Tales From The Writer’s Desk: Procrastination and Productivity

Hullo, friends! It’s been a while since I’ve written a Tale From The Writer’s Desk, but I had a lot of fun writing this. This is also a way to announce my new Facebook page, which you can check out here if you don’t feel like reading to the end (I highly recommend you do). It’s basically a way to keep you guys updated on my writing without always having to write a blog post, plus a way to interact more with y’all. So check it out, and enjoy the post, too!

I sat at my desk, flipping through an old folder and frowning at the contents. A superhero retelling of Snow White might be a fun story to start on again. It needed a lot of editing though. I shrugged and set the folder down on top of the terrifyingly-large stack next to my desk labeled To Continue. I groaned. “There is no way I’ll ever get all of these done.”

“Yeah, no kidding!”

I jumped out of my chair, spinning around. My shock quickly turned into annoyance. “Blaze, seriously? Why don’t you ever use the door?”

Blaze grinned and pulled my chair towards him, flopping down in it. “Because I can teleport? Also, Benedict wouldn’t let me in.”

I lifted an eyebrow. “Am I supposed to be surprised by that? I told him not to let anyone disturb me.”

He spun around in my chair, ignoring my comment and my glare. “Yeah, he said you were finally being productive, so I needed to leave you alone.” He turned to face me, and I was shocked to see a serious look on his face instead of his usually teasing grin. “Bri, you need to write and be productive. And I’m not leaving until we get you on track.”

“I was being productive, at least until I was interrupted.” I motioned at the pile of folders next to my desk.

“Sorting through stories isn’t the same as actually working on them.” Blaze stood up and motioned to the chair. “So you’re going to sit here and write while I watch. Albany is working on your reward for when you finally make progress.”

I sat and glared at him suspiciously. “She’s not making cookies or anything, is she?”

Blaze smirked. “Yes, but that’s the punishment for not being productive.”

I immediately turned to my computer, pulled out a folder, and got to work. Before I even knew it, I was in the zone, writing as fast as I could. Who knew that writing was so much easier once you actually got started?

A snort from Blaze brought my attention back to the room. He was peering over my shoulder at my computer screen, and I moved to cover it up. “It’s not ready for anyone to read it yet!”

“That was an awful pun.” He stepped back and sat down in a very fancy armchair that he must have brought while I was writing. “And that’s coming from me.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’ll work on it. Besides, it’s supposed to be cheesy.”

Blaze shrugged. “At least you were productive. That’s all I can ask for.” He grinned. “That wasn’t so painful, was it?”

I couldn’t help but smile back. “Thanks. I needed a kickstart to get me going.”

“And now you get your reward.” Blaze pushed my spinning chair out of the way and bent over the computer. I watched over his shoulder in confusion as he pulled up Facebook. “Ta-da! Albany and I set up your very own author Facebook page!”

“Really?!” I’d been wanting to start one for a while, but I’d never found the motivation or the time.

He nodded. “Okay, so this way, people can like your page and get updates you post about your books and writing, and–”

“I know how Facebook works,” I interrupted, but I couldn’t keep the grin off my face. “Thanks, Blaze.”

Blaze sat back in his chair, looking like he owned the place. “Glad I could help. Now, please… work on book 3.” With that parting shot, he disappeared.

I grinned at the empty spot, then turned back to my computer and began to type.

I hope you enjoyed that Tale From The Writer’s Desk! Be sure to check out my new Facebook page for more updates on what I’m writing (and maybe Blaze will take over occasionally, too). And if this is your first time meeting Blaze, be sure to check out Twinepathy, which is currently free on Kindle Unlimited! Comment below your thoughts on this story, and let me know what you think Albany was trying to make!

Twinepathy (Part 17): Brooklyn!

Hullo, everyone! Merry Christmas! A day early, I know, but I’m not sure if I’ll have time to post tomorrow… and let’s be honest, I couldn’t wait. I have nothing else to say except… I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Except I’m not! 😉 Oh, and if you’re new, check out the first part here.

My first two classes aren’t good, but not as bad as I had thought. Brooklyn’s in one of those classes, so she was able to use her emotion manipulation to make the teacher go easier on both of us. I think that’s the first time she’s ever used it to our advantage in school. She always insists that using our gifts is like cheating. That’s why I’m not a straight-A student. If I could use my powers, I could easily read the answers straight out of a genius kid’s head, or even out of the teacher’s.

