tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55270827615418054662024-03-13T23:25:47.667-04:00Keep Your Glass Slipper...I'd Rather Wear Flip-FlopsSemi-coherent musings on stuffRobin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.comBlogger183125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-65168002503136201192011-09-05T17:58:00.002-04:002011-09-05T17:59:12.006-04:00New tumblr post.......an interview with the world's best editor, Jennifer Bonnell.<br /><br />Here's a <a href="http://robinpalmer.tumblr.com/">link</a>Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-57832660928670433692011-08-08T23:23:00.001-04:002011-08-08T23:25:29.853-04:00Go to my Tumblr.......to read my new “INTERVIEWS WITH COOL PEOPLE I KNOW BECAUSE IT’S PAINFUL TO WRITE ABOUT MYSELF ON THIS THING” section.
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<br />Here's a <a href="http://robinpalmer.tumblr.com/">link</a>Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-80106086049649444352011-07-12T22:37:00.002-04:002011-07-12T22:39:05.849-04:00I've got a Tumblr now.I figure it would be great to have another social networking thing that I don't update on a regular basis.<br />But seriously, I think the Tumblr is more my speed so I have high hopes for it.<br />You can see it (and follow me) by clicking <a href="http://robinpalmer.tumblr.com/">here</a>Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-10673728785080164832011-06-27T22:43:00.008-04:002011-06-28T16:20:55.811-04:00I've figured out the secret to a happy life...<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VRMNYwwlL5g/TgoiS_Es9PI/AAAAAAAAAjg/IvLTcFk7P7I/s1600/DSC_1887.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VRMNYwwlL5g/TgoiS_Es9PI/AAAAAAAAAjg/IvLTcFk7P7I/s400/DSC_1887.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623344794289632498" /></a><br />Okay, fine, there's probably a bunch of secrets, but I've been thinking about one in particular. It's not even like it's a secret, as it's one of those things that you hear over and over and say "Yeah, yeah, I know" before completely disregarding it and going back to doing what you've always been doing and then wonder why you keep having the same experience over and over.<br /><br />The particular secret I'm talking about here is the idea of expectations. Specifically, that when you have them - whether they be about a person or a place or a meal - you're setting yourself up for disappointment. Because, unfortunately, a lot of the time life (or people or places or meals) doesn't end up unfolding in the manner in which you wrote the script....So what happens is that not only are you upset because people aren't saying the right lines, but you're so CONFUSED about what's actually happening vs. what you've planned that you end up missing the whole experience. Which, a lot of the time, can sometimes prove to be even better than the script you wrote. With less typos.<br /><br />The reason I've been thinking about this is because I recently bought my first house. Even though I'm already 42 years old and a lot of people I know bought their first houses like 10 years ago which was around the time I was walking away from my TV job and giving up a steady paycheck in order to write. And even though I was doing this really brave thing, it didn't feel like that at the time. What it felt like was that I HAD TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY LOST MY MIND and that not only was I not following the herd and moving closer to being a card-carrying responsible adult but that it would only be a matter of time before I couldn't pay my rent and I'd end up living in the alley behind my apartment with all my other homeless neighbors. (And even though I lived near very fancy Vogue-approve boutiques, there were a lot of them.) <br /><br />If I were to be totally honest, the truth is that even after I started making money writing and stopped worrying about where I was going to get the shopping cart I'd be pushing around town after I lost my apartment, I had kind of given up on the idea of buying a house. Not just because I didn't think I'd ever be able to come up with a down payment, or even know how to begin the mortgage process (my mortgage broker Seth who has now become a friend once complimented me for being highly organized which I found hysterical because that's ridiculously far from the truth), but also because I was under the mistaken impression that houses were things you waited to buy with a husband or a wife or a partner or a significant other or whatever PC term one likes to use nowadays. So even though I wanted a house, there was this voice in the back of my mind that said "yeah, okay, but you can't do it alone - we'll talk about it when The-Guy-capital-T-capital-G comes along." <br /><br />But the voice didn't say that I couldn't RENT one by myself, which is what I did. In the Hudson Valley, two hours north of the city, where I went every Friday-Sunday. And before I knew it, the area felt like home in a way that nowhere else ever had - not even Lost Angeles, which is a place I lived for seventeen years. And when that dreadful winter was over and spring arrived, I loved it even more, to the point where there was no question that when my lease was up at the end of August, I was going to renew it. <br /><br />But then one day, in one of my attempts to avoid doing what I was supposed to be doing (ie. writing), I was perusing real estate listings. There's a lot of beautiful homes up there - homes that look like they belong in Pottery Barn catalogs or in movies directed by Nancy Meyers who did It's Complicated and Something's Gotta Give (and, who, incidentally wrote the movie Baby Boom which, when I tell people my story about going upstate, they all say "It sounds like Baby Boom. Maybe you'll end up with a vet who looks like Sam Shepard." Which, you know, wouldn't be the worst thing in the world seeing that I have two cats and will probably get a dog down the road.) And while those houses are all beautiful, they're not really me. They're too neat and perfectly put together and everything matches and while the owners say things like "Please--make yourself comfortable" you KNOW that the first thing they're going to do when you leave is rush over and fluff the pillows and wipe up the tiny drop of condensation that fell from your glass onto their coffee table as you took it off the coaster.