Book Sex and Cleaning House

First order of business: House Cleaning

I'm really sorry both for the lack of updates and the lack of Burn Notice updates/live blogs. People who I know in real life will tell you that I have been really, really sick for the last couple of weeks. I swear to you, during a week of that time I ate nothing but chicken noodle soup and Lucky Charms. Don't get me wrong, I love both but not under those circumstances.

What little I can say about the last two weeks of BN is I loved them. I don't really have the time to go back and write up recaps and things so I'm sorry but I promise to live blog it tomorrow. :D

Book Sex - Marrying your book and going to bed with it.

The other day, after I started to feel like a human being again, I met my good friend (who works for a publisher) at Panera for food and "coffee." She will hereto be referred to as "MGF." Time permitting, she and I get together about once every two weeks - when we're not obsessively texting each other during episodes of the Bachelor. Yes we're completely aware how nerdy this is.

Anyway, after talking about love and all its wonders we started chatting about my book. Well, actually, if I can be technical, I started ranting about my book. I started by telling the story on how a few days before I had come across the second book being published in the next year/year-and-a-half with the same original title as I had wanted to title mine.

When I found out about the first one going to market, I FREAKED OUT wanted to scratch the whole thing and cry myself a million tears. However, after a few days of thinking it out, I came up with a new, better title and have been moving wonderfully forward since -- UNTIL....

I found out about the NEW, NEW one. That book is being written by a fairly successful YA author (who I will admit, I haven't read yet...but I'm heading to the Library tonight). That book scares me because a) it's the same genera as mine and b) I have no idea if the title is metaphorical or if it's tapping into the same universe as I am hence c) I have no idea how similar, if at all, it is to the book I'm working on.

The only reason I found out about the newest one is because I was Googling agents I'd want to query when I am done and adding them to my Agent Query Spread Sheet. Yes. I do know how nerdy that sounds. Yes. I really do have a spread sheet.

Thus the FREAK OUT #2! I was explaining to MGF and trying to get advice from her on whether or not I should keep writing this book. MGF isn't the only person I've FREAKED OUT to -- and they all keep saying the same thing: "YES! Keep writing your book." Apparently, the only person who can write my book is me.

MGF said, "SERIOUSLY! The concept of Harry Potter wasn't "original" and how many vampire books are there to choose from?" The issue of course is how well can you write a book that people will want to read? And this is when MGF said something I hadn't realized yet, "Writing your book is like being in a relationship."

My brain stopped. "What?"

She cocked her head to the side and gave me that sly smile she always does, "You're starting to shop for agents! That's like shopping for rings." She continued with her clever little metaphor, "you have to go to bed with your book."


Then we both erupted into an obnoxious laughter that made one of the Panera kids standing at a table near ours raise his eyebrow at our weirdness.


The reality is that MGF is right. Yes, my ego is writing this book because I want to be the next Stephanie Meyers, sell a ton of books, and have Stephen King talk crassly about me in interviews. That's why my ego is writing my book. That's not the reason I started writing it, or more importantly, the reason why I will finish it.

I started writing the book because I had an idea. I will finish the book because I believe in the idea. I think people will enjoy reading the book because I believe they can relate to the idea.

I'm sure MGF and all the other people I know in real life who've heard me FREAK OUT will have to endure many more FREAK OUTS. But, they'll endure them because they believe in me.

Seak and Distroy This! BURN NOTICE LIVE BLOG

Well, we're back. Another Burn Notice Live Blog. Refresh Often - it's gonna get HOT.

Preview Time!
Mike's trapped in a Bank. Sam's gotta break a date to go break him out. See you here next week!

10:59
In from commercial, Seymour and Mike interrogate the Loft Bomber. Seymour gives Mike and Fi engraved throwing daggers. And, well one for Seymour too. Seymour is sweet. I hope to see more of him.

Seymour went to check on the captive and Mike finally confronts Fi about their, you know.

10:55
When we return for the last stretch of the episode Mike is coaching secretary on what she needs needs to do. Mike turns Chandler's trap into a trap. To do that, Fi blows up his car.

Next, Sam goes after Chandler's hit man. Sam uses his Finley cover from the medical smuggler's case. I heart Finley. He flipped the hit man.

The hit man kills Chandler.

Secretary girl gives Mike money and a painting. Awe.

While Sam heads to the Loft, Fi and Mike meet with Seymour. Fi and Mike go after Loft Bomber. They throw some water-balloon-type bullets around and they've got their man.



10:42
After the commercials, Mike's out getting yogurt. And Sam deals with a frightened Secretary. So Mike makes the spy hunter he's playing a little more aggressive. He successfully get's Chandler's trust at 50%. He needs him at 100%.

Sam helps Mike break into a gallery. It's all nicely voiced over. To find something you're looking for, you look for something out of place.

Mike fines the files, but he needs a diamond tipped drill bit. Diamonds are a spy's best friend.

After Fi and Mike fill in the secretary, Fi confronts Mike about their on-again-off-again when Seymour calls - he found the Loft Bomber. While Mike checks things out Seymour quizzes Fi about her and Mike and then gives her unsolicited Ti-Chi advice. Apparently, the universe will kick your ass.

Back at the Loft, Sam's drinking a beer when secretary calls. Chandler set a trap and just before commercial, she needs a spy to help her with her cover story.

10:29
When the commercials finnish, Mike and Sam meet with secretary. Apparently, her father was an artist, and her heartfelt story gives Mike and Sam pause.

Back at the Loft, Mike's beating the shit out of a punching bag when Sam comes in to let Mike know that "badaboom-badabing" the secretary's is the artist's daughter and the new client.

With a snappy voice over, Mike makes an electro magnet and wipes the security footage. Mike becomes both the spy hunter and the spy, and that can leads anywhere he wants.

At lunch, Sam's drinking ice'd tea! And among other things, Sam finds out that Mike and Fi are doing the horizontal rumba. Sam says, "Mike how many times do you have to touch the flame to find out if it burns?"

Then, Sam and Fi play under cover pick up. Sam's playing Fi's back and trying to knock down a door in the worst form of "sidekick-entry." Mike's voice narrates this one.



10:18
Back from commercial, Mike asks Fi to borrow cash but she lets him in on a little job. Then Mike meets up with Sam who's drinking at noon. After Mike gets a call with Fi and mentions "grabbing dinner" he goes to meet with the job. It's a Private Investigator job at an Art Gallery. Meet Chandler "The Client." After Mike makes the job, suddenly Seymour calls.

Mike meets up with him at a Russian mob hang out. And he stops Jack Ass from planting a tracker on the Loft Bomber's girlfriend's car.

Back at the loft, Sam's got a beer and Fi is sexually frustrated.

After running from commitment, Mike runs to a meeting with Chandler. We learn that someone planted a keystroke bug in the office and through the artful technique of voice over we learn that more spies get caught changing batteries and wires than anything else.

Mike works late and finds out the secretary did it with the letter opener. She begs mike not to tell Chandler because he'll kill her. Mike suggests that's a little too hard core and she says that Mr. Art killed her father.

10:04
Starting off Michael and Fi are on South Beach looking for information on his Loft Bomber and meet up with Arms Dealer Seymour. Remember Seymour, the crazy guy who loves him some smoothies and doesn't listen to a word people say? I liked him. I'm glad he's back.