Thursday, August 2, 2018

Inspiring Things…




As an author, inspiration comes to me in the most unusual of ways. I never know when an idea will take flight. Maybe it comes from something I’ve seen on TV, or overheard in a conversation. It can even come in dreams. That’s the beauty of inspiration…it’s a surprise gift.

Once the idea comes, a story is born, but not all ideas pan out. Some fail miserably.  

When I first discovered the desire to write, it was after reading such romantic suspense greats as Victoria Holt and Phyllis Whitney. Those two women fueled my imagination and inspired me to try my hand at the romantic suspense genre.

As a romantic suspense author, I’m inspired to see danger everywhere.




Take for instance this photo of a grove of Aspen trees taken on our recent trip to Pagosa Springs, Colorado. It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Well, let me give you a sneak peek into the mind of a suspense author. I see snow covered trees in the headlights of a vehicle sliding on the frozen road while ice and snow pummel it. A terrified woman searching for the impossible--a man who isn’t supposed to be alive. Behind her, a SUV follows. Is it friendly, or the people chasing her? 



Or this photo of a canyon near the house where we stayed. It’s picturesque with the river down below, right? I see a woman clinging to the side of the cliff, dangling high above a raging river. A man hunkered over her trying to pry her fingers loose.     


Inspiration can definitely come in the most unusual of places. This was the case when I sat down to write the first Scorpion Team book for Love Inspired Suspense entitled ROCKY MOUNTAIN PURSUIT.


The idea of a former CIA agent having to fake his own death in order to hide from a dangerous terrorist seeking to silence him popped into my head one day, (I truly love spy stories, so it wasn’t a huge stretch). From there, I imagined the heroine being chased by the same bad man because of something her deceased CIA agent husband possessed. From there Rocky Mountain Pursuit was born, and with it, the Scorpion Team book series took life in my head. The Scorpions are an elite team of CIA agents whose purpose is to bring down terrorists active around the world…and in the US.     

Each book in the series is back-dropped in a mountain setting. For me, there’s just something about the mountains that create their own intrigue. The unpredictable weather, the unforgiving terrain. The danger involved in every summit.

My current book, STANDOFF AT MIDNIGHT MOUNTAIN takes place on top of Midnight Mountain in Wyoming. A missing CIA agent and a frantic sister who believes her brother’s disappearance is the sign of something far more ominous. Add to it a hero who was once involved with the heroine, then put them in danger from the weather and some very bad men, and you have a suspense.   



 STANDOFF AT MIDNIGHT MOUNTAIN is the 4th in the Scorpion Team Series. In October, GRAVE PERIL, the final book in the series, will release.



It’s always a little sad when a series comes to an end, but writing about the men and women of the SCORPION TEAM has been my pleasure, and I’m looking forward to what the future may hold.
As a writer, inspiration comes in the strangest of places at times, but on a personal level, I see God’s inspiration everywhere I look in my family, my granddaughters, and the breathtaking beauty He created just for us.

What about you? Where do you find inspiration?

Blessings,

Mary Alford

21 comments:

  1. I love your creativity. These sound just super!

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  2. Such a wonderful post! I can relate to what you said about suspense authors. We DO see danger around every corner. A hazard of the craft, no doubt!

    Love your Scorpion Team series! Great concept. Great stories!

    Like you, I'm inspired by anything and everything! Hmmm? Women on a blog live in various parts of the country, but they die--one after another--in the order they post on the blog. What's the common thread? Heading to a fresh page on my computer to brainstorm more of this interesting thread. :)

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    1. Love the idea, Debby. I would SO read that story.

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    2. You're scaring me already, Debby. Glad I don't post til next month!

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  3. Laughing at you suspense authors! Might be very enlightening to check out your internet browser history--LOL!

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  4. You get me, Mary! We suspense writers are always on the lookout for danger. In fact, I've now got my 75 year old mother on the lookout with me for interesting places to "hide the bodies" LOL. I imagine she never dreamed she'd be having THAT conversation with her daughter!

    Great post!

    BTW...please don't check my browser history. It will only scare you.

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    1. I once did a Google search on "How to Kill Someone!" Oh my gosh! My computer screen went red and a big sign said, "Do not go to this site!"

      I was merely looking for new ways to get rid of my villains. For a few days, I worried the FBI or CIA might appear at my door demanding my laptop!

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    2. LOL, Debby! That's hilarious!! They may not demand our laptops, but I'm sure we're on a list somewhere.

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    3. Mine too. I expect Homeland security at any time.

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    4. Debby, I've done that before and then I quickly get out of it and wonder, who's watching me...

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  5. Hi Mary! How funny we both grew up reading Phyllis Whitney and Victoria Holt. My older sister bought me a copy of Phyllis Whitney's "Golden Unicorn" when I was in middle school and it changed my life. THAT made me want to become a writer. Your new release looks amazing and I always love hearing how writers come up with their ideas.

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    1. Thanks, Belle. I loved the Golden Unicorn. I hope both of these wonderful authors knew how many people they inspired to follow in their footsteps.

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  6. May I loved Phyllis Whitney and Victoria Holt as well. I actually bought a couple of VH reprints a few years ago.

    I was saying to my daughter the other day that this overactive imagination is great for a writer, but it makes life really stressful when you're imagining danger at every turn.

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    1. That should have said, Mary, not May. Sorry My computer does not seem to like the heavy usage it's been getting this month!

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    2. No worries. Yes, it's hard to have a simple day without danger lurking everywhere. But I wouldn't have it any other way.

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