Answers with D.D. Ayres

Answer 1

Congrats on making the Amazon Top 100 Bestsellers list for your novella, Necessary Force! How does it feel knowing that your first full novel in the series hasn't even been released and so many readers are already into K-9 Rescue?

I'm thrilled. Writing is a solitary profession. It isn't until the work is out there for public consumption that a writer finds out if her creation has all the right ingredients to connect with readers. It's a like creating a new cake recipe. When you think you have a winner, you hand someone a slice and hope for a "Yummy" response. Necessary Force has gotten yummies!

Answer 2

Irresistible Force, the first full novel in the series, comes out this month! Can you give us a rundown of Bogart and Shay Appleton's story?

After turbulence teens, Shay Appleton has her life together, except for an ex boyfriend who won't take no for an answer. She finds a protector at the animal shelter where she volunteers part-time. Little does she know that the Belgian Malinois she saves from being put down is a stolen police K-9 being searched for by his sexy police officer handler, James Cannon.

Bogart's smart, tough, and has great instincts. He senses Shay's fear and protects her even though she doesn't know how to command him to do so. His loyalty to her prompts James to tell Bogart, "You chose the pretty girl over me. You don't get a vote. You've become emotionally involved." Bogart's fondness for Shay plays a part in both the suspense and the love story that develops between James and her. In a way, Bogart plays cupid, when he's not taking a bite out of crime.

Answer 3

Have you started a sequel to Irresistible Force yet, and if so, what's it about?

I've finished Force of Attraction, the second book in the K-9 Rescue Series. It's twice the fun with two K-9 officers and their dogs.

When DEA special agent Scott Lucca and his drug detection K-9 Izzy are tapped to go undercover in the world of Canine Agility to stop a puppy drug-mule ring, they need another K-9 team with special skills. The best one available is police officer Nicole "Cole" Jamieson and her K-9 Hugo. There's just one catch. Cole is Scott's ex-wife, and she hates his guts. Scott's still in love with Cole and hopes the friction between them is enough to reignite the passion. He'd sure like to find out. However, the past isn't over for either of them. X, a threat from Scott's previous undercover work in an outlaw biker gang comes roaring back to destroy him, but not before he eliminates everything and everyone Scott loves.

An aside: My husband suggested the scenario of dog drug mules. I thought, that can't be real. I was horrified to learn that it does happen. Let me add, the Dog Agility background is purely my imagination at work. Terrific people and wonderful animals participate.

Answer 4

How many novels can readers expect in the series?

In addition to the novella, Necessary Force, I'm contracted for three full-length novels. Irresistible Force (August 2014), Force of Attraction (March 2015) and Force of Nature (August 2015). If the series is a hit - yes, please -- I'd like to write more. I have a couple of ideas already stored on my computer.

Answer 5

The K-9 Rescue Series has a wide range of audiences, from pet lovers to hopeless romantics to aspiring detectives. Why did you decide to combine all three genres?

My editor Rose Hilliard gets the credit for sending me in the direction of K-9 partners. Who doesn't love dogs? And hot men in uniform? My hope is by crafting sexy and suspenseful stories that show-off the capabilities of these dedicated partnerships, readers will come to love them seeing them in action as much as I do.

Answer 6

You've done some law enforcement research for the new series. What has that experience been like?

Writing these books was an education for me in so many ways. The law enforcement personnel I've been fortunate to meet have been so generous with their time and their stories, and in explaining the ins and outs of their craft. K-9 handlers are very passionate about what they do. One in particular, Brad Thompson, Fort Worth, TX PD, is my go-to person with law enforcement and military K-9 questions for all the books, and the novella. I also met breeders, of Bouvier de Flanders, for instance, who invited me to a show-and-tell about the breed. By focusing on a different breed for each book, I want to show off the unique differences that make these dogs so special.

Answer 7

What surprised you most about the field?

The commitment of the men and women who work with these dogs. K-9s aren't pets. They are high maintenance, challenging animals who require constant training/reinforcement. Their handlers often spend more time with them than with any family member or colleague. That's a huge obligation with outstanding rewards, and potential problems. The handlers talk about their dogs as partners, respecting their quirks and individual personalities as canines. One handler told me you don't become a real K-9 person until your second dog. Another told me about the pain of losing his dog when he was shot while protecting him. The officer didn't tell me he had been shot, as well, in apprehending the suspect. I learned that on my own. He didn't go the hospital until after his dog died at the vet. That's a true partnership.

Answer 8

Did you interact with trained police dogs like Bogart before writing Irresistible Force?

Not before beginning to research the series. I had watched shows about them. "Alpha Dogs," for instance. Now I have had some limited experience with both police K-9s and service dogs. I'm an observer. You won't catch me in a Bite Suit. Yikes!

Answer 9

What's your Wheaten Terrier, Zoe, like?

Funny you should ask. I recently wrote a blog about her called K-9 Fantasy. While I write canine versions of Daniel Craig and Idris Elba, I live with the doggy equivalent of Woody Allen. Zoe's a typical family pet. Getting on in years, she's twelve. She's smart. She's stubborn, doesn't like lightning and thunder, and has tummy issues. When she realizes I really am writing and not going to play, she sighs - seriously - and plops down an inch from my toes, aware that I can't even twitch without her knowing about it, and goes to sleep. She's at my feet as I type this.

Answer 10

Have you based any of the pets in your stories off of her?

Not Zoe. But Izzy in Force of Attraction is modeled after my son Chris's chocolate Lab Izzy. Bogart from Irresistible Force is based on Officer Thompson's Belgian Malinois Ludo. Hugo from Force of Attraction is the spitting image of a friend's Bouvier des Flanders named Marko. Marko is owned by a Dallas police officer and is now doing nose-work training. Sam in Force of Nature, which I'm currently writing, is based on a Labradoodle I met at Patriot Paws, a non-profit organization that trains and gives away service dogs to disabled veterans and those suffering with PTSD. It helps to have in mind a dog when I'm creating my fictional versions. All my pin-ups these days are canines.