Terri Reed's Blog, page 28

Hello 2016

As the new year rushes in, I'm glad to put 2015 behind me. However, the memories will always linger, both the pleasant and the sorrow filled ones.

I had several releases in 2015:
Dangerous Justice-Feburary
Duty Bound Guardian -April
Joint Investigation- July
Murder Under the Mistletoe- Nov
I served as President of Rose City Romance Writers, my local chapter of Romance Writers of America
I attended Crimelandia--a conference for crime writers
I went on a 4 day cruise with one of my best friends
I was the high school's drama parent for two productions, both of which my son performed in
My son graduated from high school
My daughter graduated from college
I attended the Romance Writers of America conference in New York City
I attended the Writers Police Academy in Appleton Wisconsin and spent a few days in Chicago visiting a friend
My 14 year old Australian shepherd passed away
I attended the Washington County Sheriff's 14 week long Citizens Academy
My mother passed away
I wrote three books:
Murder Under the Mistletoe-Nov 2015
Protect and Serve--April 2016
Book 5 of the Northern Border Patrol series, title TBA--Oct 2016
Whew! It was a busy and emotional year.

I tried to stay away from social media for the holidays.  It was harder than I expected it to be.

We had a house full of family for Christmas with lots of laughter and love. We played games and watched some funny movies and talked and shopped and ate.  I receive many wonderful blessings and am filled with gratitude for my family and friends.
A beautiful dish from a dear friend.  My little guy loves the snow!
Today it snowed here. Such fun.  But it makes for slick roads. We're housebound today. Tomorrow I'll hit the keyboard hard toward a couple of deadlines. I hope you all have a wonderful week!

On deadline!

I have a writing buddy today as I finish my book. He's keeping me warm.  

Giving Thanks for YOU

To my readers, family and friends,

May your Thanksgiving be filled with love, laughter and light.


Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever. 1 Chronicles 16:34

As part of my research for writing my suspense stories, I...

As part of my research for writing my suspense stories, I've been attending the Washington County Sheriff's Citizens Academy. One of the best parts for me was getting to meet 19 month old Chase, a beautiful German Shepherd officer.  
Here's Chase and his human partner. I was so impressed with Chase. For such a young dog, he really was well behaved and already so well trained.  And so friendly. At the end of the class we clapped for Chase and his handler. Chase got so excited and did a lap around the room.

My next K-9 book comes out next April and I can't wait to write another one. I enjoy incorporating animals into my stories.

My Mother

Today is a sad day for me. My mother passed away this morning. I wasn't with her at the time but I was on the phone telling her I loved her when she took her last breath.
I am a mess at the moment. This is the only picture I have of me and my mom on my computer. This is from my wedding day nearly 28 years ago.

Duty Bound Guardian ON SALE!!

Okay so if you don't receive my newsletter then you might not know that I have a book on sale for the month of October.  (If you'd like to receive my newsletter the sign up is to the right).

Duty Bound Guardian, book 2 of the Capitol K-9 Unit continuity series is now only $.99.



FRAMED 

When a priceless artifact is stolen, museum curator Lana Gomez becomes the prime suspect. How can she hope to adopt her orphaned nephew if she's a person of interest in a crime? Cooperating with Capitol K-9 Unit officer Adam Donovan doesn't get her very far—the handsome cop thinks she's hiding something. But when the real thief returns set on silencing Lana, it is Adam and his Doberman pinscher, Ace, who become her only defense against a madman who wants nothing more than to see Lana eliminated. 

Capitol K-9 Unit: These lawmen solve the toughest cases with the help of their brave canine partners. 

Writer's Police Academy

What a busy summer I had this year. After traveling to New York City to attend Romance Writer's of America's national conference, traveled to Appleton Wisconsin to attend the 7th annual Writer's Police Academy. This was such a fabulous adventure for me. Well, for any suspense writer. There were hands on classes, demonstrations and lectures where I took notes until my hand cramped.
I'm definitely going back because there was only so much I could absorb at one time.

Here's some fun photos of the trip.
 As we drove up to the facility for the first time. Inside the lobby
The back of the fire engine They even had their own plane to train on
 Watching a rescue litter demonstration  Watching traffic stop demonstrations

 One of the many buildings in the 'town' for simulated training

 The fire captain demonstrating his turnout gear
All dressed and ready for a fire. 

A rescue dummy. I couldn't even move it. It weighed 170lbs. 
 The back of the fire truck
The fire truck with the ladder
Fellow Love Inspired Author Tina Radcliffe and I waiting our turn to ride in one of the fire vehicles  The back of the seat inside the fire truck


 The view from the passenger seat of the fire truck


The driver's side with lots of equipment
 That little button on the floor by my foot turns on the siren on the passenger side
This is a fire engine--means it doesn't have a ladder
Turnout gear storage


 A hands on demonstration. We cleared the motel during a simulated fire done with theatrical smoke. The smoke was more disorienting than darkness.


Above-the view from my hotel room. A pretty park in Appleton. And to the right an Irish pub. The name cracked me up. And below we had fried cheese curds. When in Wisconsin...

Such a fun group of women. Debby Giusti, Christy Reese, Tina Radcliffe, Rhonda Starnes, Margaret Daley and me.

