“once upon a time . . .” no, that was retarded, and I knew it. “I was another dark and stormy night . . .“ Ugg! This is getting nowhere. “It was dark early, like most nights in October and had been storming for a week. Everything glistened under the streetlight and twinkled with the headlights of every passing car. I stare out the sixth story window and consider the possibility of just throwing myself from it to avoid going down stairs. I contemplate the semi truck as it screams by at about 50” Yeah . . . I’m liking that, but ‘screams’? what about ‘roars’? no, maybe . . . hhmmm . . . ‘swooshes’? Footsteps on the stairs. ‘shushes’? Keys are jingling. ‘drives’? no, too lame. The door slams. ‘Slides’? The music starts. Oh! Screw the truck!
My last book published about two months ago and the excitement finally lessened a bit. My editor, Elaine, was anxious for my next five chapters and I’d been stumped for a week. I swear it was that crazy blonde that moved in next door. Every day when I get home, I have an hour to get into my space, my groove, and then she’s there – cranking up the music, pounding on the wall and the screaming! I have no idea what she’s doing in there but it’s driving me insane!
Tonight I was supposed to crank out a 2500 words for a teen magazine that is Elaine’s pet project. The request was her idea of therapy since I was short a chapter on my last appointment then told her my characters were angry and not speaking to me as I slammed down the phone last Thursday. I got the cautious soothing e-mail request the next morning. She also Fed-Exed me a Starbucks card with a note attached telling me to go get a “fix”.
It was an easy request – just another installment of my favorite character, Sandromeda, who I’d been writing about since I was a kid. I usually go with something funny in my life, push it into the fantastic, play a little ‘what if’ and lie, lie, lie! I write her under a different pen name and Sandromeda’s World has printed six times a year for the last 5 years.
I have a few subscriptions on file with her, but she wanted something ‘dated’ this time – like name drop or mention a few current events into the background. Since the ‘zine is, well, based on Sandromeda, I understand her desire for a fresher story once in a while. I’ve seen the boards on Sandromeda.com and the girls that read it really notice the smallest things; two weeks ago, there was a raging debate over whether the stories were ‘truth’ or ‘fiction’!
HAARRR! The truck! I buried my hands in my hair; pulling it loose from the haphazard bun I’d twisted it into right out of the shower. The pounding and screaming has started next door and I want to run her over with that speeding truck!
Two of my cats, Herman and Eddie, come skittering up to seek refuge under my desk from the racket. The third, Lilly, is probably hiding in my closet. Herman is a red Sphynx (hairless), Eddie is an Egyptian Mau and Lilly is a black smoke Manx. I adopted them from a friend whose aunt died – they were “show” cats and are all very odd but loving and sweet. He was allergic and didn’t want ‘the hassle’.