Tag Archives: Alethea Kontis

Alethea Kontis: Meant To Be

I’ve always said: Some things are meant to be, and some things are meant to be great stories.

The question most recently posed to the lagoon was this: When did you decide to write romance?

A great question, but one I wasn’t sure how to answer. Because my answer is: always.

My first true love was poetry. As a child, I loved Ogden Nash and Gelett Burgess and Lewis Carroll. My Greek grandmother sang songs to us, recited nursery rhymes, and even wrote a few poems herself. My French grandmother had a few books in her meager library, including Favorite Poems, Old and New and The Collected Poems of Rudyard Kipling. And Shakespeare! Who could forget Shakespeare?

I loved the words and the rhymes. I loved the verbal trickery and subversive turns of phrase. I loved that so much could be conveyed with so little. And I loved that poets LOVED, people, places and things, unabashedly and beautifully, for all the world to see. Poe pined for Annabelle Lee. The Highwayman loved Bess, the landlord’s daughter. Romeo loved Juliet.

I wrote scads of poetry. Reams. Boatloads. To everyone and everything, real and imaginary. I was a True Romantic. I was one hundred percent positive that, one day, the universe would introduce me to my own soul’s mate.

Sure, I had boyfriends, but I did not seek out Great Love. One does not seek Great Love. Great Love finds you. I had my heart broken again…and again…and again…and again…and again…and then I looked in the mirror and realized I wasn’t a little girl anymore, and I wondered what happened.

I was alone.

But not truly alone.

My Great Loves are my friends. My tribe. My teddy bear. All the people that the universe paired me with in the strangest of circumstances. All the adventures I take. All these people and places and things I get to keep in my heart forever.

That soulmate, that invisible half that was supposed to make me whole…that’s who I write about in every story. Every book. Every poem.

Because some of us were meant to be…and some of us were meant to tell great stories!

Live Jam Sessions and Thirty-Second Dance Parties

Hello, everyone! Princess Alethea Mermaid here. This quarter, the question in the lagoon is “What is your favorite pick me up when you’re feeling down?”

My favorite pick-me-up when I am down is…music.

WAIT, DON’T GO YET!

Yes, I know, this is like the most obvious answer ever. But when I say music, I don’t mean just turning on the radio and jamming to some tunes while hammering on keys like a monkey until Hamlet comes out. I mean Thirty Second Dance Parties and Live Jam Sessions.

Thirty-Second Dance Parties: Grey’s Anatomy coined the term, but you hereby have this Princess Mermaid’s permission to dance for as long as you like. Push back from the desk, stand up, turn on some serious jam with a heavy beat, and rock out. Wiggle like a four year old on pixie stix. Move every single part of your body. Shake your thang all around the house. Shut off your brain and concentrate only on the rhythm. Get your blood flowing. Lose yourself in the music, the moment, you own it, never let it go, you only get one shot…

<ahem>

<grin>

S. J. Tucker, live performance

Live Jam Sessions: I’m also a fan of online live concerts that my friends like Mikey Mason, Jonah Knight, S. J. Tucker, and the Adam Ezra Group perform every so often. This sometimes requires a little bit of preparation—or just some really good timing—but whenever the moment presents itself, I take it.

We live in the twenty-first century. We have the ability to watch live concerts from the comfort of our own home, while we’re in our PJs and/or doing something else. We can (sometimes) interact with the performer as if we were the only one in the room. We can befriend others in the chat, other fans who would be friends if we knew them in Real Life (and some we do!).

I’ve tried writing while Mikey Mason plays for me in the background on my computer screen…no, I didn’t get a ton of words done, but I got SOME which is always more than NONE. When Jonah Knight played for me, I pulled out some paper and colored pencils and let my mind wander as I doodled along with my favorite lyrics.

Last night, Tempest and I watched S. J. Tucker’s fun-super-blood-blue-eclipse-whatever-Imbolc-moon concert. Tempest took the help in chat while I worked on a guest blog for Deborah Blake about my new release (Besphinxed…out Feb 14th!)

These days we have to be doing seven things all at once. Multitasking is everything. But if you plan it right, with a little bit of effort, you can force the odds to be ever in your favor.

I’d love to hear some of your favorite dance jams — feel free to add links in the comments.

Same with indie rock folks–I’d love to add more to my collection!

xox

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Want to hear more about Princess Alethea’s exploits? Click here!
Definitely make sure to follow Alethea on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/princessalethea

The Simi’s ABCs by Sherrilyn Kenyon & Alethea Kontis!!

