James R. Callan

ExcerpTuesday

Cleansed by Fire

The lock yielded in less than five seconds. He picked up the metal container, slipped inside and eased the door closed. He stood motionless, his eyes adjusting to the darkness, his ears searching for any sound that might indicate danger. He smirked. I am the danger.

Faint light filtered through the dark windows on one side of the building. He shifted his stance and his shoe scraped the floor. His head jerked, startled by how loud it seemed in the complete silence that engulfed him. He held his breath, straining to see or hear anything he might have disturbed.

The quiet and darkness remained unchanged. Too bad for anyone who came in now. The church would burn tonight. It would crash down into ashes. Crash to ashes. He liked the sound of that.

Bad break, building. Not your fault. But it’s gotta happen.

His eyes had adjusted to the minimal light. Shapes and features of the building came into focus. He could make out the pews, gauge the length of the aisle, and see the pulpit.

Time to get to work, take care of business.

He walked deeper into the darkness, stepping carefully, trying to make as little noise as possible. About halfway down the aisle, he stopped and unscrewed the top from the container he carried. He began splashing the pungent liquid on the floor, as he backed toward the door he entered.

When he finished, he screwed the lid back on, and set the can on the floor near the entrance. Carefully, he cracked the door and peered out, scanning the area, making sure no one had driven up. All clear. He eased the door closed.

He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket, rolled it into a thin tube about the size of a drinking straw, then gave it a twist in the middle to hold it together. He fished a match from his shirt pocket, struck it and lit the paper.

For a moment, he watched the flame crawl along the napkin, creating shadows that danced on the floor. When most of the paper tube was aflame, he tossed it on the floor a few feet in front of him. With amazing speed, the diesel caught and exploded to life.

He stepped back and watched as the fire spread, his eyes reflecting the growing flames. Satisfied, he grabbed the can, ducked out the door, pushing it shut.

Already, the windows were glowing.

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About the Author

James R. Callan took a degree in English, intent on writing. He went to graduate school in mathematics to support a family and mathematics became a thirty-year detour from writing. He has received grants from the National Science Foundation, NASA, and the Data Processing Management Association. He has been listed in Who’s Who in Computer Science, and Two Thousand Notable Americans.

But writing was his first love. He has published a number of books, both fiction and non-fiction, and picked up several awards along the way. Cleansed by Fire, 2012, is the first of the Father Frank mysteries. Murder a Cappella, a Sweet Adelines Mystery, was released in April by Wayside Press. Callan wrote this mystery with one of his daughters, Diane Bailey, a well published YA author.

Callan lives with his wife in east Texas and Puerto Vallarta. They have four grown children and six grand children.

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Cleansed by Fire blurb

Churches are burning and a man is murdered, plunging a small Texas town into a state of fear. Father Frank DeLuca, pastor of Prince of Peace Church, is thrust into an impossible dilemma when he hears that another church will be burned. But the disturbing information comes to him via the confessional, and church law forbids him from telling anyone—even the police.

He doesn’t know which church, when, or by whom. Still, he can’t sit idly by, and no law prevents him from looking into the matter himself. The crimes have set the town’s residents on edge, fraying the bonds of trust. Is the mysterious newcomer with ties to the drug scene involved? What about the man who says maybe the churches deserved to burn? Or the school drop-out into alcohol and drugs who attacks the priest with a knife?

Countering this are a young widow whose mission is to make others shine, and a youth choir determined to help those whose churches have been destroyed by the arsonist.

Father Frank’s investigation leads him dangerously close to the local drug scene and he soon discovers the danger has come to him. Can he save his own church? Can he save his own life?

In paperback and Kindle editions on Amazon.com at: http://amzn.to/N30jjf

ExcerpTuesday: Karen McCullough

Excerpt from A QUESTION OF FIRE by Karen McCullough

Cathy wasn't paying attention to traffic, so she wasn't sure when she first noticed the dark blue Toyota that kept popping up in her rearview mirror. When she changed lanes, it did, also, and when she turned right and then right again, the Toyota stayed in line behind. She made a sudden left turn and zigzagged around the next couple of blocks, to come out a half mile further up the road than she wanted to be. A look in the mirror confirmed the Toyota was still there, two cars back. She continued to watch it when she swung into the employees' parking lot at the newspaper building, but the blue car cruised on, down the street and out of sight. She was too far away to get a look at the driver.



