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When the song tells a story

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When I was growing up, we spent a lot of time in the car. My dad was in the Army, and then he was with a company that moved us around quite a bit–and beyond that, we loved to travel, so we drove across the country, east to west and north to south. I loved it.

One of my favorite parts was listening to music with my parents. Both my mom and dad had a passion for popular music that they’ve passed on to their children and grandchildren. I enjoyed the music, of course, but I especially liked the stories that my dad told about the lyrics, the artists or even about how he and my mom had discovered this song or what it meant to them.

Stagger Lee was the song my dad sang at the ninth grade lip synching contest at school.

When he first heard Herman’s Hermits singing I’m Into Something Good, he made an unprecedented mid-week call from West Point to my mom in New Jersey, to play it for her.

The Lion Sleeps Tonight came out my dad’s first year at West Point, when he wasn’t allowed to listen to radios or records. He heard bits and pieces of it from the rooms of upperclassmen and was mystified by the weem-o-wep.

Today it’s me telling my kids the stories, both from their grandparents and from my own history. Someday, they’ll tell their own children. It’s our own personal form of oral tradition.

And sometimes, those stories spark an idea that leads to a book. Those are good days.

Next week we’ll talk about songs that tell a story all their own.

Teaser Tuesday

The One Trilogy Tease

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THE LTKTO3FINALAST ONE

“Hi.” Her voice was low, and one side of her mouth lifted in a smile.

“I see you girls got home. Finally.” I didn’t mean to say them, but the words came blasting out before I thought about it. Because she was Meghan, and she never did what I expect-

ed, she only lifted one eyebrow.
“I brought your sister home as promised, safe and sound.

I had one beer, hours ago, and my car didn’t break down.” She slid her foot between both of mine, her eyes still steady. “This is where you say, ‘Thank you, Meghan.’”

I let out a breath. “Yeah. Thanks. How drunk is she? Did she get groped?”

“Not by me.” Her smile grew, and she pivoted sideways and dropped onto my lap. Out of instinct, I caught her by the hips.

“What are you doing?”

“You brought up groping. It seemed like a good idea.” She leaned onto my chest and twined her arms around my neck. “You kissed me this morning. I know you said it was a mistake, and maybe you meant that. But right now, I don’t care. I want to kiss you.” She brought her lips to my jaw, nipping along the line until she reached my ear. “What do you think, Sam?”

iBooks/Amazon

THE FIRST ONE

“How did I ever get lucky enough to deserve you?” Ali laid her head on the back of the seat. “What do you see in me? I’m not special.”

“You’re the most special. Ali, you’re beautiful, and not just on the outside. You’re nice to people, you’re funny, and . . .” I TKTO8finalshrugged. “I don’t know. I can’t describe it. I just know it.”

“I love you, Flynn.” She said it as though she couldn’t help it, as though the words surprised her as much as they did me. “I—I know that sounds weird, or maybe you’re not ready—”

“I love you, Ali.” I spoke before she could backtrack any- more. “I’ve loved you for a long time. It’s not weird. It just is.”

“When did you know?”

I hesitated. I wasn’t sure she’d want to hear this, to know the truth. But I’d promised to be honest and open with her always. “It was after your parents. After the accident.”

There was a brief flare of pain on her face, but she didn’t look away, so I went on. “You were hurting so much, and you were so sad. Crushed. I knew then that I never wanted to leave you. I wanted to do anything to make sure you never had to feel that way again, for the rest of your life. I never want to be away from you.” I sucked in a breath and for the first time, I spoke the words that would both define us and doom us. “I want you to come with me, Ali, when I leave Burton. This town, it’s just . . . too small. I’m getting out of here as soon as we graduate. I’m going to see the world. I’m going to travel as far as I can, for as long as I can. And I want you to come with me.”

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TKTO5FINAL

THE ONLY ONE

I opened the kitchen door, sniffing in appreciation. Meat- loaf. But although dinner was clearly underway, Rilla and Piper were nowhere to be seen. I was about to call their names when I heard music coming from down the hall.

Following the sound, I headed for my mother’s room, where the unmistakable lyrics and tune of Come on, Eileen were blasting. I glanced into the room and then did a double take.

Rilla was dancing. She had the music turned up loud, and she was swinging her hips in time with it. Those jeans that had been making me hot and bothered for quite a while clung to her ass as she shook it. And she was singing along.

I was a musician, and even more, I had the gift of recognizing musical talent. It had been my job in Nashville, and I was damned good at it. I’d heard the magic in Lu’s voice the first time we met. It had been a big part of falling in love with her.

