-seated reasons for her fear of attachment? (I hope I’m not heading into spoiler territory.) And can I just say that I love the underlying emotional themes that run through your contemporaries. Emotional abuse is so insidious, and very hard to quantify, and I love how its being explored in your books
*taking a flying leap in thought*
All the best with the release of STS! Am sure it will do very well!
Marisa
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 6:16 am:
Hi Lisa! I’m so very glad you could join us today. After reading and loving both Sugar Daddy and Blue Eyed Devil, I am really looking forward to reading STS. I haven’t read many ’secret baby’ books, not that I can recall off the top of my head. But I must agree with you, I’d certainly be knocking on his door telling him it was time to change the diapers and afterward he could do the dishes and give me a foot massage.
I was wondering, when you wrote Sugar Daddy – did you already know that you would be writing other books with the secondary characters you introduced?
Stacy ~
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 6:53 am:
Hi Lisa and everyone,
I was lucky enough to get a much coveted ARC of this book, because I am an unabashed Kleypas fangirl, and devour anything I can get my hands on (even managed to get a copy of “Forever My Love” recently). I was so delighted to discover your contemporaries were as amazing as your historicals, albeit in a different way of course. STS is no exception.
Ella was probably one of the most difficult characters to warm up to, and I had to read the book twice before I could really find it in myelf to care for her. I loved watching her with Luke, and opening herself up to those feelings of unconditional love, which in turn made it possible for her to create something really wonderful with Jack. Jack. Sigh. Now he’s just an incredible hero, one for the record books. I totally fell for him. I love how he “showed” Ella his love, which was more effective than words for her.
What was it like to create a character like Ella, who ha to endure the type of childhood she had, with a mother who was not very nurturing herself? What do you think made her so special that Jack couldn’t help but fall in love with her?
gg'smom
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 7:03 am:
Stacy- I was just saying on trashybooks.com how much I liked Forever My Love. I wish I would have kept the copy I had.
Stacy ~
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 7:10 am:
gg’smom, I haven’t read it yet, but soon *g*
PJ
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 7:41 am:
Hi Lisa! Well, I wasn’t lucky enough to nab a much-coveted arc so I’m sitting here not so patiently waiting for Friday when I can get to the “big city” and grab a copy at B&N. I’ll be devouring it this weekend!
Do you have plans to write more contemps?
Huge congrats on the RITA final for Seduce Me at Sunrise! I adored that story! Will you be in DC this summer?
~PJ
Christina Dodd
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 8:12 am:
STS is my carrot dangling before me as I finish my book. I’m so excited! I’ve been hearing about this book for months! Luckily, I’ll be done tomorrow and I can read again. Not to mention I’ll get to generally turn into a human being once more.
Christina
http://www.christinadodd.com
Buffie
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 8:31 am:
Hey Lisa!! It is so great to have you with us today.
I am so looking forward to reading this book. It sounds fabulous and I have heard nothing but high praise about the book.
Congrats on your Rita nomination!
Yes, please tell us what you are working on now.
Kati
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 8:46 am:
*bouncing up and down*
Lisa! It’s Lisa! Hi!!!
I adored Smooth Talking Stranger (as evidenced by my gushy review here at RNTV). More than that, I fell for Jack like a ton of bricks. I love, love, love the care taking alpha. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that Jack is my favorite Kleypas hero ever. And you know how I love me some McKenna and Gage Travis!
Lisa, I have to know…you’re gonna give Joe a story, yes? I mean, give the poor fella a break! All his sibs have found true love. It stands to reason that Joe should too. ::puppy eyes::
Also, I just read the teaser for Tempted Me at Twilight. And I can already tell that I’m going to LOVE Harry Rutledge! It looks like SO much fun. Now, the series is called the “Hathaway sisters” but we’ll get a story for Leo eventually, right?? ::more puppy eyes::
Lisa, I’m elated you’re here today. I loved Jack, Ella and Luke’s story and have already re-read it twice. You still give good book!
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:02 am:
Good morning dears! What a fun way to start my day! I have my mug of coffee, and I’m waiting for that caffeine to take effect . . . waiting . . .
Fedora, I feel the same way . . . when I see that a book is written by an author I like and trust, I usually take a chance even if it’s not one of my favorite plots. Another one I’m not crazy about is when the hero and heroine were divorced and then try to get back together. But if it’s written by an author I love, I’ll go for it!
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:05 am:
GG’s Mom, I am heading into the home stretch of “Tempt Me At Twilight” . . . it’s a historical novel, the third in the Hathaways series. Basically, Poppy, who wants a quiet and normal life, ends up married to Harry Rutledge, a mysterious hotel owner . . . and he is actually the villain of the book. So Poppy is trying to reform him. And he’s resistant *g*
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:12 am:
Hello Orianna! (waving back) Yes, Ella has some real and deep-seated reasons for being afraid of attachment. Thankfully Jack Travis is the kind to “reach out and touch someone.” *g* I think those kinds of emotional issues are really interesting and exciting conflict, because there is no territory more fascinating than the landscape of human emotions. I think many (but not all) the choices we make as adults come from the “hard-wiring” that happens to us in childhood. (But I also believe that we can re-wire ourselves in good positive ways if we work on it.)
