Story Behind The Book
The author is indeed a female tour bus driver. Before writing Unexpected Rendezvous,her son said, "Hey, mom, write a story about a woman bus driver, and tell all the stories you've told us through the years." Well, I didn't keep a diary, and I didn't meet my husband on the side of the road as Jana did, but she borrowed many bus driving experiences and skills of mine. The Bridgeport California area was chosen because I've been through there on Marine moves many times, as well as spent personal time there.I have enjoyed the beautiful area and thought Jana would enjoy it too. To date, some of biggest fans are the mostly men drivers I work with. They have enjoyed reliving experiences and can appreciate Jana's experiences. Some of their wives have enjoyed the glimpse of what their husbands have done, and had to put up with on the job. Recently, three of us were driving our empty buses (dead heading)back to Reno, Nevada from Camp Pendleton California. After traveling through Bridgeport we came upon cowboys on horseback working a heard of cattle. A young steer escaped and was traveling back and forth across the main highway. Russ, the driver behind me, was asking questions as to where the sheriff lived and became so distracted by the cowboys he didn't see the loose steer until he almost hit it. When we pulled off near the cut-off to the Marine Training Facility for a break, I had to listen to lengthy comments about how I could add the incident to my next novel. And speaking of that, the sequel to Unexpected Rendezvous is being pitched now! So maybe an Unexpected Rendezvous will led to A Deadly July soon.