When a reader picks up a book and begins an adventure with characters in worlds real or imaginary, they usually never see the pages of back-story not included, or scenes cut because they just didn’t fit, flow, or move the plot forward.
With Storm of Arranon, I wrote over 80,000 words on people, places, passions, situations, and motivations necessary for me, but not for the finished book. These are good words and great stories. Every page gives insight into my characters and their worlds. Yet they sit quietly inside my computer, destined for obscurity.
Until now.
I received a suggestion from a reader wanting more. Woo Hoo!

Okay, back to the suggestion. Make these deleted excerpts a blog, like back-story Wednesday or something. Let readers get a history that is a bit more personal and detailed.
Cool! I’ll do it!
Sooooo, here is my first excerpt. I know, it’s not Wednesday. I’ll do another this week and officially start back-story Wednesday.
Erynn—
Erynn stood before her open closet and reached for a uniform. Her hand stopped just before grasping the familiar garment.
This is a meeting with a representative of Arranon’s military. But we aren’t meeting in a military setting.
She envisioned her entrance into to the elegant restaurant wearing a uniform and the unwanted attention a military presence would cause. She sighed with resignation.
No, this occasion calls for a different solution.
She stared, remaining undecided with the selections in front of her.
Erynn spun away from the closet. The lack of variety in outfits only reminded her how limited her life had become. Being a pilot felt right, more than enough. She hadn’t needed anything else. Her existence seemed shallow now. Thoughts of her mother, Alessa, crept into her mind.
I can’t do this. I’m not like her. I’m not like anyone.
According to everyone who had known her, Alessa possessed a beauty, charm, and poise Erynn could only dream of attaining. Erynn’s grandparents, Alessa’s parents, reminded her of this each time she visited. They expressed their disapproval of her choices, from being a fighter pilot, to not spending more time with them, in their world of endless parties and socializing with only the ‘best’ people.
I wish you were here, mom.
She didn’t often find herself in a situation that caused her to think of her mother. When these rare instances did occur, Erynn felt Alessa’s absence in her life as a deep sense of loss and an empty ache in her chest.
Erynn pushed unruly curls from her face and gazed back into the mystifying depths of her closet.

Want to learn Erynn’s solution to her fashion dilemma? Check out Wednesday’s blog.