Friends! Look what our very own Mermaid Alethea contributed to the world today!!

Together with the phenomenal and international, multi-bestselling author, Sherrilyn Kenyon, and the extremely talented artist, Juno, fan-favorite and extraordinary author Alethea has penned a beautiful read-along book for children (and us young at heart adults too!) If you are not familiar with the Dark Hunter universe, it is…gorgeous, decadent, family, adventure, love, risk and reward. And now we fans of the series have this book which follows the beloved character, The Simi, to share with the loveable “little demons” in our lives as they learn their ABCs. This is such a unique addition to the Dark Hunter series and something every fan will absolutely cherish having in their collection. I do believe you’ll be able to find this gem everywhere books are sold. Target, Walmart, Barnes and Noble, maybe even the grocery store, and of course on Amazon. The pricing looks great too, I must say. I am so incredibly proud and in awe of this accomplishment for Alethea. Just wow, what a huge treat for fans of the series, new and old. I’m already out the door to go pick up my copies! From all of us here in the lagoon, we wish you a Happy Holiday and many many hours of happy reading. xoxoxo

Welcome to the DH reader for children! Help your little Menyons learn their alphabet with the a read-a-long guided by Simi as she humorously takes fans and their little ones through the alphabet in a Simian/Charonte stroll they’ll never forget. Grab your BBQ sauce bottle, your books and your little demons and get ready to teach them that reading is fun!

A is for Akri, and B is for…barbecue! Learn the Alphabet Simi-style! Join everyone’s favorite adorable little demon from Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark-Hunters® as she explores the alphabet in her own unique and colorful way in this delightful new children’s book.

Simi is one of the most recognized and adored characters from Kenyon’s Nick Chronicles® and Dark-Hunters®. Now you can join her for a thrilling adventure unlike any other as she explores the world of Dark-Hunter® while learning her alphabet.

This picture book showcases the outstanding storytelling of authors Sherrilyn Kenyon and Alethea Kontis and the imaginative artwork of the Dabel Brothers and the artist Juno, and features all your most beloved Dark-Hunter® characters, including Acheron, Menyara, Nick, and even some of the villains. Menyons of all ages will be enchanted by this brilliant new look into the Dark-Hunters® universe.

It’s the Simi book fans have been clamoring for, and one they can enjoy with their kids for generations to come!
Author: Sherrilyn Kenyon & Alethea Kontis
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Book format: hardcover
Language: English
Number of Pages: 48
Age Range: 4-8 years (but The Simi says you growned up peoples will love it too) ;-D

 

The Alethea Extravaganza: 2 New Books Out Today!!!

Dearest fishy friends: Firstly, we hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Secondly, never in my life have I had the fortune to bear witness to a mind quite as brilliant and quirky and prolific and boundless as that belonging to our mermaid sister, Alethea Kontis. I knew she had a couple books coming out today (did I mention she’s a superstar?) and I also knew I wanted to be the lucky girl to share the wonderful release news with you. This is because one of the new stories is the follow up to When Tinker Met Bell, a book Alethea released this September. That story is my all-time Alethea favorite so far (and you can find it HERE ) It’s absolutely lovely! Please do check it out if you can.

There was one character in it, however, one Merriaurum Grandiflora Larousse, aka “Merri”, that was mentioned and then mysteriously not mentioned again by the time the story ended. Now knowing Alethea like I do, there was no way she would have started a story line and simply forgotten to wrap it up. No, it had to be that she’d left that character with a cliffhanger and would surely pick back up with it in a future book. But just to be sure, I asked her about it and to my extreme delight, YES, she told me that not only had she planted that teaser of Merri’s on purpose, but that the story would be out very soon as part of the new Nocturne Falls Christmas anthology! Yay! I never should have doubted her. The story is called The Meddlesome Misadventures of Merri and Bright. Psst… below is the cover!!! Isn’t it gorgeous??? Go ahead, click on it!

Here is a bit more from our convo this week about Alethea’s wonderful short stories. Be sure to read all the way down for the very cool cover and link to her second story out today! Take it away, Alethea!

Since Carlene’s main question about cliffhangers got turned into an entire Writing Lecture about “Loose Threads in Complex Worldbuilding: Intentional or Not?” (Posted on my Patreon), I moved on to answer some other questions about short stories and anthologies.

What got you started writing short stories?

