So far this summer, we’ve had pleasant evenings, perfect for sleeping. Daytime temperatures have ranged from warm to very warm, with a couple of days which could call in the hot category, even though last week was the hottest of the summer. Although there hasn’t been much rain, a few trips with a watering can have ensured the survival of the flowers, although some of the trees have become so dry they’re already shedding leaves as if it was autumn. Such is life!
Here’s this week’s quote (Compliments of http://www.wisdomquotesandstories.com/):
“Stupidity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results.”
So who was born on this date in history? Let’s find out who in the writing world was born on July 25th, the last Sunday of the month. (Compliments of http://www.onthisday.com/today/birthdays):
Thietmar, German chronicler and Bishop of Merseburg; Jacques Peletier (du Mans), French poet and scientist; Gerard Brandt, Dutch theologist, poet and historian; Pieter Langendijk, Dutch painter, etcher and playwright (Wiskunstenaars); Immanuel J. Pyra, German poet (Temple of Real Poetry); Elizabeth Hamilton, Scottish author (The cottagers of Glenburnie); Charlotte von Kalb, German writer; Christian Bernhard Tauchnitz, German publisher (T Edition); George B. Vashon, American, lawyer, academic and poet; Flora Adams Darling, American writer and historian, founded Daughters of American Revolution; Max Dauthendey, German painter and author (Ewige Hochzeit); Benito Lynch, Irish-Argentine writer (Caranchos de la Florida); Enrique Amorim, Uruguayan author (La victoria no viene sola); Walter Breedveld, Dutch writer (Een ship vergaat); Eric Hoffer, American longshoreman and author (The True Believer); Elias Canetti, Bulgarian-British author (Life-Terms, Nobel 1981); Denys Watkins-Pitchford, British writer and illustrator (The Little Grey Men); Joseph Mitchell, American writer (Joe Gould’s Secret); Hubert Booi, Bonairian poet (Golgotha, Muchila); Maria Gripe, Swedish writer (Josephine); Bill Fitsell, Canadian journalist, writer and historian (International Hockey Hall of Fame curator, historian 1969-2005); Midge Decter, American journalist and author (The Liberated Woman & Other Americans); Alice Parizeau, Polish-born Quebec writer and essayist; Gibson Kente, South African playwright and composer; Claude Zidi, French film director and screenwriter (My New Partner); Felix Philipp Ingold, Swiss translator and writer; Brian Stableford, British sci-fi author (Day of Wrath); Mur Lafferty, American podcaster & writer; and Jovica Tasevski-Eternijan, Macedonian poet.
Any names familiar to you? I struck out this week. Whether you recognize anyone on the list or not, if today’s your special day I hope you have a great one and many more to follow!
My Work in Progress
The editing process of Revenge is well underway. Over the past week, there were another ten new chapter reviews, bringing the total number to 731. As always, plenty of useful suggestions as always to improve my writing and very timely with editing on the horizon.
Here’s another snippet:
“Have you lost your mind?” AJ shook her head as she flopped onto a chair. She reached over and picked up the package.
“What are you talking about?” Javier’s brows rose.
“Oh. I don’t suppose you know anything about one of your employees following me?”
“Uh …. Well …. I guess.” Javier’s face reddened.
“Yeah. Don’t think I can look after myself? You never learned anything about me when we worked together on a joint mission?”
“Well …. Look. I really care about you—a lot, and ever since I received the photo of headless bodies and then your accident, which seemed suspect, I assumed—”
“Remember the saying about making assumptions?” AJ rolled her eyes. “I understand you did what you thought was best, but don’t you think it would have been better to include me in the decision?”
“I understand.” Javier snapped his fingers. “Wait a minute. How did you find out I had someone following you?”
“I spotted Cesar a couple of nights ago. He did a good job of staying hidden and not making it obvious but remember I’m highly trained.” She grinned. “Besides, the director thought the accident was a bit strange, too. He assigned a security officer to follow me—not all of the time, but when necessary. The guy tasked as my support spotted Cesar and clobbered him.” AJ picked up the package from the other chair, leaned over, and tossed it on Javier’s desk. “My guy filled me in this morning and gave me a present.”
“What’s that?”
“Cesar’s weapon, his wallet, and a few condoms.” She raised a brow. “Since when are condoms part of a surveillance package?” AJ smiled.
“Uh.” Javier’s face reddened again.
“No worries—just having some fun.”
“Okay. But it’s tough knowing someone might be gunning for you.”
“We just need to coordinate things.” AJ stretched out her legs. “I’ll ask for assistance from you if I think I need it. Can you summon Cesar? I have a suggestion on how we should proceed.”
More next time.
Although I concentrated on my editing of Revenge, I still managed to do a bit more writing on Ultimate Escalation. I didn’t quite finish chapter ten, but I’m satisfied with the progress I’m making. 
With the original chapter reviews from when I posted the first seven chapters combined with crits on the revisions and the new ones, there’s been there’s been 199 reviews, and increase of eight over the past week.
My goal is to complete the first draft of Ultimate Escalation by the end of February 2022. Obviously, things might get in the way, but that’s my plan as of today.
Once Revenge is released, I’ll add another story to my current WIPs. There are two I’m considering at this time:
The first one is Mission: Yemen, Xavier Sear Thriller Book 2, the sequel to Mission: Angola. Here’s the draft synopsis:
Xavier Sear is thrust into a new adventure when he accepts an under-the-table assignment from a longtime friend, Ron Vincent. A former CIA operative, Sear takes on any and all missions, which appeal to his sense of justice.
Abudullah Bashari, a retired Yemeni geologist who dabbles in archeology is embroiled in the bitter struggle between the Houthis and the government. He reaches out for help to save his family. A wealthy man, he offers to reveal a damaging secret Saudi Arabia is trying to keep hidden.
Life-threatening danger abounds as Sear visits Yemen and creates a plan to help Bashari’s family escape. However, Hussien Khan al Mishari, a young Saudi prince, threatens to undo Sear’s intervention in pursuit of his own deadly game. Who will be victorious?
The other one under consideration is European Caper, the third novel in my Bruce and Smith Thriller series. Here’s what this will be about:
Larry Samson, a former DEA agent, and his wife, Cindi, a semi-active certified public accountant, check in for their flight to London, to begin their annual European river cruise. Before they board the aircraft, they’re asked to check into a drug smuggling ring using pleasure craft to move their goods through the various European capitals.
Shortly after they depart from their initial location on the river, they meet an American couple, Javier and AJ, who are on their honeymoon. They identify themselves as friends of Larry’s boss.
Before long, the couples are mired in a conspiracy with an Eastern European drug ring. Sparks fly as they take on the smugglers, who attempt to kidnap the women.
Will Larry, Cindi, Javier, and AJ be able to trace the conduits and pass the information along or do they run afoul of the group and end up in harm’s way? Only time will tell.
Plenty of time to decide which one will join Ultimate Escalation on my active work-in-progress list. In the meantime, if I feel the need for a change, I can always tinker with these!
That’s all for this week. I hope you found something of interest or at least useful for your own writing and reading. If you have any suggestions for a topic you’d like to read about, please let me know. Until the next time, thank you for reading and hope you drop in again.
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