Rilla didn’t have talent. She didn’t sing badly, but she was barely on key. She wasn’t going to win any talent contests, and she’d never be signing a recording contract. But all the same, the sound of her belting out those words, some of which she got horribly wrong, was one of the most beautiful sounds I’d ever heard.

She was singing with such joy and abandon. And she was dancing with the same freedom. My pretty girl had never looked more beautiful to me.

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Where do you find your musical muse?

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I’m just about to start on a new book, and I need musical inspiration. Most of the time, I have one or two songs that let me know what genre the playlist will be, but it doesn’t always fall out easily.

musicnotesThere’s a few ways that I find new songs. One is just random listening. I’ll start writing, or even just working on promotions or other business fun, with music in the background. The catch is that it can’t be music I’ve selected. I’ll toss on the music channel on my television, or I’ll click on Pandora or Spotify and just randomize the music. Usually, it becomes background noise until suddenly a phrase or lyric will jump out at me . . . at which point I scribble down the name and artist, add it to a list of potentials (and usually look up the lyrics, too).

I’ve discovered not only new songs, but new bands that way, too.

Another great source of new muse comes from my kids. When I drive my daughter to work, she’s always playing brand-new, cutting-edge music. I frequently say, “Who is that? Send me the name!”

I’m in that stage now as I write The Plan. I know a little about Emmy’s taste–she loves her some country–and I just discovered that Cooper is still wrapped up in the hard-rock of the ’80s . . . so I’m listening to an odd mix of both right now.

How do you find new music?

Friday Free For All

Five From Juli Valenti

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Welcome to Five From Friends Friday!

Each week, I’ll share with you five quick and quirky questions and answers

from some of my favorite author friends.

I think you’ll see some familiar faces in here, too.

Quickies from Juli Valenti

I was trying to remember exactly how I ‘met’ Juli Valenti. I know we were chatting about something bookish related, and then she was involved in a promotion we did this past winter. We also met up at Coastal Magic in February . . . she’s a fellow Floridian. Give her a big hello!

Q: You’re a Florida girl. If you were offered your choice of an annual pass to any local amusement park—transportation included—would you choose Disney World, Sea World, Universal or Legoland?

A: Disney World!!!! I’m a huge child at heart and I’ve only been once.

Q: You’re on a cruise, and the captain says you get to choose the dinner menu for the last night at sea. What will be served?

A: Hmm. tough one… depends on my mood, I guess. Probably Prime Rib, Green Beans (just like Outbacks) and a Caesar salad. For dessert: Key Lime Pie, Black Forest Cake, and Strawberry shortcake

Q: A genie offers you the chance to take your best friend and spend a day in *one* of the worlds you created in your books. Which book-world will you visit with your friend?

A: All of my worlds are real-time, and not different from every day life. If i could visit ANY world, though, it would probably be Hogwarts from the Harry Potter series 🙂

Q: What’s the one item you must have with you at the beach?

A: Sunscreen! A LOT of it. Maybe I need to go into business making sunscreen that protects the ultra-fair peoples like me. (I’m the only perpetually pale person in Florida!)

Q: The Property Brothers are going to help you find your dream home. What three elements are absolutely essential for your perfect house?

A: Light – I want to see the outside when I’m inside, using less electricity. Open floor plans with high ceilings and not a lot of walls (walls make me claustrophobic). A large backyard with a patio so I could sit outside and watch my kids play safely while I write and bask in the warmth of Florida (covered, of course, so I don’t burn like bacon!)

***

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Juli Valenti grew up in a small town in Arkansas, known for Wal-mart, which is no longer small but is still known for the grocery store. Lucky for her, she didn’t retain an accent, despite her overuse of ya’ll when talking. She currently resides in sunny Florida with her husband and two young boys. If her world wasn’t crazy enough, she also works a full time day job, as well as owns her own editing company (Juli’s Elite Editing).

Follow Juli here:

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Pieces in Chance

Drew Townsend has lived anything but a charmed life. When her mother died from cancer, her father snapped, using her as his own personal punching bag. After taking one too many beatings, she took things into her own hands. Determined to escape the Pieces in Chance Ecovernightmare she was living, a desperate Drew does the only thing she can think of to end it all.

Jensen Marks, a former Marine and now police officer in the small town of Chance, had seen a lot of things in his years – war, beatings, crying children – yet none of it kept him up at night. So once he met Drew, he’s perplexed by the way she got under his skin. After years of everyone turning their back on what was going on, Jensen takes it upon himself to see a change in her.

Can Jensen help Drew pick up the missing pieces of herself or will he push her into losing yet another piece in Chance?

Amazon/Nook