Tuesday, May 6, 2014

WIPpet Wednesday: "She's Gone"

Yeah, I remembered! In all honesty, my only excuse for not WIPpeting, like, ever has been sheer and simple forgetfulness! Quick update: Slave Again is now with betas (and is apparently giving Kate Sparkes weird dreams). I'm not ready to publish a launch date yet, but I am starting to get a tad bit excited.

Today's section is about Jae, the older brother of the young girl who ended up ... well, let's just say we'd all hope that if we have daughters, they'd never have to even imagine going through what Jae's sister has. WIPpet math is as follows: 14 sentences from page 57, in honor of 5/7/14.

***


Jae touched his mother’s leathery cheek. “Mother.”

From his seat at the table, Father grunted but didn’t look up. “Your mother is resting.”

Jae ignored him. Mother opened her eyes and studied her son. Her expression changed in an instant. “She’s gone.” It wasn’t a question.

Jae lowered his voice. “I know.” He stroked Mother’s greying hair. “But  I met a man at the park who knows where she might be.” Mother made a move to sit up in bed, but Jae pressed gently down on her bony shoulders. “I’m going out to find her, Mother. It might take me a few days."

***

Will Jae find his lost sister? Will Mother recover from her shock and dismay? Why is grunting the only thing Father can do? ... Find out the answer to these questions (and more) when you read Slave Again. (this paragraph is to be read in the deep-bass voice of a professional movie-trailer announcer)

By the way, if you're up for some reading this week, I've asked all betas to have feedback for me by May 12. If you're interested in a 70k speed read and think you can meet the deadline, just leave me a comment. (Be sure to leave your email too if you think I might not have it yet.)

Public Service Announcement: Please remember to keep the kidnapped girls from Nigeria in your thoughts and prayers. May they come home safe and unharmed.

Blog Love: Huge thanks to K L Schwengel for hosting the WIPpet Wednesday blog hop, where authors post snippets from the current Works In Progress.

Random Fact: My husband and I went to see the musical Memphis over the weekend. Anyone else seen it? HOCKADOO!


16 comments:

  1. What a great brother to have. Giving your Beta's weird dreams, eh? Not necessarily a bad thing. ;) Glad to see you back around.

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    1. Thanks, good to see you, too. In that metaphoric sense, of course...

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  2. I agree with KL, great brother to have. Even if he doesn't find her, I think he'll try is hardest.

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    1. Sure will, Adrian! And I apologize for flaking out about your cover reveal. I forgot to put it on my calendar and came across the email a day or two ago... Hope your launch went great, though.

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  3. Count me in as another vote for "good brother."

    I think giving your betas weird dreams is a good sign that you've struck a nerve. :)

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    1. Haha, thanks, Amy. Yeah, I was kind of pleased about the whole dream thing. :)

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  4. Well, howdy, Stranger. Long time, no read. =0P Umm... I think I remember you telling me about Jae, but I'm not sure. Hence, I shall withhold comment except to say, "I think the father grunts because his belt is too tight."

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    1. Hmm... I'll have to add that belt explanation in somewhere. :)

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  5. Great excerpt! I get a such a wonderful visit of mother with your descriptives. I especially like 'leathery' cheeks. I know cheeks like that. And we are definitely praying for those girls. So hard to believe such madness.

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  6. I like ReGi's explanation of the grunting. Of course, he could be sitting a on a pig too. Hmm...

    Jae has a bit of a nobel idealism. Not sure what I think of him yet. So far... like him.

    And yeah... weird dreams is good stuff. It means you're reaching into multiple levels of the psyche.

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    1. Haha, love the pig idea. I should find a way to throw that in there :)

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    2. It would even make some amount of sense, if they are a poor farm family. Pigs would be valuable and kept with the family.

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  7. Fantastic excerpt Alana. So full of foreboding. I like how gentle Jae is with his mother and his concern for his sister. I'm looking forward to reading the finished book soon. :)

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  8. This is powerful stuff. I wonder about the father. I want to know more about his life so far. I'm guessing there's a serious reason why he's given away or lost his voice.

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