INTERVIEW WITH PM TERRELL, AUTHOR OF THE TEMPEST MURDERS

Before I launch into the interview, please let me tell you that pm will be awarding a Celtic bracelet (US only) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour.

You can follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here: 

 http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/09/virtual-book-tour-tempest-murders-by-pm.html

Celtic knot bracelet pm will give away to one
commenter on the tour

Now, for our interview:

Caroline: Tell readers about yourself. Where did you grow up? Siblings? Locale? Were you considered a “bookworm” or a jock?  Married, single? Children?

PM: I am most definitely a bookworm. The only time I came close to being a jock was when I was in fourth grade and we were playing ball during gym class. I was stationed in the outfield and saw the ball coming straight for me. I held out my hands, knowing it was going to land right in my palms, and I waited… and waited… and waited… And then the ball hit my chest and bounced off like I was made of rubber. Spectators said it flew nearly the length of the field. I lost the game but most importantly, it took two years to live it down; every time I was spotted, I got the same incredulous look at my breasts. It took two more years of me walking around campus with my arms crossed in front of me before I got over it.

I have two sisters, one older and one younger (neither of whom is any more athletic than me, though not quite so flamboyant about it) and two brothers, one older and one younger (and they are athletic; I guess someone has to be).

I spent most of my life in Washington, DC but my father worked for the FBI so we were transferred around a bit when I was younger.

Caroline: Who are your favorite authors and favorite genres?

PM: I don’t have favorite authors but I do have favorite books. I absolutely love romantic suspense, especially when it involves time travel and locations like Ireland and Scotland. I love Erin Quinn’s Haunting series, and I am currently reading L.L.Muir’s Muir Witch series and loving it.

Caroline: What’s your favorite way to relax and recharge? Hobbies?

PM: I raise freshwater angelfish, which I find incredibly serene. It began when I was writing Vicki’s Key. I’d purchased some angelfish, and every time I mentioned my fish I could see people’s eyes glaze over. So I thought it would be the perfect front for CIA operatives; everyone would think they were boring and introverted when they were actually leading exciting clandestine lives. Anyway, as I wrote that they were tending to their angelfish breeding business, my own angels began to spawn. I now raise them regularly and sell them to a local pet shop. They’re known as Vicki’s Angelfish, and they became so popular I started a blog about them: www.vickisangelfish.blogspot.com.

Caroline: What a great story. Do you have a favorite quote that sums up how you feel about life?

PM: I have two. The first is from Wallace Stevens: “After the final no there comes a yes, and on that yes the future world depends.”

The second is from Margaret Thatcher: “Look at a day when you are supremely satisfied at the end. It’s not a day when you lounge around doing nothing; it’s when you’ve had everything to do and you’ve done it.”

Caroline: Both good quotes. How long have you been writing?

PM: I started writing in 1968 or ’69. My first book was published in 1984. Now I feel really ancient, like my bones should creak when I stand up.

Caroline: I know the feeling. Where do you prefer to write? Do you need quiet, music, solitude? PC or laptop?

PM: I need solitude so I can focus. I have an office in a building separate from my house, where I know I can go to be away from distractions. When there, I work on a desktop. I prefer to write in the living room in front of my angelfish aquariums (I have nine tanks) but that isn’t always possible. When I write there, I use my laptop and a flash drive to take my story from one computer to the other.

Caroline: What long-term plans do you have for your career?

PM: To stay in the game. Sometimes, that’s all that matters.

Caroline: Yes, sometimes that is all that matters. Would you like to tell us what you’re working on now?

PM: I am currently finishing up the fifth book in the Black Swamp Mysteries series, THE PENDULUM FILES, which is due to be released in 2014. Once that is off my desk, I’ll be writing the sequel to THE TEMPEST MURDERS.

Caroline: What advice would you give to unpublished authors?

PM: Take your ego out of your work. It’s great to demand perfectionism from yourself but don’t demand it from others—publishers and editors have a way of sharing that tidbit and you don’t end up on their A list. Listen to any and all constructive criticism, and always, always seek to hone your craft.

