"I love my new shoes!"

I just finished the rewrite of The Souls of Her Feet. It’s been...how can I put this delicately? A BITCH!

Well, writing is always fun, but a good story takes some digging to come clear. Long story short, the rough draft fell flat with Michael and it caused a great disturbance in the force. (Oh, the agony of first drafts!) The emails we exchanged got way out of hand (you can't scan with tone) and we both nearly threw in the towel. Many brainstorms and prayers later, Ashley finally stepped up.

Yes, my heroine came across as a little weak in the staged reading, and this story is about her, so she really needed to blossom. She needed an "I Want" song. I gave her a chance to show who she is by assigning her an essay entitled “Queen for a Day.” As it turns out, Harry is now a lawyer, and I learned from Keith/Sherry that every drag queen needs a funny name, so his secret identity is “Carrie D’way.” Also, Jeff & Ashley are now friends, “just good friends” until she shows up at the prom. (“I can’t believe you’re wearing a dress!”)

So here I am at Peets, and I just wrote the last line. When it came to me, it rang bells. I wanted to stand up and applaud Ashley. Instead, I burst out laughing and crying into my hands, and when I looked up again people were politely trying not to stare. I wanted to say to the crowd, "someday, you'll understand!" I can’t wait to share….