Transit Installment 32
It's a sex thing, Right?
Shun, Shantrelle and Lovely are on port call in Vietnam, leaving Jessamyn aboard the MV Andaman Pearl rather than joining them in a country which provokes painful memories.
Jessamyn's reflections turn to her growing erotic feelings. She's conflicted by her attraction to Lovely, that "total sexual gift basket." She's old enough to be Lovely's mother and she has protective feelings for her that feel maternal. That complicates the situation with Lovely.
Lagac is another matter. He's old enough to be fair game. Jessamyn’s musings lead to remembrances of sexual experiences in college — not many, but intense and varied. There was, of course her boyfriend Pyotr whose addiction destroyed their relationship. And her brief same-sex fling with an Austrian exchange student, Elsa, that allowed her husband to label her an "ugly bull dyke" when he was particularly abusive.
She was not, of course, either ugly or lesbian. But if a naked young woman reads Sappho to you, sitting between your thighs, or gins up a threesome and a foursome with a couple of boyfriends, small wonder erotic memories sometimes pop into your mind. With Lovely and Lagac throwing off sexual sparks, Jessamyn's dormant sexual feelings refuse to lie dormant any longer. There is more to life than she now has and she wants it.
Meanwhile, Transit continues to gain exposure. My author interview with BookView Review has been published online and posted to social media. It was great fun to talk more about the novel and my process in writing it
Cartons of Transit continue to arrive, which is a good thing since the next few days bring opportunities to promote Transit and Grandmother's Devil & Other Tempting Tales at the "Books and Bites" author fair in Berkeley, hosted by the Mt. Diablo and Berkeley branches of the California Writes Club. A couple days later I'll have copies for sale at the Benicia Literary Arts Holiday party.
You can still get a free copy, for the next five days, by subscribing to "Marty Writes Stories," if you haven't already done so. Just let me know you would like a copy of Transit and provide your email and snail mail address. Of course, I'll continue to serialize the book under the Novels tab of this Substack. But here's your chance to read it all right now.
Thanks to all of you who have provided encouragement by subscribing. Your support means everything to me.