If you've been following me, you know how bad I've been dreading the romance novel thing. Well, I finished the novel and am in the process of editing. I am happy to announce that I have finished with what I call "steamy scene #1." And I am so proud that I managed it, that I feel like sharing. *READER BE WARNED* 1: This scene is naughty, so if you aren't for that thing, you shouldn't continue reading, and 2: This is my first and I just did my first edit, so it may be a little rough around the edges yet. If you feel the need to comment or critique, please be gentle.
That is all...
So, here it is-an exerpt from my new novel, "Beginning Near the End"
They stopped at a light and Amelia smiled at him. Jeremy gazed at her and his blood came to a flash point watching her play with a strand of her thick, dark hair. He reached over and touched her face; the shock of that small touch almost taking his breath away. He leaned over the center counsel and pressed his mouth to hers, reveling in the softness of her lush lips.
She gasped and his tongue found hers, caressing it, tasting the sweetness of the champagne she had at the reception.
Her response was automatic. She threw her arms around his neck and tangled her fingers into his hair, her heart pounding so loudly she was sure he could hear it, too. Desire coiled tight inside her and she wanted nothing more than to press herself closer to him.
A car honking behind them broke them apart, and Amelia couldn’t believe how fast he pulled away from it, speeding toward the house.
He was quick to cut the engine when they reached the house and rapidly picked up where they left off in the car. His mouth left a burning trail on her jaw, ear, all the way down to her neck.
Amelia didn’t see the yard passing her, or hear the front door opening or closing. All she was aware of was his large, calloused hands rubbing gently up and down her arms, the way his lips were like satin on her shoulder.
He picked her up and cradled her in his arms, claiming her lips again. Her fingers dug into his back as he carried her up the stairs. When he reached his bedroom he sat her back on her feet and pulled away for a moment. “Is it too soon?”
She shook her head and closed the gap between them, pressing herself fully against him. She gasped at the bulge of his manhood straining against his pants.
After a moment, she stepped away and turned around. “Help me with this, will you?”
He hefted her thick brown hair over her shoulder and tugged the zipper down to her waist and leaned in to plant a kiss at the nape of her neck. She turned around and slipped the dress from her arms revealing lacy black lingerie that clung to her every curve.
“You are so beautiful,” he whispered as she eased the dress down over her hips. He lifted his hand and let his fingers graze her arm. Gooseflesh rose where their skin met and her breath quickened.
She stepped up to him and grabbed the hem of his shirt. “Let me help you with that.”
He smiled softly and lifted his arms as she pulled the shirt up, watching her throw it aside after it was over his head. He pulled her into his arms and cupped her face in his hands, kissing her deeply.
He released her mouth and moved to her shoulder, sliding the straps down to her arms with his thumbs while he tasted her soft skin. His entire body throbbed with her so near.
Amelia reached down between them and unbuttoned his pants, releasing the pressure and his manhood. She stroked the length of his erection and her eyes widened. She turned away from him and climbed onto the bed. Jeremy pushed his pants down and followed after her.
Lying beside her, he pushed the black lace slowly up her stomach, tracing the contours with his mouth. As he neared the top, he lifted her up and pulled the scanty fabric over her head. Her chest heaved with every shallow, erratic breath.
He gently pushed her back against the mattress and moved to her breasts. He cupped them for a moment, enjoying the way each perfect mound filled his hands. Taking one bud and rolling it slowly between his fingers, his lips moved to the other, grazing it with his teeth before pulling it in and sucking hard. He glanced up when she gasped and felt her hands tangle in his hair as her back arched off the bed. She let out a soft moan and he moved to the other nub, rousing it to a peak.
Returning to her mouth, he moved one hand to her flat stomach, taking his time with his exploration of her body.
When his hand dipped lower to her thigh, Amelia’s heart hammered in her chest. She wrapped her arms around him and found his mouth. Her body was ablaze with sensations she had never known before. She felt she might shatter into a million pieces at any moment.
His finger penetrated her inner folds and found her core moist and hot. He stroked her hidden nub and smiled as her back arced and she screamed his name. He slid a finger deep inside her and felt her contract around him, anticipating the moment that his shaft would be moving inside her, filling her.
