ABOUT FIRE IN THE WOODS:
Title: Fire in the Woods
Publication date: September 2014
Publisher: Month9Books, LLC.
Author: Jennifer M. Eaton
When a plane crashes in the woods near Jess’s home,
the boy of her dreams falls out of the sky—literally. But David’s not here to
find a girlfriend. He’s from another planet, and if Jess can’t help him get
back to his ship, he’ll be stuck on Earth with nothing to look forward to but
the pointy end of a dissection scalpel.
But her father runs their house like an army
barracks, and with an alien on the loose, Major Dad isn’t too keen on the idea
of Jess going anywhere. Ever. So how the heck is she supposed to help the
sweetest, strangest, and cutest guy she’s ever met?
Hiding him in her room probably isn’t the best
idea. Especially since her Dad is in charge of the squadron searching for
David. That doesn’t mean she won’t do it. It just means she can’t get caught.
Helping David get home while protecting her
heart—that’s gonna be the hard part. After all, she can’t really fall for a guy
who’s not exactly from here.
As they race through the woods with Major Dad and
most of the U.S. military one breath behind them, Jess and David grow closer
than either of them anticipated. But all is not what it seems. David has a
genocide-sized secret, and one betrayal later, they are both in handcuffs as
alien warships are positioning themselves around the globe. Time is ticking
down to Armageddon, and Jess must think fast if she’s to save the boy she cares
about without sacrificing Earth—and everyone on it.
Link to
Goodreads:
Purchase
Links:
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Indigo! | iBooks
ABOUT JENNIFER M. EATON:
Corporate
Team Leader by day, and Ranting Writer by night. Jennifer M. Eaton calls the
East Coast of the USA home, where she lives with her husband, three energetic
boys, and a pepped up poodle.
Jennifer
hosts an informational blog “A Reference of Writing Rants for Writers (or Learn
from My Mistakes)” aimed at helping all writers be the best they can be.
Beyond
writing and motivating others, she also enjoys teaching her dog to jump through
hoops—literally.
Jennifer’s
perfect day includes long hikes in the woods, bicycling, swimming, snorkeling,
and snuggling up by the fire with a great book; but her greatest joy is using
her over-active imagination constructively… creating new worlds for everyone to
enjoy.
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Deleted Scene
First of all, thank you so much for
having me, and thanks also for asking to see a deleted scene from FIRE IN THE
WOODS! When I started reviewing my
“deleted scenes” file in preparation for this post, I didn’t really think I’d
have anything to show you, but I ended up toiling over three scenes that I
loved that didn’t make it into the book.
So, you may wonder, “If you loved them, why didn’t they make it into the
book?” Well, I’m glad you asked!
In the end, it was all about
pacing. I wanted FIRE IN THE WOODS to be extremely “readable” and fast paced.
That does not mean that there is high-action on every page, but I needed the
plot to keep moving. What I was going for is the “I couldn’t put it down” kind
of book, and I really hope that is what readers end up thinking.
What I’d like to show you today is
a scene that I deleted because the lead up to Jess finding out David’s secret
seemed a bit too slow. I ended up cutting this entire scene, which I loved, and
cut paragraphs out of other scenes to tighten the story even more. Of course, I
am thrilled with the end result, but I just wish I could have found a way to
keep this mancala game in there.
So, here you go! For the first time
in public, the deleted “Breakfast and Mancala” scene. We begin with Jess making
eggs for breakfast while trying to figure out how to get David to tell her who
he really is.
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
David’s nose crinkled. “Eggs?”
I set the fork down. “Wow, I don’t
think you could possibly look more grossed out.” I threw the eggs onto a pan
and set them on the warm burner. “Okay, how about oatmeal?”
“Oatmeal?” Uncertainty shone in his
eyes.
“Yeah.” I showed him a box of
instant oats. He watched me closely as I ripped open the package and prepared
the flakes. His eyes perked up when I handed the bowl to him.
“Be careful, it’s hot,” I said.
He scooped a steamy spoonful and
sniffed it before tasting the edge. His eyes lit up. “Mmmm. It’s good.” The
rest of the spoon disappeared between his lips.
Could this guy get any weirder?
He was about to spill the beans
last night. How could I ease back into that conversation today? How could I get
him to confide in me without losing his trust?
He scraped the bowl and licked off
the spoon. Apparently food was a good start.
I scooped some eggs onto my fork.
He eyed the contents of my plate
warily. “Do you have more oatmeals?”
