Dani Jace

Today on Weekend Writing Warriors #8Sunday, I’m sharing from my untitled work in progress about a former military K9 handler in search of his dog. Last week the story opened with Josh and his K9 partner, Luc, on patrol in Afghanistan searching for explosives.

A few steps further, Luc stopped again. Nose to the ground, his tail went up. Then he sat.

U.S. Army 1st Sgt. Brian Zamiska, with Delta Company, 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, provides security with an Air Force military working dog during a patrol with members of the Afghan Border Police in the Tera Zeyi district, Afghanistan, Jan. 6, 2013. (DoD photo by Spc. Alex Kirk Amen, U.S. Army/Released)

“Good boy.” Josh fished a florescent glow stick from his pocket, marked the sight, then he gave Luc his rubber chew toy in reward. They still had a few hundred yards before they’d make it back behind the wire. Even though Luc’s signal of an explosive device warned the platoon, Josh couldn’t know if it was set to blow by a pressure plate or remote. The unit of soldiers behind them waited and followed Josh and Luc a safe distance around the marked sight.

The sun beat low on the makeshift walls surrounding their unit’s temporary base. Once inside the gate, soldiers gave Luc their “atta boy” comments as they dispersed to their assigned duties.

Luck cocked his ears and growled. Josh hit the deck, covering his dog as pieces of rock rained down.

Now it time to check out the other amazing authors at Weekend Writing Warriors.

On March 14 the Pages to Publication, multi-genre writers’ conference, is being held at the Williamsburg Regional Library in Williamsburg, Virginia. For a mere $40 you’ll hear two speakers, Mary Behre and Meredith Bond. You’ll also have opportunity to pitch to editors, Dominique Eastwick, Valerie Mann, both from Decadent Publishing and/or Francis Sevilla from The Wild Rose Press.

Mary Behre‘s session is on “Writing Contests–How to get The Most Bang for Your Buck”
Mary discusses her secrets to going from contest winner to published author. Included in her talk, what agents and editors are looking for, how to find the right contest to fit your needs, classic mistakes to avoid, matching writing goals with contest goals, and the difference between being a contest winner and a contest queen. A multi-published author of paranormal romantic suspense novels, Mary used her experience as a contestant and a coordinator to turn a winning contest entry into a two-book deal with Berkley

Jumping Into Self-Publishing is Meredith Bond‘s workshop.
Are you thinking about jumping into the indie/self-publishing pool? Come on in, the water is cool and refreshing, although it does take a little while to get used to it. Meredith has self-published five books and will teach you all the strokes you need to know before you jump into the deep end. She’ll go over editing, covers, distributors (including, but not limited to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords and CreateSpace) and formatting. Come prepared with questions and she’ll be ready with answers.

Hosted by Chesapeake Romance Writers, Pages to Publication is open to all authors, published and unpublished. They will also be announcing winners of their Finish the Damn Book writing contest. The conference is from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Register and pay at Chesapeake Romance Writers. Hope to see you there. Now, I’m off to practice my pitch for my military, romance, Trident Valor, which won in the erotic category.