#WeWriWa - The Camping Trip

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors where authors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here. 

Thanks for all your comments on last week's snippet. I'm sharing a work-in-progress, tentatively titled Unpredictable Nature, a romantic suspense about a woman who doesn't believe her brother's car crash was an accident. 

Suggestions are very welcome on the blurb as well as the snippet. Please excuse the rogue commas.

Today's snippet is still from the first chapter. Maggie's brother Jack stopped by unexpectedly in the middle of the day. During lunch, she tries to discover why, but he changes the subject to the camping equipment he saw in the garage.

“So, who’s helping you with the camping trip this weekend?” Jack popped a couple of grapes in his mouth.

“Ellen’s dad,” Maggie said.

“Drew Campbell?" Jack laughed—almost braying, "The guy whose idea of casual is loosening his tie?”

She tapped her short, no-nonsense fingernails on the table, “I’m so glad I could provide entertainment with lunch, by the way, I loaned him your sleeping bag and backpack,” She worked hard not to smirk.

“My equipment? You loaned out my camping equipment?”

“He’s your friend, I didn’t think you’d mind.”

“Oh, God, I wish I could be there to watch,” Jack laughed so hard tears formed, “Drew Campbell wimped out of Cub Scouts.”

photo credit: Joshua Gresham on Unsplash

Tentative blurb:

A shocking secret brings danger to Jack Sinclair and his sister Maggie. 

As kids, they were the fearless threesome. As adults, Jack's an accountant; Drew, a lawyer; Maggie, a teacher and camping troop leader. Returning from a weekend camping trip, Maggie receives horrifying news. She refuses to believe her brother’s fatal car crash was an accident. If the police won’t investigate, she’ll do it herself. Convincing Drew Campbell to help is her only recourse.

Drew Campbell was too busy to return his best friend’s phone call. Too busy to attend a camping meeting important to his teen daughter. Too busy to stay in touch with Jack. Logic and reason indicate Jack’s accident was just that--an accident caused by fatigue and fog. Prodded by guilt, he’ll help Maggie even if he thinks she’s wrong.

A break-in at Jack’s condo convinces Maggie she’s right. Then her home is searched. What did Jack hide?

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors. 

This weekend, you can find SciFi & Fantasy novels for 99c at http://pattyjansen.com/promo/3-4-march-2017-99c-promo/
My book Switched is under science fiction romance.

#WeWriWa - Jack Leaves Nothing to Chance

Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors where authors share an 8 - 10 sentence snippet. Be sure to visit the other authors. You can find them here. 

Thanks for all your comments on last week's snippet. I'm sharing a work-in-progress, tentatively titled Unpredictable Nature, a romantic suspense about a woman who doesn't believe her brother's car crash was an accident. 

Suggestions are very welcome. Please excuse the rogue commas.

Today's snippet picks up right after last week's, which ended with “Can’t I visit my kid sister?”
         

Maggie put her hands on her hips and gave him the look that could quell a roomful of high school seniors full of themselves for being on the brink of adulthood and sophomores who were just full of themselves. “When you thought I wasn’t going to be home? Try again, Ace.”

Jack cuffed her around the neck. “Okay, you got me--I wanted to try out a new CD on your system.”

She ducked out from under his arm, then hip bumped him, “The truth comes out.”

His combination Christmas and birthday gift to her a couple of years ago was a sophisticated sound system. After he set it up, he’d left detailed—printed, no less—instructions for its use. That was Jack, always covering the bases--heaven forbid, he leave anything to chance, even his sister’s CD player.

Be sure to check out the other WeWriWa authors. 

Monday Morning Musing: Character Sketch - Jack

For the past three weeks, I've been sharing bits and pieces of my work-in-progress, a romantic suspense tentatively titled Unpredictable Nature. It started with sharing a snippet on Weekend Writing Warriors (WeWriWa). Then on Mondays, I shared a little about the main characters. Last Monday was Drew's turn. Now, it's Jack's, Drew's best friend and Maggie's brother.

With his younger sister, Maggie, Jack Sinclair grew up in a typical Midwestern subdivision. At age 8, Jack and his family relocated to a Grand Rapids (Michigan) suburb because of their father’s job. The first kid Jack met was Drew Campbell who knocked his block off, just to get the point across that he was in charge of the neighborhood. That’s how their lifelong friendship began. The two boys were inseparable, except for camping and Boy Scouts. Whereas Drew bailed out of Cub Scouts after a disastrous first campout, Jack earned every badge and became an Eagle Scout. Of course, he did. Jack always finished what he started.

