Real Spies, Real Lives

We've talked about the archetypes in spy novels, now let's talk about The Big Four -- the plots for spy novels. First up, The Mission.Book 2 in my mystery series, The Ewington Mysteries, is ready to preorder (the eBook). You can preorder Mournful Influence of the Unperceived Shadow for only 99¢ at amazon.com/dp/B0DYJYWXYN.

Why it's important not to reveal the identity of covert operatives, the laws ensuring protection, and more.The Cold War novel LOVE DEATH is still on sale for 99¢ through the end of this month. You can find it at amazon.com/dp/B08QDLXBCS.Coming in March, a new mystery in the Ewington Mysteries Series.

A writing talk about plot vs character and which drives a story. The 2021 standalone espionage novel LOVE DEATH is the featured sale book for February 2025. The eBook version of the novel is only 99¢. You can find it at amazon.com/dp/B08QDLXBCS

Learn all about the archetypes that should appear in spy fiction, courtesy of author Graeme Shimmin. P. A. Duncan's new novella, Every Day is a Test, is FREE to download through 1/19/25. amazon.com/dp/B0DRPNH4VS Unexpected Paths Publishing announces its first publication by an author other than P. A. Duncan: Secondhand Hugs, a chapbook of poetry by Mel Jones. amazon.com/dp/DRTGZKL7

Apologies for no music. Technical difficulties or operator error, take your pick. In this first episode of 2025, we learn that the podcast will now be twice a month, not weekly as it was previously. And a new novella by P. A. Duncan debuted on 1/1/25, and you can find it as an eBook or Paperback here: amazon.com/dp/B0DRPNH4VS Look for a new episode in two weeks.

Play the recording. It explains it all.

Apologies for no podcast today. My flu shot kicked my butt. I'll be back next week, but in the meantime, keep an eye out . . . for spies!

You've seen the memes: "Don't mind my browser history; I'm a writer." But is there anything to worry about? Maybe. Maybe not. We're in the final few days of the October promo: the 3 novels and the reader magnet for SELF-INFLICTED WOUNDS will be 99¢ each through 10/31/24. Find them at amazon.com/dp/B08L3886FP.

Fifteen years of the writing life, and what do I have to show for it? Everything I ever dreamed of. The three novels and the reader magnet for Self-Inflicted Wounds are FREE to download through Sunday, October 20. amazon.com/dp/B08L3886FP

To celebrate the 200th episode of the Real Spies, Real Lives Podcast, here is a history of how the podcast got started and some stats on how it's fared up to the 5th season so far. And the October eBooks sale is still on. The three novels and the reader magnet for SELF-INFLICTED WOUNDS are 99¢ each, and you can find them HERE.

Some insight into how the 1960s TV series The Man from U.N.C.L.E. inspired the author's fiction and an homage to the ground-breaking television spy series. The sale books for October are the books in the series Self-Inflicted Wounds plus the trilogy's reader magnet, Dateline: Belgrade. The four eBooks are 99¢ each, and you can find them HERE.

Sun Tzu's THE ART OF WAR and its take on espionage. Five days left to score all four ebooks in the series, A PERFECT HATRED for 99¢ each. Find them HERE.

A spy's training enhances skills they already have, but what are the effects of information overload, AI, and ethical quandaries. All 4 eBooks in A PERFECT HATRED are free starting today, Sep. 19, 2024, through Sep. 23, 2024, and you can download them for free HERE.

I've run out of time while preparing for the convention I'm going to this weekend, so Part II of getting inside a spy's head will be next week. Sorry for the inconvenience, but adulting . . .

What are the characteristics of a good spy and how do spies use them for a successful operation? The September sale eBooks--all four books in the series, A PERFECT HATRED--are 99¢ each this month, and you can find them HERE. Sept. 13-15, the author will be at the Creatures, Crimes, and Creativity Con in Columbia, MD. Find out more HERE.

How does my Top 5 list of realistic spy movies compare to The Google's? Listen and find out. Note: If you haven't watched any of these, you need to. Also, three days left to download the eBook of THE BETTER SPY for on 99¢ HERE.

P. A. Duncan is on a writer's retreat where she's writing, not podcasting, so a new episode will drop next week on 8/29/24. See you then!

What about a celebrity could possibly make them a good spy? Listen and find out. The paperback edition of TAKING HER BOWS dropped earlier than expected, so you can find a copy HERE. The August sale book, THE BETTER SPY, is only 99¢ for the eBook HERE.

An answer to a question writers always get--why did you become a writer. The August sale book The Better Spy is 99¢ HERE. The paperback edition of Taking Her Bows will be available to order on 8/17/24 HERE.

Computer issues made this late yet again. Many apologies. This episode concludes the answer to the reader question "Who won the Cold War?" The August sale book is the novel in stories THE BETTER SPY, which you can find HERE all this month for only 99¢.

Apologies for a late upload. Updated software offered some incompatibility issues, which I hope to resolve by next week. This episode is where I try to answer a reader's question about who won the Cold War. To download Love Death for free (until midnight TONIGHT), go HERE.

A look into the world of culinary espionage. Nope, not a typo. You can find the July sale book, Love Death, for only 99¢ HERE. You can find the paperbacks of A Spy's Legacy and For My Country HERE. And you can find the eBook box set SECRETS HERE.

The third and final part discussing the protection of classified information. On to new topics next week. On July 13, 2024, the paperback edition of For My Country, book two of the eBook box set SECRETS will be available for purchase HERE. The July sale book, the novel Love Death is available HERE for a low eBook price.

We explore some of the reasons people mishandle classified information, and the real world results of such actions. The sale book for July is LOVE DEATH from 2020, and "end-of-Cold-War" novel with its beginnings from before the Berlin Wall was constructed. The eBook is 99¢ all month, and you can find it HERE. And we're a little more than a week away from the print edition release of FOR MY COUNTRY, book 2 from the eBook box set, SECRETS. On July 13, 2024, you can find the paperback HERE.

P. A. Duncan talks about why securing classified information is so important and what the repercussions may be for mishandling it. This is part 1; part 2 is next week's episode. The paperback of A Spy's Legacy is available HERE, and next month the standalone novel Love Death will be on sale for 99¢. Also next month on 7/13, the paperback edition of For My Country will launch.

The author talks about the benefits and the distractions of researching historical fiction on a search engine. For a few more days, you can get the eBook of Phyllis A. Duncan's debut mystery novel, Supreme Madness of the Carnival Season, for only 99¢ Get yours before the weekend is over. You can find it HERE. A Spy's Legacy, book one of the eBook box set SECRETS, is now available in paperback, and you can find it HERE.

Another form of espionage is corporate or economic espionage, which may have started with secrets about how the Chinese manufactured porcelain. No sale this month, but on June 15 the print edition of A Spy's Legacy (book 1 of the SECRETS eBook box set) will be available HERE. Also, there'll be no episode of the podcast on 6/13/24. We'll resume on 6/20/24.

Apologies for the poor audio. In our rush to record, edit, and upload this episode we must have used the laptop microphone instead of the cool, fancy mic, and there was no time to re-record because we're retreating. Today and tomorrow you can still preorder SECRETS for only 99¢ HERE. As well, A WAR OF DECEPTION is still only 99¢ to download through 5/31/24 HERE.

Tradecraft in 18th Century France? Yep. The author discusses the conclusions to two historical streaming series, A Gentleman in Moscow and Franklin. Also, some thoughts on the harrowing documentary, 20 Days in Mariupol. Starting today through Monday, Memorial Day, the author's debut espionage novel (from 2017), A War of Deception, is free to download HERE. SECRETS, a 3-novel, eBook box set is still available for preorder HERE.

A busy publication/production week left no time for podcasting. Back next week! You can preorder the eBook box set SECRETS for 99¢ HERE and grab May's featured sale book A War of Deception (eBook) for 99¢ HERE.

Some musings on a busy writing life and how writing retreats help you cope. You can preorder the 3-novel, eBook box set SECRETS HERE. You can find the May sale book, A War of Deception HERE.

Book events are key to author/reader interaction. They can go well, but they can also go bad, per the author's recent experiences. SECRETS, the 3-novel eBook box set is now available for preorder for only 99¢, and you can find it HERE. May is the book birthday month for the author's debut espionage novel, A War of Deception. The eBook edition is on sale all month long, also only 99¢. You can find it HERE.

My thoughts on Guy Ritchie's new movie, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare, and a reading from Book 1 of the upcoming eBook Box Set, SECRETS. This month's featured books, all three in the Spy Flash Series are free through 4/27/24, and you can find them HERE.

Two Apple TV mini-series show that espionage isn't a 20th century construct: "Franklin" and "Manhunt," about the hunt for John Wilkes Booth. Plus--a reading from the featured April book, Spy Flash II. Find all three books in the Spy Flash series on sale HERE.

