Writing Tea
The #WhyChoose novella, now titled The Oath, is still with my lovely editor. I am not sure why I was putting myself on this hella strict timeline to have it done in the fall. But I had to remind myself that this is an indie project. I can put this out anytime I want. I want edits and formatting to be done right. So I am giving myself and my editor plenty of time. I say it’ll be out at least before January 2024. That is pretty clear. At least the cover for it is ready to go. (Still being a little secretive about that)
In the meantime, I crashed and burned on the #20kin5Days last month. Life was life-ing and doing some wild stuff. So far I only have about 12K in my current WIP about a Black lumberjack who owns a Xmas tree farm, and the documentary filmmaker who is too much sunshine for his grumpy. I am hoping to be done with it over the upcoming holiday breaks that we have. I am thankful I do work for a place that takes off Thanksgiving and also offers a lot of time off for Christmas.
I am also looking to do another #Whychoose novella in the same universe. But that’ll be a project for 2024 for sure.
Podcast Tea
The podcast is back and in full effect and we are having a blast!
We are also now offering advertising slots on the podcast. If you are interested in our rates, please let us know and contact us so that we can invoice you.
There will also be a BONUS podcast this week… so stay tuned!
We have very few slots available for either BIPOC book influencers or authors to come on. See the sign up sheet here: Podcast Sign Up Sheet
Random Tea
I have been so lucky and blessed to still have folks discovering The Build Up. Last month, I met with a group of ladies who picked my book as their selection. We had a great time meeting The Vibrary which is quickly becoming my hangout/writing spot in my hood. In October, I also had the pleasure of meeting with My Sister’s Keeper reading book club of the Lambda Zeta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.(Houston, Tx.). So honored that my sorors picked my book. We had a great time laughing and answering questions via our Zoom about The Build Up.
I also had to do a mental reset. I started working out more (VR boxing, to be specific), meditation, journaling my ideas. I cut my hair, going back to a short fade. I am literally just starting over for this last quarter of the year.
Tati is Reading
I didn’t read too much this month. I listened to Black Candle Women. I enjoyed it. I love a good intergenerational story.
I did a re-read of Demon’s Dream by Elle Kayson. That book is a wild ride dor all 750 pages…. Demon is toxic. Smoke is toxic. Everybody toxic. Yet, you want these folks to win and everyone to get theirs (Sexually or otherwise LOL)
I have some books on my TBR that I am going to get to soon. And something for the spooky months. One of them a follower recommended called You Hide, I’ll Seek by ML Bash. The premise intrigued me. Def check the trigger warnings.
Newsletter Exclusive: A Snippet of The Oath
I know! I know! I've been teasing this novella for a hot minute. So why not give you all a little taste of what’s coming? What is The Oath about? In short, it is about a widow and her late husband's three best friends who pledged to take care of her in every way possible. In the beginning, she is wondering why her husband has asked these men to take this “oath” to care for her, but in the end she realizes why.
I can’t wait for you all to read the story of Tatum, Deacon, Miles and Cassidy in full. But in the meantime, here is something to wet your whistle.
Chapter 1: An Unusual Request
The beeping from the oxygen machine jolted Tatum out of her stupor in her study. She sighed, putting down her pen, closing her checkbook that she’d been attempting to balance for the past hour. She’d sent the nurse home hours ago, assuring her she’d be fine and could do this on her own. Now Tatum regretted that.
Tatum slowly opened the French doors leading to the playroom turned hospice room. The walls were still painted a faint gray blue, a leftover from the days when their son Morgan played with building blocks on the plush tan carpet. Morgan was a man now, a junior at Morehouse, who was the spitting image of his father. Well, what he used to look like. Tatum looked at her husband. Franklin had been the most handsome man- broad, tall, with arms that were pure muscles and brawn. His round cheeks were now sunken in and his clear, pecan colored skin was sallow. He was a ghost of the man that he used to be.
“Honey?” Tatum slowly approached the bed. His body shook violently with each cough, rattling the rails of the hospital bed. Each cough made Tatum shudder, knowing that it shot nothing but fiery pain through Franklin’s body. Franklin looked over in Tatum’s direction and smiled. At least his smile is still there, she thought.
“Hey, Beautiful.” Franklin reached out his hand toward Tatum, who’d now taken a seat at her husband’s bedside. Tatum intertwined her fingers with her husband’s, his wedding ring now loose on his hand. She lifted his hand, gently kissing his knuckles.
“Hey, handsome,”
“You ain’t gotta lie, Craig”, said Franklin, another coughing fit muffled his laugh.
