Well, lots of things actually, but here’s a quick rundown…In:

• 25 Days, LOST returns to TV! Yes! I so cannot wait for this last season. It’s also a little bittersweet, though, because I know at the end of the season I’ll be sad to say good-bye to one of my all-time favorite TV series.
• 70 Days, A very good friend I haven’t seen in years is coming to visit. I’m already planning a weekend of catching up.
• 97 Days, I’ll turn in book 4 of the magic series to my publisher. Notice this book is still being referred to as “Book 4.” This is because I have yet to find a title that works. It needs to fall in the “A XXX of Magic” theme, but the missing word needs to be somewhat sensual AND work for the story itself. I’m not having an easy time of naming this poor book at all, and it’s driving me crazy! But by April 15th, the book will be done, turned in, and heck–it better have a title by then. Yay!
• 109 Days, A BREATH OF MAGIC is released! I am so proud of this book: from the inside out, even. The story is the strongest of the three so far (in my opinion), and the cover is amazing. I can’t wait to hold my third published book in my hands!

Okay, I’m tired of counting…so other things I’m looking forward to in 2010 that will occur somewhere after 109 days from now are:

• My eldest son graduating from high school, and then starting college. I’m so proud of him, and he’s doing so well. Sure, these moments will also be bittersweet, but the pride and happiness for him will far outweigh any sadness of my boy leaving home. I think. I hope.
• RWAs National Conference this summer. This year, the conference is in Nashville, and I’ll have the chance to meet at least one of the Novel Girls, plus be able to hang out with all of my writing buddies.
• My local chapter of RWAs annual brainstorming weekend. I haven’t been able to go for the past two years, but I’m definitely planning on going this year. I’ve missed these fun and inspirational weekends more than i can say.
• Other miscellaneous kid things, such as birthdays, seeing my daughter successfully complete her first year of college, seeing my younger set continue to grow and change and learn. Lots of good stuff with the kids!
• More JD Robb books because I love the In Death series so very much.
• Continuing to write and trying my hand out in a few areas I haven’t yet.
• And, on a more general, but very important note: continued good health and happiness for my family and friends.

What about you? What are you looking forward to in 2010? I’d love to hear?

Actually, there are several countdown’s going on in my house at the moment. The big one for any house with kids in it is, of course, Christmas Day.

We also have the mini-countdowns that lead up to the big day: putting the Christmas tree up (done), baking and decorating cookies (not yet), visiting Santa (this weekend), visiting Children’s Wonderland (a Christmas tradition for my family and many others in this part of Ohio), and driving around on Christmas Eve to check out the amazing lights and decorations in some of the area neighborhoods. And that doesn’t even take into consideration watching all the classic Christmas shows that are on TV this time of year!

The kids are excited, and becoming even more so as each day passes. And seeing as I’m very into Christmas, I’m nearly as excited as my little ones are. However, this year, the countdown extends past Christmas, past New Years, and right into February–when my first book, A Taste of Magic will hit the shelves. I am (naturally) mega-excited at the prospect of holding my book in my hands, of reading reviews, and of hearing from readers.

And then….the countdown will continue on until March, when I’m having my very first public booksigning, and it will keep on movin’ all the way until July, when my second book, A Stroke of Magic will be released. Speaking of A Stroke of Magic, I finally have some more info to share about the book! Here is the official back cover copy:

You know how freaky it is, to expect one taste and get another? Imagine picking up a can of tepid ginger ale and taking a swig of delicious, icy cold peppermint tea. Alice Raymond just did that. And though the tea is exactly what she wants, she bought herself a soda.

ONE STROKE OF MAGIC,

AND EVERYTHING HAS CHANGED 

Alice’s life isn’t turning out as planned. After breaking things off with her lying, stealing, bum of an ex, she discovered she was pregnant. Motherhood’s definitely on her “someday” wish list, but a baby means less time for her art and no time for recent hallucinations that include this switcharoo with the tea. She has to impress her new boss, the ridiculously long-lashed, smoky-eyed Ethan Gallagher, and she has to deal with her family, who have started rambling about gypsy curses. Only a soul-deep bond with the right man can save her and her child? As if being single wasn’t pressure enough! 

Alice’s life has just become icy cold peppermint tea. She just has to forget the ginger ale.

Isn’t it awesome? And today, I received the cover art for the book. Here it is, in all its shiny, beautiful, totally amazing glory:

Pretty great, huh? I’m blown away by it, just as I was (and still am) by the cover for A Taste of Magic.

