Days of Auld Lang Syne

Although more than one Scots poet wrote of the days of "auld lang syne" (roughly translated as "long, long ago" or the "olden days"), it is Robert Burns (1759-96) whose poem, set to music is the one we all sing at the chimes strike midnight, or the Times Square ball drops on New Year's Eve.

Robert Burns

2007 had its ups and downs for me. Professionally, I received my first nonfiction contract. Royal Affairs: A Lusty Romp Through the Extramarital Adventures that Rocked the British Monarchy, which will be published by NAL in original trade paper on June 3, 2008, tested my ability to research, write, and deliver in record time (about 5 months) over 400 pages that covered more than 900 years of English history, in a breezy, accessible style.

It was a very exciting, albeit grueling, project, and as the bright January days of the new year dawn, I expect the copyedited manuscript to show up on my doorstep.

Nonetheless, 2007 will remain in my heart as one of those that might as well be enshrined within the schmaltzy lyrics of "It was a very good year." I got married on May 19, to a wonderful, kind man with a wry sense of humor, and after years of writing happily-ever-afters for my fictional characters, I've got one of those for myself.



Although I resolve every year not to make any new year's resolutions, I've made a few of them anyway. Along with those personal perennials like exercising more and losing weight, I'm resolving to reach out even more to my readers. If you belong to a book group, I'd love to set up interactive chats about my titles just for your group on one of my blogs. And if you're in the NY-Metropolitan area and are up for hosting an in-person author visit to your readers group, let's chat about how we can turn it into a fun special event.

Wishing each of you a healthy and prosperous new year! And happy reading!

Have you made any new year's resolutions for 2008 that you'd like to share here? Let's resolve to help each other stick to them!