Info (And Fun) You Won’t Find On the Internet

By Linda Lovely

I recently was invited to talk with students in Creative Writing and English classes at a local high school. Part of my advice to those students interested in writing fiction was to go beyond the Internet to do research. A writer’s best resources are people who have actual hands-on experience, and, almost always, they’re more than willing to talk about their work and themselves.

My intent wasn’t to downplay the Internet’s value. I can and do Google topics to find a wealth of materials and information, though I also try to vet these sources to make sure they’re reliable. I also tap into YouTube to open visual/audio windows into experiences. For instance, I watched clips of Billy goats in rut and how-to drone-flying demos to help craft scenes in PICKED OFF, my second Brie Hooker Mystery.

Yet, there’s no substitute for speaking directly with experts. I realize some aspiring authors are shy and feel they may be imposing if they ask strangers to spend time answering their questions. Yet most people are flattered rather than annoyed and enjoy the opportunity to share information. I can’t ever recall being rebuffed by an information “source.” Of course, it’s important to make clear why you want the information and how you plan to use it. Now that I’m writing fiction, that simply means I’ll use their experiences and insights to help build more interesting, well-rounded characters and more credible plots.

For BONES TO PICK, my first Brie Hooker Mystery, I made in-person visits to goat farms and breweries (what a hardship) and quizzed the owners about the care and feeding of dairy goats and what’s involved in brewing moonshine. I also tasted goat fudge, and, of course, sampled moonshine. Visiting locations helped me visualize potential scenes and also triggered ideas about situations and activities for my characters.  Joining a goat yoga class was a true adventure, and provided the idea for the opening scene in my third Brie book, BAD PICK, due out April, 2019!

So how do you find experts if you’re writing a crime novel? Even authors of mysteries featuring amateur sleuths should try to be as accurate as possible in describing law enforcement and legal procedures, forensics, investigative techniques, etc.

I’ve discovered my best resources through my local Sisters in Crime chapter and the phenomenal annual Writers’ Police Academy (WPA). This August I’ll be attending my seventh WPA event, a special MurderCon edition that will focus on using forensic tools to solve homicides. Over the years, these two sources—Sisters in Crime and the WPA—have been treasure troves of information and contacts. Through these organizations I’ve met everyone from FBI, ATF and Treasury agents to paramedics, coroners, detectives and defense attorneys. What’s more, since I’ve met them, I’m not a stranger calling them out of the blue. We have a prior connection and they know my request is legitimate.

So if you don’t know an answer, ask! Not only may you be surprised by the answer, you may find answers to questions you didn’t even know you should ask. Conversations can be a wonderful adventure. And what a fun way to start a New Year!

My Author Dreams Come True

By Linda Lovely

My author dreams don’t involve fame and wealth. Those “dreams” are better described as wild fantasies. While I’ve published seven books and been delighted by many of the reviews, the most important dreams I’ve fulfilled as an author simply require me to commit to writing the books I want to write.

I now write what I love to read—genre fiction. I spent most of my career writing PR and ad copy. It paid well and, for the most part, I enjoyed it. But I’ve always been a mystery/ suspense/ thriller fan and wanted to try my hand at creating the types of books I most enjoy. For me, that translates into books with likable heroines, who are smart, independent, and have a sense of humor. Of course, the books must include at least one murder (more is preferable). And the story must end with the villains getting their just desserts. I belong to a book club, which means I’m regularly exposed to “literary” fiction. While I appreciate its virtues, it’s not the escapist, fun reading I truly love—mysteries or thrillers with sides of humor and romance.  

 

My second dream come true involves the creation process. Research alone provides plenty of laughs. Recently, fact-finding endeavors have prompted me to join a goat yoga session, sample a variety of moonshine flavors, and test how long it would take me to pull up my pants and fully-loaded duty belt if I were a police officer who received an emergency call while visiting a restroom. My critique partners also make even the more painful parts of the creation process fun with their good humor. When they suspect one of my plots has gone off the rails, they’re kind about pointing out improbabilities.

Finally, my writing allows me to indulge in a bit of harmless secret revenge regarding the people I find most annoying. No, I don’t make them characters in my books. My villains are truly fictional. In fact, when I’m creating the physical appearance, background, and even the gender of my bad actors, I work very hard to ensure my characters in no way resemble the selfish, arrogant people who’ve inspired them. However, I draw heavily on the flaws and personalities of these individuals, who in real life often seem to face no consequences for hurting others. In my books, their virtual stand-ins pay the price. What a pleasure! 

Linda's newest release from Henery Press is PICKED OFF, a humorous mystery with plenty of romance and, of course, the villians pay! 

My Fantasy Life at the Writers’ Police Academy

By Linda Lovely

In this month’s blog, it was suggested we talk about something that’s happened in our lives during the past seven years that readers may not know about. 

For me, it’s my involvement with the annual Writers’ Police Academy (WPA). This summer will mark my sixth WPA visit—my fifth as a volunteer staffer who helps organize the event.

The WPA offers a thrilling four-day immersion in all things law enforcement. It’s held at a real, internationally-accredited police academy. That means the facilities include everything from tracks and autos for mastering car chase maneuvers and “burn” facilities for firefighter and EMS training to live-fire ranges for long gun instruction and buildings for mock SWAT searches. 