Tatum frowned. “Quit trying to make jokes, Frankie. Seriously.” Tatum handed him a tumbler of water with a straw, motioning for him to drink.
After taking a few sips, he sighed. “I just want to make you smile. You don’t smile these days, baby.”
“What reason is there to smile, Frankie?” Tatum smoothed out his blankets, making a mental note to change the sheets tomorrow.
“Stop it, Tatum. I told you, there is plenty to smile about. We have a beautiful home. Raised a strong, Black man. Every day that I get to wake up and see you is reason enough to smile. We need to appreciate what time we have left.”
Every time Franklin talked like that, Tatum felt sick. The entire ordeal had been unfair. Franklin didn’t smoke and barely drank. The diagnosis for Franklin’s lung cancer was grim. They’d given him six months, seven at most. Franklin had exceeded expectations when he hit the eight-month mark. Now, in month thirteen, things were taking a turn. It was only a matter of time. Tatum wasn’t ready for it.
Franklin pushed the button on the bed and raised up his head. Instinctively, Tatum got up to fix his pillows, but Franklin shooed her away.
“I am fine, Tate. Stop fussing over me.”
She gave a weak smile. “It’s my job to fuss over you.”
“We pay people to do that, Tatum.”
“Yeah, but I’m your wife…”
“When have we ever done that bullshit?” Franklin interrupted. “My wife? You’re also your own person.”
Tatum bit her lip, embarrassed. Frankie was right. They’d never done the whole “gender roles” thing in their marriage. Why was she starting now?
“Babe, when was the last time you went shopping? Caught a movie? Had brunch with your girlfriends? Regardless of what’s going on with me, you need a life, my love. "
“I have a life, Franklin. But you…”
“I am not your life, Tatum. I never was. Not now. Never.”
Tatum’s lips parted and then she quickly closed them “But, what if I go out and then….”. She stopped. She didn’t want to think about that.
Franklin shrugged. “Then you miss the worst part of it all. Maybe I don’t want you to see it.”
Tatum’s eyes welled up with tears. “No. I need to be here. I need to.” In the twenty-two years of their marriage, they’d rarely been apart. There was no way she’d not be there when he transitioned.
“You’ve seen enough. You’ve seen my hair fall out. You’ve seen the chemo and radiation make me sick. You’ve suffered enough, my love. I give you permission to have some fun.”
Tatum shrugged. “Fun? I can’t have fun without you.” And who would want to have fun with her now? She was a terrible company for anyone. All she did was worry about Franklin. Her mind could literally focus on nothing else.
“Baby, yes you can. That’s something you’re going to have to get used to doing, anyway.”
Tatum sighed. “I guess.”
Franklin’s fingers slowly rubbed Tatum’s arm. She looked at him, his eyes lingering on her lips. Even in his weakened physical state, he melted his wife with just his touch.
“Tatum, can I ask you something?”
“Anything.”
“When’s the last time you touched yourself?”
Tatum’s eyes widened. “What? Why?” She hadn’t thought about sex or anything remotely sexual for the past year since Franklin’s diagnosis. They hadn’t made love in months, not since the cancer got worse. She remembers their last time with fondness. It was amazing. It was as if Franklin knew it would be the last time he’d have the strength to touch her like that, so he gave the sexual performance of his life. She’d never orgasmed so many times. Tatum had soaked the sheets down to the mattress.
The faintest grin crossed Franklin’s face. “You need some kind of pleasure in your life. I can’t give it to you. Not like this. Remember all the fun we used to have? All the sexy shit we used to do.”
A shiver ran down Tatum’s spine as she thought about Franklin in a healthier time. Their love life had never been an issue. No matter how broke they were, or how petty the argument, their sex life was something that never suffered. Sometimes they would fight over the smallest of things just to end up fucking like rabbits. It’s a miracle they’d only had one baby instead of hundreds.
Tatum shook her head. “Frankie, honey, I don’t have time to think about that. The medical bills are piling up. I’m on sabbatical from the university and I’ll have to go back soon. I’ll have to arrange your care and Morgan may need things for senior year.”
“Shh, Beautiful. Morgan is fine. I just want you to think about yourself for a change. Something other than bills, or me and this fucking cancer.”
Franklin coughed, the sound reverberating in the room. Tatum reached for the oxygen, adjusting the nasal cannula for Franklin’s comfort. Grateful, he inhaled deeply. His gripped tightened on Tatum’s arm, which forced her to turn and look at him. “Seriously, Tatum. Get the fuck out of this house. Have some fun.”
Tatum sat on the edge of the bed. “And do what, Franklin?”
“Get your back blown out.”
Hope you enjoyed that lil teaser ;) !
Until next month,