Jack and Drew were college roommates and only after graduation did they go their separate ways—Drew as a lawyer and Jack, an accountant. Five years ago, Jack left a big accounting firm and with his friend Ben Voorheis formed a partnership. They each had their own clients. But when Ben’s motorcycle accident sidelined him, Jack took over.

Numbers never lie. They were black and white, no in-between. That suited Jack perfectly. He liked when things made sense. Which made his audit of his partner’s client disturbing. Certain things didn’t make sense. If what he feared was true, he and Ben were in big trouble.

Here are a few snippets from Maggie’s point of view that give you a glimpse into Jack’s personality:

His combination Christmas and birthday gift to her a couple of years ago was a sophisticated sound system. After he set it up, he’d left detailed—printed, no less—instructions for its use. That was Jack. Always covering the bases. Heaven forbid, he leave anything to chance. Even his sister’s CD player.

***

She looked around Jack’s perfectly neat living room. She always complained that he’d taken minimalism to new heights. Nothing, not even dust, marred the surface of the lamp table. No knickknacks, no forgotten glass or coffee cup. Magazines neatly stacked on the coffee table. The yellow National Geographic provided a splash of color next to copies of The CPA Journal.

All perfectly normal, perfectly Jack.

***

As she turned to leave, she saw that the pantry door wasn’t firmly shut. Nothing inside appeared to be disturbed. Everything looked the way it always did, cans and jars lined up perfectly straight, an inch from the edge of each shelf. Categorized. Vegetables with vegetables, pasta sauce next to alfredo sauce. She didn’t bother to check the spices. They’d be in alphabetical order. Her OCD brother wouldn’t have it any other way.

Are you intrigued? I hope so. As you can see from the progress meter on the right of this blog, I’m over 2/3 finished with Unpredictable Nature. Come back next Sunday for another snippet from the first chapter. Next Monday, I’ll share a little about Jack’s business partner, Ben. Have a great week.

Monday Morning Musing: Drew

Two weekends ago, I started sharing bits and pieces of my work-in-progress. Besides sharing snippets on the weekends, I'm also sharing a little about the main characters. Last Monday was Maggie's turn. Now, it's Drew's.

Lawyer Andrew (Drew) Campbell grew up with Maggie and her older brother Jack. The boys were best friends and did their best to torment little Maggie or ditch her at the first opportunity. Her persistence to keep up with the boys (and her natural athletic ability) made her an asset on their sandlot baseball games--the only time they let her play with them. Drew and Jack stayed friends into adulthood.

Between Drew's over-cautious mother and his wife's fastidiousness, Drew didn't get down and dirty. He golfed, he swam (in pools). He also flunked out of Cub Scouts. A year after his wife's death, he's trying to make a "normal" life with his fourteen-year-old daughter. Without knowing the details, he agrees to help chaperone her camping group. A perfect bonding time for the two of them. Here's a short excerpt:

“What do you mean no toilets?” Drew Campbell stopped on the dusty forest path, hooked his sunglasses on the placket of his golf shirt, and stared at his daughter.

“Dad-dy,” Ellen said. Was she only fourteen? She did exasperation better than his administrative assistant. “I told you we were camping.”

Not for a moment would Drew reveal that camping was not what he remembered her saying a week ago. She said she wanted him to come along on an outing with her little group of friends. He figured a hike, picnic lunch, and then home for supper.

After taking a call on his cell in the parking lot near the trailhead, he’d gotten his first surprise. That’s when he found out about the “no electronics rule.” No cell phones, no iPods. All were locked in the vehicles. Only the leader carried a cell phone and only for emergencies.

He got his second surprise when he opened the hatch of the Navigator. Five backpacks. Five backpacks with bedrolls. He’d transported four girls. It didn’t take a law degree to figure out who the fifth backpack was for. He was in deep shit. But what could he say in front of Ellen and her friends?

“Of course, sweetie. I knew we were camping,” he lied.

“Yeah, right, Dad.”

She didn’t believe him? What happened to the adulation for him that used to be in her eyes? The “Dad is perfect” look.

As he’d done several times in the past three hours, he took out his handkerchief, looked at it in disgust, and tried to find a clean spot. He wiped the sweat off his forehead. It was hot and sticky, more like August in Michigan than June. Drew intensely disliked sweating. Clean sweat—in a gym—was all right. Not this . . . dirt. More than sweaty, he hated being dirty.

Drew is in for more surprises. This story, tentatively titled Unpredictable Nature, is a romantic suspense. More on that next week.

Enjoy the week. Here in West Michigan, we're finally getting a break from ten straight days of snowfall. And the sun is shining. So rare and welcome.

