Terry I am honored to have you here at the Pen to Paper Blog.  So, lets get started

 

                  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tell us something about you and your books.

I write the books I want to read – I’m an escape reader, and I love the characters, so I try to write about characters my readers will love as well. I’m also a mystery fan, so there’s always some sort of a puzzle in my books.

 

Do you have any advice for other writers?

Read. Study the craft. Read. Persist. It’s as much about sticking with it as talent. And Read.

 

What’s your latest book about?

My most recent release, HIDDEN FIRE, is a sequel to FINDING SARAH.

Returning from a stint as part of a task force on violent crime, Randy Detweiler is eager to reunite with Sarah Tucker in Pine Hills, but she’s having second thoughts about their relationship.  Can she deal with a cop who gets called away at a moment’s notice, especially one who won’t talk about his job?

Their reunion is cut short when a body is discovered and rumors fly that it’s the work of a serial killer. To make matters worse, the Town Council might disband their police department, and Randy’s under added pressure to solve the murder before they take action.  Forced to work under the radar, Randy struggles to balance work with a shaky relationship.

Sarah can’t cope with apparently meaning less to Randy than his job. Should she force him to choose between his job and the us she envisions for the two of them? All bets are off when Sarah herself becomes a suspect in Randy’s case. Before long, it’s more than their relationship that’s in danger.

My next release, NOWHERE TO HIDE, is the story of a small-town cop who quits the force and tries to leave her past behind her.

 

The trouble with running away is you take yourself with you. After a case

goes south, Colleen McDonald leaves her police job in Oregon for a fresh

start as a civilian in Orlando. The last thing she needs is some cop with

killer blue eyes coming around, looking for her missing landlord.  The

quickest way to get Deputy Graham Harrigan out of her life is to beat him at

his own game.

 

 

 

Finding Jeffrey Walters might be Graham’s ticket to a slot in the Criminal

Investigations Division. Determined to prove he’s the man for the job

despite the stain of an unsavory reputation passed down by his training

partner, he can’t afford to be distracted by the pretty tenant in Walters’

guest house.  A tenant who seems to know more about the case than he does.

A tenant with her own demons.

 

Will Colleen’s secrets destroy Graham’s chances for a promotion, or will

love make theirs a permanent partnership?

 

Where do you get your information or ideas for your books?

Anywhere. Everywhere. Music, television, eavesdropping, people-watching. It’s all about playing the “What If?” game.

 

What promotional ideas can you give to other beginning authors?

Register your domain name even if you don’t have a website. It’s inexpensive and you don’t want someone else to grab it. Visit blogs. Leave comments (not promotional ones). Go to conferences. Network.

 

What advice would you give to somebody trying to get a literary agent?

Polish that query letter. Check out blogs like Query Shark to see what will catch an agent’s eye. Don’t let rejections get you down. Keep submitting. It’s finding a perfect match, so make sure you research agents and submit to those who represent what you write. Agentquery.com is a good resource.

 

Is there anything you would like to say to other aspiring writers?

It’s about more than the writing. It’s a business. Be prepared.

 

As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?

An animal psychologist or a  zookeeper. I never wanted to be a writer. I fell into it more or less by mistake, but it became a great creative outlet when I ran out of wall space for my needlepoint.

 

As a writer and published author, how do you feel about e-publishing?

 

I love it. E-publishers will look at a much broader range of stories than the big NY houses. It’s a way to learn both the craft and the business. It will require a lot more time doing promotion, however. And e-publishing is still in its infancy. It’s growing, but if you expect to make a living at it – well, don’t quit your day job. The exception is in the more erotic fiction.

 

 Please give us a list of all of your books currently available.

Finding Sarah, Hidden Fire, & What’s In a Name? are romantic suspense novels from Cerridwen Press. When Danger Calls is an action-adventure romance from Five Star Expressions.  Short stories from The Wild Rose Press: Out of Sight, Relationships, Hurricane Breeze, Romancing the Geek, Second Chance Rose. Coming soon, Nowhere to Hide, a full-length romantic suspense novel from The Wild Rose Press.  I’ve also got a couple of mystery short stories in an anthology from Highland Press, title and release date yet to be determined. You can find out more about them at my website, including a peek behind the scenes to see what inspired the writing, at http://www.terryodell.com and follow my blog, Terry’s Place, http://terryodell.blogspot.com

 

 How long does it take you to do research on the books you write?

It depends. I do the basics before I start writing, but research as I need more information. Since I don’t plot much in advance, I don’t know exactly what I need to know. The trick is knowing what you don’t know. Don’t make assumptions. Check your facts. Even the ones you think you know. I found out (fortunately before it was too late) that the make and model of car I had used to thwart my heroine’s escape didn’t come with a manual transmission, and I’d planned to use her inability to drive a stick shift as a major problem for her. I had to change the car (and now I research all cars before I let my characters drive them. The auto edition of Consumer Reports is a useful tool.)

 

How do you give credit to any research you do?

I acknowledge those who have helped me at the beginning of each book (and I hope I haven’t left anyone out when I do it. I try to make notes when people answer questions, but I’m not always good about it. Plus, it might be two years down the line before the book is accepted and published, so I might pick up information for one book that also applies to one that’s already in the production process.

 

How did you go about getting published?

I kept submitting. And submitting. The Wild Rose Press took one of my short stories (I was their first outside contracted author), and that gave me the confidence to keep submitting.

 

Where do you do most of your writing?

Most of it? At my computer in my office, which is a spare bedroom in our house. Although I also take my laptop when I travel, or even to Panera for a change of scenery.

 

Are you working on other things, if so what are they?

I’m working on a sequel to When Danger Calls, and also a straight mystery about a small town police chief.

 

What do you enjoy most about your writing?

I get to have fun talking to imaginary people (although they’re real enough to me after about 3 chapters).  What’s not to like? I mean, it sure beats doing laundry and cleaning toilets, right?

 

Terry, you are right with that.  Thanks for being my guest today

 

Walk in harmony,

Melinda