A Snippet from my WIP
Because dear and inspiring Beth Kephart asked to read a snippet of my WIP, here’s a little teaser from my YA verse novel-in-progress. You can read a snippet of Beth’s current WIP here.
My best friend Emmet
is posing for me.
Okay, so maybe he’s just sprawled on the floor
ignoring me
while Mozart kneads his chest and purrs
but he’s laying there, hanging out and I’m sketching him.
I’ve got the outline done
his nose and ears, easy enough even his lips,
slightly open while he recites Ogden Nash to my cat.
I’m working on the eyes
trying to capture
the secrets I know are there
Look at me, I say.
So he does
and he grins that smile that fills his face
with the kind of glow you see on a movie star
after they’ve spent three hours in makeup
only with Emmet, it’s completely natural.
I could fall for him hard
if he liked girls.
Original art by Susan Taylor Brown
I have been enjoying your poems in March Madness. Congratulations on advancing, and on making Ed’s top ten from last year with your very moving “At 13, I Walk on Eggshells.” I was going to pick a favorite line, but every word, every line works right down to that heart-wrenching ending.
Thank you, Ellie. As you can tell I’m still stinking in the blog commenting dept. Trying to get better. I had fun in the tournament. Wish I had lasted longer but, oh well.
I am again in awe with the way your words flow across the page, the beauty of your words making me want to read on, vs. “I am trying to sketch my friend. He smiles. He’s cute.” Snore! Same scene – only yours is worth reading. You have a gift.
Oh Ellie, I’ve missed you. You’re so good to me, for me. Thank you. This is only the first half of the poem. It takes a big twist!
Lots to ‘see’ in this one snippet, Susan. I wonder if the laziness of it is an indication that it’s a scene to savor, because the rest is not going to be that way at all? (You’ve got my imagination going…)
Linda, Thanks for reading. It is a bit of an oasis in the sea of turmoil that is very stormy…if only you saw the rest of the scene.
Love this, Susan. How many teenage girls have spent afternoons just this way!
Thank you, Jenn! That’s what I am hoping, that it will be relatable to teen girls.