<br /><br />But as I perused (okay, fine--as I AVOIDED WRITING) I came across this converted barn which happened to be located in the same town I had been renting. In fact, it was pretty much down the street. And although the pictures weren't great, and it was hard to get a sense of the place, that voice - not the screaming one in my head but the soft, ladylike one in my gut--said "You need to go look at this house."<br /><br />So I emailed my realtor-slash-friend <a href="http://garydimauro.com/">Mary Mullane</a> and asked her if she knew the house, and she did, and we made an appointment to see it and when we got there it turned out it was this big pink barn thing. But I didn't know it was pink because I'm colorblind. I just thought it was...I don't know...beige-y looking. And not a very attractive barn. I kind of thought we'd walk in and do the polite thing and walk around and then leave but as soon as we walked through the door, it was like that moment in fairy tales when the heroine eats a magic bean or whatever the hell they do that makes them wake up in an enchanted castle. And that voice -- the ladylike one--whispered "This is my house." And then -- no joke -- Mary leaned over and said "This is your house." <br /><br />Long story short, as of this month, it is indeed my house. Well, mine and Wells Fargo Bank. Maybe at one point The Guy will join me and the cats, but at this particular moment because he has yet to make his identity known, it's just the three of us.<br /><br />I love my house, but it's not for everyone. It's a quirky pink barn with 30 foot ceilings and tons of light and a pond and a see-saw and a clawfoot tub and a sauna and a washer and dryer in the bathroom and a pond full of alga. It most definitely won't be featured in a Pottery Barn catalog, even after I spend my life savings furnishing it. But my favorite part about it is that the day I went to look at it, I didn't have any expectations. Meaning I wasn't DYING to be a homeowner, and I wasn't DYING for this to be the house that ended up being mine. And when I was negotiating for it and it looked like it might not work out, I was okay with that. Because as much as I loved the place, I trusted that if it were meant to be mine, it would be.. <br /><br />And because I didn't have any expectations, it made that first afternoon I went back there after I had signed my life away at the closing, and used MY key to open MY front door and sat down in the middle of MY living room floor that much more special. I guess because it all felt like the product of some sort of grace versus me making it all happen. <br /><br />Which is a very, very sweet feeling.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-79456924874636092302011-05-11T22:38:00.000-04:002011-05-13T16:26:48.177-04:00Bored?I have two ideas for you. <br /><br />First, go pre-order the new Lucy B. Parker book Vote For Me! by clicking <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Yours-Truly-Lucy-B-Parker/dp/0142415022/ref=pd_ys_iyr2">here</a><br /><br />And after you've done that, go to Facebook and "like" me on my fan page by clicking <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Robin-Palmer/171576449558367">here</a>. That way you can be sure to keep up to date on any breaking news about my life that might occur. (as if).Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-57434087864845123882011-05-11T22:34:00.000-04:002011-05-13T16:26:48.078-04:00Bored?I have two ideas for you. <br /><br />First, go pre-order the new Lucy B. Parker book Vote For Me! by clicking <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Yours-Truly-Lucy-B-Parker/dp/0142415022/ref=pd_ys_iyr2">here</a><br /><br />And after you've done that, go to Facebook and "like" me on my fan page by clicking <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Robin-Palmer/171576449558367">here</a>. That way you can be sure to keep up to date on all any breaking news about my life that might occur. (as if).Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-1565687678564286202011-05-05T13:05:00.000-04:002011-05-05T13:06:11.273-04:00TV Development 101For the last few weeks, whenever someone asks me what I've been working on, my answer is always the same: the TV pilot for Lucy B. Parker, and writing out a neverending stream of checks because I'm in the process of BUYING MY FIRST HOUSE EVER (cue applause and a marching band) and, apparently, when you're a homeowner -- or just a homeowner-to-be-- all you do is spend money. <br /><br />But back to the pilot...<br /><br />Although before we do that, let me just say that this is not just any house -- this is A PINK BARN that I am moving into. WITH A POND. AND A SEE-SAW. I can't tell you how much I love this place.<br /><br />But back to the pilot...