Ideas for Jill Mansell: Because I Love Me a Challenge

So yesterday I saw that the rather kind and lovely Jill Mansell responded to my post about her book, Rumor Has It and she mentioned that she's written/published thirty books and is running out of ideas.

Oh dear. Now anyone who has spent any time knowing us old farts knows that I'm considered the idea lady around here. After all, I was the one who came up with the infamous idea of the cojoined circus twins who find their HEA in the apt named High Wire Honeymoon.

And don't forget the brilliant collaboration that Carolyn and I did called Wrapped Up Romance that took place in the sexual disease clinic (Carolyn wrote that brilliant line: "But doctor, I thought a hymen only belonged to Jewish people and I'm Catholic!")

So as a courtesy to Jill Mansell, we offer ideas for Chick Lit novels that she may use or discard at her own discretion.

Bedtime for Bozo: in which Ronald Reagan historian Jane Whymen falls in love with a clown. Her parents don't understand but her best friend envies her new make-up color palette.

Breakfast at Tiffni's: Tiffni opens a bed and breakfast but discovers that she's infested with bedbugs. Everyone tells her to call an exterminator but the sight of Buzzy Pupils with his spray gun turns her insides to jelly. So instead she turns her B&B into a bug and breakfast and ends up engaged to Tom Thumb, an arachnaphobe.

Everyone Says I Love You but Only the Mailman Means It When He Wants You To Sign For a Parcel: Hell, I just like the title.

Sally's Secret: Hint, her name isn't Sally.

The Amazing Adventures of Two Old Farts in Romancelandia: Okay, limited readership for this one but imagine the fun. Missing dentures, chasing after cute doctors but having to stop to pee. There can be the fun of broken hips, loss of memory and the ever enjoyable viagra mishaps. Then again, since this is my current life....

So despite my willingness to be a total ridiculous mess, I do love the chick lit genre and especially that it's a lot more humorous and female positive than straight romance. I love authors who are willing to accept that their books are not their babies and accept a little needling. I love that my embarrassment of being caught with my pants at half mast doesn't stop me from pulling them all the way down (I do it to make Carolyn laugh).

And if anyone wants to use any of the above ideas, you may. But Clean Sweep, where Sassy Struthers falls in love with her garbageman Eddie Passmethebreadma, despite her parent's habit of hoarding old shoelaces and filling their truck with kleenex boxes, discovers that true love means never having to apologize for having roaches under the sink.... well, that one's mine. Nobody understands sanitation as well as I do.