Friday, March 5, 2010

Welcome, Lorrie Unites-Struiff


Thank you, Ginger for allowing me a spot on your blog.
To any that leave a comment, I am putting the names in a hat and will draw one name for a free copy of Gypsy Crystal after release.

Inspiration for Gypsy


Once upon a time, a good friend, an author in her own right, insisted she treat me for my birthday.

I won’t tell you which birthday, so don’t ask.

My friend took me to a quaint little restaurant where the food was scrumptious. Lo and behold, they had a gypsy fortuneteller seated at a table in the corner. Of course we indulged in both the food and having our fortunes told. The gypsy fascinated me and a few of her predictions have come true. She nailed my lifestyle and my hopes.

Needless to say, it was an interesting and fun birthday celebration.

When I returned home, my thoughts stayed with the gypsy. Being an author, I love to take interesting characters, mix in a few troublemakers, and plot storylines for them. This gypsy impressed me with her intelligence and her thoughtful chosen words, so I researched the gypsies of yore and found some very interesting reading. Their mysticism and beliefs held me captive. I admit I am often carried away with research.

Isn’t every writer?

Hence, Rita Muldova came to life, a homicide detective of Roma blood, her mother the gypsy seer and her uncle, a great baker.
Following today’s popular trends of many readers, I decided to use, and yes, add a little… well…okay, a lot of mysticism of my own.

Ahem, literary license we call it.

What is a story without a love interest? I gave her a hunk from Voodoo City. My kind of guy.

Yum.

Throw in a serial killer, a good friend, and we have a wild ride of a story.

Come and meet them this month. Enjoy the ride. Gypsy Crystal will be released in March 2010 from Eternal Press.

Hope you'll check my website.

Join the Gypsy Crystal fan page on FaceBook.

EXCERPT:

Detective Rita Moldova peeked around the corner to make sure the hallway was empty. Making a quick right turn, she slipped into the autopsy lab to have a few minutes alone with the body. She tucked her white shirt tighter into her jeans and zipped her windbreaker to stay warm in the chilly room. The harsh odor of formaldehyde hit her nostrils and stung her throat.

Her heart twisted at the sight of the young, auburn-haired woman lying on the stainless steel table. A white sheet covered her to the navel; bruises blemished the once pretty face. Contusions marred the pallid skin from elbow to shoulder. The gash on the front of her neck gaped, exposing open veins and torn tissue.
Rita flipped her thick, dark braid back over her shoulder, snapped on one latex glove, leaned over the corpse, and peeled back an eyelid. In her bare hand, she clasped a star-shaped crystal hanging from the gold chain around her neck, an endowment from her maternal Roma bloodline. The crystal heated in her palm, warm energy pulsing up her arm to her shoulder. The face captured in the victim’s eye coalesced and stared back. Rita drew in a sharp breath. Bobby Driscoll! She had known him since high school, and now he worked as a uniform in her precinct. What the hell was going on?

*****
Lorrie Unites-Struiff is a native of West Mifflin, twenty minutes from downtown, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She writes short stories in different genres that have appeared in various publications and anthologies. When she is not sitting in front of her computer, she’s often found checking out bookstores, leading her writing workshops, or having lunch with local authors.

26 comments:

  1. Great post, thank you for sharing! It's so fun to hear how the story came about. A fantastic read!

    Liz

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  2. Woo hoo! I've got my reminders set for the Sunday release party. Of course, my review will pop up on the 8th on my blog.

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  3. You did a super job, Lorrie. I enjoyed reading your excerpt and I know the story inside out.LOL

    I'm so happy that all this came together for you. Now, maybe you can concentrate on SS again. Hee Hee

    Cathy

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  4. Great excerpt, Lorrie,
    Congrats on ur book. I know how much heart goes into writing a novel, so best of luck to you...Hugs...Tabs

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  5. Congratulations or as is said down in my part of the world ¡felicidades! (grrrr, well you know I tried to get those dreaded italics in place.)

    This is so cool, Lorrie. Love the story of the gypsy fortune teller. You sure have guts. I'd be scaird to death to have my palm read and my fortune told.

    No wonder your heroines are always so gutsy!

    Way to go.

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  6. Thank you so much for your comment Liz. Yes, it was a fun trip to hear the gypsy.