But Brooklyn’s not in my second class. That leaves me to fend for myself with one of my not-favorite teachers. Oh joy. I make it through – barely – with extra homework and a lower grade. I open my locker, feeling like this is going to be a looooong day.

To my surprise, my books and homework are right there.

I stare. How… I look around for Brooklyn, but while her locker’s right next to mine, she hasn’t come over yet. She’s probably talking to one of her friends, and since she doesn’t think her homework’s here, she might not even come over. Then I notice a note stuck to the side of my locker.

Squirt realized you might need this stuff, so Data sent me to retrieve it and put it in your locker. Yeah, she gave me the combination. Ha. Enjoy. –Blaze

I slump against my locker in relief. One less thing to worry about. If Blaze were here, I would hug him. Or Data. But who’s Squirt? What does that person do, squirt water out of their eyes like an iguana? I’m not sure I even want to know.

I get out my homework for my next class and slam my locker door shut, scanning the hallway for Brooklyn. I should find her and tell her that her homework and books are here. Surely she wouldn’t mind me breaking into a conversation with her and the popular kids. Or would she rather I broke her rule about “absolutely no telepathy at school”? I’ll see if I can find her first.

I bump through the crowd, looking around for Brooklyn. A couple people give me frigid glares as I make my way past them. I haven’t been very popular since I made it on the cheerleading squad on accident. People don’t appreciate my sarcasm or disregard for their favorite topics: boys, makeup, the newest cute TV star…

I could probably find people like me if I wanted, but… I don’t really want to. I prefer to be a loner.

I run into someone. “Where are you going in such a hurry?” Kelsey asks. She’s in my history class, and she’s on the cheerleading squad. She’s usually pretty nice to me, especially since Brooklyn and I helped her ace the last history exam.

“I’m trying to find Brooklyn. Have you seen here?” She sometimes hangs out in my sister’s crowd, when she feels like it.

Kelsey shakes her head. “Nope, I haven’t seen her today. Sorry.”

“That’s fine,” I reply. The bell rings, and I look around frantically. I’m nowhere near my next class, so I take off in the right direction as fast as I can. It’s hard for me to think and dodge people at the same time, but I manage to form a telepathic message for Brooklyn in my head.

Then something pops.

I’m not sure exactly what I do – if I stop in the middle of the hallway or if I keep running blindly. But something in my brain just… disappears. Gone. Something’s missing. I grope around frantically, and—

It’s my connection with Brooklyn. I whirl in a circle, looking frantically for her. “Brooklyn!” I yell, ignored by most, glared at by others.

A scream, familiar, echoes down the hall, and everyone stops.

Brooklyn.

Next Part –>

Twinepathy (Part 12): Girlfriends And Garage Doors

Hullo, everyone! How’re you? I hope you had a great Thanksgiving… and I hope you didn’t miss this post last week. I completely forgot to pre-schedule a post! Whoops! Anyway, I hope you enjoy… Check out Part One if you’re new!

Brooklyn loves to chat with everybody. Everybody. So it’s a miracle that we actually get out of the store in less than half an hour. It’s a momentous occasion I will look back on with fondness and longing.

We hurry home, arriving almost exactly an hour after we left. Mom and Dad aren’t home, thank goodness. Denver’s in the kitchen, and we re-introduce him to Maddie with our added “rescue” story. He seems pretty confused, but he’s also very distracted because of his date. Apparently Ezra, his girlfriend, is coming to pick him up, since she wants the date to be a surprise. Or something like that. So he’s pacing around the kitchen wearing the dreaded flannel shirt. Brooklyn drags him upstairs so she can pick out his outfit. Because, as she says, he needs help.

I dig around in the fridge and find sandwich ingredients. I make one for Maddie and one for me – because I need nourishment, too! – and we finish them off quickly.

Then the doorbell rings.

My heart stops as I consider the possibilities. Is it Jen, with an emergency? Or is it another surprise-random-amnesia victim. But then Brooklyn appears at the top of the stairs. “It’s Ezra! Can you hold her off? Denver’s still a mess.” She rolls her eyes and then disappears.

I go to the front door and open it, revealing Denver’s girlfriend of about three months. She gives me an awkward smile. “Hi, um… yeah. Is Denver here?”

