My apologies, fellow blog reader, but to say I haven't been occupied during the past few weeks would be an understatement.
First, the big news: As of Canada Day (July 1st), 2012, I am now officially a published author. It's hard to believe that a guy, who has presumably used up his "15 minutes of fame" back in the 1990's when he was a competitive swimmer, decided to resurrect himself as someone who's penned a tome. Yet, here I am, on the cusp of turning 41 (Although, according to my dental insurance, I turned that age three months ago; someone typo'd my records.), having taken the plunge, and feeling brave enough to self-publish my National Novel Writing Month efforts from this past November. The result is a novel entitled, "Scarlet Siege."
The novel features a character I've been rattling around in my head since high school: a Toronto detective that has been somewhat accident prone; having been shot at, stabbed, and a few broken bones over his now 27-year career. In "Siege," he's taking a weekend off from his hectic job to attend a fan convention in Toronto. However, during the Opening Ceremonies, when its revealed one of the cast has opted not to attend again, three disgruntled fans take over the event, and demand the actor show up; otherwise, the captors will start pinging off attendees. The main character plots his strategy incognito with the advice of a friend from a previous case, his co-worker/partner -- who is developing personal feelings towards him -- that he converses with via text message, and the ghostly spectre of his assassinated fiancée. It's an interesting romp with nods to a personal fandom I share. The book is now available as an e-book and in paperback on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk. However, that wasn't the only thing that has kept me occupied in June.
While I was putting the finishing touches on "Scarlet Siege," I was writing the first draft of the second novel in the series, entitled "Barbadian Backlash." In this one -- which I'm hoping for a release later this year -- the main character and his now partner/girlfriend are on the trail of a criminal responsible for a string of break-and-enters; while at the same time, he is helping his aforementioned friend conduct research for an upcoming novel he's working on. The research interview has the main character thinking back to an investigation into the murder of his former partner down in Barbados. The hook is, this is the case where the main character first meets the woman he dated before his current partner/girlfriend. Plus, there's a little secret involving him and the Barbadian that his current partner doesn't know. Can the M.C. keep his secret quiet, while getting all of his ducks in a row? Tune in later this year to find out.
That's pretty much what's been occupying me for the past month; save for the start of a new Canadian pro football season. However, it has gotten me into thinking about using the season ending event as the backdrop for the third novel in the series; which, I hope to commence writing this coming November. An author's work is never done.
Until next time, the views may be from the outside, but I'm thrilled to be listed on Amazon.
Purchase the debut novel of Douglas J. McLeod, "Scarlet Siege" at:
http://amzn.to/LCCkOi for U.S. orders, or
http://amzn.to/NfmcQK for U.K. orders.
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