New interview with romantic suspense novelist Terri Reed

I'm happy to welcome romantic suspense novelist Terri Reed back to talk about her newest release The Secret Heiress, book 2 of the Protection Specialists series. Terri was here for the first time last July for the release of The Innocent Witness.

There is a gift card giveaway at the end of Terri's virtual book tour. Details follow the interview below.

Bio:
At an early age, Terri Reed discovered the wonderful world of fiction and declared she would one day write a book. Now she is fulfilling that dream and enjoys writing for Steeple Hill. She is an active member of both Romance Writers of America and American Christian Fiction Writers.

She resides in the Pacific Northwest with her college-sweetheart husband, two wonderful children, and an array of critters. When not writing, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, gardening, and playing with her dogs.

Welcome back to Reviews and Interviews, Terri.
Thank you for having me back.

Please tell us about your newest release.
The Secret Heiress is about Caroline Tully, adopted as a baby, she’s always been curious about her biological parents. So when her biological grandfather contacts her, asking her to come to his Mississippi estate in order to claim her share of his fortune, she’s compelled to go. Only someone doesn’t want her to live long enough to claim her inheritance. She hires a bodyguard to accompany her. Posing as her fiancé allows Don Cavanaugh to keep close to Caroline, but he soon realizes as danger closes in that keeping Caroline alive may be easier than keeping his heart safe.

What inspired you to write this book?
I first introduced Don and Caroline in my November 2009 release Chasing Shadows. I wanted to bring them back together. I also wanted to try to write something with a gothic feel so I set the book in rural Mississippi on an old plantation, complete with creepy relatives and a house full of secrets.

What’s the next writing project?
I have a book coming out in June 2012, The Deputy’s Duty, book 6 of the Fitzgerald Bay Continuity series. And a book out in the fall of 2012, The Doctor’s Defender, the third book in the Protection Specialists series.

I’m working on two projects right now. I’m starting the fourth book in my Protection Specialists miniseries, which will be out in early 2013. I’m also working on book 5 of a continuity book about a Texas K-9 unit that will be a May 2013 release. The working title for this book is Cold Case Murder and features a drug-sniffing Beagle named Sherlock and his handsome handler Parker Adams.

What is your biggest challenge when writing a new book? (or the biggest challenge with this book)
My biggest challenge is staring at a blank page. I’m a much better reviser than first draft writer.

If your novels require research – please talk about the process. Do you do the research first and then write, while you’re writing, after the novel is complete and you need to fill in the gaps?
For me, the research comes in stages. Some at the beginning to jump-start the story and the characters. Then as I write, I stop to do the research I need for whatever issue that comes up. When I’m done, if I know I missed something or wanted to double check something, I’ll go back through the manuscript to find it and then do more research to make sure I have it correctly.

What’s your writing space like? Do you have a particular spot to write where the muse is more active? Please tell us about it.
I have an office and do usually write from there except in the summer because my office gets too hot. I recently bought a laptop so now I can write anywhere in the house and for the past few months I’ve been moving around the house. As long as I can have a place to set a cup of tea nearby and music playing, I can write from anywhere.

What authors do you enjoy reading within or outside of your genre?
I enjoy a wide variety of authors. Some of my favorites are Lisa Gardner, Harlan Coben, Tess Gerritsen, Cindy Gerard, Susan Elizabeth Philips, Lenora Worth, Lissa Manley, and Melissa McClone.

Readers, Terri will be giving away a $10 Visa GC to one randomly drawn commenter during the virtual book tour. I encourage you to follow the tour and comment. The more you comment, the better your chances of winning.

Interview and blog tour stop with romantic suspense author Terri Reed

Today I'm happy to host romantic suspense author Terri Reed as part of her virtual book tour with Goddess Fish Promotions. She's talking about her newest release from Love Inspired Authors.

As part of her tour, Terri is going to give away a $25 Visa gift card to a lucky commentor. Details below.

