Decisions, Decisions by Paty Jager

~ patyjag

I’ve been contemplating whether or not to write books out of sequence since my trip to Iceland.

The trip started out as fun way to see Iceland with other authors, but the more I thought about it, I decided to set a Gabriel Hawke book there. However, the next book in the series has already been mentioned in the last Hawke book, so I have to make sure it comes next….

But…I believe I need to write the Iceland book while it is all still fresh in my mind. One day while the tour group was having lunch, I sat with our guide, Ragnor, and asked him questions about the best way to bring my Fish and Wildlife State Trooper with Master Tracker credentials to Iceland, other than a vacation. He would never travel that far for a vacation. He would stay close to home and perhaps even stay with his mother on the reservation.

Ragnor didn’t see him coming to any conference or event that would be put on by the Icelandic police. He did say that they had a very active Search and Rescue program. *boom* That is how I will have Hawke be in Iceland. He will be doing a training on tracking for the search and rescue. I even brainstormed his superior’s sister is married to an Icelander and they are living in Reykjavik.

I still have to do the research on their Search and Rescue program and put together the who and why of the murder he’ll get involved in. But the pieces are slowly coming together and I’m getting excited to write the book.

While we were out driving around on the tour, I took tons of photos (that are a bit blurry) of businesses and things that I will mention to give the feeling of the country to the book. And good photos of the place I think will work for Hawke to take his workshop outside to do some tracking. That will be when they discover a body.

Once Hawke starts on a trail, he can’t quit. Upping the stakes, the main suspect will be the nephew of his boss back in the states. Hawke is loyal. He’ll do everything in his power to make sure they find the real killer.

So my decision? Even though it will put the next Hawke book further out on a publish date, I’m leaning toward writing the Iceland book now.

What do you think? Good plan or could it backfire in my face since there hasn’t been a Hawke book out since March and the next one may not be until the end of the year?

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Published by patyjag

Paty Jager is an award-winning author of 50 + novels, novellas, and short stories of murder mystery, western romance, and action adventure. All her work has Western or Native American elements in them along with hints of humor and engaging characters. Paty and her husband raise alfalfa hay in rural eastern Oregon. Riding horses and battling rattlesnakes, she not only writes the western lifestyle, she lives it.

10 thoughts on “Decisions, Decisions by Paty Jager”

  2. Paty, your idea of a delay is my idea of writing fast. But anyway … I found that having finished a draft of what’s going to be my book eight before finishing book seven, I’m going to have to change a lot in book eight. It’s okay. It will make it a better book. But that’s what happens, writing out of sequence.
    I’m glad to find out who’s going to Iceland. I wondered if it would be Hawke or Shandra.

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    1. Amber, that’s what I’m afraid of if I write book six before four and five. But it will be set in another country with different people so the only thing that might need fixed would be thoughts of things that happened in books four and five. I need five in between four and six because four he will be in Hells Canyon and have very little contact with the secondary characters people have become fond of in the first three books, so I plan to have a book five set back in the county so readers don’t leave me because the favorite secondary characters aren’t in the books.

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  3. I am far from the expert for your question, so I don’t yet have an opinion. Thanks for bringing it up though because I’m now curious what would be the best choice and I see you have a number of commenters. I’m going to read what they suggest.

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    1. Thanks for stopping in Linda I’m hoping some readers will chime in as to what they think..

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  4. What is the possibility of having Hawke mention in the Icelandic book he had a change of plans, meant to go to wherever first, but for specific reasons had to go to Iceland? Life happens while we’re making plans.

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    1. Hi Heather! Chronologically the book I had planned next could possibly happen after the Iceland book. I just don’t want to confuse readers who read the blurb for the next book in the back of the last book. But by the time I get the next book out, they won’t have remembered that blurb! LOL

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  5. I would write the book that was already mentioned in your last book, then write the Icelandic book. You can work on “bits and pieces” of hte Icelandic book while focusing on writing the book that you have already mentioned. It can work!

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    1. Hi Bonnie, If I can keep my books straight! I’m a linear writer, so as long as all I do is gather information for the second one and not try to write it, though scene ideas will no doubt come to me as I research, that’s how I roll. Thanks for the suggestion!

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