by Leddy Harper
Rylee laid her head back on the pillow and blinked at the ceiling. “You’re impossible.”
“I’m impossibly yours.”
“Always.”
“And forever,” I added.
“Until the sun stops rising in the east.”
“And stops setting in the west.”
She took my hand in hers. “I love you.”
I had it all. Everything. Whether I deserved it or not, I had it.
Leddy’s Notes
Oh, these are my favorites to write. I love to talk about why I wrote a book or where things came from, yet I feel like no one cares. So I get to put it all in here and let whoever read it, read it haha.
Almost a year ago, my man and I decided to binge watch the show Lie to Me. (If you haven’t watched it, you totally should. It’s on Netflix and has 3 seasons…it doesn’t air anymore sniff sniff). The whole premise of the show is about a guy who is a human lie detector. He watches the way people react and can tell if they’re telling the truth or not. Anyway, I loved that idea, but started wondering how people would be able to do that. Then I thought about how people who can’t hear would be able to do that because they’d rely more on visuals and facial expressions. Then I started thinking like a writer and wondered about a character. However, I didn’t want someone who couldn’t hear, because the whole sign language and no speaking thing gets a little hard for conversations. Dialogue would be nearly non existent. So…I pondered about a character who could hear, but not talk. Yet I was still in the same boat with conversation, so it became a character who could talk, just didn’t. Which, in retrospect, totally negates the whole human lie detector part. Oh well. I digress. Once I got to that point, I then began to question why he wouldn’t talk, and almost immediately, I saw Killian’s scars. Oh, boy…was the journey from conception to completion a long one.
I saw Killian as an adult. A fighter. But I knew I didn’t want a fighter book. I don’t watch the sport, and honestly, I don’t know too much about it. I didn’t want the whole UFC thing. But I couldn’t figure out how he got there, or why. All I knew was he was there, he was angry over something that had happened to him as a child, and he ran into his girl, the one from his past. I knew she was dating a fighter, but that was about it. It wasn’t until a friend helped me take a step back to see his childhood, that I was finally able to see his whole story. And once I did that, there was no stopping it.
I remember sitting down to write the prologue, telling my friend Steph how I saw it going. She told me, “I don’t know how you’re going to pull that off” and I said, “I don’t know either, but I’ll sure as hell try.” Then I wrote the first word. Then the next. And they never stopped coming.
I’ll always refer to this book as Killian’s book. His chapters came so easily for me. I’d sit down and they’d pour out of me without any thought given to them. Rylee’s chapters were harder, and there were some I literally had to skip over because I wanted to get back to his. This is also the first book I’ve ever written in alternating points of views. I have the hardest time flip-flopping between characters, and I feel if you don’t stay in one person’s head, both characters end up sounding alike. So I typically avoid it since I never felt confident doing it. But for some reason, these two had no problems differentiating themselves to me.
I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about Killian that has tied him to me in ways other characters never have. I believe I’ll always have a strong connection to this book, and I hope you do, too!
In a nutshell, I watched a TV show, questioned it to death like any over thinker would, breaking it apart and dissecting it until something else is created, then agonized over his youth for a solid six months before spending a few weeks pouring it out onto paper.
Don’t ask me to fix your dishwasher…I’ll give you back some contraption that is nothing like what it used to be. Oh, and I’ll probably mark it up to give it “character.”
Hey You!!
I’m gonna make this quick…
I couldn’t do any of this without my family. Nor could I do this without all the readers. You guys are amazing—the new, the old, and the returning. Amazing, I tell ya!
Lauren Runow…without Trevin and Lily’s story, I doubt I would’ve been able to sit back and see Killian and Rylee as kids. So thank you for opening my eyes, even when you had no idea you’d done so lol.
Stephie…this is normally where I call you a whore, so why change things that aren’t broken? Thank you for your notes, your talks, and your amazing feedback. You’re the greatest whore of them all.
My TWOTs…I can’t imagine doing any of this without the six of y’all. Thank you for being there when I needed someone to sprint with, or when I just needed help organizing my thoughts.
Sarah and Joy…I can’t even begin to tell you how valuable you both are to me. You make my crazy life a little easier to manage.
Julie…I’m so glad you’ve joined my team! You’re amazing!
Kristie…
Emily…probably my biggest supporter through this whole thing. I can’t thank you enough. I love you more than you can possibly know, and I honestly don’t know where I’d be without you.
Josie…thank you for making my words pretty.
Robin…Oh dear Lord! Even though I probably made your life hell with my cover changes, you rocked my socks like always. I can’t imagine ever putting out a book without your covers again. You are like Monet with book covers. So sorry this one was such a pain in the ass, but nothing compares to the reaction I got when I saw this one. Thank you!
Marlo…You are my life lobster. I seriously can’t remember you not being in my life, and can’t imagine you never being here. I love you more than you know!
Amanda…You had me at “you coupon?” and you’ve never let go! I shluv you!
Crystal…Best Friend…I’m still waiting for you to tell me this is the one HAHA. I guess I shall keep writing.
Kristie…I figured it wouldn’t be nice to leave yours blank. And since I’m a nice person, I added you again. Suck it.
Readers, bloggers, people of the world…I can’t say thank you enough! Honestly, you keep me going when I don’t always feel like I can. Thank you for everything!
About the Author
Leddy Harper had to use her imagination often as a child. She grew up the only girl in a house full of boys. At the age of fourteen, she decided to use that imagination and wrote her first book, and never stopped. She often calls writing her therapy, using it as a way to deal with issues through the eyes of her characters.
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She is now a mother of three girls, leaving her husband as the only man in a house full of females. The decision to publish her first book was made as a way of showing her children to go after whatever it is they want to. Love what you do and do it well. And to teach them what it means to overcome their fears.
Follow Leddy:
@LeddyHarper
AuthorLeddyHarper
www.LeddyHarper
[email protected]
Also by Leddy Harper
Home No More
My Biggest Mistake
Falling to Pieces
Take Your Time
Beautiful Boy
Eminent Love
Resuscitate Me
The Boy Next Door: Novella (FREE)
Lust