 A K-9 demonstration. The dog was a black German shepherd so he's hard to see but he has a hold of the 'suspect' who is wearing a bite suit.




 Here we are again. It was a sunny and windy day in Wisconsin


 Here the SWAT team showed off their equipment.



















The back of an ambulance with a dummy on the gurney
K-9 officer
K-9 officers ride
K-9 officer and his handler at work sniffing out drugs in a carAs you can see it was a full schedule with so much to learn. There were two featured guest author speakers: Allison Brennan and Karin Slaughter. Both were amazing and funny and informative.
Allison Brennan


Karin Slaughter Master of ceremonies and the brain behind the WPA Lee LoflandAnother fun thing that happened at WPA is I got to meet one of my favorite romantic suspense writer's Mary Burton
Mary Burton and me.  A very windy day but so fun
If you'd like more information about the Writer's Police Academy you can find their website here or visit their Facebook page 
I highly recommend it!

RWA in NYC

Congratulations to Trixi!



Last week I was in NYC for the 35th Annual Romance Writers of America conference. I had an amazing time, even though I came home sick.  That part was has been no fun.

The week started with a jaunt down to the Seaport area of the city to buy tickets for a
Broadway play which we saw that night.
It was fabulous. The talent was incredible. I thoroughly enjoyed this play. Here's a selfie of me, authors Leah Vale and Melia Alexander, waiting for the play to start.
Based on Roy Horniman’s novel Israel Rank, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder finds Monty Navarro, a British commoner, discovering that he’s ninth in line to inherit the Earldom of Highhurst and electing to murder the members of the odious D’Ysquith family standing in his way. In the process Monty keeps a mistress, Sibella Hallward, and courts the comely young Phoebe D’Ysquith.

While down near the seaport we went to view the memorials at Ground Zero and see the new Freedom Tower. 
And apparently the president was in town and going to pass along the route we were on. There was a hugepolice presence. 
I met with my editor and saw several friends and signed books. 
This was the Harlequin signing with Lynette Eason, Lenora Worth and Katy Lee (who was up for a RITA!)
 Danced in the Starlight Lounge  of the Waldorf Astoria for the Harlequin party.
My friend and fellow Love Inspired author Renee Ryan
Me, Renee and Love Inspired Editor Emily Rodmell.   A few of the Love Inspired ladies all dressed up for the Harlequin party
My dear friend Shirley Jump My book cover was displayed on the big screen All dolled up for the RITA/Golden Heart Award Ceremony I spent most of the night on stage handing over the awards to the presenters to give to the winners. My face hurt from smiling so much.
When I arrived home I found the cover to my upcoming November release in my inbox!
Drum roll please.... AGENT UNDERCOVER 
DEA agent Tyler Griffin must stop a drug cartel that's using an Idaho Christmas tree farm to smuggle narcotics across the Canadian border. But to do his job, Tyler needs the cooperation of farm owner and widowed mother Heather Larson-Randall—whose informant brother died on Tyler's watch. Tyler knows a crucial piece of evidence is hidden somewhere on the property. But getting the protective mother to trust him is the hardest part of his mission. As threats against Heather mount, he vows to keep her and her child safe…and clear the farm of danger before Christmas. Northern Border Patrol: Keeping the US-Canadian border safe..

Celebration Time

Through the month of July I'm celebrating the release of my latest Love Inspired Suspense novel with a present to one commenter here on my blog.   Signup for my newsletter for blog appearances and other giveaways.


LONE AGENT Under other circumstances, FBI agent Samantha Bennett might welcome a bit of backup—but not from an overprotective Mountie. She's been on the trail of a serial killer for six months and no one has ever taken the case seriously…until now. When Royal Canadian Mounted Police inspector Drew Kelley saves her life, he decides that the hunt for "Birdman" is his problem, too. Together they begin a cross-continent chase to stop the madman before he strikes again. However, Samantha fears her growing feelings for the lawman may weaken her focus, or worse—put Drew directly in the killer's sights… Northern Border Patrol: Keeping the U.S.–Canadian border safe
When I can't find a book from a favorite author then I tend to buy based on the blurb.  If the story sounds interesting then I'll give it a try. I've found new to me authors that way.  Covers also grab my attention, but if the back cover copy isn't interesting then I'll pass. I have read reviews on books that I was waffling on to get a general sense of how the book will be. However, I do also look at other books the reviewer has reviewed, especially if the review is harsh and negative. It helps to see what types of book the reviewer does like, then I can usually determine if the reviewers review is worth considering.

I once had a reviewer who absolutely hated the book of mine she'd read. I think this reviewer would have given me a -10 if she could. Her wording was harsh, negative and became a personal attack, calling me uneducated and ignorant (redundant much?).

So I checked all her reviews to see what types of books she did like and had to laugh when I saw she was very much into Wicca and Witchcraft.  Well, no wonder she didn't like my book its so the opposite of her preferences.

My question to you is how much or how little do reviews of books influence your buying/reading? And why? 

Proving its Never too Late

My amazing mother-in-law had a dream to earn her degree and she's done it!!!


http://koin.com/2015/06/11/77-year-old-grandma-set-to-graduate-from-psu/