Jeff Buick

Author: Jeff Buick

  • Stolen Lives – A Short Story [FREE DOWNLOAD]

    Stolen Lives – A Short Story [FREE DOWNLOAD]

    An exclusive short story (it’s a thriller) for fans and subscribers of Jeff Buick.

    Stuff happens when you’re a single parent focused on raising your kids. 

    And it’s not always good.

    ~A short story (thriller) by author Jeff Buick

    > > CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD NOW! < <

    Jeff Buick writes mysteries, thrillers, suspense and crime novels. A prolific author, he’s also writing short stories that are crafted exclusively for his fans. These short stories are for when you find yourself with a spare 20-30 minutes and feel like getting your pulse racing.

  • What I read when I was a kid

    What I read when I was a kid

    Kidnapping, murder, tense moments, cliff hangers – it’s kind of second nature to me. I grew up with kid-size thrillers.

    I feasted on The Hardy Boys.

    The Hidden Harbor Mystery, While the Clock Ticked, A Figure in Hiding – the list was staggering. Franklin W. Dixon was a machine at cranking out mysteries.

    I was Frank and Joe Hardy’s biggest fan. They could do anything, solve any crime, defeat even the most badass villain without getting their hair ruffled. Tie them up – they scoffed at sailor’s knots. Hang them upside down and lower them into water – escape was child’s play. I loved those guys and I was willing to do unthinkable things to get my hands on the latest release.

    Here’s how it worked. I had two for-sure occasions when I got a new book – my birthday and Christmas. That didn’t cut it, I needed more mysteries than a paltry two a year. So I had to play the sick card.

    This wasn’t a walk in the park. I had to miss school, which I didn’t mind all that much, and suffer the indignities of being my mother’s patient, which was entirely awful. She made my sick days a living hell. I had to stay in bed, and for an energetic eight year old that was like dragging fingernails down a chalk board. Excruciatingly painful. The only time I could safely duck out of bed was when she was vacuuming. I could tell where she was in the house from the sound of the vacuum and I used those time-nuggets to the max. Sadly, we lived in an average size house and cleaning it was a part time gig. The moment the vacuum went silent I would push my Lego under the bed, hop under the covers and roll my eyes back in their sockets.

    I was a master at the game. Once, I even held my breath so long I turned bright red and got really hot. Mom thought I had a fever and I got a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch.

    After an eternity trapped in my room, the door would open and footsteps would echo off the hardwood. Dad was home from work. He always headed straight in to see me, sat on the edge of the bed and ran his fingers through my hair. Dad couldn’t tell whether I was sick or faking it, and I don’t think he cared. We’d talk for a bit, enough so he knew I wasn’t going to die, and then he’d pull out the prize.

    A new Hardy Boys tome. Could it be a murder mystery? Maybe a kidnapping.

    I can’t imagine how big and bright my eyes got when I saw it. The Holy Grail of writing had just walked into my bedroom. I’d look surprised, then happy, then surprised again just for good measure. He’d leave to see what meat Mom had overcooked for dinner and I’d dig in.

    Oh, heaven.

    I couldn’t see them at the time, but the Hardy Boys series has a few questionable flaws. Like their dad, Fenton Hardy. He’s never around. The guy is the worst parent ever. He’s always out of town on business or camping. Total absentee father, and I don’t think their mother was ever introduced.

    Chet Morton is their best friend and he’s a chunky, jolly-looking boy according to Franklin in While the Clock Ticked. That’s actually a flattering description. I think overweight and fat actually made it into print in a few of the books. Poor Chet.

    Frank is a manic of a driver – he’s always chasing after bad guys and he treats the speed limit more like a suggestion than a rule.

    If Frank and Joe need to find out if the bad guys are hiding something in their house they break in. Last time I checked, breaking and entering is a pretty serious crime.

    But here’s the thing – I think that’s why they were my heroes. They got stuff done. Damn the torpedoes, to hell with the rules, there’s a bad guy out there who needs catchin’.

    It all gets me thinking – maybe, just maybe, someone out there will get this excited when my latest release hits the market. That would really make my day.

  • The Story Blender Interview with Steven James

    The Story Blender Interview with Steven James

    I really enjoyed chatting with Steven James from The Story Blender – crazy story he told about his close encounter with danger when he and his daughter were in India. I shared a few of my own experiences and insights as well.

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  • Research, research, research

    Research, research, research

    Hey, it’s fiction, what does it matter if you get the details straight?

