Welcome to a very wet and windy WIPpet Wednesday. Well it is here in the UK anyway! 😦 Or at least the sun is shining now but it’s been horrible all day until now. Anyway for this week’s WIPpet Wednesday I thought I’d share with you one of the many flashbacks that my MC Anna has in Reunion of the Heart. For the 12th February I’m sharing 12 lines from chapter 2.
In the present, Anna is at her school reunion and she and best friend Melissa have just been reunited with their school friends Lizzie and Rachel who they haven’t seen since school.
In this excerpt, in the flashback, you can catch a glimpse of why they fell out at school and hadn’t made up until now, many years later. I’m not going to say too much more than that. So without further ado, here’s my contribution to this week’s WIPpet Wednesday:
‘What the hell do you think you’re playing at?’ Melissa had demanded of Lizzie, marching up to where she was sitting eating her lunch at the edge of the school playing fields and tapping her on the shoulder. Anna was trailing in her wake.
‘I’m sorry, but when did you become the boss of my life?’ Lizzie had replied. ‘Oh yeah, that’s right, you’re not!’
‘You know what Matt’s like, you know he’s a nasty bastard who’s given our friend hell and yet you still choose to start seeing him.’
‘It’s my life; I can do what I want!’ Lizzie retorted. ‘And anyway, when are you ever going to let Anna speak for herself? There she is, cowering behind you…’
‘I’m not cowering,’ Anna said in a quiet voice. ‘But Melissa’s right, I do have a problem with you dating Matt. He’s made my life miserable for five years of secondary school.’
And if you aren’t taking part but would like to, just post on your blog whatever you’re working on with your writing and add it here, where all the other wonderful WIPpets for this week can be found too.
Thanks goes to the most gracious hostess of them all K. L. Schwengel.
Elaine Jeremiah 
Intense except! I love the tension and all the emotions coming through in these characters. Boy problems really can bring out the truth among girls. 🙂
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Thanks Chloe! And yes those boy problems really do change things with girls sometimes. Glad you could relate!
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Boys: forever a source of drama among adolescent girls. I like this because it’s not the typical “they both like him” scenario. This is much more complex. What should a girl do if her crush is a mean kid? No easy answers.
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Glad you found it complex. That means I’m doing a good job! And you’re right – there are no easy answers. Lizzie is having to choose between her friend and the boy she wants to go out with. Anna feels betrayed – Matt has given her so much grief over the years.
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Ah. That explains a lot. I’m glad you included this flashback. No wonder this reunion is a difficult one! A tough situation!!!
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Well I’m glad I’ve answered some questions for you! It is a tough situation, but Anna and BF Melissa go away from it really glad they went because it’s given them a chance to start over with their old school friends.
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Sounds like Anna and Lizzie’s relationship is getting ever more complicated!
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They actually haven’t seen each other for years until the reunion because they fell out over this issue at school. So it’s a good opportunity for them to let bygones be bygones.
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Excellent high school voice going here. What a traumatic time the teenage years are! So much drama. You build the tension very well and draw Anna’s character through the others. Nice.
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Ah thanks Kathi. Isn’t school ****? Fill in the blank!! It was for me anyway lol. I enjoyed the learning but the other pupils… well let’s just say I was glad to see the back of them!! Glad you appreciated the excerpt. 🙂
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The sad truth is, I’m not quite sure I don’t feel more sorry for Lizzie as opposed to Anna. Instead of seeing this as a chance to possibly get Matt off their backs by being besties with his girlfriend, they’re forcing Lizzie to choose “us or him”. It definitely adds a new element to Anna and Melissa’s characters, and that’s great… no one likes the too perfect protagonist.
On a more technical note, I felt Melissa’s “You know what Matt’s like…” statement felt a bit stilted. Like she’s saying everything explicitly so the reader gets the backstory….
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That’s interesting that you say you feel sorry for Lizzie. I have to say I don’t but you have a point. Growing up isn’t easy for anyone and sometimes the choices people make are tough ones. Thanks for your comment. 🙂
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I’ve got more distance from your characters than you do, Elaine. It give me a different perspective. (I’ve also got Libra Rising, so I tend to always play the Devil’s Advocate.)
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That’s definitely true Eden. In some ways it can sometimes be hard as an author to really see our characters as they are from up close. We put so much energy into creating them that it’s often a surprise when readers notice things about them that we haven’t perceived before.
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I’m always doing that! 😀
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tension abound!! love it though. I do love tense scenes because it’s either where you figure out where peoples buttons are or who they truly are (or both at the same time).
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Thanks Adrian. Yes it’s definitely a tense scene. Although it’s a flashback, it’s one of the pivotal points of the story as it (partly at least) affects what comes after.
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That definitely explains why they didn’t talk for so long! Great emotion in this scene!
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Thanks Christina. Yeah, I don’t s’pose I’d want to talk to a friend who’d done that to me. Then again I think it’s good to forgive and forget. 🙂
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This sounds awesome! 🙂
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Thanks Briana. Hopefully you’ll get to read it sometime. I’m looking forward to reading your book very soon. 🙂
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Thanks Elaine! 🙂
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Thanks on your marvelous posting! I definitely enjoyed reading it, you may be a great author.
I will remember to bookmark your blog and will come back
later in life. I want to encourage you to ultimately continue your great posts, have a nice morning!
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Thank you for your kind words. It’s lovely to have your support. Have a good week. 🙂
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Good post. I learn something new and challenging on blogs I stumbleupon on a daily basis.
It’s always helpful to read through content from other authors and practice a little
something from other websites.
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Well thank you very much! And you’re right, it is a good idea to read other authors’ blogs. I should do it more often!! 🙂
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Howdy! I kno this is solrt of off-topic but I needed to ask.
Does operating a well-established blog such as yours require a massive amount work?
I’m completely new to blogging but I do write in my diary on
a daily basis. I’d like to start a blog so I will be able to share my personal experience
and feelings online. Please let me know if you have any kind of suggestions or tips
for new aspiring blog owners. Thankyou!
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Hi thanks for getting in touch. No, this blog doesn’t need much work to use once it’s set up. Although I will say that sometimes WordPress can take a little effort to figure out. I often use Google if I have a problem and that’s usually quite helpful.
I find having a blog really helpful to stay in contact with other writers and to update everyone on my writing progress. It can put you in touch with so many people, so that’s great for me and would probably help you too. Hope that helps!
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Thanks very much for taking the time to have a look at my blog and I appreciate you following it. So glad you like it! 🙂 I’ve had a little break due to work, but I’m back to blogging now, so watch this space!
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Pretty! This was a really wonderful article. Many thanks for providing
these details.
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Thank you!
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I really love your blog.. Excellent colors & theme. Did you
build this amazing site yourself? Please reply back as I’m planning to
create my own website and would like to learn where you got this
from or exactly what the theme is called. Kudos!
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Hi! Thanks for your comment. Really glad you like my blog. No I didn’t create this website myself. This a WordPress blog – to get one yourself just Google ‘WordPress’ (I’m not sure of the exact web address) and follow the links to the site.
It takes a little while to set up, but there are lots of different backgrounds and themes to choose from for the look you want for your blog. Many of them (like this one) are free to use. But there are some that you have to pay for.
I think this particular theme I’ve chosen is called ‘Bouquet’ or something like it. Good luck with starting your blog!
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