For me, the fun part of STS was in showing how someone can turn out to be the right person for you, even when they’re completely different from what you thought you wanted!
And the most fun scene to write in the whole book was a certain “parking garage scene” . . . hee hee!
Gannon
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:18 am:
Hi, Lisa! I can’t wait to get my copy of STS. I’ve heard nothing but good things about it. As a mom of three, I know what you mean about not being a martyr. Everyone would be able to hear me pounding on the hero’s door, telling him to get his butt in gear and help me out!!! My dh has always helped out, but then I think he knows that he’d be in serious trouble if he didn’t.
Congratulations on your RITA nomination. Hope to see you in DC this summer!
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:19 am:
Good morning Marisa–thank you for letting me visit today!!!
I actually wrote Sugar Daddy as a standalone (is that a word?) . . . and I planned on Liberty ending up with the “other guy,” not the hero she ended up with! But for some reason their chemistry became so strong that I just couldn’t pull them apart. And then I couldn’t stop thinking about the secondary characters in the book, so that led to writing Blue Eyed Devil. And I NEVER considered writing a book about Jack until near the end of Blue Eyed Devil. I thought the right woman would know what to do with all that unapologetic manliness–LOL!
Andrea
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:27 am:
Good morning, Lisa, and welcome back to RNTV!! We are so excited to have you visit us on the release day of STS!! My sister and I will be going out in a few hours to buy our copies. I can’t wait to start it!!
Lisa Kleypas said: For me, the fun part of STS was in showing how someone can turn out to be the right person for you, even when they’re completely different from what you thought you wanted!
I love this. Just love it. THIS makes me want to read STS even more (as if I needed another reason!). That and the mention of a “parking garage scene”…
Looking forward to TMAT, too! Heck, I look forward to anything with your name on it.
Oh, and congrats on your RITA nom! Very well deserved!
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:29 am:
Hello Stacy!!! Oh, I am SO glad you enjoyed STS . . . thank you, I appreciate it! I felt the same way about Ella at first, so it was extra-weird to try and get inside her head and tell the story from her POV. I think what made me feel sympathetic toward her was the sense that her “coolness” is because she’s fearful . . . and yet deep inside she’s starved for real committed love. You keep seeing her try tentatively to make connections with these new people in her life, and the easiest connection is with the baby. I think once she lets herself fall in love with Luke, she opens up enough to love Jack.
And Jack’s “love style,” so to speak, is incredibly intense and possessive, but as Ella discovers late in the book, there’s a kind of freedom in that, that she wasn’t able to have with the laid-back Dane. I’ve actually discovered that in my own marriage . . . there’s an incredible safety and feeling of being grounded when you’re really loved by someone . . . and that actually makes me more likely to take risks and try new things! That being said, nothing my husband Greg can say or do will EVER get me to try scuba-diving or fly in a helicopter . . .
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:33 am:
Stacy, I forgot to answer the last question . . . I think Ella’s attraction for Jack is that he loves her intelligence (all those “big words” *g*) and he especially loves her sense of responsibility. She’s a “fixer” just like he is. And when he sees that she is willing to put her life on hold and even risk losing her relationship with Dane, just to take care of a helpless infant . . . he knows that she is the kind of woman he can depend on. She is really a highly moral character who needs to loosen up. And Jack definitely applies himself to loosening her up *g*
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:34 am:
About “Forever My Love” . . . just keep in mind, I was young, and it was the eighties.
That sounds like an excuse for something illegal, doesn’t it? . . .
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:40 am:
Hello PJ!!!! (BIG HUG) thank you!
I hope you’ll enjoy STS . . . and YES, I am going to write some contemporary novels set in Friday Harbor, which is part of an island just off the Washington coast . . . it’s not going to be quite as ritzy and glamorous as the Travis novels, more about down-to-earth sexy guys with boats. LOL!
And I’m sorry to say that I probably won’t make it to DC this summer . . . it’s on the opposite coast from where I am, and I think the time and money is better spent on my children this year. And I hope we’ll be spending a little time at Friday Harbor, so I can ogle (I mean research) the sexy guys with boats *g*
–Lisa
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:41 am:
Dear Xtina,
I hope it is a very large and well-endowed carrot.
Snicker.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:44 am:
Dear Buffie, thank you and good morning!!! I answered that one above, but I can also tell you that I’ll be writing Leo Hathaway’s historical next! It’s so difficult to restrain him . . . every time he appears in “Tempt Me At Twilight” he is stealing scenes right and left.
Deb Mullins
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:45 am:
Hi Lisa! The new book sounds amazing. Can’t wait to get my hands on it!
