Andrea Kane GuestBlog: Just the Facts, Ma'am

Just thought I would drop in and say hi :o)

I see you were talking about Silence of the Lambs! That is I have to say one of my all time favorite movie!!! I have every movie in the series on DVD. Is it wrong that I feel a little bit in love with Dr. Lector? I cried at the end of Hannibal because I was really touched by how much he loved Clarice and cut off his own hand instead. Yeah my family thinks I’m nuts too LOL.

Andrea I haven’t read any of your books yet but they sound really good and I’ll have to look into them.

Another author that writes really good stories about Quantico is Alex Kava. Her books in her Maggie O’Dell series are awesome. Not romance but the killers she creates are amazing and there is some major sexual tension between some of her characters.

Hope everyone had a great Easter Weekend!

"Portia, does that mean that if you watch enough WWII documentaries, himself will have a go at the Hotel Chocolat with you?"

LOL! I think the negotiation skills would be needed to encourage him *not* to go at the HC and leave a bit more for me!

I think generally the give and take thing leads to him spending more time listening attentively and making useful suggestions when I burble on about writing and the craziness of the publishing industry... oh, and also him sitting through episodes of L&O Criminal Intent and Numb3rs. :)

P.S. When we're all blogging at the same time, our entries sometimes overlap. So I missed the last few comments. Thank you, ricasella, for your kind words about TWISTED-- I'm so glad you felt you knew the characters up-close-and-personal, and that the plot kept you riveted right up to the last page! And, Rhianna, I, too, would love to hear more about your SANE training. So e-mail and tell me all about it; it sounds truly fascinating.

It was very interesting. We learned a lot about rapists and madmen, escalating violence was a big part of her lecture. Then we attended a mock trial the next day with a prosecutor doing cross exam, made me sweat. Overall it was a great experience.

But I would love to go to quantico. That sounds like a once in a lifetime experience for a writer of suspense. I envy that experience.

Rhianna

Like I said, I work 24/7! So here I am again, dropping in for my nighttime visit, after which I get a half hour for dinner, then back to work.

I agree that ultimate trust is the basis for any bond that matters-- whether it's a long-term emotional commitment or a lifesaving teamwork effort. So, yes, those are the ties that make us human and keep us secure. But doing that as a crisis negotiator is such a selfless, tireless, and perilous job that to do it with all you've got, and with nothing personal to gain other than the satisfaction of what you've done for others, is about as awesome as it gets.

Sorry, I can't give any of you good advice on how to be subtle and keep your temper under wraps. I failed that course. "What's on your lung is on your tongue"-- that's what my college roommate used to say about me. Definitely not a plus in negotiations. When I sat in on those long talks between the lead hostage negotiators and the simulated hostage-takers, it took all my self-control not to grab their phones and order the bad guy to send out those hostages, unharmed, right now, or SWAT would burst in and do it for him. Trust me, that would NOT have gone over well. The self-control these special agents exert is staggering.

It's funny you should mention Hannibal Lechter. Several reviewers have compared my villain in TWISTED to him in his serial killer depravity (no flesh-eating, don't worry). And in real life, I'm such a softie. I STILL don't understand why that wonderful spider had to die at the end of "Charlotte's Web." And I still cry at Disney movies. So I have no idea how I write my terrifying scenes. It just happens. And, believe it or not, some of those scenes I have trouble re-reading!

Yes, I've seen some pretty gory stuff. The ongoing cases are never discussed; it's the closed ones that the Bureau will share elements of with me.

It's funny, Michelle. I'm as impatient as you are (I'm Type A+), but that quality manifests itself in just the opposite way where it comes to reading. I'm fixated on the thriller facets of the book, and I love the thrill of the chase as I fly through the book, trying to solve the mystery. I'm more frustrated by things like misunderstandings, lack of awareness of one's own feelings, and longstanding (un-culminated) sexual tension. I think that's because I'm all about communication. I'm much more into creating 3D characters who evolve rapidly throughout the book, and a relationship that's recognized by the couple involved sooner rather than later. Then, they can battle their individual demons, their relationship demons, and, at the same time, take on the common enemy together. There's plenty of room in a good thriller for sizzle and for baggage. In TWISTED, lots of that baggage stems from the steamy love affair between Sloane and Derek that ended under the most painful of circumstances a year ago. But, believe me, that fire is still smoldering away, and it explodes wide open, just like the mystery!

Balancing a complicated thriller and an equally complicated romantic relationship is a tough, tough job. But I must be a glutton for punishment, because I love the challenge of doing it!

I hope you all feel I was successful when you read TWISTED. Please let me know-- e-mail me at: writetome@andrekane.com.

Again, it's been a real pleasure chatting with all of you. Thank you, Michelle, for having me. The Bellas are every bit as great as you said they'd be!

hi, ricasella! Thanks for dropping in! Those are great words of praise for Andrea and her book.

Wow, rhianna, that sounds as if it was an intense, but really impactful experience.

Hi there! I just read Twisted and was amazed at the depth of information in it. What a fantastic read. I kept me enthralled the whole time. It was a great book. I would recommend it to anyone. The characters have personalities and you actually feel for them. I absolutely loved this book. Kudo's Andera.
Rlcasella

Hi Andrea. Sounds like your FBI visit was amazing!

I took SANE training, which is Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner training and at the course I took was a female FBI profiler. She was fascinating and we were shown some very graphic pictures of crime scenes, where information on wounds and other things were noted. While you were there did they allow you to see this type of detail?

Rhianna

amy: you're a very scary woman. that's all's I'm sayin.

Portia, does that mean that if you watch enough WWII documentaries, himself will have a go at the Hotel Chocolat with you?

oh, stace: welcome to my world. The letting emotions get the best part, not the flesh-eating, Silence of the Lambs serial-killer part.

I constantly have to haul myself back from the brink of going off about something or other, and, in hindsight, always am glad I waited. Because there are so many other ways for me to make a fool of myself, why just bother all the time with hot-headed reactionary-ism-ness? (it's a damn word if I say it is).

Andrea, everyone knows I'm not a particularly adept "mystery " or "thriller" reader, because I get impatient for the "whodunnit," or frustrated because I can't figure out clues and stuff. But not all romantic thrillers or suspense novels seem to remember there's supposed to be a love story involved. Sometimes it's like men's thriller fiction with a kiss tossed in, but the girl doesn't end up dead (which Bob Mayer says is requisite in guy thriller books). :)

How do you make sure the love story doesn't play second fiddle to the action?