Top Five Pet Peeves in Fiction by Sandine Tomas – Guest Blog and Giveaway

Long and Short Reviews welcomes Sandine Tomas who is celebrating the recent release of The Music of Love. Check out the post below to find out how to win a copy of the book.

My name is Sandine Tomas and I appreciate the chance to introduce my book The Music of Love and share a little about myself. Because lists are always fun I thought I’d tackle a ‘Top Five’. Keep reading for a giveaway offer at the end!

2. Internal inconsistency.
I am open to the wildest ideas with ease. New planets, zombies, love at first sight, win the lottery the first and only time you play – all fine by me. As long as there is an underlying logic. So the lottery winner has to buy at least one ticket–or at least find the winning ticket lying on the ground. And the rules that zombies play by have to be consistent within their own world. Zombies eat brains? OK … Except not the hero’s brain because the writer is too lazy to explain to me why the heck the hero’s brain isn’t tasty enough? That’s annoying.

3. Short denouement.
When a novel is good we race to the end. We want to see what happens to our heroes and how they get out of the situation the evil writer put them in. We want them to get together and proclaim their love. What I don’t want is for it to say ‘The End’ immediately at that point. Makes me shout, ‘Come on … a few more paragraphs would have killed you?’ Honestly, lots of times the couple getting together is where I want to start learning more – what happens then? How do they interact as a couple? How do they deal with the next obstacle? Can they handle it together? I always want more. I once read a book with three distinct epilogues. What a fantastic formula-buster that was!

4. Second person.
You find this difficult to read because it’s an odd way to interact with the character. The fact that he or she is addressing you directly keeps you very aware that you are being directed in what you are supposed to be thinking, rather than observing the characters’ actions and making up your own mind about the merits of what they are doing. You wish for the freedom to choose for yourself what key things to observe. (And if you are the author writing in second person, you really hope your reader isn’t like Sandine, who really finds slogging through it a chore.)

5. Too much description.
This is a fine line because too little description and I can’t formulate an image in my mind. But if an author loves their environment so much that we end up with two pages detailing where the kitchen stools are in relation to the closet door and what shade of lavender the towels are contrasted with the color of the flowers on the dining room table, I lose my place in the flow and that can make me stop caring about the characters. I tend to be a lean writer myself, offering just enough to let the readers form the outline of a picture, trusting them to fill in the specifics with their own imagination so we can get on with what’s happening and who is saying what to whom. I love dialog and think we learn the most about our characters when they are talking and reacting to what someone else is saying.

Giveaway Offer” What’s your top pet peeve in fiction? Tell me in the comments and you’ll be entered for a chance to win a free e-book copy of The Music of Love! Please provide contact information.

Sometimes the music of love skips a beat….

Paralegal by day, musician by night, Julian has an expiration date stamped on his forehead when it comes to love. No relationship has made it past a year, so Julian avoids romance like the plague and concentrates on his music instead.
Which works fine until gorgeous, smart, and funny Zachary joins Julian’s firm. One look at the man and Julian knows he’s dangerous. No matter what, he can’t fall for Zachary. He has to spare Zachary the pain of dumping Julian at the one-year mark. His brilliant plan? Ask a straight friend to pose as his significant other to keep Zachary away. Not surprisingly, his scheme does little to dampen the attraction—on either side.

When Zachary gives Julian a second chance despite his deception, Julian thinks his curse might be broken. But then he’s faced with the impossible choice between a life with Zachary and living his dream of touring with the band….

Enjoy an exclusive excerpt from The Music of Love:

The girls in the office took Julian in hand. Even the usually formidable Rhonda took time off from her power-driven mode to partake in wedding fever. Julian decided it was like a disease among women. Some sort of strange psychic illness that robbed them of their senses. He kept having to explain that there would be no wedding dress, given that they were both, you know, men. They’d look at him with a sad, glazed expression and say, “Oh. Right.”

But then he’d find them later, still pouring over wedding magazines that mysteriously were sprouting all over the office, oohing and ahhing over the gowns no one would wear. Zachary took it with his usual exuberant puppiness.

Zachary cornered Julian in the coffee pantry early, waving a magazine in front of him. “See this one?”

Julian frowned. “For the hundredth time, I am not wearing a wedding dress!”

Zachary had the audacity to laugh at him. “No. Not that one. The tux. Think it would look good on me?”

That sleek black ensemble? It was easy to picture on Zachary’s regal physique. Truth was Zachary looked good wearing anything. Hell, Zachary looked best wearing nothing, but he didn’t realize he said that out loud.

“Yeah? Hmm. A nudist wedding.” Zachary struck a considering pose, gripping his chin. “I’d have to fight everyone off you, but it might be fun.”
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“Shut up, you freak.” He smirked. “’Sides, nobody would notice my skinny white ass with your honeyed muscles on parade.”

Zachary grabbed his butt. “Not skinny. Just right. Fits in my hands just so… see?”

Julian jumped away. “Zach! Not here.”

Zachary looked around. “It’s 7:00 a.m. Nobody’s here yet. Only reason I’m here is because you make so much goddamn noise every morning primping, I might as well get up and ride in with you.”

Julian’s lips pursed into a twist. “I do not primp.”

He was met with laughter. “You would only hear that part.” Zachary’s face turned serious.

“Jules, you’re here at seven every day. You leave well past nine most nights. Except for the metro ride in, I feel like I hardly see you anymore.”

“We see each other all the time. We live together. We work together.”

“I guess, yeah, I see you here. But I didn’t mean only that. And I know it’s not just you. I mean I have my classes and we’re both always so busy. We haven’t really made any wedding plans….”

Julian swallowed down another strong gulp of coffee and felt his head start to solidify with every sip. “I wish I had more time too. Don’t you think I get frustrated? There hasn’t been time for anything. This is the first time I’m managing the office through a big case. Stuart’s coming to a head soon. Harrison himself is riding my ass.”

“Glad someone is.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Jules, I’m sorry. Never mind. You’re right.” Zachary turned and created a bunny fold on the page with the tuxedo he liked, before handing the magazine to Julian. “Think about the tux?”

Julian took it and held it absently against his side, already thinking of the million details ahead of him that day. “Sure,” he said quickly.

That afternoon, during five minutes when no one needed his attention, Julian picked up the magazine and looked at the bookmarked page again. Zachary would look magnificent in the tux. For the briefest moment, a tiny bit of the melody he’d heard looking into Zachary’s eyes in Texas flitted before him.

Brian bellowed out his name. And it was gone.

About the Author: Sandine Tomas grew up an unapologetic bookworm, making friends with characters from the ancient past to the farthest reaches of the universe. Her career as a marketing writer has given her insight into the divergence between what a person thinks they want and what they truly need. Relationships are at the heart of her writing, and she enjoys creating characters who become so real that their stories beg to be told. Writing allows her to explore people and ideas from all sides, spinning a notion around like a gem until its facets glisten.

Twisting the old adage about writing what you know into writing what you feel, Sandine doesn’t shy away from raw emotions, turbulent circumstances, and above all, deep passions, fueled by humor, honesty, and trust. She enjoys instilling her characters with the flaws, courage, and idiosyncrasies that brings them to life.

Sandine lives in New York with her husband, two daughters and a Golden Retriever named Noodle. An unabashed TV and film enthusiast, she happily binge watches her favorites until her eyes glaze over. Her other guilty pleasures include attending fandom conventions, sleeping in on weekends, and recharging solo by holing up with a caramel macchiato and an amazing book.