The first piece of fiction I ever sold was AlphaOops: The Day Z Went First. Prior to this, I had only published book and audiobook reviews in my local hometown free paper (for zero pay). My dream was always to write fantasy adventure novels—I had not planned to be a picture book writer AT ALL. So when Candlewick told me that it would be 2-3 years until AlphaOops saw the light of day, it lit a fire under me. I needed to plant my flag in science fiction and fantasy right away…and the best way to do that was to start shopping around all the short stories I had been writing on the side.
AlphaOops The Day Z Went First debuted in 2006. That same year, “Small Magics” was published in Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine Show and “Sunday” (which became the novel Enchanted) was published in Realms of Fantasy. By then, of course, I’d been bit by the short story bug, and my stories started to pop up on websites and in magazines and anthologies all over the place.

You write in so many different genres—are there any common themes in all your various stories?

I used to tell people that Belle from Beauty and the Beast was my demographic because my stories all had “far-off places, daring sword fights, magic spells, and a prince in disguise.” When I do shows with my artist BFF Bianca Roman-Stumpff, I tell people “My stories are like Bianca’s art: fun, colorful, subversive, and a little bit dark.”
When Dearest was published in 2015, I was stunned when a reviewer called it “the funniest book of the series so far.” I had expected “romantic,” but not “funniest.” Humor is so difficult for an author to communicate to a reader that I’ve heard writing instructors tell their students expressly NOT to write humor into their books. So humor was never something I’d really intended. And then I looked back at my body of work for the last ten years and realized…I COULD WRITE FUNNY. How about that?
Now that I’m aware of this once-hidden talent, I’ve become less and less shy about playing it up. So, no matter what genre I’m writing in, you can bet that a story by Alethea Kontis will be fun, colorful, subversive, a little bit dark…and funny.

Will you be part of any more anthologies on the horizon?

Yes! Once Upon a Quest will be releasing in January of 2018. I’ve been in the two previous Once anthologies: Once Upon a Curse and Once Upon a Kiss. It’s a wonderful group of authors, and I’m honored to be invited back “once” again.
My novelette in Once Upon a Kiss, “The Glass Mountain,” was meant to be an origin story for a romantic fairy tale rom-com I wanted to release this past summer, but I had some problems with the world building (like, I was trying to shove all of it into the first four chapters and it was NOT FUNNY AT ALL) and it had to go back to the drawing board. My story in Once Upon A Quest—an as-yet untitled goblin adventure based on the goblin tales of Hans Christian Andersen—is a legend from a different part of that same fairy tale world.
What I’m hoping is that this goblin adventure will help me get back into that fairy tale world and write the novel I was meant to write in the first place! Fingers crossed!

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Thank you, Alethea! Our fingers and fins and flippers are all most certainly crossed for you! Friends, take a look at the outstanding cover for Grim Repo which is included in the Hardboiled Horror anthology. Just click the cover for more info. Congratulations, Alethea! And to our fishy friends, thanks so much for stopping by, xoxoxoxoxo.

Happiest Book Release Day to Mermaid Princess Alethea!

 

“Hearts don’t have to touch to fall in love.”

What simple yet extraordinarily beautiful words my fishy sister, Mermaid Princess Alethea Kontis, has written for us in her brand new book, When Tinker Met Bell. This is her second book, I believe, in the Nocturne Falls Universe, and I am 100% smitten with it. When Alethea told me I was really going to love it, I thought to myself that of course I would enjoy it. She’s a great writer! Oh, but she was sooooo right. I absolutely adore this quirky, heart-squeezing book. That line I’ve shared above is one teeny tiny example of why. I asked Alethea if there was anything special she could share with us behind the writing of those particular words and of course, she said yes!

From Alethea…”OMG YES I remember writing that line. I remember that whole scene. I was already crying by the time I wrote “Hearts don’t have to touch to fall in love,” and when I did, I had to step away from the computer for a bit. Not only to process all the emotions I was feeling (and sob and blow my nose like Joan Wilder), but to consider, “Do I *really* want the major tear-jerking scene to be in Chapter Three?? At which point I realized that I loved the story so much, I didn’t even care. I was going to tell it the way it needed to be told, and people were either going to love it or hate it.”

 

I know Miss Alethea is going to generate and receive tons of love from this book. I cannot wait to share it with you all on her behalf. And so, without any further ado, I give you When Tinker Met Bell, out now!

Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

Everybody knows that goblins and fairies can’t be friends. But that never stopped Tinker and Bell.

