Adventures in San Francisco

I'm finally out from under the deluge of e-mail (and plain ol' snail mail) that accumulated last week, and I've properly assured Tipper the Wonder Poodle that I'm going to pay lots of attention to her this week, so time to post the San Francisco update!

Got in on Tuesday and quickly located Terri Clark and Lynda Sandoval, my partners in crime (and, with Ellen Hopkins, my co-authors on Breaking Up Is Hard To Do.) We went shopping, cruised over to Castro to see the neighborhood, then went back to the Ferry Building Marketplace for coffee and some decadent sourdough cheese wheels. (Lynda ended up buying a whole bag of cheese wheels to bring back to the hotel. Not that we mocked her or anything.)

That night, we donned our "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do" T-shirts and hit McAfee Stadium to see the Oakland A's take on the Kansas City Royals. Check out our book on the big screen!



Wednesday was RWA's "Readers for Life" booksigning for literacy. Over 500 authors signed books, with all proceeds going to literacy charities. Check out Terri signing her first copies of Sleepless! The book will be in stores any day now, so keep an eye out for it. If you enjoyed Ter's story in Breaking Up Is Hard To Do, you'll love diving into Sleepless. She sold a ton of copies at the literacy signing!






Another major highlight of the night for me was getting to see Maryam Mehrkhast, who was my best friend in fifth and sixth grade (until I moved, thanks to my dad's Army career.) Maryam and I were inseparable in those days, and it was incredible to get to see her again. The way we were chatting, you'd never know it'd been so long since we'd seen each other. She's still gorgeous inside and out.


During the two-hour event, I got to meet a lot of readers and I signed a slew of books (when I wasn't catching up with Maryam!) She took this picture of me talking to readers while I signed copies of Goddess Games. (And, for those of you who missed the event, but want an autographed book, it's not too late! You can send me a self-addressed, stamped envelope and request autographed bookplates to stick in the front of your Niki book(s.) Just tell me how many you want! All the info is on my site, right here.)

Thursday and Friday passed in a blur, and Saturday night was the Golden Heart/RITA Awards Ceremony and reception. Lynda and Terri and I got dolled up, though Lynda had to have very good posture or risk a Janet Jackson moment in her dress:



We let Lynda take this one, as she said she felt safer behind the camera:



Thankfully, all three of us made it through the night with no wardrobe malfunctions!

Hello, San Francisco!

I'm heading to California tomorrow for the Romance Writers of America's National Conference. Tuesday night I'll be attending the Oakland A's game against the Kansas City Royals along with two of my fellow Breaking Up Is Hard To Do authors, Terri Clark and Lynda Sandoval. Look for us on the big screen! (As a side note: The first-ever major league game I attended was in Kansas City, with the Royals playing the A's. Dennis Eckersley was on the mound for the A's that afternoon, so it was memorable!)

And speaking of Breaking Up Is Hard To Do: YA librarian Naomi Bates posted a review of all four stories on her blog today. Check it out right here!

On Wednesday, I'll be autographing books at RWA's annual literacy signing. Over 500 authors will be autographing books, with all proceeds being donated to literacy charities. If you're in the area, please take the time to come to the San Francisco Marriott, located in downtown San Francisco at the corner of Fourth Street and Market. The event takes place from 5:30 - 7:30 pm. Look for me alphabetically in the B's. (Yep, there are so many of us we fill a room and have to be seated alphabetically, or you'll never find the author you want!) It's an event that's worth the drive if you're a big reader.

Finally, on Friday, I'll be one of the official RWA Bloggers, posting a report about the conference to the RWA website. They gave me an official logo and everything! I'm scheduled for 10 am Pacific, so tune in to get the scoop on the conference experience.

Hope to see many of you there, and to see those of you who can't make it to San Francisco online!

No One Consulted Me

...or one of my fave shows of the fall, Journeyman, would not have been cancelled. I wish this show had been given a chance. The writing was great, the characters wonderfully flawed and multi-layered, the acting superb. (Plus, I cannot possibly get a Kevin McKidd fix from watching him in Made of Honor. That movie does not look good.) I sure hope NBC brings Journeyman back.


...or grocery stores would not make Boca Breakfast Wraps nearly impossible to find. These things are DELISH. Two minutes in the microwave for one of these--easy to zap while I'm making my morning coffee--and I'm a happy girl. I hoard these when I can find them.


...or the marketing gurus at Pfizer would never have put this lady in their commercial for Lyrica. Something about her gives me the creeps every time I see the ad. (Probably why a new Lyrica lady has popped up in recent days and on the Lyrica website.)


...or the Angels wouldn't have had such dismal pitching against the Oakland A's earlier this week. My Baseball Challenge team started the week by giving me a negative twenty points. (The Angels pitchers actually got a negative thirty...I only finished with a negative twenty because my position players pulled me partway out of the gutter.) Here's hoping the Cincinnati Reds pitching staff does well tonight, now that I've traded away the Angels. I need the help.

On the bright side, wasn't last night's Survivor the best? While I did like Alexis, (and believe she's watching these episodes at home shocked by how evil and nasty her "buddy" Natalie is), and I'm really bummed about James (my fave!) having to leave for medical reasons, the episode was one of the most entertaining in a while. We got to see James's dad, we saw the look of horror on evil Natalie's face when Alexis was ousted (because Nat knows she's next on the chopping block. And hallelujah!), and Erik winning immunity was priceless. (I think now that James is out, I'm rooting for Erik. What about you?)

Easter Brackets

Happy Easter to all! I'm spending mine inspecting/picking up the yard, doing a bit of housecleaning (Easter is all about renewal, right?) and enjoying the bright spring sunshine.

Of course, I also have a stash of Dove chocolate at the ready, most likely to be consumed while watching the NCAA basketball tourney. For the last twelve years or thereabouts, I've participated in what my husband calls the "Geek Pool." A group of around 40 - 50 of us make our selections every year, but instead of making out brackets, we number each of the tourney teams from 1 - 64. You put 64 on the team you think will win it all, and a one on the team you feel is most likely to go out in the first round. From there, it's all a bunch of spreadsheet fun. For the first time EVER, I'm leading the pack (thank you San Diego and Siena!) It's unlikely to hold up past the first round, but I'm going to enjoy being in first place while it lasts. (In the interest of full disclosure: I submitted two entries this year. Nic #1 is in first place, Nic #2 is in 40th. Out of 45. That's far more indicative of both my college basketball expertise and my math abilities.) If Kansas wins it all, taking out Memphis in the final, I might actually have a shot at the whole thing. But I'm not holding my breath.

In the meantime, I'm celebrating another rite of spring. The Sox are about to play their season opener! They're taking on the Oakland A's in Japan after both teams play exhibition games against the Hanshin Tigers and the Yomiuri Giants. (Wouldn't it be a blast to attend a game in Japan? Kick back with some sushi, listen to the fans singing songs for their teams and going nuts when a ball makes it over the wall...whoo-hoo! Going to see baseball in Japan is on my must-do-before-I-die list.)

Back in the USA, our group ticket draft is tonight--we split our season tix six ways, and have a "draft night" once a year to determine who gets to attend which games--and I can't wait. Fenway, here I come!

Have a wonderful Easter holiday, first week of spring, MLB opening week, and NCAA Tourney! (And gooooo Jayhawks!)