DRAFTING | Upmarket women’s fiction with romantic arc

Blurb

Desiree Palmer is a twenty-six year old union rep juggling four school districts. When she walks into a routine discipline meeting, she meets the man she might ruin her career for—management’s counsel. As contract negotiations build toward a strike over a school closure and layoffs, Desiree and Santiago discover the most dangerous thing in a bargaining room isn’t being on opposite sides. It’s the honesty that happens in the quiet aftermath. Labor, class, and what it costs to be seen by the wrong person at the right time.

Characters

Desiree Palmer

• Measures meeting intensity by her chosen heel height
• Prefers her fries crinkle-cut
• Spends her life commuting
• Unsettled by sincerity

Santiago “Santi” Vega

• Carries lifesavers in his pocket
• Still uses a phone for phone calls
• Bills by the hour
• Forty-two and never been wanted

Playlist

I Can Do Better, LOVA