Mother's Day for Demons...

...and other things we don't think about.

I think one of the things the I always asked myself when reading paranormal romance was...and where did these people's families disappear to?? Granted, if you are turned into a vampire you have a choice, bury all your relations throughout the years or turn them and take 'em with you. Werewolves always seem to be more family oriented. Dens. Packs. Inbreeding and in-fighting. Okay, so sometimes there's such a thing as too much family.

I took a slightly more traditional approach to family when I created the Nightwalker breeds. They are family-centric, (although without the incest, tyvm) and that seems to me to be one of their most attractive traits. After all, didn't you just melt when you saw Noah playing with Leah? Didn't you just want him all wrapped up in a bow? Can't you just imagine him on Mother's Day with Kestra bringing her flowers and brekkies in bed?? (Well, had she not been...you know...) Doesn't it just kill you to think those genes aren't going to be spread into the future generations?? Aren't you just dying to know if the Vampire and the Lycanthrope are ever going to be able to reach across their racial chasm and perhaps, maybe, one day, make a baby together? What about the Lycanthrope and the Demon?? Or the Vampire and the...oops. Wait. That would be telling. ;)

I think this stems from my difficulties in the world of family. I had a brutal childhood, and although I have four sisters, we aren't what I would call uber close. I'm not blaming anyone. It's a pretty selfish day and age and we all get so wrapped up in our own crap that it seems family has fallen to the wayside. I am up front and guilty of it myself. As I get older I seem to long for the family touch more and more. After all, someone needs to take care of me one day when I am old and sick. :P Just kidding. I already was old and sick. I'm in my new thirties now.

But it always amazes me that, even if we lack for genetic family, we throng together to make families of our own. At my signing this weekend I spent fabulous time with this adorable family. They are called the Blood Lust Book Club. There's the gay male matriarch, the hippy dippy female father figure who runs War Hammer games, the gay male's wife who has a rockin tattoo and, erm, bite marks...and all the little kidlets that sit around and hug all the time, share meals, share hurts and woes and are probably more there for each other than most traditional church-going families ever will be. It's times like this I think we might actually have hope in our future as a society in general.

For now, I like making up my own societies. The good guys are good and the bad guys are dead...eventually. I swear....EVENTUALLY!! (Then again, eventually is true for all things in a thermodynamic universe...) In my new title Drink of Me (Zebra, Oct. 2010) I take a relatively orphaned group of males and make them into one of the tightest family units I've ever written. The blood drinking and all that...well, it's just one of those family quirks. But far be it from me to judge the non-traditional family. In fact, I celebrate it!

So imagine Mother's Day in Noah's castle. All your favorite characters are there. Doesn't it warm the cockles of your heart? Or, like me, can you see the sadder hearts that would be there? They have their HEAs, their one true love, but suddenly we realize that it's not all about that, is it? Are we selfish for wanting more? For wanting it ALL??

Meh. Not to worry. I'll see that we all get what we want one way or another. Even if we don't quite realize it was what we were really asking for all along.

Keeping it Real

So, there's this thing out there in the author world about 'over sharing' information about yourself. I've been heavily criticized for talking openly about my life, the things I do and the people in it. Basically, I over share. (According to some critical others.) But what they call over sharing and TMI, I call keeping it real.

I'm sorry, but the world has enough stuck up, holier-than-thou assholes in it. I am not going sit up on some NYT Bestselling throne looking down my nose at all the little peons come to worship at my feet, keeping the air of mystery, playing the entitled diva. Frankly, I'm not entitled to squat unless you, the readers, feel like giving it to me...and I am grateful enough as it is for your pocket change when you decide to buy my work. If you go beyond that, if you come to me with an email or follow me on Facebook or any of that stuff, I assume you are doing it because you want to get to know me a little better. You want to know something other than if I can write a good story.

So, I am happy to give you...me. My weight loss journey. My boob job. My struggles with my kid. My puddles of insecurity, my tears when I see someone trash talk me...the list goes on. And I'm not going to give you a shinier version of me. Just the me of me. Now, mind you, I will keep things to myself in certain ways. Like, my real name. Where I live. Some of ya'll are freaks (if you are offended by that reference, then...urm...you're probably a freak. Clearly even you think so!)and I am going to protect my kids and family.

There are those who say it's a matter of professionalism. It's unprofessional to talk about how, ever since you hit forty, you have the worst time trying not to fart in public. Oh c'mon. You're all women out there! (Men have never cared about when and where they fart, so...)You all have bodies! And frankly it always gives me tremendous comfort to know someone else goes through this and is willing to talk about it! What would be unprofessional is if I tried to put that tidbit into a conversation between one of my heroes and heroines. That is not romantic. (Although, it's funny shit so another writer who does comedic romance might get away with it). You come to my writing to suspend reality. You come to me to keep it real. If you don't like what I have to say, stop following me! Resign from the blogs and mailing lists and etc. Right? If you want mystery between us, by all means. I can do that. So long as you don't read my blogs or my Facebook posts. I call it the 'head in the sand' approach. I don't cope well with bad reviews, so therefore I avoid them like the plague. I stick my fingers in my ears, shut my eyes and yell "La! La! La!" Voila! As far as I am concerned, I never get a bad review. (Okay, well, I do come across them accidentally once in a while. In which case, I need a fifth of scotch to fix the problem. And don't get me started on reviews. Did you know there are people out there with NOTHING BETTER TO DO than to go on Amazon and trash talk other people's books in order to raise up the authors they like?? Can you believe that?? Oh, but we're not supposed to talk about that, too. And we're not supposed to answer back. I am not making that up. According to RWR magazine, that is known as 'shooting yourself in the foot' professionally.)

