It's Mrs. Pollifax's Life

Oh, the books I would find at my grandparents' houses! Westerns and mysteries over here, classics over there, and Jennifer sitting in the middle of it all, reading for all I was worth.

I still remember the day I found The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax. I was digging through Grandma's coat closet, where she kept toys and other interesting things (I especially loved her globe of the moon), and started browsing through a small collection of Reader's Digest Condensed Books. Even as a kid, Dorothy Gilman's humor grabbed my attention and wouldn't let go. (I didn't read the unabridged version until I was an adult. Then I was sad at what I'd been missing in all those years of rereading my grandmother's condensed version.)

Sooo, there I am, driving along, listening to the radio (I get in the car, the radio goes on. Of course I get all my best ideas there - you were expecting the shower maybe?) and Bon Jovi comes on - "It's My Life" to be precise - and as I'm singing along, I think about Mrs. Pollifax and the day she decided to change her life.

In a precise voice she ticked off the list of charities to which she gave her time; it was a long and sensible list.

The doctor nodded. "Yes, but do you enjoy volunteer work?"

Mrs. Pollifax blinked at the unexpectedness of his question. "That's odd," she said, and suddenly smiled at him. "Actually I suppose I loathe it."

He could not help smiling back at her; there was something contagious about her smile, something conspiratorial and twinkling. "Then perhaps it's time you looked for more congenial outlets," he suggested

Mrs. Pollifax said slowly, with a little frown, "I enjoy meeting the people, you know, it's just that so often nothing more is needed for volunteer work than a good set of teeth."

"I beg your pardon?"

'Teeth - for smiling. There are rules, too. You can't imagine how regimented some of the volunteer work can be. It's very impersonal - not yours, somehow, because of all the restrictions."

"Do you feel you're a particularly creative person?"

Mrs. Pollifax smiled. "Goodness, I don't know. I'm just - me."

He ignored that, saying very seriously, "It's terribly important for everyone, at any age, to live to his full potential. Otherwise a kind of dry rot sets in, a rust, a disintegration of personality."

"Yes," she said simply. "Yes, I agree with you wholeheartedly on that, but what is one to do? After my husband died I set out to make a very sensible life for myself - I always intended to, you see - so that I would never be a nuisance to my children. It's just that -"

"It's too sensible, perhaps?" Caught by something in her eyes that did not match the light mockery of her voice, he said, "But isn't there something you've always longed to do, something you've never had either the time or the freedom for until now?"

Why yes, there is. Mrs. Pollifax has always wanted to be a spy. And so, deciding that it's time to go ahead and indulge herself, time to stop being quite so sensible, she walks into the headquarters of the Central Intelligence Agency, and calmly applies to be a spy.

...Mrs. Pollifax wondered why, when she was being her most serious, people found her so amusing. She supposed that her tastes always had been somewhat peculiar. Her husband's favorite form of endearment for her had been "lovable little goose," which was his way of forgiving the odd bent in her that he didn't quite understand, and as they grew older the children, too, had acquired the habit of thinking her just a little absurd.

I am sure that she would have been humming Bon Jovi as she strode into her interview if they'd been around yet.

It's my life
It's now or never
I ain't gonna live forever
I just want to live while I'm alive
It's my life
My heart is like an open highway
Like Frankie said
I did it my way
I just wanna live while I'm alive
It's my life

Mr. Mason looked shocked. "But Mrs. Politick," he protested, "this is simply not the way in which spies are recruited. Not at all. I appreciate the spirit in which you —"

"Then how?" asked Mrs. Pollifax reasonably. "Where do I present myself?"

"It's - well, it's not a matter of presenting oneself, it's a matter of your country looking for you."

Mrs. Pollifax's glance was gently reproving. "That's all very well," she said, "but how on earth could my country find me in New Brunswick, New Jersey? And have they tried?"

Now that's what you call a second career! I want to be Mrs. Pollifax when I grow up. Do you think, if I sign up to take karate with my kids and work very hard, that I might be able to save the world a few times when I hit my sixties?

Julie Kagawa

When I was a kid, I read Kipling's Puck of Pook's Hill, absolutely falling in love with his friendly, fatherly characterization of Puck. After reading The Iron King, though, I have to admit I much prefer Julie Kagawa's not-at-all fatherly version of Puck.

It's a familiar set up - two boys (Ash and Robbie), are both in love with the same girl (Meghan). But Meghan happens to be the half-human daughter of Oberon, Robbie is the infamous Puck, and Ash is the son of Oberon's enemy. Fans of the series have already aligned themselves into Team Puck and Team Ash divisions, and the second book, The Iron Daughter, only just hit the shelves.

(And since we've already established that I'm a sucker for Trickster types... Yay, Team Puck!)

I noticed in reading your blog that you've posted a couple of times lately about music. The Bad Romance couples post was a wonderful example of exactly what the Literary Soundtrack is about. I also enjoyed the Unseelie Dance Party video. It was fun to watch something you said fit well with your story - fun to get a further insight into your vision. I thought the lyrics seemed to work with The Iron King, too, capturing some of the conflicts your characters are dealing with. Is there any music that you think fits Iron King particularly well? What about music that fits your upcoming books in the Iron Fey series?

