Monday is my day to retreat. I’ve been interacting all weekend with little time in my studio. As much fun as I’ve had (check out the “Cinderella” #shorts), I’m now in my studio, inspired to write a little romantic fiction. Especially after listening to a clip of one of my favorite Wolf Kier songs – love that “Sweet Mary Lou” line. That will ring a bell for music lovers, especially those from a certain era.
So, of course, I had to do a little remix of my own. And now that clip has so inspired a scene, taking me back to the Pacific Northwest. Btw, “Raining Men” is also set in the Pacific Northwest.
When California girl BROOKE SLADE wins a “Red Hot Love Weekend” with blond surfer type BARRIE WITHERSPOON on a girlfriend’s weekend in Las Vegas, she’s sure he must be from Southern California, the only place she can imagine living. But when she discovers he’s from the rainy Pacific Northwest, she deems him “GU” (geographically undesirable) and turns him down.
So when she loses her job and the only new job available is in his hometown in wet, rainy Oregon, she find herself working alongside him. To make matters worse, he doesn’t seem to be quite as single as she thought. With new determination to make the best of things, she sets out to date every single man in the Northwest until either Barrie is out of her system or she finds the real Mr. Right. And so now it’s not only raining the wet stuff in the Pacific Northwest, it’s raining men, too. How lucky can a girl be?
I just had to do another video for “She’s Not That Good” on YouTube. Maybe because I was scrolling through my videos and saw this one of the Mariachi Band playing Jazz in the Piazza on the Crown Princess sailing the Mexican Riviera.
But this time I used the video editor in Logic Pro, meaning, I pasted the video I already had into Logic Pro on 1 track, which separated the video and sound into 2 tracks, and then ecorded my audio recording of a book excerpt on another. This way, I could match the video with the sound. It was so much fun!
And now here’s the result:
About “She’s Not That Good”
Meet Brandi Redwine from my latest release “She’s Not That Good”
Failing to launch an adult career, haunted by thoughts of never being good enough, Brandi Redwine searches for something she is good at. After chasing music and the exboyfriend in Nashville, she returns to San Francisco feeling like a loser.
Her best friend steps in and recommends her for an opportunity to compete for a job onboard a cruise ship. Her high school sweetheart is also on board, and his girlfriend is competing for the same job.
Will her entire future rest on a final performance, or will she finally realize she is good enough when she pursues what’s really in her heart?
One of my favorite songs is “Do You Come Here Often” by Wolf Kier. He’s talking about us – romance writers – lol! Check it out here (the lyrics are in the description).
After officially completing FAWM (14 songs in 28 days), I had a blast creating DJKat’s Lounge Show by combining 3 book excerpts with music as a bit of a FAWM bonus. I’m thinking of doing a whole book this way. What do you think?
Chapter 1 Excerpt from Lucky’s Last Chance (originally titled The Tom Jones Club):
The “Blind Man at the Bar” scene from Deja Vu at the Blue Diamond (aka “French Martini”)
The Prologue from Deja Vu at the Blue Diamond (aka “French Martini”):
For the next five days, She’s Not That Good, a novella, is available for free on Kindle. I would love it if you would download it, read it, love it, and tell the world you loved it by leaving a review on amazon – lol!
Thank you!
SHE’S NOT THAT GOOD
Failing to launch an adult career, haunted by thoughts of never being good enough, Brandi Redwine searches for something she is good at. After chasing music and the exboyfriend in Nashville, she returns to San Francisco feeling like a loser.
Her best friend steps in and recommends her for an opportunity to compete for a job onboard a cruise ship. Her high school sweetheart is also on board, and his girlfriend is competing for the same job.
Will her entire future rest on a final performance, or will she finally realize she is good enough when she pursues what’s really in her heart?
Because we’ll be on the road at the beginning of 50/90 (50 songs in 90 days challenge), I’ve done some prep work. And one of the songs I’m working on is called “Jaclyn,” who happens to be the leading lady in “Jaclyn,” the novel. I know, I know, I keep saying I’m no longer writing and then I can’t help myself.
Anyway, here’s a riff from the track followed by an excerpt from the novel.
Jaclyn Excerpt
Chapter 1
Los Angeles
1965
Jaclyn watched Beau carefully, reading his deep set deep blue sea eyes, open, trusting, and his relaxed demeanor, all six feet two inches spread evenly over the recliner’s body. He didn’t suspect a thing. She was sure of it, and reading people was what had empowered her to do the things she did.
She almost regretted doing what she had to do next.
Finishing the last of her beer, something she indulged him in when it behooved her to garner his favor, she stood up and asked, “Want another?”
He flashed her his boyish grin the way he did when he was off duty, on one of the rare occasions when his head wasn’t full of the gruesome details he encountered on a daily basis as a police officer in Riverside, California, one of the roughest squads in Southern California outside Los Angeles, that is.
Fooling him was all the sweeter because it was his job to read people. She was that sure of herself, and that knowledge kicked her even higher than she already was when she was in the middle of one of her lies. But then, what wasn’t a lie when it came to Jaclyn? She was born to lie. She giggled whenever she floated that phrase around her head.
She carried the empties to the kitchen, popped the top on another bottle and handed it back to Beau. “It’s time to pack,” she said and sauntered down the hall to their bedroom, careful to wiggle her ass in the sexy way he liked it because she was pretty sure he’d turn to watch.
Another woman might have leaned down to kiss him, but she didn’t go for public displays of affection, even in their own home, unless it was necessary to achieve her end. Besides, Beau was more into using his mouth for kissing other parts of her body, something he excelled in. So why waste a kiss?
She opened her suitcase and carefully placed neat rows of clothing and toiletries, and was about to close it when she felt a presence. She looked up and might have been tempted to jump, except for being skilled in hiding her visceral reactions. Beau was leaning against the bedroom door frame watching her.
He took a pull on his beer, leaned his head back, and grinned a different sort of grin. It was a bit of a sick grin, the kind of grin a cat might flash a mouse when he was about to pounce.
For the first time, she felt shaken, willing the uneasiness coursing through her legs to stop. She almost acknowledged his odd look and insist on an explanation. Put him on the defense as she often did. But her cool head prevailed and she continued as if she hadn’t noticed a thing.
Jacklyn clicked the locks on the suitcase, turned to Beau with her usual sweet smile, “Honey, help me get my suitcase to the car,” she said, as if everything was as normal on this day as any other day, although she can’t remember when she last lived what might be considered a normal day. But, perhaps, this was how all people lived their days, in a state of concealed chaos.
“What’s your hurry?”
“Honey, I’ve got a plane to catch. You know that.”
He looked her up and down, put the beer down on the dresser, and pulled her by the waist toward him, his strong hands rubbing up and down her ass. He whispered in her ear, “One for the road?”
***
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When California girl BROOKE SLADE wins a “Red Hot Love Weekend” with blond surfer type BARRIE WITHERSPOON on a girlfriend’s weekend in Las Vegas, she’s sure he must be from Southern California, the only place she can imagine living. But when she discovers he’s from the rainy Pacific Northwest, she deems him “GU” (geographically undesirable) and turns him down.
Screamie Birds Studios 