   

Monday Morning Musing: Maggie

This weekend on Weekend Writing Warriors (WeWriWa), I shared the beginning of my work-in-progress, a romantic suspense. Tentatively titled Unpredictable Nature (previous tentative titles: Maggie's Story and The Camping Trip), I wrote this story several years ago. Then, “life” intruded, and I set it aside. Until now. Being written so long ago, the story needs updating. Technology has changed so much. No more Palm Pilots or flip phones, for example. Still, I’m having fun revisiting an old manuscript. If all goes well, this story should be released in the spring. After this weekend's snowfall, spring can't come soon enough.

Along with sharing snippets each weekend, I thought I’d share the main characters here on Mondays.

First up is Maggie May Sinclair. Named after the Rod Stewart song, she’s in her mid-thirties and divorced. She teaches high school English and coaches the girls’ baseball team. She also volunteers as a Little League coach and PeeWee hockey referee. To say she’s athletic is an understatement. With all those activities, she doesn’t have time to date. Not that she’s interested. As she says, been there, done that, got the scars to prove it.

After their parents’ died, she and her brother inherited the family home. Since Jack had a condo and didn’t want the trouble of home ownership, Maggie lives in the home where she grew up in a Grand Rapids (Michigan) suburb.

An activity Maggie didn’t volunteer for but was dragged into by her best friend is co-leading a camping group of girls, now in their early teens. After four years together, their goal has been a week-long trip to Isle Royale, an island and National Park in Lake Superior. But when her friend’s family is transferred to Colorado, the group’s enthusiasm wanes. They still meet at Maggie’s to talk. Lately, “talk” has been about resuming the trip. They figured if they prepare enough, their former leader will return to make the trip with them.

Maggie and Jack grew up camping with their parents and then with Scouts. Jack earned the rank of Eagle Scout, and Maggie earned Girl Scouts’ highest honor, the Gold Award. While camping is in her blood, taking eight girls on an overnight camping trip is a big responsibility. One she won’t take alone. The only parent who volunteered was Drew Campbell, Jack’s best friend. The guy who, according to Jack, wimped out of Cub Scouts. The same guy who told fifteen-year-old Maggie she kissed like a goldfish.

Next Monday, I’ll share a little about Drew.

Have a great week.

Today, I’m over at Diana Rubino’s blog, sharing a little something about Mothers. Stop by if you get a chance.

Updates: Writing, Reading, Babies, and Movies

Is it just me or are the days flying? We're already beginning the fourth week in January. And a very productive three weeks it's been. As I wrote in my Insecure Writers' Support Group post on January 3rd, my goal for 2018 is to release three full-length novels: a brand new Alex O'Hara mystery (the 4th and as yet untitled), The Spy: An Outer Rim Novel (a science fiction romance), and Unpredictable Nature (a romantic suspense)--the last two had been started but never completed.

As you can see by the little progress widgets (on the right), I've made quite a bit of progress on the Alex O'Hara PI mystery. My intent had been to start with Unpredictable Nature, since it was the farthest along, but the words just flowed for the mystery. In fact, I didn't want to stop. That is such a good feeling. Like when a runner hits her stride. (I have to guess on the feeling, since I've never been a runner.) Then, my free-lance editor offered a bargain (a deal I couldn't refuse). To take advantage, I selected the romantic suspense, again because it was the closest to being done. 

The funny thing about the romantic suspense is that I began that story in 2003. In those days, I saved my work on 3.25 floppy discs. Remember those? Well, that was two desktop computers and three laptops ago. That was the first (and only) story I've ever written out of order. Normally, I write from beginning to end. Not this one. I wrote scenes as they hit me. Never again! Trying to make sense of where the scenes went took a chunk out of last week. But--ta da--I think I found everything and put them in some semblance of order. Now comes the "fun" part. Revising and editing, making transitions, filling in the holes. And . . . adding 32,000 words (about 64 single-spaced pages). That's all. LOL 

The idea for Unpredictable Nature started with a Girl Scout camping trip. I never enjoyed camping, probably because I don't have good memories of family camping trips we took when I was a young teen. Dad thought it would be great fun to drive north past the Soo (Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan) into the wilds of Canada. We tent camped along a deserted lake--sleeping bags, cookstove, the whole shebang. Talk about primitive. In fact, before we could enter the wilderness, Dad had to sign in with the rangers (I assume). Twenty-some years later, I was a Girl Scout leader and had to take my troop camping. Despite my aversion to camping (I really hate bugs and dirt), I learned the basics and ended up enjoying many outdoor experiences. At least, we had pit toilets (outhouses) and cots in platform tents. 