Bio:
Award winning, multipublished author Terri Reed discovered the wonderful world of fiction at an early age and declared she would one day write a book. Now she is fulfilling that dream and enjoys writing for Love Inspired. She is an active member of both Romance Writers of America and American Christian Fiction Writers. She resides in the Pacific Northwest with her college-sweetheart husband, two wonderful children, and an array of critters. When not writing, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, gardening and playing tennis.

Terri, welcome to Reviews and Interviews. Please tell us about your current release.
In The Innocent Witness, Vivian Grant finds her estranged husband murdered and realizes her autistic son is the only witness. It soon becomes clear she and her child are the killer’s next targets. Hired bodyguard Anthony Carlucci quickly realizes the threat against his clients has far reaching power and trusting anyone could get them all killed. Anthony and Vivian must work together to solve the mystery of her husband’s death and bring down a murderer, all the while fighting their growing attachment to each until they are ready to risk their hearts and their lives for a future together.

What inspired you to write this book?
A news article detailing the plane crash that killed a US Senator sparked the idea for the plot of my book, but Anthony was already an established character from my May 2009 book Covert Pursuit. He had a scene where he warned the hero of that book not to romantically hurt his baby sister. Anthony’s protectiveness really appealed to me. I wanted to write his story and see what his life was like since I’d last ‘seen’ him.

What exciting story are you working on next?
I’m currently working on a Love Inspired Suspense contemporary continuity series about a family of Irish cops and a murder in their small New England fishing village. My book will be the last in the six book series and will be released in June 2012. The continuity series features five other wonderful Love Inspired authors. Half the fun of writing a continuity series is working with other authors.

In The Deputy’s Duty, Ryan Fitzgerald must team up with freelance reporter Meghan Henry to trap a killer, rescue a child and bring down a band of illegal baby smugglers. As Ryan and Meghan work together, they grow closer, but a family secret threatens to tear them apart.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I’ve always wanted to be a writer and longed to put the stories in my head to paper but it wasn’t until I was pregnant with my daughter that I decided to do something about it. I took a class at the local junior college and started my first story. I didn’t call myself an author until I held my first published book in my hands. I had a novella published in 2001 with Barbour and my first Love Inspired novel, Love Comes Home, came out in 2004.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I consider myself a full-time writer though I can’t say I write everyday. I am very involved in my children’s schools, which require time away from the computer. Most writing days start at 8:30ish and go until 2:45ish. Somewhere in there I will stop for lunch and/or workout. I try to do e-mail and anything that needs my attention on the computer either in the evening or first thing before I start working for the day because once I get into the writing zone I don’t want to leave.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I can’t write in silence. I have to have music playing. I used to play classical music but found it was making me too relaxed, so now I play pop, rock and show tunes. I take inspiration from the music and the faster paced tempo helps my writing pace.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A writer. I used to tell myself stories as a way of coping with my extreme shyness as a child. My peers in grade school teased me because I was always ‘talking’ to myself, which only added to my shyness. Go figure. I wrote my first romance story in sixth grade about two wooden clothespin dolls I’d made. After I had my first book published, my mother sent me the stories from my grade school and high school years. I was amazed she’d hung on to them for so long.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
The Innocent Witness is the first book in my own mini-series titled the Protection Specialists-Guarding the Innocent. Book two, The Secret Heiress, will be out in January 2012. Book three, title to be determined, will be a September 2012 release. Book four, title to be determined, will be out in 2013. I have other Protection Specialists books planned for the future as well. I hope readers will enjoy the series as much as I’m enjoying writing about the men and women of the Protection Specialists.

Folks can find me at the Craftie Ladies of Suspense blog and the Craftie Ladies of Romance blog as well as Love Inspired Authors.

Terri, thank you for sharing a bit about yourself and your writing projects.

Readers, Terri is giving away a $25 Visa gift card to a lucky commentor at the conclusion of her virtual book tour. Leave a comment here to be entered. And if you visit other tour stops and comment, you'll give yourself more chances to win. Terri's other stops can be found here.