Instructors are the same folks who train the professionals who protect and serve in police departments, fire stations, and other law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The teachers include former undercover cops, Secret Service and ATF agents, forensic psychologists, experts in bioterrorism, gang violence, martial arts, drug interdiction, constitutional law, and more.

This year is the WPA’s 10th anniversary and Lee Lofland has pulled out all the stops to make it the best ever. The 2018 WPA will be held in Green Bay, Wisconsin, from August 9-12. WPA attendees can choose from dozens of courses and High-Intensity Training (HIT) hands-on training options. The program offers not only technical knowledge but insight into the emotions law enforcement professionals experience in stressful encounters.

Once you participate in a Shoot-Don’t-Shoot scenario, you have a new appreciation of the pressure of making split-second decisions about whether to fire a gun. Will action or inaction cost lives? When you take part in a mock SWAT raid to clear a building, you understand what it feels like to know an armed suspect could lurk behind any corner.

Since I started attending the WPA six years ago, each mystery/thriller I’ve written includes insights, inspiration and information gleaned at the Academy. Have I whet your appetite to join in? Each year, attendees include authors, screenwriters, translators, and people who simply enjoy reading mysteries, thrillers and suspense. To see the full WPA schedule for 2018, click on this link: www.writerspoliceacademy.com

To celebrate the June 5 release of PICKED OFF, my second humorous Brie Hooker Mystery, I’m offering a FREE Writers’ Police Academy registration. (The FREE registration prize does not include hotel or travel, and it must be a NEW registration.) 

You can enter the drawing anytime between now and noon EST June 9. Rafflecopter will randomly draw the winner: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/92ed2c4c1/

Good Luck!

WPA School ‘Daze” for Mystery Writers & Fans

By Linda Lovely

I’ve been going to “school” at least once a year for the past five summers.  So while lots of folks are gearing up for a fall return to classes, I’m decompressing from attending my fifth Writers’ Police Academy, held this year in Green Bay, Wisconsin, at a real, international-accredited police academy.

After my first year as an attendee, Lee Lofland, the Writers’ Police Academy’s founder, asked Howard Lewis, my critique partner, and me to help organize the next year’s event. Five years later, Howard and I remain part of the WPA family, handling tasks associated with registration, class assignments, publicity, the Golden Donut Short Story contest, auction donations, attendee communications, etc. My husband questions my sanity regarding these activities. But it’s hard to say “no” to Lee, and the hard work pays handsome returns as I make new friends and gather law enforcement information I could never ever glean from a hundred Google searches.

The most recent three-day Writers’ Police Academy (WPA) offered its usual heady blend of hands-on learning, riveting presentations, and plain old fun.  With the exception of my participation in Shoot, Don’t Shoot training and life-fire instruction with an AR-15, every program/class I attended was brand new to me. With five years under my belt, that’s a real tribute to Lee’s ability to keep the programming fresh with new topics and instructors.

The WPA fun began even before the opening bell with a “Kooky Cop Carnival.” I visited several of the “stands” where you could try your hand at tasks like handcuffing a reluctant suspect. Wow. Those handcuff keys are really tiny. If my detainee was patient and docile enough to stand still for the five minutes it would take me to cuff him, I wouldn’t need the handcuffs in the first place. I also failed miserably at speedily pulling up bullet-resistant pants and putting my duty belt back on when I supposedly got an emergency call while on a bathroom break. While these challenges offered lots of laughs, they also made attendees appreciated how much training it takes to do what the movies look like easy-peasy tasks.

I don't own a gun, but live-fire session
lets me feel what it's like to shoot
an AR-15. I'm not too bad when no
one is shooting at me.

Here’s  a look at the types of information covered in the new classes I attended:

• Death scene investigation from a long-time coroner’s point-of-view.
• Relationships between the criminals who engage in dog-and cock-fights and drug dealers and gang members.
• The dissection of a real, high-profile murder case by a detective and a psychologist. The presentation included an exploration of the distinctions between being mentally competent to stand trial and not-guilty by reason of insanity.
• Drug identification. An officer trained in this field explained how a variety of illegal (and legal) drugs impact users as well as how they are “marketed” and sold illegally.
• Bug Mania! A scary presentation on the world’s biggest killers—tiny insects. Found myself scratching my arms an hour after learning just how many deadly diseases are carried by mosquitoes and ticks.
• An introduction to firearms that explained the workings of various firearms and when/how they’re most often used.

Me with the delightful Craig Johnson

And I haven’t even mentioned the fabulous featured speakers:  Paul Bishop, former LAPD detective, who spoke on interrogation/interview techniques and myths; Lisa Klink, author of Star Trek fame, who spoke on writing for Hollywood and TV; and Craig Johnson, author of the Longmire mystery series that’s become a Netflix series favorite.

Have I talked you into attending school next summer? Hope so.

P.S. My newest book, BONES TO PICK< a humorous mystery with a side of romance, is now available on preorder, includes info I picked up at a previous WPA (and it just may have saved my heroine's life). Pick it up to find out how!