Since I write the Safe Harbor Medical miniseries for
Harlequin American, I make a point of keeping up with research and other
developments affecting fertility, babies, births and other medical issues.
In looking over the research files I kept for my March
release, The Baby Jackpot, I found that I’d also searched the Internet
about the city of Minneapolis (my hero’s hometown) and how to treat a knee
injury as well as egg donations, male fertility and nurses in the operating
room.
Although some of the research is simple, some of my files
get rather long. The male fertility file (my hero specializes in the field)
contains sixteen sections. The one on causes and risk factors for infertility
has six subsections.
You might assume that I love doing research. Well, not
always. I am very interested in medical subjects, however, and I’m incredibly
grateful for the Internet. When I began selling novels thirty years ago, I had
to call up professionals in various fields and presume upon their kindness to
answer my questions.
I once called the local coroner’s office to find out how you
could poison someone and make it look like an accident. Might have gotten
myself arrested, but fortunately, I found someone willing to accept my
explanation that I’m an author—and to provide an answer. The information was
for my supernatural murder mystery Echoes, now available as an ebook.
Speaking of ebooks, I’ve recently redesigned a couple of
covers for my revised and re-released books. This is a learning process, and
reader reactions and sales teach me a lot. You might call it a different kind
of research.
Every month, I offer a special ebook deal. In April,
complete with a new cover, the Kindle and Nook editions of Unlikely Partners
are only 99 cents at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
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