Just a quick update before I head off to London for the Mills & Boon centenary party tonight, but there’s a spur-of-the-moment contest, too, so if you’d like to win a copy of my most recent story, keep reading to the end … I want to do some thank yous before then, though.  First, to Elizabeth Rolls, for her guest blog and for stopping by to answer my questions so patiently over the past few days.  Thank you, Elizabeth!  I really enjoyed hearing about a quite different way of writing.

I’d also like to say a great big THANK YOU to everyone who has clicked on Where in the world are you? I check it every day, and give a yelp of excitement every time I see that a new flag is lit up, or another yellow dot has appeared on the map. You should hear me start to hyperventilate. China! Canada! Libya! Wow!  Portugal! Argentina! Another dot in the US! Tasmania! … I have been thrilled to see every country appear, and can’t tell you how much I’m enjoying feeling a connection with you all, whoever and wherever you are.   I feel as if I have finally got the point of the internet!  And if you’ve been clicking in the UK, don’t feel that you’re not appreciated just as much as those visiting from more exotic places.  I can’t get the zoom pop-ups to work on my computer, but Nikki tells me it’s possible to see that the big yellow dot over England isn’t entirely due to me clicking obsessively on the page from York, so it’s really good to know I’m not alone here.

If you haven’t looked at the page yet, do have a visit.  As well as the map of the world and an array of flags, you’ll see some photos – Mexico, Australia and New Zealand have been featured so far - and I’m hoping to post fresh pictures soon. There’s a wonderful one of Canada coming up. Don’t forget to send a photo of where you live if you’d like a chance to win a book.  English and Spanish versions have already gone to Mariana for sending a great pic of her home in Monterrey.  Thanks, Mariana, and also Juanita – Bolton Point looks lovely! I think I’ll put a picture of York up too, so you can all see how very, very different it is where I live.

There’s also been a great response to the Pick Your Own Romance survey, and I’ll announce the first results at the end of March.  I have to say I’m quite surprised at some of your choices for favourite book – not the ones I would have chosen!  However, the whole point of the exercise if for you to have your say, so I mustn’t get miffed.  From April, any categories that haven’t had a vote will be removed, so if you’ve got a particular favourite, fill in the survey and make sure it goes through to the next round. 

A quick contest … I’ve been so pleased with my two new pages that I emailed all my friends about them.  Clearly it was the first time a couple of them had actually thought to look at my website (call themselves friends, eh?) but they seem to have had a good look around once they got here  One obviously got to the Ask Me page, and I opened my inbox the other day to find this message:

Dear Jessica, You say in one of the set answers about basing characters on real life people that you don't know any heroes. Surely this  isn't the case? And I would STILL like to protest that not only was this particular hero turned into a smarmy git in the story in which his name appears, but that his coma endured for the best part of TWO books. I think you should confess to your readers, and acknowledge the  wondrousness of your friends in your blogs more clearly. I shall be watching in hope. Best wishes, a Fan.

It made me laugh on a Monday morning, anyway, so much so, in fact, that I’ll send a copy of MOTHER WANTED (anthology also containing stories by Sandra Marton and Marion Lennox and only available in the UK) to anyone who can tell me the name of this friend who was lucky enough to have a secondary character (whose coma played a key role in the plots of two very recent linked books) named after him.  Just send me an email with his name and your address, and I’ll put a book in the post to you!

OK, I’m off to London for the party now  …  I’ve been much exercised about what to wear and whether the ‘cocktail dress’ specified on the invitation actually means a dress, but my lovely new editor has just assured me that floaty trousers and my favourite jewelled shoes will be OK – phew!  I don’t fancy the chances of the trousers staying floaty after the train journey from York, so I’ll be clomping down in my walking shoes, dragging my weekend case behind me, and changing in the Ladies somewhere.  Why is there never a hero to drive me door to door without the need for cardie, sensible shoes or anything more than a clutch bag when I need one?