Tales of The Painted Lady begins this Friday

It's almost July already???

Not only am I sitting here at my desk left wondering where June went, but with the onset of the new month that means we're only one month away from the release of The Painted Lady, my second novel being published by Winter Goose Publishing, which drops in August.

As stoked as I am for everyone to read it - and I do believe I have hurdled what is called the "sophomore slump" for those of you that fell in love with Seeing - I am also thrilled to start building the anticipation for Lady, and that starts this Friday, July 3, with the release of the first of five original micro-stores in a series dubbed Tales of The Painted Lady. The four subsequent stories will appear each Friday, with the last on July 31.

Because the stories are so short - glimpses (prequels, if you will) of what is to come in the novel through the perspective of five different characters - there isn't much I can say about them. What I can say, though, is that these micro-stories will be exclusive to my site, this blog, my Facebook, and a few other areas online. They will not appear anywhere in the novel itself. The other thing I can say about them is their titles.

Here is the schedule of the micro-stories as to when they will appear online:

July 3 - "Moving Dad"

July 10 - "For Rent"

July 17 - "Anniversary"

July 24 - "At All Costs"

July 31 - "From Downstairs"


See you on Friday!

5 Fun Facts About THE PAINTED LADY

Please excuse my excitement.

Today was the last day of the school year (yay!!!), and for the next 76 days (who's counting?) I'll be living the summer of Maddie & Daddy (it's my Summer of George). Just my eight-month-old daughter and I during the day. Hanging out, going to parks, playing with lightsabers and Minnie Mouse and Doc McStuffins. Unfortunately, mommy being an assistant principal doesn't nab the same amount of time off as I do. That being said, this is the first summer I've had off since...well, junior year of high school, which was fifteen years ago.

Whoa.

Anyway, I mention my long vacation because I'm hoping to be more productive here on the blog during my time off, in addition to writing the second draft of next year's project. Right now, I'm enjoying a comfortable lull. I'm awaiting the editor's word to come back on The Painted Lady, and I know work will pick up on the book once those edits comes back, so I thought I'd take this opportunity to punch out a fun post and give a quick shout-out regarding five things - fun factoids/bits of trivia - for you to know about my upcoming second novel.

If any of the following appear on a future episode of Jeopardy, you'll know they were posted here first.

1. The original title was Pictures.
The cover page of the first draft reads Pictures OR The Painted Lady but the header of each page throughout the manuscript read Pictures. At the time (this was two years ago...more on that in a bit) I was in love with both titles and couldn't make up my mind. What eventually helped me decide was that my first novel was titled Seeing and I didn't want another book with a single word title. Weird as it is, I felt I would be pigeonholing myself by having two consecutive first books with single word titles. I didn't want readers to believe I was establishing a theme that linked all of my books together.

What also helped me decide was I had heard of a novel called The Light Between Oceans (it's on my to-read list) and thought it was such a classy, beautiful, very-literary title. The Painted Lady read and sounded much classier than Pictures, so I went with it.

2. The idea of Lady stems from the first novel I ever tried to write.
Back in 2007 I gave a serious attempt to sit down and write my first novel. It was titled Pictures (hey look at that). While that initial attempt differs from what The Painted Lady has turned out to be, the central idea of the protagonist being a talented artist who is affected by strange happenings remains. What drew me to finally write this novel was the right ideas came at the right time.

3. Finishing the book took two years.
The first draft of The Painted Lady was written between July 22, 2013 and October 24, 2013. The first draft was about 63k words. My first two novels have not been overly long because they've been written from a single point of view, plus I don't like long subplots that deviate from the meat of the story.

4. A mysterious, underlying fear of never being a father inspired what happens to a character in the book.
I write about things that scare me. Not necessarily monsters under the bed or noises in the dark, but the things you can't see. Things you have no control over. Before my wife and I were blessed with Maddie, I housed this strange, unspoken fear that I couldn't have children. I don't know where this fear originated from but it felt very real when it woke me in the middle of the night. Anyone who really knows me can list the three things I've wanted my whole life - to be an author, to have a wife, and to have a baby girl. I am so thankful to have all of them, but that fear of being unable to have children gave me an idea for a pivotal character in the book.

