Living the Dream

Welcome to the last IWSG blog post of 2024. Another year has whizzed past. Wishing all who celebrate Happy Holidays.

December 4 question – Do you write cliffhangers at the end of your stories? Are they a turn-off to you as a writer and/or a reader?

As a rule, I do not write cliffhangers at the end of a book, but I’m not opposed to letting a story continue beyond a book. While that sounds like an oxymoron, it really isn’t. In my best selling series, The Harvester Files, that is precisely what I do.

Each book in the series can be read as a standalone Romance Suspense, starting with The White Carnation. Each book follows most of the same characters on their quest to find the Prophet, a cult leader with the intention of making the US and perhaps the world a better place, no matter the cost. In each book, a different couple is the primary hero and heroine, and their story adds another lead to finding the prophet, but it isn’t until book 4, The White Dahlia that they actually do. Since the series is so popular, I’ve toyed with the idea of writing a fifth book, but so far, the inspiration isn’t there, although I’m geeting close.

As for reading books with cliffhangers, they aren’t unusual in some series. but I like at least a portion of the tale to be resolved in one book. Think Tolkien–it took three books for him to finish The Lord of the Rings. Some stories can’t be resolved in one book.

Find out what others think about this topic here: https://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com/p/iwsg-sign-up.html

See you in 2025!

Welcome to December, the last and darkest month of the year. This week, the ladies from Tuesday Tales are writing to the word prompt, CAREFUL. I completed the NaNoWriMo challenge on November 30, and the book, A Case of Mistaken Identity, is almost finished. In fact, it has a shiny new cover. here is this week’s scene.

“That road, if you can call it that, wasn’t here in May. This is crown land, leased to Hydro Quebec as an easement to allow them to get to the lines when and if required. I’ve come here plenty of times. There’s a good swimming area at the end of what used to be a narrow trail, wide enough for dirt bikes or small ATVs, but it looks as if something larger came through here. I wonder if Phil knows about this. Sit tight while I check it out and see if we can safely take the bike through.”

“Be careful.”

I got off the bike, removed my helmet, and stood on the far side of the Harley, away from any potential traffic.

Al walked over to the makeshift road and disappeared into the trees. I swallowed, suddenly aware of how isolated I was here, with the sun roasting me alive inside the leathers. I unzipped the jacket but left it on since I couldn’t get to the sunscreen in my bag. I shifted nervously from one foot to the other, trying to figure out if there were some way this renovated path could have anything to do with the other strange happenings around here.

After what felt like an eternity, Al came out of the trees, his leather jacket open the way mine was. I stepped away from the bike and hurried over to him.

“What did you find?”

He put his arm across my shoulder and led me back to the motorcycle.

“A mess. Whoever did this doesn’t care about the environment, but I only went as far as we used to go in the ATVs. We can ride in about a hundred and fifty meters, but the trail is hilly and rocky beyond that. I’m sure that hasn’t changed, although it looks like whatever made this mess drove in all the way to the river. I don’t think anyone has been here since Friday and the rain. There are still some wet spots without fresh tire markings. As curious as I am about what happened here, I don’t think we should go in there alone. Something doesn’t feel right. I’m going to call Phil and tell him about this, and then we should head over to Raoul’s. It’s only half a kilometer from here. He probably knows all about this, too, considering how close it is to his place. Whoever did this wouldn’t have been too quiet in the process. We may get answers from him, but we won’t get any here.”

Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my American friends and followers. I’m wishing you all the best for the day. And to those who have to prepare the meal, I’m hoping you have plenty of help with everything from early prep to final cleanup. And once you get to sit down and relax, why not do so with a new book?

Sworn to Protect, book one of the Protecting the Innocent series is on sale for the next seven days starting today for only 99 cents USD to start, but once the sale ends, it will be going up to $4.99, so here’s your chance to pick it up for a song!

Four years ago, a car accident robbed Nancy Frost of her child and her mother, taking what was left of her marriage with it in the process. A forensic accountant, she agrees to look at a company’s books in a divorce case, trying to find hidden assets, but her meeting with the lawyer goes terribly wrong when the restaurant is attacked.

The moment US Marshal Neil Copeland discovers his wife has been shot in a Baltimore restaurant, he rushes to her side, determined not to let her down again. As the police investigate, evidence suggests the attack was a ploy to hide a specific hit. When a professional assassin tries to kill Nancy a second time, it’s clear that she was the target and whatever’s going on is a lot more complicated than they think.

