Dedicated to Jamila

Here is Jamila's '80s video pick, which I like in all the ways, but specifically because this was the first 45 single I owned when I was but a wee lass.

I was very proud of my single and played it all the time, meaning that "Come On Eileen" is basically always running somewhere in the back of my brain. Not a bad song to have on constant loop!

Meet Jamila!

Jamila is next up for our special Spotlight section! Ohhh yeahhh. 

If you've visited the comments sections you know this lady is laugh-out-loud-able, and she's helpful, too, reminding me there's a FREAKIN' FERRIS WHEEL in the first book, when I listed The Stuff of Wilfair.

Also? When she first joined in on the blog she cited an exchange I still feel very close to -- when Gomery says "wait, please" to Fair in the motel at the start of "Wilfair." When she said she tried out the line aloud on the subway I squalled with joy. Jamila, for that alone I'd make you a yummy vegan turkey dinner, if you were here in LA right now.

And now, the questions!

What word or saying do you use far too much? Like. Just like Fair. Or apparently. Whenever I do one of those facebook status word cloud things, apparently is at the top.

I can hit the "like" button on like, like, far too often, too.

Favorite breakfast? coffee, light and sweet. Everything bagel with hummus if I have time.

Everything bagel! It fills me with garlic and onion early on, so I can breathe on unsuspecting people all day.

What thrills you in a book or movie? Love little stomach tingles and anticipation. I love when characters are a mix of sincere, snarky, reserved, and bold.

All this.

Are you a collector or a get-rid-of-er? If the former, what do you collect? oh, man. I NEED to be a get-rid-of-er. My house is so cluttered. I don't really intentionally collect things, I just keep buying more of the same things over and over again. Like candles. Mugs. Costume jewelry (especially big dangly earrings). Any sort of Parisian flavored tchotchkes. BOOKS. So many books.

I want to make the journey back to big dangly earrings but I wear glasses. I always feel like I have too much stuff on my head. Maybe you'll inspire me to try again.

Have you seen a ghost? Or anything else unexplainable? no and thank goodness. I'm scared of ghosts. Like, whenever my husband even pauses slightly on one of those ghost hunter TV shows, I have to leave the room.

I have a fun hotel ghost photo I'll post soon. I don't want to scare you, though!

Who is your musician boyfriend or girlfriend? Substitute writer, actor, or artist, if you like. I puffy heart Tyler Glenn of Neon Trees, even though he's a decade younger than me. Lately I'm also revisiting my late 90s Indigo Girls mad deep love. (I could go on forever in the writer [JOHN GREEN - ILU!], actor, and artist categories.)

Aw, "Everybody Talks" by Neon Trees is on the "Stay Awhile" playlist.

Do you believe in fortune cookies? depends on how unique they are. If it's some "You will have a happy life"  bullshit, then it just feels condescending, like we're supposed to just take whatever mass-produced platitudes instead of demanding something individual.

Writing fortunes for friends is one of my minor hobbies. I like to make them individual and upbeat. I don't go in for mass-produced platitudes, either.

What's the secret of a lasting friendship? finding the same things inappropriately funny

ohmygoshyes

Wilfair question: What wish would you make in the hotel's Moonbeam Threshold? to eat as much as I want and not get fat. True story.

ohmygoshyespartdeux

Thank you so much for the fab answers, Jamila.

Here's a fun fact: Jamila and wealhtheow hang, which you KNOW is a good time. (You met the fantastic wealhtheow in the first Spotlight.) And, as I mentioned, I do love selecting special Spotlight photos. Choosing wealhtheow's was a cinch, since I adore the Northern California area she grew up in, and have tons of photos. Jamila, though? I did some thinking about comments she's left and things she has said. She loves shoes with stitching, like me, and is vegan. And she mentioned she has never been to California.

That stuck in my brain. So I went looking for a photo that really said California to me, and this is what I landed on: El Capitan. It's in Yosemite National Park, it's one of the world's great granite monoliths, and it absolutely fills me with this cosmic hum I can't explain. I love this rock formation in a way that is surprising and distracting. I love it in the way a woman perhaps should not love a rock.

Nope, I'm not a climber but I am an admirer of epically magnificent wonders that have been here for a long time and will be here thousands of years in the future. To me, it is a powerful symbol of the Golden State.

El Cap's my jam, in short. I want the Wilfairians to visit it, or another granite monolith, so they can have woodsy adventures and ask each other metaphysical questions. I want them to visit it because I want its bigness to fill their hearts. It fills mine.