So I thought wouldn't it be fun to write a story about a man who hates the outdoors (except for golf courses and swimming pools) and has to help chaperone his daughter's camping trip. Even worse, primitive camping. I knew exactly how he felt when he learned he had to "go" in the bushes. "What do you mean no toilets?"

Starting in February, I'll start posting snippets from Unpredictable Nature for Weekend Writing Warriors (WeWriWa). That means one last snippet from Romance Rekindled next weekend.

One the homefront: the twins are growing like crazy. Both boys have gained three pounds in three months. Daughter-in-law went back to work after the new year, and we've been helping out by babysitting once a week. I'm not sure how DIL keeps up. You get one baby fed, and the other is demanding his turn. One sleeps, and the other is awake. It's constant. I thought because my two were a year apart it was like having twins. No way! Nothing is like having twins. After a day of taking care of the twins and Toddler Girl, I need a nap. A Rip Van Winkle nap. Almost.

We're trying out Netflix. After a few years of Amazon Prime, I'm ready to switch. It was so disappointing to find shows/movies I wanted to watch only to find out that they're available but at a cost. So, we'll see how Netflix goes. I've already binge-watched Father Brown (love that show) and just discovered Shetland, a Scottish detective series set in the Shetland Islands. I'm fascinated by the scenery and, of course, the twists and surprises in solving mysteries. I consider it research. LOL

Reading: I'm hooked on Anna Hackett's Phoenix series, science fiction romances featuring brothers and cousins named Phoenix. Adventure and Romance. Right up my alley. I read before bed. Too many nights, I've read well into the wee hours.



That's it for this Monday. I hope you have a great week. Tomorrow, I'll be on Connie Bretes' blog sharing a funny incident.

A New Year

First an apology. When I started this blog, I faithfully blogged every Monday--musing about current events, either personal or world-wise. In 2017, I dropped the ball, especially the past few months. As happens with many of us, "life" happened. In a good way. The main reason I haven't blogged is I was having too much fun to write about it. Fun, in the form of family. If you've read my blog, you know about my immediate family (children and grandchildren) finally living close by. This Christmas was chaotic and fun. I loved it.

2017 is gone. 2018 is here. I love that January 1 is the start of a new year, but it's also a chance to begin again. So we didn't keep all the resolutions we made last year. We can start over. I didn't accomplish as much as I wanted to in 2017, but . . . Here's the disclaimer. I competed and published two books and wrote two short stories. For me, that was a big deal. I'm proud of that. I didn't expect to accomplish that much. Last year, I was invited to join another group blog (Pandora's Box Gazette--an online magazine) where I have a monthly column on Family Life. Added to Paranormal Romantics (where I blog once a month) and The Roses of Prose (where now I'll be blogging twice a month), and my own Weekend Writing Warrior contributions, I blog between 10-12 times a month. And I enjoy that.

My main job is writing books. While I enjoy blogging, that isn't adding to my stories. So I needed to examine what I want to accomplish in 2018. As I wrote for Insecure Writers Support Group last week, my goal is to finish three books. Two are already started, one new--a total of about 170,000 words. I nearly stopped before I got started. That's a lot of words. So, I broke that down into a more manageable goal, a minimum of 500 words per day (about one page single-spaced). Easy peasy. The harder part was choosing which book to go with first. 

The Spy (4th in my Outer Rim series): I'd already written almost 11k words. 

Unpredictable Nature (a romantic suspense): I wrote this book several years ago, and I finished it. I think. I just can't find all of it. I know that must sound weird. That story was written on two desktop computers ago. Back in those days, I kept copies of my work on 3.5" floppy disks. I'm still looking through those floppies, trying to find that story.

Untitled (4th in the Alex O'Hara PI mystery series): as of Jan. 1, not started but thought about a lot.

It makes sense to finish the book that's closest to being done. Right? Hah! That Alex O'Hara story just won't let me go. So, last week, I started writing. I've already 6700 words. I love when the words flow, as they've been doing for almost a week.

On the right side of this blog, you'll see my progress graphic for each book. Having declared my intentions, you can hold me to it. LOL I won't be offended if you ask about my progress (or lack of).

Have a great week. Come back next Sunday for Weekend Writing Warrior where I post 8-10 sentence snippets from my new release Romance Rekindled.  

If you're interested, here's my blogging schedule:

Each weekend: Weekend Writing Warrior, here

Each Monday: here

1st Wednesday: Insecure Writers Support Group, here

3rd Wednesday: Pandora's Box Gazette

13th of the month: Paranormal Romantics 

16th & 30th of the month: The Roses of Prose