Thursday 11 December 2014

The Love Nest


Hello again !  It's been a long time!  And I've just had my latest story published - it was a long time coming, but I've been busy with so many other projects in my other guise (as C.P. Waterman).  And there have been a few unexpected 'external influences' which have helped to slow down my output.

Anyway, the latest is called The Love Nest and here are a few details:

Adults only: some explicit sex scenes render this story unsuitable for people under 18 years of age. 
Kelly and Laurence are lovers.  But her sister Melanie insists that she should split from him immediately - there's a family secret, and only Melanie seems to know what it is.  Something happened in the distant past and its ramifications have surfaced through Kelly's relationship with this gorgeous man.  What must happen before this can be resolved?



And here's a specimen extract:
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“That little house fascinates me.  I don’t know why.”
“If I take you round there now, will I have your attention for the rest of the afternoon?”
I turned back to him and smiled, saying nothing.
He went in the kitchen and opened a cupboard to retrieve a key from a hook on the inside of the door.  “There’s a gap in the hedge into next door’s lawn.  Come on.”
I followed him through the back of his house and saw the break in the boundary between the two gardens.  As soon as I entered the adjacent grounds, I saw the summerhouse; constructed entirely in wood and painted white, its beauty had faded but I could still get a hint of what it had looked like in better times.
Laurence unlocked the door and we walked in.  Yes, I thought, it had been neglected.  But it had lost none of its charm.  The rustic table and chairs stood by a large window, and last year’s leaves had blown in and scattered themselves on the floor.
The windows stretched almost from floor to ceiling on one wall, and when I looked out I could see the neighbours’ house at the other end of the lawn.  That, too, looked dilapidated.  But there was nothing that a little time and affection couldn’t put right.
My footsteps echoed in the room as I walked round.  “I love it here,” I whispered to him.  “But where are the owners?”
“I haven’t seen them for some time.  I knocked on their door a few days ago, but there was no reply.”
“Someone has made this into a real love-nest.  I feel like I’m in another world here.”  I turned to him.  “Hold me, Laurence.”
He put his arms round me, and we stepped slowly across to the table.  Hoisting me up gently so that I sat on the edge, he leaned forward and put one knee on the table to take the weight of my body.  I felt his hand explore up my skirt; I gripped him, ready for anything he might want to do with me.  For, in truth, I wouldn’t have stopped him.
We kissed, and the passion I had anticipated began to flow through me.  I wanted to linger here forever.
Suddenly, he broke away.
I was startled; I opened my eyes and saw him look past me; he had a worried frown.  “There are strangers coming this way.  Quick – there’s a door at the back – go through there and don’t show yourself.  I’ll lock this door, and then I’ll come and join you.  Hide!
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When I penned this tale, it was much longer than the finished book - when I showed it to my editor he thought it was too long and the plot was getting complicated.  We agreed that I should chop the second half and I should rewrite it as a sequel to The Love Nest.  I have two or three other works waiting in line, but I hope to get the sequel out sometime in the spring of 2015.  I don't have a title for it yet.

Whilst writing, I should mention that the price of ebooks to readers in most of the European Union countries is increasing in January - for instance, the full 20% VAT rate is being applied to readers in UK.  I think that, when the price of printed books in UK is still a flat Zero, this imposition is quite unfair.

Finally... may I wish you all a very happy time during the festive season and I hope you all have a prosperous 2015.

Best,
Rachel


Friday 26 September 2014

Frustrations !

Yes, I'm feeling seriously frustrated... but not sexually frustrated (in case you were wondering). 

First, I had hoped to have my latest story out by now, but my editor wants me to make some changes to bring a little more credibility into the storyline.  Normally I'd be quite prepared to take a deep breath and have it published anyway - elsewhere if need be - but the arguments presented to me were so convincing that I had to bow to the pressure.  This means it has been ages since I've had anything new to offer on this page.  But please rest assured that I'm still beavering away with the intention of getting this out just as soon as I can.

Second, to add to my frustration, I entertained some of my in-laws a couple months back.  They created such havoc in my mind while they were guests in our house that my Muse upped and fled without any warning.  When I finally persuaded our house-guests they should be thinking about returning home - their cat would be missing them, I said - they finally took the hint.  But it took several days before Muse returned and I started writing again.  THEN - at the instigation of my erstwhile house-guests - another bunch of relations decided to invite themselves round, as they'd heard I'd given the first group such a great time while they were here.  Needless to say, Muse went up to the roof and stayed there.   My husband and I now have the house to ourselves once more, and I am gradually trying to coax Muse back down again with bars of chocolate.

I hope to get back here in two or three weeks' time to announce the final delivery of the next story, which has the working title of The Love Nest.

Best to everyone,
Rachel

email: rc (at) rachelcray (dot) com
Twitter: @RachelCray1

Friday 4 July 2014

What have I been doing over the last six months?



Where have I been over the last six months?

Oh, dear.  I haven't written anything here for over six months.  Just in case you think I've been sitting around, doing nothing, it's about time I gave you an update....

Like many writers, I'm entirely dependent on the whims of my Muse.  There are times when she'll wake me up at three in the morning.  "Come on.  Great idea for a new story.  Now sit up and write this down..." 
I have the choice of rolling over and getting back to sleep, or scratching around for my pen and notepad and taking dictation in my best shorthand.  I know that if I don't get it down, I'll have forgotten all about it by 6.30 and I might have missed a good plot.

Several of you will know that I write other stories - with fetish content - under the pseudonym C.P. Waterman.  And over the last six months, Muse has been delivering huge parcels of words to me that would be more appropriate for 'Waterman' than for Rachel because the content is so much ruder.  I've written ten titles during that time, none of which have been published under my own name.  'Waterman' is my outlet for all the filthy stuff I've wanted to write for so many years. 

But now it's time to change again.  Rachel wants her Muse back to write more romance.  In literary theory, there's a guy called Heinlein who came up with six rules for writing.  Needless to say, the first rule is If you're a writer, You Must Write.

The second of his rules, which I want to talk about here, is that You Must Finish What You Write.  And I have several stories which I haven't put out yet, for various reasons.  I have a series of romantic thrillers planned (with a heroine called Tee Riverhead - watch out for her), and I'm half-way through the second story with ideas ready for the third, but I want to hold back on publication until the first two are ready.  And I'm half-way through another family mystery (working title The Love-nest); if my editor gives this one a fair wind, I hope to have it out by the end of August.  And I have a sequel planned for that, too.

So you get the picture?  Brain is teeming with ideas, but I can only work with what Muse gives me.  I want to send C.P. Waterman on a long vacation so that I can get back to the genre in which I began.

Watch this space - there's plenty of titles to come here!

Best
Rachel

email: rc (at) rachelcray (dot) com
Twitter: @RachelCray1