Interview with Author Jerri Ledford

Today, it is my pleasure to welcome and introduce multi-published author Jerri Ledford. Jerri, welcome to Patti’s Porch.

Tell us about your three book Biloxi suspense series.

This is my first fiction series.  Biloxi Sunrise is the story of two homicide special investigators on the Biloxi Police Department. They’re investigating a string of vicious murders along the Gulf Coast while dealing with their own personal demons from their pasts. Both have secrets, and those secrets could be the thing that gets them both killed.

Biloxi Blue, the second book in the series, bring Jack and Kate back. This time, Jack has been promoted to Captain, leaving Kate behind as a special investigator with a brand new partner. When bodies start turning up again, Kate and her new partner must find the killer, while she and Jack grow further apart. When the murderer comes after Kate, Jack and her new partner must race to save her before she winds up dead.

The third book, Biloxi Heat, features Jack’s niece, Lisa, more prominently. She’s all grown up now, going through school and preparing for her own career when her friend’s husband dies in a house fire. Lisa thinks it could have been arson, so she calls Jack and Kate in to help her figure out what’s going on before her friend (and herself) become victims of a murderous arsonist.

I've read the first book. Sounds like the next two will provide the same level of great reading. 

The first book, Biloxi Sunrise, touched on many subjects: exploitation of children, the wounds abuse inflicts on women, and loyalty among police officers, to name a few. What research resources did you use to create Biloxi Sunrise?  

I use the internet a lot, but I also spent some time at the Writer’s Police Academy learning about some aspects of the book. I also learned a lot during that conference that will apply to both of the other books in this series. 

I also read a lot. I have a shelf dedicated to my resource books.  It includes things like Police Procedure and Investigation, The Idiots Guide to Criminal Investigations, and Crime Scene Investigation.  In addition, I’ve read lots of books about criminal psychology, abnormal psychology, and forensics.

People are another resource I rely heavily on.  I’ve traveled a lot in my lifetime, and when people talk, I try to listen.  I pick up bits and pieces here and there. That always gets filed away for future use.  I’ll also interview experts in a given field when necessary.

I think the fact that you used interviews with people added depth to your story. Great job!

What do you like most about writing suspense stories?

It’s the story.  How do people who are otherwise just like me and you get through the circumstances that they find themselves in? I find that I’m very drawn to understanding how other people think.  And when you put someone in a life-threatening situation, you’ll see a side of them that might not otherwise show up.  That’s the part of suspense that I love…when the characters become more than I ever thought they would.

Television is loaded with cop shows. Did you model your main character, Jack Roe, after any of them?

I have to laugh at this.  Someone recently said Jack reminded them of Jack Malone of Without a Trace. In fact, Jack was conceived LONG before the TV show ever hit the airwaves.  Jack came to me in the mid-nineties, and he’s been with me ever since. Driving me up a wall!

Jack has an amalgamation of traits from people that I have loved and cared about over my lifetime.  The military background comes from my father and another man that was at one time in my life. His strength and pride from several people, and his loyalty to family from someone that holds my heart to this day. He’s all of the good traits of a bunch of people all rolled into one.

The books in this series are available only in electronic format. What do you see as the pros and cons of this publishing venue?

This is a pretty tough question.  I am a huge advocate for electronic publishing.  I think it’s definitely going to be the major publishing platform in a few years.  It offers a lot of plusses.  For example, time to market is an often-quoted benefit.  I’m currently working on Biloxi Blue. I started the book in November. It should be available for purchase around the end of April.  That’s a 5 month lead time.  

Whereas, if I were to go the more traditional publishing route, the book takes between 12 and 18 months to hit the stands from the time I finish writing it. By relying on electronic publishing, I’m increasing my productivity considerably.

But there’s the other side of digital publishing, right now. Because it is much easier to publish electronically, without the fetters of the traditional publishing world, a lot of people are doing it.  That makes getting noticed much harder than it’s ever been.  Constant marketing is required. And because I am self-published, I’m held to a much higher standard than traditionally published books.  I’ve taken lashes for mistakes in the first book yet I’ve seen traditionally published books with much worse mistakes that are never called out.

Traditional publishing, however, also has some advantages.  As of right now, electronic publishing only claims about 10 percent of the reading market.  By not having the book available in print, then I’m missing out on all the possible sales that would fit into the 90 percent of books that are still purchased and read in paper format.  There is just a much larger marketplace for paper-based books.  Personally, I don’t think it will remain that way, however, and so I’m taking the time now, while digital publishing is in its early stages, to try to establish a following of readers that like the types of stories that I write.

