Note
from Suz: First things first!
The winner of Trivia Quiz # 1: Max
& Gina is: Countdown to
6/21/05
21 days (and counting to Breaking Point, in stores on July 12th)
Quote of the day: (Max) was pretending to be cool and calm in his three-thousand-dollar suit, but rumor had it the laid-back control was just an act. Rumor had it that Bhagat's true nature would be revealed within a day or two. He'd wear a hold in this cheap wall-to-wall carpet from his pacing. He'd stop eating, stop sleeping, that jacket would come off, and his sleeves would get rolled up.
Rumor had it that Bhagat rarely lost his temper, but when he did--look out! It wasn't a rumor but a fact that the man was the best negotiator in all of the FBI. He'd do whatever it took to buy the SEALs the time they needed to be as prepared as possible for the takedown of the plane. -- Sam Starrett's point of view, from Over the Edge
Today's Countdown page features:
Note
from Suz: First things first!
The winner of Trivia Quiz # 1: Max
& Gina is:
Betsy Sams!
Betsy answered all the questions correctly, as well as picked the exact tie-breaker number! She'll receive a signed copy of her choice of Taylor's Temptation, Get Lucky, The Admiral's Bride or Identity: Unknown.
Congratulations, Betsy!
Huh? What? The rest of you actually want to know the answers to Trivia Quiz #1?
Okay, okay. I guess I can do that!
TQ #1 went something like this:
Trivia Quiz # 1: Max & Gina
Note: We've included the book and page number where the answers can be found!
1)
When Gina first speaks to Max, she questions his occupation. What
job does she ask if he holds?
That of the airport janitor. (From
OTE, hard cover, pg. 128)
2)
What is Gina's mother's occupation?
Trauma nurse (from OTE, hard cover, pg. 110)
3)
What hostage does Max offer in exchange for Gina in Over
the Edge?
Himself (from
OTE, hardcover, pg. 258)
4)
What kind of cereal does Max pour for himself while getting a status
report from Alyssa Locke on the investigation into the murder of Sam's
"wife?
Rice Krispies (GTF,
paperback, pg. 112)
5)
And what does Max use as a milk substitute for that same cereal?
Water. (Ick!)
(GTF, paperback, pg. 113)
6)
How many children does Max's assistant Laronda have?
Two (GTF, pb,
pg. 144)
7)
Where did Max attend college (undergraduate)?
Princeton
(GTF, pb, pg. 247)
8)
What is the name of the girl whose identity Gina assumes on the hijacked
plane?
Karen Crawford
(OTE, hc, pg. 111)
9)
After the SEALs storm the hijacked plane, what does Gina ask Max to bring
her?
Pants (OTE, hc,
pg. 366)
10)
Pick a number from 1 to 100.
88. Why? Why not!? <g>
And now, it's time for...
Note
from Suz: Last January, after HOT TARGET came out, I took to the road
once again with my husband Ed and our trusty comic genius sidekick, Eric.
It's always helpful to have a sidekick who is a comic genius, especially when
driving long distances. Laughter trumps discomfort and fatigue and the
indigestion caused by road-food. It even trumps gas station bathrooms that
rate a negative thirty on a scale of one to ten!
And yes, as we travel across the country, we rate the bathrooms as well as the highway and travel conditions. Indiana is known as the "Not so fast there, you -- traffic is going from five lanes to one because there's even more construction, ha-ha-ha, you are SO screwed" State, and Texas is the "See that sign for the road you need to take? Well, we conveniently put it AFTER the exit that you just missed, ha-ha-ha, you are SO screwed" State. (It's also the "Careful, don't step on the Alamo" State, but that's a different story... Click HERE to read my (brief) newsletter account of our visit to the Alamo during the FLASHPOINT tour, but then come right back, okay?)