Up next Friday: a new special Spotlight! Hooray!

1000%

Jamila, here's a bonus photo for your Spotlight. It's the photo I nearly went with (but my El Capitan obsession won out).

You mentioned liking the 1000% reference from "Redwoodian"; here's the window that jump-started that particular idea for me. It is at the Ahwahnee, a hotel not too far from El Capitan.

I think Fair and Gomery might be off to the left, just out of the camera's viewfinder.

Hello Hello!

Darlene, Nicola, and Felicia! Thanks for following here and/or at Facebook. That's grand.
Here's a welcome video. Heard this song? It's a love letter to LA, where the "Wilfair" books are set. Definitely captures that sunny Southern California vibe.

Thank You

I love my blog peeps.

Yeah, I said "peeps."

Thanks for letting me know what you'd like to see more of. Awesome. In all honesty, I am so happy to do more of the "Cars" and "Breakfast"-type posts. They help me think about the stories in new ways, too! Exclamation points!

I'm also glad you like knowing what else Fair & friends are up to, too. Truth be told I do think quite a bit about what they do outside of the stories.

Have a great weekend, and if there's anything else you'd like to see, ping me. You're the best!

Howdy, Bailey!

Thank you for adding your la-la-loverly photo to the followers widget!

So the LA-based welcome photo I've chosen for you is unfortunately a bit grainy but I can't not share it. A couple of years ago we had this epic rainbow over Los Angeles. Like a really saturated richly hued rainbow, not a 'bow that sort of petered out halfway through. (No offense to half-hearted rainbows, I'm sure they are trying and all, but still, c'mon. Get it together, paltrier rainbows.)

When I looked north I saw that the rainbow ended exactly at the famous Hollywood Sign. That wee white strip on the hill in the distance? Yep, that's the sign. It was so sort of perfect I started laughing, and then I ran for my camera phone, which unfortunately did not produce the best photo.

There's some Hollywood love in my books, and I aim to make my stories more rainbow than rain, so this photo feels like a fit for the blog.

Thanks again for the follow, Bailey!

Welcome, Carrie!

Thanks for following. I'm glad you're here.

So I dithered about what your hello photo should be. I've been going with snaps taken around LA for the hello posts, since that is where the WILFAIR books are set and where I live. And I love it so.

I finally settled on a food theme for your hello, probably because I'm considering a late-night pantry visit.

Here's a pic of Randy's Donuts, a local shop that's been in a ton of movies. The apple fritters are quite yummy, too. And it fits since the WILFAIR books feature odd buildings and Los Angeles landmarks.

I believe IRON MAN filmed at Randy's. Do you think Tony Stark is a jelly doughnut kind of superhero? :)

* Let me also add that Carrie is part of the NA Alley team. Word up!

Hi, Victoria!

Thank you so much for following the WILFAIR blog. I try to keep it lively here with the occasional video or photo to mix it up. If you have thoughts about the books please feel free to drop me a line! I love feedback.

Here's are snapshots of a local jacaranda tree and a majestic palm to show my appreciation. I wish I could put a candy bowl out for visitors, like at The Wilfair Hotel, but since this is the internet a few nice photos must suffice. (Both photos were snapped in the vicinity of Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue, the real intersection of the fictional Wilfair.)

Oh, and WILFAIR friends, check out Victoria's site NA Alley, which covers all things to do with New Adult books. Hooray NA! (A quick addendum -- lots of lovely ladies helm NA Alley, and I've been excited to host a few this week at the WILFAIR blog. So thanks for stopping by, NA Alleyians! NA Alleyists? Do you have a collective noun for yourselves going? I do love a good collective noun. Does that mean I probably need to get out more?)

jacaranda photo cr: the awesome Kim Blank

Hi, Erika!

Oh, how I like to give a howdy and a welcome to readers who drop me a line or comment over on Facebook. And on a Monday? Even better, because cheerful things are nice on a Monday.

Erika very recently gave me some great food for thought in a comment section, so she is today's blog star.

And speaking of food? She recommended this cake place in San Diego which I now must visit. They make an Earl Grey Shortbread. Say what? Please. That sounds scrumptious.

Also, a possible new Finley hotel, located not far from San Diego, is hinted at in REDWOODIAN. So I'll have to make a day trip around the area for research, right? Fueled by delicious Earl Grey Shortbread? I think that's a plan.

Anywho, thanks, Erika, for the note, the comments, and your WILFAIR support! Much appreciated.