With every stroke, her moans and trembling grew until she gripped him and let her nails drag down his back. He pulled away from her, sat up quickly, and pulled his boxers off before straddling her, his erection lying against her belly.
“Please,” she moaned.
He smiled and slid back, letting the tip rub against her lower lips. He fought for control, not wanting to go too quickly, but relish in every second of this moment.
He lifted her hips and slid the tip into her moist heat. She sucked in a breath and threw her head back. Again, he moved inside of her, feeling her body stretch to accommodate him, a little further than before. A low moan rumbled in her throat.
He pulled out once more and pushed back into her immediately, filling her completely. He stayed there for a moment reveling in way her muscles clenching around him before moving back and forth inside her.
Heat built inside her with each thrust he gave. With her body and mind in tempest, she saw only Jeremy, heard only his grunts and moans, felt only his mouth on hers and his manhood moving deep within her.
With every plunge, his tempo increased until both were teetering on the edge of climax. Amelia screamed as Jeremy gave one final thrust, spilling his seed in her. He rolled away, pulling her along with him, cradling her to his side where they both fell asleep.
Well, that's it! I hope you liked it!
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
The Final Day of NaNo
Good grief this month has been difficult. To think, when I started November, I was doing so well with the writing. Now its the last day and I've still got six chapters to write and all my time is gone. I feel like running away screaming.
I don't honestly know what happened. Last year, I felt so focused. It was honestly the first novel I ever completed. Maybe I'm in over my head with the whole romance thing. Truly, though, this novel is actually starting to feel like a novel. I've just reached that place in the story where everything starts to get interesting.
The last week has been the hardest. I've been cutting a lot of plot from my story simply to get it finished. Otherwise, I'll be sitting there trying to get in all 65,000 words that I planned, and that will most definitely take me another week at least. There have been days where I don't want to do that (ITS CHEATING!) and so I've nearly decided to quit the story altogether as I wouldn't possibly finish in time.
Amazingly, people have been very supportive. Especially people from work, oddly enough. Many of them go to school, and have taken a literary class or two, and understand exactly how much work goes into writing a novel. These are the people that have been pushing me the most to get this done. Why? They want to read it, of course. Simply put, that will not happen. I have gone to great lengths to make sure that this story will never be linked to me, because I'm actually embarrassed by some of the things I have written. Its not that I think they're bad, but they are things I would never say aloud to the people I am closest to. So, I have the pen name ready to go if I should ever get it published. More than likely, though, I will polish it up in the months to come, get a copy printed for myself and call it a done deal. And even in that case, I'll still have the cover printed with the planned pen name.
I have likened the novel writing proccess to that of raising a child before this, and this year has definitely made that analogy stronger. This child of mine has been dificult from the start, though slightly more planned. By the time I got started with it, I was ready to have it done. We fought, we walked out on each other. Even the voices wouldn't cooperate.
I intend to spend my whole day tomorrow (No work for me, YAY!) trying to get it finished. I don't think I will get all sixty thousand some words written like I wanted to in the beginning, but I will get to the point where I can write 'the end' as fast as possible, and keep writing until its time to submit.
That's the plan anyway. If you don't see me on Twitter, its because I'm avoiding the distraction. I'll try to check in before submission though, and you can all kick my butt into gear! ;D
I don't honestly know what happened. Last year, I felt so focused. It was honestly the first novel I ever completed. Maybe I'm in over my head with the whole romance thing. Truly, though, this novel is actually starting to feel like a novel. I've just reached that place in the story where everything starts to get interesting.
The last week has been the hardest. I've been cutting a lot of plot from my story simply to get it finished. Otherwise, I'll be sitting there trying to get in all 65,000 words that I planned, and that will most definitely take me another week at least. There have been days where I don't want to do that (ITS CHEATING!) and so I've nearly decided to quit the story altogether as I wouldn't possibly finish in time.
Amazingly, people have been very supportive. Especially people from work, oddly enough. Many of them go to school, and have taken a literary class or two, and understand exactly how much work goes into writing a novel. These are the people that have been pushing me the most to get this done. Why? They want to read it, of course. Simply put, that will not happen. I have gone to great lengths to make sure that this story will never be linked to me, because I'm actually embarrassed by some of the things I have written. Its not that I think they're bad, but they are things I would never say aloud to the people I am closest to. So, I have the pen name ready to go if I should ever get it published. More than likely, though, I will polish it up in the months to come, get a copy printed for myself and call it a done deal. And even in that case, I'll still have the cover printed with the planned pen name.