Yeah, she can’t tell Brooklyn and me apart yet, unless we’re right next to each other and doing things the other would obviously never do. “Yes, he’ll be ready in a minute. Come on in. I’d offer you a bacon cookie, but I burned them.”

Her face lightens a little bit. That was enough of a hint that she knows which one I am now. I lead her into the kitchen without thinking. Maddie’s eyes grow to the size of golf balls when we walk in. Ezra is a bit of a sight, in her dressy clothes that set off her purple hair. But she’s even more of a sight when she’s not dressed up.

Ezra looks at Maddie, brow crinkled in a confused expression. “Who’s this?”

I wave a hand in the air, dismissing the subject. “Maddie. It’s a long story. Maddie, this is Ezra, Denver’s girlfriend.”

Maddie’s wide-eyed, nervous expression doesn’t change, and Ezra shifts nervously. “Um, hi?” she says.

Poor Ezra. She’s smart, not social. I’m about to rescue her when Brooklyn and Denver come downstairs. I have to give Brooklyn credit; Denver looks much better now. Not too fancy, but not too casual either. He and Ezra look so cute together. Brooklyn doesn’t agree, but that’s just because she doesn’t want to share Denver.

Ezra’s face lights up when she sees Denver, and he gets a dorky grin on his face. They both completely forget about Maddie and Brooklyn and me as they head out to Ezra’s car, talking about some computer problem Denver is having.

Brooklyn sighs. “We’ve still got an hour or two before Mom and Dad get home. What are we going to do while we wait?”

“We could let Maddie get cleaned up and changed,” I suggest.

Brooklyn tilts her head, considering it. “She might look more sad and stuff if we don’t, but Mom would wonder why we hadn’t already cleaned her up. Might as well,” she finally agrees.

We show Maddie how the shower works and leave her to get cleaned up. In the meantime, we pick up the Go Fish game – finally – and work on tidying up the house. Brownie points, of course.

Maddie gets done quickly, and Brooklyn sits her down on the couch so she can braid Maddie’s damp hair. I have to admit that Maddie looks really cute with pigtail braids, especially with the dress Brooklyn found for her. We manage to find enough to do to keep us kind of occupied, but Brooklyn and I still go to the front windows every five minutes to check for Mom and Dad.

We’re in the middle of teaching Maddie how to hula hoop when we hear the garage door go up. My eyes lock with Brooklyn’s. Time for the show to start.

Yay for hula-hooping! And cleaning house! And Ezra! *fist pump* Sounds like there’s a storm coming… *listens to thunder (or a garage door opening)* What think you?

Next Part –>

Interviews From The Writer’s Desk: Blaze

Hullo, everyone! I present a fun interview with our favorite Twinepathy teleporter, Blaze! This is a thank you for all of your support, and for reaching 100 people adding it on Goodreads!!! Hooray! Enjoy, my friends!

“I don’t want to be here, Bri.”

When those are the first words I hear out of someone’s mouth when they walk into my office, I know it’s going to be a loooong interview. The boy sits down in the chair across from my desk, crossing his arms and giving me a challenging look.

Yup. A looooooooong interview.

I clear my throat and look down at my laptop, hiding a smile. “Blaze, I assume. I’m guessing you want to get this over with.”

He sighs. “Yes, please.” He runs his fingers through his brown hair and smirks at me. “You must be spying on me if you know me so well.”

“You have no idea,” I grumble under my breath. “First question: What is your real name?”

Blaze tilts his head to the side. “Do you honestly think I would tell you?”

I shrug. “It was worth a try. Do you have any siblings?”

He shakes his head. “Again, confidential.”

“Right, right.” I roll my eyes, then pause as I look at my list. “Um… I have to warn you that a lot of these questions were submitted by, uh, fans.”

Blaze grins. “I have fans? Nice.” He looks more enthusiastic now.

“Mm-hm, not exactly yours…” I return to my list. “Moving on. Do you have a girlfriend?”

“Nope, no time,” Blaze says.

“Good to know…” I murmur. “Who is your best friend, or friends?”

Blaze pauses. “I’m assuming you want an honest answer…” I nod, and he sighs. “To be honest, I don’t have any really close friends. Ever since I joined IDIA, I’ve made a point of staying on the superficial level in relationships. I guess I’m closest to Jen.”

