Leaving at Noon, the first draft

No one would ever accuse me of being obsessively neat or tidy, or worrying that the house is a mess and people might be shocked to see it. But one thing I’ve never done is let readers see the messy, first draft of a manuscript. Dirty washing, dirty plates and dirty rooms don’t worry me. Dirty drafts? Yeah, that terrifies me.

So please understand how brave I’m being to show you this. There are spelling errors, grammatical errors, typos and…the story hasn’t been plotted out at all. You’re seeing an extract from this book in all its rough mess.

What’s the book about? Well, it’s the fourth story in the Sunday Night Dinner Club series, and focuses on the only married couple in the club, Zoey and Theo Hughes.

Things have been shaky between them for a while. Their marriage is headed for a major collapse, and this is the scene where everything comes to a head:

Leaving at Noon: A very rough excerpt:

By the time he’d climbed out of the car, stalked down the garden path and reached the front door, his apprehension had turned to anger.

What the fuck?

Theo didn’t pretend to be quiet when he let himself in. He slammed the door and turned on the light in the entryway. Once he’d tossed his keys and her bag on the table, eliciting two satisfying clangs, he walked through the house, turning on every light he passed.

Zoey wasn’t in the lounge. Nor was she in the dining room or kitchen. Frustration bit at him, and he smashed his fist on the kitchen counter. The bang resounded off the walls and cupboards.

She wasn’t in the either of the spare rooms—his temporary home office and hers, until they had kids—which meant, if Zoey was indeed home, and Liv seemed to think she was, there was only one place she could be.

The bedroom door was open. Riding a wave of fear, fury and frustration, Theo kicked it, ramming it into the wall. It bounced back at him, and he kicked again for good measure, hard as he could. The wood splintered against his foot.

Theo didn’t give a shit. He whacked his hand against the switch, and light flooded the room.

Zoey gaped at him from her side of the bed, her jaw hanging open, her eyes wide with shock.

At least, for once, she wasn’t pretending to sleep.

“Are you crazy?” she demanded.

“What. The. Fuck?” Breath sawed from his chest.

She blinked. “Excuse me?”

Theo pointed in the general direction of his car. His hand—which he was surprised to notice held his phone—still shook. “I have just spent the last hour looking for you. Driving up and down the streets of Sydney.”

She sat up, glaring. “Well, you found me. Right here, where I asked Levi to tell you I’d be.”

Yeah, that was true. Levi had told him she’d gone home. On foot.

“I drove to and from Chelsea’s, three times, searching for you.”

Unmoved, Zoey set her lips in a straight, angry line.

He held up his iPhone to show her, clenching it so tight, he cracked the protective cover. “I called you. Over and over and over. Couldn’t get hold of you.”

Zoey narrowed her eyes, then said unrepentantly. “I was on the phone.”

Rage lit his veins. Theo squeezed his mobile tighter. The damaged cover pinched the skin of his middle finger, and stinging pain shot through him. Hard as he could, he hurled the phone against the far wall.

It shattered on impact.

Zoey jerked in shock. Then she schooled her features in a bland mask. “Feel better?”

“Not even a bit.”

“The phone was what? Four months old?”

“I thought you’d been hurt. Broken a leg maybe.” He’d thought worse. Way, way worse. “Taken. Attacked.” Twisted visions of rape had haunted him for an hour, intensifying with every passing moment. His breath was uneven and his back damp with sweat.

—————–

K, that’s it. All I’m brave enough to show you.

*Wipes sweat from brow*

Leaving at Noon releases on the 22nd of May. You can pre-order it now at:

Smashwords – Barnes & Noble – iBooks – Kobo

(It’s not up at Amazon yet – but it will be soon.)

🙂

Jess

 

 

 

From e-screen to big screen

Otherwise titled: if my book was ever made into a movie…

Following on from Lexxie and Sami’s posts, I’ve had loads of fun trying to determine who would play the lead roles in Dinner at Eight.

(And yeah, I had to choose Dinner. It’s just released, and I’m still totally stoked about that.)

When it came down to the crunch, there were really on two contenders.

For the role of Jared Thurston, I had no option but to choose…

Quite apart from the undeniable fact that Channing Tatum is the hottest male on two legs, anyone who has seen the movie, The Vow, will understand why he’d be the perfect choice to play Jared.

Hmm, I wonder how he’d sound with an Australian accent.

And who would his leading lady be? This one was also a no brainer, by mere virtue of the fact that the actress is a dead ringer for Ava:

Yep, Mila Kunis would be the ideal match for Channing:

So, can you imagine Channing and Mila playing out this little scene?

————–

“Look at me.” His warm breath washed over her cheek.

Was that apprehension shooting the goose bumps down her arms—or something else altogether?

He tugged gently on her hair, tipping her head back. “Open your eyes so you can see my face, understand my intent.”

