Another short chapter.
I admit, shorter chapters seem to make for a fast-flowing, easily readable book. Again, not quite a nod to the Don Winslow approach, but still makes it easier to quickly move through the book as opposed to longer segment chapters. I never want to write a chapter with the intent on specific length, word count, or conceptual framework. I write entirely based on just what feels good for moving the story forward. Some chapters might be really long—20 pages and thousands of words, and some might be only a few pages and only hundreds. Whatever feels good.
For the story, though we’ve previously met Kona, this is where I tried to get him more actively involved, stepping into his personal environment—creating a deeper connection, more investment in him gives us another person to care about. Though, that’s not just about this book, but future Jake Jansen stories as well.
Having a software background, knowing how people do research, and use technology … didn’t help much. I did a lot of Googling. Still, I felt like it comes off as believable. I didn’t bother going into concepts and details of any form of hacking. I didn’t want to bore the reader … or the writer.
One of my proofreaders, my awesome cousin Teri, has an English Degree from Ohio State. She was an amazing resource both from a grammatic standpoint (she caught things that the AI proofers like Grammarly and Microsoft didn’t catch), as well as a general knowledge standpoint. She was able to point out that in Brazil, people speak Portuguese, not “Brazilian” like I so dangerously assumed. Every once in a while I start to consider myself reasonably intelligent, reality slaps you across the face and says, “Not so fast, my friend!”
So, as opposed to just simply correcting the term, I made it a mini conversation, essentially making fun of my own ignorance. If you can’t laugh at yourself, you’re doing this wrong.
At the end of the day, I want to have fun with this entire process.