Gannon
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:49 am:
I love the sound of the Friday Harbor books. And ogling sexy men with boats definitely qualifies as research. *g*
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:51 am:
Hello Kati, you sweetheart!!!! THANK YOU for the amazing review . . . I think you completely nailed Jack Travis (figuratively of course *g*) . . . and you’ve got me jumping up and down too, which is quite a feat for this time of the morning! I’ll admit, I don’t know what to do about Joe . . . I don’t have a story planned for him any time soon, but I do imagine that after the experience he’s had (you know, near the end of the book) that it’s had quite an impact on his life. So maybe some day I’ll get a chance to write a book for him . . . I do love these Travis brothers
The “Hathaway sisters” is a typo on my website . . .thanks for telling me! It’s just plain “Hathaways.” And in spite of the “niceness” Harry displays in that excerpt, he turns out to be incorrigibly bad, and very much a challenge for Poppy. Very fun to write!!! Leo is definitely next, and I am very excited to get to tell his story FINALLY!
gg'smom
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:53 am:
Lisa did you ever mention Cam’s secret name in Mine til Midnight? I missed it if you did, I remember a scene where he said it was too soon to tell but then I got to the end of the book and I still did not know.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 9:58 am:
Dear Gannon, thank you and LOL . . . yes, a husband MUST help out, or he is not considered hero material *g* And yes, I will make the great sacrifice of ogling, because it is good for my work. Hee!
Andrea, I hope you and your sister enjoy the book . . . and thank you, I’m so glad to be here today! I will tell you, before I wrote the parking garage scene, I had to ask Christina Dodd, “Is it okay if I do this? Can this really happen here?” And she told me to go for it! Because she’s a bad influence *g*. Thanks for the congrats, dear!
Deb, thank you and HUGS
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:00 am:
GG’s mom . . . I never got to mention it! Sometimes it’s difficult to “wedge” these things in, and there never seemed a place in SMAS where I could do it. So Cam’s secret name is stuck in a file somewhere, and now even I can’t remember it!
Andrea
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:01 am:
Lisa Kleypas said: …but I can also tell you that I’ll be writing Leo Hathaway’s historical next! It’s so difficult to restrain him . . . every time he appears in “Tempt Me At Twilight” he is stealing scenes right and left.
w00t!!!!!!!!! I’m stoked for Leo!!
Christina Dodd
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:10 am:
Lisa wrote, Dear Xtina,
I hope it is a very large and well-endowed carrot.
Snicker.
Oh, he is.
Christina
Gannon
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:18 am:
Christina, we’d expect nothing less than “a very large and well-endowed carrot”.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:26 am:
It’s so nice when friends have common interests.
connIE BROCKWAY
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:32 am:
Good morning, Dear Lisa
I downloaded STS yesterday from audible! I can’t tell you what a treat it is to listen while I’m in house frau mode. I love that you wrote it in first person. It’s a gift!
Connie
Christina Dodd
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:44 am:
Sort of like spelling, huh, ConnIE?
Christina
Donna
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:01 am:
Hi Lisa, Christina and Connie!!! I have STS here from my library and plan to read it as soon as I am done with Made to Be Broken. Christina, what new comptempory book are you coming out with next??? So glad I came in here this morning…
Donna
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:03 am:
Thank you Connie darling!!! Do NOT do too much housework . . .it’s bad for you!
connIE BROCKWAY
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:06 am:
THis is so unfair. I recall just last night reading “someone’s” completely unintelligible prose. Taht wouddnt’ be anyon you kno, ould ti, Xtina?
Hi, Donna!
ANd just in case anyone’s interested, Lisa’s emails, like Lisa, never have a hair out of place. Or a consonant.
Maria Lokken
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:11 am:
Hi Lisa – Congratulations on STS release!
Connie – Marisa is always complaining that I never look over what I write and just hit the button send.
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:19 am:
((Lisa)) it’s wonderful to have these rare opportunities to “chat” with you. I’ve been alternating cursing Amazon and venting on Twitter about the delay in laying my hands on a copy of STS. I’m devastated that you might not be at RWA this summer. And no, I could *never* imagine you screaming outside your hero’s door with a baby in your arms. You’d be all that is gracious and elegant and the fricking hero would fall in line, because who wouldn’t when faced with the fabulous LisaK?
XTina and ConnIE, do carry on. I have ring-side seats and I’m cheering.
XTina, what a huge crowd at the Northwest Women’s Show this past weekend. I walked by your spot a few times but the crowd defeated me. *sigh*
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:21 am:
Now Xtina is making me self-conscious. That’s “alternately” not “alternating.”
Mandy
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:22 am:
Hi Lisa,
I have heard a lot about smooth talking stranger and really think it would be something I would love to read. But I shamefully confess that I ahven;t read anything of yours before and I am wondering can it be read as a stand alone or would it be better to read the other two first?
Good luck with the success of the novel and congratulations on the release!
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:34 am:
Mandy, you want to read LisaK in any order you can lay your hands on her books. They’re all treasures every one of them.
Mandy
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:37 am:
Aw thanks Keira! I’ll go order some now!
Kati
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:43 am:
*enviously*
Oh, Mandy, you lucky, lucky girl you. Lisa has a phenomenal backlist. Save up, because once you read one, you’re gonna want to read them all!
Keira
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 11:50 am:
Haha! I agree with you completely on the Secret Baby Plot. I am not one to suffer in silence- I would spread the wealth to the hero and he could enjoy all the pleasantries of fatherhood while I took a break.
Mandy
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 12:12 pm:
Kati now I have started to look I am having a problem choosing which ones to go for!
J Perry Stone
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 12:12 pm:
*BIG SIGH OF RELIEF*
This is what I do when there’s some semblance of a Squawk reunion.
Hi darling Lisa! I’m buying STS immediately because I need a vacation. You’re it. I’ve followed and adored all these books and … btw, now I can’t stop thinking about Poppy’s story. Nice teaser. But I love your first person contemps. Your women are as wonderful as your men, do you know that? Complex, vulnerable yet strong.
