Something Borrowed and Something New?

No, I’m not talking about wedding plans, but I am talking today about romance. For Better or For Worse, I’m tackling the topic. Like surprise, this is a romance blog.

Kidding aside, I got to thinking about creating new stories with new ideas. There are so many books, and that’s an understatement, no one no matter how fast they read can read everything available. With new authors coming on the scene in the romance arena, it’s amazing sales continue for some of us. The pool of money and readers has to be thinning. Which leads to we as authors trying to come up with something new or borrow from the tried and true formula’s that a number of publishers want, retract that, demand from we authors.

I started down this path of writing four years ago and it has been quite a journey. Honestly, I didn’t know what I was doing; I just knew I wanted to tell a story, create a world where my characters bouncing around in my head had a home. To my surprise, I sold my first manuscript and I actually got a sale, or two. After the first one, I was hooked, addicted, call it what you may, but all I knew was I had to write.

After I made the commitment to continue, then came the promotion, networking and in-between all the writing I spend hours a day doing, I had to have a life with my family. Keeping the stories fresh, exciting and “new” seriously became a compelling desire of mine too. I read, not every day, but make a commitment to read at least twice a week. I don’t read in the sub-genres I write, so as not to influence my writing. I also enjoy down time watching thrillers and mystery movies to get my heart pumping and brain stimulated.

To come up with a new idea isn’t always easy, so we tend to borrow from what is popular or what interests us and put a new spin on the words, the location, the characters and voila! We have a new story and hopefully it will sell. I know what I write is basically the same, vampire meets human woman who have a bad guy to fight in order to find their happily-ever-after. I like to think I add a little uniqueness, sexiness and through my voice create a story worth reading.

In looking for doing something different with my vampires, I’ve created a world where my modern day geek wants to be a vampire and goes in search of one to turn him. I wrote it like a television weekly show, one episode after the other with no finality to each short story. Each takes place, time-wise, around a holiday. The first one was at Christmas, the second released a month ago for Valentine’s Day, and the next one due out is around July Fourth, then Halloween and back to Christmas again. Eventually the shorts will be compiled into one book. Is it Something New or Something Borrowed? I’m not sure, but the inspirations for each episode have been from real-life and I enjoy stretching my creativity, especially for the upcoming one. Think zombies and vampires and, oh my I can’t give the spoilers.

In closing, before I give a little snippet, do you borrow and tweak, or create something totally new?

The Misadventures of Dick Grewcock, Book 2 – A Lusty Vampire’s Valentine

BLURB:

Richard “Dick” Grewcock is a fledgling vampire, turned by choice on Halloween Night. He’s a computer geek, thirty-two years old, and thinks vampires are handsome, powerful, and have women falling over them—everything he’s not. Problem is, after he turns he doesn’t get any of those qualities. On Christmas he got the girlfriend of his wishes, and weeks later his new life takes a turn.

Valentine’s Day he meets with his maker and is made an offer he can’t refuse, but he has a date planned with his girlfriend.

Noelle St. Nicholas is Dick’s new girlfriend, and a little geeky too, they seem to be a perfect match. She plans a night her boyfriend won’t soon forget, but he tells her something she can’t forgive.

On his second adventure to find love, Dick Grewcock gets a Valentine surprise he won’t soon forget.

STORY EXCERPT:

Driving along the back roads to the latest store should have been a piece of cake, but for reasons he couldn’t explain, he should have taken the highway the GPS suggested, not the alternate route. Twice, animals ran across the road causing him to swerve to avoid hitting them. He’d taken this path thinking it would be quicker and avoid traffic and lights, but no such luck. What a perfect example for his life lately. Maybe that was the problem, an unlucky life—misadventures through his new undeadliness. Yeah, I’m dead. As a doornail. At least technically he was and only part of the time at that. He had all the working parts as if he were alive, but now he had other attributes, some of which were cool. He could move fast, and the queasy stomach stuff didn’t happen much. He figured his body learned to adjust to the fast movement, and the nausea didn’t happen as often. Hearing was tough to get used to. Hearing a fly fart ten feet away was just disgusting, but his neighbors downstairs and toward the back were no better. He’d swear they didn’t do anything except screw all day. Either that or they watched porn instead of the daytime game shows or soap operas. Jealousy was more like how he felt to be honest with himself.

Dick missed Noelle.

His heart ached.

Dick had to do something soon, or he really would die. Again.

He planned to see Vlad and discuss the matter after doing the upgrades to the Kissimmee store. He’d have to go in and confirm the upload to Vlad’s office computer anyway and could talk to his sire then.

Reprogramming and setting up wouldn’t take a lot of time, two hours max. He’d expedited the process rather quickly over the past several nights. After the last three stores, he’d be on to another project for Vlad.

At a little past nine o’clock his phone played the tone for a text received. He glanced over at the screen and saw Noelle’s picture. His heart leapt from his chest as he reached to pick the cell up and read.

I miss you Dick. Can we talk?

He stared at the screen for a few seconds and keyed in yes, but before he could hit the send button a commotion came from the front of the store.

“Go away!” Tony shouting from the front of the store. “I’m calling the cops. Stop it. We’re closed. I mean it. I’m calling the cops.”

Louder banging followed and muffled sounds of voices Dick couldn’t make out even with his super hearing. Curiosity got to him. He pressed the send button, put the phone down on the desk, and went to see who Tony yelled at. The strange prickly feeling resurfaced, and his gut roiled like never before. “What the Friar Tuck is going on out here?”

With the overhead lights shut off, he rounded the corner and bumped straight-on into Tony’s chest.

“Sorry, man. What’s all the shouting about?” Dick asked.

“Crazies. I’ve called the cops, but they are banging on the windows. I swear the glass will break if they keep pushing against the panes. I can see them vibrating every time they hit.”

“Did they say anything? Why are they doing it?”

“Yeah, I told them we’re closed at nine, and they kept on.”

“Maybe we should call Vlad.”

“Yeah, I agree, but I’ll tell ya, I ain’t sticking around if those dudes break in. They have wild eyes and look like they’ve been dug up from a grave.”

“I have to see this.” Dick moved by Tony and walked into the store, staying behind the counter. “They must have left. I don’t see anyone.”

“You sure, man?” Tony joined him behind the ice cream freezer display. “Good. I didn’t sign up for this shit, and if the owner doesn’t protect us, I’m not staying here. This job isn’t worth it.”

“Who would try and knock over an ice cream joint? This store isn’t officially open until next week. Maybe they were just kids playing a prank.”

“I don’t know. They didn’t look like they were joking. And they didn’t look like punk teenagers to me.”

A crash sounded with glass breaking and falling onto the tile floor. Dick and Tony jumped and turned toward the front of the store. “What the hell is—” Tony tried to ask then added, “I don’t know about you, but I’m out the back door. If you’re smart, you’ll do the same. Screw protecting the store.”

Dick’s mouth gaped open, and he rubbed his eyes in disbelief at what he saw pushing through the dangling, remaining shards of glass falling from the impacted window. His voice caught in his throat and words come out almost incoherent. “No way. There’s no such thing as—zombies?”

No way. Could what Vlad told him last week about vampires messing with blood donors’ brains cause them to turn into living walking dead mush heads be true?

Oh Friar Tuck Almighty!

 Cynthia Arsuaga
  Erotic Romance Author 

 Blog: http://romanticwordsbycynthia.blogspot.com
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