PS I meant to add this as your welcome photo since we got to talking about delicious sweets. These are homemade caramel marshmallows and I want to eat one on the hour, every hour, for the rest of my life. They're made fresh daily at Farmers Market, where Sutton Von Hunt works in the books.

Hey You Guys! Thanks!

So thank you for liking my Facebook page! I'll post there a few times a week but I swear I won't weigh down your feeds.

I'm so appreciative of the lovely feedback and support. When I wrote the first two books I was just writing on my own, but as I hunker down inside this third one I'm very much writing for the fantastic people I've heard from. It was Steinbeck's great advice -- write only for a single reader -- so I'm taking it and writing for a few. (Okay, so I'm mostly taking his advice.)

If there's anything you particularly liked about Wilfair and Redwoodian, and want to see more of, let me know. Or less. You know I'm easy-breezy on the feedback.

Also, I'm going to have a haiku contest in the next week or two, so watch this space.

Thanks, nice people!

Bess Bieluczyk Photography

I got the nicest note about the books from a reader named Bess a couple of weeks back. I wrote her back right away and that's when I discovered her amazing photography.

Her photos, for me, encapsulate the little mysteries of our everyday world; each one is a story and a few possess these strangely poignant elements (picture a cast-off lighter and burnt candle sitting on a plate of half-eaten birthday cake).

I asked Bess if I could post one of her photos here and she kindly said yes. I chose the one below, for many reasons, but principally these two: We've all got a pile of pins we're waiting to stick in our own personal globe. And number two? The glass of ice water. I know I need one when I think about my next trip.

See more beautiful things at Bess Bieluczyk Photography.

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Pins and a Map 

Thanks for the Follow, Brittney and Joy!

I present to you, in a show of thanks, one of my favorite Wilshire and Fairfax signs; it is located on Johnie's restaurant.

Fair Finley loves her coffee. But, really, so many of us do.

A Warning to Readers

So. Here's something about me: If you drop me a line I'll likely drop you a line back and chat and chat and chat.

While I'm my father's daughter in many ways -- we both have blue eyes and round faces and we share an annoying penchant for changing tables in restaurants at least twice after we're seated -- my amazing mom and I do share one huge trait: We like to talk to people wherever we go.

The grocery store line, the park, anywhere. We will probably ask you about your favorite food and your pets and your theories on space travel by the time our brief moment together is over.

I'm saying this because I love to hear from people regarding the Wilfair books -- or anything, really -- but I'll probably write back. If you're down with this, great. If not, no worries.

For Carly

Hi Carly!

I'm so charmed by your comment on my Stay Awhile playlist post that I wanted to write you a thank you -- thank you! -- and elaborate a bit further.

Many of those songs I listed, as well as the songs found elsewhere on the Wilfair blog, inspire me simply via sound and feel. While I absolutely adore lyrics, sometimes the emotion a song evokes, just through tone and instruments, is what fills my well.

But there are few significant songs in the Wilfair world. Here are five.

Sunshine by Keane. This wasn't a band I regularly listened to; a friend of mine loved them, though, so I decided to check them out. I really liked this song in particular, and it was the first song I remember listening to as I waded into the first few pages of Wilfair. I had it on repeat when Fair first walks over to Motel Fairwil, if memory serves.

Sometime Around Midnight by The Airborne Toxic Event. This song is a bit more melancholy than the feel of the books -- although the books may yet walk some melancholy roads -- but it really captures the moment when someone you weren't expecting to see crosses your path and you nearly liquefy. Plus, this is a local band, and I like having some LA acts on my list.

Short Skirt/Long Jacket by Cake. Guy in lust with a lady exec. Uh, hellz yes, this was going on the Wilfair playlist!

Diving for Hearts by Corinne Bailey Rae. I first heard this song the week I decided if I was going to write some light, superficial books about an heiress who gets into some crazy high jinks or if I was going to write some books that spoke to real emotions and real matters and how it feels to make a foe your friend. I opted for the latter (with some high jinks thrown in). The diving and underwater imagery in the song appealed for obvious pool-based reasons, too.

The Golden State by John Doe (with Eddie Vedder and Corin Tucker). This is a LOVE SONG. The lyrics just twist my toes. And I'm mad for the title, which is both California's nickname, of course, and an apt way to describe how being in love feels. (Also, all the Wilfair hotels are in California. California is flat-out, 100% magical, in my opinion.)

Thank you, Carly, for indulging me!

I may post a few Stay Awhile songs that do give clues to what's going to happen. Now I'm tempted! Watch this space. :)