#WIP – #AmWriting (I hope!) – #ColeCole&Dupree

/ Marcia

Oh, I SO know how he feels! I’ve been dragging around in Subpar Mode for so long, it’s ridiculous. (And to think that at my age, I consider every minute of wasted time to be a cardinal sin!) But the good (or at least better) news is, I am going to fix this problem, one way or the other! 

Yes, yes, Snape! I should be writing and I’m GOING to be writing, because after all, Cole, Cole & Dupree cannot finish itself, now can it? But I wanted to share my earthshattering improved health news here on TWS first. Plus I thought maybe sharing here might get me even more in the mood to move on with this story. I mean, it’s got a lot going for it, I think. From a very strange mystery for CC&D to solve, to Rabbit’s astonishing find of a Fairy Cross (staurolite) on a wooded trail, to the fun (I hope) relationship between Rabbit and his adopted family, including his sort-of adopted big brother, Austin Dupree. 

Oh, fairy crosses, you ask? Well, they look like this, and are a completely natural and totally REAL (though very rare) rock formation, wherein a natural “twinning process” produces these amazing stones in every size. See:

And here’s one more: a precious little miniature one sent to me from my friend in Wales, Trish, alias Alex Craigie. (Thank you again, Trish!)

But putting all that aside, the main reason to post about what I hope will be my return to Cole, Cole, & Dupree is that it gives me an excuse to share an excerpt with you good folks, and perhaps find out if this prologue would make you want to turn the page for the rest of the story.  So without further ado, here you go:

