Dwayne Clayden

| FEATURE AUTHOR |

on glue, and a confrontation with a deadbeat father and abusive husband, Coulter and the TSU become experienced in managing extreme cases. But nothing can prepare them for the real crisis point that will forever change the face of a city and the cops that patrol its streets.

OutlawMC (#2) As an explosive war between rival motorcycle gangs takes hold of the city, Sergeant Brad Coulter and his partner struggle to maintain law and order. The war spins out of control in the streets. At stake is domination of the city’s profitable drug and prostitution trade. No one is safe—not children, not judges, and definitely not cops. Coulter is about to find that out the hard way.

The violence is destroying the city, but the solution to stopping the war may bring an even greater threat. With everything to lose, Coulter and his team take the fight to the streets and face devastating consequences.

Wolfman is Back (#3) When Jeter Wolfe escapes maximum security prison, he embarks on an elaborate revenge fantasy against everyone who put him behind bars. Detective Brad Coulter discovers the Wolfman’s primary target: Crown Prosecutor Jenny Blighe. But when Wolfe’s plans are interrupted, this predator can’t contain his violence for long, and the city soon sees the shocking results.

Coulter and his taskforce track the former enforcer of the Gypsy Jokers Motorcycle Gang with everything they have as he stalks his prey, but how do you hunt a hunter? As Coulter closes in on Wolfe, everything he loves is on the line.

To date, there are two more novels in the Coulter series.

13 Days of Terror (Coulter #4) will be launched on November 14, 2020.

Uncaged: What are you working on next that you can tell us about?

My current work in progress, The Laughing Dog, is based on a short story I wrote in 2015, Hell Hath No Fury. The protagonist, Bryce Pedley is a private investigator in 2020, but he thinks he is Humphrey Bogart playing Sam Spade or Phillip Marlowe. He dresses in a three-piece suit, has a shoulder holster with an old Smith and Wesson 38 revolver, and wears a Fedora. He uses slang from the 40s like dame and gat.

After a rare book comes up for auction, Pedley is hired to track the collection of Samuel Cohen’s great-grandfather. His rare books were taken by the Nazi’s early in the Second World War, but were never found.

It seems like a safe task. But soon Pedley realizes that others, with family ties to the former leaders of the Third Reich, are interested. Not in the books, but how the books ended up in Albany, New York. Their belief is that many other items of value were shipped out of Bavaria at the end of the war— paintings, art treasures and gold.

They are desperate to find where these items were sent at the end of the war so they can reclaim them to finance the resurrection of the Reich.

Uncaged: How has the coronavirus pandemic changed your lifestyle? Have any events you planned on attending this year been cancelled?

The Corona virus hasn’t changed my lifestyle much. I was writing full-time before the crisis and was already self-isolating and writing everyday, so that continued throughout the pandemic. I have complete three novels so far this year.

Many of the markets and fairs that I attend and promote my novels have been cancelled. So, that

| FEATURE AUTHOR |

has presented a challenge getting new novels out to loyal fans and getting the novels to new readers. During the summer I attended a few Farmer’s Markets, but this month many fall fairs and markets have been cancelled.

As well, I launched Speargrass-Opioid in August and was unable to have a launch party. So, the launch has become a very slow, month long event.

Uncaged: Past or present, which authors would you love to sit and have lunch with and why?

Joseph Wambaugh was a pioneer in changing the police procedural from ‘everybody is happy, and crime isn’t really that bad,’ to showing the dark side of policing. He was an early influence on me. I work very hard to provide realism in my novels.

I also like the style of Robert B Parker and his Jesse Stone series. The manner in which my books flow is a tribute to his writing.

I can’t leave out Michael Connelly. His Bosch series is outstanding and I don’t know how he has kept it going for more than 20 years!

Uncaged: Have any of your characters ever done something that you didn’t intend when you began?

