Ok, kiddies. Good News/Bad News time.

When I went back to read over Mirror, Mirror about a year ago because I was getting ready to work on No Excuses, I realized how much of it I wanted to edit or change, because I'm a perfectionist and I thought it could be a lot better than this version.

More than anything I was determined to finish the story, but taking the time and energy to do that meant I was going to have to turn it into an original piece. And so that's what I did. :)

It was easier than I thought it would be to turn it into an original work, since really the Santana and Brittany characters were essentially original anyway and most of the Glee of it was in the surrounding characters and background. So it was a matter of stripping it all down to the bones and building it back up again as a much (much!) more fully developed story and characters surrounding them.

So, the bad(ish?) news is that No Excuses as I had originally planned it isn't going to happen, because the better news is that I combined both halves of the story together into one (long) work called Mirror, Mirror.

The first half is the totally rewritten version of this story and the second half is what would have been No Excuses, now expanded and fleshed out much more than I would have been able to do back when I first planned it. So it's all there in one piece, no sequels or cliffhangers. Just a love story these characters helped inspire me to write that has turned into a labor of love.

I thought about taking this version of the story down (with some warning) but I think the book version is different enough that I'm planning on leaving it up, for now anyway. (I'll give a warning if it becomes necessary.) It's certainly recognizable to those of you who know the story, but not identical. I felt like I kept the core of the two main characters intact and just used that as a starting point to build up a much bigger and more developed story around them.

I'm hoping if you liked Mirror you might give this new version a chance.

If you want to check it out (which would be much appreciated because I worked really, really hard on it) it's at up at the Kindle Store now.

Mirror, Mirror

by

Bridget Balentine

(amazon url) / dp / B01N0OEMOR

And it's free to read if you have Kindle Unlimited (which offers a 30 day free trial, so technically, you could still read it for free lol).

If you like it, a review would be greatly appreciated. I've been working on it for most of the past year and I tried to make this story everything I ever hoped it could be. There are all kinds of new songs (I even wrote Glitter Pop!) and I have rewritten the song, Mirror, Mirror itself.

So, there are no more excuses. :) The story is finished at long last and I'm very proud of it, even if it is in a different form than I ever expected back when this whole journey began.

For those who don't feel like checking it out, I thought I would at least put the new version of the song/poem Mirror, Mirror here just as a sort of last nod to where this story began and how much I have enjoyed working on it. And because I really do appreciate everyone who has taken the time to read this version.

It's not really a spoiler if you know the general story already, but if you'd like to read the new version in context, stop here.

Thanks again, everyone.

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Mirror, Mirror, don't be shy

I see the look there in your eye

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Mirror, Mirror, my disguise

All they see are pretty lies

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Mirror, Mirror, truth be told

I just want you to be bold

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Mirror, Mirror, on the wall

Who's the fairest of them all?

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Mirror, Mirror, in the dark

Sharpest bite and loudest bark

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Mirror, Mirror, painted glass

Flip your hair and shake your ass

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Mirror, Mirror, cruel and cold

Hide your fears and shield your soul

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Mirror, Mirror, on the wall

Did you always look so small?

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Mirror, Mirror, silent witness

Joy is timid, pain relentless

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Mirror, Mirror, the shadows loom

They cloak and shroud me like a tomb

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Mirror, Mirror, words unspoken

Wounded hearts beat raw and broken

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My Mirror, Mirror, on the wall

Would someone catch me if I fall?