<br /><br />(this may be WHY it's taking me so long to write the pilot...because I keep talking about the barn.)<br /><br />Anyway, so in talking to people about the pilot, a lot of people ask me "So what exactly happens with that?"...and I decided since enough people seem interested, why not write a blog entry about it? Mostly because it's a little more exciting than reading about the mortgage process.<br /><br />So this is how it all goes down...<br /><br />When you set up a project at a network, after jumping around with joy about the fact that maybe you'll make enough money to re-do your bathroom in your new house and/or buy nice patio furniture, the first step in the process is to write a detailed outline of the scenes that will make up the script. The reason for this is because if you're the kind of person who doesn't like writing outlines (ie. me) and likes to say things like "I like to find my way into the story as I'm writing the script" (ie. me), what often happens is you end up with a 150 page script when it's supposed to be 50 because that "finding your way into the story" thing can often take a long time. (ie. me. Except I'm exaggerating about the 150 pages, obviously. It's more like 142.) <br /><br />So once you're done with the outline and have gone over it 23 times to make sure you got all the typos, you send it to your producer(s) for their feedback. The moment you press "send' you immediately feel sick to your stomach and attempt to figure out how to recall it from cyber space because obviously it's the worst thing ever written...in fact, it may not even be written in english...and you can't believe you actually sent it out. After quelling your anxiety with some sort of carb, you calm down and start working on whatever got pushed aside so you could write this treatment that you didn't even want to write because you like to find your way into the story as you're writing the script.<br /><br />Finally you hear back from the producer(s), with an email that usually begins "FANTASTIC job...just a few notes..." which, when you print the email out, usually ends up being three or four pages of notes. Including a list of all the typos. After you scrape yourself up from off the floor and recover from the fact that you didn't write something that was perfect the first time out of the gate, you revise the outline per their notes and send it back to them. This process can go on for a while. In my case, it went on for a very, very long while. Partly because when you're writing a pilot, you have to set up the characters and the dynamic between them and the premise of show. In like 49 pages which, when you're not the one writing it, seems relatively easy. But when you are the one writing it? Not so much.<br /><br />Finally it goes to the network and you repeat the process. Except, this time, when you crumple into the fetal position on the floor after you hear their notes, it takes even longer to get up. But you do, because hopefully you have good producers who remind you that it's called the DEVELOPMENT PROCESS for a reason and who suggest you go eat something sugary and give yourself some time to take everything in before getting back to work. <br /><br />Then, finally, when the network signs off on the story, you write the script. And because you've taken all this time to outline the scenes, the actual writing of the script comes really easy. Like so easy that you're sure you're doing it wrong...and then, when your first draft is almost 70 pages, you realize you ARE doing it wrong. Or rather, that's a very long first draft which means in the second draft you have to, as Dorothy Parker said, "kill your little darlings" and look at all those lines you think are brilliant and hilarious and start slashing away. Finally, after how many drafts it takes to get it to a place where the pacing is working, and the characters are clear, and there are (minimal) typos, you send it to the producers and go through the process you went through on the outline. The good news is that with each round of notes, the time on the floor and the amount of carbs consumed lessens. <br /><br />Once you hand the script into the network, a few things can happen...either they love it and have minimal notes, or, in some cases, what becomes clear is that the story you've chosen isn't exactly working so you come up with a new one. (When that's the case, you're allowed a lot more carbs and time in the fetal position on the floor). At any rate, if you're lucky enough to write a script that the network loves, then they decide to shoot the pilot episode. Which means they hire a director, and cast it, and then you do even more work on the script and finally finally finally they shoot it. Then, after that, if it comes out well, and the head honchos like it, then it gets ordered to series. <br /><br />So right now I'm in the script stage with Lucy. Which has been interesting because a lot of the time stuff that works in books doesn't work for TV. It's been a very educational process (read: many carbs consumed and much time spent on floor). <br /><br />I will keep you posted.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-68812067490498829462011-03-17T19:44:00.004-04:002011-03-17T19:58:30.322-04:00Geek Charming - The Movie!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1qXWLD3i3dk/TYKfiXBk5LI/AAAAAAAAAiY/p9vmfxJGxYw/s1600/%252520matt-prokop-sarah-hyland-maxim-party%252520%25281%2529.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 247px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1qXWLD3i3dk/TYKfiXBk5LI/AAAAAAAAAiY/p9vmfxJGxYw/s400/%252520matt-prokop-sarah-hyland-maxim-party%252520%25281%2529.