02/11/11
by Robin Kaye
A few years ago my husband and I went on a double date with my dear friend and fellow Muser, Hope Ramsay and her husband to see my first David Wilcox concert. We sat in the front row and I was so amazed by this man’s guitar playing, I found myself paying as much attention to his hands as I did to his words and music. I left the concert thinking that David Wilcox was quite possibly the happiest man on the planet. Never before had I seen someone so thrilled to play songs he has probably played a million times. After the show, Hope and I spoke to him and I was so touched by his words and the reverent way he talked about his music, his writing, and his life, I found myself in awe of his home-spun existentialism.
01/4/11
by Robin Kaye
Okay, I’m having a party. The fourth book in my Domestic Gods Series, Yours for the Taking was just released officially a few days ago and I’m thrilled to say, even though it’s my fourth book launch, it doesn’t get old.
Every morning I open my email with anticipation, praying there will be reviews in there and that the reviews will be good. I look for the first letter from a reader telling me they enjoyed the book…okay, I look for the second, third, and forty-fourth too. Let’s face it, someone telling me they love my books is enough to keep me happy for a few days at least. I keep a watchful eye on my Amazon reviews and sales rank, and work on my blog tour.
Every now and then, something happens that makes me do my version of a Snoopy Happy Dance although I fear I look more like Elaine on Seinfeld than Snoopy. So far, this has been a great year. I found out that the first book in my Domestic Gods Series, Romeo, Romeo is free on Kindle and iBook for a limited time. So if you haven’t read it, you might want to go and download it soon. I’m not sure how much longer the $0.00 price tag will last.
I didn’t think anything could be better than a free book on Kindle and ibooks until the other day when I opened my Google Alerts and found that Eloisa James made Yours for the Taking the featured title in her Barnes and Noble Review’s Reading Romance calling it “an urban twist on a classic tale of marriage for convenience” and “a treat to read, and a sweet, funny way to start the New Year.” I’m still dancing about that!
All through my blog tour I will be giving away copies of Yours for the Taking to lucky commenters and today I’m making it extra special by giving away a book and one of my fabulous Humpin’ Hannah’s T-shirts.
Humpin’ Hannah’s is the coolest bar in Boise, Idaho. Humpin’ Hannah’s was my favorite place to hang out in Boise, full of character and characters, so when I set Yours for the Taking in Boise, I made one of my favorite fictional characters, Karma Kincaid, an employee of Humpin’ Hannah’s. The real life owners of Humpin’ Hannah’s, Darcy, Todd, and Dick were nice enough to give me permission to take over their bar and play with it in Yours for the Taking and all my future Domestic Gods Gone Wild books.
I hope you will follow my blog tour for more chances to win copies of Yours for the Taking and the handful of Humpin’ Hannah’s T-shirts I have to give away!
This is one New Year I won’t soon forget. So tell me what was unforgettable about your New Year?
11/26/10
by Robin Kaye
In spite of being in deadline hell, I said I’d ignore the computer, I’d ignore the fact that I have a book due in 20 days, and I’d enjoy the now rare occasion that we have the whole family–my husband, myself, and our three teenaged kids–all in one place. I took the day off because it was not only a National Holiday, but my husband’s and my 21st wedding anniversary.
Since Twinkle Toes, my fourteen year old daughter was able to come home (she lives about 90 miles away with a host family while she goes to high school and dances 40 hours a week at the best ballet school in the Country) and will be heavy into rehearsals and performances of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, until the week after my book is due, I decided to celebrate having everyone together and spend the morning decorating our newly remodeled living room for Christmas.
09/2/10
An Interview with Agent Kevan Lyon
by Robin Kaye
Blame it on the Muse would like to welcome agent, Kevan Lyon of the Marsal Lyon Literary Agency.
Kevan, thanks so much for taking the time out of your insanely busy schedule to join us today. I asked my colleagues in search of the perfect agent what questions they’d like to ask you. Here are the questions I received:
The industry is looking for more of the “same” so a book can be classified, but publishers also want “different.” How far can a writer draw outside of the lines before their book is considered non-commercial?