Helpless to resist, she did and found him staring at her. His face was close enough to jerk her heart into a jagged beat.

His gaze trapped hers, his eyes filled with tenderness. “You’re safe with me,” he promised. “Always.”

—————

Ah, it’s nice to daydream.

I’ll see you at the movies.

😉

Jess

 

Love Is……. Part 3

 

 

Love is so many things to me that I’d need more than one blog post to list them all. 🙂 I’ve got a couple of quotes to share but I thought I’d also share one of my own thoughts on love.

 

Love is…….wanting to strangle your guy and kiss him at the same time. (talk about a complete mind fuck)

 

Now that I’ve shared that piece of insanity……

 

Even the wisest men make fools of themselves about women, and even the most foolish of women are wise about men. – Theodor Reik

 

Marriage is like arthritis. You have to learn to live with it. – Unknown

 

Love is like quicksilver in the hand. Leave the fingers open and it stays. Clutch it, and it darts away. – Dorothy Parker

 

Rhian

www.rhiancahill.com

Love Is Part 2

So I have to come up with my favorite love quote? How can I pick one? I couldn’t so I decided to make it a TOP FIVE LIST, yay! Because I haven’t done one in a while. So here goes

1. I started with music, because to me music is always so evocative, especially when you’re listening to a true master poet like Bob Dylan:

When the evening shadows and the stars appear
And there is no one there to dry your tears
I could hold you for a million years
To make you feel my love.

Too Make You Feel My Love – Bob Dylan

Seriously one of the most touching songs ever written. Those words say love to me.

2. BUT so does something quirky like this:

“We’re all a little weird. And life is a little weird. And when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall into mutually satisfying weirdness—and call it love—true love.”
― Robert Fulghum, True Love

3. AND something that rings so completely true, like this:

Love doesn’t make the world go ’round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile

Franklin P Jones

4. Let’s not forget about self-love either. No, I don’t mean that kind :). I mean the love of self, the most important love affair of our lives. It’s probably ironic that one of my favorite of these types of quotes comes from a woman who you wouldn’t immediately imagine had a strong sense of self, but these words tell the real story:

“I’m selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can’t handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don’t deserve me at my best.”
― Marilyn Munroe

5. You know I love movies, right? It’s soooo hard to pick my favorite love quote from a movie. In fact it probably deserves another list but I won’t go on with that now. Instead I’ll pick the most poignant, meaningful, heart-felt quote I can think of.

Nobody puts Baby in a corner

Johnny Castle – Dirty Dancing

What? What? That’s totally cool. He’s standing up to her dad, defending her, bringing her from the shadows into the light because only he understands how brightly she can shine, and he’s letting everyone know with his passion how much he loves her. And all in only 6 words, none of which are the word ‘love’. I likes it :).

So what’s your favorite love quote from a book, movie, song, or even from your grandma. Tell us!

Cheers,

Sami

This is Why You Love Us… right?

It’s Australia Day here down under, which always reminds the Divas what they love about living in Australia.

THE WILDLIFE

 

THE HEAT

(Actually we don’t love the heat so much, but there are ways round it. Like swimming)

(Er, maybe just drinking then. Lots of it)

THE FOOD

WHAT ABOUT OUR REBELLIOUSNESS?

(but then, even our cops can be quite laid back)

even the cops think they’re funny

WHAT ABOUT OUR CHARMING TENDENCY TO TELL THE WHOLE TRUTH, AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH?

AND THE FACT THAT WE’RE MOSTLY A FAIRLY HAPPY BUNCH

What’s not to love?

(Don’t worry, the rare Lazer-Eyed Koala almost never attacks in daylight)

HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY.

(or Happy Monday if you don’t love us. But we know you do. We’re just so bloody interesting)

The Divas

It’s all about the setting.

It’s kind of frightening to think about the number of places my characters have had sex. I mean, really, there’s a lot of sex in my books and I can’t even remember them all! But as the idea is to make a list I’ve put my thinking cap on (read – searched through my books) and come up with an incomplete list. 🙂 Feel free to add any extras you remember from my books in the comments.

So, the list –

In a hotel room. On the floor. On a chair. In the bed. (Yeah, those pair really got it on.)

In the bath.

On a bed. (Pretty sure it DIDN’T look like this one)

On a table in the backyard.

In the backseat.

 

On a bathroom counter.

In the shower. (I’ve discovered a LOT of my characters get it on in the shower!)

On a kitchen counter.

A desk. (There’s a few desks in my books……)

On a sofa.

In a warehouse.

Against a wall.

