A launch party for The Cougar Book is under way right now! Come on over here to join in the fun. Leave a comment and you just might win a copy of the book. Here's a list of the authors who have stories in 'The Cougar Book':

eremy Edwards
Rachel Kramer Bussel
Sascha Illyvich
Heidi Champa
Tara S. Nichols
Craig J. Sorensen
Donna George Storey
J. C. Wesner
Randall Lang
Madeline Moore
Bill Brent
Adriana Kraft
Keeb Knight
Jolene Hui
Dona Lee
D. L. King
Doug Harrison
Brenna Lyons
Emerald
Trish DeVene
Julia Barrett
Blue Canyon
Shanna Germain

Not a bad line up, I'd say.

So come to the launch party and maybe you'll be the lucky winner of a copy of 'The Cougar Book.'

Cougars!

Yes folks, it's cougar time on the ol' web again, and where there are young studs to be discussed, well, there you'll find Madeline Moore.

The occasion? The launch of The Cougar Book, edited by Jolie du Pre and published by Logical Lust.

The date? February 14, 2010,

The happenings so far?

February 9 - An interview with Madeline Moore on Logical Lust. Go right here to read the interview with me, or you can start at the beginning but please - make sure you get to me before you stop commenting!

Please stop by and comment.

February 20, 2010 - Launch party at Jeannie and Jayha

Chat with the authors, including me, and read excerpts from the book.



Don 't make my bathing beauties sad, come join in the fun.

For a chance to win a free copy of The Cougar Book, follow the link. And thanks Jeremy, for letting me know about it.

xoxo Madeline

The painting used in this post is by Robert R. Bliss: "Untitled Pair of Young Men" If you have interest in this painting, contact Outer Cape Auctions.)

The Women's Club

Ta Da! Felix is weak but recovered from his near-death experience. He was well enough this past week to contribute to a final polish of our crime novel, 'The Women's Club.'

The novel is done! The novel is done! lalalalalala The Novel is done!

'The Women's Club' will be published in fall 2010 by MaxCrime in the UK. Yes, our editor, Maxim Jakubowski has his own imprint. WOW!

This is the first time Felix and I have co-written a book and it was a terrific experience. Our biggest difference of opinion? He thinks a book shouldn't be set in a specific place. I absolutely believe that it should. Happily for me Maxim is of the same mind as me on this one, so 'The Women's Club' is set in Seattle, Washington, USA.

This will be the first time a novel I've written will be published under my real name. Funny how I'm okay with a major body count attributed to me, but not if the bodies are fucking, as opposed to dead.

I finished my run-through at 10 pm Sunday. Around here we don't celebrate the 'end of the project' with champagne or any other sort of party drug. We say 'well done' to each other and carry on.

But I was excited because I finished in time to call my youngest daughter, who lives in residence at University. She' in first year. We'd arranged to talk if I finished before eleven.

I didn't even get to see her over the holidays because of Felix's illness. In fact I saw her for one 24 hr period over my birthday in August. Before that? Can't even remember. So I was looking forward to finding out all about life as a first year student.

But she didn't want to talk about that. She wanted to talk about how I have failed as a writer and need to get a real job.

Ouch.

She really roasted me over the coals, my friends. The fact that I just finished my fourth novel means nothing, because the other three are smut. She tells me there are a ton of kids on campus studying english who plan to be writers.

She's worried about me because I don't have much money. So her solution is to bully me into getting a 'real' job. When she was done with that topic, she moved on to her parents' divorce. She wants to know what I think I did wrong to cause the end of the marriage. She doesn't need to pester her dad about this, apparently, just me.
I guess I'd had enough by then, as I replied, 'I should've gotten out sooner.' Whereupon she told me to fuck off, (not for the first time in this conversatoin) and hung up.




Oh Boo hoo major sobs.

It's Tuesday now. I'm still sad. She is a powerhouse, this girl, a brilliant redheaded tornado of a person. But she's had it out for me for awhile now.

I've resolved to love her, forgive her, and be here for her when she's ready to see me. But I'm not going to go get an office job so she can stop worrying about me.
She is so much her father's daughter. I thought when he and I divorced that I was done with verbal abuse and mental cruelty. Apparently not.

We give up lot to be writers. We give up a lot to be parents, too. I'm okay with that.

I'm okay.

Too Sick to be Witty

That's right. I'm too sick to be amusing or creative or even grumpy. And Felix is even sicker.

It started Xmas Day evening. My daughter was flushed and aching and throwing up. Poor baby. By the time I got her taken care of, Felix was really sick. So sick, in fact, that I had to call an ambulance to come get him because he was unsteady on his feet. He was in the hospital for eight days. For the first few, it was very serious.
Then they moved him to a private room, in isolation. I had to wear a gown, mask and gloves to visit him.

He came up with a movie idea and a short story idea, so the time wasn't completely wasted (!) He talked the doctor into letting him out, even though I had begged him not to do that. So I now have a very sick Felix on my hands.

As he was the cook around here, I've had to take up the culinary arts again. Turns out, as I suspected, cooking skills can be lost if not regulary employed. So far I have made a pot roast that honestly did have the consistency and flavour of an old boot, and flame broiled steaks (another way of saying I set the oven on fire trying to broil steaks.)

Meanwhile my own flu progressed nicely. The icing on the cake? Thrush. So now my tongue hurts (insert your own terrible joke here, as I said, I'm too sick to be witty). SO I actually had to go to the doctor myself today, just to get something for my poor spotted tongue.

Well, I'm home again with a tabloid and a Dr. Pepper. (Sickie treats.) I'll spend the afternoon resting and tonight we're having 'leftovers' so I shouldn't be taxed too heavily in the cooking department.

It's good to have Felix here, and my friends have helped keep me from slipping into the pool of despond.

The Cougar Antho is in the final stages of pre-publishing, and I'm happy to have my story in Jolie du Pre's anthology.

Our crime novel is finished and has been well received by our editor.

So - the Felix/Madeline Machine rumbles along without much input from either of us, at the moment.

Which means Felix and I can rest...rest easy....and get better.

xoxo Madeline

Merry Christmas, Baby

I hope the holiday season is a ball for one and all.

xoxo Madeline