Thursday, May 2, 2013


 
Today we have a guest post by the awesome Brighton Walsh
 
Plotter vs Pantser

Usually when writing, I’m a plotter. I create character worksheets (which vary between a single sheet of questions to over three-




thousand get-to-know-you words), and I draw up a detailed outline. Sometimes the outline contains dialogue or a single line that will jog my memory, and other times, it’s 500 words of a scene that I have to get down so I don’t forget.


The bottom line is, I usually have to get everything just so before I can begin writing or I, inevitably, hit a brick wall about 60% in.

For Plus One? I pantsed my way through the entire thing like a pro. I have none of my normal “must haves”. No character worksheets, no outline (besides the one in my head), nada. The chapter by chapter summary I managed to find was drafted after I’d already written Plus One in its entirety. So then how did I manage to write this sucker without hitting a brick wall?

From the conception of this idea, these characters were so clear to me. Their stories and their backgrounds and the path that they had to take to get to love was just right there that I didn’t dare take a break to write down everything that I already knew in my mind, I just wrote. And wrote. And before I knew it, I had a finished novella about a smartass heroine fed up with finding love and a patient, caring, strong hero who’d given up on the love he found a long time ago.

I know for a fact writing this way was an anomaly for me. 99.9% of the time, I need to have a clear map to write effectively and efficiently. But writing this helped me learn something: sometimes, it’s okay to go off course if you can already see your destination and all the pit stops along the way without the help of the map. And when your characters are screaming at you to just write already.

Plus One
Brighton Walsh
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Carina Press
Date of Publication: May 6, 2013
ISBN: 978-14268-9555-5
ASIN: B00BED26VI
Number of pages: 100
Word Count: 22,000

 

Amazon     BN

Book Description:  

Olivia hates the singles scene, so when her best guy friend, Ian, offers to be her plus one to a series of weddings she has to attend, she agrees. Although she doesn't want to complicate their lifelong friendship, she can't pass up the chance to have a steady date without the dating drama. What she doesn't expect is to now find Ian so incredibly sexy. 

When Ian sees his old friend Olivia dolled up for wedding #1, the boyhood crush he once nurtured transforms into smoldering attraction. It doesn't take long for their no-strings arrangement to turn physical. But as Olivia's desire to stay "just friends" becomes clear, Ian's feelings are deepening. In the time they have together, how will Ian convince Olivia that one plus one can make for a lifelong pair?


Short Excerpt:
Given how their afternoon had unfolded, the heat that ricocheted between them throughout the evening really shouldn’t have been a shock. Olivia had felt Ian’s want since she’d emerged from the bathroom, dressed in a sleek, fitted, black dress. Through the wedding ceremony, tucked into his side as his arm rested innocently against the pew behind her, she thought she’d burst at the feel of his finger tracing her bare shoulder. It had been a mindless touch, something she hadn’t even been sure he’d been aware of, and yet it had set her entire body aflame.
And now. Now, she was pressed against him as they danced, his hand touching her bare skin thanks to the low, open back of her dress. He held her close, closer than he ever had before, and even though she was two martinis into the night, she still found herself tongue-tied.
His fingers slowly slid up her back, following the line of her spine, and though she tried to hold it in, a shudder ran over her body. Her nipples hardened, and a tingle grew low in her belly. All from a single caress against her bare back. Jesus, if an innocent touch like that had her wet and ready to go, what would happen if he stroked her not so innocently? 
She looked up into his eyes to find him staring directly at her. His eyes bounced over her face, no doubt taking in her heated cheeks, eyes heavy with desire, and parted lips. He pulled her close, and brought their clasped hands up toward her face. He brushed a single finger down the line of her jaw, and instead of moving away, swept his finger over her lips. It was scarcely a brush of skin on skin, but she moaned. It was low and breathy, and barely loud enough for her to hear, let alone Ian. Yet she knew the exact moment he did.
His eyes, scorching with a want she knew all too well, bored into hers.
“Liv.” He managed to convey so much want and need with that single word.
She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry, and tried to not sound breathless when she answered. “Yes?”
Ian’s finger was still on her lip, caressing it back and forth, and his focus switched between her mouth and her eyes. When he didn’t say anything more, she couldn’t take it any longer. Her tongue darted out, lightly brushing against his finger. With their eyes locked, she took the tip of his finger into her mouth and sucked gently.

“Jesus Christ.” It was a low rumble, spoken under his breath, but she heard it clearly. With a soft pop, she released his finger, her eyes imploring him.

 
About the Author : 
Brighton Walsh is a storyteller at heart. Whether through words or pictures, she's been weaving tales for as long as she can remember. After decades of cultivating her writing, she finally decided to give life to the voices in her head and set forth to write her first novella. Love is her first love, and writing about it is a dream come true. When she's not writing, you can find her with her nose buried in a steamy book or partaking in some retail therapy. She lives in the Midwest with her swoony husband and two energetic kids who (fortunately) know nothing about the naughty things she puts down on paper.  




Find her online at www.brightonwalsh.com 

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