ANYWAY... Because HOT TARGET was released during the week between Christmas and New Year's, we didn't plan an extensive book tour. We only visited a few stores -- the focus of our attention was on a weekend-long reader event in Tampa, Florida (the Hurricane State!) that we dubbed "Target: Tampa."
Overall, the weekend was a resounding success! I was able to hang out with around a hundred readers at a "conference hotel" near the airport in Tampa. We had events planned (talks, discussions about writing, games, parties, dinners & lunches, lots of prizes and give-aways) all weekend long -- including presentations from three very wonderful guest authors: Catherine Mann, Alesia Holliday and Navy SEAL Chuck Pfarrer (author of Warrior Soul).
Books were signed (lots and lots of books! LOL!), people got together with internet pals (we had one delightful reader come all the way from England!) and everyone made new friends -- it was quite a lot of fun.
The hotel, however, was... Well, I'll let Ed and Eric tell you about it in their own words. Here they are, with...
Tales from the Road -- Target: Tampa
DEBRIEFING
NOTES -- INTERVIEW WITH ED AND ERIC
RE: TARGET TAMPA CONFERENCE HOTEL
Real Note from Ed and Eric: In preparation for Suz readers’ weekend in Tampa, one of Suz’s readers was kind enough to investigate the meeting rooms in a local hotel that Suz had tentatively chosen to host the event. Suz had chosen the hotel because of its relatively low prices and its proximity and free shuttle to the airport. The reader, on her own time and at her own expense, went to the hotel, and learned that the meeting rooms were, indeed, perfect for the event.
She was not asked to investigate the rest of the hotel.
Suz deeply appreciates that reader’s efforts. The following is not intended to be critical of the real help that she gave to Suz in checking out those meeting rooms!
Fake Note: After each promotional event, Suz hires a professional interrogator to debrief the team. The following are excerpts from the transcript of the interview of Ed and Eric regarding the location of Target Tampa.
Q: What were your initial impressions as you approached the hotel?
ERIC: You mean after I was released from my restraints in the back of the van?
ED: Some people need a structured environment.
ERIC: You call being shackled to the back seat of an overcrowded minivan that's filled with country music and show tunes blaring at inhuman volume a “structured environment”?
Q: Um, can we focus on the hotel?
ED: Yeah, Eric, can we focus on the hotel?
ERIC: Fine. [quietly] You kidnapping, show-tune-listening thug.
ED: Okay. The hotel. Yeah. The hotel rooms sucked.
ERIC: Not so much “sucked” as “sucked ass.”
Q: Can you be more specific?
ED: One of the cool things about this hotel was the rooms were all different. Some smelled like wet dogs, some had bad locks--
ERIC: And some had toilets that worked.
ED: The good news was that the staff was occasionally available to help flush the toilets.
Q: So aside from the meeting rooms, was there anything about the hotel that was good?
ED: Well, it was close to the airport.
ERIC: Yeah. I enjoy the sound of roaring jet engines flying two hundred feet overhead at six in the morning. I find that it gets the blood flowing.
ED: The best thing about the hotel was that for the entire weekend, it was filled with the nicest people you could ever want to meet.
ERIC: It was incredible. I spent that weekend in a place I’d never want to go back to, but it was one of the nicest weekends I’d ever had in my life.
Note from Suz: See what I have to put up with? I'm surprised they didn't mention the intense cold snap and somehow blame that on the front desk clerk... Seriously, though, the hotel left something to be desired in terms of the accommodations and breakfast service. And the shuttle service wasn't particularly good at being on time. And yes, we learned that there are pros and cons to a hotel that is described as having a "convenient airport location." LOL! But this was our first weekend event -- and while the location wasn't perfect, it sure beat my now-legendary bathroom book signing in New York City!!!
That's all for now! Be sure to come back for tomorrow's installment in the Countdown to Breaking Point!
(Note from Suz: I'm going to try to post each new day's countdown page before 10:00 a.m. eastern time. Please be patient if I'm a little late...)
See you tomorrow!