A Day in the Life of.....
Valerie Bowman writes Regency-set historical romance novels with a focus on sharp dialogue, engaging storylines, and heroines who take matters into their own hands! Publishers Weekly calls Secrets of a Wedding Night, an “enchanting, engaging debut that will have readers seeking future installments” and Romantic Times Book Reviews says, “This fast-paced, charming debut, sparkling with witty dialogue and engaging characters, marks Bowman for stardom.” Booklist gave it a starred review!
Valerie has a degree in English Language and Literature from Smith College and lives in Jacksonville, FL with her rascally dog, Roo. You can find Valerie on the web at www.ValerieBowmanBooks.com and on Facebook and Twitter.
Ok, so Aislynn asked me what a typical writing day is for me and here’s the breakdown. I work full-time as a technical editor at a big computer software company so the following is usually a Saturday or a Sunday for me.
3:00 a.m. – For some ungodly reason I’m up checking email and following up on things.
5:00 a.m. – Back to bed for a couple of hours. Zzzzz
7:00 a.m. – Begin the unhappy process of waking up. Am not a morning person.
9:00 a.m. – I have had coffee and am ready to write!
3:00 p.m. –.Are you kidding? It’s already 3pm? I can’t believe it. Time for a nap. (I suspect this is why I’m up at 3:00 a.m. later, btw.)
5:00 p.m. – Back to writing
12:00 a.m. – What? How did it get to be 12:00 am? I’m almost done. I’m questioning whether anything I’ve ever written is good. I’m seeing mirages of Regency country houses. I’m getting on Twitter and hoping my critique partners see me and tell me to get back to work.
So, that, as uninteresting as it may be, is my typical day. But in doing this post, I took a number of pictures of my writing environments in my house and I decided I’d also give you a bit more detail on all of those things with a few true confessions tossed in for fun!
This is my home office. It’s a beautiful room full of light and space. I almost never write here. That thing sticking out of the left corner is a pillow for my dog, Roo, to sit on when I am in this room. She’s a bit spoiled. You’ll see…
True Confession
Here is my bedroom. It’s cozy and usually inhabited by a super pushy snarf of a dog. I spend much more time writing here using my laptop. And yes, that’s the snarf herself, my rescue dog, Roo, smiling at you in the middle of this photo.
These are my yearly goals, my first book cover and author photo from the Golden Network Boot Up Ceremony, and two of my favorite quotes. One is from Kanye West and says, “I’m on a pursuit of awesomeness, excellence is the bare minimum.” (That one just cracks me up.) The other is from my friend, author Ava Milone. It says, “You always have to LET GO and reach for the next thing or you’ll never get to the top.” Underneath that is a card from my critique partner, Mary Behre that she sent me when I sold. And yes, that is a tiara in the front left. Ha!
True Confession
I should be sitting next to those lovely goals and inspiring quotes while I write, but instead I’m usually here. The cord on the left is where I plug in my laptop. Also, that cube and brown thing on the floor are there so her highness, Roo, can easily jump up on the bed.
Also, please note that in this picture, Roo is digging at the bed, an act I refer to as “snarfing.” If you look close enough, you’ll see holes she’s ripped in the coverlet because she’s a little OCD. Sigh. I’m not proud of this.
Ok, this is a little embarrassing because I’m a big neat freak but here is the current state of my bookshelves in my office. The two posters up top are my current vision boards. One is specifically for my writing and one is for the rest of my life. If you think you see a pig in the one on the left, you do. There’s a pig in the last story of my Secret Brides trilogy, Secrets of a Scandalous Marriage. Her name is Margaret II and that’s a picture of her.
TRUE CONFESSION
I should be sitting next to those bookshelves writing but instead I’m in eye-view of this thing, which is essentially a “spider keeper outer.” It’s in the corner of my bedroom. I detest spiders and someone told me to buy one of these and keep it in any room I don’t want spiders to come into. I have no idea if it works but I don’t care. Sold! There’s a scene in my debut historical romance novel, Secrets of a Wedding Night, where the hero saves the heroine from a spider. That actually happened on my first date with my fiancé. That’s how I knew he was a keeper!
Here’s a close up of the stuff on my desk. My V paperweight, my London paperweight (a gift from my CP, Sheila Athens) and my poodle drinking a cup of coffee painting which I bought at SCAD in Savannah, GA (a student painted it) because my (now deceased dog, Annie) was a black poodle and she loved drinking coffee. Of course she always stole it, we didn’t serve it to her, but she was a coffee-aholic. When I saw this little painting I just had to have it. Annie is the heroine of my second book, Secrets of a Runaway Bride, and yes, I named her after my dog. Still miss her.
And just for fun, here’s Roo looking like the chupa cabra on the bed.
And last but not least, my favorite new office supply. How cute is this?
Ok, so spill.
What’s the most interesting thing you have in your office and what’s the story behind it?
