Suspicous Ocean and photos from the road

Hey y'all,
So I am getting my sea legs, so to speak, on touring with two small children while keeping up with all things web, but I am glad to be getting back to my blog!

The first reading was at the Borders in Portland. They did a wonderful event, and some people I know from gather.com came, so that was great getting to meet cyber-friends in person. Another woman there knew me from my reading series, Spoken Interludes, in LA. She just happened to be at Borders that night, saw the sign about my event and stayed. Great Serendipity!

The next day, we flew to Albuquerque, and my husband and sons went to my sister's house - heaven with a pool, I would never leave if I lived there - while she and I went to my event in Santa Fe - great fun and great sister visiting. And I got some pool time the next day!




The next morning, a radio interview on KHFM-FM with Kip Allen at 8 am - early, but worth it. I'll get the Mp3 to put on here soon.
The event at Borders that night had a great crowd and fun book-club like discussion. And Whole Foods was next door to stock up on organic chocolate - hooray!



Our digs in LA. Craig's list has been the saving grace this tour. How cute is this? Bungalowsweet.com if you need a place to stay.
And it's more spacious than their website makes it sound. Plus La Cienega park is two blocks away. A happy child (or two) is a happy momma.


BEA was Saturday. I had a signing that
morning, then got to see friends/Spoken Interludes Honorary Board members Robert Crais, T. Jefferson Parker, and Michael Connelly (the triumvirate of the mystery world) in a panel that afternoon about audio books. That's my friend, Betsy Little, with Michael and me.
The HarperCollins party was that night at Fox. It was funny to be on the lot as a non-actor - funny, but really nice. I shot NYPD Blue there, not to mention countless auditions, which I don't miss at all!!

Spoken Interludes was Monday night. Litblogger Mark Sarvas of the Elegant Variation and Marisa Silver read from their beautiful new novels. Michael Kearns read a powerful piece about his work with children with AIDS in Africa, I read, and the gloriously funny Taylor Negron read a piece he wrote for the evening about his start in Hollywood as a cartoon character for a Hanna Barbara show. Could breaking into the business get any better than that?

Tuesday night was Borders in Westwood, home of the amazing Lita Weissman, God's gift to writers. Betsy (of the Michael Connelly picture above) and Lita and my sons and I had breakfast at Juniors the next day. As we were leaving (after many eggs were consumed and/or thrown on the floor thanks to my 17 month old but I did leave a good tip, I remember being a waitress) we asked a woman to take a picture for us. She said sure, then promptly jumped into the photo and smiled. We said, Oh no, we were hoping you would take one of us. She looked confused, though not as much as we were as to why she would get in our picture, but she took the photo, then said goodbye. The valet - yes, this is LA, the deli's have valets - told us she was Fantasia from American Idol. I still don't know who she is, but I'm sure that has a lot more to do with my lack of TV time than hers.
Wednesday was Flint Ridge Books and Cafe in La Canada. I had
never heard of that town either. Now, I want to live there.
It was like stumbling upon a Ross
MacDonald novel without the murder. Total Southern California
circa 1950. I've been wanting to retire to Malibu in 1975, but since that isn't possible, maybe I can get my husband for us to move there instead.

Thursday I called in to do a radio interview with WWNO in New Orleans, then that night, Vroman's. Here I am signing a book in their office before the event. Yes, I did wear the same outfit two nights in a row. But it was only a few hours each night, so I figure combined together, they made up only one day. Sort of.

Friday, we flew to Louisiana.
As the plane left LAX, and flew out over the ocean to turn around, my 4 year old asked me what river that was. I told him it wasn't a river, it was the
Pacific Ocean. He said, "The suspicious
ocean?" I told him no, but really wanted to say yes.
We got to Baton Rouge, where it is over 90 degrees plus 95 % humidity - welcome home! I keep asking my family and friends if it was this hot when we were growing up. Either it wasn't, or I have been up north too long. I drove straight to NO to tape a TV interview (check that out here), then woke at 6 to call in to do a TV interview over the phone for a morning news show in Lafayette called Passe Partout (I love being home! Where else in the US would a news show have that name??) then later drove to Lafayette to do an event at the Museum at USL.
I got to see lots of old family friends and cousins I'd never met and meet new people - great fun.
It rained on the way home over the Atchafalaya Basin. It was a lot more beautiful than this picture, but here's a small taste of that.

Today, I did a reading at the Baton Rouge Art Gallery. I'm so happy to be back in the South where people dress up and wear hats. More soon.
xo