That’s pretty sad. I give him a second and move on to the next question. “What’s your favorite part about being a superhero?”

Blaze smirks. “Being able to freak people out and spy on them. And helping people,” he adds as an afterthought.

Of course. “Do you like bacon, chocolate, and/or cookies?” I hide a smile at the confused expression on his face.

“Yeah, all of those,” he finally says. “Where’d you get that question?”

“Do you like them all together?” I ask. “As in, a chocolate bacon cookie?”

Blaze gives me the oddest look. “Um, I don’t know. That sounds like something Albany would try to make.”

This time it’s all I can do to mask my laughter with a cough. “Ahem. Have you ever tried to prank Jen?”

He turns his head to the side with a thoughtful expression. “No, come to think of it. I should try that sometime…”

“Don’t blame me,” I say immediately. “Final question. If a strange girl ran up to you and hugged you without warning, exclaiming over how you’re one of her favorite characters in a certain book, how would you react?” Fan-submitted question, you can be sure.

Blaze gawks at me. “Um… what?” I open my mouth to repeat the question, but he waves a hand in the air, stopping me. He rubs his hand across his forehead. “It would depend on my state at the time. If I was on edge, I would teleport us to Antarctica and hope they would let go. If I wasn’t on edge, I’d probably either freak out or enjoy the attention.” He frowns. “Who came up with that question?”

I stand up. “Thanks so much for you time today, Mr. Blaze. I hope you’ve enjoyed this…”

Blaze nods and walks to the door, giving me suspicious glances over his shoulder. The instant the door closes, I have to burst out laughing.

Best question ever.

Thanks so much to Alyssa, Sarah, Shine, and Merenwen for submitting questions! I’m sure Blaze enjoyed them. 😉 What do you think of our favorite teleporter? Comment below!

Twinepathy (Part 7): For Now

Hullo, everyone! NO IT’S NOT MONDAY. 😛 I apologize for this post being late. I forgot to pre-schedule it, and I wasn’t able to post it yesterday. Onward! (P.S. Now’s your last chance to join in on the cover reveal! Let me know if you’re interested…) Click here if you’re new!

Brooklyn and I both stare at the spot where Blaze – or whoever (who would name their kid Blaze?) – was standing. I slowly reach out my hand and feel the air where he was. Nothing. I glance over at Brooklyn. “What are we going to do?” I whisper.

She looks at me, frightened. Maddie peeps out of the cushions. “Is he gone?” she asks, looking around.

“For now,” I answer, disliking how ominous it sounds. “He kept referring to ‘us’ and ‘we’. What do you think he was talking about?” I ask Brooklyn, my mind going into mystery solving mode.

She shrugs. “For all we know, he could have multiple personality disorder or something.”

“Like Gollum…” I say thoughtfully. “And by enhanced… Somehow he knows we have powers.”

“He clearly has powers as well,” Brooklyn points out matter-of-factly.

Well duh. “He said something about going to talk to someone, and fixing the problem…” I muse aloud. “And he’s coming back.”

“He’s also cute,” Brooklyn mentions absentmindedly. I roll my eyes. Just what we need. Brooklyn falling head over heels for some weirdo. Brooklyn perks up. “What if we hide, and when he comes back, if he does, we can bash him over the head with something?” She reaches for Mom’s Italian vase again.

I groan. “No, we can’t do that. We’re already sort of hiding an amnesiac, underage kid. We don’t need to add assault to our list of possible crimes.”

She shrugs. “Then you come up with a plan.”

I glance over at Maddie. She’s watching us with fear. Fear of us, or fear of the Blaze guy? Then a thought occurs to me, and I send it to Brooklyn. Do you think she could have powers, too?

Brooklyn and I have always thought we were alone. We’ve never met anyone with powers before, and we know that Mom and Dad and Denver are all “normal.” But now we know for sure that there are other people out there with superpowers. And who knows how many there really could be? Anyone could have powers. Maybe comic books were based off true stories, and superheroes are really real.

Brooklyn just looks shocked at the idea. I sit down next to Maddie on the couch and lean towards her. “Maddie, you said you felt and urge to do something with your hands earlier. Could you show me?”

She looks worried. “I… I could try. I don’t want to hurt anything, though.”