I have likened the novel writing proccess to that of raising a child before this, and this year has definitely made that analogy stronger. This child of mine has been dificult from the start, though slightly more planned. By the time I got started with it, I was ready to have it done. We fought, we walked out on each other. Even the voices wouldn't cooperate.
I intend to spend my whole day tomorrow (No work for me, YAY!) trying to get it finished. I don't think I will get all sixty thousand some words written like I wanted to in the beginning, but I will get to the point where I can write 'the end' as fast as possible, and keep writing until its time to submit.
That's the plan anyway. If you don't see me on Twitter, its because I'm avoiding the distraction. I'll try to check in before submission though, and you can all kick my butt into gear! ;D
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
On Nanowrimo, Writing Buddies, and other such things
Ah, November. What a wonderfully frightening month it is. Anyone who loves to write and has at least one other writer friend knows that November means NaNoWriMo.
How can I describe what NaNoWriMo means to me? As a person who's major motto is: what can be done today is better left for tomorrow, Nano is a daunting task and worthy challenge. It gets me to actually do what needs to be done here and now. Or, at least as far as writing goes. Sadly, my poor house will see the adverse effects of this month. Sure, there will be a couple days where I will wake up, look around, and scramble to make it all look presentable, but we all must hope that the house doesn't tumble to the ground in a heap of filth and dust before then.
This is my second year of NaNoWriMo. Sadly, I'm still in editing phase with last year's, "A Place Called Earth." This time around, I went a different path. Romance! *screams and moans of horror* Honestly, this is how I feel about these things. The Romance equation is such a simple one that is repeated in every story in the genre. Sadly, it is sooo much harder to write. I've been pushing over the last couple days to get ahead of schedule, because I know (its so inevitable, just like the love my characters will share.) that when I hit a certain scene (also inevitable) I am going to be so stuck. On the plus side, I may be able to skip said scene for a later time and still get well over 50,000 words for the month. Its just too bad that I think this is CHEATING! Enough of that, though. When that time comes, I am sure all my lovely followers will hear about it. Probably a few times if you follow me on Twitter.
I have this little guy that seems to be my muse for the moment. My writing buddy... my minion. Minion? Isn't that one of those short yellow guys from that movie, Dispicable Me? Why yes, yes it is. I lurves him. I think it is important to have a writing buddy. Sure, he may not be real, but his encouragment is. I'm a writer, it seriously isn't hard for me to imagine the little guy talking to me, saying, "You can do it!" and "Keep up the good work, Haley Jo!" See... now you want one too. Well, too bad! This one is mine! :D
This little guy is the only one in this house who is really giving me encouragement, and quite honestly, feeding my delusions and allowing me to continue harnessing my imagination. And without that, what am I really? Just another person that enjoys reading and wants to be famous but won't do anything about it. Of course, I have about four different pen names, though, so fame is not really coming to me no matter which way you spin it. And I'm okay with that. I don't need hundreds of people knowing too much about me. Blogging is as much as I can handle, and really, I tend to keep the personal stuff out of it.
And on that final rambling note, I say ado and back to the Nanoing I go. Seems like it needs a catchy little tune to go along with it. Am I right?
How can I describe what NaNoWriMo means to me? As a person who's major motto is: what can be done today is better left for tomorrow, Nano is a daunting task and worthy challenge. It gets me to actually do what needs to be done here and now. Or, at least as far as writing goes. Sadly, my poor house will see the adverse effects of this month. Sure, there will be a couple days where I will wake up, look around, and scramble to make it all look presentable, but we all must hope that the house doesn't tumble to the ground in a heap of filth and dust before then.
This is my second year of NaNoWriMo. Sadly, I'm still in editing phase with last year's, "A Place Called Earth." This time around, I went a different path. Romance! *screams and moans of horror* Honestly, this is how I feel about these things. The Romance equation is such a simple one that is repeated in every story in the genre. Sadly, it is sooo much harder to write. I've been pushing over the last couple days to get ahead of schedule, because I know (its so inevitable, just like the love my characters will share.) that when I hit a certain scene (also inevitable) I am going to be so stuck. On the plus side, I may be able to skip said scene for a later time and still get well over 50,000 words for the month. Its just too bad that I think this is CHEATING! Enough of that, though. When that time comes, I am sure all my lovely followers will hear about it. Probably a few times if you follow me on Twitter.
