Guilty Pleasure Confession

I like cheesy holiday movies.

The weather turns colder and that chair in front of my fireplace beckons.

It says, "You know Lifetime and abc Family and the Hallmark people depend on you this time of year, sweetie. Bake up some of those fund raiser pastries you so kindly bought, grab a squishy blanket, and curl up for two hours. There will be a happy ending, I promise."

And although I know the story before it even starts...

The main character, a lovely single woman with fabulous hair pulled back too tightly at the start, who is a) too career driven to appreciate the people in her life or b) too blind to notice that adorable guy right in front of her face, will somehow screw up, but then find her true love just in time for Christmas, resulting in her loosening her hair.

Although I know this, I get sucked in anyway.

The formula is trite, predictable, and sends a message with which I don't entirely agree. Most of the gals AND their mothers believe they or their daughters will die miserably if they somehow pass their 30th birthdays without a husband. FYI: not true. But I do like the happily ever after part. I like that these nice ladies find such cuties to love and be loved by.

So although I talk back to the television, advising the young women to stop pegging their entire emotional lives on the success of one relationship, I still cry when that inevitable, closing credits kiss finally happens.

I say this both as a guilty pleasure confession and as an excuse for not making progress on Super Power of the Day: The Hero Chronicle Continues this week. It is my goal to have volume 2 available before Christmas, but someone needs to disrupt my cable service first.

Creating a New Cover

So, cover #2.

Originally, the idea was to keep the same cartoon figure on all three covers, only varying the background cover colors and subtitles. But my fall play stipend is in my pocket, and I find myself more interested in playing with Chase Cooper than buying another pair of jeans, finishing the hearth on my fireplace, or going back to the dentist to fix this one annoying tooth...

Sean Tiffany, get ready for a little more work.

After two months of flirting with the idea, I have had an epiphany on the pic for vol 2. Even as Chase is becoming more and more the hero of his own life, he is letting go of his fantastical dreams of being "super." This next picture will reflect this change in his wearing his cape over regular clothes... jeans and a tee?

While flying.

Comic-Con

With great excitement I sent off a registration form and a copy of SPOTD to the exhibition committee for the International Comic-Con event in San Diego for the summer of 2012. They generously reserve a section of the exhibition space for new and small publishers, at a discounted rate.

I've wanted to attend Comic-Con ever since Michael Novotny on QAF held up his passes and smiled his earnestly gleeful smile at the prospect of nerd heaven. I suspected those were my people.

Friday, I received an envelope with the Comic-Con logo... And they didn't say no. I am on the waiting list, so it's not an absolutely positively closed door. But I'm thinking I may be attending as a fan, not an exhibitioner. In any case, a summer trip to CA is penciled into my planner.

Like I said, I suspect those are my people.

The return, as promised.

Hello, patient blog-followers, who have endured the fall play season without complaint or lamentation. It is my pleasure to invite you to follow the progress of SPOTD volumes 2 and 3, which will be my focus in the next two months.

First up, revising two key chapters of volume 2, The Hero Chronicle Continues. Semi spoiler alert: There is both an emergency room visit and some interesting internal body function description. With the help of local surgeon Dr. Jared Slater, these chapters will be medically accurate.

When those revisions are complete, I'll be ready for a final proofing of volume 2. Yeah! I can't wait to reread it. I remember giggling with pleasure while working on it this past summer. I think vol 3 is the most emotionally engaging of the three sections, but vol 2 is the most fun. Think of a great superpower. It's probably in vol 2.

Simultaneously, I'll be working with Ryan and Sean to create a great cover. Watch for upcoming posts as we wrangle them into being.

Vote for my Halloween costume!

Thanks to my lovely college roommates, most of my Halloween costume is ready made. "Chase Cooper" will be attending the Montevideo Fall Play costume party rehearsal on Monday night. I've toyed with the idea of a mash up costume...

Zombie Chase Cooper (add white make up and blood)
Chase Cooper Sylvester (add red Adidas sweat pants and a whistle)
Chase-Kat Cooper-Nathan (add kitty ears)
Ann Cooper-Klein (wear fabulous new Calvin Klein red dress with Chase Cooper cape)
Cowboy Cooper (add cowboy hat and boots)

Help me decide?

PS The fall hiatus is almost over. I should be back blogging and writing and editing and proofing and planning for volumes 2 and 3 in a few weeks.

Time for Signings...

It's such a surprise and pleasure to field requests for book signings.

I hope to plan one in Montevideo, probably at the public library, for later this fall. Meanwhile, the high school library (across the hallway from my room!) played host to a little book signing party complete with root beer and orange floats. We've already seen the lengths to which my crazy college roommates are willing to go to get books signed. And random students stop in to buy books from me and insist on having them signed before they will leave me to my correcting and lesson planning.

Thankfully, I watched my fellow authors/speakers at the North Dakota Reading Association spring conference as they signed their books, and I learned a thing or two. Thing one: It's important to get the book owner's name right. Thing two: Have a standard line to write in each copy, something pithy and connected to the title or subject of the book.

What have I decided on as my own epigrammatic line? You'll have to buy a book, ask for a signature, and find out!

j/k

"I hope you have a "super" time reading!"

Chase Cooper Convention!

Last weekend, I attended the annual "Let's get together up North!" weekend with my college roommates. We gathered (as usual) at a cabin on Battle Lake. In the run up, massive spam-worthy emails were exchanged between all involved. Though, as I look back, not as many as usual.

That should have been my first clue that something was up.

Instead of 147 emails in which we debated our "theme" of the year and who was bring what supplies and food, everyone just seemed to say she was tired and wanted to "relax." Go out to eat. Take naps. Listen to relaxing music and look at relaxing Sark pix.

So when I saw the Sark art distributed around the dining area and this little display on the buffet counter, I thought, "Ah! We are relaxing and celebrating my novel!" But not in a big, embarrassing way.

I was duped.

Before bed, everyone seemed especially interested in where I would sleep. It was suggested I take the king-sized bed on the main floor. For some reason they all followed me as I wheeled my suitcase into the room, where I saw a red and white display of pillows on the bed.

When I saw this one:

I asked, "C for Carol?" Carol being the owner of the cabin.

There was wild laughter.

Then it hit me: C for Chase.

It amazed me that the celebration was larger than the little display. Angie's Aunt Jan had sewn the lovely pillow. I went to sleep thankful for my beautiful and kind roommates.

Then, Saturday morning, THIS wandered into the kitchen.

"This" being Lisa in a Chase Cooper inspired top and cape.

Still I didn't realize the extent to which we would soon go to spread the Chase Cooper name across Otter Tail County. The situation became more clear when Lisa was followed by...

Donna and Sheri.

Finally, it hit me. The theme of the weekend was not, in the least, relaxation.

Thanks to my roommies for all your loving attention, both before and during the awesome weekend. Not many people have friends like you... Friends willing to hawk books in the parking lot of a fancy resort/golf course while dressed in Halloween worthy costumes are exceedingly rare.

I am glad to have you as my sidekicks.

I love you all!