Christina, what book is that you’re finishing? The next in the new paranormal series? The explanation for Firebird’s powers? Did I tell you I got my friend–who’s in desperate need of a distraction right now–totally hooked on the first set. She ate them up in 3 days. Now she’s asking me for more Dodd suggestions. I got it aaaaalllll covered.
Connie, you tweeted me over here. And i think your spelling is perfect.
Depressing about Lisa’s emails though.
Lisa, fear of attachment is one of my favorite kinds of stories. In historicals, it’s usually the man. You twisted it up for the contemp, eh? So does this mean that Jack is coming at Ella with the full force of his manliness, or does he go softly to get through her fears??
Gannon
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 12:45 pm:
You’re so right, J Perry, it is a bit of a Squawk reunion. Don’t you just love it?!
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 12:46 pm:
Er, did we natter on too much and frighten the Squawkers away? Too much love all at once?
terrio
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 12:48 pm:
It’s like deja vu. Someone throws in a rubber chicken and it’ll be perfect.
Hello, Lisa!!! I was fortunate enough to tell you last summer how much I LOVE your contemps and I remember your excitement when you talked about this book and its cover. Totally infectious! I managed to find a copy of STS over the weekend and I’m loving it. But funny enough, I loved Ella right away. And your descriptions of Jack are enough to have me drooling on every page. OMG! I didn’t think I’d ever love a hero as much as Hardy, but Jack could be a contender.
Also looking forward to Poppy AND Leo’s stories. Congrats on the RITA nom and though I wish you could be there, trust that there will be A LOT of us screaming when they call your name!
Teresa Medeiros
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:09 pm:
I’ve got yer rubber chicken right here, terrio! And I am SO happy that SMOOTH TALKING STRANGER is finally out! It’s shooting straight to the top of my TBR pile.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:11 pm:
HI MARIA!!!! (Hugs and smoochies) Thanks for having me here!!!!
Keira, LOL . . . thank you, you sweetie . . . but just between us . . . I have my less-than-patient moments *g*. I hope you had a great time at the Expo–I heard that our Xtina had a huge and enthusiastic crowd. YES about “spreading the wealth” to the baby’s daddy . . . if he wants to help with the procreation, he can definitely help with the results. *g*
Mandy, hello and thanks for visiting me!
I try to write every book so that it could be read on its own, so I hope you get a chance to try one!
J. Perry, HELLO gorgeous friend!!! Thank you so much–I am glowing now. I hope you’re doing GREAT–I have missed you! About Jack’s approach . . . I think he’s sort of a funny mixture, because he’s sort of charming and laid-back and very helpful, but he also has these intensely alpha/manly moments when he comes on really strong. I think the relationship between him and Ella, and a lot of their dialogue, is a constant fencing match.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:18 pm:
Terrio, how are you??? (HUG HUG) I remember talking with you and WOW has the time gone by fast or what? I am SO delighted that you’re enjoying STS . . . and Jack . . . THANK YOU!
Hi Terri dear!!!! LOL . . .I’m imagining you with that rubber chicken, making him wave his floppy little wing at all of us . . .
connIE BROCKWAY
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:21 pm:
No, Keira. We were all out to lunch (or in Xtina’s case, breakfast)
Nuthin’ comes betweens us and our foods. (Thank you, Tropic Thunder)
I tweeted you over here, J Perry Stone? Is that sort of like a goose?
terrio
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:26 pm:
You remember me?! You just made my day. I’m certain you talked to a TON of people last year, all of them talking love for your books. I felt like I had this inside line because I could tell people, “Lisa says this is her sexiest book yet and the cover has a woman in a man’s shirt.” LOL! I had the scoop!
Terri – You heard my cry! LOL! Is he wearing something frilly to match that pretty office of yours?
Mandy
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:32 pm:
Thank you for answering my question Lisa. Thats great to know because I live in Ireland and romance isn’t big over here so it helps that books can be read as stand alones or as a series whichever I can get my hands on!
J Perry Stone
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:32 pm:
Well you know, Connie, birds of a feather…
Teresa! Guess what else I’m buying before the kids’ break next week? My SLIW duke!
I just adore you ladies and I don’t care who knows it.
Lisa, that sounds about perfect. You’re like the mad scientist (with better hair) mixing beakers of stuff until the chemistry is just perfect!
Elyssa Papa
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:40 pm:
Hi, Lisa! A little birdie told me you were here (thanks, J Perry!!!), so I popped on over. My copy of STS just arrived, and it is so pretty! I can’t wait to start reading it.
I think I’ve told Kim Castillo this—and probably countless others, too—but there are perhaps a few romance authors that if I ever met, I would be rendered completely useless and idiotic. I can’t even begin to express how much your books and writing have meant to me and have also shown me . . . I know I am a better romance writer from you and your books. So, thank you!!!!
The excerpt of Poppy’s book is delicious; Harry is going to just be one of those heroes that makes you swoon. There’s just something special about the anti-hero. I am so excited that Leo’s book is going to be written. The bantering scenes between him and Miss Marks are fun and sizzling. But, I have a soft spot for Beatrice. Do you have any plans to write a book for Beatrice and her array of pets? *hopeful look* And the new contemp series sounds fantastic!