This is largely going to depend on the genre you are writing in. When it comes to historical romance for example, we are now (finally!) beginning to see growing acceptance and interest in stories that are a bit less traditional (i.e. Regency/set in Britain). So, different can be o.k., but only to a point! In other genres such as paranormal, I think you can definitely push the boundaries quite a bit and as long as you captivate them with plot, voice and character you can go far!
08/31/10
by Robin Kaye
Today is my favorite day of the year—the first day of school for two of my three children. The third started yesterday so we packed up her and all her belongings on Sunday, dropped her off at her host family’s house, said a not-so-tearful goodbye, and got the heck out of Dodge. I know that sounds harsh, but believe me when I say Twinkle Toes, my ballerina, is almost impossible to be around unless she’s dancing 40 hours per week.
Sunday evening freedom was so close at hand, I could almost taste it. My husband and I went to dinner on our way home and spoke of nothing but how lovely it will be when our kids are firmly ensconced in their much-dreaded schoolwork, when my day will consist of six blessed hours of silence, when I have time to write with no child poking his or her head in my office door to ask how my writing is going, when I can have a train of thought that won’t skip the tracks do to a fight between hormonal teenage girls (some of which aren’t even mine), the cacophony of competing YouTube videos, iTunes, and the ever-present television – all of which seem to be in my office or just outside my door will not longer intrude, when I can officially impose a 10:00 bedtime and maybe spend a few minutes alone with my husband before he too is asleep.
Freedom is sweet, even if it’s only for six short hours, five days a week if I’m lucky. The person who designed the teacher’s in-service day or the dreaded teacher planning half-day, seemingly on a weekly basis is, in my opinion, the devil’s spawn. How is an author to write when kids come and go on what seems like an endless cycle of three and a half or four-day school weeks? Still, compared to having three teenagers at home for the last month, the promise of them being out from underfoot for most of the week seems like heaven to me.
This day, August 31st is the happiest day of my year. It’s Christmas, my birthday and Valentine’s Day all wrapped into three large brown-paper bags, each containing a juice box, a sandwich, and an apple. It’s all that and a bag of chips.
What’s your favorite day of the year and why?
08/11/10
Guest Blog – Deb Werksman, Managing Editor at Sourcebooks Casablanca
by Robin Kaye
Welcome to the Muse, Deb and thanks for being the first editor to visit our blog. We’re so happy you’re guest blogging with us!
For those of you who don’t know, Deb Werksman, the managing editor of Sourcebooks, Casablanca, is my editor. Thanks for being our first editor to guest blog.
THE BOOK OF YOUR HEART
You should definitely, absolutely write the book of your heart. You should also knit the sweater of your heart, paint the painting of your heart, and compose the song of your heart. However, do not then expect anyone to necessarily buy it.
If you want to SELL your book (and remember, ultimately it’s your readers who pay you) then you should write the book of your READER’S heart. 
Ideally, this would be one and the same, but very often they are not. Writing is one of the most powerful and important forms of human self-expression, so I would never discourage anyone from writing what’s in their heart.
08/9/10
by Robin Kaye
I just got back from the Romance Writers of America Conference and taking a family vacation with my husband and two of my three teenagers. Since the conference was at Disney World, my family met me down there after the conference so we could visit the “Happiest Place On Earth.” I have always been and will probably always be a Disney freak. I was seven years old the first time I had the Disney experience, I fell in love, and I’ve never outgrown it.
I think part of what I love so much about Disney is the sheer creative genius it took to make Disney what it is. I am in awe of the Imagineers—the people who make dreams a reality.
07/20/10
by Robin Kaye
I always wished I had a muse. I’d hear people talk about their muses and I felt left out. No muse here…or so I thought.
Until recently, I would usually get great ideas when I took my 110 pound yellow lab out for his last pee break of the evening. Sambuca thought peeing was a team sport. He liked the company and would hold it for hours until I put him out on his run and went out with him.