Mom always said the way to a guy’s
heart was through his stomach, and I managed to find a guy who actually liked
stuff I could make. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and oatmeal—who knew? I
ripped open a few more packages, cooked them up, and passed him the bowl.
Now, how to start up a conversation
about personal stuff again…
David accepted the bowl with a
smile, grabbing my fingers with his other hand.
“You’re being very nice, not asking me questions.”
I eased my hand away.
Sure I was being nice, but that
didn’t mean I didn’t want answers. “Does that mean you are ready to talk?”
“That depends. Are you ready to
hear?”
Was I? My stomach flipped over. My
heart raced. “I’m ready.”
He rand his fingers through his
hair. “To be honest, I’m not sure I’m ready. But I think I at least owe you an
explanation.”
The clock on the microwave turned
over to ten fifteen. David stared at his oatmeal, stirring the flakes before
taking a bite. I waited in silence until he scraped the bowl clean.
A smile crossed his lips. “Thank
you.”
I took his bowel and ran it under
the water. He fiddled with the pinky on his right hand, lifting it with his
index finger and letting it fall
“Are you stalling?”
He bit his lip and looked up at me.
“Maybe a little. I want to tell you.
I’m just not sure how.”
“How about the truth?”
“It’s not the kind of thing that
you just blurt out.”
“Well, at the moment I’ve thought
up several scenarios. You could be a
secret agent, or a international courier, or the harbinger of the apocalypse.
Am I close on any of those?”
“Not really.”
Not really? A good old fashioned
“no” would have made me feel better.
David strolled into the family
room, and ran his fingers across Dad’s Mancala board. “Stones,” he whispered.
“What?” I moved beside him.
“This.” He flipped the wooden board
over in his hand. “It looks like a game I used to play called Stones.”
I set the board on the coffee table
between us, and counted out the multi-colored gems into the eight pockets.
“It’s called Mancala. Do you want to play?”
Why not? We could talk over the
game board.
The grin nearly leapt from his
face. “Yes. Yes I do.”
***
David dropped the last gem into his
cubby, winning the game…again.
I sighed. “You are way too fast a
learner.”
He bent his fingers into a little
shelf and rested his chin on it. “Like I said, your rules are very close to the
way we play Stones. I think you took it easy on me, though.”
“Yeah, maybe a little.”
Not.
He kicked my butt, and I’d hardly even gotten any info out of him.
I placed the board back against the
wall and folded my arms. Why did he have to be so perfect? He can’t even lose
at a stupid game.
“Are you angry?” he asked.
“No.” I shifted my weight. “I’m
just not used to playing on that side of the table.”
A smirk started to break across his
lips, but he reigned it in. “Should I have let you win?”
“No, but…” I shook my head. “I
don’t know. Never mind.”
I don’t even know what I was
thinking. I was mad, but I wasn’t. I was just…Ugh! What was I feeling, anyway? Why did I get all googly around David? I
mean, I’d seen cute guys before. I guess I’d just never talked to one, or
played games with one, or had them sleep in my closet. I shook my head. When
did my life get so weird?
I knew when it got weird. The day
David walked into my life. I needed to find out what was going on, and I needed
to know now.
“You said it’s a lot warmer where
you’re from, but I’d really like to know where that is.”
He bit his lip and released it with
a pop. “We call it Erescopa.”
“And where is Erescopa?”
He stood and stretched. His hand
reached to his stomach.
“You can’t be hungry already.”
“Do you mind if we eat something
before I tell you where Erescopa is? Because I’m afraid you’re going to throw
me out when I tell you.”
I folded my arms. “I’m not going to
throw you out.”
“Yeah, you are.”
“What are you— a terrorist or
something?”
“Or something.”
Dangit. This guy was getting on my
nerves.
“All right, but this is it. No more
eating. No more games.”
His eyes brightened. “Good. Can we
have PB&J?”
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
I just love this scene. It is so
cute, and I think it really shows their personalities, but yes, it was a little
slow for that point in FIRE IN THE WOODS, where the readers should be really
tense, and waiting for Jess’s reaction when she finds out the truth. But thanks
so much for asking, so I could have the opportunity to show this scene off to
the world!
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And now for the giveaway!!!!
Five (5) winners will receive a digital copy of Fire in the Woods by Jennifer M. Eaton (INT)
One (1) custom made necklace (used as inspiration for the necklace in Fire in the Woods). Adjustable chain from 10 to 12 inches. T (US ONLY)
Thank you so much for featuring my deleted scene!
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