Rainbow Snippet May 12-13

Posted on May 12, 2018 by Brenda

Hello Snippeteers! Both Ends of the Whip released on Monday, this week’s snippet takes place the morning after last week’s snippet. Wishing all of you a great week.

From Both Ends of the Whip:
Bridget leaned her head against Octavia’s chest and pressed herself tighter into Octavia’s arms. “I’m sorry about last night. I’m glad you woke me.”
Octavia opened her mouth to speak but shut it when she heard Vivian clearing her throat as she entered the kitchen. Breaking their embrace, they turned as one to face her.
“Is there coffee?” Her voice was rough around the edges. Her tight curls were swept up in a head wrap, showing off her profile. She wore a silk thigh-length aqua-blue dressing gown that clung to her. Her dark nipples were visible through the thin fabric. The shortness of the robe displayed Vivian’s long legs. A wide keloid scar blossomed in the center of Vivian’s calf and crossed the front of her knee before it disappeared under her gown.
Nothing on under there. Damn. What the hell made that scar? Car accident? Damn. Don’t stare. Too late. Octavia’s cheeks grew warm, and she shifted her gaze to Vivian’s face. The raised eyebrow and cool look in her eyes let Octavia know she had noticed her staring. Octavia glanced at the floor and tucked her hands in her back pockets.”

Rainbow Snippets( https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets/)is a group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week to share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation (no spoilers please!).

In this groupyou’ll find anything from romance and historical fiction to mystery and YA. The common thread is that every story’s main character identifies as LGBTQ+. The snippets could range from zero flames to full-on sexytimes, anything goes content-wise. The only rule is snippets will be 6 sentences long–one for each color in the Pride flag.

Brenda Murphy writes short fiction and novels. She loves tattoos and sideshows and yes, those are her monkeys. When she is not loitering at her local tea shop and writing, she wrangles two kids, one dog, and an unrepentant parrot. She reviews books, blogs about life as a writer with ADHD and publishes photographs on her blog Writing While Distracted.

You can find her on Facebook by clicking here.

Website: www.brendalmurphy.com

Books available at

Amazon

NineStar Press

Both Ends of the Whip

https://www.amazon.com/Both-Ends-Whip-Brenda-Murphy-ebook/

ONE

Sum of the Whole

Dominique and Other Stories

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The Four Stages of Submission

Posted on May 11, 2018 by Brenda

No. Not that kind of submission. I’m talking about hitting the send button after I’ve polished my manuscript to hell and back and send it off to my editor. That kind of submission. With all due apologies to my friends who have to deal with me between the time I send a manuscript out and hear back from my editor, this is what I experience every time I send a book off for evaluation.

Elation. The highest high, I’ve finally sent it off. Woo hoo I am done. Now I can start on that awesome idea I had for a book in the middle of this book.
Anxiety. Oh hell, what was I thinking? It wasn’t ready. I should have spent more time editing it. Damn it’s too late. They’ll hate it. I better get to work on the next book.
Anger. The hell with it. What do I care if they don’t accept it? I have other stories. So many other stories to write. Let me channel my anger into this scene.
Relief. The editor has responded. No more wondering. No more obsessively checking my email fifteen times a day.
Substages: *1. They accepted it. Woohoo. Time to celebrate and then get to work on the next book. 2. They rejected it. Damn. Time to wallow in sadness for a bit, soothe myself with old movies, and bourbon. Then I let it go and get to work on the next book.

The key to surviving as a writer is to always get back to work. Feel the feels and then sit down and write.

What are your stages of submission?

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Rainbow Snippet May 5-6

Posted on May 5, 2018 by Brenda

Hello All, this weeks snippet is another snip from Both Ends of the Whip, available for pre-order now. Relase day is Monday May 7. Wishing you all a joy filled week.

From Both Ends of the Whip

“Bridget. Wake up. Hey, love. Wake up.” She patted her shoulder.
Bridget started awake. Her breathing was rapid. “What?” She grabbed Octavia’s hand with both of hers.
Octavia squeezed her shoulder. “You were dreaming. It didn’t sound good. I woke you.”
Bridget snuggled closer. “I was. It was awful.”
Octavia shifted her arm and held her tight. “You want to talk about it?”
“No.” The sharp tone in Bridget’s voice pricked at Octavia. “I don’t.”
“I wasn’t trying to piss you off. Talking about it might make it better.”
“If it bothers you, I can sleep in the other room.” Bridget sat up, pushing away from Octavia.
“For fuck’s sake.” Octavia bolted upright and turned on the light. She squinted against the flare of brightness. “What the hell, Bridget? I wasn’t trying to start a fight. I thought it was the right thing to do to wake you up.”
“I don’t want to talk. It doesn’t help.” Her voice was flat. She lay down, turning away from Octavia. “Sorry I woke you.”
What the hell? Why won’t she talk to me? Octavia stared at the tight set of Bridget’s shoulders. What to say? Say nothing. Let it go. She’ll talk to me when she wants to. Or she won’t. Octavia stifled a sigh and turned off the light. She flipped her pillow over and lay down before rolling on to her side to face away from Bridget and the distance between them.

