Categotry Archives: writing
Suzie’s House 67 : On Our Side, Sort Of
Previously in Suzie’s House, Vin, Suzie, and Miranda followed Christina to a quiet neighborhood behind Woodman’s then watched her enter the house of a man Vin knows. Miranda stifled a giggle as she closed her car door. Clearly she didn’t take this operation very seriously. “Shhhhh!” Suzie hissed, her expression solemn. To Vin’s mixed horror and amazement, the two women dashed to the nearest tree and peeked around like a couple of kids playing hide and seek. If Christina didn’t […]
Suzie’s House 66: Little Red Corvette
“Would you two cut that out?!” Suzie tried to swat at Vin and Miranda, but the bulk of the front seats hampered her and then the light changed. Cars behind her honked, and Christina’s little red corvette disappeared in heavy traffic. Miranda giggled. In the rear view mirror, Suzie could see her put a hand over her mouth and Vin smirk. It was like playing chauffeur to a couple of teenagers. The thought brought a pang of regret. It could […]
Suzie’s House 65: Grilling Out
Vin dug around in the refrigerator. Although his arm still twinged when he moved the wrong way, he wasn’t so short of breath all the time. He’d been shirking his duties around the house long enough. It was time to cook. He found what he was hoping for on the bottom shelf – four T-bone steaks. Perfect. He took them out of the packages and put them on a plate, with a glance over his shoulder to make sure Suzie […]
Suzie’s House 64: Something to Watch
Disclaimer – although I use the name of a real video store in Madison Wisconsin, the events portrayed in this blog are not specific to them and are not to be taken as a commentary on their policies or procedures. Miranda yanked the metal handle on the door of Four Star Video with far more force than necessary, sending the chicken-wire-in-glass door flying open. It smacked against the brick exterior with an ominously ringing thud, but Miranda charged past without […]
Suzie’s House 63: Brothers in Arms
So what have Sean and Joseph been doing since Drew shot them? . “I’m dieing, Joe. You’ve got to get me to the hospital.” Sean lay on the couch with a knitted afghan pulled up to his chin. The red and blue clashed with Sean’s hair, and make him look pale. More pale. Joseph sat in a matching recliner. He was sweating hard. “You aren’t any worse than me. You’ll be fine.” “This isn’t like With Uncle Seamus in Ireland. […]
Suzie’s House #62: You Can and I Can’t?
Last week, and the week before, we caught Vin and Miranda in bed together. It was not their first time to do it, but it was their first to get caught. Suzie was a bit tipsy at the time, but not so far gone she didn’t know what she was seeing. Suzie hacked off the tops of two carrots with a vicious swing of a cleaver. She knew darn well a cleaver was overkill for […]
Suzie’s House 61: A Compromising Position
We’re going to backtrack in time a little bit this week. Last week we ended with Suzie and Drew coming home from the Cardinal. This week we are starting while they are still there. Vin jerked awake at the sound of the burglar alarm going off. He found himself still sitting in the living room with the remote in his hand, but the TV was off along with all the lights. He almost called out to Miranda or Suzie that […]
Suzie’s House 60: Taking Advantage
She was killing him, all soft and warm and leaning against him. Her eyes were a little blurry with the beer and the lateness of the hour. He told himself not to let her feathery touches go to his head, or rather his lower regions. She couldn’t feel too good about men right now, after having run into her ex, yet she hadn’t gone cold on him. Drew hoped her less-restrained reaction to him had more to do with […]
Thursday Thirteen #20: Writing Positives
It was suggested last week that I might be dwelling on the negative about my writing. I don’t see it that way. A mistake is just a mistake. So long as I fix it, who cares if I messed up? No one but me needs to see my rough drafts. Well, except for Suzie’s House, but we aren’t going there. Right? So anyway, here’s a list of positive things about my writing. 1. Even when it’s torture, I still enjoy […]
Suzie’s House 59: Chance Encounter with the Ex
Welcome Fiction Friday readers and Girls Scout Cookie entrants. This is the post to leave a comment in for the chance to win Lemon Chalets. When we left off last week Miranda had gone to the Caribou bar in search of the men who shot Vin and run into the CIA agent Christina instead. Now we return to the Cardinal Bar where Miranda left Drew and Suzie slow dancing. Suzie could feel Drew’s body plastered to hers from breast to thigh. […]
TT #19: Ways To Screw Up a Manuscript
Yes, these are all things I have done. Yes, I regret them all. 1 – Say over and over in one chapter that the hero’s eyes are a vivid blue then mention how brown they are two chapters later. 2 – Fall in love with the word “That”, or “As” and refuse to get rid of a couple hundred usages. 3 – Include more than two exclamation marks in a paragraph. 4 – Forget to include any setting details. […]
Suzie’s House 58: At Cross Purposes
As Miranda stood to leave, Christina and Cindy paused at the door of the Caribou Bar, glancing around the small, dim interior. “Hey, Christina!” the bartender called. “You know this lady?” He jerked a thumb toward Miranda. Miranda waited tensely for the moment they recognized her. It wasn’t long in coming. The two women put their heads together. Cindy pointed at Miranda. Christina glanced behind her at the door as if considering escape. Then the two of women advanced on […]
Suzie’s House 57: Miranda at the Caribou
You know, Miranda’s a big girl. Sure she left the Cardinal Bar with a bit of attitude, but that doesn’t mean she HAS to get into trouble. Does it? “Come on, Baby. What’s the matter? ‘My not good enough for you?” A month ago, Miranda might have considered the man. He had a good head of hair, broad shoulders, a nice tan, and strong jaw. He also had a full compliment of alcoholic fumes. He was already sitting at the […]
Suzie’s House 56: Dancing Around the Subject
In last week’s episode Drew caught Suzie and Miranda sneaking out to investigate Sean and Joseph. He was aware of what they were doing, but believed they would be safe enough, so he didn’t try to stop them. He joined them instead. “I thought you said they were at the Caribou.” Suzie leaned across the little table, and shoved aside an empty beer bottle to hiss in Miranda’s ear. Actually, yell with restraint so as to be heard over the music […]
Thursday Thirteen #16: Discoveries While Writing A Miss for Mark
I tried a different technique on the book I just finished writing. I started with a detailed outline on a spreadsheet that included GMC for hero and heroine, plot, subplot, POV notes, and emotional arcs for each scene. I was hoping to cut down on plot holes and revisions. Here’s what I discovered. 1. For the way I write, 67 scenes is way too many for a 90,000 word book. I ended up ditching or condensing about 1/3 of […]
