Tom is called to the stand - Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 07/27/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

  

See more at the WeWriWa blog

Welcome to a snippet from Within the Law. The protagonist, Tom Hughes, was created in His Lucky Charm (formerly called Forgotten). Tom is cousin to the female main character in HLC. I fell in love with Tom, I think he might be my favorite hero from all of my books. His character and his history was so compelling that I HAD to write his story, one in which he has his own HEA.

I'm continuing in the courtroom. The defendant, Dunlop, was found with Tom's high school ring, a key piece of evidence regarding Tom's fiance's (Joyce) death. The senior Defense Attorney isn't showing any compassion for the witnesses, he is doing his best to put doubt in the jury's minds. Poor Tom has no idea what he is in for when he is called to the witness box.

The District Attorney’s office called Thomas Hughes to the stand.

As Tom walked to the witness stand, he noticed Alli was giving the senior attorney a folder. Then she looked up and saw him. It was impossible to mask her surprise, but it didn’t take long for her to try to cover up her recognition of him for the benefit of the jury. He gazed at her as he was being sworn in, she looked away.

Tom never expected to feel the emotions he did as he was handed the clear plastic bag containing his high school ring.

“Was this the ring Joyce Keller was wearing on a chain around her neck the day she went on an outing with some girlfriends?”

He had to clear his throat in order to answer, “Yes. I gave this ring to Joyce, she wore it on a chain.”

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

Within the Law

Series: Chelle Cordero's Cousins Suspense, Book 2. 

Tom gave up on ever falling in love again the day that he buried his high school sweetheart and fiancé. He started a career in law enforcement just so that he could find her murderer and rapist. Just when he is about to see justice done, he meets Alli Davis-the defense attorney for the murdering rapist who took his love from him.

Amazon (print)

Amazon (Kindle)

.pdf E-Book (Payloadz)

multiple ebook formats (Smashwords)

Apple iTunes

Kobo

Tom first made an appearance in His Lucky Charm, a story about  Caitlyn Smythe (Tom's cousin) and Brandon Price. Caitlyn and Brandon are back in Within the Law. Here is a small piece from that first story with background on what happened to Joyce ...

     When Tom left the night before, he warned them that he would be back on his way to work to find out if he was going to be an “uncle” or not. Tommy had been clearly thrilled that Caitlyn had accepted Brandon’s proposal. He had even begun to ask about wedding plans and dates.

     Brandon had admitted to Caitlyn that he was surprised that Tom was single. It was obvious that the man treasured family, liked the thought of kids and certainly had a lot of solid relationship advice to offer.

     That was when Caitlyn told Brandon about Tom’s lost love. The high school sweetheart he had proposed to on graduation day was killed during a random act of violence. She had been on a shopping trip to a nearby big-city mall with some girlfriends. Their vehicle had been carjacked and she was abducted. Her assailant had never been caught and Caitlyn thought that might have been Tom’s inspiration to become a police officer.

     She didn’t know if Tom would ever again allow his heart to be so vulnerable. The tragic story made Brandon realize even more how fortunate he was. He planted tiny kisses on Caitlyn’s closed eyelids and was only slightly disappointed that he hadn’t woken her.

     About an hour later, Caitlyn stretched in his arms, yawned, opened her eyes and smiled. Brandon felt like he was ready to melt.

     “Good morning.” She whispered to him.

The next time he sees Alli - Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 07/20/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

  

See more at the WeWriWa blog

Welcome to a snippet from Within the Law. The protagonist, Tom Hughes, was created in His Lucky Charm (formerly called Forgotten). Tom is cousin to the female main character in HLC. I fell in love with Tom, I think he might be my favorite hero from all of my books. His character and his history was so compelling that I HAD to write his story, one in which he has his own HEA.

Tom is finally in the courtroom and he is going to get a look at the lowlife he blames for murdering his high school sweetheart. I did quite a bit of creative punctuation so I apologize for run-on sentences. I thought it was important to get these 2 paragraphs in completely.

The District Attorney and his assistant were seated at the table up front on the left, he saw a small man seated between who he assumed to be two defense attorneys at the table on the right. The first lawyer was an older man with thinning gray hair and a suit that certainly had an expensive designer label; the other lawyer was a tall, blond haired woman, even from behind, she looked attractive and very well put together. When she turned her head, Tom recognized Alli; she didn’t see him.

He was incredulous that this was the same woman he had helped the night before, he had been concerned with protecting her from scum like the guy who killed Joyce and now she was sitting on the defense attorney side. She was defending that same scum and looking to send him back out on the street. He thought she was fragile and delicate, Alli was an attractive woman, she felt good in his arms; he felt as if he had betrayed Joyce, he hadn’t thought of her once while he had held Alli. For a brief time last night, Tom had thought of asking for her phone number and suggesting the possibility of seeing her again. Boy was he glad he hadn’t - and then he was sorry that he hadn’t. 