Congrats on the new release!
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 1:43 pm:
Lisa, you have “less than patient” moments? Hm. Perhaps only Greg knows. I’m betting even the Squawkers don’t know.
Lisa, are you currently working on last-minute tweaks to TWILIGHT or is it a new contemp? And whose new story is it going to be? (I’m shamelessly hinting for tidbits while I curse the fates for not delivering my STS yet.)
Terri, welcome, welcome.
Connie, in J Perry’s case, that bird would be a blue heron. You wave that anywhere in her peripheral vision and she’ll be all over it in an instant.
Ah, yes. Mealtimes. O’course. How can I protest when I’m scarfing down my “lunch” at 10:35am?
Where’s Santa??? She’d hate to miss this.
Kim
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:06 pm:
I told you in a post last year that you have a distinct historical and contemporary voice. Perhaps it’s because your contemporaries are in the first person, thereby differentiating them from your historicals. Many authors can’t do both genres well, but you do.
I picked up STS today and can’t wait to start it. I thought you did a great job with Gage and Hardy, yet everyone has been raving about Jack.
You had written historicals for so long, what was the genesis for trying your hand at a contemporary? Did you want a new challenge or did the story just come to you and you had to write it? Also, where did the idea for Sugar Daddy come from and what made you write it in the first person?
Thanks and best of luck on your RITA nomination. I personally think BED deserved a nomination, too.
J Perry Stone
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:08 pm:
I already emailed San and left a message on her machine. No doubt she’s yelling at the meat slicer, but she’ll be here.
pambook
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:14 pm:
Lisa, congratulations on the Rita nomination! I’m not usally a fan of secret baby stories, but wouldn’t pass one up if written by a favorite author. Now of course, I’m dying to read all about Jack, hoping it’s arrives in my mailbox today.
I’ve been wanting to read Leo’s story along with everyone else, but have to say I’m very intrigued with Harry now, anti-hero type bad boys can be so exciting and interesting.
Christina Dodd
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:18 pm:
ConnIE …
shtu pu.
Christina
Christina Dodd
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:24 pm:
Keira,
Someone from the chat came and mentioned you, and we were wondering where you were! You should have come by later when I was done signing.
JPerry, good to see you! I’m finishing up the second of the paranormal series, STORM OF SHADOWS. I love it, but it’s running lonnnnngggggg.
Terrio, Wait here while I bop Teresa with my rubber chicken. THere! Are you happy now?
Christina
http://www.christinadodd.com
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:24 pm:
Xtina, you have a deadline today. So your less-than-stellar moments are all forgiven.
Lisa, one more question… Are you doing any in-person booksigning, er, anywhere in the world? We can charter flights to attend, you know.
Maria Lokken
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:25 pm:
Christina – long is good.
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:27 pm:
Xtina said, “Someone from the chat came and mentioned you, and we were wondering where you were! You should have come by later when I was done signing.”
Christina Dodd
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:41 pm:
Maria,
I was talking about page count.
Christina
Christina Dodd
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:42 pm:
Keira,
Obviously you don’t know me at all. I love fan-girl squealing. Also fawning and flattery, even if it’s false. I’m not discerning at all. Lie if you must, I always say.
Christina
orannia
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 2:59 pm:
I think many (but not all) the choices we make as adults come from the “hard-wiring” that happens to us in childhood. (But I also believe that we can re-wire ourselves in good positive ways if we work on it.)
*nods* Definitely. The re-wiring just takes time…
And the most fun scene to write in the whole book was a certain “parking garage scene” . . . hee hee!
Parking garage scene. GULP! Congratulations on the RITA nomination and all the best with the release of STS
Julie D
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:04 pm:
J Perry said “Your women are as wonderful as your men, do you know that? Complex, vulnerable yet strong.” J Perry is right, Lisa. (IT Kills me to say that J is right about anything!) Your woman are always complex and three-dimensional. I live that about them.
Speaking of complex Lisa , I have often wondered about what kind of motivations are going on in your head when you write. You wrote “ I think many (but not all) the choices we make as adults come from the “hard-wiring” that happens to us in childhood. (But I also believe that we can re-wire ourselves in good positive ways if we work on it.)”
Do you look at your writing as an opportunity to teach people something about life? Often times as I read your books I come across a statement … that line … that is so profound I have to stop reading … and just think … really think about what you said.
An example of a thought provoking quote. From your book Sugar Daddy:
“There is no peace in poverty.”
Wow … that line just made me stop … and think.
Here is my favorite Lisa Kleypas quote. This too is a sentence that made me stop. .. and think … about Life.
“Do NOT do too much housework . . .it’s bad for you!”
So true! Sniff … my Life would Forever be BETTER if I could just learn to live by That Lisa K line!
Mandy
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:09 pm:
*note to self* do fan-girl screaming if I ever seen Christina…. check! LOL
Julie D
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:09 pm:
Congratulations btw on your Rita nomination!
And the best advice I got on babies didn’t come from a book. It came from my MIL. When my first child was born she told me “Babies are just as intelligent as adults are. They are just inexperienced.”
connIE BROCKWAY
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:17 pm:
Mandy,
You needn’t bother. Xtina has a digitalized loop of girls screaming she plays at all her autographings. She taped it at a Hannah Montana show.