Caroline: What’s a fun fact readers wouldn’t know about you?

PM: I lift weights and I am a roller coaster fanatic.

Caroline: Share something about you that would surprise or shock readers.

PM: Nothing I do seems to shock people anymore. It seems they always expect the unexpected from me.

Caroline: Is your book a series? If so, how long? Family saga, other?

The Tempest Murders is currently a stand-alone book but since its release, I’ve contracted to do a sequel. We’ll see how that turns out, and whether to make it a full-blown series. It would be similar to Robert B. Parker’s Jesse Stone series, but with a Nicholas Sparks type of romantic twist. And then there’s the little subject of the paranormal…

Caroline: Is there anything else you’d like readers to know about you?

PM: I am the founder of Book ‘Em North Carolina, which is a one-day event that raises money for literacy campaigns. Our next event is scheduled for February 22, 2014 in Lumberton, North Carolina. We’re bringing together more than 75 authors, including New York Times bestsellers Bob Mayer and Haywood Smith, Hollywood producer Adam Cushman, and legendary drummer Jamie Oldaker, who plays with Eric Clapton, Leon Russell, Peter Frampton and more—and John Regan, who plays bass guitar for Peter Frampton, Mick Jagger, David Bowie, and more. The event is completely free and open to the public, and for every book that is purchased, money goes toward increasing literacy. All the details are at www.bookemnc.org.

Caroline: What a great event. Thanks for sharing with us today.

PM: Thank you for having me here today!

An now here’s a blurb from THE TEMPEST MURDERS:

A provocative story of a love that spans centuries, of soul mates found, lost and reunited… and the lengths to which one man will go to change their destiny.

Irish Detective Ryan O’Clery is working a series of homicides in America when he discovers a journal written by an uncle, Constable Rian Kelly, five generations earlier. The journal detailed the same type of murders as the worst storm in Ireland’s history slammed into the island in 1839.

As Hurricane Irene barrels toward the North Carolina coastline, Ryan discovers even the killer’s description matches his cases exactly. And as he falls in love with television reporter Cathleen Reilly, he begins to wonder if she is the reincarnation of Caitlin O’Conor, Rian Kelly’s lover—the woman who was lost to the killer as the storm raged in Ireland—and if he is the reincarnation of Constable Rian Kelly.

Now he’s in a race to rescue Cathleen before the killer finds her—or is history destined to repeat itself?

TEMPEST MURDERS Excerpt:

They were bites away from finishing their meal when the sky opened up. There might have been a warning, had he been by himself and able to observe his surroundings; but by the time he noticed the trees bending deeply and the gray clouds roiling, the rain had descended on them in a torrent. Within seconds, their food was floating.

A tiny shriek escaped Cathleen’s lips as she vainly tried to keep the rain off her head.

Ryan jumped up, grabbed her wrist and in one fluid movement, had her on her feet. They raced for the back door, managing to rush inside just as a wicked clap of thunder sounded, followed almost instantly by a white streak of lightning.

Once inside, he closed the door, plunging them both into relative silence. He turned around, an offer to get her a towel on his lips. But when he laid eyes on her, the words froze. She was completely drenched. Her hair was hanging in folds from which water streamed until it formed a puddle on the hardwood floor. Her thin blouse was plastered to her body and seemed to highlight the black lace bra beneath. It further accentuated a slender waist before giving way to jeans that she now appeared to have been poured into. Her feet were soaked and as he took in the petite toes peeking out, he found himself staring at the pink polish and a Celtic toe ring before his eyes moved back up her body.

By the time they reached her eyes, he felt as if he was on automatic pilot. His mind was completely blank, his emotions swept away. He stepped toward her at the exact moment he reached out and pulled her to him, the wet blouse teasing his chest. He didn’t look in her eyes but closed his as his lips locked onto hers.

They were everything he’d dreamed about; full and moist and soft. But she wasn’t kissing him.