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5585201900537832626" /></a><br />Let's not talk about the fact that I haven't blogged since Christmas. That's just unacceptable. I'm hoping what makes it more acceptable is the fact that I've been busy writing--both the pilot for Yours Truly, Lucy B. Parker for Nickelodeon as well as my new YA Fairy Tale retelling based on Snow White. (Obviously I don't have a title yet.) <br /><br />BUT that's not the big news. The big news is that Disney Channel started shooting Geek Charming this week and I'm really excited about the casting -- Sarah Hyland from Modern Family as Dylan, and her real life BF Matt Prokop from High School Musical 3 as Josh. I have to admit bc I've never seen any of the HSMs (I've also never seen an episode of American Idol, Survivor, or Law & Order SUV or SVU or whatever it's called, either) I didn't know who Matt was, but I LOVE Sarah Hyland so I'm very excited about that. <br /><br />It will be strange to see it. I said to someone last week that it's like giving your child up for adoption and hoping that her adoptive parents don't feed her cereal for dinner every night. I'm sure it'll be great. <br /><br />It's funny -this morning I was thinking about when I was writing Geek Charming. It was spring, and I was still living in L.A., and I remember all the coffee shops I'd go to. And then I finished the book in NY. I remember being in the middle of it and being so unsure about it - ie. did the alternating chapters work, etc. - et voila - soon it will be on television. <br /><br />CRA-ZY.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-83281251519837452092010-12-27T15:09:00.005-05:002010-12-27T15:38:48.693-05:00When I've used my words up...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/TRj2cQUG0oI/AAAAAAAAAiI/ZwiiQke1LQU/s1600/CSC_0477.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/TRj2cQUG0oI/AAAAAAAAAiI/ZwiiQke1LQU/s400/CSC_0477.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5555461105637577346" /></a><br />...which, with all the books I've written over the last 5 years, would be often (I've written 8.5. And a screenplay. But who's counting.), I find that getting away from the computer and taking photos really helps me to re-fill the well. <br /><br />And now that it's the week between Christmas and New Years, and now that I'm snowed in for the day, I decided to do something that I've always meant to do but have never had the time to do -- organize some of those photos on Flickr.<br /><br />If you click <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/57542877@N02/">here</a>, you can see them.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-41740666771849057422010-12-24T21:22:00.004-05:002010-12-25T13:40:33.489-05:00Merry/Happy/Bonne/Feliz etc....<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/TRY6m6AYBmI/AAAAAAAAAhw/BDIIO8RdxFI/s1600/IMG_0067.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/TRY6m6AYBmI/AAAAAAAAAhw/BDIIO8RdxFI/s400/IMG_0067.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5554691630488356450" /></a><br />....whatever you celebrate, and whenever you celebrate it, I hope it's a joyful, peaceful time and that the new year brings all good things.<br /><br />As for me, it's Christmas Eve and I'm curled up on my couch upstate with a cat on either side listening to Patty Griffin and thinking about everything that's transpired this year, and how, yet again, although I like to think I'm psychic and know what's going to happen next or that certain things will NEVER EVER EVER change, I was wrong. <br /><br />And yet...even as I write that, there are certain things that I'm sure about. Like, say, that I'll NEVER EVER EVER get this Lucy B. pilot outline right for the half-hour sitcom that Nickelodeon is developing based on the book series. Or that I won't get all my writing projects done. And a host of other things.<br /><br />And yet...if what I said in the second paragraph is right, then I'm probably wrong about those things. <br /><br />It's been a crazy year. Crazy bad with my mom and her brain aneurysm (she's doing great now, thank God). Crazy good with my new house upstate that I get to escape to on weekends and life I'm creating here with amazing new friends. And as I sit here, I think about how next year will bring a host of other things that I won't be able to plan for. People I will meet who I don't even know exist at the moment. <br /><br />If I could give everyone reading this a holiday gift, I would take away their ability to worry. I would wish them an entire day spent in the mindset that everything is perfect as it is at the moment; that all is as it's supposed to be...<br /><br />xoxoRobin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-41429570132208324262010-11-07T07:50:00.004-05:002010-11-07T07:55:26.205-05:00PrettyLet's not talk about how many months it's been since I've blogged.<br /><br />Instead, let's watch <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6wJl37N9C0&feature=share">Katie Makkai's genius spoken word video where she talks about the word "pretty."</a><br /><br />Wow.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-1221213247194392542010-07-29T07:37:00.004-04:002010-07-29T08:22:46.888-04:00Home<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/TFFwLzJDEuI/AAAAAAAAAhE/e232iEUprcE/s1600/IMG_0976.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/TFFwLzJDEuI/AAAAAAAAAhE/e232iEUprcE/s400/IMG_0976.