    Oh, trust me, it matters. I’ve been roasted by readers over seemingly trivial things. I won’t get into the list, but suffice to say that mistakes with weapons and ammo incite the most outrage. Don’t get the caliber of the bullet wrong or there will be a firestorm. Never take a mortar into the jungle (they’re too heavy) and don’t take the safety off a Glock pistol (it’s far more complicated than flipping a switch).

    Research is the key to getting things right.

    So, how does a thriller author research his or her books? Well, hands on is the best. KJ Howe writes kidnap-and-ransom thrillers (The Freedom Broker and Skyjack) and she’s been all over the globe interviewing experts and nailing down the settings. Steve Berry (The Bishop’s Pawn, et al) used to be a lawyer, travels to all his settings and has great investigative techniques.

    I keep it as real as I can and travel to the locations whenever possible. In One is Evil there’s a scene in Magadan, Russia, (deep in Siberia) and I certainly never got there. But I have been to the Canadian Arctic, and -50 is the same in Canada as Russia. I can guarantee you that if you haven’t been in -50 weather you can’t write about it with any degree of reality. It’s brutal beyond belief and you’re putting your life in danger just walking out the door. There’s a distinct crunching sound when your boots touch the snow, and the feeling of frigid air hitting your lungs is shocking. Often, there’s a silence that hovers over everything. It’s beautiful, I suppose, but it’s not a beach holiday.

    Then there are the characters who show up in the books – homicide cops, lawyers, scientists, hackers, and a whole whack of bad guys. I’ve never killed anyone or tracked down a murderer, so total authenticity isn’t on the slate here. But getting one-on-one with a murder cop is a great substitute to the real thing. Brian Robertson (retired homicide detective from Edmonton) has given me hundreds of hours of his time and set me on the right track. He’s been subtle, Jeff, I would suggest…, and not so subtle, Jeff, the cop would never drive the dead guy’s Ferrari to the interview. If I remember right, he was actually laughing at me with that one.

    Homicide cops think differently from the rest of us. They know how to peel back the layers and get to the truth, which is pretty damn tough when everyone is lying to them. They pay a price that cuts deep – marriages can fail, friendships sometimes drift apart, and living on fast food and no sleep takes a toll on their health. I could never have written the any of the three series that have homicide cops as the lead characters without Brian’s help.

    I’ve gone down the Rat’s Nest cave in Canmore (The Krubera Conspiracy), spent hundreds of hours in helicopters (One is Evil), shot pistols and rifles (A Killing Game), and learned about hacking at RSA (The Reluctant Truth).

    I’ve spent time in Africa, driven across Europe, visited South and Central America, and toured New Zealand. I’ve walked backstreets in New York, Boston, Orlando and LA.

    I think research is the key to delivering a fast-paced, believable thriller. And if that means flying into Budapest and staying at the five-star Corinthia Hotel, what the heck, I’m willing to take one for the team.

    Photo by João Silas on Unsplash

  • A Cat on the Curtain

    A Cat on the Curtain

    For quite a few years, I was a single dad raising kids. I was the cat on the curtain.

    My life was beyond hectic. I was up before 6:00 in the morning getting breakfast on the table, the kids’ clothes laid out and their backpacks in order. Then I showered, woke the monsters and led their sleepy little heads out to the kitchen. It was pretty much spoon-feeding them their cereal (with sugar to wake them up), then making sure they actually their brushed their teeth and didn’t just wet their tooth brushes. Crafty, they were.

    Out the door, to the daycare, big hugs and I was off to work. Nine hours running a geophysical group in the oil industry (I had a nice office) and then a never-soothing drive through insane rush hour traffic back to the daycare. Inevitably, the kids would be super excited to see me and I had to reciprocate. I’d put on a huge smile and throw them around like sacks of potatoes when I really felt like collapsing in a heap on the daycare Astroturf.

    Then it was home, dinner, a movie on the DVD player (this was long before Netflix) and then into the bath with them. They loved this – splashing and making a huge mess for me to clean up after. They disliked actually getting scrubbed down, but that was part of the deal. Then I’d towel them off and they’d jump into my bed for a story.

    The boys loved their bedtime stories. Brer Rabbit. The Jungle Book. Dr. Seuss. The stack of books on the bedside table was tall, eclectic, and formidable. The trick was to make the book exciting and relaxing at the same time. Bring them down a few notches, then usher them along the hall to their rooms and into bed. Tuck them under their covers and give them a kiss on their foreheads.

