Sweet! CITY OF DARK MAGIC sequel CITY OF LOST DREAMS is coming next month!

Can't wait to dive into this advance copy of City of Lost Dreams, sequel to City of Dark Magic, which I read, loved and raved about last year.

Watch this space for my review and your opportunity to win a free copy from the publisher when City of Lost Dreams drops next month.

Meanwhile, you still have time to read City of Dark Magic, which you can see me highly recommend in this book review photobombed by my dog.

"Walk on the Wild Side" Go with God, Lou Reed. :(

Theme Song du Jour: Caroline Savoie covers "Ain't No Sunshine"

This week on Undercover Soundtrack, Roz Morris airs the playlist that inspired my novel Kill Smartie Breedlove.

One of my favorite elements in the process: I formed a collection of covers of Bill Withers' classic "Ain't No Sunshine" as a way of processing and anchoring a major thread for the two main characters, both of whom are widowed. Caroline Savoie's austere acoustic rendition never fails to generate a lump in my throat.

Buy This Book: TJ Bennett's Dark Angel

I've been on a roll lately, reading so many memorable, distinctive books. Among them was Dark Angel, a "Gothic fairy tale romance" by talented historical romance author TJ Bennett.

Dark Angel (Entangled Edge, Oct. 21, 2013) is a lushly romantic retelling of Beauty on the Beast. Only this "Beast," the mysterious, stern lord of an island trapped in the mists of time, is destined to be tried--and tamed--by the beautiful young widow Catherine Briton, the sole survivor of a terrible shipwreck, as well as the only living soul to wash ashore in many an age. With its brooding (and seriously sexy) hero, its towering castle, and its magical secrets, Dark Angel reminded me of the great Gothics I used to love. And since TJ Bennett is (full disclosure) a critique partner of mine, I've been privileged to watch this story come to fruition and highly recommend you check it out!

Cool new look for a terrific book: EVIDENCE OF LIFE by Barbara Taylor Sissel

A great book - Evidence of Life by Barbara Taylor Sissel - gets a brand new look from the publisher. (Looks like they're branding it with her forthcoming release: Safe Keeping.)

My original review of EOL...

#themesongdujour Grateful Dead "Touch of Grey": I will get by! (Thanks, Book Gorilla.)

Today's theme music, Grateful Dead's "Touch of Grey" was inspired by a great blurb about my new memoirella, Love & Other Natural Disasters, a starred title today on BookGorilla.com:

"Think "Molly Ivins meets Anna Quindlen to the tune of 'Touch of Grey'...Not your Mama's Erma Bombeck, but the best of “Earth to Joni”, the syndicated newspaper column chronicling family life, politics and culture, and welcoming readers into the Rodgers household, where life is for living, love conquers all, and pancakes are what’s for dinner."

PS ~ Love & Other Natural Disasters free on Kindle this week!

Introducing LOVE & OTHER NATURAL DISASTERS (Enjoy a sweet little read on me this week!)

So the Gare Bear and I have been married for 30 years as of this summer. Blows my mind. I've always said it's impossible to be married to the same person for 30 years, because it's impossible to be the same person for 30 years. The best you can hope for is that you will be foolish enough to keep falling in love. That seems to be the case for us.

By way of celebration: Love & Other Natural Disasters (the first in a series of memoirellas based on my syndicated newspaper column "Earth to Joni") offers about a dozen essays reflecting on our somewhat stormy but overwhelmingly happy (and frequently hilarious) life together from the perspective of a month-long power outage that kept the Rodgers neighborhood in the dark after Hurricane Ike.

Download it free this week exclusively on Kindle.

"There's Always Tomorrow": A final thought on #BloodCancerAwarenessMonth

Wrapping up Blood Cancer Awareness Month with a huge thank you to Ashley Rodgers for her expert answers to reader/survivor FAQs about cancer's emotional roller coaster. (To see the whole Q&A series, click the #BloodCancerAwarenessMonth hash tag below.)

On a personal note: My daughter Jerusha, five years old in the photo here, went with me to many of my chemo treatments, including one on her sixth birthday. Today she is a fabulous 24-year-old freelance editor, and this summer, she donated bone marrow to a six-year-old child with leukemia through a national anonymous bone marrow registry. I can't begin to express how proud of her I am.

(For more information on how you can help someone with a life-threatening blood cancer, visit Be The Match.)

