Seriously?

I did pretty well with jet lag from our long trip, but I did wake up the first couple of nights around 3:30 a.m. and then went back to sleep. I think it was the second time that happened that an idea for a new book popped into my brain. This tends to happen at odd times like this when my brain is still on vacation but I’m not.

The concept of the story itself was almost ludicrous, at least as far as making the book work. Let me explain: I tend to write SF, although it’s usually character-driven and not a space opera or hard SF, or thrillers like I did in my first three books. I used to write more short stories, but those were all over the place on the genre map and mainly attempts to be literary. Whatever that means.

This new story, though, due to the premise and the main relationship between the narrator and a woman who time-travels, would have to involve a heavy dose of romance.

Seriously?

I knew I had a great concept and could make it work. However, the sequel to First was waiting for me to start. This new idea grabbed me, held me upside down, and shook me until all the change in my pockets fell out. I knew I needed to write this story next and the other would have to wait.

The other thing that made the decision for me was that sometime back in June I’d hammered out the first chapter of First’s sequel into a document. I had the idea and didn’t want to lose it, so I wrote it out. The problem was that I didn’t know how to resolve the idea I’d come up with. It needed more time for me to ponder.

The decision was made and I began working on Next Time in mid-October and finished it on Christmas Eve.