I don’t have a smoking hot excerpt like Lori (CHASING EIGHT–wow. Just wow.) And Sylvia and Rocki took care of the conference advice. But I do have a giveaway today!
I’ll be off-line until this evening because I’ve been taken hostage … in an FBI SWAT training program. It’s a tough job but someone … hell, no. It’s not a tough job. Even though it’s going to be ninety-some degrees and I’ll be in a warehouse without A/C, it’s FUN and exciting and part of my job. So don’t be surprised if sometime I write about a hostage situation … 🙂 If you want to read more about my research philosophy, you can check out my Field Trip! blog over at Murderati.
I’ve been interested in hostage situations ever since I participated in my first FBI training session and one of the scenarios involved an active shooter situation. We’ve all seen the set-ups in the movies and television, but when role playing–even though not real–it feels much more immediate. I asked some of the trainees–mostly local PD SWAT teams coming in for advanced training, of which role playing is only one part–if they found value acting out different situations. Hands down, they said yes. They go into these situations not know exactly what to expect; they are being evaluated, and after the fact walk through for analysis, which is extremely valuable–not only for them, but for me as a writer listening to why they did what they did, and the critique–both pro and con–from the trainers.
But in the half dozen or so scenarios I’ve participated in, I haven’t been a hostage … until today. So I’ll return tonight and answer your questions, if any. For now … I’m giving away FIVE copies of a special promotional printing of my digital novella, LOVE IS MURDER. This is a stand-alone Lucy Kincaid mystery. I printed a limited number of copies to distribute at RWA and Thrillerfest, but I’ve pulled aside a few for MSW readers. All you have to do is either ask me a question, or answer this question: what’s your favorite movie so far this year … or what movie are you most looking forward to?
I’ll answer that too! I was surprised at how much I enjoyed X-MEN: FIRST CLASS. Definitely worth seeing. I took my boys and while it was a bit scary for my 7 year old, he still liked it … my 10 year old LOVED it. Last night I saw SUPER 8 with my daughter, and it was also good–a little predictable, and I really don’t like movies were all the military guys are bad and keeping secrets from the citizens, but it worked better here than in other movies (cough *AVATAR* yuck cough.) I plan on seeing CARS 2 with the kids this weekend, before I leave for NYC, but the movie I’m really looking forward to later this summer is COWBOYS VS ALIENS. Until I saw the preview I was thinking ugh, but after seeing the trailer last night? It’s on the must see list. Daniel Craig. Need I say more?
Ask or answer, and five commenters will get an exclusive print version of LOVE IS MURDER, which includes an exclusive excerpt from the third Lucy Kincaid book IF I SHOULD DIE (11.22.11.)
I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU . . . DEAD
After a tough breakup with her boyfriend, Lucy Kincaid needs a different kind of break. So she heads west to join her brother, an ex-cop, for a long weekend of skiing in the mountains. At a picturesque lodge tucked high in the Sierra Nevada, Lucy finds just what she’s looking for: a peaceful retreat undisturbed by Internet, television, and cell phone distractions. She also finds an unexpected group of newlyweds seeking their own idyllic getaway.
But finding one of her fellow guests dead wasn’t in the brochure. And neither was the overnight snowstorm that leaves the lodge cut off from the outside world. When Lucy’s brother suspects the honeymooner’s death was foul play, he’s mysteriously stricken ill. Now, to keep him and herself alive, it’s up to aspiring FBI agent Lucy Kincaid to figure out which of the lovebirds trapped in the lodge is really a bird of prey.