This may not be the most brilliant idea I’ve ever had, but we can hope she doesn’t do anything like start earthquakes or set things on fire. I nod. “Go ahead. But don’t direct anything at me or Brooklyn.”

Maddie nods and turns her gaze to the glass of water on the table. She narrows in on it, then stretches out her hand. Something about the angle of her fingers or her wrist is weird. She closes her eyes and her brow furrows, like she’s trying really hard to concentrate and remember something. I notice the water in the glass slosh a little bit, and then the glass slides across the table into Maddie’s hand.

Whoa! Maddie has powers! Boy, I can’t wait to see what happens next… 😉

Next Part –>

Twinepathy (Part 4): The Button

Hullo, everyone! Can you believe that we’re already to Part Four? I’m so excited! Read on, wonderful people!

The next several seconds are mostly incoherent and chaotic. Brooklyn yelps in panic as I race past her into the living room. I kneel next to the girl. “Okay, kiddo, we want to help you, but our parents probably won’t agree. So we need to get you up stairs and hide you, okay?” She hesitates, then nods, and I hurry her up to my room. The bathroom’s a nice size, so I tell her to go in there, and she obeys. Good kid. I remind her to be quiet and then rush downstairs.

I know Brooklyn will have a terrible time acting like nothing’s going on. She’s a horrible liar. So I tell her to just act like we were in the middle of a game of Go Fish – which technically we were, while I go see why Mom and Dad are home so early.

I head out into the garage, where Mom’s getting out of the car. “You’re back early,” I comment. “What’s up?”

She sighs. “Dad left the tickets for the play on the kitchen counter. We need to hurry.”

“I’ll get them,” I volunteer, dashing back inside. I come back out and hand her the tickets. “Forget about it and have a nice night,” I tell her, smiling.

Mom grins back at me. “I will. Oh, by the way, there was a package or something at the front door. You should bring it inside.” She waves as she gets back in the car, and Dad waves too as they pull out of the garage and drive off.

Something on the doorstep? My heart races. Either someone brought a package since the girl came… or she brought something with her that fell when she did. I hurry out to the front porch. Lying there, next to the doormat, is a plastic grocery sack. It’s clearly got something in it, but it’s also filthy. I pick it up gingerly and go inside.

“What did Mom and Dad want?” Brooklyn asks the instant I step inside. She spots the bag. “What’s that?”

“They left the tickets for their play here,” I say absentmindedly. “You can go get… um, the girl.” We really do need a temporary name for her. Brooklyn eyes the grocery bag curiously but heads upstairs and brings the girl down. She looks just as scared as when I left her up there.

“Before I ask you about this bag,” I begin, nodding to the grocery sack, “I want to know if there’s a name you’d like to be called. I’m Albany.” I can’t remember if we introduced ourselves in the original chaos.

She looks at me, still very unsure. “I don’t know.”

I wonder if she even remembers names, or basic information like who the president is. “How about Madison,” I suggest. “It seems to fit you. Do you like it? We can always call you Maddie, if you want.”

She nodded. “That’s fine.”

I grin. “Good. And it even fits with our city name theme. I wonder if you were born in Wisconsin…” Mom chose Denver’s name because that’s where he was born, and Brooklyn and I were born in, you guessed it, New York.

Brooklyn sighs. “You are so cheesy. What’s in the bag?”

I hold it up. “Is this yours, Maddie?”

She gives me a look that says I clearly just asked her the dumbest question ever. It actually looks adorable on her. The look, I mean. “I don’t know.”

Well, duh. Brooklyn hides a snicker. I attempt to recover gracefully. “Well, it was on the front porch. Either you dropped it when you fell, or someone else put it there. I’m guessing you don’t know what’s inside.”

Madison shakes her head, of course. I untie the handles on the grocery bag cautiously and look inside. Brooklyn peers over my shoulder. “Um… is that just a ball?” she asks.

I reach inside and pull it out. It’s a small ball, and it looks exactly like a miniature volleyball, like the one Brooklyn has in her room. But as I turn it over, I notice that the hole where you would normally put a pump thing to blow it up is actually a button. “There’s a button,” I say, handing it to Brooklyn.

She examines it, and Madison leans over to examine it, too. Brooklyn hands it back to me. “I wonder what it does.”

