Author: L.D. Beyer
Release Date: August 2, 2015
Publisher: Old Stone Mill Publishing
Genre: Political Thriller
Format: Ebook/Paperback
One man holds the reins of power.
One man vows to protect him.
One man vows to destroy him.
Caught in a game of chess he didn't know he was playing until it was too late, the President makes the only move he can, plunging Washington and the nation into chaos. Stunned and reeling, Vice President David Kendall takes the oath of office and tries to heal a nation in mourning. But what the new president doesn't realize is that things in the White House aren't always what they appear to be, and sometimes what looks like the best option may turn out to be the worst. When one fatal decision triggers consequences he never envisioned, President Kendall finds himself caught up in the same game that cost his predecessor his life.
Although there was nothing he could have done, Secret Service Agent Matthew Richter is haunted by the death of the man he had vowed to protect. When his girlfriend dumps him and his boss tells him that his job is on the line, he thinks his life cannot get any worse. He soon realizes how wrong he is when he finds himself fighting to save another president from the deadly forces that he has unwittingly unleashed.
This new release by L.D. Beyer is a fast-paced, action-packed political thriller that will leave you on the edge of your seat.
ORDER INFORMATION
In Sheep's Clothing is available for order at
What are you most proud of accomplishing so far in
your life?
A: Raising
three great kids with my wife. My two
older children are both in college and have begun navigating through this
journey we call life on their own. I’m
confident that they will succeed in the world.
My youngest is a still at home—he’s a middle schooler—and he’s a great
kid. I’m confident that he too will find
his own way in life. Has it always been
easy? Heck no. Parenting never is. I’ve made way too many mistakes to
count. But I also think that I have
given my children the foundation they need to succeed.
How has your upbringing influenced your writing?
A: To one
degree or another, we are all a product of our environment. I am an avid reader
of thriller and suspense novels from authors like David Baldacci, Steve Berry,
Michael Connolly, Mike Lawson and Brad Thor.
I’m certain In Sheep’s Clothing
was influenced by these and many other fine authors. But in many subtle ways,
it was also influenced by my own experiences: the places I’ve lived, the events
that took place, both in the broader world and in my own back yard. From a scene perspective, I tend to write
about locations that I’ve been in, places I’ve lived, and cities I’ve
visited. I’ve lived in over a dozen
different cities and I’ve lived through many historic moments going back to the
racial tensions and turmoil of the 60’s, the Viet Nam war, the Kent State
shooting, Watergate, the attempted assassinations of two presidents—Ford and
Reagan—the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War, a rash of
kidnappings, hijackings and terrorist attacks, rapid advances in technology…all
of this was happening around me and I’m sure it has influenced my writing.
When and why did you begin writing?
When I was 12 or 13, I remember seeing an ad that said something
like, “Get Paid to Write Children’s Books.”
I was intrigued and actually wrote a few things but I never did submit
them. A few years later, I wrote a short
story for a high school English assignment. My story was well received and was
published in a school anthology. In
college, I wrote another short story, again for a literature class, and it too
was well received and published in a school anthology.
But after graduating, I guess I did the expected thing and
followed a more traditional career path.
I met my wife a few years later and we got married. A few years after that, we started a family. Frankly, between career and family, I forgot
all about writing for a while.
It wasn't until several years ago that I finally muscled up enough
courage to make a drastic change in my life: to give up my corporate career, to
spend more time with my family and to pursue my dream of being a writer.
There's something cathartic about writing. Writing is a journey and the journey has its
own rewards. It’s really cool to start
with a blank page and watch as the story unfolds, sometimes taking twists and
turns I never expected. I know that sounds like I'm not in control when I write
but after giving them a nudge, the characters and the plot tend to evolve on
their own and go in directions I never envisioned when I first began
typing.
As a writer, I'm finally getting a chance to be creative,
something I was not really able to do during my more traditional life.
You know, I wish I could find some of my early writings! That would be really cool!
