Fashion's Foibles?

Okay, I can't wait to go out tonight! I'm doing a little research by heading out to a fashion show fundraising event for a fine arts center here in good ol' Florida. I'm dying to see the gown made of metal and the bridal gown made of condoms. That's totally gonna make it into the pages of Cashmere Boulevard. Why do I get the feeling though, that if some of the condoms are missing from the gown, everyone's gonna be looking suspiciously at me?

Anyway, my editor is going to be calling soon so we can try on some new titles for size for book #1, Chicka Chicka Boom. I'm assuming they'll keep book #2 title, Cashmere Boulevard. But we'l l see. But right now, many writers are at the national RWA conference this month. As for me? I'm writing by day and having this exhausting social life by night. I'm playing matchmaker. I'm running into the stud muffin cover model guy. Tearing up a dance floor somewhere. Getting good material for the novel all along the way.

Fashion show update to come...

I Sold My Chick Lit Novel!

Omigod! My agent hit it out of the ballpark! A two-book contract to Berkley! Wahoo! Time to pop the champagne and "celebrate good times, come on!" But more importantly, what's a girl to wear to go a-celebrating? To thong or not to thong? (I'm talking the shoes! The shoes! Sandals with thongs or without! Sheesh!) Once I get the official officialness of the whole thing, I'll be back with more! Buh-bye!

A Guest Blogger Today

I’m am wicked thrilled to announce today that we have a guest snog-blogger! Alesia Holliday is here to discuss nice girl mythology, a perfect topic since her latest chick lit novel is out today called, Nice Girls Finish First. (So rush out and get it already, wouldja???) Please clap your thighs together in grand applause to help me welcome our guest, Alesia Holiday! (Clap! Clap! Clap!)

* * * * * *

Nice Girls Finish First by Alesia Holliday

So one day I was thinking about today’s woman, as I often do, considering that I write funny books about the everyday (and not so everyday!) things we all go through, and I was wondering about that perpetual dilemma – the Myth of the Nice Girl.

Somehow, through a peculiar evolution of the professional environment, women today are finally recognized (mostly) as equally competent, ambitious, and dedicated as men in the workforce. (We’ll leave the "we have to work smarter and harder" argument aside for now.) But yet, we have an added burden: we have to be nice.

Now, this isn’t really tough for most women, most of the time. We were raised to be nice. That’s what little girls do, right? "Play nice!" "Be nice!" Except, well, there are times when you can’t be all that nice . . . Boyfriend cheating? Kick him to the curb! Um, in a nice way? Opposing counsel trying underhanded tactics? Notify the judge and get him sanctioned! Er, nicely?

The idea of a character who is very ambitious and a great person, but a little bit of a tough chick on the surface, really intrigued me. And I had the perfect character in Kirby Green, newly-hired exec at the Whips and Lace Co. She’d pretty much stolen every scene she was in in American Idle (Double RITA award finalist, how cool is that??). Then I wanted to compare and contrast Kirby with a character who was so nice that she was in danger of becoming a doormat. Brianna sprang to life. My good friend who is an opera singer (no, really!) provided some great background for her. Then I set the two of them loose to play on the pages – each helping the other learn something about life, and about herself. That’s how Nice Girls Finish First was born.

Can we be successful as women today and still retain some of that niceness that was so valued in earlier years? I think so. But nice doesn’t mean dumb, and today’s nice girls do finish first. They might just have to kick a little ass along the way.

Nicely.
---------------------------------
For more on Alesia Holliday, visit her blog at www.alesiaholliday.com/blog. For a link to the book page, visit http://www.alesiaholliday.com/nicegirlsfinishfirst.cfm.