I loved the fact that she was so nice and supportive and stuff, and she talked to the crowd for a while. She said that when the idea came to her for an unpopular teenaged vampire, she thought of the story lines of the five books she would write. She only needed five books to tell her story.
Well, I had the same idea about two summers ago.
When I started the idea for Shannon Dern, I knew she would explain her heartbreak in book one (while proving to be the strong and independent crime fighter/solver), for books two (a soul searching and questioning novel) and three (dramatic, fast paced, and no romance), the man that broke her heart would be out of the picture, and then he would suddenly reappear with a couple of deep dark secrets in book four (book four is heavily centered on Michelle Stratz, the FBI's director). Book five (Shannon remembering and building memories from her past)would be their friendship rebuilding, and Cassidy dealing with the fact that he was second choice. And the sixth(basically all crime solving, and a lot of hiding and running) would be about how they would continue on, how they would grow and learn what their relationship was to be. Now, I'm not giving anything away because that would be unfair to me, but this is what I first envisioned for plots, unrelated to the romantic developments:
1) King of Hearts--Shannon Dern, former cop, current PI on the East coast (specifically DC), completely human, and all-too flawed. She's been working with Metro Homicide on a serial killer case, but when the case goes cold with no leads, no bodies, but more and more disappearances, they pass it on to the FBI, and Shannon follows. An old, painful past is dug up, and it's all Shannon can do to hang on for just a little longer...
2) Ho-Ho-Ho--It's Christmas time and Shannon Dern is lonely. When she gets a curious voice mail message from an old friend, she realizes her holiday season isn't going to be all fun... Julia Burton has been off the radar for 6 years, so when Shannon Dern finds her body in a dumpster while running, she's a little surprised, considering she knew Julia when she was little and that's the friend that left that scary message. And when she finds out that Julia's daughter and the daughter's boyfriend are dead also, she has no choice but to call the FBI and say she's found the body of her old friend. When they trace her back to a smutty past, Shannon's worried her strong testimony of the innocence of her old friend might be the end of her career. Can she prove her friend really is the angel she makes her out to be, and solve her evidence-less murder?
3) Writing On The Wall--February, and Shannon is ready to get back to work. For the last month all she's been doing is hibernating in her loft, so when a friend's friend, Miss Oliver, calls her and tells her she's found a body in the apartment next to hers, she's excited to go out and find clues. Unfortunately, the FBI beats her to it. Then, after that excruciating couple of hours of taking pictures (some of which included bloody messages on the bathroom wall) and writing notes, she returns home to begin figuring out what the killer's state of mind was (the only job the FBI would be willing to give to her) and whether or not anyone else had to worry about a serial killer on the lose(the private job she was hired to do). Miss Oliver is relieved, however, to find out that the girl in the apartment is actually dead because of motive, anger, and possible resentment, not just a random killing. When all clues point to the girl's twin sister, Shannon must face old memories of her dead brother and fight past the anger inside her.
4) Russian Roulette--Shannon Dern has finally become exactly what she's always wanted... An FBI agent. But her first month there isn't easy... Her name is Drysi and her father is about to kill her. Why? Because she anonymously told Michelle Stratz, Director of the FBI, that her father was responsible for the recent assassination of a federal judge in the US. Now, Michelle must have her people track down the girl’s father, while they are equally involved in a case involving the son of a Russian arms dealer, Anatoly Kitaev and his possible innocence. When the lines between the two cases start blurring, the FBI team, Ray Connelly, Owen Cassidy, and Shannon Dern, must distinguish which facts belong to which person and whether or not wool is being pulled over their eyes. But distraction suddenly appears, and it’s all Shannon, not to mention Michelle, can do to not fall back into old, comfortable habits. For Shannon, it’s an ex-lover. For Michelle, it’s her agent instincts, and her blood-thirsty need for revenge against an old foe.
5) Memory Lane--Her rock, her best friend, the man who has always, always been there for her, no matter what, is gone. Her second brother is gone. Shannon must fight past everything keeping her back, whether it be people or crippling memories, and come out triumphant, solving the case in front of her and avenging both her brothers. Will her relationship struggles get in the way of her true passion: justice?
6) Retribution--It's time for her to show him what heart break really feels like. He won't be friends with her, she won't fall for him again. So what to do? Thankfully, Shannon can't focus on this pressing question for too long. Her blood brother's murderer walked free years ago, and Shannon never got over it. Six months have passed and her second brother's murderer is still out there, although she has figured out a little secret that is getting her closer and closer to the truth. It's always been her. They've always been after her... She must successfully achieve vengeance--retribution--and put all her ghosts to rest. Still, when she starts seeing things, scary, unreal things, she, and her friends, question her sanity and her judgment. With every weight of the world pressing down on her, she must dodge a killer, catch a killer, break a heart or two, and survive long enough to make it to her step-sister's wedding. She's not superwoman, so why does everyone think she'll survive this?
That last bit is not really clear, sorry. Her best friend was killed in the 5th book, she couldn't solve the case, but she found out that the person who killed him, is out to get her and will kill more if he has to. So here's the list of problems for Shannon in the 6th book:
Someone's out to kill her.
She must solve her best friend's murder.
She must find her brother's killer and tell him everything, maybe with a little bit of blood-shed.
She must break her ex-lover's heart to fully heal her injured heart, a task that proves to be morally challenging for her.
Her step-sister's (on her dad's side) wedding is approaching and she must play bridesmaid to a girl that she doesn't necessarily enjoy being around.
So...that's pretty much what I've come up with... I've written a little bit of each of these books, mostly just 1, 2, and 3, but I will only be posting progress on the first until i finish it and begin working harder on the second.
Comment, tell me what you think, gimmie creative criticism.
Love always,
Alyssa
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