Catriona, it is beautiful, especially because it's so unexpected. But there's beauty everywhere, it's just the style differs.

Thanks, Elaine! Coming from you, I consider that high praise. :)

I love Comic-cons, too, and this one looks great. What's wrong with teachers who try to stifle kids from growing into the interesting, creative people they want to be? Elaine is right, geeks and nerds do bloom later, but we enjoy longer blooms.

I suspect the tacky T-shirts are how some people convince themselves they're having fun when they're really sunburned, hungover, and they have sand in their happy place.

Congrats, Dana! I'm looking forward to reading it. I always find touring fun, too, but I miss the folks at home (counting one husband and two pets as folks), and I know they miss me as well. Have a great tour.

Welcome back, Chrystle. Great post. I like lavender, lemon and anise. the right essential oil really can alter your mood. Looking forward to the new book.

Love this post, Elaine! My monster cat Philly tops your Mystery by a couple of pounds. He's big boned. We both use that excuse.

My two favorites were Jennifer Aniston's and Charlize Theron's dancing dress. Jennifer Lawrence even fell gracefully, and handled the fact that she fell with such poise, I thought. I also liked Shirley Basset's, and was glad to see her pipes are still great. I also noticed the star who tugged her undies, and I thought that maybe strutting that stage so often had made her a little too blase about it.

Funny, Elaine. Childhood does teach us we can be too honest.

Mario, I agree 100%! I'd forgotten the Elwood P. Dowd quote, so thanks for reminding me.

Ooh! The BBC. Dana, I am so impressed! I'm glad it was such fun for you.

I haven't ever clicked with audio books, either. I tried an one on my last CA tour, thinking that would give me lots of time to get through it. But I kept losing track, and ultimately fell back on music CDs. I do think the WHEAT BELLY book sounds good. Why do we have to tinker so much with food?

Hemingway had a wife, something every busy author needs. Thanks for showing us how to do it without one.

Patricia, I didn't know that, and it's good to know. They really balloon at altitude, too. You're lucky you live in a place where it's easy to buy great bread, as well. Increasingly, we have more and more artisan breads available, but much of what is sold here as bread tastes like cardboard. Having discovered how easy it is to bake break allows me to sidestep that. Thanks for the good info.

I loved Charlotte MacLeod's books, and I'm so sorry we lost her. Thanks for writing about her, Dean.

Thanks, Mary. I am very grateful. Wishing you great things in the New Year.

Stefanie, I like "them ladders" better, too. Whenever I see one, I hold out crossed index fingers, even though I know it was my own haste and clumsiness that caused this. Thanks for your good wishes. Hope your 2013 is absolutely grand!

Crazy here, too, Elaine. The holiday unofficial suspension of all driving rules seems to start earlier every year.

What beautiful spots! My favorite is the place where the actual wedding took place. How great that you were able to create a Josie Marcus wedding tour for your fans, Elaine. Looking forward to reading it.

Welcome to the Femmes, Catriona. You're a great addition. I think it's so funny that you and Neil think of this as the land of shiny things. I doubt many Americans do, but it's fun to see it through your eyes.

Brenda, a lot of them don't read the lectures I post either! In online classes, lots of instructors now make video lectures. But I believe if people want to write, then they better be prepared to read, so my lectures aren't podcasts, they're written. I can tell lots of them don't read the lectures either because try to guess what I want them to do without reading the lectures. ::Sigh::

Dean & Peggy, you're absolutely right.

Charlaine, maybe it is all just a game they're playing. Deb, what a great analogy!

Lil, thanks! I'm a pretty good teacher, according to my students: http://www.krisneri.com/class-endorsements.html :)

Thank you all -- I agree entirely. You're right, if they don't read, how do they know what readers want. But -- if I can switch hats, to use an overworked cliche -- when I'm in my bookseller capacity, I see this all the time, as I'm sure other booksellers do as well. People who've never read a book, and who therefore don't know the way books are even traditionally formatted, print their books and they predict their books will have great sales, and they're shocked when nobody at all buys their books. If someone doesn't read, they don't know what books work.