I shrug. “There’s only one way to find out.”

“Albany, no…”

And I, like the impulsive person I am…

I push the button.

Uh-oh… what’s going to happen? Guess we’ll find out next time… 😉 What do you think is going to happen? Let me know what you think! Also, if you’re interested in joining in the cover reveal for Twinepathy, let me know! I’d love to have your help!

Next Post –>

Twinepathy (Part 2): Don’t Call An Ambulance

Hullo, everyone! I’m back with the next part of Twinepathy! Yay! I got an amazing response from all of you last time, and I can’t wait for you to read what’s next. If you’re new, or you want to catch up, click on the banner below to go to the first post. Share with your friends and add it to your Goodreads currently-reading shelf!

I’m frozen for a second before my brain kicks back in. I call for Brooklyn and Denver and scoop the girl up as best I can, bringing her into the house. Brooklyn appears just ahead of Denver and closes the door behind me. “What happened?” she asks, slipping into her calm, rational mindset.

I breathe deeply. Calming. Supposedly. “She passed out on the doorstep.”

“Who is she?” Denver asks, taking her from me – he’s stronger, duh – and setting her gently on the couch.

I shrug. “I don’t know. She didn’t have time to say anything before she just…” I motion with my hand, probably not making much sense.

Denver runs his fingers through his hair. “Oh, I wish Mom and Dad were here,” he moans. “We should call 911.”

Brooklyn and I exchange a glance. We must be getting the same feeling – something’s up, and having the girl sent to the hospital isn’t going to help. “Um… I don’t know if that’s a good idea,” Brooklyn says cautiously.

“What do you mean?” Denver asks incredulously.

I can tell Brooklyn’s putting emotions in his head by her squinty concentration face. So I stall. “Well, I mean, it seems like she’s just exhausted or something, and she obviously came here for a reason, and we wouldn’t be able to find that out if we took her to the hospital. And besides, you know some first aid…” I hardly ever babble like this.

Denver looks back and forth between us slowly. “Okay. Whatever you guys think, that’s what we’ll do. I’ll go get her a blanket.” He heads out of the room and down the hall.

I look sideways at Brooklyn. “What did you put in his head?” I ask skeptically. I don’t think Denver’s ever been that peaceful and accommodating.

She shrugs. “Trust.”

I can’t help but laugh. “Is that even an emotion?”

“More like a combination of emotions,” she says, grinning, then turns to the little girl. Her face looks even paler now that she’s unconscious. “Albany, can you go get a glass of water? She’ll probably need that when she wakes up.” Denver appears with the blanket and hands it to Brooklyn. “Thanks. Can you get my bath salts?” Denver gives her a completely blank look.

“I’ll get them,” I grumble. “Denver, you can get a glass of water.”

“Right.” He heads off into the kitchen and I fetch Brooklyn’s smelliest bath salts. How can she stand these? I hand them to her, and she opens them, holding them under the little girl’s nose. Poor girl. Denver arrives with the water just as her eyes flutter open.

“Hey,” Brooklyn says gently, in her I’m-not-going-to-hurt-you-sweet-adorable-thing voice. “How are you feeling?”

The girl blinks slowly and turns her head to the side to stare at me and Brooklyn. She doesn’t say anything, but her eyes fix on the glass of water in Denver’s hand. Brooklyn helps her sit up, then takes the glass from Denver and helps her take a drink. She drinks like she hasn’t had water for days, and somehow she only spills a few drops.

“How are you feeling?” Brooklyn asks again, smoothing the girl’s hair out of her face.

“Where am I?” the girl whispers hoarsely, her face scared as she continues to look around.

“You’re in our house,” I say.

Brooklyn sends me a glare that clearly says ‘Let me handle this.’ I don’t even need a telepathic connection to know that. “I’m Brooklyn,” she says to the girl. “You passed out on our doorstep.”

The girl blinks. “I did? I don’t remember…” She frowns, scrunching up her forehead in a way that books would describe as adorable. It makes me think of a cute little pug, I have to admit. Her gaze locks on Brooklyn.

“What’s your name?” My twin asks, voice still gentle.

The girl’s forehead wrinkles even more. “I-I don’t remember.”

What? Amnesia? Noooo! What do you think will happen next? Are you enjoying this? Comment below!

Next Part –>