Stormy Weather

Scarlett and I are about to embark on a section of the book that's been in the planning stages for awhile now. Gabriel and Chloe are seperated by an ocean. She's home in New York, worried about her mother's health, and becoming increasingly miserable in a job she dislikes. He's in the Lake District of England, on a photo shoot. They're spending their weeks apart, still in touch each night, taking advantage of phones and computers to keep the home fires burning, so to speak. Naked bodies feature prominently, of course.

We're due to incorporate Mother Nature into the book shortly. A serious thunderstorm is due to hit the British Isles, knocking down telephone and internet capabilities for a few days. It'll play into Chloe's anxieties about her future with Gabriel, when all of a sudden, he's not there at night speaking to her. It'll drive Gabriel to distraction, knowing he can't get in touch with Chloe, to hear her voice. I'm already thinking of ways to write Gabriel as bored out of his mind waiting for the phone lines to come back up (chess will figure prominently). And Scarlett's got a challenge ahead of her in writing Chloe during this uncertain time.

How long will it be? Time will tell. That, and we might tell, but we'll expect a thick envelope filled with cash delivered to us. Just be patient when you ring the bell. We might need to get dressed to answer the door. We can't have you seeing the Full James or the Full Scarlett, can we? No, that's just for us.

And for whichever onlookers happen to be watching when we get in an exhibitionist mood....