Monday, January 08, 2018

The Fire that Inspired Flaming Crimes by Chrys Fey (Part 1)


AUTHOR NOTE: Many scenes in Flaming Crimes (Disaster Crimes #4) came from real life. For this short blog tour, I am sharing my memories as a ten-part continuous story, so hop along for the entire experience.

 



Series: Disaster Crimes #4
Page Count: 304 
Digital Price: 4.99 
Print Price: 16.99
Rating: Spicy (PG13) 

BUY LINKS:


FLAMING GUEST POST PART ONE:

My best friend and I waited for her dad to pick us up from school. I could smell a hint of smoke in the air, but I couldn’t see anything. It wasn’t until I was seated in the backseat of my best friend’s dad’s car and we turned away from the school, toward home, when a smoke plume became visible. It was stretching above the trees, reaching higher into the sky. The color went from light to dark gray. While staring at it, my mouth went dry, my palms became slick with sweat, and it felt as though my heart sank down to my gallbladder. For a reason I could not explain, that smoke plume terrified me.

We all looked at it. And then my best friend’s dad said something to me I’ll never forget, “It looks like it’s right next to your house.”

The seed of panic that had cropped up at the sight of that smoke grew to full-blown panic. My heart raced. The closer we got, the larger the smoke plume became.

When we turned into my neighborhood, that smokestack was right in front of us, expanding and growing darker.

My best friend’s dad stopped the car at the end of my road to talk to someone, and my panic exploded into a trillion pieces. Looking down the street, I saw fire feasting on the trees next to my house.

It. Was. Right. There.

TO BE CONTINUED….


Excerpt from Flaming Crimes:

Beth’s heart clenched at the sight of the smoke stacks, as if a fist had driven through her chest and was squeezing the meaty human drum, paralyzing it. She gripped the door handle. The faster Donovan drove and the closer they got to home, to those tiers of billowing, dark smoke, the more anxious she became. Donovan’s words replayed in her head.

It looks like it’s right next to our house.

Her heart woke from its coma and punched her ribcage like a boxer attacking a speed bag. Perspiration dampened her underarms and slicked her palms. Please, God, no. I can’t lose my home again.


The story will continue on these blogs:

1/8Circle of Friends Books - Part 1
1/9Sandra CoxPart 2
1/10Elements of EmaginettePart 3
1/11Julie FlandersPart 4
1/12I Think; Therefore, I YamPart 5
1/15Alex J. CavanaughPart 6
1/16Just JemiPart 7
1/17Sandra DaileyPart 8
1/18FundinmentalPart 9
1/19Elizabeth SeckmanPart 10


About the Author: Chrys Fey is the author of the Disaster Crimes Series, a unique concept blending romance, crimes, and disasters. She’s partnered with the Insecure Writer’s Support Group and runs their Goodreads book club. She’s also an editor for Dancing Lemur Press.

Author Links:



Thank you for reading this post! Don’t forget to hop along to the other posts on their designated days for the full fiery story.

SHARE: Your fire story with me.

39 comments:

  1. What a terrible experience, Chrys, to go through as a kid. Glad it made its way into your book. Congrats on your new release!

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  2. Congrats to Chrys on your new release, but I'm sorry you had such a terrible experience. That's awful.

    Thankfully, I have no fire stories of my own, beyond ones I covered for the local paper.

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  3. Ooh! This is especially poignant with the California fires--and how much of Montana was burning this last summer. Craziness! Chrys, I'm excited for your new release!

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  4. Wow, that's quite something to have gone through! Congrats on your new release and I look forward to following along with each installment. Cheers - Ellen

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  5. Wow! Fires are so scary! Congrats on the book!!!

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  6. Congratulations, Chrys!

    A fire has to be one of the most frightening things in the world, especially as a child.

    My dryer caught fire and when I found it. I thought I could put it out myself, I tried, plus it took me a few moments longer to call the fire department because I didn't think it was that bad, I thought it was just a lint fire, but when I opened the dryer the 'wet' clothes inside were burning. Then I started to panic . . .

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  7. @Natalie, every time I see smoke or hear about a fire, I can't help but relive all of this all over again. Thank you!

    @Alex, it sure was.

    @JH Thank you! There's more to come with the story of my childhood fire. It gets even scarier.

    @Crystal, it is crazy. Crazy scary. I always feel for the people experiencing deadly fires.