I understand. It serves no purpose to waste energy engaging an idiot in a battle of wits...especially when the poor dears are so unarmed. It's basically grade school all over again. Bullies. The popular girls make themselves feel better by whipping others to shreds. Oy. Grow up and get a life. But the fact is, it still wounds you if you are a sensitive human being. I am not going to pretend otherwise because, frankly, I am proud of being a sensitive human being. I am proud to over share. I love nothing more than when a reader writes to me and says how 'down to earth' I am. How real I am. How much they appreciate my touchable approach. I will be ashamed of myself the day I look down my nose at someone and deem myself too good to be honest with them.

If I want to be professional, I call my agent and cry hysterically with her or get mad and stomp my feet with her and then let HER call my editors or publishers or whoever has ticked me off and communicate my...erm...discontent with the current situation. Unprofessional would be to call them directly and curse them out like the New York gal I am with no regard for my future contracts. That, after all, is why she earns the big bucks. She is a tool. A buffer. An ambassador. A very talented one. A priceless one. What, are you shocked to hear I can behave like a child on occasion? You mean you don't? Not even deep down on the inside? If you are able to keep that under wraps, I envy you. Perhaps it is because I am bipolar, perhaps it's because I never learned how to suppress all of that emotion...perhaps I'm a child now and forever. Flaws. A ton of them. And I have them like crazy!!

Don't you?

Hugs and Kitties
Jacki

New Website Has Launched!!

Hi all! Welcome to my new website!! We worked really hard to make this hugely user friendly and to make it easy for you to get answers to all your questions. Where am I signing? What is AAD? Who is JAX? Are you coming out with a new Nightwalker book?

You can write me easily right from the website. Sign up for alerts to these blogs and a newsletter if I release one. You can see what is scheduled. What hits the shelves when. You can read first chapters or teasers from the backs of the books. I have fancy little flashes to entertain you and oh so much more!! Come. Play around. Have FUN!

Hugs and Kitties
Jacki

Happy Holidays!

I just wanted to wish everyone a happy holiday, whatever you may celebrate! I have my beautiful daughter with me for the holiday and I am so thrilled. I hope all of you are curled up warm and cozy with someone you love, drinking egg nog or hot cocoa, wishing for snow and Santa to come.

I wanted to take this opportunity to update you on the goings on in my world. My new Gatherers series debuts December 29th with the arrival of HUNTING JULIAN. It's pictured here below with it's lovely revised cover. I think it's beautiful.

This new series travels to worlds you won't expect and for reasons you have to read to believe. It's a departure from my Nightwalkers and Shadowdwellers, but I hope you enjoy it equally.

Then, this spring will be the follow up story, book 2, STEALING KATHRYN. I have the cover art for that as well and it is equally beautiful. :)

So, my dears, I wish you a prosperous New Year, a Christmas full of riches, a festive Yule or Kwanzaa. Whatever way you celebrate, whatever it is that gives you family comfort and and that warm special spirit of the season, know that I am wishing it for you in spades.

Hugs and Kitties
Jacquelyn Frank

Authors After Dark Paranormal Weekend

Well, not to toot my own horn or anything, but I heard people had a really good time!! YAY!! Although, some of you may have heard that a certain author *cough cough* tripped over her own feet and gave herself a concussion. Alas, much to my dismay, I missed the entire last half of my own weekend! I was in a crappy hospital where all the bathrooms smelled like pee and my roommate was a total nosy mouthbreather. I ended up with a headache that lasted a bajillion (okay, so it was sevenish) days. Needless to say that part of the weekend totally sucked...for me anyway. But the parties went on without me and the pictures say everyone had a great time! I admit, though, I feel horrible and so guilty for those who came so far for the signing only to find out I was flat on my face in the hallway getting carried away by some uber hot EMTs. Sucks to be all of you who didn't have their hands all over them! Sucked to be me with the exception of those five minutes of EMT dreaminess.

Anyway, I do have some pictures to share of the event. This first one is of the tables before everyone was let in. Yes, those are green cobwebs on the chairs and tables. Our first party was the pajama party/candy and ice cream party. Those cauldrons are full of candy plus the tables were covered in treats. I gave away brand new sleep shirts for the Gatherers series and the first of the tons of books we were giving away.

These next pics are of the many baskets we raffled off for Pets Alive and the Animal Compassion Network!
















There were something like ten tables filled with this stuff. And thank you SO much for the authors and others who donated these excellent gifties and helped us to raise a total of 1,400 dollars to be split between the two charities! I am so delighted!!

Even though I wasn't there, I do have some pictures of the masquarade. They are a little dark! The little red queen is my B!


Anyway, I wish I had more. It wasn't perfect because of the accident and me missing such important parts of the event, but I hope everyone had a fabulous time. I promise to be more careful next year!! Although, Tilly Green's husband said I fell quite gracefully. :) Personally, I felt myself bounce. One of the pleasures of having a nice rack. I come with my own airbags!!