Not sure it was that wall……

 

If you missed the other Diva’s lists of where to get it on you can find them here –

https://downunderdivas.wordpress.com/2014/11/17/variety-is-the-spice-of-life-sex-locations-day-1/

https://downunderdivas.wordpress.com/2014/11/24/some-of-the-places-my-characters-get-it-on/

https://downunderdivas.wordpress.com/2014/11/26/finding-the-right-spot-sex-locations-day-3/

 

Rhian 

Finding the right spot – Sex locations, Day 3

The Divas have been having a lot of fun of late, discussing all the places our characters have done the dirty. Sami made a list first, which you can see right here. Then it was Lexxie’s turn. (Click here for her list.)

The thing is with erotic romance writing, our characters do the dirty A LOT! And let’s face it, if they confined themselves to their bedrooms, things could start to get a wee bit boring, no? So it’s up to us, the authors, to throw our characters into places or situations that’ll spice up the scenes.

 

Truth is, very few of my love scenes take place in the bedroom. All too often, they’re so keen to get it on, that soft, comfortable bed is just too damn far away. So, where have they done it? Well let’s see:

1) In the lounge room. (That seems to be a favorite of mine. There’s even a scene on a couch which takes place as the NYE midnight firework show begins. And oh, yeah, there are a lot of fireworks!)

2) In the dining room. (On the table and a chair. Different books though.)

3) In the bathroom. (Not in the shower or bath, as you’d expect…)

4) A gazebo in the middle of a rose garden. (Several times. Turns out the gazebo was a special place for this hero and heroine.)

5) The dressing room of a sports stadium. (With sixty thousands people packed into said stadium.)

6) An outdoor spa/jacuzzi.

7) A doctor’s waiting room.

8) On the deck of a boat.

9) On the ladder of a boat.

10) In an office. (With someone watching through the window. And without someone watching through the window. And in his office chair. And her office couch.)

11) In the garden during a party.

12) In his parents’ garden, behind the massive eucalyptus tree. (Don’t worry. It was night. The parents never saw a thing.)

13) On the balcony of a hotel room. (Man, I adore love scenes set in hotel rooms! I have heaps of them.)

14) Tied to a chair. (Well, she was. He’d gotten free by then.)

15) On a bar. (With three hot men! How’s that for one lucky lady?)

16) On a poker table. (Never fear, the cards and chips had been packed away.)

17) On a kitchen table. (Sturdy table that one.)

18) On the trunk of a car on the side of a road in broad daylight. (Phew, lucky the road was deserted.)

19) On a cliff overlooking the ocean. (Spectacular views, I might add.)

20) In her dreams. (And his)

————

Now, for the fun bit…A CONTEST!

You’ve read my list. Now check out Lexxie and Sami’s lists. (Rhian’s is coming soon!)

Each day any commenter who can match up at least one of that author’s books with its corresponding sex location will go in the draw to win a set of four backlist books–winner’s choice, one from each of us. So, for eg, you might say that the love scenes in the gazebo are from Red Red Wine – and you’d be right. (I gave that one away because I’m super cool that way 😀 ). Do you get the picture? Match up as many or as few as you can.

Have fun. (Oh, and don’t be shy to add a couple of places you might have tried. Who knows? They may just land up in a Diva book one day.) 😉

Good luck,

Jess

Variety is the Spice of Life – Sex Locations Day 1

As an erotic romance author, one of the things you strive to do to is make the sex in each book distinct and different. This takes some inventiveness and some serious risk taking at times from your protagonists. When you’ve racked up 15 books (many more from the other Divas), most of them containing more than one sex scene each and many of them sporting many more than that, it’s not easy to make each scene stand out from the other.

This is why I’ve recently turned to play equipment. Yep, as in a public park. At night, no lights (aka no witnesses), not a lot of moonlight. Nobody’s naked on the jungle jim and no DNA gets left behind, this is strictly a preview to the main event. But still, I’ve resorted to foreplay involving a slippery slide. LOL.

Casting my mind back, my characters have committed sex acts in a wide range of places

SAMI’S CHARACTER SEX LOCATION LIST

In a bed (naturally)

On the couch

On the kitchen table

Against the wall

Against the door (same thing as above, really)

In a stable (but NOT on a horse. At least not yet)

In the shower

In the ocean

In a resort swimming pool

In a car (stationery)

In a car (moving)

On a boat (anchored. You can only handle one rudder at a time)

At the beach

On a balcony

In the middle of a vineyard

On a rug in front of the fire (it’s a cliché because it’s good)

At the bar in a hotel

At a lookout (very public, oooh)

Over the phone

In the back yard

That’s quite a list. But I reckon the playground example shows there are many more places to explore.

Anyone want to go canoeing?

**********CONTEST**********

 This week each Diva will be putting up their list of character sex locations (yes the list has an official name). Each day any commenter who can match up at least one of that author’s books with its corresponding sex location will go in the draw to win a set of four backlist books–winner’s choice, one from each of us. So for eg you might say that that Sami’s sex in the stables scene is from Eternal Brand (I gave that one away because that book hasn’t released yet!). Do you get the picture? Match up as many or as few as you can.

Sounds like fun to me :).

Sami