What inspires you to write and why?
I write what I like to read. I love thriller and suspense novels—medical
thrillers, legal thrillers, historical thrillers, political thrillers—particularly
ones that are full of intrigue, and ones that are fast-paced, with lots of
action & adventure. My taste in
movies is the same. Intrigue, suspense
and action & adventure—I’ll take that any day! When I read or watch movies, I want to escape
and to live vicariously through the characters, even if only for a short
while. I want to root for the good guy
and hate the bad guy. For me, trying to
bring this type of experience to readers is a huge thrill. I can only hope readers are able to
experience this with my books!
What genre are you most comfortable writing?
Thrillers. My fist three books are all thrillers. The first is a political thriller, the
second, a political / terrorism thriller and the third, a historic
thriller. This is the genre I prefer.
What inspired you to write your first book?
I think it was
after reading Tom Clancy’s The Hunt for
Red October and thinking, I can do that.
I ‘m not by any means trying to say I’m as good as Tom Clancy. But, as I looked at how he structured the
story, switching between different points of view and then tying it all
together at the end, I thought I could follow the same formula and write
something that people would like to read.
I thought that I could build tension and create suspense just like
Clancy did. I felt I could create
characters that people could relate to, just like Clancy’s Jack Ryan. I also felt I could carve out my own niche,
and use my own writing style to stand out vs. other authors.
What do you consider the most challenging about
writing a novel, or about writing in general?
I think the
most challenging thing is when the writing is not going in the direction that
you hoped. My first attempt at a sequel
to In Sheep’s Clothing wound its way
into a very dark area. Before I knew it,
I was researching kidnappings, Amber Alerts, meeting with local police officers
and learning how they handle child abduction, researching FBI profiling
techniques, its quick response team and how the court system dealt with such
cases. I was about a third of the way
done and I sat back one day and realized that I really didn’t like where it was
going. James Patterson des a great job
writing about such things—and I do enjoy reading Patterson—but when I was
reading about real child abduction cases as part of my research, that was too
much.
I think what
I’ve learned is that I may need to throw away several months of work, take a
break, then pull out a blank piece of paper and go back to the beginning.
Did writing this book teach you anything and what
was it?
I think I
learned how to write shorter, crisper scenes and not waste words on extraneous
detail. I learned to keep the plot
moving and to build in just the right amount of tension. I learned to make my characters real—even the
good guy or gal has flaws—and I learned to look at my characters critically and
make sure they have motivation for everything they do.
But the
biggest thing I learned is that I CAN write a book and launch it and achieve
some measure of success.
Do you intend to make writing a career?
Like many
writers, I have a day job. I don’t see
that changing any time soon. It’s a
matter of finding balance and being able to devote enough time to my writing
and not ignore my family or drop the ball on my job.
What is your favorite quality about yourself?
My biggest
strength is that I’m persistent and I never give up. In
Sheep’s Clothing took 22 years from when I first began writing to when I
finally got it published. It’s not that
I’m a slow writer—life got in the way. I
began this book a year before my daughter was born. But once kids came along, many things that
were front and center in my life got pushed to the back burner because I had
other, far more important priorities.
The other challenge was my career.
As I began climbing the corporate ladder, my responsibilities and my job
became far more complex. I ended up
moving half a dozen times over the course of my career, once for a three year
stint out of the country. It wasn’t
until a few years ago that I had the opportunity to pick up what I had started
and carry it to the finish line.
What is your least favorite quality about
yourself?
My strength is
also my weakness. There’s a fine line
between persistence and stubbornness.
There are times when I can’t see exactly where that line is. My wife will tell you I can often be found on
the wrong side.
What is your favorite quote, by whom, and why?
My current
favorite quote comes from George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones. “When you play the game of thrones, you win
or you die.” This perfectly
describes the political intrigue and what’s at stake in In Sheep’s Clothing.
For More Information
Visit L.D.s website.
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