Notes from Boston

Happy Wednesday! We’re back to reality after a wonderful trip to visit with friends in England. I think I’ve left a bit of my heart there. I stuck diligently to my vow not to do any work while on vacation, so I felt like I’d had a real rest this time instead of halfway.

My son sang at his school’s voice recital last night, and it was beautiful. You can see the video at this link. Parent confession: I actually did not know he could sing like that. He has a nice voice, and he sings around the house all the time. But this was a piece he worked on and polished.

On to the WIPpet. Obviously, I didn’t really write while I was out of the country. But I did promise to reveal what Amelia’s problem was last week. Sigh…here is where I admit that a lot of readers will be bothered by the open nature of the relationships in these books. But I like to hope we can get to a point where non-monogamy is normalized as one way of having relationships, so I’ve written about people exploring that.

WIPmath: 5/30/2018 = 5 + 3 + 0 = 2 + 0 + 1 + 8 = 19 plus one bonus sentence. (The first paragraph here is from last week.)

“Oh, my God. Sweetie, that’s amazing! He’s such a honey. And hot-t-t!” She drew out the word. “So what’s the problem?”

Amelia’s cheeks burned. “He’s also fucking Mack.”

Denver’s jaw dropped. It took several tries, opening and closing her mouth, before she finally said, “Well, that’s a new one.”

“I know! We’ve never been into the same person before. Mack’s made it clear they’re not romantically involved, and I think he expects the same from me. I mean, I’ve never—” She cut herself off. She and Mack had very different reasons for not wanting long-term relationships. Jomari hadn’t made Mack question anything because it was how he was wired. Amelia had always told herself it was good enough for her. Being with Jomari had made her rethink everything, and she didn’t know how to communicate it to Denver.

“You’re really into him,” Denver remarked, sounding surprised. “How’d that happen?”

“I don’t know,” Amelia admitted. “Last weekend, he took me skating in the park, and…he kissed me. Not a ‘you’re hot, let’s do it’ kind of kiss. More like…” She trailed off, not yet willing to tell Denver it was a falling-in-love kind of kiss.

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’ve finished my required work for the week, so I’m finally getting a chance to write and do some beta reading. Tomorrow, we leave for vacation, which means we have a lot to do between now and then.

I’m still working on Minuet. I was struggling a bit with some parts of it, but I think I’ve worked out what I need to adjust. Hopefully this thing is on track now, and I can have it done soon. I’m not sure what people will make of this story. The characters are mostly in open relationships, and it’s not going to end with two (or in this case three) people in an exclusive partnership. I know some people regard that as either immature or cheating, but it was what made sense for the characters.

Anyway, this scene follows from last week’s. Amelia and Denver are enjoying each other’s company away from their male partners. Amelia’s about to make an accidental confession.

WIPmath: 5/23/18 = 23 sentences + 1 bonus because it’s only one word long.

“Mmm, that’s nice,” Denver said, her voice slow and sleepy. “I don’t get this so much with the guys.”

“Me neither.”

Denver snorted. “I didn’t picture Mack as the cuddly type.”

Amelia laughed. “He’s not, but Jomari is. It’s not the same, though.”

She realized her mistake the minute Denver shifted to sit up. “Jomari? Hot fiddler Jomari, from Cian’s band? What the fuck, lady? Spill it!” Denver gave Amelia a playful shove.

“Yes, yes, and I’m sorry I didn’t say anything.” Amelia pushed herself up and sat back against the pillows. “I don’t know what’s going on at this point. We’ve kind of been seeing each other, mostly having sex, but…”

“Oh, my God. Sweetie, that’s amazing! He’s such a honey. And hot-t-t!” She drew out the word. “So what’s the problem?”

Yes, Amelia, what exactly is the problem? Maybe she’ll tell us next time.

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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*If you want the story behind the cover, check out this blog post I did with author C.H. Clepitt. And if you want a torso cover of your own, let me know.