Back to countdowns…in between everything I’ve listed, there are much smaller things I’ve been looking forward to. What about you? What countdowns are going on in your house/life?

Don’t Forget!

This week at The Novel Girls, we’ve been talking about our favorite things. Come on over and take a peek!

Second post for the day! I’ll be skipping tomorrow (Wednesday) because I’m too excited to wait until then to post this. Lots of news…here we go…

Today, I’m writing about a couple of different things. First, I want to share that my amazing editor at Dorchester Publishing, Chris Keeslar, has been named Editor of the Year by the NYC RWA Chapter. Yay, Chris! And seriously, he is an amazing editor! I feel oh-so-lucky to be working with him.

Oh. So. Lucky. 

Secondly, I wanted to point out a fairly new web site and blog written by another fantastic Dorchester editor, Leah Hultenschmidt. It’s a FANTASTIC site, filled with information about Dorchester releases, authors, and exciting news. She also blogs about her view from the editor’s desk, giving some behind-the-scenes info on all sorts of different things. Terrific reading! I had the pleasure of meeting Leah in San Francisco, and she is sooo nice.

I’d twisted my ankle while I was there (told you I was a klutz!) by tripping over a step on a cable car. Which embarrassed my daughter to no end, by the way. Anyway, Leah–who also had a sprained ankle, and completely empathized with my pain, nicely brought me a fistful of drugs (over-the-counter!) to the Dorchester Spotlight. And let me tell you, that Aleve was SO appreciated. As was the fact she’d thought of me. Very cool on both accounts!

My third bit of news is…

Drum roll, please!

Yesterday, my editor emailed me to let me know the cover art was final, but he couldn’t send it on just yet. So I waited, worried, waited, worried–and yep, waited and worried some more. Earlier today, I received a wonderful (WONDERFUL) quote from the awesomely talented writing team of Tori Carrington about A Taste of Magic, which I then forwarded on to my editor. 

And what is that quote? Here it is:

“A Taste of Magic is a yummy concoction that will leave you craving more, more, more from exciting new author Tracy Madison!” –Nationally Best-selling Author Tori Carrington. 

I was (and still am) blown away by it. In fact, I’d actually stopped thinking about the cover, because come on–I had an amazing quote from authors I respect, love to read, who read MY book and said something great about it. And really–not much gets better than that.

But then, my editor responded to my email within minutes, and with that response, attached my cover art for the book. It was finally here! Finally ready for me to see! I was awash with nerves, excitement, and was literally shaking as I clicked the download button.

I was yakking on the phone to my friend, Steeple Hill author, Lisa Mondello, when it arrived. I think she was in the middle of a sentence, which I rudely (Sorry, Lisa!) interrupted with a shout of excitement. She waited with me, both of us breathless, as I downloaded the picture–only, at first, I couldn’t get it to open up. Lisa’s like “Send it to me. I’ll open it!” I’m like, “I want to see it FIRST!” Finally, I managed to open it correctly, but it was such a large file, the only thing I saw at first was a set of bright red lips.

Interesting, I thought. At this point, I didn’t actually have an opinion, because all I could see were those lips. As quickly as I could, I altered the size so I could view the entire cover at once. My first thought? Wow! My second? Wow! My third? I loved it. LOVED IT!

In present tense: I LOVE IT!!!

And then, after I forwarded it to Lisa, and we both exclaimed over it, I sent it on to a few other friends. Oh, and sent my editor a huge thank you for giving me such a brilliant and amazing and beautiful and wonderful cover. So, here it is, for the world to see (in case you haven’t already seen it on the web site!):

Isn’t it fantastic? Isn’t it brilliant and amazing and wonderful? And look at that dynamite quote on the cover that the very amazing, very talented author Annette Blair gave me after reading my book. The day she emailed me with that quote was another shiver moment in this strange, yet wonderful process of selling and publishing a book.  

In fact, each and every step of this process has been exhilerating for this newbie author, and I can’t tell you how excited I am that my book isn’t only going to be sitting on the shelves, but that it will be out there with that cover.

Of course, now that I won’t have this to worry about, I’ll have to find something else. For me, that won’t be too difficult, really. After all, my third-grade teacher wrote in my grade card, “Tracy is an excellent student, but she worries too much.”

Some things never change!