I have this little guy that seems to be my muse for the moment. My writing buddy... my minion. Minion? Isn't that one of those short yellow guys from that movie, Dispicable Me? Why yes, yes it is. I lurves him. I think it is important to have a writing buddy. Sure, he may not be real, but his encouragment is. I'm a writer, it seriously isn't hard for me to imagine the little guy talking to me, saying, "You can do it!" and "Keep up the good work, Haley Jo!" See... now you want one too. Well, too bad! This one is mine! :D
This little guy is the only one in this house who is really giving me encouragement, and quite honestly, feeding my delusions and allowing me to continue harnessing my imagination. And without that, what am I really? Just another person that enjoys reading and wants to be famous but won't do anything about it. Of course, I have about four different pen names, though, so fame is not really coming to me no matter which way you spin it. And I'm okay with that. I don't need hundreds of people knowing too much about me. Blogging is as much as I can handle, and really, I tend to keep the personal stuff out of it.
And on that final rambling note, I say ado and back to the Nanoing I go. Seems like it needs a catchy little tune to go along with it. Am I right?
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Starting Something New
I've recently decided to try my hand at the romance genre. Honestly, I'm terrified. Plain and simple, I do not read that much romance, and the one's I do read, the romance part isn't the main genre. Usually its paranormal romance, so I feel like I'm a little out of my league. So, why do I do it? I feel like writing this story will help me grow as a writer overall. I feel like I can do the fantasy/scifi/paranormal stuff no problem, but romance? That's hard!
As, I intend to do this story for NaNoWriMo this year, mostly I'm just jotting down tidbits of things I want to remember as well as research and developing my settings and characters. In fact, I just printed off my very detailed, 7-page Chapter Synopsis. Basically, as long as I don't kill off a main character, I can't mess this up. I know the romance recipe: Man meets Woman, they fight, they argue, they fall in love; something happens in their relationship that splits them up and then something else happens that makes them realize they can't live without each other. Tada! Romance novel. Sadly, for me, this could still end terribly, terribly bad. Don't believe me? *sigh*
So, here's the dilema I'm already facing. My Female Main Character has been great. She has been wonderfully cooperative, giving me everything I need, even already interested in my Male Main Character. But (oh yes, there is a but) he is not. So, I need to vent a little bit. I have decided to write him a letter, because that's what I've been doing lately. I've been writing to get into the habit of writing. Here it is.
Dear Jeremy (that's his name),
Sir, why are you being so difficult? I understand its in your personality to be the observant one, but you need to open up to me a little, or I'm going to have to cut you from the story. I'm sure there will be someone else for Amelia. Perhaps Josh.
If you don't like hearing that, then you need to help me out a little. I need you to share some of that wit and humor with me! We already made this deal once. I'm not backing out of it. I know the next month is going to be rocky and emotional, but you have to trust me. Didn't I tell you everything would work out in the end? Didn't I promise you closure and happiness and whatnot? Why are you doing this to me?! You're driving me crazy!
That is all.
-Haley Jo
As, I intend to do this story for NaNoWriMo this year, mostly I'm just jotting down tidbits of things I want to remember as well as research and developing my settings and characters. In fact, I just printed off my very detailed, 7-page Chapter Synopsis. Basically, as long as I don't kill off a main character, I can't mess this up. I know the romance recipe: Man meets Woman, they fight, they argue, they fall in love; something happens in their relationship that splits them up and then something else happens that makes them realize they can't live without each other. Tada! Romance novel. Sadly, for me, this could still end terribly, terribly bad. Don't believe me? *sigh*
So, here's the dilema I'm already facing. My Female Main Character has been great. She has been wonderfully cooperative, giving me everything I need, even already interested in my Male Main Character. But (oh yes, there is a but) he is not. So, I need to vent a little bit. I have decided to write him a letter, because that's what I've been doing lately. I've been writing to get into the habit of writing. Here it is.
