On Writing and Research with Author Terri Reed

Hey, all! Love Inspired Suspense author, Terri Reed has a new book out this month entitled The Innocent Witness.

When I read the blurb and noticed she had an autistic character in her book, I asked her to come and talk about how that character came about.

So please welcome, Terri Reed!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for inviting me here today. You asked what prompted me to write about an autistic child and the research involved. As I was developing the plot for The Innocent Witness I needed a plausible reason why my heroine’s son couldn’t tell what he saw the night of his father’s murder. Many possibilities came to mind, but I chose autism for many reasons. I have limited personal knowledge of the disorder to draw upon. During my childhood, my best friend’s little sister was autistic. She was able to communicate with sound, but not words and displayed several of the repeated behaviors seen in many cases. I loved her as if she were my own sister. My current neighbor has an adult autistic son who loves to sit on the porch in the summer and drink his soda while the kids in the neighborhood play.
I know it’s been a hard road for his parents; they’ve had pressure from family members to put him in a home since their son’s diagnosis. I admire their commitment and devotion to their son.
And more recently, a dear friend’s son has been diagnosed with high functioning autism. In order to be a support to her, I did some research of my own and was surprised to learn the autism spectrum disorder is very broad with no definitive cause or cure. I also learned the symptoms can vary dramatically per individual and that the disorder can’t be put into a neat little box. But the medical community is constantly making advances in treatments and there is support available.
There are many websites dedicated to this topic, blogs by parents of autistic children and personal stories by high functioning autistic individuals. Autism has also been very prevalent in the media with celebrities coming forward to talk about their autistic children as well as television shows featuring autistic characters. All of which helped me to gain a better understanding of the disorder and filled me with compassion for those living with autism. Writing a story with an autistic child stretched me both as a writer and as a person.

Thanks, Terri!

Author bio: Award winning, multi published author Terri Reed discovered the wonderful world of fiction at an early age and declared she would one day write a book. Now she is fulfilling that dream and enjoys writing for Love Inspired. She is an active member of both Romance Writers of America and American Christian Fiction Writers. She resides in the Pacific Northwest with her college-sweetheart husband, two wonderful children, and an array of critters. When not writing, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, gardening and playing tennis.
You can write to Terri at P.O. Box 19555 Portland, OR 97280 or visit her online at http://www.loveinspiredauthors.com/
or email her at terrireed@sterling.net or leave comments on http://ladiesofsuspense.blogspot.com/
or http://craftieladiesofromance.blogspot.com/



BLURB: Faith sustained Vivian Grant through her horrible childhood and loveless marriage, but how much more can she take? Her husband has been killed. Her autistic son is the only witness. And someone is twisting the evidence to place the blame on her. Viv has no one to trust—and danger is closing in.

A failed protection detail cost former Secret Service agent Anthony Carlucci his job—and his self-confidence. He's not going to fail anyone under his care again. Anthony will risk anything to keep Viv and her son safe…including his heart.

Available in print and Kindle.

**NOTE**
Terri is on blog tour right now and will be giving away a $25 Visa gift card to one randomly drawn commenter on her tour. To see where else she is blogging, please go HERE. The more you comment, the better your chance of winning.

Good luck!