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Today I am a guest blogger over at Carol Ann Erhardt's Blog! She is featuring an interview and my new release, Purple Knot.
I'd love to see some familiar faces over there so if you have a moment, hop on over for a visit.
And don't forget to stop back here for my post tomorrow on How To Find A Critique Partner. Worth their weight in gold, a person that gives you honest feedback is hard to find, but I've got some helpful tips on how to find the elusive creatures.
*guest post by Jennifer Slattery
The next Clash of the Titles literary champion is Anne Patrick! Her her novel A Familiar Evil won the vote for Author’s Choice.
Here’s a blip of her COTT winning excerpt (excerpt B):
“Excuse me. I’m looking for Chief Russell.”
Jordan’s stomach did a nosedive at the familiar voice of her soon-to-be-ex-husband.
“You found her,” Frank answered.
Jordan looked up just as Sam smiled. “Indeed I have.” He started toward her desk.
Colleen barged through the opened door. “Chief, there’s an Agent Russell here to see…oh, I guess you found her.”
“Agent Russell,” Frank repeated. He turned back to Jordan, “Isn’t Russell your married name?” He then shifted his gaze back to Sam, “That must mean you’re her husband.”
“Not for much longer.” Jordan hurried around her desk and ushered Frank out the door. “You’ll be hearing from me.” She closed the door and looked at Sam. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here at your request.”
Read the full excerpt here.
A few reader comments:
- I'm hooked! Loved the tension between Jordan and Sam.
- Both were really good! I Liked Excerpt B because of the rather humorous exchange between husband and wife. :-) Definitely a book I'd want to get and read!
- Love tension in Excerpt B. And there's promise of lots more!!
After reading Anne’s tension-filled excerpt, we wanted to know how she came up with such great stories. Her answer? She writes on the fly.
“I’m a Pantser,” Anne said. “I never plan anything. As a matter of fact I didn’t know who the killer was in A Familiar Evil until toward the end of the book when he sprang out at me and said, ‘I’m your man.’ Of course I had suspected he was the one but I wasn’t for sure. There are several possibilities.”
Her plot ideas come to her just as unexpectedly. “Often times when I'm researching one book, ideas for another start to sprout,” Anne said. “Reading the paper is another good source for me. Life is truly stranger than fiction.
Read the full interview here.
What Anne had to say about her time on Clash:
"Thanks for having me here at COTT. You ladies are awesome!"
Want to join the fun? Hop on over to Clash of the Titles now to vote for our next literary champion and be entered into our drawing for a free book! And don’t forget to stop by Clash of the Titles Book Club to join our cyber-chat. We’re devouring Delia Latham’s Destiny’s Dream.
*Jennifer Slattery is the marketing manager for Clash of the Titles. She writes for Christ to the World Ministries, the Christian Pulse, and Samie Sisters. She’s also written for numerous other publications and websites including the Breakthrough Intercessor, Bloom!, Afictionado, the Christian Fiction Online Magazine, and Granola Bar Devotions. She has a short piece in Bethany House’s Love is a Flame (under a pen name) forwarded by Gary Chapman, another piece in Cathy Messecar’s A Still and Quiet Soul, and a third piece scheduled to appear in Majesty House’s Popcorn Miracles.
You can find out more about her and her writing at Jennifer Slattery Lives Out Loud and you can catch some great writing tips at her writing blog, Words That Keep.
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| Dance of the Setting Sun |
I'm doing research on a new book. Having recently finished and sent off Whispers on Shadow Bay, the first book in my new Noble Island Mysteries series, I am giddy with excitement to begin learning something new.
That something new is for book two, Secrets at Crescent Point. It is a story that centers on the gypsy clan that inhabits the outskirts and surrounding waters of Noble Island. As an author, I create worlds for my characters and the reader with as much detail as possible and that is why I do a lot of research before I begin writing.
For instance, I've been researching the Romani gypsies. Things like clothing descriptions, particularly the dresses used in the veil dances and festivals.
I learned that in the Romani gypsy culture, family name can hearken back to what the family's occupation used to be whether a silver smith, wood carver, performer, etc. I also hope to find some recipes to try.
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| My Baby |
My husband isn't quite convinced I need a dagger to write this book, but he did not see the bound dagger fight...yes, as in bound by a rope or long piece of silk at the wrists to the guy that is trying to stab you.
I mean, pirates had daggers...gladiators, evil spy chicks, even the Mughals of India. Surely, I need one as well! For research, of course. Plus it would look VERY cool next to all the other bizarre detritus of my writing obsession.
What about you? What do you most love about researching a new book?
