Blog – Page 2 – Vintage City Publishing

December 15, 2019

VICIOUS CIRCLE – CHAPTER SIX

Paul woke tangled in sheets damp with sweat and twisted in knots, as if he had spent the night thrashing from a fever dream. The phone was blaring beside his bed. He couldn’t remember his dreams, but he was sure Audrey featured in them. He was sure Matrix had made an appearance, as well.

His hand found the phone and managed to bring it to his ear without him having to open his eyes. “Yeah?”

“What do you mean, ‘yeah’?” Joey’s voice. “Paulie, is that how you answer the phone? Not hello, but yeah?”

November 29, 2019

My Brief Fling With Hollywood

Maybe I’m wrong, but I think just about every writer has the dream of seeing their work adapted for television or the movies. Or anywhere, really, where our work will get exposed to a wider audience.

I’ve always thought my book, AUTUMN MOON, would make a great television series. Or at the very least, a movie (with options for sequels, of course).

It was about two years ago when I came across a Facebook post from a friend.

November 10, 2019

VICIOUS CIRCLE – CHAPTER FIVE

“Manny, pull the car around. We’re leaving.”

Manny hadn’t noticed Dominic walk up. He was engrossed in a dirty joke Little John was telling. He looked at Dominic, then at Audrey. He stood up without a word, buttoned his jacket, and downed the rest of his coffee.

Dominic said, “Pull around the back to the kitchen. We’ll meet you there.”

“Excuse me?” Audrey said. “I have some packages in Joe’s car. We did some shopping earlier.” She wasn’t demanding about it, but Dominic got the impression she wasn’t asking either.

“Joe will bring them back. He’s only going to be another hour or two.”

“I’d like to have them now. There are two dresses that really should be hung up. I’d like to put the other items away before I go to bed.”

Manny glanced at Dominic, one eyebrow arched. Dominic stared back, an unspoken conversation between them.

“Get Joe’s driver to load them in the back seat,” Dominic said finally. “Then pull the car around.”

October 20, 2019October 20, 2019

VICIOUS CIRCLE – CHAPTER FOUR

The lines of resistance were thick in the air as Dominic walked toward them. A magnetic force buffeted him; two polar opposites being pressed together.

Dominic walked up and said, “You’re new.”

Joey answered, “This is Paul Romano. Paulie.”

Dominic glanced at Joey. “Nice tux, Joey. You going to perform magic tricks later?”

“Har har,” Joey said. “You’re always good for a laugh, Carelli.”

“When’s your father coming?” Dominic let his voice grow bored and dismissive. Maintaining a conversation with Joey was tedious work. Besides, he was more interested in watching Paul’s reaction.

The guy put up a calm front, but Dominic could see the turmoil beneath the surface. A flicker of his eyes, a slight twitch of his mouth. The man was keeping something locked up, and he knew Joey was too dim to pick up on it.

Joey said, “He should be here any time. He’s bringing his new girl. Wants to make an entrance and show her off.”

“I heard she’s younger than you, Joey. Does that bother you?” He smirked.

There were few things that gave Dominic satisfaction these days. Pissing off Joey was one of them.

September 21, 2019

VICIOUS CIRCLE – CHAPTER THREE

NOW:

Paul checked himself in the rearview mirror and found it hard to recognize the man staring back. The blond hair was longer than his FBI days and stylishly cut, but an occasional errant strand of hair threatened to stage a rebellion. Contact lenses had replaced his wire-rimmed glasses.

Gone were the days of bargain basement clothing and do-it-yourself tailoring. Now it was Italian silk suits, usually gray or light blue, Egyptian cotton shirts, and calfskin shoes as soft as cashmere. No tie, just the top two buttons of his shirt left open to show off the gold chain and dangling Italian horn, lest anyone question his lineage.

He had been living this façade for almost a year, gradually easing into the Tagliani family lifestyle. It was important he didn’t rush things, that he allow his employers to decide how quickly he rose in the organization. If Paul took one misstep, he knew it could be fatal. And his employers were cautious.

August 25, 2019August 26, 2019

VICIOUS CIRCLE – CHAPTER TWO

Walter Donlan, senior accountant for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, sat with two of the strangest FBI agents he had ever met. If they hadn’t shown him their badges and ID cards, he would have guessed they were solicitors for an international cosmetic company.

The agent in charge, Monty Halloran, was the head of a new task force on organized crime, although the paperwork he had showed Walter was vague in describing their directives. He was tall enough to have to stoop when he came through the door. Walter judged him to be about 6’6”.

Halloran’s head was shaved, and around his neck, he wore a silver chain with a monocle, which he brought to his eye when scrutinizing Walter’s framed certificates and pictures on the wall. Underneath his right eye was a deep red scar that made his eye bulge and his top lip sneer.

August 11, 2019August 25, 2019

New Fiction (and Commentary)

For those of you clamoring for new fiction from me (all five of you), here’s the first chapter of an unpublished novel. Every few weeks, I’ll post another chapter along with my author commentary. I hope you like it. And if you don’t…well… just keep scrolling.

VICIOUS CIRCLE

by Slade Grayson

Chapter One

A year ago:

In a Northern New Jersey strip mall, Charlie Grace sat at the brass-railed bar of Kelsey’s Food and Sprits and sipped his drink—a mixture of Kahlua and cream. It tasted like chocolate milk but had a decidedly stronger kick. The cream gave his stomach a thick coating to buffer the alcohol, which was good because Charlie had been having stomach problems, probably the start of an ulcer, although he refused to admit it. He resolved to lay off Mexican food for a while and maybe chew some Tums. He thought thirty-six was too young for a man to have to worry about his diet, but he didn’t relish the thought of going to a doctor either. What if it wasn’t an ulcer? Thoughts of stomach cancer nagged at him and kept him awake at night. Charlie also thought thirty-six was too young to have to worry about ulcers and cancer.

July 29, 2019

HOW TO GET REVIEWS OF YOUR BOOKS!

But not, like, a bazillion. Because let’s be honest, if I knew that, I’d be too busy filling a private pool with dollar bills and diving in. And if you happen to already be one of those lucky authors who has thousands of reviews on Amazon and Goodreads, A – this post is not for you and B – please tell me your secrets, including which dark lord you made a sacrifice to and what said sacrifice was. I’d love to know. For research purposes.

Continue reading “HOW TO GET REVIEWS OF YOUR BOOKS!”

June 10, 2019

Anatomy of an Ending

There is a popular sentiment that stories, like life, are about the journey, not the ending. I think good fiction has to differentiate itself from life, so stories are about the journey and the ending.

Maybe I’m hopelessly morbid, but I think about death all the time. I know I’m not the only one, but how I’m going to check out is constantly on my mind. It doesn’t frighten me or stop me from living, but like a good story, I do want to know how it all ends. Like reading a good story, though, I’m not eager to get there. It’s a paradox. I don’t want it to end.

You can stop psychoanalyzing me now.