Welcome to guest blogger CINDY SAMPLE! Cindy, a prolific author, writes the popular “Hot Flash” column for the Gold River Community Newspaper. She's a frequent speaker in the Sacramento area with topics ranging from “Never let a lack of ability stand in the way of success,” “Dating for the Hot Flash Set,” and “You really want to be an author?”
Cindy is the past president of the Sacramento Chapter of Sisters in Crime.
LOOKING FOR LOVE . . . in all the wrong places. Some of you may recall that line from a famous song. It perfectly describes my dating life and that of my protagonist, Laurel McKay, a newly divorced soccer mom.
Ever since DYING FOR A DATE was released, people assume I’m the resident expert on dating, which I guess is why I was asked to guest blog on the subject of romance. Now I will admit that I’ve been brave enough to venture onto a variety of on-line dating sites in search of Mr. Right. And yes, I even admit to going on coffee dates with 34 potential Mr. Rights. My protagonist, on the other hand, was talked into joining a matchmaking agency called THE LOVE CLUB, the safe alternative to on-line dating.
And that’s where our paths diverge. My coffee dates have resulted in interesting conversations with some very cool, mature men, with the exception of the one guy who tried to impress me by sharing that his best friend was an assassin (honest, I wouldn’t joke about that).
Laurel’s first date by contrast wanted to have HER for dessert. So she did what any resourceful woman would do: she whacked him on the head with the first viable weapon she could find, a cell phone. Things start going downhill when he is found murdered the next day, with her unfortunately the last person to see him alive. When her second date disappears during dinner, the handsome detective in charge of the investigation can’t figure out if she is a killer or the next victim.
Rumor has it that authors write what they know. Evidently I know dating, but fortunately all of my exes are still alive. At least I think they are.
So has anyone ever gone out on a date so bad that a few dastardly thoughts crossed your mind? We are all dying to have you share your worst date stories. Share your story or make a comment and you'll be eligible for a copy of DYING FOR A DATE!
For more information or additional dating tips from Cindy, check out her website at www.cindysamplebooks.com.
DYING FOR A DATE is available as a trade paperback and e-book. It is published by L&L Dreamspell and can be ordered from Amazon, Barnes&Noble, Fictionwise, Mobipocket, and any indie store.
15 comments:
Oh, I don't even want to remember my awful dating period, but since you asked...I once went out with a frat boy to a frat party. He promptly got very, very drunk. His friends started encouraging him to "perform." He turned to me and explained that he liked to dance naked. I was soooooo out of there.
Was there kegs everywhere, Joanna? I might have been there!
Ah yes, those frat boys were a rowdy lot.Thanks for the memory, Joanna.
I've locked my worst dates out of my memory, but a funny first one was back when I was in high school and the guy wanted us to see Children of the Corn--because he thought it would make me want to jump in his lap.
Okay, I was on a first date with a guy I met at a singles party. We were playing tennis and I injured my foot. At the time I wasn't sure what I did, all I knew was that it really, really hurt. We go back to my place to ice it and it continues to hurt even iced. My date was very put out that I wouldn't put out. The next day I went to the ER and turns out it was broken and I was in a cast for six weeks. Never heard from Prince Charming again.
I wonder if you make the potential Mr. Rights sign a waiver before coffee or at least tell them anything they say could end up in your next novel.
My worst date would probably be the fellow who asked me out to dinner and a movie. The dinner was at a bowling alley -- and the movie turned out to be "Deep Throat"!
These stories are crying out for a place in your next novel, Cindy!
I cannot remember back to my dating days but enjoyed reading this blog.
Helen Kiker
hdkiker@comcast.net
Great comments everyone. I'm pleased to report that some of you have gone out with even bigger losers than I have. I envision an entire series of DYING FOR A DATE, volumes 1 - 8. So many potential victims, so little time.
Blind dates can be a minefield. I remember being set up for a blind date in college when stack heeled shoes were all the rage. When I put mine on, I was 6 feet tall. So, of course I had to wear the latest style for my blind date. But when my girlfriend, her date, and my blind date walked in the dorm to pick me up, my date was about 5'5". Stupidly, the first words out of my mouth were, "Let me change my shoes." It was all downhill from there!
Hmmm. So many bad dates, so little time to remember them all. Of course, this all happened before I was married. Let's see there was beard-guy who took me to a party at his friend's house. I sat on the sofa and he sat on the floor by my feet. During the evening, as the wine flowed freely, he reached under the leg of my jeans and ran his hand over my bare calf. Then he looked up at me and said, "I didn't know you wore boots tonight." Shocked and embarrassed by my supposedly leathery calves, I stood up and blurted, "I didn't wear boots tonight!" and stomped out with his friends howling with laughter behind me.
My all-time worst date was when I was a college student and I accepted a date offer from my youngish Experimental Psychology professor. I was flattered and ultimately ignored a little warning voice inside me that said, "Don't do it!" After dinner, he said he wanted to show me something important at his apartment. Stupidly, I went along. No sooner than we sat down on his sofa, he brought out the Kama Sutra, a book of graphic Indian porn. Guess he thought seeing those pornographic images would get me all crazy with lust for him. He got me crazy all right--I wanted to punch his lights out! But I couldn't because I knew then that he was the type that would fail me. I mustered all my self-control and insisted that he take me home, which he did. Afterwards, he turned my A into a B. This was before the era of sexual harassment. I didn't file a complaint, but I should have. I figured "Karma" would eventually do him in.--Donna Del Oro
My married friend fixed me up with her brother on a blind date. The four of us went to the zoo. This guy barely spoke all night beyond a grunt when asked a question. Later my friend apologized for her brother.
Thanks for the comments. So many bad date stories and enough real life characters who could probably use a good cell whacking from Laurel McKay, my protagonist.
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