Psychological conditions, stalkers, and love....oh my!!
BLURB
After Laney is shot at point blank range, Josh works tirelessly to repair her life threatening internal injuries from the gunshot wounds. What’s worse is he is forced to inform Laney’s parents about the tragic accident. Having only just begun a relationship with the woman he knows in his heart he will spend the rest of his life with, he now has to reveal to her parents that a stalker has been tormenting their daughter. While his only mission is to save Laney’s life, her parents have other plans for their daughter, none of which include Josh. They are determined to find a new doctor for Laney, and if her parents have their way, she will be taken thousands of miles away from him.
Just when Josh thinks his entire world has been turned completely upside down, he finds his sister Jillian has stopped taking her psychiatric medications and has become a person unfamiliar to him. Dealing with her psychotic world becomes even more of a shock, leaving Josh in a horrible dilemma. He is torn between trying to save Laney’s life, keeping her parents from moving her away from him, and providing his sister the attention and help she desperately needs before she has a complete psychotic breakdown.
Will Josh be able to save the love of his life and prevent her parents from taking her away? Will he be able to help Jillian through her mental illness before it takes over her life? Will Laney’s relationship with her parents ever be salvaged? Will Josh and Laney have their happily ever after, or will the hurdles they have to jump through prove to be more than they can handle?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Jennifer Burrows
Jennifer is a Registered Nurse, and she holds a Master’s degree in Nursing Administration. She has 15 years of experience working in the Emergency Room and the Intensive Care Unit of a major trauma center. While she is equally adept at all facets of patient care, Emergency room nursing is her passion, and is the inspiration for this story and A Shot in the Dark. Currently, she resides in Southern California with her husband and their three amazing boys. A Shot in the Dark was her debut novel with Into the Light following as the sequel.
GUEST POST- by Jennifer Burrows
How Do You Keep Your Writing Different?
This is a really great topic. It’s easy to get stuck in a rut with the same writing style. I have few ways in which I mix it up. Many books I’ve read lately are in the first person. It’s usually one character all the way through. Then the author will come out with a sequel of the same story but from the other character’s perspective. It drives me nuts. I’ve already read the story once. I don’t need to read it again. In my latest books, I give perspectives from the main characters. The chapters will rotate back and for between the two or three characters. The flow remains constant and there isn’t a lot of review. I think my readers build a better connection to the characters and when the story is done, they feel satisfied.
I also tend to read books in between writing. I’ll pick out things from other authors I like and want to incorporate into my own writing. Lately, I’ve been working on my showing vs. telling. A great author for this is K.Bromberg. She provides so much detail; you can’t help but get a clear picture.
Travel. I recently traveled to Italy. I learned some interesting facts which I incorporated into a new book entitled Surrender (release date TBD). The book is based in Italy but some of the characters are American. It is a huge change for A Shot in the Dark and Into the Light. It was fun traveling to a new country and then being able to write about it. Plus, it’s a tax write off once the book is published. Yay!
Join a writing group. These people are amazing. You get together every so often and brainstorm ideas, talk about writing, share experiences. There is so much to learn and incorporate into your own style.
Perhaps the most important thing is have fun. Don’t force the story to come to you. Think about it. Mull it around in your mind for a few days. That’s is when my best writing comes.
EXCERPT
Dr.
Josh Stone stood helpless as Laney, seemingly in slow motion, fell to
the floor. The thud as her body hit the tiles shot goose bumps
through his flesh. For a brief moment he was paralyzed. His
girlfriend, also a trauma nurse-had been shot by the patient they had
been taking care of. The sight of the man sitting up and grabbing
Officer Miller’s gun from his holster replayed in Josh’s brain.
The man pointed it at Laney and shot her several times before anyone
was able to subdue him. Now, Josh stood helplessly as she lay
motionless on the floor. How could this happen in his trauma room?
How could he let this happen to Laney? His knees seemed to buckle as
he sank to Laney’s side, stethoscope dangling from his neck.
Laney’s
curly blonde hair covered much of her face, but it was clear she was
unconscious. Josh gently shook her hoping for the slightest response.
There was none. She had been shot in the chest.
Someone
shrieked. One of the ER nurses, Dinah’s eyes were wide, both hands
covered her mouth. She pointed to the floor. A puddle of blood oozed
from under Laney. The metallic aroma wrinkled his nose.
Josh
fought the anger raging inside him. He wanted to make the
son-of-a-bitch who shot Laney pay for hurting her.
For
now, let the cops handle it. Josh took a deep breath and struggled to
regain his composure, but failed miserably.
“My
God! Laney! How could this happen?” His face was hot. He swiped at
it with his blood soaked hands and realized he was crying.
“Dr.
Stone. Dr. Stone!”
Josh
looked up. Dinah’s lips were moving, but her words weren’t
computing. A couple of techs and nurses eased Laney from his arms.
Not only did he feel the emptiness, it plagued his heart and his
soul.
Josh
helped lift Laney onto a gurney. Dinah placed her hand on his
shoulder. “You need to help her. She needs you now more than ever.”
Dinah
put her cold hands on Josh’s flushed face. “Dr. Stone, I know
you’re in shock, but you need to focus. You’re the only one who
can save her.”
Josh
turned his head, causing the frigid hands to fall from his face. He
rubbed his swollen eyes and surveyed the room. The devastation was
beyond words. Officer Miller had the man who shot Laney subdued in
handcuffs. He lay on the table with his disheveled hair covering his
face. Someone must have given him a sedative because he wasn’t
moving. Equipment had been knocked over, and supplies thrown
everywhere. Josh’s heart rate sped up as he cast his eyes down at
the pool of blood surrounding his feet.
“Where
is she?”
“They’ve
taken her to the O.R to get her prepped. You need to get down there
right now. Dr. Nessler is coming in to finish up with this guy.”
Josh
darted out of the room with an urgency he never felt before. Each
step he took, his pace quickened until he was in a full sprint to the
O.R.
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