In Crisis Point, I had a character that I’d penciled in for a long police career, be in every novel in the series, and potentially be a spin off series. He did something stupid and died in the first quarter of the novel. I’m still not sure why he did that!

In Wolfman is Back, I had the ending planned out in my mind and sat down to type. What I finished, it was a completely different ending, and I cried writing most of it. Brad Coulter and Maggie, his fiancée, had other ideas, I wrote where they took me and the ending became very powerful.

Uncaged: What are some things you like to do to relax when you aren’t writing or working?

When I saw this question, I thought, easy. But in reality, I’m almost a 24/7 writer. When I’m not writing, I’m thinking about writing or working through a plot problem, or creating a chapter in my head. This shouldn’t be a hard question to answer, but it was.

I like working in the yard, so I spent time this year at our cabin doing yard cleanup that was overdue. Cutting down old trees and shrubs, replanting a dead lawn and raking truck loads of pine needles.

In the fall I usually volunteer and coach high school football. But this year football was cancelled.

I have a beautiful Golden Retriever, Boone. She is seven and likes to do errands with me and we spend time each day outside playing fetch, or just laying in the sun.

Valerie and I will watch TV in the evening. Usually a police drama of some kind. We particularly like British crime (Broadchurch) and yes, police procedurals so I can mock the tactics they use.

Uncaged: What does success as an author look like to you?

This morning I received an email from a reader. “Just finished Speargrass-Opioid and couldn’t wait to tell you I LOVED IT!”

That made my morning and I wanted to get writing immediately.

Success is that readers enjoyed the adventure and want more. The challenge is writing novels fast enough!

Uncaged: Do you prefer ebooks, audiobooks or physical books? Are you reading anything now?

I prefer physical books, but now its about 50/50 with paperback and ebooks.

I just finished the John Corey series written by Nelson DeMille and I loved all the novels and especially the wit and sarcasm of John Corey.

This past week an author was recommended to me, Peter James. I immediately downloaded his first novel and was hooked from the first page. I can foresee a few months of binge reading.

Uncaged: What would you like to say to fans, and where can they follow you?

I have some very encouraging and loyal fans. Right from the first novel, Crisis Point they were enthusiastically waiting for the next novel. If they catch me on social media they message and tell me to get writing.

I hope they know that their encouragement is what keeps me writing and pushes me to keep deadlines!

Enjoy an excerpt from Speargrass Opioid

Speargrass Opioid Dwayne Clayden Crime Thriller

Rodeo champion Franklyn Eaglechild finds his life upended when his bull-riding injuries force him into a new line of work as the Tribal Sheriff in Speargrass, Montana. His damaged health leaves him with a pill-popping problem and a dim future of lost dreams. While coping with his personal defeats, Franklyn quickly discovers not everyone is thrilled to have a new Sheriff in town looking into their business—especially not the drug dealers. Franklyn makes enemies in high places when he refuses to play by the Tribal Chief’s rules. Friends are scarce. Lucky for Franklyn, he has at least one friend he can rely on—his adopted brother and DEA Special Agent Riley Briggs in Great Falls. As an opioid crisis spirals out of control in and around Great Falls and Speargrass, Franklyn and Riley realize they need to join forces if there is any

Excerpt

Franklyn Eaglechild slumped on the examination table, legs over the edge, and stared at the row of X-rays.

“Remind me, how many previous fractures?” the doctor asked.

“About fifty.”

“All from rodeo?”

“No, some from hockey.”

The doctor sighed. “The body wasn’t meant to take this abuse. I’m amazed you’re still walking.” “About that … the pain pills aren’t doing a lot. I need something stronger.”

The doctor turned and sighed. “Look, Franklyn, OxyContin is all I can prescribe. I shouldn’t be doing that anymore.”

“What’s the option?”

“You gotta stop rodeo. Your next argument with a two-thousand-pound bull could be your last. Any subsequent fractures might not heal. Besides, you can hardly move. How would you dodge a bull?”

