The 777 Chain

Luckily, not something to do with the almost-catastrophic aborted take-off of the BA Boeing 777 in Las Vegas yesterday, but something far more fun.

I was tagged on Twitter by the lovely and talented Jo Zebedee, author of Abendau's Heir, and whose latest novel, Inish Carraig, went on sale earlier this month.

There is a challenge chain doing the rounds whereby a writer must, from a current work in progress, take 7 paragraphs from a page ending in 7, and then tag 7 more writers to do so. It's an interesting, keyhole-sized snapshot into what some of us writerly folks are up to.

So, here's something from something that's currently untitled, but I've been spending the last couple of months pulling together.

~

Magdaleña put a hand to her chest and broke out in an open-mouthed smile, before taking Viv’s hand and holding it closely. She looked as though she was about to burst with excitement. “My God, I’m so envious. The first times… the first times are the most exhilarating. When you become…” she closed her eyes and looked to the heavens, as if caught in the moment of some passing rapture. “When you become part of the whole. The moment of self sacrifice, the moment of giving yourself, and then-”

“Hush, Maggie,” said Ignatius, his hawkish face returning. “Don’t spoil it all. I have high hopes for Vivienne.”

Magdaleña clutched Viv’s arm tightly, and smiled deeply. “We will see each other again, when you are inside.”

Quickly after that Magdaleña was gone, accosted by a magnificent, smiling male model from Ethiopia whom Viv remembered was named Dereje, and who looked as though he’d been carved from stone. He also gave Ignatius a deep, warm smile and a hug, enveloping him with long, branch-like limbs, which Ignatius reciprocated, red arms climbing up the model’s back like tongues of flame.

“I was right,” Viv said, once they were alone again. “You are a conning son-of-a-bitch. What was in the drink last night? Diphenhydramine?”

“I don’t know what that is,” came the whisper.

She shook her head and tutted. “Such a bullshitter. Well, you might have her fooled, and all these other poor bastards who don’t want to see things the way they really are, but not me. I know what you are, and I stand by what I said. After tonight you won’t see me again.”

~

And there you have it! I wonder what it could all mean? Actually I'm more interested in seeing what the others are coming up with. And with that in mind I'm tagging Chris Bean, Brian Rathbone, J Scott Marryat, Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam, TR Napper, EJ Tett, and AC Hachem.