GET LOST IN SUSPENSE WITH ROBIN BURCELL

Hello, Readers.  Please welcome the multi-talented, multi-faceted Robin Burcell to Get Lost in a Story.  Robin has two releases in December and January, so we're pleased to promote them both.   

 …The Dark Hour is a wonderful, breath-taking novel of escape.”

– Suspense Magazine

About The Dark Hour: 

A high-profile killing has brought FBI Special Agent and forensic artist Sydney Fitzpatrick to Amsterdam—even as the assassination of a prominent U.S. senator rocks the political world.  Two seemingly unrelated murders are leading Sydney to the threshold of a shocking conspiracy to spread a plague of death across the globe, especially when her sketch of a killer—and possible conspirator—reveals the face of a female CIA agent believed to be dead.

The murder of a witness and the disappearance of the missing agent’s husband, covert government operative Zachary Griffin, has Sydney racing against the clock to prevent a biological nightmare of astronomical proportions. For the dark hour is rapidly approaching when all secrets will be revealed…and the lives of countless millions will hang in the balance.

ABOUT THE BLACK LIST

The first death was ruled an accident. But when a second accountant from ADE—a popular relief organization that resettles East African refugees—turns up dead, FBI special agent and forensic artist Sydney Fitzpatrick is called in to lend her expertise in an increasingly troubling case. Not only is the charity backed by a powerful U.S. senator, but the investigation reveals that its funds have been siphoned off to bankroll terrorist cells in black list countries, and Sydney fears the consequences.

And it may already be too late. Death has crossed the border from Mexico and is now heading toward Washington, D.C.  Time is rapidly running out—and unless Sydney and her partner, Zachary Griffin, can get to the roots of a monstrous conspiracy, untold thousands will die in a nuclear nightmare and a nation will be reduced to chaos.

 And Now... Let's get to know Author Robin Burcell:

DONNELL:  Welcome to Get Lost in a Story, Robin.  Your background ties in so apt with your writing.  What is more rewarding, being a writer or being a police officer?

ROBIN:  Undoubtedly the 27 years I spent working law enforcement was more rewarding. It is a job where you can make a real difference in someone’s life. You might not get thanked at the time, but every now and then, someone will come up years later and tell you personally that you did indeed make a difference.  That is an amazing feeling to realize that. And humbling, since really, you were only doing your job.

DONNELL:  If you could live anywhere, where would it be?

ROBIN:  By the ocean. Preferably northern California or the Pacific Northwest. Way back when, I was totally going to live in the mountains. The older I get, the less I think I want to shovel snow.  I’d like to at least live within walking distance of the ocean. If I win the lotto, we’re going ocean view. (Note to self: buy lotto ticket.)

DONNELL:  How is Robin Burcell like your protagonist Sydney Fitzpatrick? How are you different?

ROBIN: Naturally we’re both in law enforcement. But unlike me, Sydney left police work and joined the FBI. She, apparently, went to a better college than I. We are both forensic artists. (I was trained by the FBI for this at Quantico, so I’m basing some of my experience on the time I spent there.)  Many artists are empathetic. It’s a good quality to have when trying to interview someone who has recently been victimized or witnessed a horrific crime, so I passed this quality on to Sydney as well.  And like Sydney, I often champion the underdog.  The one thing we don’t have in common? Failed relationships. I’ve been married to the same man, the love of my life, since 1985, and we’ve been together since 1983. Poor Sydney hasn’t quite got this relationship thing down. But she’s working on it.

DONNELL:  What’s the single best advice you’ve ever received – Worst advice?

ROBIN:  Best advice? I don’t even remember who said it, but my writing friend and I often quote it when we’re daunted by a new project: You can’t fix a blank page.

There are days I know I am writing crap, and someone else wisely said: Give yourself permission to write crap. Hard to do when you want to write a great book. But as mentioned above, you can’t fix a blank page.  You can, however, fix crap. In fact, the project I’m currently working on was looking very blank, and as I (finally) began to make progress, very crappy. But I tell myself to keep writing, because eventually I will figure it out. I hope. And I usually do. And then it’s like a snowball. You go back, fix the crap, and suddenly you are discovering the diamond in the rough. That’s the fun part—which, I might add, you can’t get to if you haven’t written the crappy version to begin with.  (And as of this writing, I’m actually getting to the part where it is looking better and better!)

DONNELL:  Organized?  Or are you a packrat?

ROBIN:  ß Me, laughing.  Organized? In my wildest dreams. I long for one of those home redecorating shows to come and makeover my office, turning me into the most organized writer and person, arranging my files so that my desk stays magically clean.  But since this is unlikely to happen, when I win the lotto and buy that beach front home, I am so hiring a professional organizer. As it is right now, I can clean my desk to actually see the grain of wood on top, leaving just a tiny stack of papers that I can never seem to figure out what to do with—and then they propagate like dust bunnies, breeding and breeding until two or three days later, it is just as messy. 

DONNELL:  If you’re not writing, where might we find you?

ROBIN:  Reading a good book (I read across all genres), watching campy movies (Galaxy Quest anyone?) or catching up on my favorite TV shows. I have somewhat eclectic tastes.  Everything from Buffy the Vampire Slayer to Masterpiece Mystery Theater. I love about anything on the USA channel (Monk reruns, Suits, Covert Affairs), and am in love with the show Justified. Most important fact you should know about me: I am a late-in-life, can’t-believe-I-didn’t-discover-this-series-years-ago, Doctor Who fan. 

DONNELL:  High heels, tennis shoes, hiking boots… other?

ROBIN: High heel days are pretty much over, unless there is some special event that doesn’t require much walking. Chipped a bone on the bottom of my foot during a research trip to Europe for this current series.  For dress events, flats. Tennis shoes for every day.

DONNELL:  If you could meet anyone, past or present, who would it be?

ROBIN:  Can they be fictional? Because I have a whole bunch of fictional characters I’d like to meet: Dr. Who, James Bond, Sherlock Holmes…

ROBIN, NOW IT’S YOUR TURN.  TIME TO ASK THE READER A QUESTION.   

READERS, ROBIN WILL BE GIVING AWAY AN ADVANCED READER COPY TO ONE QUESTIONER OR COMMENTER:  BE SURE TO LEAVE YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS SO WE CAN CONTACT YOU.

ROBIN:  Doctor Who and the TARDIS lands on your doorstep and he says he can take you anywhere in time and space. Where do you go? What year? Who do you meet?

Robin Burcell worked as a police officer, detective, hostage negotiator, and forensic artist. The Dark Hour is her latest international thriller about an FBI forensic artist. The Black List will debut in January 2013. Visit her at www.RobinBurcell.com,  https://twitter.com/RobinBurcell, and http://www.facebook.com/robin.burcell

***Note: Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only. If an Advanced Reading Copy (ARC) is available, the author may utilize that option for International participants. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants.

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