• 8-Sentence Sunday

    A new 8-Sentence Sunday and I stayed in Sarah’s story because it’s the one that’s on my mind this week. This snippet picks up from where we left off last week. Mack and Sarah are talking about her abusive ex-husband, whom she’s convinced is sitting outside the shelter in a limo waiting for his chance to confront her… “No, he won’t give it up,” Sarah’s voice sounded flat to her own ears as Mack followed her out into the courtyard. Even as she said the words, the truth of them sent a chill down her spine. She couldn’t shake the image of a mountain lion patiently stalking a gazelle. Watching,…

  • 8-Sentence Sunday

    It’s Sunday and that means we have a new 8-Sentence snippet. Picking up from last week’s eight taken from the third book in the Women of Willow Bay series, we’re still with Captain McGuire as he fights icy cold, bad weather, and a guilty conscience in 1933: “Temperature’s dropping fast, Captain, First Officer Brent Woods came onto the bridge, his shoulders hunched against the wind that buffeted the ship, and handed McGuire a thick mug. “The men are grousing about the possibility of snow.” “Yeah, I know,” McGuire accepted the coffee, grateful for its warmth, and jerked his head toward the window. “Those clouds don’t look too promising, do they?”…

  • 8-Sentence Sunday

    Here we go, kids…still in the beginning of Novel 3 in the Women of Willow Bay series (this book seriously needs a title!),  and still in Captain McGuire’s POV… Three years later, multimillionaire Salvatore “Sonny” Todaro salvaged the boat, towed it to Chicago, and had it refitted as his own personal yacht. He renamed her Caroline Howe to honor his mother. Now, she was luxurious again, with staterooms outfitted for the ultimate comfort of Todaro and his friends and family. But the Caroline Howe had another mission—the refit had included state-of-the-art diesel engines that sent the boat moving swiftly over the Great Lakes, and for several years, she’d carried an…

  • 8-Sentence Sunday

    Weekend Writing Warriors are busy on new stories and because I am a warrior, here’s another snippet from Novel 4 in the Women of Willow Bay series. Continuing from where we left off last week, we’re still in 1933 with Captain Frank McGuire… It’s not like an extra day or two was going to make or break Todaro. Hell, the man had more money that he could ever spend in several lifetimes. Besides, it was probably the last trip he’d ever make if Roosevelt did as he promised and signed the Twenty-First Amendment next month. Maybe Todaro was worrying about losing this source of income, trying to get in a…

  • 8-Sentence Sunday

    It’s time again for a snippet from my current WIP. This time I’m switching to a scene from the fourth Women of Willow Bay book–yeah, I’m working on two at once and no, neither one has a title yet. This one is a little different in that it contains a bit of suspense. Setup is 46-year-old Sophie Russo has always been a summer resident of Willow Bay, coming up every summer of her life with her grandfather who owned two cottages on the Lake Michigan shore. Sophie is a quiet, shy freelance editor, who has been caring for her sick grandfather for the last two years. Her beloved  Papa Leo…

  • 8-Sentence Sunday

    Can you believe it’s a new 8-Sentence Sunday? Where is the time going? I’m deep into Book 3 of the Women of Willow Bay series–Sarah’s as-yet untitled story. I’m open to suggestions by the way. Setup is the same as last week–Sarah is closing up La Belle Femme, the resale shop she manages at a women’s shelter in Chicago. A mysterious limo has been parked outside each evening for the past couple of days and she and Mack, the nightwatchman are wondering… “Yup,” Sarah returned the smile—Mack was a sweetheart. She switched off all the lights except the can lights over the front window and locked the register as he…

  • 8-Sentence Sunday

    Annnndddd…we’re back with a new Weekend Writing Warrior’s 8-Sentence Sunday post. I’ve decided to take you all along as I start my new Women of Willow Bay novel, so who knows where we’ll end up. This week, I’m giving you the first 8 sentences of the new book. So here’s the setup: We met our heroine in Sex and the Widow Miles–she’s Sarah Everett, the woman who ran the Chicago resale shop in the battered women’s shelter where Julie volunteered. Remember tough little red-headed Sarah, who went toe-to-toe with a gun-toting abuser? Six years ago, she escaped her abusive husband and ran away to Chicago, where she now manages the…

  • Weekend Writing Warriors 8-Sentence Sunday

    It’s that time again! Time for another installment of 8-Sentence Sunday. This week, I’m continuing with the scene from Sex and the Widow Miles. Julie is finding her way in Chicago, making friends, volunteering at a battered women’s shelter, and also spending time with the handsome guy from across the hall, Will Brody. But she is still devoted her dead husband, which is creating quite a stumbling block for Will, who’s falling in love with her.  In this scene, they’re sharing supper and Julie’s amazed to find herself attracted to Will when she believed she’d belong to Charlie forever. Charlie was with me. I felt him near all the time.…

  • Weekend Writing Warriors 8-Sentence Sunday

    It’s that time again! Time for another 8-sentence snippet from one of my works in progress. I’ve given you several from Once More From the Top, so I’m switching back to Sex and the Widow Miles this week. Remember Jules and that sexy younger man? It’s been a couple of weeks since their kiss–the one that made Jules all hot and bothered and then cringe with embarrassment–she’s trying very hard to keep Will at arm’s length. He’s equally determined to get back into her good graces, however his technique is very subtle: I’d made it very clear that I couldn’t get involved with him, but he seemed content with simply…