Monday 2 December 2013

Teri Riggs Visits My Blog


Hi Terri, I love the sound of your book, Resolutions and look forward to reading it.

Thanks! It was a fun book to research and write.
Please describe Resolutions in twenty words.  A strong-willed DEA agent and the Alpha male she once loved are thrown together in a race for their lives.
What is your writing process from inspiration, editing, to feeling your book is ready for publication? 
Inspiration for my books can come from many places. Songs, TV shows, movies, news clips...you get the picture. I’ve got plots tucked away in notebooks, on my computer, and on scraps of paper shoved in drawers. I even have a few dozen store receipts and napkins covered with scribbled ideas. Once I pick the idea I’m going to use, I think about the story for a while before I actually start putting words down on paper. I prefer to start with an outline. I spend less time staring mindlessly at my WIP when I have a plan to follow. Which of course I never seem to actually follow. Once I’m well into the book, my characters have a tendency to push me in other directions. They obviously don’t know who is in charge! I guess I’m a plotter/pantser crossbreed. I have a tendency to read through and edit what I wrote the day before. It slows me down, but I can’t seem to kick the habit. Once I finish the manuscript, I have a few people read through it to look for obvious story flaws. I get their input and read through the MS a few times to tighten it. When I think it’s ready, I start submitting it to publishers.
Where did you get your ideas for the storyline in your book? 
I really can’t remember where the idea for Resolutions came from.  
What research did you do for your book and did you enjoy it? 
I enjoy doing the research. It’s always fun to learn new things. I did a lot of research on the internet. I looked up countries where the drug trade is out of control. I researched types of drugs and how they are transported to buyers. The DEA and Homeland Security probably have my computer flagged. I did a full two weeks looking at helicopters and finding two model types that would work with my storyline. I also interviewed a helicopter pilot who is a currently serving in the Italian Army. I researched guns until I thought I had more information than I’d need for fifty books.
Do you have a favourite writing place, or writing routine? 
I have an office at the building where our family business is located. My room has a great view of a wooded area and pond. I spend a few hours in the morning doing boring housewife stuff. Afterwards, I head to my office and get down to the business of romance, murder, and all things fiction. I spend five to eight hours working. I try to keep the amount of time I work on promotions and social media to 1-2 hours. Sometimes, if the mood hits, I write at home after dinner. I’ve been known to write in bed while the rest of the world sleeps.
What do you think is the most important thing that every writer should know, or have? 
A strong backbone. Rejection is not easy. You have to be able to pick yourself up and move on to the next submission. If you’re not careful, a bad review can ruin a perfectly good day. It stings when you realize not everyone is going to love your writing.
What are your writing dreams for the future?  
To work more efficiently and put out multiple books a year. I’d like to continue to learn everything I can about the art of writing fiction.


Press Kit ~ Resolutions


DEA agent Eve Taylor has had her fill of alpha males. When Resolutions’ operative and former lover, Dillon “Mac” McKenna, threatened her hard-earned independence, she ran. On a mission to gather evidence against a Colombian drug-lord, Eve discovers the drug-lord is helping terrorists plan an attack on American soil. Before she can escape with the vital information, she’s captured and comes face to face with her mortality…

As a teen, Mac watched his family fall apart after his mother died doing dangerous U.N. work. The possibility of losing Eve to a mission ignited an overwhelming need to protect her. When he forced her to choose him or her job, she walked away. Two years later, it seems all his nightmares have come true and he’s tasked with rescuing her from a Colombian prison. Mac has never stopped loving Eve, but does he dare risk his heart when he’s so terrified of losing…

On the run, Mac and Eve must learn to trust each other again in order to stay alive.

About the Author


Teri Riggs was destined to be a writer.  As a small girl she didn’t read bedtime stories, she made up her own.  Who needed Little Red Riding Hood or The Three Little Pigs when there were so many great tales bouncing around in her head?  When she grew up and became a mother to three little girls, she continued the tradition of making up bedtime stories.  On the occasions she chose to tell conventional fairytales, Teri usually gave them a bit of tweaking here and there or added a new ending.  Her girls loved it.

After her daughters had the nerve to actually grow up and leave home, Teri discovered she had a passion for writing and jumped right in.  It came as no surprise she chose to write mysteries and happily-ever-after’s since that’s the genres she loves to read.

Teri lives in Marietta, Georgia with her husband, one of her daughters and two dogs that seem to think they rule the world.  And some days Teri thinks maybe they do.
Teri still frequently tells herself stories as she falls asleep.  The only difference now is she wakes up the next morning and turns her bedtime stories into books.

Author Links


Twitter - @TeriLRiggs https://twitter.com/TeriLRiggs

3 comments:

  1. Great interview ladies.

    Thank you for taking part in Teri's tour Georgina.

    Shaz

    ReplyDelete
  2. Georgina,
    Thanks for hosting Resolutions today. I had a good time with the interview questions!
    Teri

    ReplyDelete