He stopped and took a step backward, separating them. She stood perfectly still and stared at him with eyes that had grown round and huge. Her face had lost its color and as she continued staring at him, he realized she was in shock.

Horrified with his own boorish behavior, he stumbled over his words. “I am so sorry. I’ve never done anything like that in my life—”

She rushed at him and for the briefest of moments, he didn’t know if she planned to slap him or pummel him or push him to the side to rush out the door. He staggered backward to get out of her way but when she descended on him her arms encircled his neck, pulling his head down to hers. When their lips met again, hers were slightly open and she met his mouth with a passion he had only dreamed about but had never fully experienced.

Ryan’s arms wrapped around her; pulling her to him so tightly he had to contain himself to keep from bruising her. She tasted sweet and fresh, the raindrops mingling with perspiration and a fragrance that was both soothing and wild and which seemed to envelop them both in a sensual cocoon.

His large hand found her face, the palm cupping her chin while his fingers stroked her jaw. Her skin was as soft as silk and moist from the rain; and as her lips parted further to allow him in, he thought he could never get enough of her. As one hand wandered to her hair, weaving his fingers through the long tresses, a mingled scent of citrus and florals wafted upward, growing in intensity as he fondled her locks.

He pressed his body against her, tightening his hold on her as his other hand explored her back, kneading her skin through the thin, wet blouse. Her breath was coming in short shallow bursts now and he could feel her heart quickening as he pressed ever closer. When she sighed softly, he opened his eyes and when she moaned, he reluctantly drew back from her, his muscled chest rising and falling and yearning.

Her face was flushed, the heat rising in her cheeks in a way that tantalized him. Her plump lips remained slightly parted and as he gazed at them, he realized he might have bruised them despite his efforts to control his passion. As his eyes found hers, he discovered them staring at him in a way that disarmed him. The gold flecks he had seen earlier appeared to have grown and now they nearly glowed as she looked at him. They were tumultuous, the colors dancing under her long, curved black lashes. But it was the raw emotion in them that gripped his soul; he’d seen desire before and had witnessed passion but there was something more—something deeper. It was trust, he realized with a start. As if she was standing before him, naked to the soul and she was entrusting herself to his care.

In his peripheral vision, he could see her chest rising and falling with her jagged breath and each rise threatened to take him closer to the peak of desire.

.

pm terrell, author

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

p.m.terrell is the pen name for Patricia McClelland Terrell, the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than eighteen books in four genres: contemporary suspense, historical suspense, computer how-to and non-fiction.

Prior to writing full-time, she founded two computer companies in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area: McClelland Enterprises, Inc. and Continental Software Development Corporation. Among her clients were the Central Intelligence Agency, United States Secret Service, U.S. Information Agency, and Department of Defense. Her specialties were in white collar computer crimes and computer intelligence.

VICKI’S KEY was a top five finalist in the 2012 International Book Awards and 2012 USA Book Awards nominee and her historical suspense, RIVER PASSAGE, was a 2010 Best Fiction and Drama Winner. It was determined to be so historically accurate that a copy of the book resides at the Nashville Government Metropolitan Archives in Nashville, Tennessee.

She is also the co-founder of The Book ‘Em Foundation, an organization committed to raising public awareness of the correlation between high crime rates and high illiteracy rates. She is the organizer of Book ‘Em North Carolina, an annual event held in Lumberton, North Carolina, to raise funds to increase literacy and reduce crime. For more information on this event and the literacy campaigns funded by it, visit www.bookemnc.org. 

She sits on the boards of the Friends of the Robeson County Public Library and the Robeson County Arts Council. She has also served on the boards of Crime Stoppers and Crime Solvers and became the first female president of the Chesterfield County-Colonial Heights Crime Solvers in Virginia.

For more information visit the author’s website at www.pmterrell.com, follow her on Twitter at @pmterrell, her blog at www.pmterrell.blogspot.com, and on Facebook under author.p.m.terrell.

Buy Links:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Tempest-Murders-ebook/dp/B00EOAFTYY/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377895714&sr=1-2&keywords=the+tempest+murders

Thanks for stopping by!