Tag Archives: Romance

The Woman in the Blue Coat

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She swept her chestnut hair out of her face avoiding his gaze from the opposite side of the coffee shop. He sat slumped over his laptop. He made it appear as if he was more interested in something other than her sparkling blue eyes and demure smile. He knew from experience she would never look his way. He eyed her over the screen hoping this would be the day she would turn and walk over to him. She would introduce herself. She would tell him she had been noticing him for the past few weeks, but she was too shy to say hello. He would ask her to sit down. They would laugh and talk over several coffees, not noticing the world around them. They would discover they had so much in common and make plans for dinner.

He watched as she turned her collar up over her neck and grabbed her cup to leave. The door swung open with a blast of wintry air and she was gone. Her blue coat billowed behind her as she walked up the street and out of sight. He closed his laptop and sighed. He stuffed it into his satchel when he heard his name, “Mitchell!” He looked up and saw Kate’s wide smile from behind round dark-rimmed glasses.

 “I thought that was you! I got coffee. Do you wanna sit?” she asked as she brushed her auburn curls from her brow.

“Nah, thanks, Kate. I was getting to work. You enjoy,” he said. She sat and sipped her coffee watching him gather his bomber jacket from behind the wooden chair. The shop was beginning to bustle with the hum of customers ordering their lattes before a hectic day. Kate unwound her knitted scarf and placed it on the table. She stared up at him as he donned his jacket and slung his satchel over his shoulder. He gave her a warm smile that made her insides melt and her hands tremble. She set her coffee down to prevent the contents from spilling everywhere.

 “Okay, um, well, have a good day,” she said, hoping he didn’t notice the flush in her cheeks and the sweat beading her temples.

 “Thanks, Kate. You too. Nice scarf, by the way,” he said, giving her a wink. She could feel herself weakening and willed herself to stay upright in her chair.

 “Oh, thanks! My Gran knit it for me for Christmas last year and I love it, it’s so warm –“

 “That’s great, Kate.  See ‘ya later,” he replied, taking his empty cup and rushing out the door. Kate sat with the words, “Yeah, see ‘ya,” tumbling gently over her lips. She watched him sprint into the burgeoning sunshine.

Days passed and Kate revisited the coffee shop that Mitchell frequented. She knew there was a woman he wanted to see. He would sit alone at the corner table facing the door. He would open his laptop and position it preventing unwanted conversations. Kate had seen her waltz in with her long blue coat and her matching scarf wrapped elegantly around her neck. Her long brown hair swayed as if it had been washed and combed moments before entering the shop. Kate wasn’t jealous of her, exactly. She was annoyed that Mitchell had found her so captivating. She watched him wriggle in his seat the moment she walked in. He would stare atop the computer screen, and watch her order. He smiled when she smiled. He almost drooled as her hand brushed against the barista’s fingers when she gave her money. It was nauseating. It bothered Kate so much she often thought about asking him why he did it day after day but thought better of it. She couldn’t embarrass him like that; she wouldn’t.

Monday morning arrived rainy and cold. Kate sat at Mitchell’s unoccupied table wondering what had become of him. She could arrive at any minute and he wasn’t there to capture Miss Blue Coat’s entrance. Kate sipped her coffee and watched customers rush inside from the spatter of rain. She saw her right away. A black rain slicker replaced her long blue coat. She danced inside the door, deflating her opened umbrella. She motioned for someone to follow. Kate’s heart leaped at the sight of him. He was beaming despite the rain soaking his dirty blond hair and dampening his cheeks. He took up the height of the door as he guided her by the arm to the line. He looked like he would burst with joy. He had found her. Tears began to well in Kate’s eyes and she brushed them away. She hoped he hadn’t seen her in his spot watching them be happy together. Her fists clenched and her face flushed as she tried to move. She stayed forced to watch as the happy couple ordered their coffee and laughed at the rain. Kate stared as he put his hand on her waist.  She thought she might be sick. She gathered her things and raced for the door, but it was too late. Mitchell had seen her, “Kate? Join us!” he called. She barely heard him as she pushed through the crowd to the door. She managed to get outside when she felt a hand on the crook of her arm pull her to him. The rain pelted their faces, her tears melding with the droplets.

“What are you doing out here? Come inside,” he said as he watched her face fall.

“I can’t,” she whispered. Kate searched the ground for the words she needed to say, but couldn’t find. He tilted her chin and forced her to look into his eyes.  He returned her gaze with such tenderness it made her heart ache.

  “Kate,” he said, “you don’t understand. I’ve spent a lifetime waiting for her. I’m done waiting.  You see, I never knew my sister. I’ve found her, Kate! I want you to meet her.”

