top of page
Search
Writer's pictureMariana Zapata

The Home Stretch

If you don’t follow me on Facebook, you might not now… I have a new book coming out!


THE WALL OF WINNIPEG AND ME will be coming to you some time in late February. Am I excited?


Hell no.


I turned it in for editing a few days ago and I’m surprised I didn’t end up with an ulcer. The stress, the anxiety, the nerves, the insomnia–it’s all hitting me right in the gut. I’ve been taking magnesium every night and melatonin at least a couple times a week because I can’t wind down enough.


“It sucks.”


“It’s boring.”


“Everyone is going to hate it.”


“It isn’t Under Locke.”


“It isn’t Kulti.”


“I need to rewrite it. I need to rewrite it all.”


“This is a huge mistake.”


What irritates me the most is that a whole person, I’m not usually lacking self-confidence; my mom says my life’s motto is “me vale”, which means “I don’t give a shit.” But when it comes to my writing, each release is like letting my newborn baby–a baby I’ve created and watched grow over the last x amount of months (in this case 6), and then sending out my beloved child in the world for everyone to judge. “Please be kind. Please love him.” I’ve stopped reading reviews–unless someone sends it to me–because while I understand and completely respect everyone has an opinion; bad reviews ruin my day. There can be a hundred great ones, but that one shitty one is the one I can’t/won’t forget.


Anyway, back to the book.


This was definitely the hardest thing I’ve ever written. I changed my mind about three huge plot points two weeks before I needed to turn it in and hauled ass to try and rewrite the changes; it’s definitely a stronger story because of it but I don’t know–insecurities are lame. SPOILER ALERT: this is the first story I’ve ever tackled where the characters know each other. Whoever gave me the idea that this would be easier and equal a shorter story was a damn liar. WINNIE might be my longest book, or at least be tied for the longest. It’s definitely more like KULTI than UNDER LOCKE, if I had to categorize it.


On top of all that, Chris and I are trying to buy a house, someone I cared about very much died and I broke my tailbone. As I write this, I have a donut underneath my butt.


If you’re curious–I broke it going extreme sledding down our steep, ice-covered driveway.


Enough blah, blah, blah. I’ll leave you with my working summary for THE WALL OF WINNIPEG (you can’t find it anywhere else!)


Vanessa Mazur knows she’s doing the right thing by quitting. Being an assistant/housekeeper/cook/fairy godmother to the top defensive end in the National Football Organization was always supposed to be temporary. She had plans, and none of them included keeping her job.


But when Aiden Graves shows up at her door, wanting her to come back, she’s beyond shocked.


For two years, the man known as the Wall of Winnipeg couldn’t even find it in him to tell her good morning or congratulate her on her birthday. Now? He’s asking her for the unthinkable.


What do you say to the man who’s used to getting everything he wants?


I’ll be sending out teaser chapters soon to my mailing list. Keep an eye out.;)


xx

Mariana

123 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Comments


bottom of page