And my boobs said, "Thanks, everyone for the comments!"

Aw, we love your boobs, Cash.

Wow, Brookfield Zoo had 26,000 people today (all-time March attendance record, and more than most summer weekend days get)--70 degree weather combined with Easter break equals big crowds. I was wondering what the tie-up was on the Ike near 1st Avenue this morning (that's the main exit for the zoo).

sits across from Aimee, waiting for a second pair (OF SUCKERS) to sit down with us

Oh, I'm sorry, what did you just say?

Ahem. In non-Sean news, I have a brand new toy! And I CAN'T PLAY WITH IT YET.

Fuckers. Why don't they charge the battery pack before they ship it? I want to play with the camera! I want to take silly photos of the dog, and mess with them in MSPaint, and turn them into lj icons the same day!

Also, the wedding present for my mother just came, and it's SO COOL and I wanted to take a photo to show it off! Although it's all rolled up, so I oughta wait till vw gets home to help.

I want to take silly photos of the dog, and mess with them in MSPaint, and turn them into lj icons the same day!

I still think you should put the raincoat on the cat this time.

Yeah, well, it's easier to upload pictures with arms than with bloody ribbons of flesh.

Hey, I'm supposed to be doing homework. Quit distracting me!

Female readers flock to Christian chick lit

That's (evangelical) Christian pop culture for you, always five years behind the trends!

Because Steeple Hill Books sells to both CBA and ABA bookstores, we must adhere to CBA conventions. The stories may not include alcohol consumption by Christian characters, dancing, card playing, gambling or games of chance (including raffles), explicit scatological terms, hero and heroine remaining overnight together alone, Halloween celebrations or magic or the mention of intimate body parts. Lying is also problematical in the CBA market and characters who are Christian should not lie or deceive others. Possibly there could be exceptional circumstances (matters of life and death), but this has to be okayed by an editor.

I intend to have the Steeple Hill guidelines printed on a card, and if any family member, college friend, or member of my church asks me why I don't write inspirational romance, I'm just going to hand them the card and say, "Do you really expect me to toe that rigid a line? Ain't happening."

Would a character identified as Christian be against guidelines in the larger romance realm?

I can speak only for historicals, since I'm not widely read in contemporaries. And religious characters of any sort are rare but not unheard of. In addition to the wonderful Laura Kinsale books already mentioned, Patricia Gaffney's To Love and to Cherish features a minister hero who's one of my all-time favorite heroes ever.

I toyed with making the hero of my wip a Methodist after reading about Methodism in the ranks of Wellington's army, but figured I'm making my heroine work hard enough to seduce him without adding religious scruples to every other reason he has for seeking to resist the irresistible.

I am sure the Evangelical Christians are miffed that folks like me call ourselves Christians instead of Whorish Christians, or Morally Depraved Christians, or Drunkard Christians....

t snerkity My 22-year-old self would be appalled to see what I've become--appalled! That said, once I left Southern Baptistland behind, all the evangelicals I've known have been fine with dancing, and most with drinking. But I think it's like Hil (?) said upthread. You're more likely to offend the more rigid section of the market by putting it in than you will the more flexible segment by leaving it out, so you maximize your market share.

Aha! Laura Kinsale, a very good writer of historical romances, often has characters' religions affect their major decisions. One character's major crisis is being a Quaker in love with a non-Quaker (she winds up being read out of meeting); another is a medieval Catholic, and the big crisis scene of the book is her convincing her husband to go to confession.

That'd be Flowers from the Storm and Shadowheart, right? The latter just came out last year and should still be in print and easy to find.

And the thunder and lightning continues, making the work lights flicker and wreaking havoc with the computer systems.

Some of the thunder crashes make the windows and floor shake, and one of them was loud enough to make my ears register the pressure change. The Space Needle got dinged, but by design - cool picture, no damage (shucks!).

And the thunder and lightning continues, making the work lights flicker and wreaking havoc with the computer systems.

Isn't it a weird day? We had not just rain while the sun shone, but hail, about 30 minutes ago.

TAR: Why is it that some of the teams had to check their luggage and others did not ? Also, didn't Ray just say that they were in first class - isn't that a no-no ?