July 28, 2010

Costume Tips

In this month alone I've dressed in costume for a Costume Ball, a Masquerade, a Murder Mystery Party and a Victorian Photo Shoot. For some of those events, I splurged. For others, I either used stuff that was right in my closet or stuff that I could find super-cheap. Take a look.

What about you? Where do you like to find your costumes?

posted by Deeanne on 07/28/2010 - 0 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

July 15, 2010

Murder, Darling, Murder

I was in Denver this weekend for RomCon. It was a Romance Readers convention and it was an absolute blast. We spent the weekend hanging out with readers and other authors. One of the games we played was Murder, Darling, Murder. It was a murder mystery where five authors were the suspects and the readers had to figure out who was the murderer.

The murder was set in Bigroot, CO during WWII. I played Lilly White (she had a checkered past). At first I figured I'd be able to get into character right away because Lilly White sounds so Southern. But as it ends up, Lilly was of German descent! Jawohl! So I did the best I could. Here's a peek at part of my monologue:

LOL. Everyone was a good sport and I was really impressed with the company that created the mystery. They are Mysteries by Vincent and if you want to do a mystery dinner party, I highly recommend you checking out their website. Because of time constraints, we couldn't set the room up with all the trimmings (where the parlor looked like a parlor and the conservatory looked like a conservatory), but if you did this at home, you could really go all out.

Here's the group of authors (suspects) who played in our game:

From left to right: Keena Kincaid, Cindy Gerard, Brenda Novak, Carolyn Crane, & me.
The above pic is with Samuel Soloman. He was in the next murder mystery game.

I have more pics up on Facebook from not just this game, but from all the fun events we did. Check it out at facebook.com/IWantHerBook.

What about you? Have you ever done a mystery dinner or game before? This one was my first.

posted by Deeanne on 07/15/2010 - 11 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

July 05, 2010

Baby Cardinals Outside My Window

A beautiful cardinal has been frequenting my backyard a lot lately. When my husband spotted a birds' nest right outside my backdoor--I mean right outside my backdoor--we put two-and-two together. The babies had already hatched--there were three of them.

I went on all-systems-alert and quickly spotted the mama cardinal. She's a lovely reddish-taupe color with a bright red beak, red feet and red feathers on the underside of her tail (kind of like wearing a red petticoat). I have a great close-up of her in my scrapbook. While she feeds the babies, the daddy bird flits this way and that being very protective of their territory.

I hate to let the dog outside to do his business, but fortunately he's oblivious to the family with their new little ones. They aren't oblivious to him, though, and after the dog comes back inside, the mama and daddy birds nonchalantly do a fly-by to check on their chicks. When they can't stand it any longer, they fly into the ligustrum bush where the nest is.  

And all is well.

Having them right there is very distracting. I'm constantly running to the window to see what's going on. I took all these photos from inside my house (looking through the backdoor window).

Pretty amazing, isn't it? I can't tell you what a treat it is to watch this young family. I can't wait until the day they learn to fly. I hope I'm not out of town!

I have more pics in my scrapbook. Click on Dee's Circle of Friends logo at the top, then click on the scrapbook.

So, what about you? Have you ever seen nature unfolding before your very eyes? Are you a birdwatcher? Do you know someone who is? Tell me about it! 

posted by Deeanne on 07/05/2010 - 3 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

June 27, 2010

Christy Award Winners

I'm in St. Louis for the Christy Award presentation. Bride in the Bargain was nominated for Best Historical Romance along with books by Tamera Alexander and Julie Klassen. Julie's book, The Silent Governess, won and I honestly am so incredibly thrilled.

Not only because Julie is such a sweetheart, but also because she's my editor at Bethany House! Yup. She's been my editor since my very first book in 2005 and she is wonderful. Tammy and I have both won Christy awards and though Julie has been nominated before, this was her first win. So when they announced her name last night I was ecstatic.