Just Past Midnight in a Frosty Winter Pasture
Sunday, January 11, 2015
~~~

“THOUGHT YOU NEEDED to see this, boss. Called as soon as I found ‘em.”

“You were right to call, Kip. Any idea what the hell happened here?”

“Not a one. Never seen anything like it.”

Alvy Ballard moved his flashlight in a slow arc across the scene in front of him, as he struggled to make sense of all the darkened forms humped along the ground. With a look of dread in his eyes, he turned back to his foreman. “Big Red?”

“Big Red, too, boss. He’s over by the east fence.”

“Show me.”

The two men walked around the fence line, stopping to check each bloody body along the way. Alvy gave a slow, stunned shake of his head. “All dead. Every single one of them dead. What could have done something like this, Kip?”

“I got no idea. Every throat torn out. All ten horses, gone. It ain’t natural.”

When they neared the middle of the east fence line, Kip stopped and laid his hand on Alvy’s arm. “You sure you want to look at him?”

Alvy nodded. “I need to see for myself.”

Kip watched as his boss continued along the fence to where the body of his prize stallion lay. For a moment the big man stood staring in shock, then he dropped to his knees. Draping himself across his horse, Alvy Ballard wept like a child, shoulders shaking with loud, heartbroken sobs.

Kip knew his boss well enough to understand his need for privacy, so he remained where he was until Alvy stood, wiped his eyes, and returned.

“I still don’t understand what happened to them,” Alvy said, his voice husky with emotion.

“Me, neither, boss. For sure, it wasn’t no animal I’ve ever seen. Animals don’t kill ‘less they’re hungry. All them horses are dead, all right, but not a single one’s been eaten on.”

Well, there you have it. I hope you are intrigued and ready to find out what the heck happened in Alvy Ballard’s pasture. And you can rest assured, when the good sheriff Raleigh Wardell shows up to consult with them, Cole, Cole, &  Dupree will be ready to take on this case!

Thanks for reading this morning,
and here’s to a GREAT start to your week!

37 thoughts on “#WIP – #AmWriting (I hope!) – #ColeCole&Dupree”

    • Oh, thanks so much, Harmony! It’s been nearly two years since I wrote & published anything, and I’m really rusty. Of course, I wrote this (and chapters 1 & 2 of this novella) months ago, too, so I’ve got to get back in the groove. I appreciate your reading and letting me know your thoughts. Hugs back atcha, and here’s to a great Moon’s Day! 😀 ,3

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    • Thanks, Jeanne. I’m hoping to make some rapid progress on this one, especially since it will only be about 100 pages or so. Fingers crossed! And feeling better is wonderful. Hope it lasts longer than last time between bouts of LC. They SHOULD be getting milder and farther apart over time. Again, fingers crossed.

      Thanks for stopping by today, and have a great week! 😀 ❤

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    • I do believe I’ve heard that one before even down here, Darlene! Hehehe. And it’s great to get saddled up and ready to go.

      Aren’t those fairy crosses the coolest thing you’ve ever seen? I’d never heard of them until I started researching for this book. And to think they are 100% natural. It just doesn’t look possible. I LOVE the one Trish sent me! And you can bet Rabbit is blown away by the one he found! 😁

      Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a great week! 😀 ❤

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    • Thanks so much, Priscilla. I’m glad you liked the excerpt, and I totally agree about those marvelous and unbelievable fairy crosses! Thanks too for stopping by today and taking a moment to say hello! 😀 ❤

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    • Oh, thanks, Denise! I’m so glad you liked the excerpt, and what’s not to love about those wonderful fairy crosses, eh? They just amaze me! Thanks for stopping by and have a great week! 😀 ❤

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    • So good to see you here today, D! (How’re tricks at the Carrot Ranch?) Thanks for your kind words, and I HOPE this Long COVID is gradually going away now. (It’s only been plaguing me since JANUARY!! Urk!) And how lovely to say such nice things about Rabbit. I hope you’ll enjoy this latest adventure when I finally finish it up. I’ll do my best to keep working on it every day until it’s ready to go. 😀

      Oh, the fairy crosses are amazing, aren’t they? The more I researched them, the more I knew they HAD to be part of this story.

      Thanks so much for stopping by today and taking a moment to say hello! Have a really great week! 😀 ❤

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  9. Wonderful excerpt, Marcia. You’ve captured my imagination! All the best as you finish your WIP. ❤️ And thank you for sharing the fairy crosses. I had never heard of them before your post. 🤗

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    • Thanks for your kind words, Gwen! I’m glad your imagination was captured, and I hope to finish this novella before it escapes! 😁 I’d never heard of the fairy crosses either until I started researching strange happenings in the North Carolina area, and up they popped. You’ll learn more about where they are found and how rare they are in the opening chapters of Cole, Cole, & Dupree, which I hope you’ll enjoy once I get it out there.

      Thanks so much for stopping by and taking a moment to say hello! Have a GREAT week, my friend! 😀 ❤

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  10. Of course, we need to know who or what killed the horses! OMG. No reader can stand by and watch animals killed without wanting justice. This sounds like a job for Cole, Cole & Dupree.
    Great to hear you’re writing again, my friend. Looking forward to the book. And cool fairy crosses. 😀

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  11. That’s such a good opening, Marcia, and you know how much I love Rabbit! I didn’t know about the Brown Mountain Lights until the last book and now I’ve learned about fairy crosses, too! Looking forward, as Darlene says, to you getting back in the saddle! 😀 ❤ 😀

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    • Thanks so much, Trish! I’m so glad you love Rabbit and I hope you enjoy the rest of this tale when I get it wrapped up. I’m feeling MUCH more optimistic about it today than I have for weeks and weeks. And SO glad to have introduced you to both the Brown Mountain Lights and fairy crosses. (Thank YOU for finding the little beauty you sent me. I’ll treasure it forevermore!)

      Also thanks for stopping by today, and here’s to a wonderful week, my friend! 😀 ❤

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    • Thanks so much, Teri! I’ve been feeling MUCH better for a couple of days, and am hoping this means that the LC days are going to get farther and farther apart, and become shorter and shorter in duration. For now, I’m trying to take advantage of increased energy and feeling much more like myself again. Hope you enjoyed the excerpt, and yes to the fairy crosses being fascinating. The more I read about them, the more amazing they seemed. This novella will explain them in a bit more detail as the story unwinds.

      Thanks so much for stopping by today and taking a moment to say hello! Have a really great week! 😀 ❤

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    • Yay. Just the reaction I was hoping for, Jan! And with luck, I’ll get this story wrapped up fairly soon so you can find out exactly what happened. Probably. 😁 Thanks a million for stopping by and letting me know your thoughts! 😀 ❤

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    • Thanks so much, Craig! I had fun with the post, I’ll admit, and wanted to get it all covered at a go, but still keep it somewhat amusing. And yep, I’m feeling better, thanks. Fingers crossed this STOOPIT stuff will finally fade away entirely!

      I’m glad you enjoyed the excerpt, and fairy crosses are amazing, aren’t they? I’ll do a lengthier post on them one day, just because they are so unbelievable, and only appear in a handful of places in the whole world. Also, I cheated a bit on how Rabbit finds his. Generally speaking, I believe you have to dig for them. (Will be doing more research before I post.) But I do know that Georgia is the best place to hunt for them in the U.S. (Maybe you need to take a shovel and head south???)

      Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to share your thoughts! Have a great rest of the week! 😀

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  15. Oh no! I’m in tears already reading that excerpt. How soon can we expect to find out what dunnit???
    I just discovered that WordPress has stopped sending me almost all blog post notifications – I am really not ignoring you, Marcia, I just didn’t know you were back on schedule. I have no idea at this point how to fix it, but I will endeavour to do so.
    I spent last night thinking of you – watching the Edinburgh Tattoo, and vast numbers of men in kilts. I will be posting videos soon…

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    • Okay, first of all, I have to admit, I thought about you when I wrote that prologue, Debby, and knew you’d be appalled by anything so dire happening to horses. Actually, I am as well, even though I’ve never owned one or even ridden one more than 4 or 5 times in my life. But … HORSES! So beautiful and elegant! 😢And ME … so heartless and cruel! 😮 You’ll figure this out right alongside Rabbit, but I’m only on CH 2 of 12, so I hope you’ll be patient with me. 😊

      Secondly, it seems several folks are having trouble with WordPress right now. I do hope your situation improves quickly. I’d be so frustrated if I weren’t getting alerts from my favorite blogs! Good luck on that.

      And last … men in kilts, you say? Men in KILTS??? *happy sigh* I’ll be watching for that video, to be sure! Thanks for giving me a heads up. And thanks for stopping by to check out this post and to give me some feedback on that prologue, too. I really appreciate it, my friend! 😀 ❤

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    • That’s the good thing about books, Yvette … they’re ready when YOU are! 😀 I’m glad you’re looking forward to reading more, and hope you’ll enjoy it when I finish it, and you have time to read it! Thanks for stopping by! 😀 ❤

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    • Thanks, Debby. Yeah, you get back after a long break and it’s like, “Really? I don’t remember writing that!” 😀 But I’m not giving up! I really want to do a trilogy of these Cole, Cole, & Dupree Investigative Services novellas, so I gotta keep plugging away. Thanks for stopping by and commiserating! 😀 ❤

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