The New Man In My Life

Last week I went on record with a post about my latest WIP, titled for the moment Shannon's Daughter.  Now a "work in progress" is just that.  Its personality changes from day to day.  One trip to the computer, the words and images flow like a mountain spring, bubbling brightly downhill.  Next time out, the same words and images throw curves like a rookie pitcher at spring training, seeming awkward and out of control.  That erratic behaviour is precisely what keeps the writer coming back again and again, until every last word lines up in the correct order and every image has become as clear on paper as it appears in her mind.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  What I really want to talk about today is Kendall Gregg.  The name may ring a distant bell if you've read the Miracle at Valley Rise books, especially if you've gotten to Offered for Love.  There's one scene in particular where he plays an important, albeit off-stage, role.

In Hearts Unfold we learned that Peg Shannon has had a number of love affairs, the longest with a well-known English concertmaster.  In Entreat Me Not, we heard that during a visit to London, Peg may or may not be seeing a man named Kendall Gregg, who it turns out is that same concertmaster and, while their affair ended long ago, they have remained "friends."  Not until Offered for Love do we understand the trouble this man may have inadvertently caused.   So who the heck is Kendall Gregg, anyway?

I'm pleased to report that I've finally met the guy, and frankly, I think I'm in love!  Now understand that in order to write a romantic protagonist, he has to first appeal to me.  I certainly can't ask my heroine or my readers to invest in a man I find uninspiring.  Kendall Gregg has definitely measured up so far.  While on paper right now he's just twenty years old and still at Oxford, in my head I have at least the outline of his story spanning over twenty years, right up to his final profound words.  I feel quite sure we're going to have a meaningful and rewarding relationship. 

He's good looking, dark hair, blue eyes, elegantly tall and well built.  He's talented, even gifted, and yes, he's another violinist--not that I have a thing for string players, it just worked out that way.  And he's just a little bit of a rogue.  He's also sensitive and thoughtful, a man easily manipulated by a strong woman.  He's starting out to be the perfect friend turned lover turned back to friend for Peg Shannon.

It's a bit tricky writing a story when you know there are only so many ways it can end.  The series has boxed me in with regard to Kendall and Peg's future.  I didn't want Kendall to become a tragic figure, or meet an unhappy end.  Until I saw that final scene and felt content that everything turned out right for all concerned, I was a little bit leery of letting myself get emotionally involved with this man.  Now, I'm ready to let myself fall, if not head over heels, at least casually in love, a sort of summer romance you know can't really last, but one in which you can thoroughly lose yourself until the leaves begin to turn.

I invite you to check in here for updates on the progress of my--that is Peg's--relationship with this fascinating young man.