Notes from Boston

Happy Wednesday! I’m finally feeling festive. Still don’t have our tree up, but the kids are preparing some holiday music, and I have a concert this weekend. Should be fun!

I’m slowing down in writing Minuet because Drumbeat is back from my publisher with some suggested edits. These weren’t demands; I asked for some suggestions because I felt the story was lacking. My publisher, being a fabulous human being, gave me great feedback. So instead of simply messing with it and getting more dissatisfied, I now have targeted things to work on. (I’m weird…this is my favorite part.)

I’m still sharing from Minuet, though, and this follows right from last week’s. Amelia asked if Sage was clear on the whole “leave Jamie alone” thing. Amelia still hasn’t shared the dirt she has on Sage, but she’s not above implementing the first part of her plan.

WIPmath: 12/6/2017 = (2-1) + 6 = 7 paragraphs, mostly dialog.

Sage swallowed visibly. “Fine. You have my word, I won’t contact Jamie again.”

“Oh, hell, no. Not good enough,” Mack said.

Amelia smiled meanly. “Get your new man out here.”

“What? No!”

Too late. The beefcake who had spoken from the other room emerged, looked at the doorway, and raised an eyebrow. “Sage, what’s going on?”

“Nothing, baby. I’ll just be a sec.”

Amelia beckoned Mr. Muscles with one finger. Obediently, he came over. Well-trained puppy.

Like what you read? Be sure to check out the other entries and add your own. Just post a bit of your WIP, connect it to the date, and link up with us. Many thanks to Emily Wrayburn for giving us this space. Happy reading and writing!

Happy Wednesday! I think the dust has settled from the school musical and vacation. Life is back to normal, whatever that means.

I made a decision this week to stop accepting requests for book reviews. I’ll still review stuff I’m reading, but it’s felt a lot lately like one more thing I can’t quite manage or keep up with. If you’re interested in reading about why, I posted yesterday.

Meanwhile, I’m still working on Mack’s story. Amelia hasn’t shared with me whatever dirt she has on Sage, but I guess she’ll talk when I’m writing in her POV. I’m taking a different approach with this novel. Instead of alternating POV, it’s divided into sections, each in a different POV (Mack’s, Amelia’s, and Jomari’s—I haven’t introduced him yet).

Sticking with the scene I’ve been posting from, last time, I ended with this:

Sage laughed. He eyed her up and down, making Mack’s blood boil. “Oh, sweetie. What are you going to do if I don’t?”

This week, Amelia makes herself perfectly clear to Sage.

WIPmath: 11/29/2017 = 2 x 9 = 18 sentences

“Not a damn thing. But Jamie’s got friends now, see, and they’re not as nice as I am. You ever see his buddy Nate?” She raised her hand as high as she could reach. “He’s ’bout six-five and built like a football player.”

Mack wisely didn’t laugh. Nate was hardly the type to take anyone out. He was intimidating on first sight, though. Amelia had exaggerated by a couple inches, but Nate was a giant compared to Jamie.

“You do anything, and I’ll call the cops myself.” Sage tried to stare Amelia down.

“Not saying he’ll put a hand on you,” she replied. Still calm, still focused. “I’m saying we know what you’re capable of. You’ll hurt Jamie and then claim you never touched him. And I’m saying you’re gonna regret that. You’re not the only one who knows things that may or may not be used against you. Are we clear?”

Like what you read? Be sure to check out the other entries and add your own. Just post a bit of your WIP, connect it to the date, and link up with us. Many thanks to Emily Wrayburn for giving us this space. Happy reading and writing!

High School Musical Jr. was a success! The cast did a fantastic job, and I’m super proud of my kids. If you’ve seen the show before, my son played Jack Scott, the announcer—“the velvet fog of East High.” It was a perfect role for him, giving him the chance to ad lib a bit in a few places. My daughter played one of the Rebels, and she also brought a lot of heart to it, even without having any lines.

I didn’t have much chance to write last week, as I was finishing two editing jobs and volunteering at the school for the shows. This week, it’s vacation, and I’m catching back up with revisions on Drumbeat. Hopefully next week I’ll be back in the writing saddle.

This week’s WIPpet, still in Minuet, follows from last time. Mack and Amelia have gone to see Sage, and Mack’s having trouble holding back.

WIPmath: 11/22/2017 = 2 x 2 = 4 paragraphs

A muffled voice came from somewhere in Sage’s apartment. He called over his shoulder, “Be right there, honey.” Turning back to Mack and Amelia, he said, “You see? I’ve got someone here. Now, why would I want to bother with my worthless ex when I’ve got him?”

“How dare you!” Mack tried to break free from Amelia again. “Jamie’s worth a thousand of you, you bastard.”

Amelia, still clutching Mack’s shirt, peered around him. “Sage, I’m tired, okay? I want to go home. Mack’s like a rabid dog right now, and it’s exhausting. So you listen to me.” She let go of Mack and stood next to him, hands on hips. “This is the one and only time I’m gonna say it. Stay the fuck away from Jamie. You won’t like the consequences otherwise.”

Sage laughed. He eyed her up and down, making Mack’s blood boil. “Oh, sweetie. What are you going to do if I don’t?”

