Looking Forward by Kate Walker

Happy New Year (just a little bit late)

I'm not a great one for making New Year resolutions. I always find that in the razmatazz leading up to the New Year everyone gets a little carried away and decides on dieting, not drinking, not smoking, detoxing etc etc just that bit too much and sets themselves a whole load of aims and achivements to reach for - most of which are way out of our reach so that the failure to reach them means that we just feel worse about ourselves rather than better.

But then I feel lazy and a real let-down when all around me everyone else is declaring their resolve to do better, try harder, become the 'New You'. So I was quite relieved to read that a psychologist had declared much the same idea.

So I’m not resolving anything. And I don’t really feel that I need a ‘New Me’. The ‘old’ one might need a bit of a shake up every now and then but I’ve managed OK so far. But I am looking forward to 2009 with a lot of anticipation and some excitement. It’s a special year for Harlequin, for one thing. Last year here in the UK we all celebrated Mills & Boon’s Centenary year and that involved a lot of excitement, a lot of interest in the press, and personally I travelled up and down the country to appear at Book Festivals and other events to give workshops on my 12 Point Guide to Writing Romance. It was hectic!

2009 will be a bit quieter for the UK - but an important year for Harlequin because this is the year that they are celebrating their Diamond anniversary – 60 years of publishing romances! So watch out for all the special events and offers that will be announced over on eHarlequin. I'm looking forward to celebrating with them too.

And for me 2009 is also a year to celebrate. In December this year, it will be 25 years since my very first ever book was published. That’s right ! 25 years ! A special silver anniversary for the day my dreams came true and I became a published author. I’m not quite sure how I will mark the date but I will be doing something special.

And before that I’m looking forward to the publication of some new books that I have coming up – the very first of which will be published at the end of this month. That’s when my next Harlequin Presents Cordero’s Forced Bride will be appearing on the shelves in the American bookshops.

With my last title Bedded By The Greek Billionaire shortlisted for the Romantic Times Best Presents of 2008 I’m looking forward to the announcement of the results of that. (Though considering the great books also nominated with me, I’m honestly going to be happy, no matter who wins.) There’s another new title coming in September too and I’m looking forward to that as well.

But sometimes it seems that when you work in publishing you’re always looking forward – always planning ahead. Right now, I’m busy with the plans for my next book, the deadline is already set for when I need to have this on my editor’s desk and I’m working towards that right now. The trouble is that I know that as soon as I get involved in the story and get my head down, then the time of writing it will just pass in a flash. It always does. I’ll look up and realise that it’s March or April and this ‘New Year’ is way behind me and already we’re partway through it. And if I’m not careful I’ll be too busy looking ahead to take the time and space to enjoy the present.

So that’s my resolve – not necessarily a ‘resolution’ but definitely a determination – for 2009. I’m going to take a couple of steps back and actually experience – and enjoy – everything that comes along in this new year that stretches ahead right now. I know from experience that if I don’t then I’ll get to this time in 2010 with a sort of ‘blink and you missed it’ feeling. Instead I want to actually live fully in this year, experiencing everything that happens in it so that I will remember it all as clearly as possible. After all, these past 24 years of being published seem to have passed in a lash already. I want to enjoy the 25th!

What are you looking forward to specially in 2009? What do you hope will bring you some really great memories to recall as 2010 dawns (or is that looking too far ahead again?) Let me know what you hope this new year will bring for you and I’ll get Sid the Cat to pick out one name to win a signed copy of that award nominated book Bedded By The Greek Billionaire.

Oh – and just to let you know that this will be my regular blogging spot on Tote Bags from now on – the first Sunday of the month, So I’ll be back on February 1st when I will be talking about Cordero’s Forced Bride. See you then!

My apologies - I posted, meant to come back and read all the comments and chat with you - and life caught up with me and I've only just managed to snatch a moment to breathe and come back here.

Sid the Cat has picked me a winner - he doesn't have so much to do and he was just sitting about by the fire so he got the job done straight away! And he has picked:

Michele L

Michele please email me kate AT kate-walker.com so that I can organise your prize for you.

Thanks to everyone else who posted.