Dear Jeremy (that's his name),
Sir, why are you being so difficult? I understand its in your personality to be the observant one, but you need to open up to me a little, or I'm going to have to cut you from the story. I'm sure there will be someone else for Amelia. Perhaps Josh.
If you don't like hearing that, then you need to help me out a little. I need you to share some of that wit and humor with me! We already made this deal once. I'm not backing out of it. I know the next month is going to be rocky and emotional, but you have to trust me. Didn't I tell you everything would work out in the end? Didn't I promise you closure and happiness and whatnot? Why are you doing this to me?! You're driving me crazy!
That is all.
-Haley Jo
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Vacation!
So, I've been home from my trip for a week now. I actually had the conversation with someone at work today. When you go 6500 miles across the country and back in two weeks, it is a trip, not a vacation. (Har har) I looked around and thought, "something is missing." And suddenly, just now, it dawned on me. I have not blogged in so long. So long in fact, it has been nearly a month! I will hang my head in shame now. *hanging head*
Okay... now that we've gotten that out of the way, I wanted to talk about what that trip did for me. First of all, it gave me a whole new appreciation for this country. Wow! Is it ever beautiful. And boy howdy, America does big well. I saw so many larger-than-life things in those two weeks: The Grand Canyon, Mt. Rainier, Mt. Rushmore, The Badlands, the Redwood National Forest, the Pacific Ocean! I even saw some aircraft carriers on this trip. It was all so cool!
I also gained a new sense of time. Nothing makes 18 hours drag like being stuck behind the drivers wheel all night and then listening to "I'm hungry", "I'm thirsty", "I need to go to the bathroom", and my favorite, "Are we there yet?" I love my children dearly, but vacation for me means being alone. I call it vacation when I can find a babysitter and get out to the bar to see a band play, but this is all beside the point. Until this trip, I really couldn't comprehend just how long a day could be. It made me empathize for a couple of my characters. I think there will be some rewriting going on in the very near future.
The last thing that this trip did for me was made me realize that even in a different part of the country, I can feel like an alien--like I fell onto a completely different planet. The difference from state to state alone was pretty impressive. Going south into a few states with a few cities and a lot of small towns way off the interstate, and how tired that made me feel. Getting to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and the strange plants that grow there, and the desert and all the canyons. Wow again.
The trip was amazing and I encourage anyone who writes to take one at some point in their life. I think this will do great things for my writing and my imagination and how could any writer pass that up?
Okay... now that we've gotten that out of the way, I wanted to talk about what that trip did for me. First of all, it gave me a whole new appreciation for this country. Wow! Is it ever beautiful. And boy howdy, America does big well. I saw so many larger-than-life things in those two weeks: The Grand Canyon, Mt. Rainier, Mt. Rushmore, The Badlands, the Redwood National Forest, the Pacific Ocean! I even saw some aircraft carriers on this trip. It was all so cool!
I also gained a new sense of time. Nothing makes 18 hours drag like being stuck behind the drivers wheel all night and then listening to "I'm hungry", "I'm thirsty", "I need to go to the bathroom", and my favorite, "Are we there yet?" I love my children dearly, but vacation for me means being alone. I call it vacation when I can find a babysitter and get out to the bar to see a band play, but this is all beside the point. Until this trip, I really couldn't comprehend just how long a day could be. It made me empathize for a couple of my characters. I think there will be some rewriting going on in the very near future.
The last thing that this trip did for me was made me realize that even in a different part of the country, I can feel like an alien--like I fell onto a completely different planet. The difference from state to state alone was pretty impressive. Going south into a few states with a few cities and a lot of small towns way off the interstate, and how tired that made me feel. Getting to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and the strange plants that grow there, and the desert and all the canyons. Wow again.
The trip was amazing and I encourage anyone who writes to take one at some point in their life. I think this will do great things for my writing and my imagination and how could any writer pass that up?
Friday, July 16, 2010
Out of the Hidey-Hole
As it shows in my blog, Facebook, and Twitter, I've been hiding for some time now. I manage to show up every occasionally just to keep suspicions of my death squashed, but that's been about it. I'm sure there are a few of you who are wondering what may have become of me (of course, I've been wrong before...), so here I am. I'm finally ready to talk about where I've been and what I've been doing.