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5499299968005116642" /></a><br />When I was 21 years old, right after I graduated from college, I moved to Los Angeles because I had wanted to be in the movie business. I had been there a few times before, and it always seemed glamorous, and sunny, and the palm trees didn't hurt, either. <br /><br />So I got there, and I didn't end up in the movie business - I ended up in the TV business and I had a nice run. But LA never felt like home. Because you have to drive everywhere, it was very isolating, and there was no real sense of community and no downtown where you could walk around and be surrounded by people. I made do, but I always wondered what it would be like to leave. Then I got out of the TV business and I started writing. And because I was writing books instead of screenplays, I realized I really didn't have to stay in LA anymore if I didn't want to. The east coast had always felt like home, and as I got older I felt myself being pulled back there more and more. So I ended up moving to New York City. And the moment I got there, I felt like a duck hitting water. It just fit. And I thought "Ohhhh...so THIS is where I'm supposed to be." The nonstop activity, the nonstop noise, the fact that within a space of a block you can hear a multitude of languages and see a cross section of people from all walks of life. <br /><br />It was home in a way that nowhere else had ever been. <br /><br />Then, this summer, I started itching to go on vacation. First I thought I wanted to go to the beach and I looked around for a place to rent for a week on the Cape or in Rhode Island. Nothing. Well, stuff, but you'd have to be Stephenie Meyer to afford them. Then, one night at around 11pm I stumbled across a little farmhouse for rent for the month of July up in <a href="http://www.cocotodo.com/">Columbia County, NY</a> which is about 2.5 hours from the city. And my eyes widened and I just knew that was supposed to be my house. Lucky for me, the people who were going to rent it backed out at the last minute, so when I drove up that Saturday and pulled up and saw that, yup, I was right, it was indeed my house. At least for the month of July. <br /><br />Every Friday morning I'd go to Penn Station and get on the Amtrak train and in two hours I was in the country. Instead of jackhammers, I heard frogs. Instead of waiting in long lines at Whole Foods, I stopped at roadside farm stands for just-picked blueberries and peaches. Instead of being slammed up against someone on the 2 train, I was driving down traffic-less country roads with cornfields to my right and mountains to my left. <br /><br />My first weekend here I said to myself "Ohhh....so THIS is where I'm supposed to be, too." <br /><br />Which, for a girl who had always yearned to live in the big city was pretty funny. But there's this thing that happens as you get older where, without you even knowing how it happens, you just change. And you like the country. And when you think about what kind of car you'd want to buy if you lived in the country, all you can think of is a station wagon. <br /><br />A STATION WAGON. And I don't even have kids.<br /><br />Three weeks later I had found my very own little farmhouse. Up on a hill with views of the Catskills to my left and the Berkshires to the right. The first time my realtor took me there, we couldn't get in because there wasn't a key, but just peeking in the windows, I kind of knew it was mine. And then when we went back again, I definitely knew it was mine.<br /><br />So I finally had a house in the country of my own. And now I needed a car to get me there. <br /><br />A few weeks earlier, I had met a really sweet guy named Tom. And when I ran into him one evening, I mentioned that I needed a car and if he had any leads or suggestions, I'd appreciate it. Turns out that people call him the Car Whisperer. So Tom, because he's a really nice person, did some research for me and sent me links to things that might be of interest. Totally went above and beyond and out of his way to help me, a person who was almost a complete stranger. Even if I had never found a car, the fact that he did that meant the world to me. My dad had joked "What you need is a car that was owned by an older person that has really low miles on it." So the other day, at Tom's suggestion, I called a dealership and asked if they had anything in my price range. Turned out they had a '03 Subaru with 36,000 miles. I called Tom to tell him and even though the place was about an hour away, he offered to go with me. The fact that he was willing to give up his afternoon and schlep over across the river with me to Kingston was so nice, I could barely wrap my head around it. And because the whole buying-a-car thing freaks me out, I took him up on his offer. <br /><br />The car was exactly what I wanted, and I'm picking it up today.<br /><br />AND it turns out that it was owned by a woman who just turned 83.