A Sneak Peek

Posted in Books by

I’ve been inundating the internet with graphics of quotes from my book, False Hope. Below, is another I created to give a sense of Ashley’s thoughts on death, grief and hope. I’ve also given a brief summary of the book. Enjoy!

Ashley Wells is a young woman making her way in Toronto. A new job at a small law firm propels her into a romantic relationship with Jax Fuller, a handsome young intern destined to be her biggest mistake. As their bond deepens, Ashley can’t help but think Jax is hiding his true self. As she navigates through the deception, betrayal and grief she discovers the truth about her lover and the dangerous game he is playing. She becomes embroiled in a fight against a crime boss determined to stop at nothing even if it costs the lives of those she loves,. Ashley summons her courage to fight for justice, and in doing so, confronts the limits of the human spirit. In her final testament of love, Ashley forfeits the life she had for one filled with an uncertain path and an undiscovered landscape.

Romancing The Work

Posted in Books, Misguided Musings by

I just finished work on my first romantic fiction piece.  It took me over a year to write and my days were fraught with doubt, indecision, and wine.  I wrote the original manuscript over twenty-years ago.  At that time, I had pitched it to publishers, agents and to whoever I could find.  After the onslaught of rejection letters arrived, I decided to put it away.  I felt it was destined for the great slush pile in the sky.

Fast forward twenty years and that manuscript sat there daring me to open it and take a peek.  So I did.  The bones were still good, but the story and the characters needed work.  I needed better dialogue and a better plot.  I opened my ten-year-old laptop and started typing.  I bought a book on how to write a novel.  I researched websites on how to write a good romance.  I bought a fresh notebook and wrote character outlines, plot structures, subplots, point of views, dialogue and pretty much anything that popped into my head.

I kept a running recipe card summarizing each chapter so I could remember details of characters like birthdates, hair color, eye color, traits, jobs, families, and backstories.  I kept pictures of my old apartment in the back of the notebook so I could take it out and look at it remembering it in detail.  It is the inspiration for Ashley’s apartment in the book, right down to the weather-beaten picnic table and it was fun to relive that time through a character’s eyes.

I took the pile of rejection letters and went through them.  Again.  I researched how to write dialogue.  I researched plots and pacing.  I wrote and rewrote chapters.  I sat in my basement and isolated myself from everyone, who still insisted they needed to see what I was doing.  I took my ten-pound laptop to work and wrote outlines on my lunch break.  I rewrote the chapters at home in the evening.  I read and wrote for months.  Then I stopped.

I left the project for three months.  I’m not sure why.  By the fall, I was ready to tackle it again and began.  Again.  It took me until June to finish what I started. 

But I finished.

And I’m happy I didn’t give up.  I’m happy I didn’t listen to that voice telling me to put it away.  The voice that said it was too hard and complicated and no one would read it.  I’m happy the rejection letters sat in my file daring me to try again because, without all of that negative “I-knew-you-couldn’t-do-it” attitude, I proved them wrong.

My decision to self-publish was born from the above-noted rejection letters.  I didn’t think I was as bad as all of these lovely publishers and agents thought I was.   I am determined to get this book out into the world by the end of this month and I can’t wait.

Wading through all of the self-publishing advice and webinars and blogs can be tedious.  I picked one person who sounded knowledgeable and listened to his advice.  Some of it I used, and some I threw aside.  Not everything is written in stone.

I just want to publish a book.  Simple. 

Apparently, not.

There’s designing a cover and editing your work.  Selecting a platform and uploading files.  Formatting, ISBN numbers, social media, marketing, and the list goes on.

Tackle one thing at a time.  I started months ago researching book cover design.

I created a cover for the book using a free online service.  I just couldn’t find a resource or a designer that fit what I had in mind.  I used the suggestions I found online.  I researched the most appealing colors and the most attractive fonts.  I went through stock photos and templates.  I wasn’t liking anything I saw.  I stuck to my original plan and with a new YouTube vid in my mind, I designed what I wanted. 

 Through happenstance, my cover came to life.  I love it.

It was a lot of work, but I enjoyed every step of the process.  I’m now working on the outline for Book 2 and have ideas for the third.   I’m taking my time and I will publish when I feel I have everything set and ready to go. 

If you are working on your first novel, keep going.  You’ll want to give up and throw the laptop out of the window but resist.  Drink the wine and take a walk.  Then go back to it.  The journey in writing the book is the most fun. 

You’ll find there are no better words than “The End” staring back at you.