By
Joyce Holmes (Guest Blogger)
That
girl in English class, the one who started on her essay or reading
assignment the day it was handed out? Yeah, that was me. A camera was
never far from my fingertips either, and anyone walking the school
halls was fair game to having their photo snapped for the yearbook. I
had grand dreams of becoming a photojournalist. Then my parents moved
a few days after my graduation, and at seventeen I was on my own, and
all dreams were put on hold. I bounced around from place to place for
a couple of years, married young, had three beautiful boys. "Me"
became replaced with "Mom". For twenty-some years, I
immersed myself in raising my kids. Nothing was more important. I
still took photos, I still read whenever I could steal a moment, but
writing not only took a backseat, it got shoved, huddled and
neglected, in the trunk.
As
my boys got older and became involved in sports, I started submitting
write-ups of their games to the local paper and they always got
printed. That small success fueled the fire kept on slow simmer for
too many years. On my fortieth birthday, I sat myself down, as people
tend to do, and asked what did I still want to achieve for "me"?
I wanted to write a book. So I did. And it was terribly bad. But such
an enjoyable experience. And the bug had bitten. I wrote another one,
then another and another… I took classes, attended conferences,
joined writing groups, and I began getting "good" rejection
letters.
(I
know, right? Total oxymoron.)
About
that time, my life shifted gears again. With my children at an age
where they no longer needed constant attention, my hubby and I began
to travel. I found an entire world out there to explore and
photograph, and digital photography made it so easy and fun. I
stopped writing halfway through a story—just completely stopped
writing. But if you have a true passion for something, it won't be
denied. It took a few years, but I gradually found my way back to
writing. I still haven't finished that abandoned story, but I will.
Another of my stories called to me first. I edited it, brought it
into the twenty-first century (my, how the world has changed in those
few brief years), submitted it and, yay, it got published. Since then
I’ve published three more books, and my most recent, Visual
Effects, just came out this month.
I
confess to being partial to wounded characters. I enjoy reading about
them, and most of my stories feature them. Besides English, two of my
favorite classes in school were Sociology and Psychology, and I blame
my fascination with the human psyche for this compulsion to torment
my characters.
Poor
Drey Winston, my female character in Visual Effects, already carried
a fair bit of baggage at the start of the story, but that didn’t
stop me from putting her through the emotional wringer as the story
progressed. I went a little lighter on Jesse Devlin. Just a little,
though. When someone is handsome, talented and charming, I found it
interesting to see how he’d handle adversity, so I threw some stuff
at him along the way.
This
is their story.
Drey
Winston is a fierce competitor who enjoys challenging her mind and
body. But when it comes to her heart—no one ever gets close enough
to compete for it. Having grown up believing she was an unwanted
burden to her parents, she prefers to keep her feelings well hidden.
Just when her hard-fought goals are finally within reach, the
audacious Jesse Devlin comes along to breach her carefully guarded
defenses.
After
a disastrous marriage early in life, Jesse Devlin prefers
strings-free relationships. Confident and outgoing, he gets along
well with women, but his natural charm can’t seem to penetrate Drey
Winston’s aloofness. While attempting to win her over, he’s the
one who ends up losing his heart.
Can
this commitment-phobic bachelor convince the stubbornly independent
woman he loves that his feelings—and hers—are the real deal?
Excerpt
Jesse
leaned against a tree to draw in a few deep breaths. As he
straightened, he plucked his ball cap off his head and wiped his
forearm across his brow, then hooted a victory cheer. “Hard work’s
over. Time for the reward.”
He
dropped the cap onto the sand and emptied his pockets into it. Then
he pulled his T-shirt over muscled shoulders, dropped it onto the
sand on top of his cap, and made quick work of his footwear. Drey
stared in disbelief as he beelined down the beach and ran straight
into the low surf. When he was hip-deep in the water, he slipped
smoothly beneath the surface. He reappeared several feet out and
turned to wave.
“Join
me,” he called. “The water’s great.”
“Not
a chance. The ocean is cold in summer, I can only imagine how frigid
it must be today.”
“Wuss,”
he scoffed and splashed water in her direction.
Shivers
that had nothing to do with feeling chilly shot through Drey as she
watched him emerge from the water a few minutes later. Rivulets ran
down his chest, following the ridges and planes of his brawny body.
Wet shorts clung to muscular thighs.
He
ran his hands over his face and then shook himself like a playful
pup. “You don’t know what you missed. Nothing like a dip in the
salt chuck to get the heart pumping. Well, almost nothing.” He
stalked deliberately up the beach toward her, and the look on his
face made her back away, but she didn’t react fast enough. He
caught her up in his arms, laughing at her shrieks of protest.
“Lemme
go, Jesse. You’re cold. Come on, Jesse, lemme go. You’re getting
me all wet.”
“That’s
the whole idea. Get you wet and me warm.”
She
gave him a firm push in the wrong direction as she sprinted down the
beach. “Not if you can’t catch me,” she threw over her shoulder
as she went.
***
To
learn more about Drey and Jesse, please visit my website at
http://joyceholmes.wordpress.com/bookshelf/.
I have buy links and excerpts posted there, as well.
I've
learned a few things along the path to this place I now find myself.
I've learned life is all about striking a balance. You don't
necessarily have to give up one thing to enjoy another. And never
give up on a dream, even if it has to ride in the trunk for a while
first.
My
social media links:
4 comments:
Welcome to Beyond Romance, Joyce!
I find stories like yours inspiring. It takes courage to change your life and explore in new directions.
Good luck with VISUAL EFFECTS!
I enjoyed reading your story Joyce and could relate. I also waited a long time before completing my first novel. Looking back, I think what kept me from doing it sooner was self-doubt. It's a tough business, you have to have a lot of confidence and energy to see it through. Best of luck:)
Courage or something, lol. Thanks for your good wishes and for hosting me today. It was very kind of you. :)
It is such a tough business, Amanda, and so easy to get discouraged. I guess at some point we all have to decide for ourselves how bad we really want it, and then just go for it. Good luck to you.
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