Gettinig Away - NJRW Put Your Heart in a Book Conference

I read in a blog this week that David Pride, one of our contributors, tries to go to cities that are bigger than where he lives at least once or twice a year. It’s an interesting proposition. 
 

There is a sense of freedom when one hits the open road headed out of town. I love coming home, but at times, seeing it in the rearview mirror gives me a thrill that there is more out there to experience, new fodder for stories yet to be written. 

This past weekend, I did just that, I took a roadtrip with three of my author friends and we went to a conference in New Jersey. The following are my observations in no particular order…until the end.

Observation 1: There are a lot more cars in New Jersey. If we waited until there were no cars coming…we were never getting on Route 1.

Observation 2: Spending time with likeminded individuals is motivating and makes one feel like an adult.

Observation 3: There is more to life than shuttling the kids back and forth to soccer, hockey, baseball, ballet…there’s a whole world out there where adults sit at dinner for hours talking, sharing and experience the food that someone else cooked. 

Observation 4: When you forget medication at home and you’re four states away…there is not an easy way to get a prescription refilled. I hear that it happens all the time, but coordinating between the pharmacy, the doctor and the ride in New Jersey is why people take pills in the first place.  

Observation 5: I love to write. I love to talk about writing. I love to learn about what everyone who writes does to become successful. 

Observation 6: When you’re a published author at the New Jersey Romance Writers conference, you get chocolate covered pretzels and wine. And share it with other, often more successful, authors. 

Observation 7: By day three of the conference, everyone is exhausted. The seven or eight hour ride home seems Tolstoy long and if someone else is driving…it’s a good thing.

Observation 8: Arriving home is familiar and comforting.

Observation 9: There’s nothing like a hug from the child who wants to know “What’s for dinner?” ten seconds after you want into the room.

Observation 10: News happened while I was away, but my fabulous reporters were out there covering stories and they didn’t miss me at all.

Entitled humanity

When someone crosses a road, be it in a crosswalk or jaywalking, it’s nice to look up at the driver in the car who stopped for you and give a nod or wave. I’m not saying they should make a fool of themselves in the crosswalk, but just a “yeah, I see you and thanks for stopping” look. 
 

Where has our sense of entitlement come from? Even though it’s the law to stop for pedestrians in crosswalks, how many times have you seen people drive on through? If the walker is not looking then he’s going to get squished. 

Engage people. This past weekend, I volunteered with Boy Scout Troop 805 at the Maine Marathon which started in Portland. I was put 100 yards away from the finish line to direct runners and let them know they were close to the end of their journey. 

These people, who have just run a marathon, 26.2 miles, or a half-marathon, still a grueling 13.1 miles, took a second to tell the woman yelling at them that they were 100 yards from the finish line “Thank you.” “Thank you for volunteering today.” (Then there was that one man who said, “Don’t lie to me.” But that’s a different story about keeping a sense of humor.) Anyway, these runners had spent five hours running through many towns and at the end of their journey they took a second to thank me for being there, when some people can’t acknowledge that I didn’t run them over while they crossed the street.

With only a little nod, people will know they have done a good deed for the day. A small pat on the back that says, “I appreciate you.”

Independence Day 2010

I just returned from a family trip to Gettysburg, PA. and on this Independence Day I feel more blessed than ever to live in a country that is willing to fight for what it stands for, even if it means fighting on our own soil.

I'm not saying we should fight one another, brother against sister. After visiting Gettysburg, where people were killing one another for their belief of what our country should be, my perspective changed. The Union troops were fighting to preserve the Union. To keep the stars and stripes flying above our whole country.

We saw monument after monument, until I thought I would scream, but in retrospect, each monument was placed proudly in memory of a group of men, some as young as 13 years old, who fought at this battle that was the turning point of the Civil War.

These men hid in caves, behind bullet scared trees and near rock walls that were built during the night. From July 1 to July 3, bullets, cannons, horse cavalry and foot soldiers engaged in mortal combat.

I'm the wife of a US Marine veteran. I was around when my husband went to the first Gulf War. I know war means death, danger and hardships, but until I was standing on a battlefield where people died, the blood long washed away, I didn't comprehend the magnitude of what soldiers go through.

We create military heroes as fiction writers. They are hunky, desirable and never flinch in the face of adversity. We rarely write about the traumas, sleepless nights and the horror of battle, mostly because that would make depressing reading. However, sometimes we have to step back and think about the men and women who have shaped our country, who have given us the ability to celebrate the fourth of July. From the men of the Twentieth Maine to Martin Luther King, Jr., to Angus King (former Governor of Maine), they all have contributed to our National history.

So although I grumbled about driving to Gettysburg, I'm so glad that my family wanted to go.

God bless America, our fighting soldiers and our citizens who work to make our country a better place for all.

Captions: 1. Little Round Top from the Devil's Den.
2. The Twentieth Maine monument.
3. My military hero, who braved 8 flights of stairs for this picture.

Cover for "Playing with Fire"

Cover for "Playing with Fire"

Here is the cover of my newest release from Carnal Passions. "Playing with Fire" is a can't be missed story, in my opinion. This is the back cover blurb for the book. Enjoy.

