"Believe you can and you're halfway there"
Theodore Roosevelt
Behind the Scenes
Questions for me
If you wonder how I came up with something or anything else, just shoot me an email! Even if I don't remember, I'll get back to you.
Pushing our Boundaries
Background Information and Details
From the first chapter to the last, some info about the creation process of my first novel. Enjoy!
Chapter 1
Food trucks
Though the names of the trucks I used are made up, those dishes are on some menus I found when searching for Mid-western food trucks.
Fake or Real – Legacy Theatre
Real and spelled correctly (more info later)
Name Game – Mr. Henderson
Full name: Bruce Henderson. First of many Beatles references. His last name is from the song Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite
Name Game – Garrett
Although there's no significance to the names of Danica and Joe beside the fact I liked them, Garrett's name went through a few changes. I didn't finally decide on his current name until I was almost done writing. I had too many guys (and Danica) whose names started with “D” so his got changed.
Name game – Lizzy
Garret's wife, Elizabeth. Called Liz by Danica and Joe, and Lizzy by her husband Garrett. Another Beatles name taken from the song title Dizzy Miss Lizzy. I had a section I wrote early in the writing process that gave more background info on her name, but when I got back to that section where you meet her, it wasn't needed anymore.
Chapter 2
Music – Power of Love
I didn't insert music just because I did or didn't like a song. Though most songs I picked are ones I like. Pretty much every song in this novel has a reason, including the lyrics I chose from this song. The power of love is a curious thing. Make a one man weep, make another man sing. I picked it due to the hotwife connotations that would be upcoming in this novel.
FoR – Los Rancheros
Real. There are two, one in Springfield and one in Jacksonville (near a Home Depot). Although the restaurant they chose for dinner, Rio Marcos, is fake. It wouldn't surprise me if there is one somewhere. The fake name came from a mash of a chain and a city.
Napkins
I spent five-ten minutes finding out what decent restaurant napkins are made from. The things you learn.
I have never really thought my descriptions were great. The red dress Danica wore, you can buy on the internet.. shoes too. Same for a few of her clothes later on. Where? Not a clue...been too long since I googled what I was looking for, and I'm sure what I typed to begin with is nowhere near to where I ended. I really liked the zipper on the front and knew that was something I could use for the upcoming scene.
Music – Givin the Dog a Bone
A very good album that Joe would have purchased. The song was not picked solely because of its lyrics but also based on time. Based on a real approximation of where in the drive he turned on the album to how far they would have been into their drive, this song would have been playing. Plus, it's the perfect song for what Danica is about to do. Go read the lyrics.
An extra bit of info, this wasn't the actual song I picked when I wrote this scene. It stayed that way until the final edit when I reran the time and based it on the drive. I had to switch songs, and this one is a better choice given the scene.
FoR – Exit 68 and 64
Real! Although it would have been quicker to take either Old Hwy 36 or 104 instead of I-72 based on the vague location of their house, outside Alexander.
Name Game – Riley
Riley was an actual hostess at a chain restaurant I ate when writing this book. No reason other than I liked the name.
Joe likes sweet tea. So do I. It's a southern thing.
The ingredients on the Mexican sliders comes from a recipe I found online. So does Swineapple later in the story.
The mention about the book where the husband shares his wife on a Caribbean vacation is a nod to Ben Boswell's works and The Best Hotwife Erotica: Summer Confessions. I know these talented authors have also written great hotwife beach vacation material.
Teaser - One of my planned scenes for Book 2 will involve something mentioned in this chapter.
Chapter 3
FoR – Pepper's Drive-In
Fake....sorta. I had this great idea for them to go to a drive-in but I wanted it to be unique. Something I would want to go see. Obviously, this level of detail would not be possible and keep a business in the black, but hey, it's fiction.
The first name I came up with was Starlight or something like that. So, I went searching to make sure there wouldn't be any named that close to where my story takes place. There actually is, named Starlite, and it's just a few hours away from the Jacksonville/Springfield IL. area. Then I found another one that actually does show a mixture of old and new movies. I kept my idea anyway. There was so much I could do with it.
But what about the name? Aha! Another Beatles reference. Yeah, there a number of them.
Also Real. The movies playing at the fake “Mega 24” were what was actually showing Memorial Day weekend in 2016.
A lot of research went into making the descriptions of the Hill Valley and high school sets as close to the movies as possible. A few hours minimum. I wanted details to be as spot-on as I could get them.