“Don’t ride bulls anymore.” Franklyn smirked. “Just steer wrestling.”

“Oh great, so you jump off a speeding horse to wrestle five hundred pounds of steer to the ground.” The doctor shook his head. “What could possibly go wrong with that?”

“Come on, doc, it’s all I know.”

“Why do you sell yourself short? A month ago, you said you were applying for a job. What hap-

“It’s back on the rez.”

The doctor leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. “What’s wrong with that?”

Franklyn shrugged. “I haven’t been on the rez for twenty-five years.”

“But it’s home. You got folks there?”

“Nobody close. My parents died a long time ago. Grandparents, too. Don’t know if I’d recognize anyone.”

The doctor pushed off the wall and stepped over to Franklyn. “As I told you a month ago, rodeo is in your past. If you jump off another horse, it could cripple you for life.”

“No options?”

The doctor rolled his eyes. “What about the job?” “Speargrass Tribe advertised for an arena manager.” Franklyn grinned. “But they offered me the job of sheriff.

“Are you kidding me?”

“Nope.”

“You got any experience?”

“Some,” Franklyn said. “I worked the Montana Highway Patrol. Primarily winter months after rodeo season.”

“That’s better than continuing rodeo and being crippled.”

“I didn’t think I’d get the job.” Franklyn held out his shaking right hand. “Will I be able to hold a gun?” “You’ll be able to hold it, but I can’t guarantee you’ll be able to pull the trigger too many times. And you might not be accurate.”

“About the pain?”

“I’ll give you a two-month prescription for Oxy. But you must stop rodeo and take care of your body. Maybe try yoga.”

“Are you insane?”

“Hey, pro athletes swear by it. Try it.” The doctor grinned. “Lots of women go to yoga.”

Franklyn’s head jerked up. “Lots of women?”

“Lots.”

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She started with a racy BDSM story and found she was not quite prepared for the unforeseen impact it would have. Nonetheless, she continued and The Submissive Series novels would go on to be both New York Times and USA Today Bestsellers. One of those, THE MASTER, was a 2017 RITA finalist for Best Erotic Romance. Over one million copies of her books have been sold worldwide.

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Uncaged Welcomes Tara Sue Me

Uncaged: Welcome to Uncaged! Your newest book, Madame President, will release on October 6. Can you tell readers more about this book?

Thank you so much for having me! Yes, I’m so excited about Madame President, and I can’t wait to introduce Anna and Navin to everyone. Anna is the first female POTUS and Navin is one of the nation’s top news journalist. What they’ve never told anyone is that they have history together. The executives where Navin works are less than thrilled when they discover this history, and they end up sending him to DC where he’ll be on her Press Pool. It’s a political romance, but a very unpolitical, political romance!

As you can probably tell by the title, The Submissive Series is very different from

Madame President. It’s an erotic BDSM romance series. At its center are Abby and Nathaniel, but in most of the books, they’re only minor characters with the main story being the standalone story of one of the other couples in their group.

Uncaged: What are you working on next that you can tell us about?

I’m working on wrapping up a few series. First up is the third and final title in my Wall Street Royals Series. Unfortunately, the characters aren’t being very forthcoming, which usually means I’ve got something wrong, so I need to find and fix whatever that is. Also, I don’t know how likely it is, I’d love to write in Anna and Navin’s world again!

Uncaged: How has the coronavirus pandemic changed your lifestyle?

I’m a massive introvert anyway, so most of my dayto-day is relatively unchanged - stay at home and write. Of course, now Mr Sue Me and our two teens (one high school senior and one college junior) are also in the house with me. It makes it a lot more noisy, but I like having eyes on everyone.

The biggest change has been no travel. We are HUGE lovers of travel and summers are usually filled with numerous trips. Because of the pandemic and personal health issues, we haven’t been anywhere. We love to explore new places as a family,