I'm so excited about the cover art for The Handyman's Promise I decided to post a picture of it on the webpage for a week or so.

 

Jaime Flores of Monocle Design in Los Angeles is responsible for the awesome cover for the third book in the Handyman series.  Jaime is the partner of author Nick Nolan (Strings Attached), and it was through my friendship with Nick that I was able to secure Jaime's services.  And, boy, I'm glad I did, 'cause I'm crazy about the book's cover.  Jaime's talent and fresh ideas brought a new dimension to the artwork of the Handyman series.  Thanks, Nick, for suggesting I contact your wonderful husband about this cover, and a huge, hug-filled thanks to Jaime for capturing both the romanticism of the story and the beauty of its Hoosier setting in your creation. 

 

Glance to the right for the cover of The Handyman's Promise, due in stores and online this May.   

(A sneak peak into The Handyman's Promise)

 

A young aspiring writer recently asked me whether I work from outlines when I'm writing my books.  No, I replied, I usually rely on the scenes I've mentally sketched.  What I didn't tell him was that most of that "mental sketching" happens in my car.

 

It's true.  As long as I can remember I've done some of my best mental writing when I'm driving.  (You'd think I'd be one hell of a hazard to the other drivers of Northeast Indiana, but I'm less a danger than some of the fools I see who CAN'T drive and talk on their cell phones at the same time.)  I think it began back in the days when I was always commuting -- either to college or work or to visit friends.  Something about the automatic process of driving, and being alone in the car allows me to creatively woolgather.  In fact, the basic premise of the handyman books -- Ed Stephens meeting his Dream Man -- came to me on St. Marys Avenue in Fort Wayne while I was driving home from the grocery store.  I was also in the car, driving to the drugstore, when I realized Gordy Smith was gay.  I think all of my writer's blocks during this series of stories have been smashed while I was in the car for some routine errand, so it should come as no surprise that the final block between what I had pulled together in my mind, and actually getting it onto the computer screen for The Handyman's Promise, finally fell down when I was, as I recall, on Brooklyn Avenue driving to an appointment with my chiropractor.  (Linda, Dr. Ireland's nurse, is a big fan, so here's a quick thank you to her for all of her support.)

 

I knew everything that would happen in The Handyman's Promise, and I knew when it would begin, but I couldn't quite figure out what the beginning should be.  I knew the book would begin two years after the The Handyman's Reality ended, so I think part of my dilemma was letting the reader know that, but at the same time not creating any uneasiness for the reader with the immediate knowledge that two years had gone by, and having them wondering just what the hell these guys had been up to.  I'd already decided to use a series of flashbacks to bring folks up to date, but it didn't seem right to start out with a flashback.  So what would that first scene -- the reintroduction of Ed and Rick-- be?  For anyone who knows me, or is familiar with my writing, it should come as no surprise that music solved the problem for me -- specifically songs from the Association and the Lovin' Spoonful. 

 

I've always liked the Association, and one of my favorites from them is "Never My Love."  When that song popped into my mind I suddenly had the first scene for the book.  The lyrics from that song spelled out exactly what I wanted the reader to know:  That these two guys were still together and still going strong.  It's October 1983 -- almost three years to the date from when Ed and Rick first met.  They haven't grown tired of each other, and the bond of love between them hasn't weakened.  Immediately, with that song and the scene I imagined with it, we're all back on comfortable turf -- kind of like a really smooth plane landing.

 

I think it was the next day when I finally sat down to write.  I pulled my forty-year-old 45 of "Never My Love" out of the record cabinet and put it on the turntable.  After listening to it a few times -- smiling at the snaps and pops in the record which sound so quaint after the smooth perfection of MP3s -- I was ready for Ed and Rick to take over my life again. 