A few months ago, I was looking for a new kind of scary for my writing, and I turned toward my dreams. Trying to find ways to induce nightmares and such. It didn't work, sadly. Instead, I now have insomnia and very rarely dream. When I do dream, I hardly remember them, or at least they're forgotten by the time I get to my computer after work. Everyone around me seems to have found some amusement from my sleep deprivation, though. Not to say I'm the laughing stock, just its a joy working with me, because who knows what will pop from my mouth. My boss' boss found that out yesterday. I'm happy to say, I still have a job.
I have been working on editing like crazy. I have stumbled a few times and found myself stuck on a paragraph. Its been daunting, but I haven't given up. I want my story to be bright and shiney when I start sending out queries so the agents can be amazed. It seems like I haven't had much time to work on editing though. Every time I start getting into it, a small catastrophy occurs. First it was both vehicles breaking down. Then it was a custody hearing for the boys, and the filter on the fish tank clogging and me thinking I'm going to lose over 100 fish. Now there's a vacation across the country coming up. Its been a stressful summer. I am sad to say that I'm ready for school to start so I can get back to a semi-normal schedule.
I've also been reading a ton. I got an e-reader for my laptop and I read Bram Stoker's "Dracula" for the first time. Surprisingly, it has spurred a few vivid dreams. I also read a few romance novels (though I'm a little reluctant admitting that), and a few other older works. I've learned a lot about how they keep their story from becoming dated. Of course, when the way things are written or said changes, or spellings of certain words, it really doesn't matter how timeless the story is.
All of these things have been leading to something. And, at least to me, its a very big thing. I slept in this morning. Serioiusly over-slept. I haven't been able to do that in a while, and something amazing came out of it. I've been completely under-motivated for some time, just doing what I need to do and nothing more. I go to work, I come home, I clean, I cook, etc. etc. I lost track of time. The last couple of days, I've had somethings happen that have got me thinking about what I need to do and what I need to change in my life, and apparently, an overstimulated brain has a lot to work out in sleep.
This morning (okay... afternoon) I feel so refreshed and alert. I had the most amazing dream last night. And I remembered most of it. Its written down. I have an idea for a novel that I'll be starting A.S.A.P. I don't want to lose it. Perhaps, I will share some bits and pieces of it later, but for now, I need to keep it to myself.
I can't promise that I won't return to the hidey-hole of writing and editing that I've built myself, but I will at least try to make my disappearances marked, in case anyone begins to wonder if I've dropped off the planet. And who knows... it could happen, I suppose.
P.S.- If this is complete rubbish and gibberish that no one can understand, I'm very sorry. Even catching up on some of the missing sleep, I still am having some issues with coherency.
A few months ago, I was looking for a new kind of scary for my writing, and I turned toward my dreams. Trying to find ways to induce nightmares and such. It didn't work, sadly. Instead, I now have insomnia and very rarely dream. When I do dream, I hardly remember them, or at least they're forgotten by the time I get to my computer after work. Everyone around me seems to have found some amusement from my sleep deprivation, though. Not to say I'm the laughing stock, just its a joy working with me, because who knows what will pop from my mouth. My boss' boss found that out yesterday. I'm happy to say, I still have a job.
I have been working on editing like crazy. I have stumbled a few times and found myself stuck on a paragraph. Its been daunting, but I haven't given up. I want my story to be bright and shiney when I start sending out queries so the agents can be amazed. It seems like I haven't had much time to work on editing though. Every time I start getting into it, a small catastrophy occurs. First it was both vehicles breaking down. Then it was a custody hearing for the boys, and the filter on the fish tank clogging and me thinking I'm going to lose over 100 fish. Now there's a vacation across the country coming up. Its been a stressful summer. I am sad to say that I'm ready for school to start so I can get back to a semi-normal schedule.
I've also been reading a ton. I got an e-reader for my laptop and I read Bram Stoker's "Dracula" for the first time. Surprisingly, it has spurred a few vivid dreams. I also read a few romance novels (though I'm a little reluctant admitting that), and a few other older works. I've learned a lot about how they keep their story from becoming dated. Of course, when the way things are written or said changes, or spellings of certain words, it really doesn't matter how timeless the story is.