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

Within the Law

Series: Chelle Cordero's Cousins Suspense, Book 2. 

Tom gave up on ever falling in love again the day that he buried his high school sweetheart and fiancé. He started a career in law enforcement just so that he could find her murderer and rapist. Just when he is about to see justice done, he meets Alli Davis-the defense attorney for the murdering rapist who took his love from him.

Amazon (print)

Amazon (Kindle)

.pdf E-Book (Payloadz)

multiple ebook formats (Smashwords)

Apple iTunes

Kobo

from a previous post: Alpha, Beta or Gamma - My Heroes

The "Alpha Male" a.k.a. "Dukes of Slut", tends to be dominant, aggressive and in control.

A "Beta Male" is generally the "boy next door" and is more submissive to his female partner. Maybe more in touch with his "feminine side"?

And finally, the "Gamma Male" is an Alpha with a dark side.

Tom Hughes (Within the Law): Gamma. He's an authority figure and doesn't let you forget it. And he's got a temper that gets him into trouble. Tom also has a wild side and in his own words, he hasn't always done the right thing. He is a very physical man at work, around the house and in bed. He is not threatened by Alli's independence. His chosen career is a New York State Trooper.

What is YOUR favorite kind of hero?

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We enjoyed your comments, questions and support. 

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Skeletons in the Closet

     I just had a really good chuckle reading a quote from George Bernard Shaw,

"If you can't get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you'd best teach it to dance."

This particular phrase has a funny, special memory for me...

Just weeks before my wedding, my then fiance and I were in my bedroom in my parents' Bronx apartment - he was sitting on my bed while I was packing clothing and getting ready to move into OUR new home, a one bedroom and overpriced apartment in the Hudson Valley.

Mark thought he was being cute when he said, with a straight face, "Well I guess I should have asked before, but we're getting married soon so I can't put it off any longer. Do you have any skeletons in the closet I should know about?"

I looked at him and then at my CLOSED wardrobe door (actually two sliding doors), he couldn't understand my surprised expression. Before he could reassure me that he was only joking, I slid one of the wardrobe doors open - and there, hanging carefully on the closet rod, was a life size cardboard Halloween skeleton! He almost fell off of my bed.

What Mark didn't know was that my parents always allowed me to set up the entry hallway for Halloween. I had rigged this skeleton to come rushing towards the door when I opened it - it always elicited excited shrieks from the little trick-or-treaters. LOL, I never expected to shock my future husband!

We all have some kind of skeleton in our closet - everyone has something to be embarrassed about, some have regrets, and a few have outright horror at the thought of discovery. It's the same for each of my characters - take Tom Hughes from Within the Law for instance...

Tom is easily my favorite hero from any of my books because he is soooo human. He is endearing, a truly good guy, but he is certainly not an angel! Tom has things in his past that he would prefer not having to admit to, things that get broadcast in a packed courtroom when he shows up to TRY to put his high school girlfriend's murderer away. And he has a temper, oy such a temper, that he manages MOST TIMES to control, but loses it during a face-to-face with the lowlife who took the girl away from him.

Tom is not the only one of my characters to have something to hide: Brandon Price in His Lucky Charm wants to hide his privileged upbringing and estranged relationship with his father; in A Chaunce of Riches Samantha Chaunce has to hide the reason she left Ben and married Julian; Adam Sherman in Courage of the Heart is ashamed of his past and worries that he is going to lose Davie once she finds out about it; and in Karma Visited Annie Furman needs to keep her unique gift hidden for fear of ridicule and worse.

Do you have a skeleton in your closet?

Please don't post any true confessions, lol, but think about it; what secret do you have in your past that you would really rather be kept as a buried secret? Was your secret ever exposed and if so how did you cope with it - with a head held high or a face redder than cherries?

And if you really, really need to share, please feel free to comment below.

Tom meets Alli - Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 07/13/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

  

See more at the WeWriWa blog

Welcome to a snippet from Within the Law. The protagonist, Tom Hughes, was created in His Lucky Charm (formerly called Forgotten). Tom is cousin to the female main character in HLC. I fell in love with Tom, I think he might be my favorite hero from all of my books. His character and his history was so compelling that I HAD to write his story, one in which he has his own HEA.

While Tom is outside the bar, letting the night air sober him again, he hears a woman's sobbing. Investigating he finds a woman who's fallen and hurt her ankle. Despite his assumption that she is on the street at that late hour for less than honorable reasons, he tries to be gallant if not a bit pushy. When she stumbles again, Tom takes matters into his own hands, literally.

Sorry, I had to do a bit (ok, a lot) of creative punctuation & editing to make it fit:

“Put me down.”