<br /><br />But even more important than the car, was the fact that because it took an hour to get there each way, Tom and I got to talk a lot and I realized that my initial impression of "I'd like to be friends with this guy" was right on the money. Which is way more important than a car. <br /><br />Yesterday I went to my new house and spent two hours there with my landlord as he walked me through and explained everything to me. Like the WASHER AND DRYER which is the thing I've missed more than anything since I left L.A. And as we stood in the kitchen - a real kitchen rather than a tiny kitchenette that's in the living room, which is how I live in Manhattan - I looked out into my backyard - MY BACKYARD! I HAVE A BACKYARD! - and I saw a deer. We locked eyes for a second and then he leapt off and went back into the woods. Apaprently there are a ton of them, and they like to come eat the apples and pears from my apple and pear trees (I HAVE AN APPLE AND PEAR TREE!). Plus, there are otters. Which feels so random to me that I'll have to see it for myself. And rabbits. Lots of rabbits. <br /><br />This photo is the view to the right of my house. If I can't be inspired to write looking at this, I don't know what will work. <br /><br />Virginia Woolf talked about the importance of having <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Room_of_One's_Own">"a room of one's own"</a>. <br /><br />Now I have a house of my own. With a washer and dryer. And otters. And a station wagon in the driveway.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-17615790616868141742010-06-23T22:37:00.003-04:002010-06-23T23:03:19.536-04:00Satire? Irony? Parody? Anyone?As someone wise once said - I don't remember who it was, but it was someone wise - if you're going to believe the good reviews, you have to believe the bad ones, too.<br /><br />True.<br /><br />But if you were really smart, you'd avoid reading reviews all together.<br /><br />As those who read my books know, I tend to write with a significant amount of satire, making some of the characters somewhat bigger than life, as if were...Part of it is the fairy tale aspect of it...and part of it is...well, I can't explain it. It's just what I do.<br /><br />When GEEK CHARMING came out, there were a lot of reviews on Amazon and Goodreads where people said they disliked Dylan and thought she was spoiled. Which meant that I did my job. Because it was a retelling of The Frog Prince - which is about a spoiled princess - you weren't SUPPOSED to like her. You were supposed to be rooting for Josh a.k.a. the frog, until Dylan began to change because of her relationship with him and she began to soften. That was her character arc. <br /><br />Then my book LITTLE MISS RED came out last February. Another fairy tale retelling, it's a take-off on Little Red Riding Hod. This one, more than my first two, was a lot more steeped in parody. In the book, Sophie - the main character - is obsessed with romance. Her attitude about it all is over the top, and she's blind to who Jack a.k.a the wolf really is for a long time. Again, that's part of her arc. Because when she starts in that place, only to have the veil lifted as the book goes on and to see him for who he really is, then she has somewhere to go. For me to tell the story I wanted to tell with that one - about a girl who is so clueless about love and romance and so ingrained in the fantasy vs the reality - that's the way I had to tell it. Because to make her super grounded like Cindy Ella was wouldn't work. It's a different story. A different character. Is she silly with the way she compares everything to the plots in her books from the Devon Devereaux series? Absolutely. But does who she is as an overall character make up for that so that ultimately she's endearing and you're rooting for her? Well, that's my hope. Is Jack self-obsessed and narcissistic? Completely. But does his charm and his hotness and the way he makes Sophie feel like she's finally got some adventure in her life outweigh that? I think so. God knows I've lived that with many men in real life. <br /><br />Maybe it's because I'm still relatively new at this thing. Maybe it's because I'm one of those sensitive people, but when I read reviews that make me feel like I missed the mark with my attempt, it makes me want to go find the reviewer and sit her or him down and explain what I was trying to do. Which is totally stupid. So the book wasn't their cup of tea. That's cool. Luckily there are bookstores full of books for them to choose from to find something they DO like. <br /><br />Ironically, LITTLE MISS RED is my favorite of all the fairy tales. Probably because it's rather personal for me in that I got to work out my own stuff vis a vis my feelings and beliefs about love and romance.<br /><br />I don't know exactly why I'm writing this. When people ask my why I write, I say it's an attempt to feel understood. And I guess, with RED in particular, I feel like people missed what I was trying to do. Not everyone, obviously, but a lot of people. Not that this is going to change their minds. But it did make me feel like I got my two cents in.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-25858289224239246012010-06-21T16:15:00.003-04:002010-06-21T16:25:45.810-04:00Am I the only blogger......who finds it hard to blog?<br /><br />Maybe it's because I'm not actually a blogger, but, rather, a novelist. Because the truth is I'd rather write an entire novel than one of these. I think it's cause it just feels so...personal. And yet I have no problem whatsoever alerting the Facebook world about my whereabouts in status updates.<br /><br />Anyway, what can I tell you...hmmm...well, I just handed in a first revision of Lucy 3 to my editor. And now I have to do another draft of Lucy 4. And I handed in a script rewrite to ABC Family. <br /><br />OH - okay. So here's the BIG news....after three years of threats, I finally got my act together and rented a house upstate. In the country. With a koi pond. And FROGS. And a WASHER AND DRYER. It's only for the month of July, and because I'm one of those people who lives in the future, I'm already sad about the fact that I'll have to give it up at the end. It's totally perfect. Like something out of a fairy tale. Which, for someone who does fairy tale retellings, makes sense. It's in <a href="http://www.cocotodo.com/">Columbia County</a> which is about 2 hours from the city. <br /><br />I'm trying to think of what else I can share. As I mentioned, I've been writing a lot lately so my social life--which is tepid at best--has been on the cool side.