Hugs and kisses,

Jillian

Firefighter Tristan Devon leaves the destination of his first vacation in years up to chance after marrying off the sister he’s taken care of for years. He finds himself trapped on Bear Island as caretaker for a 100-year-old lighthouse with a neurotic, secretive woman

Erin Kimball, an award winning toy designer, is not impressed with a macho firefighter coming to spy on her. The toy she created started catching on fire and burning children, and she was determined to discover why and clear her reputation. She didn’t need some hot man getting into her business.

When Erin’s ex-fiancé shows up on the island, tensions flare between the three residents and the end of the month can’t come fast enough for Tristan.

Blogging over at Writer's Vineyard today is my good friend. I hope you'll stop by and visit with my friend Michelle Libby.

The Brotherhood

We've all heard about the brotherhood of police officers, firefighters and servicemen, but few know what that word truly means to the men and women of law enforcement. I have first hand experience with the brotherhood. I am married to a police officer in Maine. My husband has been with this current department for more than 14 years.

For years I knew he trusted his fellow officers. I told stories about his escapes. When his Lieutenant told him he'd better hit the gym to be a part of the SWAT team so that my husband could carry the Lieutenant's "fat ass" out of a building if it was needed, I laughed and repeated the story as most good storytellers would.

When officers get together to drink and blow off steam, they also regal stories about the calls they go on and the people they encounter. They are with their buddies and it's safe.
Now, there is camaraderie and there is brotherhood - there is a difference.

Our police department has been hit hard the last eight months. Two officers have died, one from a gun shot would and one of natural causes. When these tragedies happen, it tests the police department on every level.

I have never seen another group band together and rally around families like I saw after these men passed away. The first death was in May and because it was accidental people came from everywhere to celebrate his life and to show support for their brother. There was a parade of officers and the pictures of the sea of uniforms were amazing. I chose not to go to the funeral on that day. I did go to the calling hours the night before. A long line of officers and their spouses waited to express their sorrow to the wife and children.

Meals were made for the families, an officer in a marked car stood post outside the family home and scholarship funds were set up for the officer's children.

No one ever expects that something like this would happen to their family and we hope it never will, but when you're in the police department you are never alone.

At the funeral that took place last Saturday, the wife was in shock. Her 52-year-old husband of two years was dead. Regardless that she had only been married for two years, she was a part of us. As the wife of a police officer she was to be protected and will be helped.

Officers from many area agencies showed up to honor the 19-year-veteran of the police department. It was -26 degrees that morning, yet they solemnly lined the streets as the casket was brought into the auditorium.

It's hard to sit through something like that without thinking about my own husband and what I would do if something happened to him. Would I want them to play sappy music? Who would I want to speak about him and the man he was? What would I do with my children? It's morbid to consider, but it's the reality for a police officer's family.

The wives sat together at the funeral, much like the wives of professional athletes. We laughed when one man told us that the officer had once said at a home they were arresting someone at... "This crown molding would look great in my house."

And we held hands and cried as the American flag was given to the wife and the officer's badge was given to his 12-year-old daughter. It was truly heart breaking.

The brotherhood of police officers is a tight knit group of men and women who risk their lives every day for our safety. Until you are near that circle and touch inside the bubble, you can only imagine what it's like and hope that if some tragedy should happen in your family that you have the same kind of support.

To bring this all back around to writing, since this is a writing blog. Writer's tend to have a their own type of support system. When a new writer finds out that others hear voices and create their own worlds, it's a great relief to discover there are others like you. Only another writer/author knows what the disappointment of rejection feels like and the thrill of acceptance when a contract comes across her desk.

We all write about what we love and the things we know or have researched. When I wrote "Flashbangs and Nightsticks", I drew on my experiences with police officers and although I never dealt drugs, my husband did light a bed on fire with a flashbang.

Thanks for listening.
Jillian Hallowell
"Flashbangs and Nightsticks"
"Lace, Lust and Liars" Released today at http://www.carnalpassions.com/.
Police photos taken by Kelly Watters.

Hi Jillian Hallowell here. I'm so excited about the release of my new novel "Flashbangs and Nightsticks". It's one of the launch book for fun, new publisher Carnal Passions.

I am the wife of a police sergeant in a large city in Maine. Through years of stories at Christmas parties, I realized that I should write what I know. So I wrote about police officers, the ones I would want on my side if I needed them. I wrote about the brotherhood of cops, who stick together and watch out for one another and each other's families.

In this book, the hot sex is just an added bonus to the fun of the relationship between the main characters. I'll stop talking and let you read the back cover blurb. I hope you enjoy.

Now Available at www.carnalpassions.com

Flashbangs & Nightsticks

By Jillian Hallowell

Contemporary Erotic Romance$6.00

When officers are undercover and out of uniform, the bad guys aren't the only ones who'll feel the heat.

Back Cover Blurb:

Port City Police Officer Kasey Shea loves her job and she's good at it, but when too many complaints about her aggressive behavior pileup, she is reassigned to the hooker patrol. The only problem is Kasey doesn't own a dress, much less know how to entice a man with her feminine charms.

Dusty "Detroit" Grant is tasked by DEA to discover how drugs are being transported into New England. His only lead, a hooker who breaks all the rules. Dusty and Kasey team up and Dusty's priority seems to be keeping Kasey safe at all costs. For Kasey the assignment boils down to whether she can play her girly role long enough to impress her Lieutenant and to prove to herself that sometimes it takes more than a flashbang and a nightstick to get the job done.

I hope you'll give "Flashbangs and Nightsticks" a try. You can reach me at jillianhallowell@gmail.com.

Until next time.
Jillian