And if that weren't enough, I can now say that both my editors at Bethany House--Julie Klassen and David Long--are Christy Award winners. Dave won the Christy in 2002 for Ezekiel’s Shadow (Best First Novel). And now Julie has won for The Silent Governess (Best Historical Romance).  I'd venture to say there aren't too many authors who can make that claim!!

So big-time congrats to Julie and all the other winners.  Here they are, in the order in which they were announced:

Best Contemporary Romance:

Best Contemporary Series:

Best Contemporary Stand Alone:

Best First Novel:

Best Historical (Bethany House):

Best Historical Romance, Julie Klassen, The Silent Governess (Bethany House):

Best Suspense:

Best Visionary:

Best Young Adult:

Congrats to all the winners! It was a great evening. If you haven't had a chance to pick up any of these books, I'd give them a try. These are the cream of the crop!

posted by Deeanne on 06/27/2010 - 6 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

June 15, 2010

Richard Alvarez -- Filmmaker, Renaissance Man

Have you seen the new mini-documentary about what Victorian women wore under their dresses? Well, we get to meet the writer, director and producer of the film!

Richard Alvarez is a California based screenwriter and filmmaker with more than thirty years of professional experience in radio, television and film. When he's not on a set shooting, directing or stunt arranging, he's in front of the computer editing or writing screenplays.

I sat down with him yesterday and this is what he had to say ...

This is an amazing mini-documentary, Richard!  I noticed many of the shots were candid shots.  Are costumes a big part of your life?

I’ve been in media production for more than thirty years.  A lot of that was producing period shows for festivals and theme parks across the country. So basically I have a garage full of theatrical and antique garments from various eras. The shot of the Musketeers [in the video] was from a stunt show I produced – my wife made all the doublets from period patterns. A few of the shots in the video depict friends and family in actual Victorian Garments that we have collected over the years.

That's so neat. I'd love to have a garage full of costumes! You wrote, directed and produced the above mini-documentary.  What are some of the most unusual pieces you've done in the past?

I produced an award winning documentary about life on the road as a jouster, entitled American Jouster. www.americanjouster.com.  It aired on the PBS series “Video I” here in the San Francisco Bay area. Probably the most unusual interview I’ve shot, was with his Holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama. That was a real treat, and a moment I will cherish forever.

Wow. That is really special. I understand you also did the voiceover in the video.  With such a rich and versatile voice, this obviously is a huge asset.  Have you ever done commercials or theatre?

I started my professional career in television as a cameraman, but was asked to do some occasional voiceover work when the station talent wasn’t available. Later, I moved into radio as an announcer for the #1 station in Houston, Texas in the late 70’s early 80’s. I can't recall how many radio commercials I've done. I’ve performed in theater and festival settings as well. I formed my production company Pierrot Productions, in 1980 and have been freelancing at every aspect of the media since then. 

You have other talents as well and graciously choreographed the fight scene at the end of A Bride Most Begrudging between Drew and an Indian. It is still one of my most favorite scenes out of all my books. Tell us how it is you knew how to choreograph that scene?

I’ve always been interested in martial arts and stage combat. I trained as a fencer in college and went on to become a Classical Fencing Master. As an actor and fight choreographer, I've directed and performed everything from fist fights, to sword fights to gun fights and mounted combat. I approach a fight scene the way I approach writing dialogue. Because essentially – all fight scenes are basically a physical manifestation of internal dialogue. And just like any other scene, if it’s going to work well it has to advance the plot and illuminate character. 

So when I write or choreograph, I ask the writer or director “What sort of person is fighting?” – Are they experienced or a novice? Frightened or emboldened by righteous indignation? What’s their motivation? This illuminates character. Then I ask “What has to happen to advance the plot?” Is there some physical outcome that must be achieved? Does someone have to be injured in a particular way? Some piece of information revealed that moves the story forward?  Given this information I ‘look around’ in the setting, and I put myself in the mind of each of the characters, and imagine what they would do in that situation.

Oh my goodness! No wonder I love that scene. :)  So, what projects are you working on currently?