Wow, I hadn’t realized I’ve missed nearly a month of these. It’s been so busy, with work and the kids’ schedules. You can read all about what we were doing last week in my Rainbow Snippets post from Saturday. This week, we have one concert (Kid 1’s jazz band), one music competition (Kid 1 again, both playing and singing), and one Confirmation of Baptism (Kid 2). A month from now, though, the chaos will be done and the school year wrapping up.

Today’s snippet is again from Minuet because writing in it is going slowly. I had to take a break to write something else and to do several editing jobs, so I haven’t made a lot of progress. It’s getting there, though. Slow and steady wins the race, right?

I know I left it hanging with Mack and Jomari, but I wrote this yesterday, and I really wanted to share more of Amelia. Here, she’s with Denver (the bar manager; the picture above is how I imagine her). Just a couple notes: 1. This is mildly steamy. I edited out the somewhat more explicit bits. 2. This series (except Nate’s story) includes a lot of non-monogamy, referenced here.

Amelia kissed Denver, a hard press of their lips. She put out the tip of her tongue to trace the thin ring in Denver’s lower lip. Amelia loved it—so sexy. Denver was gorgeous, the spread of her legs and the way her firm, small breasts pushed out when she arched her back. The soft sighs and whisper-moans coming from her mouth reminded Amelia why she’d needed this break from the men.

Afterward, they lay holding each other. Denver rested her head on Amelia’s chest, and Amelia stroked her hair. They were in a similar boat, though Denver’s male lovers were her long-term partners. She had a different relationship with them than Amelia had with Mack. The small voice in the back of Amelia’s head suggested she might think about what she was doing with Jomari, but she silenced it.

She and Denver were so comfortable with each other that anyone might’ve thought they were a couple or that they’d been doing this for more than a single year. But Denver was no more Amelia’s girlfriend than Mack was her boyfriend. In a similar way, this was an outgrowth of their friendship and mutual need for a woman’s touch.

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 busy week, what with multiple performances over the weekend. We’re back to a somewhat normal schedule for a few weeks, but then spring concert/recital season starts. After that, we’re busy through June. Then I send my “baby” on a trip all the way to Texas for a few days.

I’m still working on and off in Minuet, though I’m also doing multiple editing projects, putting together an anthology, curating a book list, and writing a short story for a submission. I don’t have a lot of time for Mack and the gang.

Still, I’m snipping from Minuet again this week. Last time, Jomari agreed to stay for a bit. Now he and Mack are left alone at their table. Let’s see what happens.

WIPmath: 4/18/2018 = 4 + 1 + 8 + 2 + 0 + 1 + 8 = 24 sentences

There wasn’t time for more conversation. The band started another song, and they were loud enough it was hard to hear. Nate tapped Mack’s shoulder and motioned he was going to the bar area, away from the stage where it was somewhat quieter. Mack nodded and watched him go.

He was left alone with Jomari. Being abandoned with a sexy stranger wasn’t a bad thing. Mack could work with that as long as it wasn’t too awkward for Jomari. He brushed Jomari’s hand with the back of his own. There were dozens of ways to make his interest clear. He only had to pick one.

Before Mack could say anything, Jomari asked, “You want to go dance?” He practically had to shout it in Mack’s ear. God, these fools were loud.

“I don’t really—” Mack caught the heated, flirtatious look in Jomari’s eyes. “Yeah, all right.” It beat sitting there wishing the band would turn down the volume so they could talk.

There were a lot of people in the small area, which meant they were closer than they might have been otherwise. Mack couldn’t have said later what happened, exactly. One minute they were simply dancing, and the next they were fully in each other’s personal space. All around them, there were people pressing in, forcing them into tight contact.

It wasn’t any hardship. The heat and the rhythm of the other bodies swelled as the band switched to a slower, sensual song. Maybe this was exactly what Mack needed to get his mind off everything—a crowded bar, ear-shattering music, and a sexy dance partner. He sank into the beat, letting his worries fade.

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!