Street Glass is my novel-in-progress. My tagline: Underprivileged 18-yr-old Latino leaves street gang and befriends white, over-privileged musicians.
While some of the plot is subject to change (draft two is a
pretty early draft, after all) the basic elements will stay, as will the
character "voices." So these excerpts will still give you a good idea
of how the plot plays out and what the characters are like. The year is 1986,
in Los Angeles, California.
Neal refers to all white people as Anglos.“Did you mean it when you said you killed fourteen people?”Neal grinned and said, “No, but it scares Anglos a lot.”Sandy shifted his weight, looked around the room, cleared his throat, and asked quietly, “Have you killed anybody?”“You tol’ me to leave all that in my past, so don’t ask.”Funny Anglo, he looked like he stopped breathing. Neal asked, “The band ain’t got AKs or nine mils in the house, right?”“If you mean guns, of course not.”“Then you’re all safe,” Neal said with another grin.Sandy didn’t look convinced.
Tag along at Weekend Writing Warriors as we blog hop all over the world, reading fabulous snippets from works in progress, works just published and some just about to be. You'll find various genres and blends of genres. Believe me, our participating writers have full and active imaginations!
Thanks for visiting my blog today. Comments gratefully accepted :-D
Love the voices of the characters, very appropriate for this kind of story!
ReplyDeleteThanks Gemma, I really appreciate that. :-)
DeleteInteresting that Neil didn't answer the question! Looking forward to the next instalment. I would absolutely buy this book. :-)
ReplyDeleteAw Debbie, you warm my heart! :-D :-D
DeleteI really love this conversation...and it brought a smile to my face to see Neal sort of joking with Sandy!
ReplyDeleteHi Millie! Thanks so much. Neal doesn't get the upper hand often in life and can't resist the urge to poke some fun ;-)
DeleteWell, good for him! I really enjoyed this little snippet!
DeleteI'm glad you like it.
DeleteI like Neal and I can just visualize Sandy trying to figure out what's truth and what's teasing. Really a well done snippet!
ReplyDeletelol, thanks Veronica! It's especially tough for Sandy because he tends to think everybody is honest. As they get to know each other, Neal loves pulling gags on Sandy because he never seems to catch on!
DeleteSomeone saying they'd killed 14 people would scare the heck out of me. Great snippet, Marcia, I always look forward to reading them.
ReplyDeleteWhy thanks Jess, that's sweet of you. These guys are a lot of fun to write about.
DeleteNeal is having some fun at Sandy's expense, lol. I like it. Good 8, Marcia. I like seeing this side of Neal! :-)
ReplyDeleteHe loosens up as the story goes on, but certain parts of his personality are not submerged easily ;-)
DeleteSounds like Neal is torn between his bad-boy persona and reassuring his new "friends."
ReplyDeleteAnother excellent eight there.
ReplyDeleteThanks Stevie!
DeleteSo Neal has a sense of humor. Nice.
ReplyDeleteHi Elaine. His sense of humor comes out more as he gets to know Sandy better. It's hard to get certain things across in only 8 sentences, lol!
DeleteThis is the first time I've read your snippets, and I find the dialogue very well done... it brings me into a whole new environment for me, Los Angeles in the 80's. I'm very intrigued by the story line and I find myself rooting for Neal, not even knowing him very well yet! Thanks for a great 8!
ReplyDeleteThanks very much Susan, that's humbling and exciting for me at the same time!
DeleteI'm dying to introduce Beemer to 8sunday readers. He's a secondary character but I love how he's turning out :D :D
So dark and real, Marcia. I'm amazed at how even their "banter" is plot-driven in a way that it contributes to the plausibility of the setting and characters. Smart! :)
ReplyDeleteHow sweet of you Dana. This bit has been condensed but you know, so often I look at a condensed excerpt and think, Hey that might be more to the point, maybe I should use that in the full scene!
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