<br /><br />God, I sound boring.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-91198791363281898592010-05-27T09:40:00.005-04:002010-05-27T09:51:18.512-04:00The Way I Am<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/S_54ouIG79I/AAAAAAAAAfo/2TtyI1Pse9Y/s1600/375968_3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 279px; height: 400px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/S_54ouIG79I/AAAAAAAAAfo/2TtyI1Pse9Y/s400/375968_3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475946837901242322" /></a><br />The way I am is that, last weekend, when I was too tired to do much more than sprawl out on the couch because I was still recovering from the previous weekend's way-too-social for me agenda, I decided to pop in THE WAY WE WERE. <br /><br />And yet again, after that first scene between Robert Redford and Barbara Streisand, I said to myself "God, I love this movie." <br /><br />So I watched it. And I cried while I ate dried apricots. And then I got a stomach ache from the dried apricots. And then I cried a little more. Not because my stomach hurt, but because the movie is so good and I very much relate to it -- more than I'd like to, in fact.<br /><br />And then after <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kl_Gp2qZJvM&feature=related">the last scene</a>, when she says to him "Your girl is lovely, Hubbell" which is one of my favorite lines ever, I said again -- out loud this time--"God, I love this movie."Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-29573926593130308182010-05-27T09:25:00.002-04:002010-05-27T09:38:42.346-04:00Blogging...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/S_51tD59KvI/AAAAAAAAAfg/usIQ0CYUa2s/s1600/lighthouse+2+413+x+219.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 212px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/S_51tD59KvI/AAAAAAAAAfg/usIQ0CYUa2s/s400/lighthouse+2+413+x+219.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475943613932055282" /></a><br />...I have decided, is the perfect excuse for not working on my revision of Lucy 3. It's still writing, but it's not writing-writing. Or, rather, the writing that I will need to hand in soon if I'd like to get some money so I can do things like pay my rent. And buy tea from <a href="http://www.americantearoom.com/">American Tea Room</a> which is my latest obsession. (When I became a woman who prefers tea over coffee, I have no idea. I think it's an age thing.) <br /><br />So Memorial Day is this weekend, which means that summer is here. I'm so glad it's finally warm...as much as I try not to complain about NY winters because all my friends in L.A., when I told them I was moving to NY, said "Oh, you're going to hate the winters" and I'm too stubborn to admit that they were right, the fact is I do kind of hate them. Mostly I hate the greyness of them. The fact that everyone walks around with their heads down. I'm much more of a sundress kinda girl. Which my recent $200 dry cleaning bill after I took them out of storage can attest to.<br /><br />I desperately need a vacation, but can't quite decide where to go. I'm thinking maybe the Cape. Or Maine. Somewhere where I can listen to the ocean and eat fried clam rolls.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-61011694957214344312010-05-26T07:40:00.000-04:002010-05-26T07:41:45.721-04:00Another great review of LUCY...from BOOKLIST...<br /><br />Yours Truly, Lucy B. Parker: Girl vs. Superstar.<br />Palmer, Robin (Author)<br />May 2010. 224 p. Penguin/Puffin, hardcover, $15.99. (9780399254895). Penguin/Puffin, paperback,<br />$6.99. (9780142415009).<br />Sixth-grader Lucy has been dumped by her two BFFs, is on the alert for the start of her period, and is<br />basically trying to get through each day without humiliating herself. The last thing she needs is to be<br />known as the gawky, untalented stepsister of TV star Laurel Moses, the most adored teen celebrity in the<br />world. But that’s exactly what will happen when Lucy’s mom marries Laurel’s dad. Blending Lucy’s emails<br />to TV agony aunt Dr. Maude with Lucy’s first-person narrative about how her life becomes<br />increasingly entangled with Laurel’s, this funny, fast-paced book introduces what should be a promising<br />new series. Lucy presents herself as just a normal girl trying to survive an extraordinary turn of events, but<br />readers will recognize that there is nothing average about Lucy, and what she lacks in star quality is easily<br />compensated for by her honesty, humor, and moxie. Give this to fans of Meg Cabot’s work, who will<br />enjoy watching Lucy transition from small-town living to life in the limelight.<br />— Kara DeanRobin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-56961591831613405622010-05-23T22:22:00.002-04:002010-05-23T22:22:51.846-04:00And now..an important public service announcement.Love <a href="http://www.girleffect.org/video">this</a>Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-47456029307374661332010-05-18T13:56:00.002-04:002010-05-18T13:57:07.250-04:00Yay, Lucy!What an awesome review of YTLBP!<br /><br />Click <a href="http://www.kidliterate.com/2010/05/12/yours-truly-lucy-b-parker-book-one-girl-vs-superstar-by-robin-palmer/comment-page-1/#comment-2009">here</a> to read...Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-42701501580535288992010-04-23T10:28:00.002-04:002010-04-23T10:32:41.811-04:00Sadly, it's come to this......I had to spend $10 to download this program called <a href="http://www.salon.com/life/feature/2009/04/01/freedom_traister">Freedom</a> so that I would stop Googling completely random things while I was writing. Or check my Facebook page. Or my Amazon ranking. <br /><br />But the thing is, my iPhone still has internet capability.<br /><br />Do you know how frustrating it is to be using your Safari browser on your iPhone to Google when you're sitting in front of your laptop but you can't use that because you don't know how to TURN OFF the Freedom program that you've set to keep you off the Internet for 2 hours?<br /><br />Very.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-19511750935638550872010-04-22T06:51:00.003-04:002010-04-22T07:00:36.504-04:00Lucy B. is here...So the first book in my new series YOURS TRULY, LUCY B. PARKER is now in stores (and of course I had to go and CHECK because I never believe that it's actually going to happen)...so you can go to the store and get it, using it as an excuse to buy a bunch of other books; and maybe some magazines; and maybe a new Moleskine notebook (which is what I do at the bookstore...) or you can click <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Yours-Truly-Lucy-Parker-Superstar/dp/0399254897/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0">here</a><br /><br />There was a really nice mention on one of the CafeMom blogs about it <a href="http://thestir.cafemom.com/big_kid/101451/New_Book_Series_for_the">here</a> where they refer to it as "it's Are You There God, It's Me Margaret pushed to the new millennium with a dose of angst taken out"....which, as far as I'm concerned, is the best compliment ever seeing that the book is actually dedicated to Judy Blume.<br /><br />Will be in L.A. this weekend for the L.A. Time Festival of Books, appearing on a panel at 1p on Sunday on the YA Stage and signing after. Good news is that you don't need to get tickets beforehand, but you should get there early so you get a good seat.<br /><br />Yay Lucy B. Yay LA Times Festival of Books. Yay the fact that it's finally spring.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-63297687814621385872010-04-08T22:43:00.002-04:002010-04-08T22:45:03.097-04:00Lucy B. Parker website is up & running.......and I think it turned out SUPER cute.<br /><br />Click <a href="http://lucybparker.com/">here</a> to see it.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-34947074353907498622010-04-08T07:05:00.002-04:002010-04-08T07:07:47.988-04:00Lucy B. review!So the first book in my YOURS TRULY, LUCY B. PARKER series comes out on April 20th, and some reviews are starting to trickle in....I particularly appreciate <a href="http://tweendom.blogspot.com/2010/03/yours-truly-lucy-b-parker-girl-vs.html">this one</a> by Stacy Dillon.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-25522396930667380222010-04-07T20:21:00.004-04:002010-04-07T20:36:10.959-04:00Come see me!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/S70hp2OaHfI/AAAAAAAAAfY/SPdcOzHx1Dk/s1600/foblogo2002.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 127px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_nsGvnuQzo2M/S70hp2OaHfI/AAAAAAAAAfY/SPdcOzHx1Dk/s400/foblogo2002.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457555326257208818" /></a><br /><br /><br />I'm excited to announce that I'll be on a panel at the 2010 LA Times Festival of Books, held at UCLA. The panel is called Girls Just Wanna Have Fun: Writing Today's Teens and it will take place on Sunday, April 25th at 1pm on the YA Stage. I'll be appearing with Lisi Harrison and Amy Goldman Koss, and it will be moderated by Aaron Hartzler Here's a <a href="http://events.latimes.com/festivalofbooks/general-information/">link</a> to all the pertinent info (ie schedule, free ticket info, etc.) And afterwards I'll be signing.<br /><br />So I just have to say one thing because it's pretty cool. As some of you know, I lived in L.A. for a million years (okay, maybe just 17 but on the bad days it FELT like a million). And for years, when I'd go to the Book Festival, there was this teeny tiny voice inside of me - so faint that I could barely hear it, because what it was saying seemed absolutely absurd - but the voice would say "One day I'll come here as an author. And one day I'll be on one of those panels."<br /><br />Like I said, I thought the idea of that was insane -- I mean who did I think I WAS to dare to allow myself to think like that?! Well, on the BAD days, I did the "Who-do-you-think-you-are" thing. On the good days, I did the "Maybe there's the slightest chance that there could be the tiniest sliver of a possibility that that could actually come to pass." <br /><br />Very glass-half-empty of me, I know.<br /><br />Yeah, well, so guess what? It IS coming to pass.<br /><br />Just keep that in mind when you try and talk yourself out of thinking your dreams can come true, okay?Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5527082761541805466.post-24241803921846137352010-04-06T07:30:00.002-04:002010-04-06T07:31:07.155-04:00Lucy B. Parker is Tweeting........Click <a href="http://twitter.com/LucyBParker">here</a> to follow her. <br /><br />Let's see if she's any better than I am at this Twitter business.Robin Palmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10265310510017806574noreply@blogger.com0