Of all the songs that spoke to me during the journey of my own cancer experience (and the continuing journey of survivorship) is this anthem from Gloria Estefan. The first time I heard it, I was weeping in the ladies room at my oncologist's office, and perhaps it sounds melodramatic, but by the end of the song, I had changed. I had let go of an old life that was not working for me and embraced a new life that has been ridiculously blessed. To this day, I can't hear it without crying.

For me, "Always Tomorrow" captures all the longing and regret I felt with my diagnosis, thinking how differently I would have lived had I known my life might end so soon. It also speaks to the hope and determination to go forward and the acceptance that remission doesn't mean everything is okay, and it definitely doesn't mean "back to normal."

Things will never be the same, the only one sure thing is change. Remission means you have this moment to start over again and steer that change with love.

Peace, love and joy to all my fellow survivors, along with the energy to embrace a beautiful tomorrow.

Sunday Groove: Mike Tompkins' awesome a capella "Rolling in the Deep"

In case you were wondering how it feels to transition from traditional publishing to the plate-spinning, chainsaw-juggling, little red hen "I'll do it all myself" indie life... yeah. It's like this.

#BloodCancerAwareness Q&A: "My ex has cancer. Why does our son act like it's my fault?"

Over the years, I've received thousands of emails about Bald in the Land of Big Hair, a memoir about my experience with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. A cancer diagnosis brings a firestorm of questions, and as a survivor, I can sympathize, but I'm not an expert; many times I just don't have the answers. So this year during Blood Cancer Awareness Month, I've asked Ashley Rodgers (Masters in Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling), to respond to some FAQs about the emotional and psychological aspects of the cancer journey. 

Q: My teenage son is great with his dad (my ex-husband) who is going through chemo and radiation, but to me he is belligerent, disrespectful and uncooperative. Why is he acting like my ex's cancer is my fault?

Ashley says: I understand how you may feel frustrated and hurt by your son’s actions and attitude towards you right now. It is difficult for everyone to cope with a sick parent, especially when you are still a child. Ideally, your parents take care of you when you're young and support you throughout your lifetime, and when illness interrupts that path it can be terrifying.

Although it is hard not to take his behavior personally, but try to put yourself in his shoes and see things from his perspective. Perhaps his acting out is because he does not know what to expect from his father’s illness and treatment. An excellent way to help your son and alleviate the tension between the two of you is to bring him into the loop of what is going on with his father’s medical situation. Even if you and your ex-husband don’t talk frequently, it is important as parents to communicate on this subject for your son’s sake.

Comfort comes with understanding. Your son’s behavior will likely change if he is aware of what to expect. Sit down and talk with him about each of these areas related to his father’s health:

• What is the diagnosis?
• How they are going to treat it?
• What does that treatment do to the patient?
• What are the possible future outcomes as a result?

Prepare him for the good, the bad and the "wait and see."

Communication is everything. Teenagers are known for being stubborn, defiant and disrespectful. But if you counter that with compassion, patience and a readiness to answer questions, I am sure you will see a difference in your relationship with your son.

Here are some helpful tips on how to deal with a sick parent from a kid whose own father was sick.

We welcome your questions and comments.

*No part of this blog or the book Bald in the Land of Big Hair should be misconstrued as or substituted for medical advice.

#BloodCancerAwarenessMonth Q&A: "Is it crazy to think I deserve to find love before I die?"

Over the years, I've received thousands of emails about Bald in the Land of Big Hair, a memoir about my experience with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. A cancer diagnosis brings a firestorm of questions, and as a survivor, I can sympathize, but I'm not an expert; many times I just don't have the answers. So this year during Blood Cancer Awareness Month, I've asked Ashley Rodgers (Masters in Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling), to respond to some FAQs about the emotional and psychological aspects of the cancer journey. 

Q: My wife and I have been pretty unhappy for most of our 15-year marriage but stayed together because of the kids. Now I have cancer, and I feel like I'm wasting what might be the last years of my life. Is it crazy to think I should try to find love before I die?

Ashley says: Your desire to have love in your life is not crazy. It is natural to want passion and connection with another person. You can choose to dissolve your current relationship and look for someone new or you can try to rekindle what was once there between you and your wife. Either one you choose is okay.

If you opt to leave your marriage: When moving on from a long relationship, there are some important things to consider when looking for new love.

Take a break after the divorce to find out who you are as an individual. When you are in a long-term relationship, even if you are no longer close, you have grown as a person with someone else. You have to separate from that and see what it is you want now that you are single.

