Description:Published: September 13th, 2018
A broken daughter’s search for the truth unwinds a spiraling journey of panic, lust, and murder in this manipulative thriller from debut author T. A. Massa.
Melanie Stewart has just been left ten million dollars by a man she never knew. Should she accept the money? What if it means her mother, Marilyn, who died when she was only three years old, was murdered by the man who left it to her?
Melanie is trapped with crippling anxiety after the loss of her mother at a young age and the fatal stabbing of her fiancé on the night of their engagement.
When she discovers she has been written into the will of Roger Andrews, a name linked to the mysterious death of her mother, Melanie must trudge down a path of buried memories, reliving painful heartache, all while attempting to restart her life and trust a new admirer, Jake Andrews, Roger’s grandson.
Told from the alternating perspectives of Melanie’s investigation and Marilyn’s last weeks leading up to her death, the clues unravel one by one, leaving you guessing until the final climax. Who should Melanie trust? What happened to Marilyn all those years ago?
GUEST POST
Your Writing Process
My writing process has changed and molded over the course of writing my first book. Because I just dove right in, with no plan or outline, my process was extremely messy. Over the course of writing my novel I began to learn what did and didn’t work and my process became more and more defined.
First I begin with my idea. When I have my idea I can see the end product in my mind, I know exactly what I will be creating. I know the feel of it. I know the ending. I can see the characters transformations. Its like one perfect little package in my mind, and I have to put all of the puzzles pieces together to create it.
At this point of having my idea, I start with a rough outline of events. I type out important events and characters that will be in the story. I try to think of names and what the characters will look like. I print visual aids to help me “see” them or their locations.
Next is writing the first draft. This first draft is very underwritten and is more of an outline of events. By doing this, and rereading it, I can see what I like and what I don’t like. What fits and what doesn’t. This part of the process takes the longest. To get the first draft, I stop a lot, and reread, and think a lot, and move things around. In this part of the process, my characters are born and their personalities shift. Their motives shift. They tell me what they want to do and what they don’t want to do. This first draft is a free for all where I write things that might not even make sense. I just let the characters take me on their ride, but I always have the ending in sight.
Once this first draft is complete, I read it again, and then start the second draft. The second draft is the most fun, because this is when I work on the language and use of words. I dig deep and word play so that I make sure the reader can “feel” the words and characters. My emotions run high during the second draft as I put myself into my character’s feelings. I move things around here too, and the novel really begins to take shape.
After my second draft, I will rewrite the novel 2-3 more times, each time, playing with words and fixing plot holes. This is also where I will invite the beta readers to read over the manuscript and see if I am missing anything.
Once my final draft is complete I send it to my editor for final edits. She sends it back full of edits to accept or decline, and I go through the novel at this point with a fine tooth comb.
Then I will have more beta readers read it here to make sure I haven’t missed anything grammatical or typos.
After ALL OF THAT, voila! The novel is complete and ready for formatting. Nothing to it 😉
EXCERPT
Monday morning arrives with its habitual plans for obligatory adulting, snickering with sadism as all the humans bow to its alarm. Wake up and perform. Wake up and face me. Wake up and be someone.
After a tear-filled drive home to Austin Saturday night, my body and mind crashed—hard.
I spent all of Sunday under my sheets trying to sort out the events of my life-changing weekend.
It was painful, and the worst part?
Jake Andrews.
The inheritance is strange, both alarming and frightening, but that part I believe I can handle. I’ll just decline the money and lock it back in the past.
But not Jake. No, he messed with my head and with my heart.
How was he able to insult me, seduce me, and make me feel alive again all in one night?
And he says he remembers me.
He remembers my past…a past I’ve forgotten.
Does he have clues? Clues that I need?
As I blow-dry my hair for work, the Xanax calming my nerves, I’m haunted by my aunt’s warning to stay away from the Andrews family.
But why?
All Marilyn did was work for them. She didn’t date any of them. No one seduced her or took advantage of her. There was no screwing Jake Andrews like I did.
I’m mortified.
And Nathan…
Oh Nathan!
I grab the picture of the two of us on my bathroom vanity and squeeze it to my chest.
Grief grabs hold of me, punching me in the stomach, and I want to throw up.
What have I done?
I forgot him. Friday night, I was so lost in Jake that I forgot my soul mate. I’ve betrayed him, betrayed our perfect love.
Familiar wetness drips down my cheeks. I’m torn in half. As much as I want to forget that horribly sexy asshole of a man, his touch is etched everywhere on my body. He’s surrounding me, pinning me against the wall, holding me against his body, freeing me but suffocating me at the same time.
I throw down Nathan’s picture and give up on my hair. “Forget it!”
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About the author:
Tiffani lives near Austin, TX with her husband, three kids, three dogs, and all her cats. She spends her days helping her husband with his company, running her kids around town, caring for the house, and trying to figure out what to make for dinner.
She is a lover of all stories.
She enjoys reading, writing, blogging, and going to the movies (especially on opening day!). Her background is in marketing and entrepreneurship and she is addicted to learning new things.
She manages a Lifestyle Blog at Pages & Lace covering books, movies, design, style trends, and her favorite products. Check it out today!
Her debut novel, Silent All These Years: A Novel, releases September 13, 2018. She has started her second novel with hopes of publishing in the Fall of 2019.
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