Sourcebooks Casablanca Romance Authors

When a writer has a book due the same day her daughter goes back to school in August, it’s time to get creative about the summer schedule. Last summer, my husband and I found a great latchkey program for Little Miss R. She’s a very outgoing kid, and she loved what was basically an endless PE class with dozens of other children. (I was very different at her age.) This year, that program filled up within a few hours of opening enrollment, so we’ve had to get creative. Summer camps at the Y? Check. Public science camps? Ok. A few art classes? Add those in. And some time with the grandparents? We can do that too. Every week this summer will be a little bit different. To Little Miss R, this is more amazing than ever. To control-freak me…well, let’s just say I’ve made a biiiiig calendar for the summer.   If you have school-aged kids, how do you keep them occupied during the summer—especially if you need to keep to a work schedule? I’d love any and all tips you could share!

We write about love and marriage in our books and even have strong personal opinions about the subject. Surprisingly, so do children. Many years ago (way more than I want to share) Art Linkletter had a segment on his TV show called Children Say the Darndest Things. It’s fun looking into the mind of these kids. Some are pretty wise for their age and some are hilarious. How do you decide who to marry? One girl said, “No person really decides before they grow up. God decides it all way before and you get to find out later who you’re stuck with.” A boy said, “You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports and she should keep the chips and dip coming.” What is the right age to get married? “Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then.” What do most people do on a date? “Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have s...