But wow. That cover. I’m going to stare at it a little longer and then get back to work. Really.

Well, eventually.

See you all on Thursday!!

Other than the obvious, of course, which is holding my book in my hand for the very first time. But that moment won’t happen for months and months yet, so for the more near future, here’s what I’m looking forward to:

• Quiet days when the kids are back in school.
• Cooler weather as autum approaches. I seriously can’t wait for this. I am not, in any way, a summer gal. I prefer rainy weather over hot, humid days ANY day of the week.
• The new TV season. Yes, I’m pitiful, but I love my shows. In particular, I’m looking forward to Desperate Housewifes, Supernatural, Lost (not until February, though), The Bachelor (I LOVE this show, go ahead and laugh), American Idol (I’m sadly, sadly, addicted), 24, and probably some others I’m not thinking of right now. I’m bummed to find out that Journeyman was cancelled. I really liked the premise of that show, but oh well.
• Finishing my current book and getting started on the next.
• Sleeping when most other people sleep, you know–at night.
• Seeing my cover for the very first time.
• Experiencing my daughter’s last year of high school, though this will be a bittersweet moment. How did my baby grow up so fast?
• Enjoying Christmas at home this year with my family, instead of being in the hospital.

At the moment, I think that list about does it. What are you looking forward to in the coming months? Anything exciting happening for you? Please share!

Also-just a quick mention. If you haven’t already, sign up for my filled with news, information, and other cool stuff newsletter. You can find the sign up here: Tracy’s Newsletter!

Beginning in October, I’m planning on having some really fun contests only for my newsletter members. Everything from autographed books by some really terrific authors, to gift certificates, to some other surprises. So sign up! Sign your friends up! (With their permission, of course). I promise to not spam or give your email address out to anyone else. As A Taste of Magic’s release date approaches, I’ll have more contests planned to celebrate.

Oh-if you’re a family member or friend of mine, you’re aready signed up. You can thank me later.

Similar to anticipating the birth of a child, I’m awash in curiosity about what the cover art for A Taste of Magic will look like. Okay, maybe curiosity is too mild a word. I’m excited, worried, hopeful, and curious (not to mention, a little nuts). I have absolutely no idea of what to expect (except for one tiny, little, barely a hint from my editor), and while I’m sure I’ll feel this way with other books in the future, this is my first published novel, so the anticipation is big and bright and sometimes, a bit overwhelming. 

Of course, I hope my cover is perfect in every way. That it embodies what my story is about and appeals to those who like this type of story. But, I’ve heard enough horror stories about books with supposedly bad covers, and how they don’t sell nearly as well, and yep, I worry some more. I’ve even had a few nightmares about it. I know–how pathetic, right? But I can’t help what happens when I sleep!

Luckily, my publisher’s covers tend to rock. I’ve gone over their web site a gajillion times by now, scouring through the romance titles and appraising their covers. Check them out at www.dorchesterpub.com. I truly love the vast majority of them. But of course, there are some that I don’t like nearly as well. The chances are excellent; however, that math will win out and I’ll adore mine. But you know–then I worry some more.

The thing is, I’m not an artist. I don’t really know why one cover is good and another is bad. Obviously, I know my own tastes and what appeals to me. I know which books I’ve picked up by the look of the cover, and while I haven’t always bought a book by an unknown author (to me) based on cover alone, a good one is enough to grab my attention. And once that book is in my hand, I’m going to turn it over and read the back. If that interests me, I’ll crack the book open and read the beginning (just a paragraph or two) to see if I like the flow of words, the author’s voice, the opening scene, or if something grabs my attention quickly. Assuming all of this is there, then yes, I most definitely buy the book.

But what about all those great books I haven’t purchased, because the cover didn’t appeal enough to me to even pick it up for a closer look? I do not have a doubt in my mind that some amazing books are out there with some not-so-amazing covers. Of course, if I’ve heard great things about the book, or it’s written by an author I already know and love, I’m going to buy it regardless.

So, today I’m worrying and wondering about my cover art. I can’t wait to see it, though! And I hope, truly I hope, that I fall in love with it. Or, if not love, at least a strong like. That will work. That will be enough. My experience so far with my publisher has been nothing short of fantastic, so the best thing I can do is put my faith out there that the rest of the process, including the cover, will be just as wonderful.

And I’ll keep reminding myself of that every time I start to worry. And wonder. And stress.

That’s what’s on my mind today. What’s on yours?