I’ll be attending this awesome virtual conference in 2022. Mark your calendar. Set alarms. Tell Alexa/Siri/O.K.Google to make sure you don’t miss it!
What: Abduct Me SFRCon (virtual)
When: February 26-27, 2022
Wanna know the best part? You can order SIGNED PAPERBACKS!
If you would like more information or order signed books from other attending authors, visit www.abductmesfrcon.com.
Hope to see you there!
We’re now a few days past the midpoint of November, and I’m pretty sure that I’m not gonna ‘win’ NaNoWriMo this year.
But that’s okay.
I’m about 25% through my goal, which means I have half of my crappy-first-draft/outlining done. This plotting-drafting part of my writing process both excites and frustrates me. So many ideas hit me so quickly that I scramble to get them all on my spark sheet. Some of these early sparks get edited out as I go. Some are sparkingly gems of spot-on character interaction. The sparkly bits really conflict me, because I want to share them sooo badly, but it’s a draft. I really should wait until it’s all polished and published. Right?
Whelp, in this case, I’m not gonna wait. I’m having a blast with Joia and Ryorin. So, enjoy!
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Maybe Ryorin the Bastion?*
[Ryorin admiring Jo’s shrewd and deliberate, yet subtle, machinations…]
Joia: You’re calling me sneaky, Pompous.
Ryorin: I am listing all the attributes that make you The Ruthlessly Cunning.
Joia (arches brow): Right.
Ryorin: Truly. You’ve many admirable qualities.
Joia: That you’ve characterized as ‘ruthless’.
Ryorin (nods): Impressively so.
Joia (glares at him because that is not a compliment):…
*A few things. Right now I’m just a fly on the wall, so I’ve got no idea whose the point-of-view character for this scene. Also, I have zero idea if this will make the final draft. But it’s always fun to lock Jo and Ryorin into a room and watch the sparks fly.💛
No One: I wonder what Bex’s plotting looks like?
Bex: I am sooo glad that you asked! Feast your gaze on my brilliant gibberish. If all goes to plan, one day it will be comprehensive sentences and stuff…
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Ryorin the Bastion
Ryorin: You’re one of The Restrained’s bestest friends. (Cringes to say so aloud.) How has the male cured himself of his unrelenting idiocy?
Gary (pissed): What?
Ryorin: The male is marginally less of an imbecile than he used to be.
Gary (glaring): The only change in Pyx is that he’s happy as hell with Luna.
Ryorin (internal): But that doesn’t explain it. Because idiots are delusional, thus deliriously happy, individuals. That’s the trademark of being an idiot. The lucky little shits, to willfully be so joyous despite their true circumstances…
As I’ve learned from NaNos past, I can never hit the 50,000 word count. My goal this year is to plot Joia and Ryorin’s book and to hopefully have the first 20% written by the end of November.
Another thing that I am doing differently: Unlike the other Slow & Steady books, Let Down Your Hare will NOT be a serial. However, I will post snippets and excerpts as I write.
To give you all a glimpse of the fun times ahead, here’s an excerpt of Joia and Ryorin in By a Hare.
Enjoy!💙
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Rez the Only Runner of Two-Four-Kay
“Hey now,” Jo said, her tone kind, but firm. “Not here, Rez. Come on.”
Docile as a bunny, Rez let Jo turn her to usher her from the room.
Ryorin was blocking the threshold.
Like a crack of lightning, the atmosphere in the room shifted.
Joia made a low, disgusted sound in the back of her throat as Pyxis released a thunderous growl.
Ryorin, who had his flat gaze pinned on Jo, shifted his focus over Rez’s shoulder. Rez caught it as well, Pyx was lunging—
“Hoy, Fanboy!” Joia snapped, keeping her eyes on Ryorin. “Quit it.”
Pyx jerked to a stop, which only increased the tension.
Sure, he’d listened to Jo and had backed off, but his nostrils were fuming as his feral growls rumbled at an ultra low decibel. His shoulders had bulked up as well—his muscles priming for battle as they clicked his back carapace plates into place. And as he paced in the tiny space—pivoting after two stunted steps—his furious glare never shifted from Ryorin.
It was all pretty terrifying. In less than a second, Pyx had shed his puppy-ness and burst forth as a hellhound.
Rez was emotionally drained and teetering on another mental drop, but even she knew. Now was not the time to fuck with Pyx.
Apparently, Ryorin didn’t agree.
She watched him flick his gaze from Pyx back to her and Jo. Assessing.
For all the—
Was he actually thinking about taking Pyx on despite his rabid state?
“Don’t even think about it,” Rez snarled.
Jo followed fast on her heels, backing her up with the same ferocious protectiveness. “You do not wanna cross that line, Pompous.”
Ryorin snapped his gaze to Jo, his brow dipping. He opened his mouth, hesitated, then huffed out a dismissive scoff. “I have no quarrel with Pyxis the Restrained.” Then the smug ass just had to add, “At the moment.”
In unison, she and Jo exchanged beleaguered eye rolls.
“And when I do choose to quarrel,” Ryorin snipped, his chest puffing up. “I’m always victorious.”
“Whatever.” Jo jabbed her thumb over her shoulder, pointing at Pyx. “Fanboy checks all the Badass Boxes. Reconnaissance. Extraction. Assault artillery.”
“He kinda makes like a whole army.” Rez tossed in with a ‘you’re screwed’ shrug.
Ryorin scoffed. “Without a commanding officer?”
“Who needs one of those?” Rez shot back.
He squinted his eyes and said flatly, “An army. An army needs one of the those.”
