Merline Lovelace, a twenty three year veteran of the U.S. Air Force (and a Colonel), has published more than 65 novels. She has written contemporaries, romantic suspense and historicals, often with a military backdrop.
Merline’s first Silhouette Nocturne, Mind Games, will be released on April 1. One of the duckies has already read it and loved it. After the break, Merline tells us what inspired her book.
How to Play Mind Games
by Merline Lovelace
I’ve been fascinated by the idea of telekinesis/psychokinesis ever since Sissy Spacek scared the you-know-what out of me in the movie Carrie! Then some years ago I picked up a book called Men Who Stare at Goats. It details a top secret U.S. Army project back during the Cold War era to use the power of thought to remotely influence behavior — and thus control the enemy by penetrating his mind. [Ed. Note: Check out Jon Ronson’s website and his Wikipedia entry for more fascinating info. Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction!]
So when I was asked to write for the Nocturne line, I immediately decided to focus on the concept of mind over matter. In Mind Games, the heroine believes the hero used remote influencing to make her fall for him when she was his graduate lab assistant. Now she’s an AF undercover agent and needs his help to locate a missing scientist working a top secret project for the military. Her main problem is keeping him out of her head — and herself out of his bed!
While I was researching Mind Games, I was intrigued by the amount of scientific study being conducted today into psychokinesis and remote influencing. It’s still a matter of great interest to the military. Understanding thought processes and how a troop might react in certain situations are essential factors in weapon design and man/machine interface. And, of course, Psychological Operations — winning the hearts and minds of the enemy — is still critical to any operation.
The fun part of writing for me is to blend fact and fantasy — using actual historical fact or current events to create impossible situations for my hero and heroine and complicate the hell out of their lives. That’s what I did in Mind Games. The story combines danger, an exotic locale, the fascinating on-going scientific research into psychokinesis and a passionate romance between two strong-willed people! The characters leaped off the pages for me. Hope they do the same for the readers!
Hey, duckies!
Thanks for letting me play in your pond! This is too, too cool.
This sounds like a really interesting book. Mind control is a fascinating topic. [And slightly off topic, but I can’t get over the grad assistant part. Too many professor/grad student jokes.]
I am so looking forward to read this book. I have been a long time fan of Merline’s books and I am curious about her first paranormal.
Danny, I’ve liked several of Merline’s books too and looking forward to her first paranormal. I’ve always been intrigued by mind over matter, this plot is believable to me.