Best-laid plans

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I believe it was Robert Burns who coined the saying about the best-laid plans of mice and men often going awry. John Steinbeck borrowed part of it for his “Of Mice and Men.” Not that

Shopping success

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Too bad it’s not this easy to win the lottery. Wait a minute. Did I just say easy? I’d hardly call three shopping trips in search of the perfect awards ceremony dress easy. On two

Paid to have a dirty mind?

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I just read — and enjoyed — Christina Dodd’s blog post on her funniest mistakes. My personal favorite from her list: In INTO THE SHADOW, my heroine stumbles onto the hero sitting in the Japanese

Two rejections in two days

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Now I remember why I’m so glad to be off the dating scene. Rejection hurts. A lot. I’m sure I’m not the only one to equate the search for an agent to the search for

Distraction 8, Arlene 2

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That’s right: Distraction is whupping my rear in a big way these days. If there’s a down side to being a Golden Heart® finalist, that would be it. Until recently, I had a routine: A

Arlene Hittle, 2011 RWA Golden Heart® Finalist

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This is an exciting time for me. My manuscript, Beauty and the Ballplayer, was just named a finalist in the 2011 RWA Golden Heart® contest. About Beauty and the Ballplayer: Spunky and independent to a

My mother would be proud

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While celebrating my Golden Heart® finalist status in one of many phone calls over the weekend, my friend Pat said something that made me tear up a little. She said my mother would be proud.

Still on Cloud Nineteen

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Yeah, I’m saying there has to be something higher than Cloud Nine, and I’m on it. I am a 2011 Golden Heart finalist. I’ve been fielding congratulatory calls, tweets and e-mails all day — and

The Golden phone call

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My phone woke me up — and this time, it was THE call … well, the call that I’m a Golden Heart finalist, at least. “Beauty and the Ballplayer” finaled in the contemporary series category.