5. This is a weird book.
I'll come right out and say it - this is one strange book, easily the oddest thing I've ever written. Obviously I can't say more, but where Seeing was a straight-up coming-of-age YA novel, The Painted Lady is such a tonal shift. And that's exactly what I wanted for my second book.

The Painted Lady lands on shelves and e-stores in about two months! More to come.

It's Gettin A Little Drafty... (Part 3 of 4)

With the big news of the cover and plot reveal for The Painted Lady being last week, I skipped putting up this third entry in my short blog series about editing drafts because I didn't want it to get lost in the mix.

Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

Two weeks ago I put up the second draft version of a paragraph that appears in Lady. While the paragraph packed more information, bringing out a greater sense of story than the meager original paragraph in draft one, it was also a bit wordy for my tastes. Which brings me to draft three.

In my third drafts I ruthlessly comb through the manuscript looking to cut cut cut - cut out anything that is hindering the voice of the work. I like to hear a rhythm when reading, even if that means taking out larger words that may make me appear smarter than your average bear and changing them out for ones that are simpler if it makes the read flow better.

Flow is underrated, I believe. Flow makes or breaks the story.

OK, let's look at the examples.

Here is draft two again:

He stared across the table at the woman - this woman far too beautiful for him. This wasn't one of those instances where Miles was selling himself short; it's just that he wasn't naïve to the fact that he was the luckiest guy in Tony's Restaurant. If not the world. To further drive this point there were numerous sly glances of the congratulatory kind - winks and nods - fielding in his direction. Of these he was appreciative. It's always nice to know when people think the one you're with is more than decent enough on the eyes. And not just your own pair. Questionable attractiveness is subject to specific tastes. Real beauty is appreciated by all.

And now, draft three:

He stared across the table at the woman - this woman far too beautiful for him. This wasn't one of those self-depreciating instances where Miles was selling himself short by knowing he was far beyond his league; it's just that he wasn't naïve to the fact that he was the luckiest guy in Tony's Restaurant. To further drive this point came numerous sly gestures of the congratulatory kind - winks and nods and even a thumbs up from one older man who also saw fit to lick his rubbery lips suggestively at the same time - fielding in his direction. Of these he was appreciative; of the old man, a bit weirded out. It's always nice to know when other people think the one you're with is more than decent enough on the eyes.

Funny (and ironic and hypocritical) that I said draft three is where I cut cut cut, and yet what's here is longer than draft two. This is where flow and style and substance come into play. After reading draft two I wanted the book to have more humor and thus inserted the image of an old man making suggestive gestures. It was something simple and not too distracting even though it added to the length. It gives the book, and certainly this particular scene, more of a personality.

Draft three is my beta reader draft. If my small circle of readers don't like something that's there then it goes out the window in draft four, my "sale draft."

Next week we'll finish up this blog series by discussing the fourth (sale) draft and final draft. Hopefully, too, I'll have some really cool news to announce regarding the upcoming set of micro-stories leading into this summer's The Painted Lady.

Cover Reveal: THE PAINTED LADY

Winter Goose Publishing has revealed the cover for The Painted Lady, including this plot summary in their press release:

 

 

Even the strangest things happen for a reason.

 

Miles Greene once spent his days creating beautiful works of cinematic art, all the while treasuring the deepening love for his wife, Stephanie. Currently his days are filled with the mundane as Miles, a recent widower, hides away in his ground-floor apartment, leaving his once-successful art career - and his drive to carry on - to complete indifference. With the sudden appearance of a mysterious woman in his building, Miles quickly realizes he is no longer in control of his destiny as forces beyond his control begin to influence his future. The path that unfolds in front of Miles may offer redemption at its end, but it promises a confrontation with the past, as well as coming to terms with the demon hiding within Miles and the burden of guilt he has carried all these years.

 

The Painted Lady will be released in August in both print and e-book.

THE PAINTED LADY Cover Reveal This Wednesday.

More exciting news this week: Winter Goose Publishing (@WinterGoosePub) will reveal the cover for my next novel, THE PAINTED LADY, this Wednesday, June the 3rd.

You'll be able to catch the announcement  in a variety of places: here on my blog, the front page of my site, as well as on Facebook, Twitter, and on WGP's website.

Can't wait for you all to see what we've come up with.