ExcerpTuesday: Marilyn Meredith

Excerpt from No Bells.

GORDON BUTLER AWOKE to the blues’ riff that signaled a call coming in
from his girlfriend, Benay Weiss. He squinted at his digital clock. 5:15 a.m.

Tuesday, his day off.

Yawning, he flipped open the phone. Before he could say anything, Benay
sobbed, “Geri is missing.”

He sat up. “What?”

“My best friend, Geri Rowe. She disappeared.”

“How do you know?”

Benay sounded near hysterics. “Her husband just called to find out if she
might be here with me. She isn’t.”

“Did they have a fight?”

“He just said she didn’t come home last night.”

Gordon switched into police mode. “You two are so close. Did she say
anything about marital problems?”

“Nothing new. Gordon, I’m so scared for her.”

“Has her husband reported her missing?”

“I don’t think so. He was going to call her relatives next to see if they’d heard
from her.”

“He should make a report. Nothing will be done until she’s gone for 24
hours. They’ll want to make sure she didn’t just leave on her own.”

“She wouldn’t have done that without telling me. Gordon, we share
everything. We’ve been friends since high school. I was her maid-of-honor at
her wedding.”

“Do you want me to come over?”

She didn’t answer for a long while. “No. Philip said he’d call me back in a
little while.”

“I’ve got the day off. I could spend it with you.”

“No. I have to work. I’m so worried about Geri, she’s all I can think about.
I’ll call you if I hear anything from her.”

Gordon knew if something bad had happened to Benay’s friend, he’d hear
about it first. “Chances are she’s okay.”

“I hope so.” She hung up.

* * *
Saturday morning, Officer Gordon Butler approached the scene of his first
call of the day, a body found by teens in the nearly dry stream bed running
along the rocky bluff that gave the beach town its name

Parking his blue-and-white police car, Gordon climbed out. He surveyed
the area, trying to find the young people who’d called in their gruesome find.
A forest of native oaks, junipers as well as tall eucalyptus and clusters of
evergreen shrubs blocked the view of the place where the body reportedly
had been discovered. The strong scent of the eucalyptus overpowered the
saltiness of the ocean drifting in on a slight breeze. He inhaled deeply and
detected the sweet, sickening odor of decaying flesh.

No Bells Blurb:

Officer Gordon Butler has finally found the love he’s been seeking for a long time, but there’s one big problem, she’s the major suspect in a murder case.

Bio:

F.M. Meredith, also known as Marilyn Meredith, is the author of over thirty published novels—and a few that will never see print. Her latest in the Rocky Bluff P.D. crime series, from Oak Tree Press, is No Bells. F. M. (Marilyn) is a member of EPIC, Four chapters of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and serves as the program chair for the Public Safety Writers of America’s writing conference. She’s been an instructor at many writing conferences.

Website: http://fictionforyou.com/
Blog: http://marilynmeredith.blogspot.com/

CONTEST: The person who comments on the most blogs on my tour will win three books in the Rocky Bluff P.D. series: No Sanctuary, An Axe to Grind, and Angel Lost. Be sure to leave your email too, so I can contact you if you’re the winner.

LBF Books Week: Alexis D. Craig

1. When did you know you wanted to be a writer? It was never any kind of conscious decision on my part. I just wrote down things that came to my mind and told stories to my friends. I’ve been doing it since I was very young, so it has always been a natural thing for me to tell stories to other people.
2. Do you plot or do you write by the seat of your pants? I do a combination of both. I have a large outline of overall plotpoints I’d like to hit and then it’s an adventure getting to them.
3. What drew you to the subject of Imminent Danger? The job I have, as a police dispatcher is a strange and ever-changing one. We have the unique roll of helping both the public and the police officers, and do so in an environment rife with its own politics and intrigue. I’d been trying to write something about the job since I’d been hired, and this was my first successfully completed piece. Think Dangerous Liasons, with guns.
4. Did you encounter any obstacles in researching it? No. The wonderful thing about my job is the close relationship I’ve developed with the officers on my district. Several of them were more than happy to answer any and all questions about police work. There is a scene, toward the middle of the book, that was the product of a conversation between me and three of my officer friends in the middle of shift. They were happy to help, even if the question was completely off the wall and apropos of nothing. Friends will help you move, good friends will help you plot your novel.
5. What was the name of the first novel you wrote? Dark Flowers and Forever. Did you try to publish it? Good Lord, no. It was a 450 page Tolstoyan epic about vampires, demons, and the angst of a 14-year-old girl. It was written in the early 90’s, when I was, in fact, a 14-year-old girl, so the subject matter was very current for me. I’ve read it again, and while it has promise, the market is so full of vampire novels right now; I don’t think it would contribute meaningfully to the genre. I was ahead of the curve.
6. How many rejections have you received? Nine. Each one sucked, but you just have to press on and keep working and submitting. It teaches you to believe in yourself and to persevere. I was very grateful that Sinful Moments Press finally gave me a nod.
7. Tell me one thing about yourself that very few people know? I am 34 years old, and I have never made my bed.
8. If you have a day job, what is it? I’m a police dispatcher. I provide support to the officers on the street by completing their requests, researching their suspects, and contacting other agencies when the need arises.
9. Describe your book. My book is romance novel that doesn’t shy away from the grit of life. It’s a love story to my day job as it is between the hero and heroine. Love finds both of them when neither was particularly looking, and love has strange allies. In all, it’s a love story with the daily violence that pervades the life of a cop and his radio dispatcher.
10. What’s your favorite food? It goes through phases. Right now I’m kind of addicted to Caprese salad with basil, mozzarella, and tomatoes.

Author Bio:

Alexis lives in Indianapolis in the family home with her mother, stepfather, husband, three dogs and three cats. It’s a full house inside and out, with the varying wildlife that comes to visit. She has a ton of godchildren and two sisters.

She works in the communications division for a local law enforcement agency, and spends her free time reading and writing romance novels, feeding her closet addiction to ‘Masterpiece Classic’, and investigating reports of local haunted houses.

Book Blurb:

Dani had sworn off dating cops. Then during a bad week where she banged up her knee and almost got mugged, the officer on scene was one of the sexiest men she had ever laid eyes on.

Jacen’s nice, relatively low key existence left him unprepared to deal with the chaos that limped into his life. Instantly attracted, he tried, but couldn’t resist her great rack, a great right hook, and a great sense of humor.

Through their jobs, they share a life that was like two sides of the same coin. With work and circumstance repeatedly throwing them together, she has a hard time keeping her distance. As she begins to fall for him, things are complicated by a terrifying stalker, and Dani finds out quickly that her heart and sanity aren’t the only things in imminent danger.

Hot Hunk Friday - Noah Wyle

When I researched Noah Wyle, I realized he wasn't that much younger than me. I was sure I had at least a decade on him, but it's closer to five years.

So I don't feel so bad about him being a Hot Hunk Friday pic.

I've loved ER from the beginning, but I haven't watched it in a few years. I guess since it is the last season I should. I used to tape it and watch it during the day.

I liked Carter, the character Noah Wyle plays, even though he was pretty much a snot-nosed kid in the beginning.

I have hope for snot-nosed kids. I've known a few in my time. Being on a first aid squad that lets 16 year olds join, you see them at their snot-nosed best. On the other hand, you get to see them grow into fine young men. One recently came back from being an LA cop. He has a quiet confidence now.

Another has a full time job and loves the 8-4 hours. He even bought a house.

I guess what I like is the character arc of these kids. It's what we as writers strive for in our stories. It's nice to have examples in our everyday lives to pick from.

So who have you gotten to watch grow up and are very proud of now?