As the page turns

Please welcome my Wednesday guest, award-winning author, Vicki Batman. Vicki has sold many romantic comedy stories to the True magazines, several publishers, and most recently, a romantic comedy mystery to The Wild Rose Press. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, and several writing groups. An avid Jazzerciser. Handbag lover. Mahjong player. Yoga practioner. Movie fan. Book devourer. Cat fancier. Best Mom ever. And adores Handsome Hubby.

Most days begin with her hands set to the keyboard and thinking "What if??"

 ***

What if a friend decided to play a silly Q & A game while we were driving home from a fun girl weekend?

What if she asked the question, “Write the opening words of a book using the word window.”

What if your answer was doggie doo-doo?

That was the boat I rowed the weekend I was prompted to write. And after she’d asked the window question, I had nothing and I was embarrassed I had nothing. And I think my friend knew I had nothing for she added, “You can always email something later.”

An out--sorta.

Two days after the trip, I sat at my computer with the TV blaring in the background, thinking “I can do this.”

I did--sorta. I wrote eight chapters. However, I liked what I’d done; so I kept adding, editing, and revising. Finally, I grew brave and asked my friend to read it. She returned the file to me and said, “Keep going.”

Awfully nice of her. LOL.

A few months later and I still hadn’t confessed to a soul what I’d been doing. The secret was pushing inside me, wanting to burst out. So before a high school reunion, I went to dinner with Handsome who’d been traveling a lot. After the meal had been served, I summoned all my nerve and said, “I’ve been writing.”

He sat up in his chair. “What?!!”

“I’m writing a book.” And all the words I’d been holding back streamed forth. I explained what I was writing and for how long and how wonderful...

After I’d paused, he studied me hard. “You’ve...changed.”

Guess I had. But I liked it. Yet, because of what he’d said and how he’d said it, I carried a little pang in my chest. There was no “that’s great, Beautiful” or anything else. He didn’t want to talk about it. Perhaps, mom-me had evolved and he didn’t know what to do with her yet.

My book turned out to be a romantic comedy mystery, Temporarily Employed. I worked that baby and even outlined Books 2 and 3. Time tick-tocked by and three years later, I hadn’t sold it. By chance, a friend asked me to critique her six submissions for Women’s World—you know, the newspaper at the supermarket checkout. I did. Osmosis must have set in because I cranked out short stories, selling fourteen to the True magazines. Then different e-publishers pubbed my erotic novella and four more short stories. I’ve also indie pubbed several others.

At a plotting retreat, I whined to my chapter mates about not selling Temporarily Employed. They suggested trying again. I did, and The Wild Rose Press wanted it. Euphoria!

My book. It feels good.

 

*****

Blurb for Temporarily Employed:

New Job. New Love. And Murder. Hattie Cook's dream job is down the toilet and her new SUV violated. Desperate for cash to cover the basic necessities, she takes a temporary job where she uncovers an embezzling scam tied to the death of a former employee--the very one she replaced.

When the police determine there's more to the death of a former Buy Rite employee, Detective Allan Charles Wellborn steps in to lead the investigation. Overly dedicated, always perfect, he puts his job first, even if doing so ultimately hurts the one he loves.

Can the killer be found before Hattie's time is up?