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Testing Kate

So today’s the day! My new book, Testing Kate, is now available in a store near you! Look for it in Target, where it’s being featured as a Break Out book.

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TESTING KATE follows Kate Bennett through her rocky One-L year at Tulane Law School. (It’s sort of like The Paper Chase . . . only with a feminine twist.)

As Kate adjusts to her new world of intense studying, new friends and navigating the wild city of New Orleans, she also has some unexpected surprises. Like her sadistic new Criminal Law professor who seems to have Kate in his crosshairs. And the sudden appearance of her ex-boyfriend. And a most unexpected love interest that catches Kate completely by surprise . . .

In a year of self-discovery, the most important lesson Kate may learn is that to change your luck, sometimes you have to change your mind – including what you thought was your dream.

So check it out, I think you’ll enjoy it. And it makes a fabulous holiday gift for all of those hard-to-buy-for folks on your shopping list. (Yes, I swear, your father will like it much more than yet another boring old tie. And your great-grandmother. And your ten year old nephew . . . okay, no, nix that, it's not for the kiddies. There are some hot sex scenes in the book, after all. But your great-grandmother? She'll love those.)

As we say around Casa del Gaskell . . . Buy Early, Buy Often!

Link | 31 October 2006 at 06:00 AM |

Literary Chicks

I'm discussing my mutant powers at the L.C. today.

Link | 27 October 2006 at 07:43 AM |

Quote of the Day

For the record, I think you’d be better off expressing your bad-ass side with art rather than a midlife tattoo. Tattoos are like permanent bell-bottoms.

– Jonathan Adler, My Prescription for Anti-Depressive Living.

Link | 26 October 2006 at 05:17 PM |

Life With A Preschooler, Part 2

So it turns out that Sam is not a fan of being woken up by my standing next to his bed and singing a few choruses of Morning Has Broken. His response was to grump, and roll over.

Maybe it’s my voice?

Link | 24 October 2006 at 08:18 AM |

Literary Chicks

Today: Fa La La La La La La La La!

Link | 20 October 2006 at 09:44 AM |

Life With A Preschooler, Part 1

I thought we needed a fun day away from the daily playground-and-finger-paint grind, so I took Sam to the zoo today. We saw leopards, and alligators, and brown bears, and some seriously cute otters.

But Sam’s favorite animal?

“Look, Mama! A duck!”

“Yes, that is a duck. And look . . . just past the duck there’s a kangaroo! Isn’t he cool?” I say, since really, ducks are a dime a dozen. There’s a whole flock of them just down the street from us, living in a man made pond. But kangaroos? Those don’t dwell in our neighborhood.

“There’s another duck! Look! Duck! Quack quack!” Sam quacks happily.

“Yes, I see, but look . . . do you see what’s over there? Monkeys! Aren’t they cute?” I say, trying again.

Sam is unimpressed by the monkeys. But just around the corner from the monkeys and giant tortoises and owlery . . .

“Look, Mama! Fish! Hi, Fish!””

Sigh.

Link | 19 October 2006 at 02:56 PM |

An Update On My Technical Difficulties

Adelphia Cable came today at 4:55 (hey, they were here between the hours of 1:00 and 5:00, as promised), and brought me a new modem. This seems to have solved the problem. Which should be a good thing, right? It should make me happy, huh?

Well, it doesn't.

To think they could have fixed this problem five weeks ago, just by swapping out modems, and didn't do so until today . . . makes me very, very angry indeed. Grrrr.

I had to watch back-to-back episodes of Gilmore Girls just to cool down. And Gilmore Girls marathons? Not conducive to me making my deadline. Plus, that damn Rory always makes me feel fat.

Link | 16 October 2006 at 09:19 PM |

Why I Hate Adelphia Cable

Yes, I haven’t blogged in awhile.

No, it isn’t my fault.

Whose fault is it, you ask? Well, I lay the blame at the horned demon feet of Adelphia Cable. I don’t know if they’re simply incompetent, or if this is all a psychology experiment they’ve devised to see how quickly they can push me over the edge.

Here’s the problem:

(1) My cable modem is out. Frequently. For days at a time. Then all of a sudden, poof, back it comes, and I’ll have internet access for a few hours. Then it promptly goes out again.

(2) I call Adelphia. I’m put on hold for a long, long time.

(3) The customer services representative does one of three things: (1) Tells me someone will come out to fix the problem, (2) Tell me someone’s already scheduled to come fix the problem, or (3) announces they’re transferring my call and then hangs up on me.

(4) No one ever comes to fix the problem. Well, that’s not quite true. Occasionally, an Adelphia cable guy will come by, look at my modem and the cable wires and scratch his chin, and then inevitably tells me that he can’t fix the problem, and that the “special crew” needs to come out and take care of it. As far as I can tell, there’s actually no such thing as a “special crew,” because when I’ve mentioned said group to the customer representative, he or she has no idea what I’m talking about.

This has now been going on for five weeks.

Five. Weeks.

Excuse me while I now bang my head against my keyboard:

vzdxfk/ls’;pldfzt 34po]m /lmkxzf ;dzfl;kjdzftx.

Strangely, that didn't make me feel any better. Not at all.

Link | 16 October 2006 at 02:01 PM |

Literary Chicks

I'm making excuses over at the L.C. today.

Link | 06 October 2006 at 10:01 AM |

TESTING KATE

It's October, and you know what that means . . . TESTING KATE will be hitting the stores in a few short weeks! My new book, which follows Kate Bennett through her tumultuous first year at Tulane Law School, will be released on Halloween day.

(Just make sure you run out to the bookstore before the trick-or-treaters show up on your doorstep demanding fun size snickers bars . . . I don't want to be held responsible for your house getting the shaving-cream-and-toilet-paper treatment.)

Can’t wait until Halloween? Read the first chapter of TESTING KATE here. Enjoy!

Link | 01 October 2006 at 06:10 PM |