Showing posts with label Jessica Lauryn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jessica Lauryn. Show all posts
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Saturday's Excerpt from Dangerous Proposal by Jessica Lauryn
She ought to go. She certainly wanted to. But the idea of walking alone in the woods with the man she’d been warned to stay away from seemed most unimaginable.
Lena looked at Alec. He was smiling softly, no longer criticizing. His eyes were full of intent. They suggested one thing. Come with me. And your desires will be fulfilled.
Anticipation consumed her. She reached for his hand. Excitement melted into warmth. Warmth became security. They began to walk together along the moonlit path.
She felt…safe. As if for the first time since she’d left Westchester, everything was going to be all right. No one could hurt her. Not when she was with Alec. Her skin tingled with warmth as he brushed his thumb across the surface of her hand.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“I thought we were taking risks tonight,” he said with a grin. “You want to be surprised, don’t you?”
Her cheeks were flushing. She was grateful for the darkness that masked her anxious demeanor.
He smiled. “Don’t worry. I think you’re going to like this.”
She imagined she would, considering how much she had enjoyed everything he’d done so far. A part of her was still afraid, but a larger part wanted very much to know where he was taking her. Alec stroked her knuckles as they walked. The feeling was intoxicating, like sweet, dark chocolate. The longer he did it, the more it seemed this simple touch was no longer enough.
She was drawn from her thoughts as Alec stopped beside a bench. He took a red-and-blue-checkered picnic blanket and slung it over his shoulder.
“Is that yours?”
He shrugged. “I just thought you might want something to sit on. Some of us tend to”—he cleared his throat—“dress up a little more than others.”
Lena laughed. With his hand around hers, she was almost appreciating his wit. “I guess some of us do.”
He leaned in, his warm breath coming against her ear. “I didn’t say I didn’t like it.” He gave her hand a squeeze. “It’s just past those trees. No peeking. I want you to be surprised.
“I promise I won’t peek.” She smiled and shut her eyes. A shiver shot up her spine when she realized he was kissing her cheek.
Lena took an uneasy breath as she walked forward, unable to see what was in front of her. Keeping her arms at her sides, Alec moved her in slow steps. She was taking quite a risk, allowing him to lead her along like this. He could do anything he wanted to her with her eyes closed like this. Oddly enough, the idea was more exciting than it was frightening.
Guiding her by the shoulders, he walked forward a few more paces. Then he stopped. “All right,” he said. “Open your eyes.
Lena did as she was told, looking out at the biggest, most beautiful lake she’d ever seen. It was vast in size, extending out as far as the trees that surrounded it. Moonlight shined against an uneven surface. Dark ripples glittered beneath a starlit sky.
She turned, looking up into two eyes as blue as the water. “It’s beautiful, Dr. Westwood.”
“Say my name, Lena,” he commanded softly. “I love the way it sounds when you say it.
Lena bit her lip. Once she did this, there was no going back. It would break the unspoken barrier between them. But how could she deny him anything when he was looking at her the way he was?
She suddenly became aware of Alec’s arousal pressing against her back. Her pulse quickened. He tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, tightening his hold on her.
She took a deep breath. “The lake is beautiful, Alec.”
Friday, February 8, 2013
How She Does It featuring Jessica Lauryn
Jessica is a fellow member of New Jersey Romance Writers.
We all know there are six elements in writing fiction and often fact. Who, What, When, Where, Why and How. I believe the first five lead to the sixth which for me is the plot. What's your take on this?
I agree with your philosophy, Janet. Plot is definitely the "How" of a story. Though, I tend to write a bit backwards. What I mean is that, for me, plot usually comes first. Everything else, the who (characters), what (conflict), when/where (setting), why (characters' goals) come into my mind as a result of plot. It's the way I work, and the way I most enjoy crafting and telling stories.
1. How do you create your characters? Do you have a specific process?
Characters are usually the first thing I create, and as I mentioned, they'll generate naturally from my storyline. I build stories like a tower, and I keep adding on to what's already there, later polishing the story until I have a finished product. Once I have a storyline I want to ise, I determine what I want the hero and heroine to be like, their quirks and values, what makes them exciting as a couple, and most importantly what drives their passion. From there, I begin to picture my hero and heroine, their hair and eye color and other physical attributes. I then go back to brainstorming about my plot, and I figure out what other characters I'll need (and want) to have in the story. The plot also drives the choices I make regarding secondary characters, and their attributes.
2. Do your characters come before the plot? Do you sketch out your plot or do you let the characters develop the route to the end?
I think it's safe to say I am a plotter all the way. Writing out the plot in long hand is what helps me to begin a new story. It's a lot less intimidating facing a blank screen, when there is a whole sketch pad of notes to guide me. I start with a premise. From that premise come my two main characters, the hero and heroine, then later, my secondary characters.
3. Do you know how the story will end before you begin? In a general way or a specific one?
I do have an idea of how the story will end, but I'd say it is more of a general idea than specific. When I write the outline for a story, the last couple of sections, and the last one in particular, tend to have the smallest amount of notes. I'm not exactly sure whether this is because I'm trying to give myself leeway, or because my notes are not as hard and fast as I'd like to initially believe they are. What I do know is that I have to actually draft most of, if not the entire story, before I can draft the ending. In this sense, I am a also bit of a "panster", which I define as an author who let's the characters and other story elements drive the story.