88.9 FM is the frequency the local drive-in uses for their audio broadcast.
Slo Poke! Yes, I like the candy bar. Plus, I knew I could use it for some jokes. It came out in 1926 – no I'm not that old, I have google. They can be hard to find, so it's more of a treat if I come across one. It's not my favorite...just one I like.
In case you haven't seen The Breakfast Club, go see it. There are a few lines straight from the movie in the concession scene. This scene took a lot of work to make it feel right for me. Homage to the movie, but yet still fit and flow with the story, and not be seen as filler.
Chapter 4
$40 bra. Joe and Danica don't live in a major city or have any nearby. The current population of Springfield is 115 thousand, and Jacksonville is less than 20 thousand. I wanted to portray Danica as an average woman who may splurge occasionally but doesn't have expensive designer clothes. Or if she does, it would only be a very small selection, and something she would rarely wear. So, I asked my wife what would be the max she'd pay for that type of bra. She gave me a range pretty close to what I was thinking. There's a Kohl's in Springfield so that worked perfectly.
Name Game – Dean
A nod to one of our favorite television shows, Supernatural. Dean has a brother mentioned later in the book named Sam, who Dean affectionately calls Sammy.
I love the drive-in threesome scene. Perhaps Danica went too fast, but she wants to keep pushing Joe, and he wants to see what's next. He's just afraid to admit it because it's such a switch from what he's used to. And from here to the rest of the book the action happens quickly without either having much time to pause or tap the brakes. Could have I spanned it out over a few weeks or months? Sure, but I didn't want either of them, especially Joe, to have a chance to relax, waffle, and be wishy-washy more than he already was. Mmm...waffles.
Chapter 5
Name Game – Rita
Some names are just names picked out of the sky, but not in Rita's case. Yep, again another Beatles references, and her name was picked from the song Lovely Rita. Though not a meter maid, she could easily tow a heart away. And of course “towing the heart” fits perfectly with her husband's tow truck business.
Chapter 7
there are no tidbits for C6
Google Maps is nice. The best way to get to the theater from Alexander is taking the directions I stated. I-72, to MacArthur, to Lawrence. The intersection where the wreck almost occurs and the parking lot of the theater are thanks to Maps and the street views.
“I almost peed in my pants, but yeah, I'm okay.”
--- one of my favorite lines from the movie Pretty Woman.
Old Lady at Opera: “Did you like the opera, dear?”
Vivian: “It was so good, I almost peed my pants!”
Edward: “She said she liked it better than Pirates of Penzance.”
Chapter 8
The Legacy Theatre – Damn I spent a lot of time researching this place...especially without ever being there. Although I'm sure they would highly frown on (and you could get arrested) if you acted like Joe, Dani, and the others.
I wanted a real prodution theater for this scene. Jacksonville didn't have a good enough one, but The Legacy was exactly what I was looking for. By visiting any page I could find with info on it (website, facebook, online local paper, pics from people, and who knows what else), I think I got a lot of the descriptions pretty good. After digging for info, I had a four-page document with links, pics, specs, reviews, and yes, even a seating chart. BTW, if anyone has actually visited this theater, drop me an email to let me know how close I was.
The musicals mentioned (Newsies, Sister Act) did perform there. And the full article on the haunted aspects was pretty interesting. If you're interested (or like reading about ghost hunters), here's an in-depth link p71-82. The first couple of pages of this story also appear elsewhere.:
<p>https://books.google.com/books?id=O5PLrGXC3_MC&pg=PA72&lpg=PA72&dq=legacy+theatre+joe+haunting&source=bl&ots=5MBSXVVF5z&sig=gyvwzq2diTgnh8T0uJgFBI-DJdQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiQt_rt4NvcAhUCylMKHX0FAK0Q6AEwCXoECAYQAQ#v=onepage&q=legacy%20theatre%20joe%20haunting&f=false</p>
I don't think any acts, like ones on America's Got Talent (what WGT came from), have performed there, but it also wouldn't surprise me if some had.
Here's another factoid. This novel blossomed from the rough draft I made of this scene a year prior to this being published. I may expand on this story later if anyone is curious.
I also loved writing the first act, the comedian interacting with Joe. That came pretty easy and was fun to write. The “alligator arms” bit was something I expanded on after watching a Geico commercial featuring that idea. Also, I incorporated an old op-ed from the Dallas Morning News (I think) that I had posted in my room when I was a kid comparing the Lakers fans to the Mavs fans when they met in the conference finals back in 88. The only line I could remember and I'm sure it's not exact was the Laker fans came late and left early.