You can find her on Facebook by clicking here.

Website: www.brendalmurphy.com

Books available at

Amazon

NineStar Press

Both Ends of the Whip

ONE

Sum of the Whole

Dominique and Other Stories

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Rainbow Snippets April 7-8

Posted on April 7, 2018 by Brenda

Hello Snippteers, I had a lovely week off at my aunt’s farm, whatever you celebrated, I hope it was good. This week’s snippet is from my novel Both Ends of the Whip scheduled for release May 7th. This novel was inspired by a tour of a vineyard in northern Italy. Above is the gorgeous cover from Natasha Snow and NineStar Press. I hope you enjoy this snippet.

From BOTH ENDS OF THE WHIP

“Do you still work as a photojournalist?”

Vivian brought her gaze back to Octavia’s face. “No. After…” She glanced at her hands before she brought her gaze back to Octavia’s face. “Everyone with a phone is a photojournalist now. I do portraits. Private events. I work when, and if I choose.”

Pain. Sadness. So much sadness. Let it go.Octavia wanted to cross the room and take away the sadness in her eyes, wanted to kiss her perfect mouth until she was breathless. What is the story there? Why so much pain?

Bridget made a soft sound, breaking the moment. “What time would you like your breakfast…? Um, what should we call you?”

“Vivian is fine. I’m not as—” she focused her gaze on Bridget’s face and Octavia’s stomach tightened with desire watching the exchange between them. “Formal as Martha, although we are alike in other ways.”

Bridget’s face flushed. “Could I see the kitchen please? Vivian.”

How long? How long will it be before she offers herself to her? Will I be there? I want to be there. Octavia stood up. “I think I can find the barn, if you two don’t need me.”

“Need and want are two different things.” Vivian raised her gaze to Octavia’s face, a half smile playing over her lips. “Come to the kitchen with us, and then I will accompany you to the barn while Bridget prepares dinner.”

Power and control flowed from Vivian like water over smooth rocks washing way any doubts Octavia might have had about what they had signed up for, leaving no doubt who was in charge.

In this group, you’ll find anything from romance and historical fiction to mystery and YA. The common thread is that every story’s main character identifies as LGBTQ+. The snippets could range from zero flames to full-on sexytimes, anything goes content-wise. The only rule is snippets will be 6 sentences long–one for each color in the Pride flag.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets/

Brenda Murphy writes short stories and novels. She is a member of Romance Writers of America. Her nonfiction and short fiction have been published in various collections. Her most recent novel, One was published by NineStar Press. When she is not loitering and writing at her favorite tea shop, she wrangles two dogs, twins, and an unrepentant parrot. She writes about life, books, and writing on her blog, https://www.brendalmurphy.com/blog.html

Website: www.brendalmurphy.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Writing-While-Distracted

Books available at

Dominique and Other Stories

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Ohio Spring

Posted on March 30, 2018 by Brenda

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Rainbow Snippet March 17-18

Posted on March 17, 2018 by Brenda

This week’s snippet comes from my third novel, Both Ends of the Whip, slated for release in May with NineStar Press. It was inspired by a tour of an amazing woman-owned and operated organic vineyard in northern Italy. I sketched a brief outline of this story in my journal on the ride back from our day trip.

From Both Ends of the Whip

She rolled open the door to the barn and shut it after her. The door to her office was half open. Vivian was sitting in the desk chair, her long legs stretched out in front of her and crossed at the ankles. Vivian. Waiting for me. She pushed the door to the office open wide and stood in the doorway resting her hand on the frame.

Vivian looked up at her. On the desk were two glasses and a dusty bottle. “Do you like cognac?”

“You always keep your cognac in the barn?” She moved to the chair next to the desk and sat down across from Vivian.

“Miriam liked a nip after a ride.”

“She sounds like I would have liked her.”

“Yes. I think you two would have liked each other very much.” She filled two shot glasses.

The cognac is the same color as her eyes. So beautiful. Octavia picked up her glass. “To old friends and new beginnings.”

Vivian raised her glass and touched it to Octavia’s before she took a sip. She licked her lower lip. She raised her glass. “To love’s memory.”