All of these things have been leading to something. And, at least to me, its a very big thing. I slept in this morning. Serioiusly over-slept. I haven't been able to do that in a while, and something amazing came out of it. I've been completely under-motivated for some time, just doing what I need to do and nothing more. I go to work, I come home, I clean, I cook, etc. etc. I lost track of time. The last couple of days, I've had somethings happen that have got me thinking about what I need to do and what I need to change in my life, and apparently, an overstimulated brain has a lot to work out in sleep.
This morning (okay... afternoon) I feel so refreshed and alert. I had the most amazing dream last night. And I remembered most of it. Its written down. I have an idea for a novel that I'll be starting A.S.A.P. I don't want to lose it. Perhaps, I will share some bits and pieces of it later, but for now, I need to keep it to myself.
I can't promise that I won't return to the hidey-hole of writing and editing that I've built myself, but I will at least try to make my disappearances marked, in case anyone begins to wonder if I've dropped off the planet. And who knows... it could happen, I suppose.
P.S.- If this is complete rubbish and gibberish that no one can understand, I'm very sorry. Even catching up on some of the missing sleep, I still am having some issues with coherency.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Review of "Strangers" by Dean Koontz
I have been putting off reading Dean Koontz for a while. I wanted the moment to be right. When I would have the time to actually devote myself to reading his works. And apparently I found that time. So, here's the review. Again, based on Anne Riley's reviewing format. From the back of the book:
A terrifying and truly deadly secret--an eternal riddle come to reality--is what the protagonists of this relentlessly gripping novel sobconsiously share. Not one of them knows what the secret is, nor do they know each other. All they know is that a special terror has come to dominate and warp their lives. For each victim the torture is different.
- For Dominick Corvaisis, in Laguna Beach, California, a writer on the verge of his first success, it means compulsive and increasing dangerous sleepwalking and awakening to cryptic and sinister messages on his word processor.
- For you doctor Ginger Weiss in Boston, it means that unrelated objects--a pair of black gloves worn by a stranger, water swirling down a drain--have the power to send her into sudden blackouts that threaten her surgical career.
- For Father Brennan Cronin in Chicago, an idealistic young curate, it means a precipitate loss of faith one morning when he hurls away the sacred vessels at Mass.
- For Jack Twist in New York, an embittered ex-POW and safecracker par excellence, it means a searing wave of conscience.
- For seven-year-old Marcie Monatella in Las Vegas, it means zombielike trances when she does nothing but draw pictures of a scarlet moon.
- For Ernie Block, ex-Marine motel owner in Elko County, Nevada, it means a new fear of the dark so numbing that the approach of dusk reduces him to cowing paralysis.
My thoughts:
Wow did this book give me the heebie-jeebies (which is saying a lot!). I really couldn't sit it down and even though I rarely did, it still took me about a week to get through it. Definitely one of those books that you need a dictionary for if you want to understand some of the words.
The books copyright is 1986. So the book is as old as I am. Crazy. Although it is 24 years old, I didn't find the reading to be dated. There were only a few instances where I really could tell this book was written a while back because of references to the wars. Other than that, I think Mr. Koontz did a fantastic job of making the material timeless.
His characters were fantastic and deep throughout the emotional state that he led them through. I felt for all of them and wanted to help them in some way (as though reading through the book faster would ease their suffering. LOL). He also did an excellent job of intergrating all the secondary characters into the story. In a way they seem almost like main characters just in the way they are so needed by the actual main characters. All of them were completely unforgettable.
The way the plot unfolded in this tale was perfect. So mysterious and frightening. And I was absolutely not disappointed by the revalation of this dark secret. Even the "bad guy" was good. You could actually see his way of thinking by the end of the story. He did his homework with this one. While not every term was explained, you could hear the terms the doctor and the curate would use on a regular basis. The thief's gear was explained well, and the people just seemed to fit together perfect. And the twists! I found myself surprised quite a bit throughout the whole story.
Book Rating: PG. I don't think there was any problems with language, though I could be wrong. Maybe an adult situation or two.
Recommended for: Anyone who enjoys a little thrill or mystery, but likes a happy ending.
Not recommended for: Anyone without good knowledge of the English language, or doesn't own a dictionary, or who doesn't care for looking up a few words here or there.
Overall Rating: 5/5
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