I’ve just finished my second screenplay this year. This was the first time writing with my son, which was a great experience, and we’re shopping it now to see if we can get some interest. I’m also going to be getting on horse once again in August and September to direct and perform medieval jousts for a company in Pennsylvania. So I'll be back in armor once more.

That is such a way-cool job! So, your staging and presentation talents, combined with your own artistic abilities as an actor and a writer, put you in a unique position to create videos like this.  If someone wanted to contact you for help with a project, how can they reach you? 

They can reach me by writing to PierrotFilms  at  Yahoo dot com. 

Thanks so much for stopping by, Richard!

***

Is that so crazy fun? If you'd like to ask Richard a question, he will try and pop in this week as his schedule allows. Don't miss this opportunity to visit with a real live filmmaker!!  :)

posted by Deeanne on 06/15/2010 - 15 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

June 07, 2010

Peach Picking

Over Memorial Day, Greg took me and our daughter (who is home from college) to Fredericksburg, Texas. I have so much to tell you about our trip that I'm going to have to break it up over a two or three posts. So, we're going to be stuck on Memorial Day for a while. :)

Fredericksburg is in the heart of the Texas hill country. When we were driving in we saw sign after sign for fresh peaches. Clearly, we were in Peach Country.

So while we were there we visited a peach orchard and picked our own peaches. We were going to pick some blackberries, too, but their quota for the day had already been picked. (I was really sad about this. I loooooove blackberries.)

Anyhoo, we were told how to tell if a peach was ripe and ready for picking. One thing I didn't know was that the red part of the peach is its "sunburn." The farmers said peaches get sunburned just like we do and that's not what makes a peach ripe. The thing to watch for is a peach with any green on it. If it has green instead of yellow, it's not ready to be picked.

I tell you, though, what they were calling green, I would've called yellow. So I did it by touch. If it was soft instead of hard, I picked. We ended up with ten pounds of peaches! Ohmigosh, they were so good and juicy.

When we got back to Houston I made some homemade peach cobbler. Yum! We still had tons of peaches left, so I Googled recipes that included fresh peaches and we've been trying all sorts of things ... peachy fruit salad, smoothies, parfaits, and all kinds of stuff.

What about you? Have you ever picked fruit right off the tree before? 

posted by Deeanne on 06/07/2010 - 15 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

June 01, 2010

Annual Crawfish Boil

We had our annual Crawfish Boil a couple of weeks ago. Lots of family, friends and fun. It is an all day affair starting around noon and finishing up at night. Of course, Greg starts preparing a week in advance. And our nephew, Daniel, always comes early and stays late to help Greg. This year both he and our oldest son showed up a whole day early. It was so wonderful to have all that help!

We had family come in from as far as Alabama and friends come over from as close as next door. We had a hot and humid day, but it started to cool off around 5:00 (by "cool off" I mean it dipped down into the 80s). One of the highlights of the party was a cake that our daughter-in-law's mother brought. A lab tech she works with at the hospital makes cakes for fun.

You would not believe this cake. It was so pretty I hated to cut it! Everything on it was edible. And the expression on the faces of the crawfish were priceless. I've posted more pics of the cake and the boil in my scrapbook. Click on the Circle of Friends heart at the top of the page, then click on the scrapbook.

posted by Deeanne on 06/01/2010 - 3 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

May 22, 2010

Getaway With Dee

Come with me to Biltmore, North Carolina--the location of my latest release, Maid to Match!

Instead of a book tour this year, I'm hosting a readers' event so we can all get together and hang out! We're going to dress in Victorian costume and go to a Gilded Age Party. At the party we'll play Victorian Parlor Games (like the ones Tillie & Mack played in the book). We'll learn how to wield a lady's fan. We're going to have a book swap. And a Victorian expert is going to dress me in full Victorian costume starting with bloomers and chemise!

The next day we're going to have dinner together and then go on a private tour of Biltmore mansion.  Check it out:

Can you believe it? I'm so excited!

All the specifics are at GetawayWithDee.com. We also have a brand new Getaway With Dee facebook page with photos and videos and a discussion forum. Be sure to "like" me once you get there, then click on the "Discussion" tab and join in on the fun!

