The Rosie/Rachel thing

Very late tonight, I sat at the table and talked to my husband about my difficulty with the careful balance of the Rosie/Rachel thing. He is a sensitive and an astute man who, okay admittedly, has not read the books thus far, but has LIVED THEM!!!

Get the picture?

So, when he said, after I'd trucked up from a few hours of happy writing, 'What's up pup?' I knew my cover was blown.

He, who has lived with me for 21 years and been a writer's widower for much of those years, has my number.

'It's girly stuff,' I say.

He has just watched Kick Ass and Piranna (the youngest is away so he is being naughty) and I can tell by his body language that he is actually open to listening.

'Well,' I say. 'It's just that I need to ensure that the reader is okay with both Rosie and Rachel and - '

Eldest has come in from her date.'Hey! Well, what a night. It was great in the end but phew...' Cue, end of discussion. 'What are you guys doing?'

I start to explain what we were talking about and she rolls her eyes. Not that she is disinterested in the story but that it's so uncool to find her parents awake at 11pm talking about a fiction which hasn't been published yet.

There is the rub. The final part of this story has not been published but it is consuming my mind and those who have invested time into it: the babes, my agent, my family, those who have read and loved it, fellow writers......

So, the short answer to the pithy quip from the teenager. 'I'm writing. Na!"

And, just as both my daughters are as different as (excuse the cliche) chalk and cheese but I love them both, so it is with my writing of Rosie and Rachel.