    @Ellen, thank you! I am glad you'll be following along. :)

    @Tammy, they sure are. Thank you!

    @Yolanda, it is. It seems so much scarier than a hurricane. At least to me, and I've experienced both several times. About a couple of years after this fire, there was an electrical fire in my house thanks to a candle and an old TV. I thought for sure that our house survived the wildfire only to be done in by an electrical fire, but the only damage done was to the TV. Thankfully.

    @

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  8. Thank you so much, L. Diane, for having me on your blog today for my very first tour stop. :D

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  9. Fires are scary things. And those childhood memories really stick with us.

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  10. @Susan, they really do. I'll never forget this fire.

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  11. Sure scary to come home and find indeed.

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  12. That must have been terrifying!!! Looking forward to the next segment!

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  13. Looking forward to seeing Chrys tomorrow.

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  14. Thank you to everyone who has visited today!

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  15. How scary that would be. There's so little you can do with a fire.

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  16. Fire is a most terrifying experience, it's awful what Chrys must have encountered. This was excellent to read Diane.

    Yvonne.

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  17. Wow, that's scary.
    It's also amazing how you've taken this real-life experience and melded it into your Flaming Crimes story.
    Looking forward to reading more.

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  18. @Pat, you’re right about that.

    @Jemi, the next segment is up on Sandra Cox’s Blog.

    @Sandra, thank you for hosting me today!

    @Beverly, yes it’s not like a hurricane where you can flee it or prepare your house. With a fire, only firefighters can stop it.

    @Yvonne, I’ll never forget this experience.

    @Toi, I couldn’t pass up the chance to use what I experienced. It has haunted me so that it only made sense for me to put those memories into my book by giving them to Beth and Donovan.

    Thank you, everyone, for such great comments!

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  19. Great job here, Chrys. Fires scare me. I'll be back to check out the next post. All best to you!

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  20. Oh, my gosh...I can't imagine! So scary.

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  21. Hi Chrys and Diane - ghastly to know it was so near ... such a frightening experience ... cheers Hilary

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  22. @Victoria, thank you for hopping along. The next post is up. :)

    @Jennifer, thanks for commenting!

    @Hilary, that's the closest I've ever come to fire, and I hope I don't ever get so close again.

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  23. Excellent excerpt!

    Di, Chrys, have a pleasant, productive day.

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  24. Sounds exciting in a really bad way.

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  25. So scary and heartbreaking. (Good writing though :) ) Thank you for sharing!

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  26. OK, so I read part 2 first and now part 1....this is terrifying to say the least. Now I will go to part 3:)

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  27. @Sandra, thank you!

    @Robyn, that’s a great way to put it. lol

    @HR, thank you! :)

    @Birgit, thank you for hopping along to each post!

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  28. I've read part one Chrys and you've peeked my curiosity. You've reeled me in with a sweet hook....

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  29. Hi Diane,

    It's good to see that Chrys has been featured on your site. What a traumatic experience.

    Of course, I've taken the liberty of sharing this post.

    Gary

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  30. Oh my gosh, Chrys. I'm so sorry you went through that as a child. Heartbreaking.

    Thank you for hosting her, Diane.

    Have a beachy week!
    Elsie

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  31. What a terrible experience!

    I think the blog hopping to view the rest of the story is a clever idea (as was the recent blog fest). I'll visit the others to read more.

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  32. How scary! I can't only imagine how you felt.

    Love this blog hop idea. :)
    ~Jess

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  33. @SpacerGuy, great! I hope you hop along to the other posts for more of the story. :)

    @Klahanie, Diane is awesome for hosting me. I love being a guest here.

    @Elsie, thank you! It did scar me, but it also inspired me. Oddly enough. lol

    @Sherry, thank you! I thought having a continued story (since I actually had a story to tell this time) would be fun. Glad you like it!

    @DMS, thank you!

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  34. What Chrys has been doing by posting the correlations between her real life experience and her new book is nothing short of brilliant. I hope it equates to higher sales for her. :)

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  35. What a terrible experience. I hope writing about it was cathartic.

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  36. Yeeeesh. Won't lie, makes me cringe a little. I live in Southern California and, well, need I say anymore after the year we've had? :/

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  37. @Susan, I’m glad you think I’m brilliant. ;) I’m sure someone has done it before, though. Thank you!!!

    @Kim, it was. I feel a little less afraid of fire after re-experiencing what happened and writing about it so vividly.

    @Robert, no, you need not say more. :(

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