    Marva, thanks in advance for the review, ahem, hope you like the read.

    Cathy, thanks for being a good friend and commenting here today.

    Tab's, hugs back to you. I feel I have made such a wonderful new friend. Thanks for your help.

    Lorrie

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  7. I liked learning the inspiration behind the story.
    I can't wait to read the novella after enjoying the teaser so much!
    I am so very excited for you!

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  8. Wish I knew how to say hi in Spanish, Maria. I'm glad you are here. LOL. Who said I wasn't scared? But, I couldn't back out in front of my friend. Kidding of course. It really was a fun treat.
    Lorrie

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  9. Hi Holly,
    You made it here. So nice of you.
    I hope you enjoy Gypsy, it's just your kind of story.
    Thanks,
    Lorrie

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  10. Awesome excerpt, Lorrie! Totally sending you good vibes for lots of sales upon release!
    --Kristin (coastiewifemanter@yahoo.com)

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  11. Hey Lorrie,

    Great excerpt. Very creepy with the peeling back of the eyelid. Can't wait to read in its entirety!!!

    I too enjoyed the story behind the story. Did you know at the time that this lunch was research? haha

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  12. Thanks for the good wishes, Jer and Kris. I feel those vibes. Keep sending them.
    Lorrie

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  13. Hi Darla,
    Nope, didn't know it was research. But the meal was delicious, and I enjoyed my friend's company. You know how the conversation goes when two writer's get together. lol.

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  14. congrats lorrie.

    peeling back the eyelid is what hooked me on the first read. so cool to see the folks who sling ink were hooked too. best of luck with the book. can't wait to get my hands on a copy.

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  15. Thanks R.

    Glad you stopped by and thanks for the comment and the well wishes.
    Lorrie

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  16. Lorrie:
    Love the excerpt and am looking forward to the publishing date.
    I hope that you will continue
    using this character in other works. She is a keeper!

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  17. Renn, that is a good possibility. You'll also like Della, Rita's friend. She may deserve a story of her own, too.
    Thanks for stopping by.
    Lorrie

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  18. Hey Lorrie

    I told you this one was gonna get published. :-)

    Good stuff. I enjoyed every read of it and I'm looking forward to seeing the artwork for the cover.

    Sharon

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  19. Hey, Lorrie, I had to check back on to see what was happening and want to say Renn is right on about the heroine being someone readers would want to see again and again.

    And Della is very cool in her own right as well. The two make a great duo.

    To say nothing of The Hunk. (Paul's out walking the dog so I can say that.)

    Bet you can't wait to feel the actual book in your hands. Amazon mails to Mexico and no one steals books so I have something to look forward to.

    Great job.

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  20. Thanks Sharon, and yes you told me so. Thanks for taking the time to stop by.
    Lorrie

    Maria, hope you had a good walk.

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  21. Okay my friends, it's getting late for me on the east coast. I hope some of my west coast buds still drop by and not to mention my friends from across the pond.

    But, I must pull the name out of the hat now. I have them written, folded, and I'm swishing the names around in the cup with a pencil.

    Here goes. I'm pulling, pulling, opening. Yay! And our winner is Holly.

    Holly, will you please get in touch with me at struiff@msn.com and give me your email address so I can send you the book upon release.

    Congratulations, and please let me know if you enjoyed the read.

    Thank you all for joining me today and thank you Ginger for having me as your guest.

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  22. Sorry I didn't get here earlier to help you celebrate. But I still want to show my support.

    Gypsy is a great read and it makes it that much more fun to find out what the inspiration was. It also sounded like a fun way to celebrate your (unmentionable number) birthday.

    I would encourage anyone who hasn't read it to grab a copy and curl up with it - it's got a little bit every kind of Roma spice you could want.

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  23. Thanks Dave,
    Share it with your wife. And so sweet to stop by and comment.
    Now, hit those keys with Merlin.


    Whoohoo back at you Trent.

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  24. Great job Lorrie! I'm sure you got sick of revising the story so many times, but look how it paid off! You chose a great excerpt to use too, by the way. Looking forward to reading it. (And I'm going to bug you to autograph my copy!)

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  25. Sounds like a great read.

    Happy Reading
    Anna
    s7anna@yahoo.ca

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