That sounds a lot more ominous than intended--which is not an uncommon state of affairs when it comes to anything writing related. Tone of voice is a lot harder to convey than you might think. Stories and characters jump tracks (and occasionally sharks) often without warning. And what you intend to write, when you first sit down to work on a project, is frequently not what you end up with.
I am still two problematic, unfinished scenes away from being totally done with my current WIP, but the story itself is, for all intents and purposes, complete. And yeah...not the story I thought I was writing. At. All.
Spicy Nick (which releases next month) was supposed to be a short (it is that), spicy (nailed it), non-PNR (total fail) tale of one man's attempt to seduce his wife into falling in love all over again--with him, and the holidays.
And yeah, some of that happened. But along the way it became about so much more. The story is now about love and loss and coming home. About new beginnings and old traditions. About friends and family and feelings--because that is what I mostly write about, after all--and all the ways in which we communicate (and/or fail to) with one another.
Scout and Nick were the main couple in my very first published book. So, I'm especially happy to be finally giving them the sweet and spicy Christmas of their dreams. I loved seeing where they'd gotten to five years down the road ...well, five years for them, over twenty for me! And the ending--OMG! *chef's kiss*
I love, love, love endings. They're generally my favorite part of a book to write--and not just because the process is finally over. And I'm pretty sure I said the very same thing about last year's Christmas story (Christmas Angel). But I think this is the cheesiest, sappiest (in a good way!) absolutely BEST ending to a Christmas story that I've ever written. And I've written kind of a lot.
What had I intended this post to be about? Well, as I may have mentioned a time or two, I'm currently re-releasing the Oberon series. The final book--book nine--should have been out this month, if it weren't for a slew of other deadlines hitting me all at once. So I'd planned to do a recap on the series.
The book WILL release this year. The recap post, OTOH...I dunno. January, perhaps?
Spicy Nick
Part of the Naughty List
An Oberon Christmas Story
Now available for pre-order: https://books2read.com/Spicy-Nick
It’s beginning to look a lot like NIX-mas!
Nick Greco is getting worried. His wife has never been a big fan of the holiday season, but this year she seems more distant than ever before. In fact, the last time that he can remember seeing her this distracted was right before their wedding—when she tried to back out of marrying him.
Can you get cold feet after the fact? Is Scout feeling overwhelmed by the holidays? Or underwhelmed by…gulp…him?
Whatever the cause, Nick has a plan. He’s going to spice up their marriage and put the heat back in the holidays. And when he’s done, Scout won’t be saying, “Bah Humbug!” She’ll be saying, “ho, ho…OH!”
Releasing December 8, 2024 as part of The Naughty List.