You offer some great insight into this controversial issue, Jerri.

SEO: Search Engine Optimization is one of your non-fiction books. How important do you feel it is for a new author to be easily located on the web?

If you’re a self-publishing, or indie author, it’s essential.  You name has to be everywhere.  And if potential readers see your name and want to know more about your books, they better be able to find that information quickly and easily.  The internet, you see, has made it so much easier to move on to the next name on the list.

So, being present means you have to participate in social media. Have a web presence. And share that with everyone that you know.  That alone could be a full-time job.  I could hire a person to do nothing but work my online presence and keep them busy for as many hours a day as I spend writing.  Of course, that’s not feasible, but I can dream, right? 

You have published many different forms of writing, from articles and news stories to book-length work in both fiction and non-fiction. If you could choose only one form of writing, what would it be?

Fiction. Hands down. And I didn’t even have to think about that answer. I’ve always wanted to write fiction. I have so many stories to tell.  The other writing was a way to build my skill, earn a living, and mature enough to have something to write about in the fiction world. But if I could only do one kind of writing, it would always be fiction.  I love telling stories. I love exploring characters. And I love sharing bits and pieces of who I am and what I believe with the readers that pick up my books.

What is your favorite pastime when you are not writing?

You mean there’s something besides writing?  =)  Okay.  I’m kidding.  I DO spend a lot of time writing.  Sometimes up to 16 hours a day.  But when I’m not writing, my very next love is my family.  I spend as much time as I can with my kids.  Right now, that means shuttle service and soccer games.  But over the years it’s meant many different kinds of things, from homeschooling to playground patrol.

I also usually have a camera slung around my neck. I love taking pictures. Of people, of places, and things.  Whatever happens to strike my fancy.  I’ve even had a few pictures published, though I’ll probably never be the first person that anyone thinks of when they think of photography. Still, it’s something that I love to do.

Creativity seems to play a big part in my life.  I like to cook. I like to make jewelry. I used to sew a little, too, though I haven’t done that in a while. And I like gardening.  It’s all about making something. 

And when I’m not writing, or I need a break from writing, these other creative endeavors usually kick in to occupy my time.

I'd say you are a very busy lady!

What advice would you give to new, unpublished writers?

Be persistent.  Over the course of my career I’ve learned one thing. The person that hangs on the longest usually ends up with the job. I won’t ever claim to be the greatest writer on the planet.  I’m not, and probably never will be because I’m too hard-headed.  But that same trait (being hard-headed) has landed me more jobs than most writers.  Mostly it’s because I don’t know when to stop.  I see something I want to do, and I work at doing it.  It doesn’t matter if I don’t have the right experience or knowledge.  I can learn how to do anything I want to do.  And for some reason, hearing the word “no” doesn’t faze me.  I just keep right after it until it happens.

I’m not sure what trait you would call that, but I’ve always said I was just too dumb to fail.

Where can your readers find you on the web?

Oh, I’m all over the place.

Web

Blog

Facebook

Twitter

Pinterest

Linkedin

Google+

Thank you, Jerri, for stopping by!

Thanks for inviting me! I’ve enjoyed sharing a little about myself. And I invite your readers to email me directly if you have any questions.  (jerrilynn (at) gmail (dot) com)

Below is my review of Biloxi Sunrise:

It had been a while since I’d read a mystery, and I sure chose the right one! Biloxi Sunrise hooked me from the first scene and kept me engaged with the characters right to the end.

As a police officer, Jack Roe has sworn to serve and protect. Yet, the fact that he didn’t protect his own wife and daughter from their deaths haunts him every day of his life. Now, he has a second chance with his sister and niece, but the job gets more difficult with each new threat to their well-being.

Kate, his partner, hides her shameful past from him. Her shortcoming leaves him vulnerable to danger as he burrows deeper into a murder investigation.

Counselor Dana McNally harbors her own secrets as she delves into the lives of the broken and abused women she strives to heal. Her growing relationship with Jack puts her on a collision course that thrusts him in harm’s way.

This novel carries all the elements of a great story:  believable characters, a well-constructed plot, and suspense that keeps you up all night turning the pages.

I’d love to read more books by this author. Thanks for a great read, Jerri!

Thanks for reading my blog!