Monument Valley (1) – One of the best apps I've played. The music is very relaxing and the game makes you think.
Name Game – Lolli and Candy
When I got to this point, I wanted some pet names, the cheesier the better, even stripper-ish was fine...as long as it fit. Lolli came to mind first, from the song Lollipop by The Chordettes in 1958. I had that name before I even thought of her real name (Lily, and later on Lilith). Since I had Lolli, Candy followed shortly after. I did do a bit of searching and went with the song by Cameo even after perusing the lyrics to see if anything fit. Nothing did, but I kept the name.
FoR – The Groove
Fake. Completely made up. Title from the referenced 1990 song by Deee-Lite. Although I could see it being real somewhere.
Music - Cheesy boy band song
This was the only song I didn't know and really went looking for. I was hoping to find something better, a song I liked and had lyrics I was looking for, but I didn't find squat. I would have dumped this idea, but the lyrics fit well...and so it stayed. Also, Danica might have known it when she was younger. (It came out in 1998, reached #10 Billboard US).
Chapter 9
The Morphing clothes act
This happened on AGT in 2017 when the act Oskar and Gaspar put judge Heidi Klum in a white bodysuit then showed various images on her body that morphed from one thing into another. It was a really cool and different idea.
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HKw0UWDcWA
The flags have some significance as they relate to the home countries of some authors that have helped me and that I have helped also. In case you're unsure (in order of appearance): US, England, Canada, and New Zealand. After this part, the characters, you the readers, and I really didn't care about the rest of this act or the main one. It wasn't necessary to the story so I didn't write it.
Music – You Oughta Know
This was a planned-before-writing song. When listening to the lyrics, I knew that line would be ideal for this scene, and in my head, I had the perfect place for it. Sometimes I have scenes in my head and when I hear a song on the radio, on a rare occasion I'll think this might work in my book for an upcoming scene...make a note of it.
Chapter 10
Double D Towing
I had fun with the name of this one. I hadn't even considered Dean's last name yet. I had a number of suggestive ideas in my head, but I liked this one the best. Even thought about making it a father/son business and mentioning his Dad's name started with a “D”...but that idea was cut before I even wrote it. I also researched towing business cards to see what actual information is on there, and then I gave the card a professional look since it is his business...even though the company's name has a sexual tone.
FoR – RMC Cinema
Real. You'll notice I mentioned the Mega 24 in Chapter 3. Those are two different theaters. Mega 24 is fake and was more of a generic name. RMC is a nice theater but only has six screens. Nearby, Springfield's largest cinema (as far as I can tell) only has twelve screens.
Lennon vs Walsh vs Vaughn
Although to a degree it's subjective, most publications put George Harrison and Stevie Ray Vaughn near or in the Top 10 of all time greatest guitarists. Joe Walsh is usually in the top 50. John Lennon sometimes makes a list of Top 100. He was highly underrated and overlooked and mainly a rhythm guitarist.
Here's an article with good comments: https://www.quora.com/How-did-John-Lennon-rate-as-a-guitarist
Chapter 11
FoR – Red Electra wine
Real. I'm not a wine drinker, but it's a brand that I'll drink. It's a California Moscato with a fruity taste. More info: https://shop.quadywinery.com/product/Red-Electra-750ml
Just how old are Joe and Danica??? My initial, thrown away, blurb mentioned it, but I removed that just to be vague. Their age is never completely disclosed, but a lot of info is dropped in the story when Joe tells about getting his vasectomy. Danica had her Laparoscopy surgery in her twenties (some women have had this at age 26). Two years later Joe had his vasectomy.
The current story takes place about six years later. So, IF Danica had her surgery at that age, they would be around 34, but since I didn't say exactly, I just said twenties, she could be 37. Joe's close to the same age in case you're curious.
Music – Concrete Blonde – Joey
I had both girls sing a made-up line from this song. Since they were both past tipsy, they altered the words to fit the situation.
Chapter 12
Liz “What about second breakfast?”
Great line from the first movie in The Lord of the Rings (Fellowship), and my dog (a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel) wishes he got to eat like a hobbit. http://quotegeek.com/quotes-from-movies/the-lord-of-the-rings-the-fel/6197/
There are a couple more LOTR references in this book.
Chapter 15&16
These chapters were packed full of action and were fun to write. Between what happened at the office and the sex store, another new exploration of something neither Joe nor Danica would have tried...without some pushing.