Hell, she’d rather be dealing with Kin’s sucky mom than this shitbag. Ryorin was just so…jack-ass-holelistic…
“You got two seconds, Pompous,” Jo said, again using her thumb, pointing to Pyx over her shoulder, “before I let Fanboy off the leash.”
Ryorin heaved, then pressed his lips into a firm line.
“One,” Jo snapped.
“I’m here to parlay,” Ryorin gritted out.
“Like hell you are. Emys and Kin aren’t here.” Jo scoffed, sounding amused. “And I know Fanboy ain’t in no mood to talk.”
Rez blinked. She had no idea what those two were talking about. And it was obvious that Jo and Ryorin were picking up some past conversation that she’d missed.
Ryorin shifted, turning more toward Jo. “I’m here to parlay—”
Jo cut him off. “Repeating it ain’t gonna make it true—”
“With you!” Ryorin snapped his mouth shut, as if his harsh tone had surprised him as well.
“Bullshit.”
Jo shoved Ryorin, whose eyes shot wide open as he backpedaled out of the room.
No. Jo didn’t have super strength. Just limited bursts of speed paired with limitless intelligence.
Ryorin had backed himself outta the way because—based on his stunned expression—the conceited clown must have thought himself untouchable.
Ass.
Rez stumbled after Jo. One hand held her towel closed while Jo firmly grasped the other and pulled her forward.
As Jo stormed past Ryorin, Rez caught the look on his face. Flabbergasted. Amazed. Then, either unaware that Rez was looking or not giving a shit, his lips curled. She knew that smile.
Proprietary.
Well, that wouldn’t end well for him.
And Jo—as if proving Rez’s point—called over her shoulder. “Stay with Baby Bunny, Fanboy. Let me know if Pompous gives you any shit.”
Yeah. Ryorin might as well flay himself now and get it over with on his own terms…
Luna the Baby Bunny
“Fire,” Pyx heaves.
“What! No!” I say frantically. “That’s not a safe wor—”
Wait a second.
I look over my shoulder and—dangit.
I can’t see my hands. They’re tied behind my back because Pyx really gets off when he has an unobstructed view of my baby bump.
I shuffle on my knees, turning myself around. “I can’t see. Am I on fire…?”
Luna the Baby Bunny
“Pyx,” I say. “I’m scared that I’ll mess everything up.”
Now he’s looking at me like what I’ve said is ludicrous—which is as sexy as it is flattering, however…
“Really, Pyx. I need to work on things. Lots of things.” I step closer to him and reach up to touch him.
I cup his cheek, and you know what?
The guy didn’t flinch at all.
Hell. I love the crap outta Pyx.
I brush my thumb over his cheek. “I need your help. When I forget to tell you what I want or need, could you remind me?” I shrug. “Problem solved.”
His brow wrinkles. “That’s feels…”
“Too easy?” I nod. “Kinda feels like we’re cheating, right? But we’re not.”
“Feels like things can still go wrong.” He’s looking at his hands. “What if I get it wrong.”
“Then we’ll try again.”
Pyx has got a wary look on his face.
“And again, and again,” I say encouragingly. “Until we get it right.”
But he still doesn’t look convinced.
Okay, Luna. Now or never.
I go with my signature move and pull my dress up and over my head.
Yay! I only got tangled up, like, three times.
But I flick my gaze to Pyx to gauge how much of an idiot I am.
The heat in his eyes and tension in his body is telling. I’m at a Zero Idiocy rating.
All right! This is gonna be great…
Luna the Baby Bunny
Howie’s looking at me and his mouth twists, like he’s tasting something off-putting and can’t pinpoint the ickyness. “You listenin’ to other folks’ ideas?”
I nod. “Yeah. Didn’t I always…”
I’m look from Jo to Howie. They both are glaring at me.
“Fine.” I huff. “I’ve grown as a person and I’m listening now. Whaddya got for me, Howie?”
“That candy of yours’s too sweet.”
“Too sweet?” I echo back like an idiot.
Because I never, ever thought Howie could be a nice kid and—
“Kinda gross sweet,” he says as he makes a gagging noise. “You know, it tastes like that crap the communal mess cooks use to cover up whatever rank food we still gotta eat.”
“Ah. Noted. Less sweet. Thank you for telling me what you want.”
Howie shrugs and walks off. “Yah never bothered asking.”
“Got it.” Feeling like a fool, I turn back to Jo and point my thumb over my shoulder. “That’s Howie saying ‘you’re welcome.’”
Jo narrows her eyes at me. “Right. He’s just spewing gratitude.”
I nod. “He’s a good kid.”
But not a nice kid. Definitely not nice.
And I kinda adore him…
Luna the Baby Bunny
A flash of yellow streaks overhead. I look up, whipping my head around so that I can track the yellow dart as it shoots out over the Chaparral.
Yellow?
I blink. Was that a War-nary?
The undergrowth around us explodes with charging War-wolves. Gary rushes forward, pushing Howie, Bianca, and I toward a tree. This close to the Chaparral, the trunk is not as massive as the ones deep in the forest. But as a makeshift shelter, it’ll do.
“Luna?” Howie cries.
All I can do is shake my head as I watch about two dozen War-wolves sprint past us, shaking the ground with their pounding strides. They streak out into the Chaparral, traveling the same direction as the War-nary.
I look at Gary. He looks at me. And we’re totally on the same page.
Something bigger and badder than a mega-sized pack of War-wolves is coming.
A low, deep growl—more menacing than the War-wolves’—rumbles all around us…
Writing All Realms of Romance: SFR - PNR - Fantasy 