On writing, getting married, and saving lives

Hello readers and fellow bloggers.

As you might or might not have noticed, I've been away. It's been months since I posted on this site, and I feel a combination of guilt and embarrassment for letting so much time go by. I've just been really busy! It feels like a million things have happened, but let me boil this post down to three pretty big things:

WRITING

In the past months, I've been trying to finish Making Time, the sequel to Serving Time (almost ready for beta readers). I encountered an important hiccup and had to chuck an entire chapter, then rewrite and adjust the surrounding chapters. Don't you hate it when that happens? *Frustrated groan*

In recent months, I've also been trying to complete the short story Seven Sins, but have had worse luck with that (writer's block). Someday I will conquer that story, even if it's the last thing I do!

In July, I finished a novella called The Soul Distillery. It's just awaiting formatting and publication so stay tuned because I will update you on the cover reveal and the free download days--because there will be many, many free download days! The Soul Distillery is the story of Robert Westbrook (who you might know from Serving Time) before he encounters the goddess Time. More information on this novella and its release date in future posts!

GETTING MARRIED

Nope. Not married yet. But the preparations are well underway! Salva and I will get married on June 7 in the gardens of a restaurant called Can Baladia. The restaurant is actually a century-old house surrounded by gardens and Mediterranean pine trees. The reception will be right there, so we won't have to drive around from one place to another. We already tried some of the food at the restaurant and it's deliiiiiicious!

As a special treat, here are our fab wedding rings: white gold (and mine has a diamond!).

SAVING LIVES

One life, actually: the life of an itty bitty teeny tiny mister kitty (that's his unofficial name).

On May 28, I was walking from work to my car and I came across a tiny kitten who was sitting in the middle of the sidewalk, gasping for breath. He couldn't even open his eyes because they were glued shut with a thick layer of pus. I scooped him up and ran to the vet (who luckily has his office right next to my school). The vet was pessimistic, but since he knows me and he knows how much I suffer over animals, he bit his tongue and didn't tell me to put the kitten to sleep (which was what he thought would be best).

Crying like a bleda (more on the meaning of this word in a future post), I took the kitten home and Salva and I spent the next five weeks taking care of him--ICU style. He suffered from severe malnutrition (total muscle loss: he couldn't even walk), herpes (which was destroying his eyes) and feline respiratory syndrome. More worrisome was that he was excreting coronavirus in his feces. Certain strains of this virus are deadly to cats and there's no cure. Since we have other cats, we had to keep the kitten in total isolation.

The whole experience was draining, both physically due to lack of sleep and emotionally since I became paranoid thinking that I'd walk in and the kitten would be dead. However, the experience quickly became rewarding as, slowly yet surely, mister kitten began to recover. Now he's a terrifying beast! He's had a couple blood tests and luckily he wasn't infected with the deadly strain of coronavirus. What's more, it seems he managed to excrete the virus because the concentration was minimal. So in July we finally let him run loose in our home and meet the other cats!

Here are a couple pictures of the kitten, named Taques (Catalan for "Spots" or "Stains"). The first pictures are actually of when Taques was already healthy enough to have his picture taken. I didn't want to take any photos of him when he was really sick since we all thought he would die any moment, so I can't show you the state in which I found him. Just know that it was really, really bad.

So that's what I've been up to these past months! Stay tuned because I will continue to post updates and new sections on this blog! I have completed several DIY projects I'd like to share with you, as well as book reviews and news about my own writing endeavors.

It's great to be back!

Seven Sins - Teaser

Hello, everybody!

I can't believe how much time has gone by since I last posted on this blog. It's been a very busy couple of months what with wedding preparations (we finally booked the restaurant for the reception) and edits (I completed a new short story--teaser coming soon).

In my last post, I shared a short song with you called Seas of Black and Blue. This song will appear in a short story I'm struggling to finish wrapping up called Seven Sins!

Since I haven't had time to post much recently I'd like to share a scene from Seven Sins with you. It is a prequel to the novel Serving Time.

Temporary blurb: It's graduation day at Spaceflight Academy, and Tristan Cross is now a fully-licensed interplanetary pilot. This calls for the mother of all celebrations, and the new pilots swarm to The Arena, the largest club in all Barcelona. With a whole night of drinking, clubbing, and--hopefully--getting lucky ahead of them, Tristan and his brother Eneld look forward to the fun. However, when Tristan accidentally swallows a Seven Sins pill, their night takes a sharp turn for the weird.

