Terry Odell's Blog, page 338

Writing and Getting Your Work Published

Before I introduce my guest, just a reminder that today's the last chance to enter my June contest for an autographed copy of What's in a Name? Details on my website.My guest today is author Jacqueline Seewald. I'd like to welcome her to Terry's Place. She's sharing some of her experiences along the road to publication, and has some good advice for all. Welcome, Jacqueline.As a teacher who

Feeling Like an Author

What I'm reading: Tailspin, by Catherine CoulterSaturday's presentation at the Maitland Library was a panel discussion of how the five authors on the panel got started in writing, and whether they would do it again, or will keep doing it.Three of the other authors had one book published. I sat there with my four books and felt like a "real" author.The last panelist had been writing from age

Homicide Detective Hussey: "The Exhumation" Part 1

By now, Detective Mark Hussey needs no introduction. Here's Part 1 of "The Exhumation." Part 2 next week.Jurisdictional boundaries between counties and municipalities are a touchy thing. Cops are always trying to get out of calls that are right on the fringe of the city limits. The county sheriff will try to say, "I think it's inside the city," and the city officer will inevitably say, "That's in

Civilian Police Academy: Consumer Fraud Unit

What I'm reading: Claiming the Rancher's Heart, by Cindy Kirk.A shift away from writing today. Last night was our monthly Civilian Police Academy Alumni meeting. Our speaker, head of the Consumer Fraud Unit gave the definition of fraud as "inserting a lie into a business transaction." Since the recent Romantic Times Conference resulted in a lot of attendees having fraudulent charges on their

What's On Your Desk Wednesday?

Welcome to my most recent followers: Susan, Mary, and Sarah. So glad you're here. Don't forget the contest for an autographed copy of What's in a Name? Details on my website. (Link in the sidebar) Last week, I got tagged by Sassy-Brit, one of my followers. Being a (relatively) good sport, I'm playing along. Her challenge is What's On Your Desk Wednesday.So, here's my desk. The only reason it

The Medieval Good Old Days

Today, I welcome Skhye Moncrief to Terry's Place. How about a trip back through time. Careful--there's a quiz. But there's also a chance to win a slew of e-books, so keep reading. (And no, you don't have to pass the quiz to enter. But give it a shot anyway.First of all, I'd like to thank Terry for having me over. :) I write about the good ole days with a paranormal twist or two. The madness is

Storyboards and Dangling Threads

What I'm reading: 8th Confession, by James PattersonI've continued working with my modified story board, and I'm still liking it. I know there's nothing this method does that a computer program can't do – and perhaps do better – but I like the "change of media" approach. Since last time, I've gone back and started another thing to track: Where. My chapters each contain at least two POV scenes (I

Homicide - Hussey: Dead Turkeys Don't Fly Part 2

If you haven't read Part 1, you'll need to scroll down and read it before this one. I guess I still didn’t understand the seriousness of the situation. As I got out of the car, I could hear yelling and crying from the inside of one of the disheveled trailers. As I got still closer, I noticed that on a direct trajectory from the inside of the small mobile home’s kitchen and on a line with the

Liana's Winner

Thanks to Liana for being my guest, and for hosting a contest. The winner is ... Sarah SimasSarah, please email Liana for the details. Congratulations! And for those having trouble getting into the blog ... I really have no good explanation other than IE sometimes takes its sweet time about loading the script for the "Keep reading" link. It should end with /#0 at the bottom of your monitor

Homicide - Hussey: Dead Turkeys Don't Fly Part 1

What I'm reading: Wicked Prey, by John Sandford.Last night, I had the pleasure of spending several hours picking Detective Hussey's brain for authenticity with the law enforcement aspects of two of my WIPs. He's an amazing font of information, and most generous with his time. (OK, I admit, we met at the Ale House, so there was more than Q&A going on.) This week's chapter was long enough that I