Welcome to January’s Birthday Blog, with a post – or maybe more – a day for your entertainment and fun :).

Today’s guest is MEREDITH RUSSELL. Please show your appreciation for the post if you enjoy it, and all the author’s links are below for you to take forward. Watch every day for any Rafflecopter giveaways, and don’t forget there’s ALSO a Grand Prize Draw at the end of the month for ONE lucky commenter.

Many thanks for dropping in, and have a great January!

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Thank you to Clare for having me.

So here we are a new year and time to make exciting plans. At least that is until a shiny distraction comes along.

After a strange year last year, I’m hoping 2016 can go a lot smoother and I’ve set myself some goals (small and hopefully achievable ones) to get me and my writing back on track. At the top of the list is to finish up some projects I’ve been working on, the first of those being the sequel to Dead Things. I’m also looking forward to starting some exciting new stories.

As you might have read on RJ Scott’s guest post a couple of days ago one of those new projects will be a police series written with RJ. She shared with you some of her inspiration when it came to planning the series and I would like to share with you some of mine.

Growing up I have always loved detective and police shows. I like the mysteries, and the process of solving the crimes.  Some of my favourites have been shows like Morse, Prime Suspect, Cracker, and Silent Witness but I also enjoyed series that were based more around certain police stations and uniformed cops like The Bill, Backup, Mersey Beat and more recently Cuffs. It wasn’t until I was old enough to have my own TV in my bedroom and a video recorder that I was able to indulge in imported cop shows from the US. Early shows that drew me in to the US style of show included Hill Street Blues, NYPD Blue, and Homicide: Life On the Street. It kind of snowballed from there – Without A Trace, the CSI series, The Shield, Criminal Minds, Rookie Blue, numerous shows that only got a season or two. I’m not sure what it is that fascinates me about them quite to this degree, I guess in part it is the figuring out process of whodunnits, but I’m also a sucker for some danger, the good guys taking the bad guys down, and a bit of comeuppance.

I can’t wait to start the first book. RJ and I previously worked on a series together, the Sapphire Cay series. I really enjoyed it. It was something light, fun, and romantic with that slice of drama and angst. But I have to say I am really looking forward to doing something heavier with this series.

Along with plotting the stories out, I’ve been plotting the cover art. We’ve bought some lovely images for the first two books from Strangeland Photography. We wanted something a little different to some of the covers we’ve had in the past so were pleased to find images of couples we felt fit with the characters we hope to create. The cover for the first book is one of those things on my to-do list for the year, so I’m looking forward to cracking on and finalizing the look of the series.

So that leaves me to wish you all a Happy New Year and to end with a small giveaway.

Enter the draw at the link below. All Rafflecopters drawn on Jan 31.
Meredith Russell Rafflecopter giveaway

I would like to offer a $5 Amazon gift card. Just leave me a comment below telling me who your favourite onscreen or book Detective/police-related character is?

For me, I have so many. But one of my recent favourites has to be the young Endeavor Morse. I can’t wait for the new series to start this weekend.

Links for Meredith

Website/blog:  http://www.meredithrussell.co.uk
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/meredithrussellauthor
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/MeredithRAuthor
Email:  meredithrussell666@gmail.com

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Follow the month’s posts at your leisure:

Jan 01: RJ Scott on her inspiration for a new series in 2016.
Jan 01: Temple Dragon on giving for free during December.
Jan 02: Chrissy Munder on an author’s passion for paper planners.