Like mentioned before, the outfits they are wearing were found online. This may be Rita's outfit, but I can't be positive I was on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Dreamgirl-Leather-Bustier-Attached-Matching/dp/B074MKQH45
Music – November Rain – GnR
Yes, I do like this song, but I picked it for other reasons. For one thing, I needed a long song, one that I could see Joe cranking if he was alone in the office. While Slash is belting out his solo, Joe has no clue that Bruce has returned. He's lost in the song and the pics.
A bit of interesting info that got cut at the beginning of the next chapter: Before the girls return to the office, Joe mentions that it started raining outside, and Bruce confirms it from what he saw when getting food. If you go back to the very beginning of the story, the radio DJ mentions much-needed rain rolls in Tuesday evening. The office scene takes place on Tuesday evening, and I wrote these two scenes months apart. I had no clue it worked out like that until I did some proofreading after I had finished the story.
Furniture - black chaise lounger
This is very much real...and will cost you about $600. It's the Liberator Black Label Esse. https://www.liberator.com/black-label-esse.html
“Got any popcorn?” This is a reference to a line that was cut out of the beginning draft in the theater scene where Danica moved to the row with the other couple and without Joe. She was referring to Terrell Owens' famous line “Get your popcorn ready, 'cause it's going to be a show today.”
Here's a link that shows the flogger Rita uses on Dani: https://www.amazon.com/Straight-Knobbed-Flogger-Leather-Choice/dp/B06XHK1YSS .
It was funny when I just googled to find an image, Groupon came up with this item. But...the deal had already ended. The things you can find on sale.
Sometime during writing the office scene, I decided Joe wasn't going to have intercourse with any female again (in this story) besides Danica. I wanted to pull the plotline back away from him likely having sex with Rita and get it towards the direction of Danica with Dean. This also moved the direction slightly away from being a swinger story and more towards the original idea of hotwife.
Joe already had his other woman. I knew there would be an opportunity in the final scene, but I stayed away from going there. He does get very close in this scene, but there was never any insertion.
Music - “Cage”
I had fun with this one though it took a bit of searching to find what I was looking for. The songs Joe hears from his alarm radio usually have significance, either to his current situation or how the upcoming day may be. Something relevant.
Soundgarden's Rusty Cage was a good fit, and then I searched a number of Lock and Key businesses for types of slogans or what they would say in a commercial.
Did I stop there? No, I was having too much fun and kept the joke running. I received an actual text the morning I wrote that scene from a local BBQ restaurant. So, I changed the name and just slightly altered the text.
And finally....yep there's one more. The hold music, Stevie Wonder's Isn't she Lovely. Good song and I could easily see it playing while on hold when calling a business. But....the album that song is on? Songs in the Key of Life.
Damn You Autocorrect
A beta reader informed me that CAPS are a bit harder to do on a phone especially when in a hurry. So I changed out two lines that originally said WHERE'S THE KEYS??? and TO THE CAGE!!! I wanted something interesting but actually popped up. So, I typed each one really quick (at least 50 times) to see what popped up.
The eventual winner to line one was: Abraham the Mets. Other interesting ones were:
where atheists may
shredded s the key s
where's the jets
where Feb keys
For line two the winner was: To the cave.
Not many weird ones popped up...most of the time it got it right except To Yeh Cage appeared a few times.
Chapter 17
The keychain.
Another one I had a lot of fun writing was the craziness with the keys and keychain. But what's with the Donut Pug? I searched for a while looking for a cute keychain I could see Danica having. This is the image: https://www.forfansbyfans.com/puglie-pug-donut-keychain-17745.html
[Rita]: He can't wait until that's buried deep inside you
Typo? Not even. Another hint of Dean's bisexuality.
Resistance was futile.
Reference to the Borg in the Star Trek series. They usually said, “Resistance is futile.” And a bit of Google info, the phrase appeared in an early Dr. Who episode.
Chapter 18
Music – Good Day Sunshine, The Beatles
This is a nice, happy, cheery song. In this story, it's supposed to signify that Joe may have a good day, that his luck may finally turn. It's the end of the week, and soon his cage will come off. Maybe today, things will start going right for him. The lyrics I picked also signifies he knows he has a hotwife and he loves her the way she is.
Chapter 19
FoR - Dean's white robe.
Fake, at least I hope. I dialed crazy up a few notches when describing this outfit. I wanted it to be as outrageous as I could think of. The plum outfit was a real one I found online.