Bellamy Merriweather Larousse isn’t like the other fairies at Harmswood Academy, with her giant wings and their magical dust. “Southern Bell” works as a barista at The Hallowed Bean to help pay her tuition and remains active on the cheering squad, despite her insistence on associating with the unpopular crowd. Every day is sunny in Bellamy’s world and every cloud has a silver lining. The only way to upset Bell’s stalwart optimism is to threaten one of her misfit friends…or try to take one of them from her.

Unbeknownst to everyone–including him–outcast Ranulf “Tinker” Tinkerton is about to be named heir to the throne of the Goblin King, making him ruler of his fellow Lost Boys and the labyrinthine city they inhabit. Now that the time has come for Tinker to leave Harmswood behind, will he be brave enough to share his feelings for Bellamy? It’s no secret that he’s held a torch for her since the fourth grade, but no matter how long they’ve been friends, goblins will always be allergic to fairies.

Or will they?

You’ll definitely be a happy reader if you pick up your very own copy of this gem. I hope you will, xoxo. Learn more about Alethea’s fantastic books HERE!

My Favorite Writing Spot: Alethea Kontis

Alethea Kontis at HomeHello, the Lagoon!

Alethea Mermaid here! I’m kicking off our latest blog theme, which asks the question, “Where’s your favorite place to write?”

My answer: HOME.

There are many reasons for this, including: a grand library, a hand-me-down couch, a boatload of inspirational quotes, and the petrified body of my first best friend.

Click below to watch the complete video!
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Quintessentially Me: Alethea Kontis

Alethea MermaidHappy New Year, everyone! It’s so lovely to see you all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, with all of your hopes and dreams intact and goals still in sight.

Wanna know what I have in sight? A giant mess.

This Giant Mess is actually a step up. This time last year, Dad and I were rushing to install the floor in my bedroom. Dad thought it was because I wanted it done before my birthday (Jan 11)–in reality, I wanted it done before the mini-family reunion we were about to have for HIS birthday (Jan 8). We finished enough of the  floor to throw a mattress down and sleep a few people. Only one bathroom worked, but we made do. There was no kitchen, and the living room and garage were packed with boxes.

Needless to say, there wasn’t much done at my house besides sleeping that weekend.

This Halloween–after the last major overhaul of the master bathroom was completed–Dad and I finally finished the floor. My house instantly went from “Partially Rebuilt Renovation” to “Disgustingly Messy Home.”

The whole problem with level of anxiety is all the suddenly wanting to put everything away. It’s a lovely compulsion, except for that I DON’T KNOW WHERE EVERYTHING GOES YET. I literally have to make it up as I go along. And then if something isn’t quite right, I have to change it midstream. Or start all over.

People tell me, “Oh, don’t worry. It took me a year to really move into my house.” Well…I’ve had this place 18 months already. My subconscious is constantly trying to remind me that I’m woefully behind. I pour another cup of chamomile tea and try to ignore it.

I had one of those moments today, actually. I found myself sitting on the trunk of memories that’s taken up residence behind my couch–mostly because I don’t have another place in mind and mostly so the couch won’t slide all over the floor. Across from the trunk is my display case–solid dark wood with leaves carved into the top and a sliding glass door. I love that thing. I got it at Costco or Sam’s half a billion years ago for dirt cheap. Somehow it survived moving from TN to DC to FL without breaking into a million pieces, and for that I will be forever grateful to the universe.

I don’t remember exactly how I had it set up six years ago, but I think I’ve just about unpacked all the pieces at this point. There are six shelves in the case (if you count the bottom of the case as a shelf–I have stuff down there, so I do).

Three of the shelves are full of Fantasy and Fairy Tales. There are faeries and gnomes and wizards and elves and dragons and unicorns. Beauty and the Beast and their Castle. The porcelain roses that were given away at my baptism. Aladdin and Lady and the Tramp. I even have a small glass award from a school I visited…and the wisteria crown I wore for all eight episodes of Pass It Along when I was eight.

One shelf is all about Greece. Some of the little statues I collected when I went there with my family as a teen, and some were given to me by other friends and family. There’s an angel holding a shell with some pretty stones inside, and my grandmother’s infamous “That Will Never Do” engagement ring. There’s a shot glass with the flag on it and a komboloi inside. I have Apollo and Daphne, Nike, and my statue of Athena is surrounded by an army of little pewter owls of all shapes and sizes.

One shelf is all about comics. When I worked as the buyer for DC, my annual gift was usually some fabulous statue from their collection, like my Wonder Woman fighting the hydra. Of course, once the rep found out I was a Sandman fan, I received two Sandmans (Sandmen?) and a Death before I moved on to greener pastures.