Like what you read? Be sure to check out the other entries and add your own. Just post a bit of your WIP, connect it to the date, and link up with us. Many thanks to Emily Wrayburn for giving us this space. Happy reading and writing!

Happy Wednesday! It’s been a bit of a rough week, but I’m hanging in there. Finished an editing job and started another. And it’s tech week for the school show! Any local friends, feel free to come on out to see High School Musical this weekend.

I didn’t get as much written as I’d have liked over the week, and I utterly failed to finish edits on Drumbeat. But I did get some done. I only worked on Minuet, finishing a couple of chapters last week.

Today’s snippet continues right from last week’s. I’m staying with Minuet because Mack’s being more talkative right now. As a refresher, Mack and his friend-with-benefits Amelia have gone to see Sage. Mack (and probably everyone who has been keeping up with the stories so far) would really, really like to punch Sage, but Amelia said not to. Here’s Sage’s reaction. Fair warning: Mack is sweary. (Edited to remove spoilers.)

WIPmath: 11/15/2017 = 15 = 1 + 5 = 6 paragraphs.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Sage folded his arms.

“To your continued stalking of Jamie, you sick fuck,” Mack spat. He leaned forward far enough that Amelia tightened her grip on his shirt.

“That’s a good one. Listen, I have company, so you can come back later.” Sage went to shut the door.

Mack stuck out his foot, blocking it. “Not until we get this settled. Don’t you dare fucking lie to me, Sage. Did you know Jamie’s real messed up because of you? It’s not some game.” The way Jamie had looked the last time Mack saw him, blacked out on his bed, came to mind. At least a third of Mack’s rage wasn’t directed at Sage; it was aimed at himself. He’d seen the signs, but he’d ignored them. Mack wasn’t going to stand by and let a menace like Sage destroy a man Mack thought of as a brother.

“And how do you think I feel?” Sage, being Sage. Another non-shocker. “He’s the one who left me, not the other way around. Eight years, and you’d think he could at least talk it through first.”

“Eight years of you fucking with him,” Mack growled. “Don’t even try it, you asshole. Every one of us saw what you did.”

Like what you read? Be sure to check out the other entries and add your own. Just post a bit of your WIP, connect it to the date, and link up with us. Many thanks to Emily Wrayburn for giving us this space. Happy reading and writing!

Happy Wednesday! The official results are in: both my kids made it into the cast of Big Fish (the winter school musical). Younger child is in the ensemble, and older child is playing the Fisherman. They were super excited that one of older child’s BFFs got a terrific part too. He deserves it!

My book launch last week was successful. A number of very nice reviews (thank you all so much, those of you who read and posted!) and a great tour. I had a couple of awesome interviews too. I’m happy with the results.

On to this week’s WIPpet. I’m setting aside Luke’s story and posting from Mack’s. I’m working on both projects, Tree of Life and Minuet, until one of them takes over so I can finish. I have several chapters completed for both projects, and both are going well at the moment. Hooray for chatty main characters!

Minuet is told in three parts, each from a different POV. This won’t be a book for everyone. It’s about a ménage à trois with Mack (bi/pansexual, aromantic cisgender guy), Amelia (bi cisgender woman), and Jomari (bi trans guy)*. While some people associate ménage with erotica, this actually has a lower heat level. I can thank a couple of my fellow WIPpeteers for encouraging me to go for it and not worry about others’ reactions to less overt sex.

WIPmath: 11/8/2017 = (1 + 1) x 8 = 16 sentences from the very beginning.

The first thing Mack Whitman did when Sage opened the door was aim a punch at his face.

He’d have landed it too, if Amelia hadn’t launched herself at him from behind and grabbed his arms just in time. He squirmed, but she didn’t let go. He angled his head to glare at her.

“You don’t want the cops involved,” she murmured.

He nodded, and she finally let go. Mack clenched his hands at his sides, still itching to have at Sage. Realistically, Sage probably could’ve taken him. Mack was five-foot-nine and might have weighed a hundred forty soaking wet. Sage wasn’t much taller, but he had a good thirty pounds on Mack, mostly muscle. He’d definitely been working out lately.

The look on his face made Mack’s rage meter climb again. Smug, taunting. Nothing out of the ordinary there. Mack wanted smack the expression off his face while calling him a dozen nasty names. The only thing stopping him was Amelia’s hand on his back.

Like what you read? Be sure to check out the other entries and add your own. Just post a bit of your WIP, connect it to the date, and link up with us. Many thanks to Emily Wrayburn for giving us this space. Happy reading and writing!

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*A note about the terms I used: I think most people know what bisexual is, but here’s a brief primer on the other words.

Pansexual: generally means attracted to or open to people of all genders. Bisexual can be used similarly. The best distinction I saw was that bi usually emphasizes sexuality and pan usually emphasizes gender. They’re related terms (but don’t get me involved in the Tumblr-level bi vs. pan debates!).

Aromantic: someone who doesn’t experience romantic attraction (i.e., “falling in love”).

Cisgender: essentially the opposite of transgender; someone whose identity and birth-assigned gender line up.