Nuggets
Excerpt From the Book - Retribution | Chapter 1
They had witnesses, and over a course of days, put every one of them on the stand to tell one horrid story after another. They had a motive. The prosecutor never even flinched at the defense attorney’s objections. And finally, they had Susan, who had done a pretty good job of convicting herself before the trial ever began.
What Motivated Me to Write | Harper Mane
The motivation for Harper Mane, The H E R Murders, came to me as I was finishing the novel The Pursuit 2. Harper’s character as an investigator/assassin fascinated me. I realized that in most of my novels, female characters typically play antagonists. Harper’s character inspired me to make her the hero.
The way she and a new partner, Rhonda Colegal, joined forces in The Pursuit 2, gave me the idea for a new story. It led me to pause writing and create the framework for a yet to be named novel featuring both characters.
In the new book, Rhonda has fully embraced her character and established her inner pitbull, while Harper remains the constant professional and never allows herself to be anything but.
I needed to provide a distraction to keep readers engaged in the intentionally slow-forming plot. The character, Zach Briley, provided that angle. A constant rivalry between him and Rhonda fit the bill perfectly.
Harper required a worthy opponent, and I introduced an old nemesis as the antagonist? She was pulling off the crime of the century in broad daylight, while successfully keeping Harper at bay by dangling shiny objects.
This novel progresses on a slow, methodical path. It is twisty. And it was one of my most enjoyable novels to write.
Scene from the book | Retribution
So this was a really important scene. If there are any prologue skippers in the crowd, you may not want to skip this one. This is the scene that set the stage for the entire story. In fact, it was the vision of the room which prompted to me to write the story. This is Shawn’s bedroom. It was an unusually dark night. There was a monster storm outside that had knocked out the electricity. The lightning felt so close she sometimes thought it was in the room with them. She looked up as a bolt came blasting through a window and she thought for sure it hit her. As she glimpsed herself in a mirror, she noticed all the blood on her clothes. She looked back to see Shawn on the bed, engulfed in lightning. But she didn’t care. She was there on a mission, and the manner in which Shawn died wasn’t of concern.
What I’m not showing here is the mental state of the woman at the window. Nor do I explain why she’s there. I, of course, won’t tell you who she is. If you’ve seen excerpts on other areas of the site and think you know, you’re probably wrong.
I enjoyed writing this scene. I had put it off for a while because I was busy with other projects. Once I started, it was easy to bust out the first few chapters. If you get a copy of the book, don’t skip the prologue, or you won’t get the ending.