Disclaimer: the material presented here is still under construction (edits).

Another disclaimer: bad language and adult topics.

I hope you enjoy!


SEVEN SINS

Tristan weaved his way through the crowd. He bumped into someone, muttered an apology, and kept going. Stupid Ennie with his stupid remarks. Always leave it to Eneld to make his mood go sour. His stomach gurgled and he lost track of where he was going. Shit. Maybe mixing beer and cheap vodka also had something to do with things going sour… I told them not to give me garrafón… He stopped dead in his tracks, just concentrating on keeping balance while the music and the people pushed him from side to side.

Ohhh…crap.

“Stan! You’re not looking so good.” Xavi grabbed him and jostled him.

Tristan almost puked. He shoved Xavi. “You trying to make me sick or what?”

“Told you not to mix.”

Tristan groaned and leaned against Xavi. “I can’t waste my night like this…”

“Then come with me,” Xavi said, leading him into the bathroom. He took out a baggie full of multicolored pills and sifted through them.

“You told me you stopped pushing that shit.” Tristan glanced around. The other guys in the bathroom were minding their own business, coming and leaving as quickly as possible.

“Calm down. I got one of those over-the-counter gag-reducers in here. You should see Greg now. One of these babies and he’s back at the bar giving his liver a good kick.”

Tristan relaxed a little and leaned against the sink. His stomach rolled over itself. “And you keep your meds all jumbled up in the same bag?”

“Be quiet and take this.” Xavi handed him a white diamond-shaped pill. Tristan pinched it between two fingers and examined it. One side had a number seven stamped onto it.

“Keep it under your tongue. It’s a bit bitter but it dissolves in no time. Hey.” Xavi chuckled. “I got an idea. If you want a laugh, I have something we can slip En—”

“No.” Tristan glared at him. “Lay off him.”

Xavi raised his hands. “Okay, okay.”

He put the pill under his tongue and waited.

“It’ll neutralize the garrafón soon. Can you feel it working?”

Tha-thump. The bathroom walls shook.

Tristan’s breath hitched. He clutched his chest. Oh, shit.

Tha-thump. Tha-thump. His heart pounded against his ribs. A tingling sensation spread from his groin to the pit of his stomach.

“Xavi…?” Tristan panted for breath. Heavy, wet, soggy… So soggy… Sweat tickled his forehead. He wiped it away. “Is it supposed to feel like this?”

“Like what?” Xavi checked the baggie again and went white. “Oh, fuck.”

Tristan grimaced. “Fuck what?”

“Nothing. Uh…” He rummaged through all the pills, his face contorting into terror. He pulled out a few and counted them. “How are you feeling?”

“Like shit.” The colors around him faded to tones of gray. The edges of his vision fuzzed out. Every now and them, a dash of color burst in front of him like fireworks. He stumbled back against the wall. The pounding of his heart made his breath come in short gasps.

“You need to spit that out.” Xavi grabbed Tristan’s chin and stuck his fingers in his mouth.

Tristan gagged and shoved him. “It already dissolved!”

“Shit.”

“What the fuck’s going on?” Tristan turned his hands over. They trembled. His knees went weak. Heat rose in him. So hot… He needed to…

Xavi hesitated, clutching the bag in both hands. “I think… I gave you the wrong one.”

“The wrong one?” Tristan grabbed Xavi by the front of his shirt, lifting him to his toes. “You idiot!” he growled in Xavi’s face.

“We can fix this! Lemme go!” Xavi squirmed.

“I’m going to…” Tristan’s chest heaved. “I’m… I’m…” His heartbeat went from pounding to drilling. He pulled Xavi against his chest and breathed in his cologne, his warmth, his growing panic. “I’m…so fucking horny.”

Seas of Black and Blue

This is a song fragment that will be included in the short story Seven Sins (prequel to Serving Time). I hope you enjoy!

One good day I rigged my ship

and out to sea I went.

A row-a-ho, a row-ho-ho,

no reason to repent!

Through the mist, between the waves,

an old man spoke to me.

“Sonny, this life, it ain’t for you.

Don’t squander it at sea.”

He pointed high above his head.

I looked up in surprise.

A sky so deep, and stars so blue,

with twinkles in their eyes.

Now I sail my ship each night

through seas of black and blue.

From star to star, from dusk to light

to worlds both old and new.

A special thank you goes out to the marvelous CCers who helped me!