    Finally, it was dad time.

    Now, you might think that this meant a well-deserved beer and feet up on the coffee table. You would be wrong. It was time to drag the laundry out of the dryer and start folding. For one short stretch I actually had two of them in diapers, and I didn’t use disposables. Fold, fold, fold. I was, and still am, a master at this. My treat was to turn on the nightly news while I sat on the couch surrounded by size 4T jeans and shirts. Twenty minutes of quiet time, then it was off to bed.

    Next day, get up and do it again.

    Being a single dad was tough, but being a single mom was worse. Here’s why. When people found out I was a single dad there were a lot of comments like What a great guy and You’re really there for your kids…that sort of stuff. Then I heard other guys talking about women who were single moms and the comments were something like She has baggage and Cute, but she’s got rug rats. Seriously. Now, granted, this was a long time ago and maybe things have changed, but it made my blood boil.

    For all you single parents out there – I get it.

    So why did I write this? If you’ve read any of the Bobby Greco stories – No End of Bad Guys or One is Evil – you’ll know that Bobby is a divorced dad with two little girls. He’s not the full time single parent, but he’s really in tune with his kids. He can talk to them, make them laugh and he understands their insecurities and fears. Bobby’s a pretty good dad.

    They say experience is the key to writing with any degree of authenticity. I think that’s why Bobby has kids. I find writing the scenes where he’s with the girls pretty easy.

  • We’re going AUDIO!

    We’re going AUDIO!

    Introducing Craig Kolkebeck, the newest team member and the voice of Bobby Greco. Well, Craig’s actually all the characters in the book, as all your audiophiles will know.

    Stay tuned for an audio release of No End of Bad Guys and more coming soon!

    And check out Craig’s bio here: https://www.jeffbuick.com/the-team/

  • Setting the Tone

    Setting the Tone

    Characters, narrative, dialogue, plot and setting – the key elements in a thriller. Let’s look at one of them.

    The edge of the clearing was shrouded in mist, the moon hiding behind thick clouds. Her foot caught on a root and she tumbled into the wet grass. She rolled over onto her back and stared back at the trees, her heart thumping wildly and her breath coming in short gasps. A twig cracked and she sunk into the long grass. He was here.

    The clearing was awash in sunshine and the sky a brilliant shade of blue. A handful of popcorn clouds floated overhead on a gentle breeze, bright white and playful. Her foot caught on a thick root as she stared up at them and she tumbled into the wet grass. A twig cracked behind her in the forest and she smiled. He was here.

    Setting is the tone.

    Change one thing and the scene goes from a potential murder scene to a woman waiting eagerly for her lover. I love playing with settings and a lot of readers have asked where these scenes come from. Actually, there is a genesis, a place I go back to when I need to get the adrenaline pumping.

    When I was six, I walked two blocks to school every day. I had a choice – the sidewalk that bordered the road or the back alley. It was a no-brainer, the alley won every time.

    It was downright scary, with dilapidated garages and thick weeds. The alley was dirt and rocks and deeply rutted, which made walking difficult. Mature trees blocked out the sunlight and shadows lurked everywhere. It was the exact sort of place where nightmares breed and come to life. That two block stretch got my adrenaline going and my imagination went crazy. Evil things happened in those tiny garages, bad guys lurked in the tall weeds watching for me, bodies were buried in the loose dirt of those overgrown back yards.

    I loved it.

    Some days I walked fast, sure that I had heard someone behind me. Other times I stopped and listened and let it all sink in. Then I ran like hell because I was sure someone was going to grab me.

    Now, when I sit down to write and need an eerie setting, I think back to those days in the alley. To how vulnerable I felt and how quickly my breath came when something startled me.

    There are all kinds of other moments that influence the settings I use in my books. There’s this chilling scene in One is Evil where Bobby Greco is in Siberia and it’s minus fifty. I’ve been to the Canadian Arctic and experienced minus fifty. Let me tell you, it’s brutal. I don’t think I could have written those scenes without having been there.

    Settings need to feel real.

    I’ve dived wrecks in the Caribbean, gone down Rat’s Nest cave, and spent time in African jungles and scorching deserts.

    So when I write about it, chances are pretty good that I’ve done it.

  • What does a writer owe the reader?

    What does a writer owe the reader?

    In a word – a lot.

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  • Who is Bobby Greco?

    Who is Bobby Greco?

    If things went sideways and you got murdered, you’d want a top-notch homicide cop working your file. You’d want Bobby Greco.

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