When Nancy awakes after a month in an induced coma, not only does she not remember the attack on the restaurant, she doesn’t remember marrying Neil. Faced with the challenge of protecting his wife from a powerful, faceless enemy, Neil must bring her up to date, dredging up all the sorrow that tore them apart in the first place, hoping something will jar her memory. As he races against time, can he save her from an unknown assassin and convince her to give the love they once had a second chance?

Sworn to Protect is available from all Amazon online stores. Check out the teaser! This book is also available in paperback or in Kindle Unlimited. Watch for another Kindle Countdown Deal in December!

Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate this Thursday. Welcome to this week’s Tuesday Tales and another scene from A Case of Mistaken Identity. Our word prompt this week is Thanks. I don’t have a cover for the book yet, but I did use AI to create an image of the way I see Evie Chambers.

“This is where they found the body,” he commented. “I thought that might interest you since you mentioned it again last night. The police cordoned off the area and had techs combing the beach at low tide for a couple of days, but I don’t think they found anything.”

He bent down and picked up a rock, rinsed it in the water, and handed it to me.

“This is a piece of sea glass. It could be anywhere from twenty to two hundred years old. A glass vase or some other item made of glass falls into the water. Over the years, the current tumbles it around, breaks it into small pieces, and then polishes it. This little nugget might even come from the wreck of the Empress of Ireland herself. There’s no way of knowing, but if you use your imagination, why not? You can take it to a jeweler, have him polish it some more and turn it into a pendant.”

I closed my fist over it before shoving it inside the front pocket of my shorts. “Thanks. I’ll do that, and who knows? It could come from the Empress. There was a lot of glass on board.” I looked out into the water. “Anything is possible, right? I suppose if the police were that thorough, they wouldn’t have missed much. The current would’ve carried anything light enough to float along with it, and anything heavy is probably buried in the sand.”

I’d somehow stepped back and the next wave washed over my feet, making me gasp.

“Oh, that’s cold.”

Al laughed. “I did warn you.”

I was about to come back with something witty when I noticed something hanging on a piece of driftwood that must’ve floated in after yesterday’s storm. Gritting my teeth, I waded into the shallow water, reached into the tangled branches, and pulled out what looked like the top half of a mesh diver’s bag. As soon as I had it, I hurried out of the water while I could still feel my feet.

“Look at this.” I held up my prize.

“What did you find?” Al came over to me.

“Probably nothing, but it looks like part of a diver’s bag. I have a couple just like it.”

He cocked his head. “You didn’t mention that you were a diver.”

Oops, I hadn’t meant to let that particular cat out of the bag yet.

Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.

Welcome to this week’s Tuesday Tales, and A Case of Mistaken Identity, my NaNoWriMo novel this year. I’m pleased to say the story is going very well, and I’m more than two-thirds through. A story moves quickly when it’s written this way and doesn’t leave a lot of room for explanation. I hope you don’t have too much trouble following the disjointed scenes. Our word prompt this week is MOUSE.

Opening my Search program, I typed in Asleep with the Empress, the name Al had given his dive company. It came up right away. The site was well done, easy to navigate, and provided all the information a diver would need, from the size of the boat, the air mix in the tanks, to the qualifications needed to dive. I used the mouse to highlight Al’s name to learn a little more about the museum curator-dive boat company owner. As an investigator, I was used to researching both the people and every aspect of a case, but there was something that didn’t feel right about checking out the guy taking me to dinner. Still, I didn’t let it stop me.

Alphonse Binette was forty-three years old, which made him eight years older than me. He was ex-military, a former US Navy Seal, who’d retired ten years ago and had started the business. His diving qualifications were listed as well as the honors he’d received serving in the US Navy. There wasn’t anything unusual about that. Lots of Canadians had opted to join the US military during WWII, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, and again right after 9 11. Had he lost someone significant that day? Twenty-four Canadians had died in the terrorist attack, including the grandson of a woman from our church who’d been at the World Trade Center for a business meeting. His wife had been pregnant at the time. My parents had taken me to the funeral, both of them afraid that the attack had been a prelude to war. They hadn’t been wrong.

Feeling too much like a voyeur, I changed my search to information concerning the boathouse fires he’d mentioned. As a detective, I was constantly looking for holes in a story. It wasn’t that I assumed everyone was lying, but two years of doing this job had taught me that a good many people did. Everyone had skeletons in the closets and secrets. It occurred to me that if I had taken the imposter out on my boat, and she’d somehow ended up in the water, I wouldn’t want to take a chance on anyone finding anything that could incriminate me.