Maria Lokken
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:20 pm:
Connie – I don’t usually write LOL, but seriously you got a guffaw out of me.
Christina – I love you!
terrio
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:26 pm:
Xtina – Yep, I’m happy now.
Christina Dodd
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:31 pm:
Don’t be silly, Connie. I use the recording of you screaming like a fan-girl the first time you met me.
xoxo
Christina
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:33 pm:
Ah, but, connIE, you and Xtina ain’t heard MY fan-girl mellifluous fluting yet. Hannah Montana? Her tween fans? Pfft! Be warned, er, welcoming. I’m going to have my game on at National.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:35 pm:
Dear Elyssa . . . HELLO sweetie . . . oh, you couldn’t have said anything to make me happier . . . we’ll definitely have to meet someday, I would absolutely love it! And yes, I love antiheroes too, they are my favorite. Leo and Miss Marks have a couple of scenes together in “Tempt Me,” and Miss Marks has a BIG surprise secret that will lead into the next book.
Beatrix will DEFINITELY get her own story, complete with lots of pets *g* . . . . . I’ll have to ask Connie for advice on that plot, because she is a friend to all animals
connIE BROCKWAY
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:39 pm:
Xtina, You mean when you stepped on my foot?
Keira, sadly I won’t be in Washington this summer and I don’t think Xtina or Lisa or Terri will, either. Eloisa will, though and I’m not sure about Liz. I’m sorry I’ll miss it–but then I won’t be forced to make unpleasant comparisons concerning decibels and ululation changes.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:39 pm:
Keira, I am on the last few chapters of “Tempt Me At Twilight,” and then the next book will be Leo and Miss Marks, and after that I’m going to start my contemporary Friday Harbor series! I think the feel of the Friday Harbor series will be a little more down to earth, less glam, but still sexy and relationship-oriented. And characters from one book will visit the others, so we can “keep in touch” with them. I’m so excited about it.
Elyssa Papa
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:50 pm:
Lisa, I woud love to meet you one day! As long as you don’t mind a blubbering idiot, I’ll buy you dinner. *g*
Oh, now you’ve gotten me more intrigued by Miss Marks! I can’t wait to read those scenes, and I am so happy Beatrix will be getting her own story, too.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:52 pm:
Thank you Kim!!! I did submit Blue Eyed Devil to the Rita contest, but you just never know how these things will turn out. Truly, the response I’ve gotten from readers has been a thousand times better than any award could ever be. Especially those who told me that it may have made their own situations a little clearer. What a gift that’s been to me!
I decided to try contemps because I’ve written historical romances for so long that I wanted to work on something different . . .and also I saw the contemporary genre as a way to explore issues and relationships in a different way. The story of narcissistic abuse in Blue Eyed Devil, for example . . . I think you could tell that in a historical context, but it had more resonance to me in a modern setting. And of course the freedoms and challenges that contemporary women have are SO different than women from previous times, so I can tell very different stories this way.
The idea for Sugar Daddy came because I wanted to tell the story of a woman’s journey, and really show the extremes of her earlier life in the trailer park, and contrast it with an almost Cinderella-like turn of events later in the story. I guess you can tell I’m drawn to the theme of “the outsider” in many of my stories . . . it just always seems to make the book more interesting when a person from the wrong side of the tracks shows up!
The first person POV happened because I was so concerned about finding a realistic, believable contemporary voice . . . my biggest fear about writing contemporary was that it would sound historical . . . so I literally wrote and discarded hundreds of pages, and tried first and third POV, until finally I locked into something that felt and sounded right to me. Now, however, I really want to try contemporary in third person for my Friday Harbor series, so I can get into the heads of multiple characters. I was going to with Jack’s story, but then I realized that I needed to keep it consistent with the first two books.
Elyssa Papa
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 3:53 pm:
Sheesh, misspelling abounds today. It should be: I would love to meet you one day!
It is ConnIE’s fault.
LisaA
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 4:04 pm:
Lisa, I am so looking forward to reading STS…I have a feeling I will love it even more than SD and BED…which is ALOT…because of Jack..he sounds like my ideal hero!
Very thrilled to hear that the Friday Harbor books will be written in third person POV…I just love being inside the hero’s head and “seeing” his reactions to the heroine and his fall head over heels in love. And you do this soooo well! And as a Washington resident, it will be fun to have stories based in the beloved San Juan islands…which are so beautiful!
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 4:05 pm:
Thanks, Pam!!! I can assure you, Harry is bad. VERY bad. Heh heh.
Oh, Keira, I’m sorry to say I’m not planning any booksignings for a little while . . . but I’ll be writing a lot! Lots of books to come in the next couple of years!
Julie, LOL . . .thank you, dear, (HUG) and yes, you must avoid housework, esp. vacuuming and laundry! And I REALLY appreciate your kind words, because I do think very deeply about certain issues when I’m writing contemporaries, and I think that’s why they’re more draining to write than historicals. I think I’m like many women who have had to struggle with things like perfectionism and self-esteem, and coming to peace with your flaws, and also just plain learning to like yourself.