So what do you think? Would you like to come with me? Be sure to sign up right away. Space is limited and we expect to sell out!

Let me know what you think!

posted by Deeanne on 05/22/2010 - 7 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

May 17, 2010

New Book on the Shelves!

Maid To Match is officially on the shelves! It's about two servants who work at Vanderbilt's chateau in North Carolina at the turn of the century. When our heroine, Tillie Reese, is asked to tutor our hero in proper servant etiquette, the resulting sparks threaten Tillie's efforts to be chosen as Mrs. Vanderbilt's lady's maid. After all, the one rule of the house is no romance below stairs!

If you haven't read Maid To Match yet, we have an excerpt here and a brand new EXCLUSIVE excerpt for my Circle of Friends. (click on the open book)

If you have read it, leave a review in our comments section below or come over to my Chat Room where we have a lively discussion about the book going on!

posted by Deeanne on 05/17/2010 - 11 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

May 09, 2010

A Spoonful of Sugar

Mother’s Day at our house was kind of quiet. Greg was out of town. The college kids hadn’t made it home. And I had a plane flight out to meet with my publisher. So, I figured the kids would be off the hook. But low and behold, look what I woke up to.

CUPCAKES! My 23 yo daughter (the one that majored in graphic design) stayed up until 4:00am making them. The cupcakes are frosted green and make up the “ground.”  Some of the “flowers” are made of vanilla wafers decorated with cut up marshmallows which she painted with dyed sugar. Others have petals made of jelly beans and m&n’s. The butterflies are constructed with the chocolate you dip strawberries in. Is that just the cutest thing ever? 

And if that weren’t enough, she grouped them around scented body lotions and an adorable pink watering can filled with yellow tulips. 

I just couldn’t believe it when I walked into the breakfast room. I haven’t been able to bring myself to eat one of those cupcakes. They’re way too pretty! She had some extra put aside, though, and it ends up she made them from scratch with rice flour and birch sugar because she knew I’d been trying to eat healthier. Can you believe that?

What about you? How did you (and your mom) celebrate Mother’s Day? 

posted by Deeanne on 05/09/2010 - 15 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

May 02, 2010

Exciting News

This week heralded some exciting news for me. I found out that A Bride in the Bargain was nominated for a Christy award--the highest award of distinction for fiction in the Christian Industry. The two books I'm up against are not only by two talented authors, but are by two dear, dear friends.

Tamera Alexander is a fellow Bethany House author who is as sweet as pie. She had two books nominated! And Julie Klassen, whose authored The Silent Governess, was also nominated. She is my editor at Bethany House and edited A Bride in the Bargain!

So I feel like I can't lose. No matter who takes home the award, I'll be so very pleased. The award ceremony will be in St. Louis this year on June 26th.

On the heels of that news, I found out that A Bride in the Bargain also finaled in a readers' choice contest sponsored by Borders Bookstore. The Readers' Crown award, as they are calling it, is only open to romance novels. Bride finaled in the Historical category along with some great authors. The winner will be announced at RomCon, a romance readers' convention in Denver on July 9th.

I'm pumped! :)

***

On April 18th, Erin from Chesapeake, VA won an ARC (Advanced Reading Copy) of MAID TO MATCH--my new historical coming out in June. Congrats, Erin! Megan of Inola, OK won the ARC for the week of April 25th. Congrats to Megan as well!

As of yesterday, ChristianBook.com has Maid To Match available and I expect the other online venues and brick-and-mortars to follow within short order. So our ARC giveaway has come to a close. It's always so fun to hear from you, though. So keep your comments coming. I read every single one!

posted by Deeanne on 05/02/2010 - 22 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

April 18, 2010

Mary Poppins

Mary Poppins came to Houston, so Greg took the girls and I to see it. It was so fabulous! And I have to say, my jock of a husband has come a long way. The first time he took me to the theatre was in 1992 for our 10th anniversary. We had gotten all dressed up and driven into downtown Houston.