HOW TO STOP A WEDDING
Young, widowed, and penniless, Lily Andrews, the Countess of Merrill, has strong opinions on marriage. When she spots a certain engagement announcement in The Times, she decides to take action. She will not allow another hapless girl to fall prey to a man—particularly the scoundrel who broke her heart five years ago. Anonymously she writes and distributes a pamphlet entitled “Secrets of a Wedding Night,” knowing it will find its way into his intended’s innocent hands…
HOW TO SEDUCE A WIDOW
Devon Morgan, the Marquis of Colton, desires a good wife and mother to his son—someone completely unlike Lily Andrews, the heartless beauty who led him on a merry chase five years ago only to reject him. When Devon’s new fiancée cries off after reading a certain scandalous pamphlet, he vows to track down the author and make her pay. But when he learns it’s his former fiancée Lily, he issues a challenge: write a retraction—or prepare to be seduced—to find out how wonderful a wedding night can be…
“Secrets of a Wedding Night is the most charming and clever debut I've read in years! ”
—New York Times bestselling author Lisa Kleypas
Buy links for Secrets of a Wedding Night: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Books a Million
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Stitching, reading, and cooking. I love this place. Glad you're here, Valerie, for me to discover more about it!
ReplyDeleteI love how you have your spaces organized. Even though you have an office you rarely write there. I know the feeling. My writing space is a corner of the dining room table. It might not work for some but it works for me because I'm at the center of the house, so anyone can get me if they need me. That includes my characters, if I'm making dinner and genius strikes.
Aside from the various and assorted chatchkis decorating my work area, there's yarn (for if the computer craps out and I have time for a few stitches) and note pads (same as above, but if the yarn isn't available, or is being sat on by my cat, Mickey), but my favorite thing is the printout of the movie poster for "Miracle." The tagline is "If you believe in yourself, anything can happen." One of my all-time favorite movies. (Another great line: the name on the front of your sweater is more important than the name on the back.) The pic of Eddie Cahill doesn't hurt my eyes, either. :-)
Hiya Carla, Thanks for stopping by. And I love Miracle too!
DeleteHi Valerie! Congrats on the debut :)
ReplyDeleteI have the usual books scattered everywhere and giant calendar to keep me in check of all the stuff going on. Framed book cover posters and collages of life events cover the wall.
The one interesting thing I have is a pink riding crop hanging on the wall. Last Christmas my other blogging half sent it to me as a joke of sorts since we began a fascination with them after seeing it on the cover of The Rake and the Recluse by Jenn LeBlanc. LOL. It's sometimes comes down from the wall and ends up at a conference or two *giggle* It's a totally inappropriate inside joke so it has a dear place on the wall.
Love that you have a pink riding crop, Kati. Thanks for leaving a comment!
DeleteI think the most interesting thing in my office is my budda statue my sister sent me from Tibet when she went on one of her amazing trips. She's in Italy right now. This year I added Tennessee to my lists of have visited.
ReplyDeleteOoh, a buddha statue from Tibet. How cool, Lynn!
DeleteHi Valerie,
ReplyDeleteLove the new USB hub.
My writing space is always littered with post-it notes and pictures about my current WIP, so that changes with each book. But one thing that's been in my office from the beginning is Horton-the-Elephant. (From Dr. Seuss's Horton Hatches the Egg.)
The stuffed animal is a reminder that anything worth having is worth working and waiting for. Plus, he's so darned cute! But not as cute as your Roo!
Yay for Horton the Elephant, Mary!
DeleteOK, I have to ask. Where do you get the spider-keeper-outer? My two arachnophobic daughters would like to know!
ReplyDeleteI have nothing interesting in my office, because, technically, I have no office. I write in bed or in the living room. I have a cat who thinks she's part of the decor, though.
Sounds like your daughters and I would get along, Ash. : ) I think I got it at The Home Depot. I bet you can google and find one, though.
DeleteHi Valerie,
ReplyDeleteLove the uber-neat desk--and the fact you write elsewhere. :)
Last book, I had sticky notes, research books open at strategic places, and, on my bulletin board, a pix of the hero that kept me going. But this book I haven't found 'the one' just yet. I'm so predictable, I'd have the same pix for every hero. Actually I do have two, so I'm only semi-hopeless.
Really like Stitch-Read-Cook site.
Hi Barbara,
DeleteYou'll know when you find "the one". : )
Thanks for sharing about your day. Most interesting thing is the candy.
ReplyDeletebn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com
Candy is always good!
DeleteThank you so much for having me, Aislynn! What fun to confess my office secrets! :)
ReplyDeleteOh, how I would love for my dog to cuddle near me when I'm writing. Instead, she's trying to eat my computer cord or my socks. Or both.
ReplyDeleteThe most interesting thing on my desk are my children's graduations pictures.
ReplyDeletemce1011 AT aol DOT com