Plotting, Always Plotting

     Barely managed to squeeze my July post in this month.  Among my many excuses, a four day medical procedure that turned out fine but forbid typing, and the greatest urge to get the first draft of Sister of a Sinner done--just in case that procedure went bad on me.  I completed the book yesterday, still have the long process of revising, writing a synopsis and the blurb, but that shouldn't take more than a week or so.  While I am doing all this, and indeed, before Sister was halfway done, my mind started plotting the next book which will be another Sinners story.
     I suppose I am a pantser since I don't outline, create a spread sheet, or write down my character's eye color in advance.  In my mind, I know my beginning, middle, and end.  It's just a matter of moving my cast from one point to another until I get to the finish.  I do write in a linear fashion, beginning at the beginning writing through to the finish. Others like to write all their major scenes, then patch them together, but I find this often results in rocky transitions and abrupt scene changes.  You can usually tell when a person uses this method. Sometimes, they don't always appear to get the scenes in the right order.
     I also basically know my characters well in advance of writing the story.  Still, as the tale progresses, I learn more and more about them and the secondary characters. Some of the secondaries are as expendable as security guys on Star Trek.  Others will develop into major players in the plot.  You never know in advance, at least, I don't. Of my main characters, I will visualize what they look like and research their professions before I start, but they, too, grow.  In my rewrite, I will bring some of these issues to the front of the book to make them more complete.  Same goes for the setting which will be become more fleshed out.
     Often, I've thought I should write down some of the many plots rabbiting around in my head, but no.  As I finish one book, I simply grab another by the ears and start envisioning my new story.  I haven't run up against writer's block yet and never hope to.
     Sorry this is a bit short, but I am itching to start the revision of Sister, and can get a few chapters in before I have to cook dinner for my husband.  If accepted, and not all are, this one will be out early in 2017.  Meanwhile, keep an eye out for An Ashy Affair to be released September 28th.  It's a companion piece to one of my favs, A Trashy Affair.  This one has a hunky fireman the heroine thinks is a little too good to be true: brave, handsome, kind, and he can cook both in the kitchen and the bedroom.  Has to be something wrong with him, right?  Leah Allain sets out to find what that is before she succumbs totally to his charms. It's a good one.  Enjoy!

What's Next--You Tell Me!

As I've said before, I have so many plots rattling around in my head I won't get a chance to write all those books before I die--or at least can no longer spend four hours a day writing on a computer. Plots are everywhere from creating a contemporary romance out of my garbage collections problems (A Trashy Affair)  to spinning an historical novel of 112,000 words (Queen of the Mardi Gras Ball) out of one sentence found in A Taste of Bayou Water: "I remember that shawl from when she danced a fandango on a table out at Broussard's Barn on New Year's Eve back when I was just a tadpole." The reference was to the heroine's great-grandmother, a high-stepping flapper named Roz. For five years, I pondered Roz's story before finally writing it down.Sometimes a plot takes a long time to ripen.

Last month, I mentioned leaving my beloved Cajun Country to write a novel taking place in Maine. I'm now half finished with A Place Apart and already thinking what should I tackle next. A contract just came through for the next Sinners novel, She's a Sinner, about a female NFL player and Tom's love interest. Edits will follow shortly breaking my writing pace, but the Maine book should be finished by the end of summer if not sooner. Since The Courville Rose was turned down because its ghost character committed suicide 185 ago, I probably won't write the next two books in that series until I can find another home for The Roses series elsewhere. I had planned to do two short ones about Ty Beck and Jesse Niles.

Usually in the fall, I write a Regency novel, part of my unsold Longleigh Chronicles. Yes, I write books that might never sell. I think all authors do. But, always infused with new hope, I've sent the first of that series off to, gulp, a real New York publisher and await their decision which will come months from now. So, it is worth my time and effort to create more of these books, eight in the closet so far, or turn my attention somewhere else?

I have two ideas for single titles, A Splashy Affair, and An Ashy Affair to match with A Trashy Affair. You guessed it. Splashy Affair involves a swimmer and Ashy a fireman. The first has a rough draft, the second is still in the research stage. Other than a similarity in title, the stories really aren't connected. Of course, I can just move on to write another Sinners book, my best sellers really. I am pondering Xochi's story which isn't entirely worked out. I don't even have a title yet. Should it be called A Sinner's Sister or Sister of a Sinner? Or something else. I am open to suggestions.

So, I am leaving it up to you, my readers. Which plot should I pursue next?  I don't get a lot of comments on my blog, but do hope you will help me out.