Ray was in his office, so she knocked and entered at his nod. She filled him in on the conversation with Lowell and added her belief that she'd been followed back from his office. He expelled a long sigh and picked up a cigarette that had been smoldering in the ashtray.



"Off the wagon again?" she asked.



He looked at the cigarette and nodded. "Brief trip this time. It's all your fault. Worry sets me off."



"Forget it. I'm carrying all the guilt I can handle right now."



He sucked in another long pull and expelled slowly, trying to blow smoke rings that never quite achieved circularity.



"What is it?" she asked.



"I talked to Lieutenant Norfolk," he said. "No line on the killer yet. They searched Bobby Stark's apartment, but didn't find anything that looked like evidence."



"They checked the air vents and conditioners?"



"Of course."



She heard more in his tone. "Well?"



Ray blew a perfect ring for a change, then put the cigarette down. "They did find a stash of crack."







A QUESTION OF FIRE: When Catherine Bennett agrees to attend an important party as a favor for her boss, she knows she won't enjoy it, but she doesn't expect to end up holding a dying man in her arms and becoming the recipient of his last message. Bobby Stark has evidence that will prove his younger brother has been framed for arson and murder. He wants that evidence to get to his brother's lawyer, and he tries to tell Cathy where he's hidden it. Unfortunately, he can only manage to give her a cryptic piece of the location before he dies. The man who killed Bobby saw him talking to her and assumes she knows where the evidence is hidden. He wants it back and he'll do whatever it takes to get it, including following her and trying to kidnap her. Cathy enlists the aid of attorney Peter Lowell and Danny Stark, Bobby's prickly, difficult younger brother, as well as a handsome private detective to help her find the evidence before the killers do.



Order Here: http://www.amazon.com/A-Question-of-Fire-ebook/dp/B002W5RBZS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1277913196&sr=1-1

Bio: Karen McCullough

Karen McCullough has written and published nine novels in the romantic suspense, mystery, and fantasy genres and won numerous awards, including an Eppie Award for fantasy. She’s also been a four-time Eppie finalist, and a finalist in the Prism, Dream Realm, Rising Star, Lories, Scarlett Letter, and Vixen Awards contests. Her short fiction has appeared in several anthologies and numerous small press publications in the fantasy, science fiction, and romance genres.

Her most recent publication was a Christmas paranormal novella, VAMPIRE’S CHRISTMAS CAROL, publised by Cerridwen Press in the anthology BENEATH A CHRISTMAS MOON. Forthcoming releases include a Gothic novella from Red Rose Publishing, which will be part of the SHADOWED HEARTS anthology, and a mystery novel, AGIFT FOR MURDER, from Five Star/Gale Group, with hardcover release scheduled for January 2011.

A member of Mystery Writers of America, Romance Writers of America, and the Writers’ Group of the Triad, she is a former president of the Southeast Chapter of Mystery Writers of America.

She invites visitors to check out her home on the web at http://www.kmccullough.com

Authorsday: Douglas Corleone

1. Do you plot or do you write by the seat of your pants?

Both. When I set out to write a novel, the idea is to create a full-length outline that covers every scene, beginning to end. But it never quite works out that way. Usually I’ll have a beginning and end in mind, but the middle always turns out to be an adventure. Outlining is a fine strategy, so long as the outline isn’t too rigid. But I do love the process of discovery. Events occur to me while writing that I never would have thought of had I worked from a stepsheet. Writing by the seat of your pants can be anxiety-inducing, but ultimately, so long as the writer remains in control of his work, it can produce an amazing story.


2. What drew you to the subject of NIGHT OF FIRE?

Ever since seeing Backdraft, I’ve been fascinated with arson investigation, and I wanted to learn more about the process of determining point of origin, discovering what accelerants were used, how investigators go about identifying a suspect. Research for a novel is a great joy for me. Writing is one of the few professions in which you get the chance to learn about and become expert in such a wide variety of subjects. In the past few years, I’ve researched everything from George Mallory’s attempted ascents of Everest to the Lisbon earthquake of 1755, and I feel richer for the experiences.

