| Caridad Pineiro® Romance Author

February 4, 2015October 4, 2017

#WriteWed #Military Heroes in the Coast Guard

I’m in the midst of writing ONE NIGHT OF PLEASURE which features sexy retired Navy Captain Mark Smith and veteran Army Staff Sergeant Bridget Sullivan. If the Sullivan name is familiar, it’s because you met Bridget’s younger sister Maggie in ONE LAST NIGHT. It’s also familiar because you meet both Mark and Bridget in STAY THE NIGHT, Rafe and Elena’s story.

One thing I always think about while writing one of these novellas is how I can give you a quick intro to some of the characters you might see in a future book. In ONE NIGHT OF PLEASURE you’ll get to meet Lieutenant Commander Samantha Whittaker who is now in the Coast Guard and veteran Seabee Zack Rodriguez.

Why the Coast Guard (and I promise you’ll see more about the Seabees in another Write Wednesday post)? Well, I happened to be rescued by a very charming Coast Guard vet when I was stranded on a hotel balcony during an RT Convention in Orlando. To this day we both smile whenever we see each other and recall that very interesting (and embarassing) incident. You see, my friends and I had gone out there to have a glass of wine on a beautiful day. As we powershut a very recalcitrant sliding glass door, the security bar came loose and came down perfectly, trapping us on the balcony.

Luckily our hero walked by and seeing our dilemma, called for hotel security to come free us. He then graciously offered to get us some more wine as well. LOL!

So in his honor and to honor the service of our Coast Guard veterans, I thought it was time to highlight that branch of the military in one of the upcoming TAKE A CHANCE series novellas.

So here’s a little bit more about the Coast Guard, my Write Wednesday inspiration for EMBRACE THE NIGHT (late spring 2015), my story with Samantha and Zack.

Did you know the Coast Guard just celebrated the 100th Anniversary of the act to create the Coast Guard? You can click here to read more about the Coast Guard Act. However, the Coast Guard has been around since 1790. The 1915 Act was really more of a change of name of the service.

During times of peace, the Coast Guard is part of the Department of Homeland Security (as of 2003). During times of war, the Coast Guard is part of the Navy. Coast Guard heroes like Douglas Munro, a Medal of Honor winner, have saved countless lives during both peace time and war.

The Coast Guard is one of five military branches. Its motto is “Semper Paratus” in Latin which means “Always Ready.”

The Coast Guard does have an academy which is located in New London, CT. You can get more facts by clicking here.

And now here’s a look at the Coast Guard in action! If you can’t see the video below, click here to see the Coast Guard in action in Texas!

Coast Guard Emblem Photo Credit: By U.S. Government [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

January 21, 2015

#WriteWed Plotting with Friends & Lucy the Elephant

This weekend I got together with some writing friends from the fabulous Liberty States Fiction Writers. If you write genre fiction, you should really check out this organization. They’ve also got a great conference coming up in March with a number of workshops as well as editor/agent appointments.

I’m in the process of writing ONE NIGHT OF PLEASURE and wanted to bounce some ideas off my friends. They were awesome in helping me firm up some issues that I had and right now I’m chugging along on the first draft of this novella. I’m loving Bridget who is my kind of girl. Laid back and more comfortable in jeans and work boots than a fancy gown or high heels.

Of course, her first sexy encounter with the hero, retired Navy Captain Mark Smith (who you met in STAY THE NIGHT) will put her out of her element and into those girly clothes she just hates.

Actually, you kind of hear about Bridget in ONE LAST NIGHT and you get to meet her at the end of STAY THE NIGHT.

I’m having fun so far in setting the opening of this story in an Atlantic City casino and researching where I’ll take Bridget and Mark in Margate. I got to stay in Margate once many many years ago and it’s the perfect setting for Mark’s home. If you are ever down in that area, make sure to check out Lucy the Elephant. Lucy is a national history landmark and is one of the last animal-shaped buildings in the world (I believe). It’s been used for several different things such as a restaurant and tavern and it had a nearby hotel. Here’s a photo of it and it’s sure to get a mention in the book.

I hope you enjoyed this behind the scenes look at my writer inspiration.

September 28, 2010September 27, 2017

The Sig Sauer P226 on Kiss Me, Kill Me Tuesday

A few weeks ago we discussed the importance of choosing a weapon you can handle in the Hit Me With Your Best Shot blog. As the videos in that blog attested, unless you have some reason for your hero to end up on her ass after firing, the right weapon is essential.

Choosing the right weapon is also necessary to add some level of authenticity and/or help reinforce your character’s personality or history. For example, in MORE THAN A MISSION, the hero is ex-military and has participated in a number of clandestine missions. Because of that, his weapon had to be one which might have been favored by military men and which might allow for use of a silencer/suppresor.

After doing some research, I decided on a Sig Sauer pistol in order to reinforce the hero’s military past and secret agent kind of work. In particular, the Sig Sauer P226 would make a perfect weapon in such a situation.

The pistol was specifically designed for Army small weapons trials in 1984. It was only one of two guns to meet the challenges of the trials. Originally designed by Sig, a Swiss company, it was later manufactured in connection with Sauer, a German company, due to Swiss export regulations on hand guns.

The P226 chamber can use certain 9mm, .40 caliber S&W or .357 Sig ammunition. When fired, the slide and barrel lock together until the bullet leaves the chamber and after, the slide recoils back, expelling the spent cartidrige. In the next step, a spring moves the slide forward which chambers another round from the magazine in the handle. During the last part of the slide motion, the barrel moves back into place and the slide and barrel lock together once again.

You can use guns which use a slide in your novels since those unfamiliar with their operation, or involved in a struggle when the weapon discharges, will sometimes suffer what is known as “slide bite”. This happens when your thumb or any flesh nearby is too high up on the back of the weapon. When the trigger is pulled, the action of the slide causes injury to that part of the hand, usually some kind of cut. Slide bite will leave DNA on the weapon and also, visible injuries on whoever handled the gun when it was fired.

In the 1980s, Navy Seals began using a P226 which had been adapted to their use. Eventually special commemorative versions of these weapons were available for sale to the public to raise money for the Special Operations Warrior Fund, an organization which provides full scholarship grants and educational and family counseling to the surviving children of special operations personnel who die in operational or training missions and immediate financial assistance to severely wounded special operations personnel and their families.

The P226 Tactical weapon has an extended barrel and threads which allow it to be fitted with a silencer.

Today’s photo shows a stainless steel P226 which never went into production although a different stainless steel model is now available.

Hope you enjoyed today’s Kiss Me, Kill Me Tuesday. Thanks to Wikipedia for some of the information and also to Sig-Sauer.

Photo Credit: Michael [email protected]