Without You: Showing the Real Side of Married Life
As an author, the biggest compliment I’ve ever received is that my fiction is extremely realistic. I don’t pride myself on a “sunshine and rainbows” approach, even if I’m writing about love. Love is hard, and marriage is even harder. There are difficult moments, harsh moments, moments filled with expletives. There are moments of giving up, moments of messing up, and moments when you just ask why.
Love is a gorgeous sentiment, a moving emotion. It is the most powerful emotion a human can feel and incites the most magical moments in our lives. However, as a woman and a writer, I seek to showcase both sides of love, the good and the bad.
A big reason why I wrote Without You is to highlight the idea that whether you are married or single, love is complicated. Married women face as many obstacles and struggles as single women. The book’s about self-identity, the complications of love, and the struggles we face trying to balance our love life with who we are.
Below is an excerpt from Jenna, the married character in Without You. I hope that married women will connect with her, will find themselves in her. I know I did as I was writing.
“Marriage is hard. It’s not all candlelight dinners and sexy lingerie and roses. It’s not stolen kisses and passionate compliments. It’s not mindless strolls in the park and unconditional thrills. Sometimes marriage is about the stress of work, the tedium of day-to-day living in the middle class, and even boredom. It’s wearing your holey T-shirts from your college days instead of that sexy satin top. It’s “a pony tail will suffice” instead of luscious curls. It’s trading in your uncomfortable but sexy thong for a practical pair of hip huggers. It’s excitement traded for comfort, fantasy traded for reality. But does that make it any less valuable? Desirable? Isn’t it okay to step out of the fantasy land of marriage and into a more realistic, more reasonable one?”
Without You will be available for pre-order on Amazon beginning November 21st through Limitless Publishing!
On the surface, Jenna Landsen has it all…
She’s smart, beautiful, confident, and married to Camden Landsen, who happens to be drop dead sexy and just as successful. But after five long years, all the success in the world hasn’t brought the romantic spark back into her marriage. Jenna fears it never will.
When life gives you lemons, open a bakery and name it Vi’s…
Violet Streiff made the exact mistake her mother warned against—she fell in love with Liam Coffman, a charming finance major. When he left her heartbroken to further his career, Violet drowned her sorrows by opening a bakery, and now relies on Bob, her eighteen-pound cat, for warmth at night instead of a sexy man.
To find love, sometimes you first have to discover yourself…
When Jenna’s job offers an extended trip to New York, she packs her bags and takes a two-month vacation from life. The chance of her marriage surviving looks grim, until the surprise of a lifetime throws a wrench in her plans to stay in the Big Apple for good.
You can bend the rules—but sooner or later they’ll break…
When Violet meets a gloomy but totally drool-worthy guy named Camden in her shop, she’s sure her luck has changed. There’s no denying the chemistry, but he’s married, and that’s a major problem. Violet isn’t a homewrecker. Still, staying away from Camden proves nearly impossible. That is, until his wife comes home.
Two women.
Two men.
Double the chance to find love in the most
unexpected places—or double the chance for disaster.