Arson would get rid of the evidence quickly, and if other boats got damaged in the process, well, that would convolute matters and cover up the crime even more quickly. There wasn’t much information there, but I did see the line requesting anyone with information to contact Charles Lavoie. It seemed my inspector had his hands full.

Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.

Not everyone is a fan of technology. I understand that. For many, there’s nothing as satisfying as turning the pages in a book while reading it. To that end, I make a point of offering each of my books in e-book and paperback format. Last month, I released two books, currently available from all Amazon distributors. Guarding Her Heart and Love at the Pickleback are two very different romantic genres which offer an escape from reality if only for a few hours. As of today, Guarding Her Heart, a romance suspense novel set around Christmas, is available in both of those formats.

And so is the latest Cocktails for You romantic comedy, Love at the Pickleback.

You can nestle up on the couch, in bed, or in your favorite chair and read Love at the Pickleback enjoying the humor that comes along with a young heiress’s determination to marry only for love.

Both books are also available to read for free on Kindle Unlimited. Christmas is coming. Why not stuff your favorite reader’s stocking, or your own, with one or both of these new novels?

And, please remember, if you do read one of my books in any format, please take a moment to review it. It’s an easy way to spread the word, and it warms my heart, renews my soul, and keeps me writing.

Welcome to this week’s Tuesday Tales. I’m working on my Romance Suspense Mystery novel, A Case of Mistaken Identity, has a touch of the paranormal added to it for zing. Our word prompt this week is FAN.

We’d been cruising along for almost half an hourand hadn’t yet seen any of the marine mammals when Iain stopped our guide as she walked by. Expecting him to ask for another drink, my ears perked up when I heard the word Empress.

Roxanne shook her head. “Not really but on our way back, our course takes us near the National Historic Park. I’ll point it out to you when we’re close.”

“Is there any way that we can go out to the site of the wreck? We both lost family when the ship went down in 1914, and if possible, we would like to pay our respects.”

She frowned. “I see. Are you certified in wreck and technical diving and do you have your PADI Advanced Open Water Diver certification? If you do, there are few companies in the Rimouski area licensed to take to out to dive the wreck, but it’s eyes only. You can’t take so much as a grain of sand from the wreckage or the area around it. Unless you’re experienced at deep water diving, I wouldn’t chance it. It’s an incredibly difficult and dangerous dive. You’re down between 130 and 140 feet. I’ve done it once a few years ago when I was working on my master’s degree, but I wouldn’t say I’m a fan of the experience. It’s cold, dark, silty, and super eerie down there. There was precious little marine life around the wreck. You couldn’t pay me enough to go down there again.”

I jumped into the conversation. “Did you see anything?”

Roxanne turned to me and nodded. “Part of the group was working for Parks Canada doing artifact recovery. They brought up some dishes, cutlery, and other memorabilia including a ceramic doll’s head. It was so sad. I almost expected the ghostly hand of a child to come out of the water and take it back down with her. Someone in the group swore something touched her, but…” She shrugged.

I shuddered. If that image wasn’t enough to spook the couple, nothing was.

“We don’t dive,” Iain explained. “We only thought that if we came this close…”

The girl smiled. “I’m not sure they’re still running, but there used to be a couple of companies in Rimouski that took people out to the marker. I’d better get back to the other passengers.” Roxanne left us.

Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.

Welcome to November and the second last month of 2024. It hasn’t been an exceptionally good year, but not a totally bad one either. In terms of writing, it’s been slow, although I did manage to release three new books. In my personal life, I lost my mother, suffered an episode of depression, and my athritis got so much worse that I’m scheduled for hip replacemtn surgery in the spring. It’s going to be a long winter!

November 6 question – What creative activity do you engage in when you’re not writing?

Before the arthritis in my hands made cutting a painful chore, I did scrapbooking. Now, I do some gardening in the spring, people watch, and play word games. When I’m not writing, I usually relax, read, watch television, and spend time with friends and family. We often take day tips or weekend excursions to places we enjoy. It may not sound particularly exciting or creative, but a lot of the plots for my books come from those simple activities.

What about you? How do you get creative? Check out other answers here:

https://www.insecurewriterssupportgroup.com/p/iwsg-sign-up.html