So when I think about the “empowerment” of women, I’m not necessarily referring to ending up as a CEO with a briefcase, it’s more about fully becoming yourself and ending up as a happy, well-adjusted person. I don’t know who said “happiness is not your circumstances,” but it’s so true, isn’t it? I think we’ve all known someone who has every reason to be happy but persists in being miserable. And we must clobber those people with rubber chickens *g*
Kati
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 4:05 pm:
Umm…Friday Harbor??
Reeeeealllly?
Will it be set in Texas again? Will you go first person POV again? Is it a series? Dish, dish, dish!!!
Or…something less pushy.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 4:11 pm:
LisaA . . . ooooh, you know how gorgeous those islands are then!!!! Isn’t it an awesome setting?? Thank you!
Kati, my husband and two children and I went to the San Juan Islands, just off the coast of Washington state, and it’s one of the most beautiful locations in the world. Orcas and dolphins swimming by the coast, mountains and oceans and island scenery . . .and the most fascinating mix of people. Millionaires with yachts, working-class, and all kinds of artistic, literate, music-loving people . . . lavender farms, amazing restaurants . . . . it’s going to be a series, four books to start with, and maybe more if I have more stories to tell. And I’m planning to write it in third person POV, so I can show the viewpoints of many characters. I wish I could clone myself so I could start it right now! *g*
Andrea
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 4:12 pm:
I got Jack!!!
Mandy
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 4:23 pm:
OK so I took all your advice and I went and got some ebooks seeing as I couldn’t wait for them to be shipped and I ordered STS from the bookseller because the ebook wasn’t available woohoo I have some happy reading ahead of me tonight!
Teresa Medeiros
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 5:05 pm:
Oh J Perry, you know I wrote the crochety old duke in SOME LIKE IT WILD just for you because you loved crochety old Wilbury in THE VAMPIRE WHO LOVED ME so much. He’s your dream guy!
Teresa Medeiros
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 5:06 pm:
And those rubber chickens leave bruises, you know, Xtina! Bruises that CAN be used as evidence in a potential police file.
cyclops8
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 5:46 pm:
Hi Lisa,
Happy Release Day. I’m not a big secret baby fan so I don’t have any recommendations to share, but I just wanted to come over and say hi.
Fedora
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 5:56 pm:
Just popping back in to say, you ladies are having too much fun here–misspellings! rubber chickens! fan-girl screaming! What’s the world coming to? Tone it down!
And yep, down with housework I say! More books for everyone!
PJ
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 6:03 pm:
Wow, it’s been busy in here today! And look at all the Squawkers! Gawd, I’ve missed having you all together. Well, it isn’t *all* because we’re missing Liz and Eloisa but still love getting my Squawker fix.
Lisa, the Friday Harbor books sound terrific. I adore sexy, down to earth men who love boats. And I don’t even get seasick!
I’m disappointed that you won’t be in DC but I can certainly understand you wanting to spend that time with your family. As Terri said, we’ll cheer the roof off for you. Oh, and I’m sure any one of us would be more than happy to accept that lovely statue for you. You wouldn’t mind if it took the scenic route back to the west coast, would you?
Thanks again for all the wonderful hours of reading pleasure you send our way.
Hugs,
~PJ
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 6:07 pm:
Lisa, Friday Harbor!!! O.M.G. All you Squawker friends be very jealous of me (and LisaA) this instant. I’ve been there, know how gorgeous the place truly is, and with Lisa doing hands-on research this summer….the series is going to be amazing!!!
Lisa, how did you get into the mindset of small-town Washingtonia? Particularly the island mentality, where life has changed significantly over the past few years, but not as fast as Seattle. Did you interview people, read first-hand memoirs, or ???
That’s the one thing I find amazing about your writing. Every time someone asks for examples of a perfect sense of place and time and period, I point to your Creole historicals. How d’you do that? Be those people, I mean, while you write, and then return to the modern mundane of laundry machines and doing the dishes?
Terri, I’d like to be on be on-site when you attempt to convince the police that you were traumatized by a rubber chicken. As a friend, a fan, a supporter, you know. So do be sure to give me a call before you dial 911.
J Perry has the hots for a crochety old duke? O how the mighty hath fallen!
connIE, not this year? And most of you? *boo hoos (mellifluously natch)*
Kim
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 6:49 pm:
Lisa Kleypas wrote: I did submit Blue Eyed Devil to the Rita contest, but you just never know how these things will turn out. Truly, the response I’ve gotten from readers has been a thousand times better than any award could ever be. Especially those who told me that it may have made their own situations a little clearer. What a gift that’s been to me!
I thought BED was a special book and deserved a nomination. You took on a difficult subject and still balanced the romantic aspects of the story. I must say that the nominees in the contemporary category were a little puzzling this year. At least the RWA acknowledged SMAS. That was a wonderful book, too and Win and Merripen were a great h/h.
I look forward to the rest of the Hathaway stories and your new Friday Harbor books.
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 7:16 pm:
Hello Cyclops!!!!
PJ, thank you . . . LOL . . . you make me feel so great.