Thanks to Google maps for directions to Dean and Rita's house. If you were to go from Alexander to New Berlin and took the interstate, the directions they took are almost exactly what you would see. At least to the railroad tracks. From there I just made up some generic roads, what would fit in the area.
FoR – The A-frame house.
Very real. It was on the market when I googled the house. I wanted something unique for them and had room for his work vehicles. Though it's not located exactly where I said, it's a few miles away. A lot of the descriptions of the exterior and interior along with the barn, field, and creek at the edge of the property are almost as described. One difference I did fudge were the rooms in the basement. The floorplan is not exactly like that. https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/295-S-Farmingdale-Rd_New-Berlin_IL_62670_M81620-32983#photo2
The Playrooms – Danica
I added things I thought Danica, and my wife, would have wanted if they had a room of their own and could design it with fun and relaxing things. I also googled looking at other female caves and took some of the fun things from what I read.
The Playrooms – Dean
This one I went all out on. What would Dean want, and me too for that matter? I spent a good bit of time online searching for all kinds of items to stock in here from the neon signs, to the jersey, jukebox, and more. How does all this stuff fit in a room? Perhaps you should temporarily suspend disbelief. ;) I could have easily gone into more descriptions of the items in the room, but I was already starting to overdo it.
Bondage device – the Humbler
Rita says “drumsticks with rubber bands”. Way before even writing this book, I read another book that used a device called a humbler. I had no clue what it was so I googled it. Someone even did a DIY with drumsticks and rubber bands. It does work, but it's easier to slip out of than the real device. You can google what it does and looks like, but let’s just say when a man has his privates in this position, he will not be standing tall and will figure out real quick it's easier, and less painful, to crawl. Here's a good review of one: https://thegrittywoman.com/uberkinky-humbler
Chapter 20
The Wurlitzer
Real...and the price is real, $6000. Found the listing on eBay. This isn't the exact one, but it's pretty close: https://www.ronsusser.com/inventory/listing/wurlitzer-1015-bubbler-jukebox-fully-restored-fully-operational-with-optional-preamp/
When stocking the jukebox, I made sure to check that all groups and songs listed were available as 45s.
Song 402 – One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer – George Thorogood
This was the second song that was picked before writing. I knew there would be a man cave scene, but I was still chapters away from actually writing it. When I heard this song on the radio one day, I knew I had to add it to the scene. It was a good bonding moment for the guys.
Valley and punk speak
Since the girls were dressing the part, I wanted the language to fit the costumes. When searching phrases I found the phrase penis-breath, from the movie ET. It was a perfect choice especially for what was about to happen.
Joe's blindfold
or should I say my sleep mask. This is what I use. Could it be used for a blindfold, sure. It blocks out almost all light, but if you wiggle your nose enough, you'd be able to move it to see some of what's going on. But for sleeping, it's great when your partner has the tv on. I've used a few others from that site, and a few cheapies before, but I prefer this one. https://www.dreamessentials.com/product-48/sweet-dreams-sleep-mask-with-carry-pouch-and-earplugs
During the initial blindfold scene, I tried to make sure that only two mouths were on Dean at once. I didn't want him realizing Dean was involved until it was too late. For example, “I thrust forward trying to get more of my shaft in my wife's mouth.” At the time Rita was giving him something to drink. He automatically thought it was his wife since he couldn't see. Who was doing what I intentionally left vague since Joe's telling the story. He just assumes it's the girls.
When the “object that is hard with a rubbery top” enters the picture, Joe unknowingly is part of a frottage scene, one Danica takes a lot of delight participating in. Again I wanted to keep it vague because Joe still hasn't realized or admitted to himself what is really going on.
Chapter 21 & Final Thoughts
Why's this book so damn long? Haha. A few scenes were in my mind early on in the writing process, the drive-in, the theater, and Joe being strapped to the pole. I just had to figure out how to link them. Sure, it happens over a very short time-frame, but I still needed some steps that push each of them toward their sexual encounter with Dean at the end. For a while, I wasn't even positive when and where Danica would cross her final boundary. It almost happened at the office with his boss, but I didn't care for that idea, not for her first time. And the incident with Donovan at the store didn't really count in anyone's mind.
When I was halfway done writing, I actually thought I was closer to 2/3 done. But I kept thinking of stuff that happened during that week, and not all of it made it to the story.
In case you didn't read that far, the first two lines in the Afterword: You're still here? The book's over. is a nod to the end credits scene in the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off.