How this summer inspired my writing

Hi Reader,

I hope you enjoyed your summer and were able to relax and rejuvenate!

My summer can be summed up in three words: reading, writing, and relaxing.

I spent a relaxing week on the German island of Sylt, taking in the sights. My reading inspired me to dust off an old manuscript and take another shot at fixing it. Scroll below to learn more about that manuscript, see photos of Sylt, and the books I read.

Until next month!

Take care,

Delise Torres

Puerto Rican Author and Book Coach

https://delisetorres.com/

Writing Update

This summer, I was finally motivated to revise the first book I ever wrote. Pulling Me Back In is a second chance romance about a messy on/off relationship, mostly inspired by Carrie and Big in Sex and the City. After failing to land a literary agent, I put it aside. I knew it needed revising but I didn't know how, until a few years ago, when I realized I needed to include the point of view of the hero. But even then, I was hesitant to fix it. I thought the story was old fashioned and unmarketable (there's cheating involved, which is a no-no in the romance genre). But the book kept pulling me back in (pun intended), and after reading Happy Place by Emily Henry (which also features a second-chance romance), I finally decided to go for it. I'll never be able to know if I can sell it until I try. So I'm going for it! I already added the second POV and changed a few things. I still have to read it to see if it works so that I can do a more thorough revision before I send it to my agent and get her opinion.
I got the feedback from my agent for Project Husband last week and it was very positive. Just a few more tweaks and it should be ready for submission! I'm aiming to finish it by next month.

Life Update

Sylt is one of the largest German islands in the North Sea, with 25 miles of sandy beach. The weather was cool and unpredictable, going from sunny to cloudy to rainy within hours and then back again. A day on the beach consisted of me staying in one of those beach chairs (Strandkörbe) reading Happy Place while my husband and daughter had fun in the sea. I also ate one of the best fish soups I've had in a long time and took a tour of the Wadden Sea (Wattenmeer), the bottom soil that is exposed during low tide.

Book Recommendations

Ana Takes Manhattan by Lissette Decos - this is a very quirky book about a woman who feels she'll never find her perfect man, so she decides to date four different men who each fit one of her requirements. The sillyness of the book took me a while to get into but I'm glad I stuck with it. Ana grows a lot during the story, eventually finding her true love.
Happy Place by Emily Henry - this book reminded me a lot of People You Meet on Vacation with its dual timeline and the mystery of why Harriet and Wyn broke up. I loved the Maine setting and the friendships. Emily Henry does a great job of creating characters with distinct personalities that you'd enjoy hanging out with.
Float Plan by Trish Doller - this is a very simple romance about a woman who sets out to sail through the Caribbean after her fiancé's suicide. She enlists the help of an experienced sailor to reach her final destination of Trinidad. The descriptions of the sailing and the islands were so vivid, it felt like I was experiencing this voyage with the characters (the author's husband is a sailor and they often take these trips). Since I don't think I'll ever try sailing, it was great to live this experience through a novel.
The Layover by Lacie Waldon - I'm still reading this book but I love that it's written by a former flight attendant and how the author incorporates her career into the story. This is a haters-to-lovers slow burn romance with lots of banter and great chemistry between the characters.

“A simply riveting, fun and funny read from first page to last, ONE TOUGH COOKIE is all the more impressive when considering that it is author Delise Torres’ debut as a novelist.”