Let me be honest — this is best case scenario.
Those of you in the know, know that January 2020, will officially begin my year of funemployment.
But wait, Millie! I thought you were a public school teacher.
It’s a long story, and I’m not gonna bore you with the details by oversharing, but the gist is—I am not a teacher anymore. One day I’ll write this long essay that no one will read about how f*cked our public school system is if we don’t start making some meaningful changes *Tokyo Toni voice* ASAP. But all you need to know right now is that I got out before it could traumatize me for years to come. Big ups to my veteran teachers—no one knows what it takes.
But anyways, funemployment.
For the last eighteen months, my time has been spent in the classroom, and when I wasn’t there physically, I was there mentally. To everybody who laughed when I said I was going to try and be a teacher and write at the same time, I get the joke now.
I saved some money. I got a cute little temp job that doesn’t require me to do anything outside of work hours (an underrated luxury). I got my outlines. And BABY, for the first time in a long time, I’ve got TIME.
So, 2020. After the release of The Garden of Eden, I’ve got two more confirmed projects. And when I say they’re confirmed, I mean I wrote the outlines from start to finish. Here they are…
Fast: A Woman's Journey Through Love and Abuse
So this book follows the main character, Caprice Latimore. After the untimely death of her mother, she has to move in with her grandmother. Eight years old, life as she knows it is turned upside down. The trauma of losing her mother is made worse with the introduction of Marcel, her grandmother’s adult son who still lives in the home. Her uncle Marcel takes an inappropriate interest in her that ultimately results in a tragic breaking point for the child. The only silver lining is that shortly after what Caprice calls “that night”, Marcel is booked by local police with a drug possession charge. He’s sentenced to prison for ten years. After eight years, Marcel is released on good behavior. Caprice is now sixteen, still dealing with the emotional scars of the past.
But things aren’t like they were before.
Enter Shaun Taylor, the boy across the street who will do whatever it takes to make sure no one ever hurts Caprice again
Fast is a story that spans twenty years. We watch Caprice grow from eight years old to twenty-eight years old. She gets hurt, she falls in love, she grows, and she just might overcome.
Fast is a story written for the girls who were made to feel like their abuse was somehow their own fault.
Just One Night: An Urban Cinderella Story
Right after Fast we have Just One Night, which is your not so typical retelling of the famed Cinderella trope. This story follows Nia Armstrong, the overworked personal assistant to the famous R&B diva, Tiana Morley. Forced to bear the unreasonable demands of the biggest prima donna in the industry, Nia, a songwriter, sticks around in the hopes that someday, Tiana will sing one of her songs.
Twenty-four hours before the biggest night in music, an industry masquerade party is set, but Tiana is too sick to attend. In a ballsy move, Nia steals her boss’ red carpet dress and goes to the party without her, wearing a party mask. That night, she meets movie star Makhi Justice. In just one night, he falls for the girl behind the mask.
When a furious text message from Tiana cuts the night short, Nia is sure she’s lost her job.
After Tiana is photographed on the red carpet wearing the one-of-a kind dress Nia wore the night before, Makhi is convinced he’s identified his dream girl.
Both of these stories are standalones. I don’t think I’m writing any series next year. I do hope to have both of these books out within the first half of 2020.
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(Both covers were designed by Millie Belizaire)