“Yeah... sure,” he walked over to his car and put her down next to it, “you have your choice, I can drive you home or you can try to hobble along these dark streets by yourself. I can assure you I have no interest in attacking you; I can’t guarantee anyone else you might run into in this neighborhood at this hour.” 

She turned her head to look around, a few men stumbled out of the bar and headed in the opposite direction, “I don’t live far from here.” Their raucous laughter seemed to unnerve her; he noticed her slender hands which seemed much more suited to typing at a desk than defending herself on a dark urban street.

“So it won’t be a long drive,” he unlocked the passenger side door of his car and was pleased that he got the key in on the first try; he uttered silent thanks that his hands were steady enough and he wasn’t really feeling any of the affects of the alcohol, “by the way, my name is Tom.”

She sat in the car and just before he closed the door she cautiously smiled, “thank you Tom.” He couldn’t explain why, but he knew that was the kind of smile he would remember and enjoy.

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

Within the Law

Series: Chelle Cordero's Cousins Suspense, Book 2. 

Tom gave up on ever falling in love again the day that he buried his high school sweetheart and fiancé. He started a career in law enforcement just so that he could find her murderer and rapist. Just when he is about to see justice done, he meets Alli Davis-the defense attorney for the murdering rapist who took his love from him.

Amazon (print)

Amazon (Kindle)

.pdf E-Book (Payloadz)

multiple ebook formats (Smashwords)

Apple iTunes

Kobo

Vanilla Heart Publishing Author Day

on Facebook, July 16, Wednesday, 11am - 9pm (est)

Please join us
Lauren Shiro, Malcolm R. Campbell, Chelle Cordero, Charmaine Gordon,
Angela Kay Austin, Susan Berry, Tamara Phillips & Kimberlee

VHP Authors & Publisher will share book blurbs, excerpts, discussions...

click HERE

The Acceptance - Weekend Writing Warriors / #8sunday / 07/06/14

Hi! Welcome to another Weekend Writing Warrior round. Every week writers post 8 sentences on their blogs from a published or unpublished book. Then we "hop" around and leave comments on each other's snippets. Whether our work is already published or in progress, the helpful comments help us become stronger writers on our next WIP. We welcome EVERYONE's comments.

  

See more at the WeWriWa blog

Welcome to a snippet from Within the Law. The protagonist, Tom Hughes, was created in His Lucky Charm (formerly called Forgotten). Tom is cousin to the female main character in HLC. I fell in love with Tom, I think he might be my favorite hero from all of my books. His character and his history was so compelling that I HAD to write his story, one in which he has his own HEA.

In the following snippet, it will become a little clearer why Tom is so lost in his memories. I've skipped a few paragraphs and this is in Chapter 1. I had to use a little bit of creative punctuation to make it fit.

The courthouse was already closed by the time Tom had driven into Rome, New York; he knew it wouldn’t have made a difference anyway. The district attorney’s office had been very specific about what time they wanted to see him. All they wanted him to do was identify the Tupper Lake High School ring with his initials engraved in it; all he wanted to do was get a look at the guy who had changed everything in his world. Tom had an almost masochistic need to put a face to the lowlife who had turned every dream he had into a nightmare.

Tom looked at his wristwatch and decided that as tempting as it was to drink himself into total numbness, he wanted to be aware enough the next morning to really get a good look at this guy. He’d been waiting eight years. Throwing a couple of bills on the counter, he paid for his last drink and stood. He took his car keys out of his pocket and weaved his way through the crowd towards the door.

 For more WeWriWa snippets, go to www.wewriwa.com

Within the Law

Series: Chelle Cordero's Cousins Suspense, Book 2. 

Tom gave up on ever falling in love again the day that he buried his high school sweetheart and fiancé. He started a career in law enforcement just so that he could find her murderer and rapist. Just when he is about to see justice done, he meets Alli Davis-the defense attorney for the murdering rapist who took his love from him.

Amazon (print)

Amazon (Kindle)

.pdf E-Book (Payloadz)

multiple ebook formats (Smashwords)

Apple iTunes

Kobo

Within the Law Book Club Extras

Almost every novel published by Vanilla Heart Publishing has a Book Discussion Packet available. These packets are filled with discussion starter questions, printable bookmarks, and other valuable information - and best of all they are FREE. Libraries and book clubs love to get these packets as they really help to facilitate lively discussions. The packet for Within the Law is available for download here. Here is a sample discussion starter:

Tom Hughes’ character was created in a previous book by Ms. Cordero, 

His Lucky Charm (formerly called Forgotten) along with other characters 

Caitlyn, Brandon, Sylvia and Walter. Even though the books are stand 

alone stories, how does it make you feel when a character “lives on” 

beyond the place you first met them? What are your expectations when a 

character makes repeated appearances in several stories?