Dear Maggie,

The Tactical Solutions International series is set mainly in Boston. Are you from Boston?

Sincerely,

Your Fan in Framingham

Dear Fan,

I’m actually from Rhode Island, but I have lived in Boston. In fact, my boyfriend-now-husband, his brother, my bestie, and I lived there in the summer during college. A bunch of us worked on The Spirit of Boston, a harbor booze cruise with live entertainment. I was on the crew and my honey was a singing waiter! Our tiny apartment was on Beacon street, walking distance to the Green Line, and we used the T to navigate the city.

Some of my favorite memories from that time include working the week of Sail Boston, where a fleet of tall ships anchored in Boston harbor for a parade of sail and we got to meet fellow sailors from all over the world. As avid Red Sox fans, we drank a lot of beer from the cheap seats at Fenway Park and packed into the bars on Yawkey Way. In fact, we lived so close to the stadium, we could see the famous CITGO sign and hear the crowd cheer from our bedroom window. I shopped regularly at Faneuil Hall and Haymarket Square and remember lugging home giant fresh watermelons on the train, which turned out to be quite a workout. We picnicked in Boston Commons and found hole-in-the wall Italian restaurants in the North End where we could afford to eat on our limited budget.

In 2013, my husband took me to Fenway for Game 6 of the World Series. I checked off a box on my bucket list when I watched my beloved Sox win from the ‘monster seats’, where Fiona takes Jake on their first date in Sing for Me. For years, when our kids were little, we had a family membership to the Boston Museum of Science, and we spent many an afternoon riding the Swan Boats in Boston Garden. Boston Comic Con has been, and hopefully will be again, one of my favorite places to meet fans and sell and sign my science fiction series.

I may not live in Boston anymore, but it is the city of my heart, and I know my way around it intimately. It was easy to set my new series there because I could provide detail and local flavor to make it feel authentic. Thanks for the fun question!

In other news…

Save the date! The RI Author Expo is going virtual this year. On December 5 from 10 am - 4 pm, we will have a fantastic line-up of FREE panels, programs, and virtual author meet and greets. We’re using the Grenadine platform and it would be best to register ahead of time so you can plan your day. On the day of the event, live links will be available for every program. Check it out here: RI Virtual Expo. Click the blue button on the top navigation bar to register for the event.

Here’s my schedule for the day: