Six Sentence Sunday: When Fools Rush in...

From Large Target, Jo has found the kidnappers’ hideout. Now what?

I drove a few blocks and parked on a side street. I wasn't sure what to do next. Getting killed seemed like the next logical step. The lack of sleep was catching up to me. I took a deep breath and then someone tapped on the glass. I looked up and nearly hit my head on the mirror flinching backward.

A florid face with bristly white hair and a weeks' growth of beard appeared crouching outside my window.

Dozens of other writers share sentences on Sundays. For a good time in many genres check them out at Six Sunday. If you are a writer who wants to share a snippet of your own work, the simple instructions are on the site. It's free and fun and you can meet some great people!

Six Sunday -- out of the line of fire, into another danger zone

From Large Target, Jo escapes from an ambush scene where the kidnapper has shot one person and incinerated a car. She has guessed the kidnapper's identity and tricked his father, who knows nothing about the crime, into giving her directions to the kidnapper's workshop.

I heard sirens, and a fire truck raced past headed for the fire that had been Zane's car with an ambulance and a police car following soon after. I started to feel very conspicuous. I got back on Foothill Boulevard and began to follow the instructions my lie had earned me.

The old man hadn't been exaggerating about needing a bodyguard in that part of town. A small detachment of marines would have been appropriate. The warehouse sat at the end of a block that was occupied by a junkyard on one side and a dirt lot ringed by several deserted buildings on the other, chain-link fences featuring razor wire on top set the dominant motif in exterior trim.


This event lures dozens of writers to share sentences on Sundays, this weekend I saw 173 signed up to play. For a good time check them out at six Sunday

Six Sentence Sunday: The Perils of Ransom Delivery...

From Large Target on her way to deliver a ransom, Jo escapes from an ambush as the kidnapper pauses to pick up the the ransom contained in a backpack lying next to Zane's body. Jo has to crouch down to look under the spiderweb cracks in her windshield:

It wouldn't do to plow into a telephone pole and conveniently kill myself and save everyone else the trouble.

Half a mile away I was amazed to find that no one followed me and there was no other traffic on that deserted road that had once been Route 66. I drove into the small parking lot of a long defunct grocery store, slid the car out of view of the highway, and waited a few minutes until the van I recognized drove past. I wanted to follow it, but instead I turned back to where I had left Zane. I didn't want to do it but I couldn't help it, until I saw the car up ahead and it disappeared in a flash of light followed by the boom of an explosion and flames. That guy sure did like to blow up cars.

Dozens of other writers share sentences on Sundays --for good time in many genres check them out at six Sunday.

A Second Year of Six-Sentence Sundays--when the dominoes start to fall

I'm starting my second year of Six Sentence Sundays with something from the part of Large Target that I personally refer to as “when the dominoes start to fall.” I’ve never been able to outline, so it was a great revelation to me when I finally got to the last few chapters of my first mystery and realized that all the loose ends from earlier in the book started coming together in a fast and furious way. This is one of my favorite parts of novel writing because I'm often as surprised as anyone by what happens.

In this scene Jo is delivering ransom money for the admiral and one additional victim whom the kidnappers grabbed to raise the stakes.

The next thing I heard was a scream from in front of the car. I moved the door open farther to look, and caught a glimpse of Zane on the ground a few feet to the left of my front wheel, one hand still resting on the heavy backpack. The door jerked in my hand from the impact of another shot and the dashboard lights went out.

The motor was still running. I kept down but slid back behind the wheel, jammed the car into gear and gunned it, steering sharp right around where Zane lay with the heavy backpack and his parked car. I drove as fast as I could, half looking out the side window to steer and hunching down to look under the spiderweb crack on the windshield.


For more small doses of fun from dozens of other writers in many genres check them out at Six Sunday.

Celebrating a Week 52 of Six Sentence Sundays with Something Completely Different

A year ago I joined the writers at Six Sentence Sunday and started sharing six sentences from some of my novels on Sunday. Today, I'm sharing a snippet from a nonfiction ebook for writers (which just happens to be on sale at Smashwords for $1.50 during Read An Ebook Week of March 4-10. Here are six sentences from Mistake No. 10 of The 33 Worst Mistakes Writers Make About Courtroom Law:

One mistake that drives lawyers and paralegals crazy is the story where a lawyer who practices in one area of law is asked by a friend to take on a criminal defense case, because the friend wants to be defended by “someone who believes in me.”

This is nonsense because law is almost as specialized as medicine. Having a trusted lawyer friend defend you in criminal court is like having your friendly neighborhood pediatrician do your brain surgery. Trusting someone doesn’t make him or her competent in every area of the law.

Believing in the client is no substitute for knowing what you’re doing. Criminal law practices in particular are not all in the reference books, so a lawyer who has no experience would have to spend a lot of time on the phone talking to lawyers who did know that branch of the law.

This week I counted links to 170 writers sharing snippets, so for a good time feel free to join the party at Six Sunday,

Six Sentence Sunday week 51 - What salted peanuts and six sentences have in common...

Wow, it’s been nearly a year that Six Sentence Sundays have inhabited my weekends! I've met many fine writers and learned a lot about different genres. These little snippets are highly addictive!

This weekend from Large Target, Jo is at the home of the missing admiral’s daughter when she finds out that the admiral’s daughter-in-law has turned down the kidnappers' demands, claiming that they don't have a million dollars or any way to raise it. His children agree that they don't.

"Colleen told them to call back tomorrow and put the admiral on the line, so we'd better figure out how much we can offer," Ivor said.

"Would the admiral's money be enough?" I asked.

Amy turned to me and asked, "Why don't you ask Mrs. Madrone?"

"How did you know I worked for Mrs. Madrone?"

She laughed a little wildly, then put her hand over her mouth."You just told me, Jo."

Dozens of other writers share sentences on Sundays--for good time in many genres check them out at Six Sunday.

Six sentence Sunday week 50 - sometimes it's hard to be a kidnapper

From Large Target, Jo is at the home of the missing admiral’s daughter when her husband, Ivor, reports that the kidnappers have called Colleen, the admiral’s daughter-in-law, with detailed demands about the million dollar ransom.

"She turned them down."

"What?" Amy was horrified.

Ivor shook his head and reached out for his beer bottle and upended it, without getting more than the dregs. "Colleen said we don't have the money," he concluded.

I was fascinated and had to ask, "Did Colleen make a counteroffer?"

For more fun in six-sentence snippets, check out the writers at six Sunday.