Be choosy. Don’t just go for the person who is the exact opposite of your ex-wife just because of that fact. Maybe you do want the new person to be different, but it is okay to want that person to have some of the same qualities that attracted you to your ex-wife in the beginning.

Look everywhere for a new relationship, don’t limit your choices to the bar around the corner. You may have been out of the dating game for several years; people meet love interests everywhere now. You can find people at the bar, the grocery store, the library, or park. This is important because this could help you find someone with the same interests or hobbies as you.

Here are a few tips on dating after divorce.

If you want to rekindle your marriage instead of moving on with a divorce there are many tools you can use to light that passion.

Start by listening to your wife. What is she asking of you, what kind of interaction dos she want from you? Find out and try to incorporate those things into your daily lives. Maybe she wants to be complimented on how she looks, or thanked for the things she does at home or for your children. If she is not sharing those needs with you anymore, start asking. Show her you are interested in what she wants and needs.

Take a trip down good memory lane. Remember some of the things you both used to do when you first got together. Make an effort to recreate one of those dates. Or, if you have been listening and your wife wants to do something new, try that instead! It will show her that you are listening, you are interested and that you want to build your relationship with new experiences together. Just remember to take strides toward the goal of rekindling your relationship even when it gets difficult.

If it took 15 years to get to where you are now, it may take time to get to where you want to be. But keeping your wife in the loop of what your goal is and how you are feeling with greatly assist you in your efforts.

Here are some tips on rekindling your relationship.

We welcome your questions and comments.

*No part of this blog or the book Bald in the Land of Big Hair should be misconstrued as or substituted for medical advice.

#BloodCancerAwarenessMonth Q&A: "My spouse is AWOL since my cancer diagnosis. WTF?"

Over the years, I've received thousands of emails about Bald in the Land of Big Hair, a memoir about my experience with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. A cancer diagnosis brings a firestorm of questions, and as a survivor, I can sympathize, but I'm not an expert; many times I just don't have the answers. So this year during Blood Cancer Awareness Month, I've asked Ashley Rodgers (Masters in Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling), to respond to some FAQs about the emotional and psychological aspects of the cancer journey. 

Q: My husband has been totally AWOL since my cancer diagnosis, working late, leaving early, eating dinner in front of the TV and barely speaking to me. WTF?

Ashley says: It can be very stressful and hurtful to become disconnected with your partner after such a major medical diagnosis. You are not alone in your experience. Many patients go through a similar shift in their relationships and the key to getting through it is communication.

A diagnosis such as cancer can mean big changes in a relationship physically and emotionally. Good open communication is called for to help both partners adjust. Perhaps your husband does not know how to react to the diagnosis. He could be distancing himself in preparation for the worst possible outcome that he may lose you to the cancer. It is important to share your fears and concerns with each other and use this as a way to come together in strength. It is okay to be scared, but the positive support of having each other helps your overall well being during treatment.

Here are some tips on facilitating those interactions to open the lines of communication:

Make a date. Recreate your first date; this is especially lighthearted if it was awkward or quirky. Or you can go out and do something that you both did early on in your relationship. Maybe it was a homemade picnic lunch in a nearby park, or going to a drive in movie, or dinner at a specific restaurant across town where you ordered for each other. Try to rekindle the giddy feelings of your relationship and remind each other of the connection you share.

Leave love notes. Slip a note in his wallet that says something sweet. Write a message on the mirror in lipstick for him to see when he s getting ready for work in the morning. Write a letter about how he made you feel when you got married and what he did that made you feel special; be specific. Hide these in plain sight for him to find and bring a smile to his face throughout the day.

Compliment them. Tell him when he does something you like or appreciate, even if it is something small like a smile in your direction when you play with your hair. Be specific so he knows what it is you want him to do. Reinforcement helps encourage behaviors you want to continue.

Involve them. Include him in your day-to-day life and in your updates and expectations through treatment. With knowledge comes understanding. Share your run in with an old coworker at the coffee shop, the ridiculous demands of the new girl at work, and how your feeling about your treatment and progress.

For more help on communicating with your partner check out this article and video testimony from Livestrong.

We welcome your questions and comments.

*No part of this blog or the book Bald in the Land of Big Hair should be misconstrued as or substituted for medical advice.

Sunday Groove: Nancy Sinatra nutshells the publishing industry with "This Town"

Nancy Sinatra nutshells the publishing industry: "This town is a love you town and a shove you down and push you 'round town... This town is a use you town, and abuse you town until you're found town."