3. What do you know now that you are published that you didn’t know pre-published that you wish you knew?

I wish I knew that publication was just the beginning of the struggle. Many aspiring novelists believe that publication is the ultimate objective and are shocked to learn that the largest challenges are faced after your book hits store shelves. The novelist today is expected to do the lion’s share of promoting, which includes setting up virtual tours and book signings, making radio and library appearances, investing in bookmarks, postcards, and print ads. Promotion is expensive and time-consuming. Just when the writer expects to be working on his next book, he finds himself doing everything but.


4. What do you consider your strengths in terms of your writing?

I consider dialogue to be my greatest strength. I attribute that to devouring the novels of Elmore Leonard. I love to read quick, snappy dialogue, and I feel most confident when I’m writing it. Another of my strengths, I think, is creating exciting courtroom scenes. To be honest, I don’t know whether I can attribute that to my experience as a criminal defense attorney, or to my reading the legal thrillers of John Grisham, Scott Turow, and Steve Martini. Probably the latter.


5. What authors do you admire?

Of course, I admire the legal thriller writers mentioned above. But the writers who really inspired me to take up novel writing were a much different breed. I count among my greatest influences authors such as Charles Bukowski and Hunter S. Thompson. I think it shows in my work. I try to inject a good deal of humor, some of it rather edgy, and my characters are typically very flawed. My protagonist Kevin Corvelli and others suffer real-world problems such as addictions and alcoholism, deep-seated commitment issues, and a maelstrom of internal conflict concerning what’s right and wrong. I think that’s what most sets my novels apart from typical legal thrillers.


6. What place that you haven’t visited would you like to go?
Living in Hawaii, I’m exposed to a good deal of Japanese culture, and I’d love to visit Japan someday soon. One of my favorite movies is Lost in Translation with Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson. Although the film leaves me a bit melancholy, it doesn’t seem like a terrible way to experience Tokyo for the first time.


7. What other time period besides your own would you like to experience?
I’d have to say the ‘60s. The Civil Rights movement, the moon landing, Woodstock and everything that came with it. I think I would have fit right in.

8. What do you do when you are not writing?
I spend as much time as possible in the ocean. When I’m on dry land, I’m usually reading or having a drink with friends. I enjoy movies, of course. And my toddler son Jack keeps me busy, and I love every second I spend with him. It’s one of the tremendous benefits of working from home, being able to watch your children grow up every hour of every day.


9. Who is your favorite character in your book?
My favorite character is the protagonist Kevin Corvelli, a hotshot criminal defense attorney who moved from New York City to Honolulu to evade the spotlight, only to find himself right back in it with every big case he takes on. Kevin’s the narrator of the stories, and he’s truthful, almost to a fault. Hero or anti-hero, love him or hate him, most readers will form a definite opinion of Kevin Corvelli, and I think they’ll be richer for having been introduced to him.

10. What was your favorite scene to write?
My favorite scene to write in NIGHT ON FIRE was the scene in which Kevin Corvelli wakes to find himself trapped in a hotel room while a deadly fire rages outside his door. The tension in that scene, I hope, will grab readers as it did me. Even now when I read that chapter, it fills me with a sense of dread.

Author Bio
DOUGLAS CORLEONE is the author of the Kevin Corvelli mystery series published by St. Martin’s Minotaur. His debut novel ONE MAN’S PARADISE won the Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award. A former New York City criminal defense attorney, Douglas Corleone now resides in the Hawaiian Islands where he writes full time. His second novel NIGHT ON FIRE will be released on April 26, 2011.

Book Blurb 
Kevin Corvelli---a hotshot New York defense attorney who packed up his bags and hung his shingle in Hawaii to dodge the spotlight---is deep in his mai tais at a resort when an argument erupts down at the other end of the bar. It’s a pair of newlyweds, married that very day on the beach. And since Corvelli doesn’t do divorces, he all but dismisses the argument.



That’s at least until the fire breaks out later that night, and he barely escapes his hotel room. Most weren’t so lucky, including the new husband. His wife, Erin, becomes not only the police’s prime suspect for arson and murder but also Corvelli’s newest client, and she has a lot working against her, like motive and opportunity, not to mention a history of starting fires.