Keeping the Family Peace tidbits

I bet you’ve forgotten that Keeping the Family Peace still occupies a corner of my mind. Why would you remember? Lately, all I’ve talked about is Star Wars or the Third Crusade.

We could just pretend that you’re on pins & needles waiting for my debut novel. How cool! How about a little teaser? Some background on the story, details that might not even be mentioned but are part of the world I created?

TEN FASCINATING(!!) TIDBITS ABOUT KEEPING THE FAMILY PEACE

1. Nick was born in Monterey, California, in 1974.

2. He has a crush on Marcia Brady (in reruns, of course) and on Anne Bailey, daughter of his father’s best friend.

3. His family met George Takei in 1983 on the USS Enterprise (CVN-65).

4. Nick’s mom did not wear Eternity from Calvin Klein (though it is my favorite fragrance).

5. Jack, Nick’s dad, almost broke a record climbing the Herndon Monument at the Naval Academy.

6. In my original outline and rough draft, the family’s last name was Landon. I was on a train traveling between St. Ives and Stratford-upon-Avon in the UK when I had that Eureka! moment, coming up with both the book title and the family name.

7. Nick is the youngest & the only boy in the family. When the novel opens, he’s 14 – sometimes still a kid, an awkward teenager, but often insightful and mature beyond his years.

8. Births, deaths, weddings, family holidays together & more – you’ll be there.

9. I once wanted to write a science fiction story about a family whose members all served as officers on spaceships. All brothers, 1 sister, & their father. Somehow I ended up with a current-day mainstream novel that features 1 brother (who has no desire to go, Navy!) with a boatload of sisters & a father, all of whom attended the Academy. Go figure.

10. This novel is not centered on life in the Navy. It’s about family. And about secrets that might tear them apart.

ON TRACK?
I’m expecting to see redlines from my editors by early November. I’ll shift back to editing mode at that time. Watch for the book cover reveal that month, and publication around Christmas.

If I do this right, I’ll have some other teaser information over the next two months to share. How about an excerpt from the novel? If you could interview a character from one of your favorite novels, what would you ask them?

WHAT ABOUT THURSDAY’S WALK?
Did you miss Thursday’s Walk on the Blog Side? You could always go back and scan previous entries. Those posts don’t seem to get many clicks. I know – we all have way too much to read. Okay, let’s just enjoy this fabulous scenery in the Highlands of Scotland instead:

Kilchurn Castle

 

  1. Marie Loughin Avatar

    Hey, I’ve been there! Sigh.

    Definitely post some juicy teasers of Keeping the Family Peace!

    1. Char Avatar

      There? Kilchurn? or #8 above? 🙂


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