The bottom shelf actually *is* about Death. The dark wood bottom of the display case is the perfect backdrop for my voodoo dolls and porcelain Mardi Gras masks from New Orleans, and my little stone skull.

So there I was…staring at my display case in admiration and distraction, and it occurred to me: The entirety of that case, top to bottom, is quintessentially me.

Alethea Kontis could easily be described as 3 parts Fairy Tale, 1 part Greek, 1 part Comics, and 1 part Death. A lot of fantasy, a little bit of horror, and everything in between. Magic, Myths, and Misery.

Which led me to suggest the writing prompt for the Mermaids this month! All of us–and a few special guests–will jump into our blog posts this year by talking about something in our lives that we can describe as “quintessentially us.”

So now I’m curious. What is something in YOUR life that is quintessentially YOU?

The Beast’s Castle is from the WDCC “Enchanted Places” line. And yes, roses really were given out at my christening. I am so Belle, it’s not even funny. ~Alethea

Cannot Write Without: Alethea Kontis

The question in the lagoon this month: What’s the one thing you cannot write without?

Today’s answer comes from Waterworld Mermaids’ very own Alethea Kontis.

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Princess AletheaThis is one of those months where I’m always thrilled that my name starts with A…because it means I GET TO BLOG FIRST. (April, not so much.)

I’m excited because it’s November…which means MASSIVE AMOUNTS OF WRITING AND WORD WARS.

My first foray into National Novel Writing Month was 2004 — I finished the first draft of a novel. Unfortunately, it clocked in at a measly 36,000 words. That’s right, to date, I have never successfully “won” NaNoWriMo. I’m hoping this year, that will all change.

I often get asked about my writing schedule, or what my writing area looks like. My answer is always: HA! I have yet to establish the Perfect Workplace, or the Perfect Daily Schedule.

However, it did get me thinking: What do I need in order to write? What’s the one thing I literally cannot write without? And, for that matter, how would all my writing friends answer this same question?

Thus I bring you this month’s Theme Question — be sure to check back in every day (or Like us on Facebook) to enjoy a plethora of incredibly inspired answers from writers all over the globe.

But first, here’s my answer. Are you ready?

Hey Alethea, what’s the one thing you cannot write without?

My answer: LOVE.

You know the old cliche about tormented artists and how they find all their inspiration from the horrible events that happen in their lives? Well…not so this optimist. I know this because it was pointed out to me by someone in my inner circle…one of my very first beta readers, copyeditors, and harshest critics: My Mother.

I don’t remember which story — it was either “Blood & Water” or “Sunday” (I think it was the former). But after Mom read it, the first thing she said to me was, “You should always write when you’re in love.”

It’s true…I had a crazy-huge crush on a boy at the time. (Who ended up being a horrible specimen of a person…but I digress.) Being in love made me all lofty and poetic. The words flowed. I wanted to write (instead of just making up stories in my head and calling my friends to tell them about it).

When I am sad, I do not write. It is a horrible thing. The stories end up all trapped in my head, banging at the walls to come out. It creates this incredible powder keg of anxiety that at one point even forced me to seek medical attention (not even kidding). The misery compounds in one horrid downward spiral.

Last year, I broke up with a guy and moved to Florida. I wrote in strange fits and spurts, but it was incredibly difficult. It was less about finding my Muse and more about finding MYSELF.

When I did, I remembered what my mother had said.

I had a nervous breakdown at the age of 23. From that point on, I began surrounding myself with things that made me smile. Rainbows. Fairies. Stickers on my window. Quotes on my wall. Things that I loved.

It’s been kind of wonderful, moving into this house and starting that collection all over again. I have a prism in my kitchen window that scatters rainbows all over the house all winter. What walls aren’t lined with bookshelves are covered in artwork by artists who inspire me. And I have my friends — the Mermaids, my Brute Squad, my peeps on social media — whom I need to remember most, because these are the people I write for.

Princess AletheaThese are the people I love.

So…thanks, you guys. xox

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Alethea’s Profile on NaNoWriMo

 

To Be Or Not To Be…a Local Author

Lunch Money -- Family Indie Rock for Kids!It’s June, everyone! Three weeks ’til midsummer, countdown to the end of the school year, and advent of THE SUMMER READING PROGRAM.

I love Summer Reading Programs. Always have. Even before I was a Children’s Librarian running puppet storytimes and painting faces at Carnival, I was a kid checking out 20 books every two weeks (the Richland County Public Library max at the time) and racking up the prizes.