Rainbow Snippets https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets/ ) is a group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week to share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation (no spoilers please!).

Brenda Murphy writes short stories and novels. She is a member of Romance Writers of America. Her nonfiction and short fiction have been published in various collections. Her most recent novel, One was published by NineStar Press. When she is not swilling gallons of hot tea and writing, she wrangles two dogs, twins, and an unrepentant parrot. She writes about life, books, and writing on her blog, https://www.brendalmurphy.com/blog.html

Website: www.brendalmurphy.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Writing-While-Distracted

Books available at

Dominique and Other Stories

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Rainbow Snippet March 10-11

Posted on March 10, 2018 by Brenda

Props to my amazing father-in-law for this great photo from our trip.

This week’s snippet is from a work I signed a contract for this week. The novel, Knotted Legacy, is set on the Isle of Skye, and although the castle pictured above is not located on Skye, it was the inspiration for Rowan House. I’ve always keep travel journals, I use them whenever I want to add details that lend verisimilitude to my manuscripts. I had a wonderful time rereading my journals and letting myself get lost in those memories as I created this story. I hope you enjoy this week’s snippet. It’s a peek at a lunch date that becomes so much more than a meal.

From Knotted Legacy:

Lucia picked up her menu and studied it. Martha took advantage of her distraction and studied her. Her loose curls were pulled back displaying her long neck, the low neckline of her dress showed off the swell of her breasts. Her brown skin glowed in the firelight reflecting off the white stone making her blue-green eyes even more stark in her face.

“It all looks so good. Can we do the tasting menu?” Lucia placed her menu on the table.

“Sounds perfect. It’s what I usually order. They have a wine flight they serve with it. It’s nice to let someone else make the decisions.”

Lucia tilted her head and fixed Martha with her gaze. “It is. As long as you trust the other to make the right choices.” Her voice was the same she had used with Robin, soft yet unyielding, quietly insistent, the voice of a woman so secure in her power she knew her words would be obeyed without question no matter the volume of her voice.

Martha’s body responded to her tone. She took a sip of her water before she answered. “Indeed. It only works if that’s the case.”

Rainbow Snippets (https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets/) is a group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week to share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation (no spoilers please!).

In this group you’ll find anything from romance and historical fiction to mystery and YA. The common thread is that every story’s main character identifies as LGBTQ+. The snippets could range from zero flames to full-on sexytimes, anything goes content-wise. The only rule is snippets will be 6 sentences long–one for each color in the Pride flag.

Brenda Murphy writes short stories and novels. She is a member of Romance Writers of America. Her nonfiction and short fiction have been published in various collections. Her most recent novel, One was published by NineStar Press. When she is not swilling gallons of hot tea and writing, she wrangles two dogs, twins, and an unrepentant parrot. She writes about life, books, and writing on her blog, https://www.brendalmurphy.com/blog.html

Website: www.brendalmurphy.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Writing-While-Distracted

Books available at

Dominique and Other Stories

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Rejection: The good, the bad, and the angry

Posted on March 8, 2018 by Brenda

Rejection. As a writer, you will have rejections. And if you plan to keep writing you need to find a way to deal with rejection. Writing is unique in that there are a number of ways to be rejected. Most are form letter emails. Some, if you are lucky, will offer an explanation for the rejection. Some are the unmistakable sound of crickets, even with polite follow-ups.

The non-response response is perhaps the most difficult to deal with, it always leaves me with questions. 1.) Did you get my submission? 2.) Are you so unprofessional even a quick form rejection is beyond your ability? 3.) Am I not worth a response? 4.) Did something horrible happen in your life and you can’t even respond, or it has been so long that you don’t want to respond because you are embarrassed?

A good rejection for a writer is a “revise and resubmit”, or “I liked this but it does not fit with our anthology/brand/ direction”, or one that contains suggestions on how to improve your chances of being accepted. The best rejections end with “We would like to see future submissions or some such language that indicates the rejection is not a rejection forever, simply a rejection for right now, and that in the future it may be a yes.

The best way to respond to a rejection? Feel your feelings. Be angry, cry, fuss, swear, go for a run, eat ice cream out of the carton, do whatever you need to do. But do it away from the keyboard. Never write back a rude or angry reply. Just don’t. It will never serve you well in your career to respond with anger. Remember publishing is a business, and as such decisions based are on more than the ability of a writer to write well.

Write this down. Post it where you can see it. It is not personal.

