Happy holidays!  I hope you’re all enjoying a nice day of fun and festivities.  Just in case you’d like to spend a quiet evening reading, don’t forget that my writing partners and I released a Christmas short story on Monday!  An epilogue to The Servants and the Beast, I of course recommend both as fun, heartwarming, fairy tale-inspired stories.

I’m still working on my non-fiction revision tips book, so for the holidays I thought I’d offer a throw-back excerpt.  Enjoy this snippet from Book Two of my Guardian of the Opera trilogy, as the prospect of Christmas sends the Phantom into something of a panic…

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Near the beginning of December, Erik found himself with a problem that he couldn’t bring to Meg.  The weight of it got heavier and heavier until finally it drove him to seek the Daroga out—not as a good source of aid, but as the only one available.  And after all, things had been…relatively pleasant, the last time they spoke.

He arrived at the Daroga’s small apartment in the early twilight, just as the sun was setting.  He only ever went out in the dusky hours, when the shadows were deep, even if he knew they still failed to hide his mask, failed to conceal him in his dark cloak.  It still felt a little less alarming that way.

The Daroga invited him in courteously and with less surprise evident than was probably present.  Erik had never been here before, though he had known for years where the Daroga lived.  It was the kind of information he had felt he should have in reserve.

They passed a few moments in small talk, sitting in the parlor, before the inevitable question arose.  “So tell me, to what do I owe the honor of this most unusual visit?”

Erik hesitated, tapping his fingers against his knee.  “I need your advice.”  He took a deep breath.  “I don’t know what to do about Christmas.”

“I believe midnight mass and a tree are customary,” the Daroga said dryly.  “Based purely on observation of your Christian revelries, of course.”

“No, I don’t mean that,” Erik said with a wave of one hand.  “I mean…about Meg.  I don’t know if I should get her a gift or not.”  He had remarked on it in an off-hand way when the Daroga had visited, and the idea had burrowed into his mind, with accompanying doubts.

Continue reading “Writing Wednesday: A Little Holiday Reading” →