This past weekend, my friends in the band Lunch Money held a concert to kick off the RCPL Summer Reading Program. (If you happen to have young children in your life and they don’t have these CDs, they are missing out!) J.P. texted me after the show and told me that he’d name-dropped my one of my children’s books (AlphaOops: The Day Z Went First) during the set and highlighted the fact that I was a local author. By the end of the concert, this display had magically appeared in the Children’s section:

Lunch Money & AlphaOops -- a match made in Heaven!

BEST INSTADISPLAY EVER.

Hooray!

But I have to admit…I felt a little guilty. Technically, I haven’t lived in South Carolina since 1998. My family moved there from Vermont when I was six. I learned to speak the strange language (“Y’all take y’all’s books and go to y’all’s classrooms”). I graduated from high school and college there. Heck, I had a starring role in a miniseries on SCETV. Of all the places I’ve lived, South Carolina probably has the most claim on me. But I wasn’t born there, nor do I live there now.

This got me thinking…what exactly is it that makes a “Local Author”?

I’ve moved around a lot, so let’s use me as an example.

1.) Vermont: I was born there. If you were born in a place, I think that should grandfather you in as a Local Author.

2.) South Carolina: Spent 16 years there, and graduated from college. Even if it’s no longer “home,” I still spent the largest percentage of my life in SC.

One of my goals in life is to have my name up on the Author Frieze in the library where I used to work.

One of my goals in life is to have my name up on the Author Frieze in the library where I used to work.

3.) Tennessee: 11 years here. Remember when I said I was a Children’s Librarian? That was in Tennessee. I  spent almost a decade there working for the world’s largest book wholesaler. My first book was published while living in Tennessee.

4.) Washington DC (area): I only lived in Northern VA for 4 years, but I made an incredible amount of friends and a definite name for myself as an author in the time I was there. My first novel was published while I lived there. The Waterworld Mermaids were created. I signed at least four times at Nora Roberts’ bookstore in Boonsboro, MD. My favorite local bookstore–Turn the Page–is in Arlington. I taught at the local libraries and signed at almost all the bookstores. I belonged to the Washington Romance Writers AND the Maryland Romance Writers AND the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of SCBWI. Leaving was really, really hard.

5.) Florida: Where I live now. Like your birthplace, I figure “the state where you live now” grants you immediate Local Author status.

So what do you guys think? Is there a statue of limitations on how long an author has lived in a place or how much an author accomplishes in a place before they are considered a Local Author?

And for those authors out there: In how many states do YOU claim Local Author status?

 

Romance is Everywhere

Three Mermaids walk into a bar…

I just had to start out that way because back in July three Mermaids were in a bar. Alethea, Denny, and I were at a bar in San Antonio for a publisher’s party during the RWA Annual Conference®. When the party started dying down, we decided to walk back to our hotel. Because walking in the late-July Texas heat was our best idea? Turns out, we didn’t even notice the heat.

Scene of the Romance

Scene of the Romance

As we made our way along the festive, color-bursting River Walk, a young man dressed in military uniform rushed by us. He was on a mission. And if the big bouquet of beautiful flowers said anything, it was that this mission was of the romantic persuasion.

So Alethea, Denny, and I did what any normal person who writes romance novels would do. We hiked up our fancy dresses and started following him. It didn’t take long for us to realize we weren’t the only people who took notice. Heads turned left and right. A man sidled up to the soldier for part of the walk. And before we knew it, there was a huge mass of people following us. If you’ve ever seen Love Actually and are familiar with the final scene when Colin Firth is walking through the village to propose and the whole town follows him – that’s pretty much what it was like.

As we neared his final destination, he picked up the pace. So did the rest of us. We weaved in and out of restaurants, around chairs and tables set up next to the canal, as the passing boat tours pointed out the sights and yummy wafts of Mexican food met our noses.

Finally, we reached a restaurant. As if the entire crowd was in on it, we all dispersed to different places and waited anxiously for whatever would come next.

The soldier didn’t miss a beat. He ducked around a couple tables, flowers still clutched in hand. Then he approached a table with an older couple and a young girl. Tapping on her shoulder, she turned, took him in. Surprise turned to shock turned to tears. And then they were embracing, flowers forgotten. Large crowd of cheering spectators forgotten. Hot, humid weather forgotten.

Romantic Mermaids

Romantic Mermaids

But romance. That was very much not forgotten.

It was really nice to think that during this big romance conference we actually got to experience an amazingly romantic gesture. And I hope that whatever happens with the two of them will involve many, many retellings of that magical, romantic night when a whole bunch of strangers followed a man in love.