Welcome back to the blog! I have Livia Quinn talking about SWAT Academy. Love the idea and I would love to attend one of these years.

Here’s Livia.

On a foggy Louisiana morning near Baton Rouge law enforcement professionals and writers gathered at the Joint Emergency Services Taskforce Center for SWAT academy. NYT best-selling author Liliana Hart and her husband, former SWAT, former chief of police, and PhD., Scott Silverii, created this all inclusive 4 day event with top professionals in various law enforcement fields – police, bomb and explosive, K-9, firefighting, arson, crime scene investigation, Louisiana State police, drug enforcement, SWAT, martial arts, LA search and rescue – instructing in shooting, SWAT techniques, self-defense, crime scenes, bomb and explosive detection, homicide and fire investigations, and pursuit driving.

It bears mentioning that this facility is one of three in the world and never had they allowed civilians on the premises before for a purpose such as this so we were honored to get this opportunity.

Writers and some spouses were divided into three teams, Alpha, Bravo and Charlie for a series of hour and twenty minute rotations. Each day consisted of rising in time to have homemade brekkie with the group in the cafeteria followed by a bus trip to an outdoor venue in one of the activities above. Then the bus picked us up and carted us back to HQ to attend one of our chosen classes.

Classes included CSI, science of forensics, fast paced suspense, serial killers, thriller writing by the author who now writes Tom Clancy novels, social media, marketing, branding, self-publishing, small town cops, firefighting, homicide, cop culture and more. Instructors also included writers, Liliana Hart, Susie Ivy, Grant Blackwood, AJ Scudiere, and Rachel Melancon. Then it was back to the field (and rinse and repeat) with lunch and dinner in between and a nightly presentation. A super packed weekend of activity, networking and on hands education in the subjects we write about.

Spouses were invited to not only come along but participate and that added a special element to the activities, as you can imagine. One of the spouses getting his diploma from Scott and Liliana.

All in all it was an exhilarating, action charged time in great company, unbelievably engaging instructors, well worth the fee for all inclusive activities, meals and boarding. There were writers and spouses from Paris, Spain, Canada, the UK and I’m probably missing somewhere else besides the US.

I only wish it had been longer so I could have gotten to know some of these fabulous writers and instructors from the different genres and walks of life. I didn’t spend a dime except for my gas to and from… it was more than worth the cost of registration. I’m already planning my return October 19th, 2017.

Registration will be opening before long so clear your calendar. It’s a one of a kind experience. And if you’ve never been to Louisiana, come on down…

BIO

Livia Quinn is a DC native living on the bayou in Louisiana. Both her Southern paranormal cozy series and her contemporary romance books are centered around heroes in law enforcement and separated military. Livia’s hero in her new release, Take These Broken Wings, is a former Navy pilot turned sheriff turned…dragon… yeah, the weather isn’t the only wild element in Louisiana. Her books are available on bookstore sites everywhere.

Blurb:

Strap in, ‘cause it’s a wild ride through Destiny, or should I say Middle Earth…

Five months ago, Sheriff Jack Lang would have sworn there were no such things as vampires, tempestaeries, djinn or dragons. That was before he met Tempest Pomeroy, trouble magnet and sexy redheaded mail lady. He’d fallen for her before he found out about her “special abilities”. But that wasn’t what turned his life upside down. No, to say Jack’s world had gone FUBAR was like saying Wolverine’s fingernails were long enough for a manicure.

Tempe had been afraid her supernatural nature would be a problem for Jack, who’d mistaken Destiny for a “Mayberry-like” small town, but that didn’t explain why he’d left her in favor of haunting the highest levees in the parish. She knew he’d received a shock, but what was it going to take to get him to return to his life and to her? A stubborn man is one thing; a grumpy, depressed twenty-ton dragon is a bit more of a challenge.

Take These Broken Wings is Book 5 in the Destiny Paramortals, a southern urban fantasy paranormal cozy and the completion of Jack and Tempe’s coming of age arc, with an epiphany of sorts, but the story continues…

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Cindy here again.

I took Citizens Police Academy and that was amazing. I would love to do this SWAT Academy. Think how great the research in my books could be if I did that.

Happy writing!