On Mondays, I've been working on my WIP novel, Moonlight Murders. I have three chapters written so far. The first two chapters have been revised and edited, and next Monday, I plan to rewrite/edit chapter three, including bits of Irish dialogue/accent into the chapter, since it takes place in Dublin. Then, I hope to begin writing again for chapter four.
On Tuesdays, I work on a short story. I have one WIP short story "They." I have a little over 1000 words written in it. Yesterday, I finished writing "The Ice Cream Thief," which you can read at Raven and the Writing Desk today, and I wrote "Tradition," a story a little under 2000 words. I will edit it tomorrow and submit it by Friday. Yesterday, I wrote around 2700 words, more than I wrote all last month. I'm really excited about it.
On Wednesdays, I'm working on my WIP novella, Panther Moon. So far, I have the synopsis written and part of chapter one. This is my first attempt at a novella, but so far, so good, I think. Since I've been talking about the novella a bit and this is my first time writing one, I'm putting the first page on this blog. Any comments are welcome.
First page of Panther Moon:
"We'll have three burgers, right, boys?" Leo glanced over at Carl and Tony for an affirmative.
"Yeah, sounds good." Carl grinned at the waitress named Angela, according to her nameplate. He considered her "muy bonita" with her mocha skin and wavy black hair.
"That's fine." Tony raised his beer and took a swig of the piss-colored beverage.
"I'll bring your order right out." She winked at Carl, flashed all three of them a smile, and sauntered back into the café.
"Mm, she's a looker, all right." Carl's gaze followed every swish of her ass.
"She's out of your league, Carl," Tony said.
"No, she's not. She likes me." Carl ran his fingers through his dirty blond hair. "You're jealous she doesn't like you."
Tony laughed. "I can find my own chick, thank you very much."
Leo grinned and shook his head. Carl and Tony were the best friends a guy could have. They were the type of men one could depend upon, and Leo trusted them with his life. Sitting back in his chair, he breathed in. The air filled with the scent of burgers and sandwiches and salt from the ocean. Despite the salsa music blaring its rhythmic beats, he could hear the waves lapping upon Miami's shores and the squawk of seagulls.
"Whatcha looking at, Leo?" Carl tapped him on the arm.
Leo blinked and glanced back into his beer bottle. "Nothing much. Just listening and watching." He shrugged while tapping his fingers along the cool bottle to the music.
Angela returned with a tray carrying their three burgers. "Here you go, boys." She brushed against Carl as she set his plate down and moved along the table to give Leo and Tony their burgers. "Do you need anything else?"
"Your phone number," Carl commented with a boyish grin.
"Carl," Tony and Leo whispered together.
Angela laughed. "I'll see what I can do." She wiggled her fingers and took off with the empty tray.
"Man, you're terrible," Tony punched Carl's arm.
Carl rubbed the spot. "I might be, but I'll get her number."
The two laughed and dug into their meals.
Once again, Leo laughed and shook his head. Carl could get anyone's number, or so he thought. He picked up his burger and bit into it, but he couldn't move any farther. A few tables over, a woman set down her book, took a sip of a strawberry smoothie, and raised the book again to cover her face. In that moment, he sat there with a burger in his hands and his jaw hanging open like a Venus fly trap.
"What's with you now?" Tony asked around his burger.
Leo remembered how to chew and swallowed the bite. "I just noticed her." He motioned to the woman with the book. Black sunglasses perched upon her honey-colored hair, gleaming golden in the sun. "I wonder who she is." Like a cat with catnip, he was hooked.
As for today's writing, I'll be working more on the first chapter of Panther Moon. Tomorrow, I plan to write Friday's flash fiction piece and edit "Tradition." Who knows what Friday will bring?
4 comments:
How exciting to be achieving your writing goals for July! I work best when I put schedules with deadlines on the calendar -- and since I've been back from vacation I haven't scheduled a thing. Which is why I haven't written a thing in a week! Thanks for inspiring me to get my butt in gear!!
Great excerpt, Cherie. Best of luck with this and all your projects!!
mmmm piss-colored beer! lol. I love this excerpt: so much great characterization.
I'm going over to Raven to read your story now!
Nicole - This is the first time I've tried an actual schedule, and it's working. Good luck getting back into writing!
Aubrie - Thank you! Glad you like this excerpt. You'll be reading the rest eventually. *grins*
Nice! I like seeing how you write when you do updates. It's neat to hear how different writers work.
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