Once again, I’m spending November participating in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). The goal of NaNo is to write a novel of 50,000 words by the end of November. This works to about 1,700 words per day. I’ve done it several times in the past, and three novels have come out of it. Last year I used NaNo to draft a royal romance that, with months of revising later, became The Queen Has a Cold, which comes out in April.

This year, I’m working being a NaNo “rebel” in that I’m not starting a project from scratch on day one. I’m finessing a rough draft of what is currently being called Spooky Ghost Lesfic. Every day I take a different chapter and revise it, mostly adding details and clarifying the language. But I also had a major breakthrough a few weeks ago in which I realized some of the essential plot elements don’t work, and the characters’ backgrounds, as well as what happens to them, are being overhauled slightly. I’m excited by these new changes and hope you will be, too.

I want to give you a sneak peek of what I’m working on. In this scene, Kara has just moved to Chicago after she’s been able to move on from the death of her partner. She meets Nisha, who used to live in the apartment Kara now rents. Nisha takes Kara out to show her what weekends in the city are like. At this point, they’re still basically strangers, but you see the initial attraction and signs they might work as a couple in their exchange below.

“You said you just moved here,” Nisha said. “I’m thinking you’re not from the suburbs either. You moved to Chicago from somewhere else. Iowa maybe, maybe Wisconsin.”

“Why do you think that?”

“You actually called me back, and when I called you, you didn’t screen. You’re from some place where people are supposed to be nice to each other. I’m guessing Wisconsin.”

“That’s is not a very logical deduction, but you got it right anyway.”

Nisha tossed her hair over her shoulder and rested her chin on her fist. She smiled devilishly. “Less about logic and more about your Facebook profile still saying you live in Eau Claire.”

So Nisha had been creeping on Kara’s social media, too. That was an interesting admission on her part. “I lived there all my life, except for three years of law school.”

“What prompted the move to here then?”

Hilary. Kara didn’t want to say it. And explaining how she needed a fresh start to figure out who she was without Hilary felt like too much to explain. She opted for a less detailed version of the truth.

“There are more opportunities to get ahead here, so I took the Illinois bar exam. I had a job at home, but a bigger city means bigger clients and more career paths. Even if there are a thousand more attorneys.”

“I guess we’re a litigious city.”

“Nah, you just have five law schools.” Kara took another sip of the wine. It tasted light on her tongue, like plums and cherries, then felt earthy and relaxing as it warmed her body to the core. She could feel its effects on her hot cheeks, and all the muscles she usually held so tight were slowly beginning to loosen.

What will happen between Kara and Nisha? You’ll have to keep following this blog to find out. In the meantime, you might enjoy my current release, The Holiday Detour, or look forward to reading The Queen Has a Cold when it comes out in April.

If you’re participating in NaNoWriMo, you can find me there as JaneKolven. Feel free to send a buddy request!