Keira, isn’t Friday Harbor wonderful??? It has so much personality . . . I’ll be very busy wandering around with my little notebook and pen . . . and stopping at every restaurant, of course *g* I’ve only begun to get a sense of the place and the people. I always start by researching the history of a place, and I’ve already read about the “Pig War,” the eleven-year clash between the British and Americans, who were fighting to claim the San Juan islands . . .and it was started because of a pig that wandered into a neighbor’s yard and was shot! Thankfully, the only casualty in the entire war was the pig. Hee!
So I’ll do a lot of reading and exploring–and the fun thing about writing contemporaries is you get to talk to real live people for reasearch! *g*
But you’ve hit the nail on the head . . . it’s the island mentality I’m going to have to capture. Very different from all the other places I’ve become familiar with! Thank you for your sweet words . . . I do like to notice details about people and language, and hopefully show how that connects them to a particular place. I’m so excited that you felt the same way I did about the San Juans!!!
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 7:17 pm:
Kim . . . that warms my heart. I’m sitting here smiling at the computer. THANK YOU.
Sammy
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 7:45 pm:
Hey Lisa! My husband just went out and bought Smooth Talking Stranger for me and I’m going to start reading it in a few minutes! I’m so eagerly anticipating a great night reading one of your great books! I have a question for you: how do you make your heroes and heroines work if they’re so different? Usually, in your novels, the heroines and heroes are so different, yet they make it work! For example, in Scandal in Spring, Daisy was so imaginative, and Matthew was so straightforward, and in Dreaming of You, Sara was so innocent, and Derek such a “bad” guy! In STS, by the sypnosis, I hear you’re pairing a feisty feminist heroine, with an alpha hero. How do you make opposites attract so well? Thanks!
P.S. I’m so looking forward to reading Tempt me at Twilight, and after that Leo’s story! I also have a feeling STS is going to be your best book yet judging by the great comments here….!!!! Thanks for your amazing books
Sammy
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 7:52 pm:
Hey Lisa! I have another question. I just saw the UK cover for Tempt Me At Twilight on Amazon. Is that the same cover that will be used in the U.S version?? I love it!! It’s a beautiful cover and I love her sitting and reading under the tree. It fits with the other two Hathaway covers that only feature the heroines on them. I was just wondering because the cover wasn’t on your site. Thanks!!!!!
Keira Soleore
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 8:02 pm:
Lisa, Xtina, Terri, Connie: I’m going to have to regretfully sign off here. It’s been *SUCH* a pleasure to chat with you all. I laughed so much today. You are the best. While I’m saddened that I won’t be seeing you guys this summer, I’m always thrilled at the thought of more books from you all. I cannot sign off until I say what I always say when I see any one of you, “I miss Squawk Radio.”
Much love,
Keira
PJ
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:23 pm:
Lisa, I meant to say something earlier. I really like the new photo!
Lisa Kleypas
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:33 pm:
Dear Sammy,
It sounds like you have a great husband–the best ones will do errands for us! *g*
Thank you so much, and I hope you enjoy STS. I have always loved the “opposites attract” stories because when two people have to work out their differences, and learn from each other, it’s usually fun and sexy, and sometimes very moving. But here’s my caveat: I think the two people also have to have very basic values in common, like loyalty and respect and honesty. I think even strong differences of opinion and personality can make a relationship even stronger, as long as a foundation of mutual values is there.
In Dreaming Of You, for example, Sara is straightforward, honest, modest, affectionate, while Derek is charismatic, aggressive and untrusting . . .but deep down they have a mutual longing for love and absolute loyalty. Someone to be safe with. So that’s what made their relationship work. And I think that in Smooth Talking Stranger, even though Jack and Ella are superficially different, they are very sensitive to each other’s needs, and willing to compromise for the other person. Without giving anything away, there’s a scene in which Ella encounters Jack’s old girlfriend, and the way she handles the situation is a good indication for Jack about what kind of partner she’ll be.
Thanks for the comments on the cover of “Tempt Me” . . . that’s the UK version, and it will be different from the US version. I will pass along your reaction to my British publishers–they’ll be VERY happy to hear about it!
And Keira . . . goodbye, dear, it was nice spending a little time with you here at RNTV!
Much love!
Marisa
on Mar 31st, 2009
@ 10:45 pm:
LISA! LISA! LISA! It’s been wonderful to have you with us today! You are amazing. At the risk of sounding like a crazed fan girl I just have to say (or write it as the case may be) – you are incomparable. Your books have brought me untold hours of pleasure, your words create worlds and characters that both pierce and heal the heart.
It has also been my great good fortune to have spent some time with you (albeit a short time), and to put it in the vernacular – you’re one classy lady with a soft heart and keen wit.
Thanks for sharing your day, your thoughts and your words with us. I know STS is going to be another big hit.
Also – big shout out to Christina and Connie- 2 other favorites! Thanks so much for joining the party.
Andrea
on Apr 1st, 2009
@ 6:37 am:
Thanks for visiting with us, Lisa! And thanks for sharing some tidbits and sneak peeks! I can’t wait to settle in later today with Jack and Ella. (((HUGS)))
Lisa Kleypas
on Apr 1st, 2009
@ 12:23 pm:
I have had the most WONDERFUL time–Thank you Marisa, Andrea, Maria, and everyone else . . . this site is a treasure!!!!
Love to all!
katiebabs
on Apr 3rd, 2009
@ 2:51 pm:
*Hugs and kisses Lisa*