Thank you! I have a fairly extensive playlist that I listen to sometimes to get in the writing mood. For music that fits The Iron King, some of my favorites are Geek in the Pink (Puck’s Theme), Stray Cat Strut (Grimalkin’s Theme), and Fall for You (Meghan and Ash’s theme). For the Iron Fey series, I think the songs by Within Temptation fit the overall feel of the books.

Unfortunately, playlist.com, the site that I use for my playlists, has recently gone wonky and taken out a lot of the songs I use or has made them unavailable. So for the time being, I’ve decided to take down the lists on my site, rather then put up incomplete playlists.

Loved the Iron King book trailer. Did you have any input on that, especially the music? (What is that piece, btw? Is it something fans can buy if they want or was it written for the trailer?)

I adore the trailer! I can’t take any credit on it though; it was all done by the talented folks at Harlequin Teen. I do love the creepiness of the music, but as far as I know, it was written solely for the trailer and isn’t available anywhere else.

Some writers find the right song or group can help them get in the mood to write; some writers find music distracts them. What side of the fence do you fall on?

I think I’m in the middle. Sometimes, I listen to music to get into the mood, but sometimes I’d rather write to the sound of silence. I also tend to obsess on a song I really like, and play it over and over and over again until everyone around me is ready to scream.

Whether or not you listen to music while you are writing, do you find music to be inspirational? Have you ever gotten an idea for a story from listening to a song?

Oh, definitely. Sometimes, I’ll hear a song and think: that would be perfect for this character, or this scene. I’m able to write better if I have a song to base it off of, if that makes any sense.

What is your favorite kind of music? What do you like to listen to?

I think I have pretty eclectic tastes. I like anything from Sweetbox to Bon Jovi to My Chemical Romance. It’s all about how a song can make me feel.

Here's the Iron King book trailer, for those of you who haven't seen it yet:



Music: Geek in the Pink, Jason Mraz
            Stray Cat Strut, Stray Cats
            Fall For You, Secondhand Serenade
            Within Temptation
            Sweetbox
            Bon Jovi
            My Chemical Romance
Books: The Iron King, Julie Kagawa
            The Iron Daughter, Julie Kagawa
            Puck of Pook's Hill, Rudyard Kipling

Author Interview: Christine Feehan

Christine Feehan is impressive. A New York Times bestselling author. Mother to 11 children. (11!)  Five  series. Over 40 books. And she's only been published for the last 12 years. In case you're counting on your fingers, I'll do the math for you. That would be two to four books every year, with another four coming out this year. (OK - I cheated and looked up her publishing dates. Hey, I write and I read. I don't do math.)

Me? Impressed? Oh, don't be silly. I only dream about that kind of success, that's all...

She very kindly agreed to share her thoughts on music and books with us.

You are probably aware that Stephenie Meyer has a playlist on her site for each of her books. Carrie Vaughn, similarly, has a playlist at the beginning of each of her Kitty Norville books, and other writers have started talking more about the influence of music on their writing process. Do you have any particular pieces of music that you associate with any of your novels? Do you ever listen to music as you write, or use music for inspiration?

I always listen to music when I’m working and the playlist is different for the various series. I prefer music with lyrics playing very low in the background. I wrote for years with my children around me and a great deal of noise. Perfect silence makes it difficult for me to write. Lyrics are often an inspiration, but so is the way the song is sung. Bon Jovi comes to mind. *VBG*

You have a number of characters who are musicians, and in several of your books music plays an important role in the story. Carpathian magic, for instance, depends on chants; in Dark Symphony music is what initially brings Antonietta and Byron together, and later is an important element in their relationship. Is music an important part of your life? What type of music do you listen to the most?

I listen to almost everything. I’m not a rap fan and can only listen to one or two heavy metal songs, but I love music. Phantom of the Opera is a must of course. But even my playlists are wildly eclectic. I probably listen to love songs the most.

You commissioned a song for your character Joley, in Turbulent Sea. Obviously, you felt this was important for that book / character. Can you tell us how that came about? What led you to pursue the creation of an actual song to serve as Joley's theme?

I like to provide interesting and different things for my readers. Joley is a singer and I thought it would be very fun to make a music video. To do that we needed our own song. I thought the song told the readers a lot about the heroine in the book and the way she felt about the man she was falling in love with. She was very torn because she believed him to be someone who would kill for money and she could never allow herself to love someone with that kind of amoral behavior. The song and video hopefully portrayed her conflict.

Are there any songs that bring to mind a certain book for you? Are there any books that bring to mind a song?

Each book I write has a song of its own in my head for personal reasons. The Dark books have more of a gothic or alternative sound. The GhostWalkers are always far more action oriented. With the Drakes I play songs that feel like love songs to me—love of family, friends and their man. The Leopards are wild and the music has a more jungle beat to it. Of course Phantom of the Opera works well for anything! Water Bound needed songs that represented someone broken or shattered. Music is so diverse and can create moods so I utilize it as a tool whenever I write.

Turbulent Sea, the song, was written by CORVO, a romantic horror rock group. You can download a free MP3 of the song at their website.

(No math equations were injured in the making of this post. And if any were, it's my parents' fault. They gave me the faulty math genes.)

Books: Dark Symphony, Turbulent Sea, Water Bound, by Christine Feehan
             Stephenie Meyer
             Carrie Vaughn
Music: Bon Jovi
             Phantom of the Opera
             CORVO