And I can't sell a romance novel?

According to the USA Today (my trusted source for all things trivial):

• 75 million: The number of Americans who read at least one romance novel in 2008.

• 91: percentage of romance readers who are female.

• 31-49: Age range of the typical romance reader.

• 7: Number of days it typically takes a reader to begin and finish a romance novel.

And a few numbers from the USA TODAY Best-Selling Books list:

• 13: The percentage of total book sales that romance novels have accounted for in 2010, up from 10% in 2009.

• 25: The average number of romances that have appeared each week in the Top 150 in 2010, up from 19 a week in 2009 and 17 a week in 2008.

The article can be read here: Romance genre sweeps readers off their feet

My left thumb

Who knew how much my left thumb did for me? I mean this is an integral part of my body and all this time I've been treating it like a stepchild in a fairy tale - worse perhaps. So what brought on this epiphany?
It all began...it wasn't quite a dark and stormy night...in fact it was ultra-sunny (this is AZ, so what's new). I was looking for my car keys in my purse as I walked to the parking lot, stepped off the curb. Simple enough, you say? Yes I say, but note that when you usually step off the curb, your brain or your conscious is expecting said step. Mine was buried inside my LL Bean bag. Ergo, I tripped, ripped the top of the very nice new red sandals I had on, and landed on my rear end and my left hand. [Digression: isn't that a cool line, Margie Lawson's lessons, you know ;o)
Now, I am not sure how this all played out on camera or to any interested watchers, my entire focus being to soften the hit that my computer was going to take. That said, I have strained (my diagnosis and since I have not officially and legally practiced diagnosing any medical condition for 15 years - this could really be anything else) my left thumb. Which brings me back to how many things my left thumb is crucial for - it leaves the bloody scrape on my right knee quite in the dust!

Getting 30 pages ready to submit to the agent who requested it. I wonder if my body is subtly helping me procrastinate? Oh, there's another book idea - a world where the body is sentient separate from your mind. Sure no one's done that yet? It could be the next Twilight. Anyone listening?

Have a good Tuesday.

Progress - maybe

So! Almost a year since my last post. Mind you, I've been busy. Its not easy writing 6 chapters of various books. LOL.
At long last, I've settled in with one work in progress, tentatively titled A Druid Came Calling. What is this, you ask? An urban fantasy with strong romantic elements that has only been re-written about 17 times. Okay, if you know me, you know by now that's my exaggeration number! Still, its been rewritten a few times.
And I like it. It remains to be seen if the powers that be - agents and editors too.
I pitched Druid (as I fondly call it) at the Desert Dreams conference in April this year, and got 4 requests for a partial, and one for a full.
Sending those out, I thought - what the heck? (not always a good thought by the way) and also sent 11 more queries. Cold queries, slush pile queries. What was I thinking?

So anyway, here's the update:
15 queries sent
5 rejections
1 request for a partial (cold query response).

The nail biting continues.