4. Do you choose settings you know or do you have books of settings and plans of houses sitting around?
A little bit of both, actually! A good portion of my first series, the Pinnacles of Power, is set the town of North Conway, New Hampshire. Like the heroine in Dangerous Proposal, Lena Benson, I've been vacationing there for most of my life, and know the town almost as well as the one I live in. Choosing a setting I'm familiar with minimizes the amount of research I have to do, and allows me to get back to my favorite part--writing!
But that's not to say that I only write about places I've been to, because I'd be selling myself very short if I did. In many instances, I'll let the characters tell me where they want to set a particular story, unless that story is part of a series. In that case, I work to set the book around the existing setting(s).
5. Where do you do your research? On line or from books?
I do the majority of my research online, because that's easiest for me. And in a day and age where I can type pretty much anything into a search engine and turn up a result, research has never been easier. But I do take the occasional trip to the library when researching something, a time period perhaps, that I'm particularly interested in, or if I am looking for additional information.
6. Are you a draft writer or do you revise as you go along and why?
I began as a draft writer, but I've evolved into a writer who revises as I go along. The reason for this is I felt as if I was doing double and even triple the work, writing a scene, and then essentially rewriting it. Sometimes I'd cut something out of a scene that I really liked, because the muse hit me differently the second time around. This didn't work for me. With revising as I go along, I simply cut out what I don't want, and embellish what I do. I keep all of my thoughts in one place, which makes the most sense for me.
Jessica
--
Jessica Lauryn
Dangerous Proposal - now available!
www.jessicalauryn.com
We all know there are six elements in writing fiction and often fact. Who, What, When, Where, Why and How. I believe the first five lead to the sixth which for me is the plot. What's your take on this?
I agree with your philosophy, Janet. Plot is definitely the "How" of a story. Though, I tend to write a bit backwards. What I mean is that, for me, plot usually comes first. Everything else, the who (characters), what (conflict), when/where (setting), why (characters' goals) come into my mind as a result of plot. It's the way I work, and the way I most enjoy crafting and telling stories.
1. How do you create your characters? Do you have a specific process?
Characters are usually the first thing I create, and as I mentioned, they'll generate naturally from my storyline. I build stories like a tower, and I keep adding on to what's already there, later polishing the story until I have a finished product. Once I have a storyline I want to ise, I determine what I want the hero and heroine to be like, their quirks and values, what makes them exciting as a couple, and most importantly what drives their passion. From there, I begin to picture my hero and heroine, their hair and eye color and other physical attributes. I then go back to brainstorming about my plot, and I figure out what other characters I'll need (and want) to have in the story. The plot also drives the choices I make regarding secondary characters, and their attributes.
2. Do your characters come before the plot? Do you sketch out your plot or do you let the characters develop the route to the end?
I think it's safe to say I am a plotter all the way. Writing out the plot in long hand is what helps me to begin a new story. It's a lot less intimidating facing a blank screen, when there is a whole sketch pad of notes to guide me. I start with a premise. From that premise come my two main characters, the hero and heroine, then later, my secondary characters.
3. Do you know how the story will end before you begin? In a general way or a specific one?
I do have an idea of how the story will end, but I'd say it is more of a general idea than specific. When I write the outline for a story, the last couple of sections, and the last one in particular, tend to have the smallest amount of notes. I'm not exactly sure whether this is because I'm trying to give myself leeway, or because my notes are not as hard and fast as I'd like to initially believe they are. What I do know is that I have to actually draft most of, if not the entire story, before I can draft the ending. In this sense, I am a also bit of a "panster", which I define as an author who let's the characters and other story elements drive the story.
4. Do you choose settings you know or do you have books of settings and plans of houses sitting around?
A little bit of both, actually! A good portion of my first series, the Pinnacles of Power, is set the town of North Conway, New Hampshire. Like the heroine in Dangerous Proposal, Lena Benson, I've been vacationing there for most of my life, and know the town almost as well as the one I live in. Choosing a setting I'm familiar with minimizes the amount of research I have to do, and allows me to get back to my favorite part--writing!
But that's not to say that I only write about places I've been to, because I'd be selling myself very short if I did. In many instances, I'll let the characters tell me where they want to set a particular story, unless that story is part of a series. In that case, I work to set the book around the existing setting(s).
5. Where do you do your research? On line or from books?
I do the majority of my research online, because that's easiest for me. And in a day and age where I can type pretty much anything into a search engine and turn up a result, research has never been easier. But I do take the occasional trip to the library when researching something, a time period perhaps, that I'm particularly interested in, or if I am looking for additional information.
6. Are you a draft writer or do you revise as you go along and why?
I began as a draft writer, but I've evolved into a writer who revises as I go along. The reason for this is I felt as if I was doing double and even triple the work, writing a scene, and then essentially rewriting it. Sometimes I'd cut something out of a scene that I really liked, because the muse hit me differently the second time around. This didn't work for me. With revising as I go along, I simply cut out what I don't want, and embellish what I do. I keep all of my thoughts in one place, which makes the most sense for me.
Jessica
--
Jessica Lauryn
Dangerous Proposal - now available!
www.jessicalauryn.com
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