 

The Lovin' Spoonful, especially John Sebastian, took care of my problem of how to give the reader the full impact of what Ed had been feeling in the prior two years with a minimum of words and scenes.  You see, one of the first things the reader will discover in this book is that Rick has been working for the past year and a half in Indianapolis as a real estate agent, and only sees Ed on the weekends.  Thanks to the help from "Never My Love" I found myself running through lists of old songs in my mind, wondering if I could recall a tune that might possibly fit that situation and propel me in the right direction with the writing.   

 

I don't know why the John Sebastian-penned "Darling Be Home Soon" came into my mind, but I'm sure glad it did.  I'm sure a lot of people don't even remember it.  It was a minor hit for the Lovin' Spoonful in 1967, and was featured in a movie called You're a Big Boy Now, which I don't believe I've ever seen.  I don't think I had even heard the song since the days I worked for WQTZ (the "Leader of the Past") and I left that job in 1993.  Once the song occurred to me I hurried home to see if it was on Itunes.  Fortunately it was, and as I sat and listened to the lyrics, I smiled and shook my head.  It was even more right than I had originally thought. Thank you, John Sebastian, and thanks to Alley Music and Trio Music for their permission to reprint the lyrics in the book.  And thanks to the inspiration of that song, I think that flashback to the day when Rick first left for his job in Indy is wonderfully poignant and says exactly what I wanted to say about these two guys and their work-related seperation. 

 

From that point on the rest of the book simply flowed, and when I needed inspiration, it came -- whether from every day conversations with friends, out of the blue, or from other songs.  I don't want to give away too much of the story, but I will say I had musical help from other sixties classics from Henry Mancini, The Mamas and The Papas and Lesley Gore, and early eighties hits from Culture Club, the Romantics, and others.   

 

I gotta tell you, this book is filled with both poignant and powerful scenes.  It is, I think, the culmination of all the hopes and dreams that both I, the writer, and you, the reader, have had for these guys over the past few years.  In my humble opinion, this is the best book of the handyman series, so I'm very excited about it.  I'm also excited about the beautiful cover Jaime Flores of Monocle Design has created for it, and I'll post a picture of it as soon as possible. 

 

And I'll continue to post updates and sneak peeks here as winter gives away to spring, and the publication date of The Handyman's Promise draws close.  As we say in the radio biz, "stay tuned!"   

 

  

 

 

 

 

After a month of intense editing by both my wonderful editor, Eileen, and myself, I can report that the manuscript for The Handyman's Promise arrived at the publisher yesterday.

 

Even though I have the usual feeling of having sent a child out into the world, I can't say as I'm experiencing Empty Nest Syndrome.  At the moment I'd say I have more of a feeling of relief, mixed with a strong desire to celebrate.  I'm pleased with the work, and I'm excited about it hitting the stores this spring.  I've been gratified by all the people who have let me know how much they are looking forward to part three of Ed's story.  Early response indicates they will not be disappointed, so I'm thinking, yeah, it's time to do a little dance, make a little love, and get down tonight.  (My apologies to KC & the Sunshine Band and everyone who isn't used to my geeky habit of sprinkling old song lyrics into my conversation.  I'm weird.  Get over it.  I have.) 

 

In the meantime, I'm watching the weather and the river down the street from my house.  It's been a wild winter in Northeast Indiana.  We've had everything from snow and bitter cold to balmy days when we could actually open windows.  These past two days have been riddled with heavy, noisy thunderstorms (in February?), and now the rivers are rising.  As I said, I'm keeping an eye on the good ole St. Marys, as it is higher than I've ever seen it since I moved to this house a year and a half ago.  I can just see the newspaper photo caption now:  LOCAL FAG NOVELIST SAVED IN DARING ROWBOAT RESCUE.  Hopefully I'll have the sense to grab the roommate and the cat and run before that happens, but those sudden floods always seem to come just when you think it's safe to go bed and stop worrying about it, right?

 

February is off to an interesting beginning...  

 

PS:  ONE WEEK LATER  

 

Well, the floodwaters didn't get anywhere close to my house, so I'm thankful for that.  Now we're back to bitter cold and four inches of snow.  This has been one hell of a winter!