I took a workshop in Australia from a painter named Robert Hagan, and I immediately thought of him as I read the description of your painting. For whatever reason, he loved to paint women standing in various bodies of water.
Here's an Amazon link to his book, "Romantic Oil Painting Made Easy"--
http://www.amazon.com/Romantic-Oil-P.../dp/1929834292
Click on the image of the cover to blow it up full-screen. Maybe there's something in that set-up that will suggest a course of proceeding.