Before the show, I was in awe of all the ladies and gentlemen mingling about the lobby in their finery. Even the men behind the coffee bar were in tuxedos. We approached the coffee bar and my precious man asked the bar tender for some popcorn. They, of course, didn't have any popcorn.

Greg was appalled. "You mean to say I'm here to watch a show and you don't have any popcorn?!"

"I'm sorry, sir."

"Well, do you have any candy?" Greg asked. "You know, Junior Mints or something?"

The bar tendered pulled a box out from under the counter. "We do have a small selection that we keep just in case any children attend."

The selection was small indeed, but Greg picked out three different candy bars and I asked for an expresso. When we'd been served, the bar tender told Greg it would be $13.00.

"Thirteen dollars! For three candy bars and a cup of coffee?"

Needless to say, it took me another ten years to get him back to the theatre. But now, I have the girls as partners in crime. When told Greg I was ordering tickets to Mary Poppins, he gave me a pained expression, then had me order one for him, too. He just couldn't stand to be left out. LOL.

We had a WONDERFUL time (at least, the girls and I did) and the show was outstanding. Have any of you seen it? What about other Broadway shows? Any you'd recommend?

***

On April 10th, Laura from Lancaster, MA won an ARC (Advanced Reading Copy) of MAID TO MATCH--my new historical coming out in June. Congrats, Laura! As for the week of April 11th, we've now notified the winner. So we are starting the contest all over again. 

If you would like a chance to WIN a free advance copy of my new release, leave a comment here on my blog between now (April 18) and Saturday (April 24).  If you left a comment last week, it won't count toward this week's contest. So be sure to comment again. We will pick a winner on April 24th, then start all over again next Sunday (the 25th). We will keep doing this each week until the official book hits the shelves!

posted by Deeanne on 04/18/2010 - 59 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED

April 11, 2010

How Many Aggies Does It Take?

How many Aggies does it take to change a lightbulb?  Just one, evidently.  We have 20' ceilings in our living area. When we built the house in '99, we installed 20,000-hour light bulbs which were supposed to last 10 years. They did. The first one burnt out last month.

But we had no idea how to get all the way up there to change them out. We couldn't use extension poles because our new ones weren't regular light bulbs. They were these newfangled LED  lights that last 50,000 hours and/or 20 years. They had to be installed by hand.

Since we were in the middle of having the house painted, we asked the painter to do it. But he couldn't figure out the LED lights. And, honestly, I think he was a little scared.

So I called an electrician. He was going to charge me $550 to change four light bulbs! It was $190 just to open his big ladder. Can you believe that??

I said thanks, but no thanks and began to call around to see if I could rent a 20' ladder myself. I called Home Depot, Sunbelt and United. Nobody had 20' ladders.

I looked on the internet. As far as I could tell there was only one 20' ladder for sale on the market. It costed $850. Not an option.

So my Texas A&M Aggie, whom I've been happily wed to for 27 years and whom had been out of town on a business trip, returned and said, "No problem." Next thing I know, he'd built an 8' platform. He recruited our daughter's boyfriend and they moved it into the living room, put the 16' ladder on top of it and up my husband went.

I know. That's two guys to change a lightbulb. But only one of them was an Aggie. So, it still only took one Aggie (one very smart, resourceful, good-looking and engineer-like Aggie) to change our lightbulb. :)

What about you? Have you ever had to change light bulbs in a really tall ceiling? Have you ever heard of these 50K hour LED lights?

***

We've notified the winner of last week's ARC (Advanced Reading Copy) of MAID TO MATCH--my new historical coming out in June.

So we are starting the contest all over again. If you would like a chance to WIN a free advance copy of my new release, leave a comment here on my blog between now (April 11) and Saturday (April 17).  If you left a comment last week, it won't count toward this week's contest. So be sure to comment again. We will pick a winner on April 17th, then start all over again next Sunday (the 18th). We will keep doing this each week until the official book hits the shelves!

posted by Deeanne on 04/11/2010 - 54 comments - Post a Comment   RSS FEED