Send a very polite acknowledgment of the rejection. And if you are fortunate enough to have had an editor take their time to offer suggestions on how to improve your writing, be very gracious, and acknowledge their time and kindness. Editors are some of the busiest people I know, and for them to offer assistance when they owe you nothing but a professional reply, acknowledging them is reasonable and a good business practice.

Writing is an exhilarating, frustrating, addictive career. Find constructive ways to deal with rejection. Do not let it derail your dreams.

Brenda Murphy writes short stories and novels. She is a member of Romance Writers of America. Her nonfiction and short fiction have been published in various collections. Her most recent novel, One was published by NineStar Press. When she is not swilling gallons of hot tea and writing, she wrangles two dogs, twins, and an unrepentant parrot. She writes about life, books, and writing on her blog, https://www.brendalmurphy.com/blog.html

Website: www.brendalmurphy.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Writing-While-Distracted

Books available at

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Rainbow Snippet March 3-4

Posted on March 3, 2018 by Brenda

This week’s Rainbow Snippet is from ONE. I loved writing this book because I was able to imagine myself back in Northern Italy as I wrote it. I would close my eyes and be right back where the story idea started, a warm sunny day, traveling on a ferry to Bellagio. My partner loves to tease me when she notices I’m distracted by a story idea. A writer herself she is always tolerant of my mental wanderings. I hope you enjoy this snippet. Mac and Lana will always be one of my favorite couples.

From ONE:

Mac strolled over to stand in front of her. She set her legs wide. “How’d you know you’d catch up with me?” She flicked the zipper on Lana’s jacket with her finger. “You always ride crazy?”

“I didn’t.” She tipped her chin at Mac. “And yes, if I have to.”

Pushback. Mac grasped the zipper pull and eased the zipper down one notch at a time, stopping before Lana’s breasts spilled out. Nothing on underneath. “What if you’d killed yourself?”

Lana looked into Mac’s eyes, her gaze steady. “You’re worth the risk.” She rested her hand on top of Mac’s and forced the zipper the rest of the way down, exposing herself.

Me worth death? Losing a job? Losing money? Mac looked away from Lana’s eyes. “You sure?”

Lana clasped Mac’s hand and brought it to her breast. “Quite.”

Rainbow Snippets is a group for LGBTQ+ authors, readers, and bloggers to gather once a week to share six sentences from a work of fiction–a WIP or a finished work or even a 6-sentence book recommendation (no spoilers please!).

In the group, you’ll find anything from romance and historical fiction to mystery and YA. The common thread is that every story’s main character identifies as LGBTQ+. The snippets could range from zero flames to full-on sexytimes, anything goes content-wise. The only rule is snippets will be 6 sentences long–one for each color in the Pride flag. You can follow this link and check out the rest of the fantastic snippets available each week.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/RainbowSnippets/

Brenda Murphy writes short stories and novels. She is a member of Romance Writers of America. Her nonfiction and short fiction have been published in various collections. Her most recent novel, One was published by NineStar Press. When she is not swilling gallons of hot tea and writing, she wrangles two dogs, twins, and an unrepentant parrot. She writes about life, books, and writing on her blog, https://www.brendalmurphy.com/blog.html

Website: www.brendalmurphy.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Writing-While-Distracted

Books available at

Dominique and Other Stories

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You are Not Your Paycheck

Posted on February 27, 2018 by Brenda

I want every creative person to write this down and put it where they can see it every day. Because it is the number one way non-creatives assign value to what we do. “How much did you make for that? Did it sell? Are you still wasting your time? Why don’t you get a job?” The hidden message in these type of statements is your worth as a person depends on your ability to make money.

After a steady stream of these types of questions, it is easy to think you are wasting your time, that no one will ever pay for your work, that your work is worthless. None of this is true, the act of creating has value. Letting other people suggest that you have no value as a person because you don’t make money with your creative work, is ridiculous, but oh so easy to believe. Stop. Don’t listen. You are not your paycheck. You have value. Your work has value. Do not let other people derail your creative endeavors. So what if you choose to spend your time writing, taking photographs, painting, drawing, or making collages? So what? Hold fast to your creativity. Hold fast to your dreams. Hold fast to your own values and beliefs. Do not let other people stifle you.

This waterfall starts somewhere as a little trickle. Keep going.

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Writing While Distracted

B's Blog about Writing, Life, and Books

Tag Archives: Brenda Murphy Author

Rainbow Snippet May 12-13

The Four Stages of Submission

Rainbow Snippet May 5-6

Rainbow Snippets April 7-8

Ohio Spring

Rainbow Snippet March 17-18

Rainbow Snippet March 10-11

Rejection: The good, the bad, and the angry

Rainbow Snippet March 3-4

You are Not Your Paycheck