Apologies for the late posting of this week's episode. Listen to the episode, and you'll understand why.

A busy schedule and an annoying cold mean no episode this week. We'll be back on April 11. Apologies, P. A. Duncan

Old habits die hard. Turns out P. A. Duncan is as much an overachiever as a writer as she was as a public servant. The March sale on Duncan's debut mystery novel, Supreme Madness of the Carnival Season, is on for six more days, so act now before you lose out on the 99¢ sale. You can find the sale book HERE. You can also preview the April sale books HERE. That sale starts on 4/1/24--no fooling.

Some thoughts on the Massachusetts Air National Guardsman who illicitly photographed classified documents and posted them online. The author's debut mystery novel, Supreme Madness of the Carnival Season, is still on sale--99¢ for the eBook through the remainder of March. You can find it HERE. Oh, and Happy Ostara!

The author plays around a bit with AI--Artificial Intelligence--on what it takes to be an espionage writer. And . . . to celebrate the book birthday of her debut mystery novel, Supreme Madness of the Carnival Season, the eBook of that novel is FREE to download March 14 - 18, 2024. You can download it for FREE HERE.

With props to Sarah McLachlan for the title. Why it took so long for the author to release a mystery novel, plus reading that grounds the antagonist's backstory. Supreme Madness of the Carnival Season is having its first book birthday this month, and to celebrate the eBook is only 99¢. Find out what secret is hidden behind a parlor wall. You can find Supreme Madness of the Carnival Season HERE.

Spies and secrets go together like ham and Swiss, peanut butter and jelly--you get the drift. But sometimes the secrets are personal, something the author will explore in an upcoming eBook Box Set entitled, appropriately, SECRETS. Today is the final day that all four books in the 9/11 series will be 99¢ each, so head over HERE to get that bargain before it expires.

It took a few days, but the author, also an historian specializing in Russia, finally found words to discuss the death of Alexei Navalny. Also, today 2/22 and tomorrow 2/23/24, are the final two days that all four eBook novels of the 9/11 series MEETING THE ENEMY will be free. All four novels right now are comfortable in the top 10 of an Amazon bestseller list. You can find the free eBooks HERE.

A review of the new movie Argylle and of an Acorn TV series, Deception. The author's 9/11 series, MEETING THE ENEMY, is still on sale, and FREE days are coming up next week. You can find the series HERE.

The author discusses John le Carré's memoir, The Pigeon Tunnel, and a documentary where le Carré discusses and expands on the memoir. A "must-see" for le Carré fans, says the author. The February sale books, the four novels in the 9/11 series MEETING THE ENEMY remain on sale for 99¢ each for the eBooks, which you can find HERE. PROLOGUES, the eBook-only box set of the four MEETING THE ENEMY reader magnets also is still on sale for 99¢, and you can find PROLOGUES HERE.

The author talks about the popularity of book series among readers and what constitutes a series. Plus, is her own work a series? You decide. The February sale eBooks are all four books in the 9/11 series MEETING THE ENEMY, which are 99¢ each. You can find them HERE. The eBook box set of MEETING THE ENEMY reader magnets, PROLOGUES, will remain at 99¢ for February, also. You can find PROLOGUES HERE.

The author provides a bit of background on a work in progress about The Troubles in Northern Ireland back in the 1970s. The sale on PROLOGUES, the eBook box set of Meeting the Enemy reader magnets continues through 1/31/24, and you can find the box set HERE.

The author talks about an upcoming project, an eBook box set of three novels pushing some secondary characters to the forefront. And the eBook box set of MEETING THE ENEMY reader magnets, titled PROLOGUES, launched on 1/15 and is available still at its preorder price of 99¢. Find it HERE.

Listen to some background on the author's newest eBook release, PROLOGUES, a compilation of all four reader magnets for the 9/11 series, MEETNG THE ENEMY. PROLOGUES is still available for preorder HERE. Hear some stats on how well the podcast did last year (pretty good, actually), and listen to a free excerpt of the lead-off story in PROLOGUES. If you're interested in more from author P.A. Duncan, check out her Substack page HERE.

I hope you enjoyed your holiday break because I did, but now the podcast is back with weekly episodes. Check out the eBook box set of the reader magnets of the 9/11 series, Meeting the Enemy. You can preorder the eBook HERE, and it launches on January 15, 2024. And I'm now on Substack with some blog posts and some flash fiction. You can subscribe HERE--for free. Happy New Year! And thanks for being patient for the podcast to return.

To make sure each episode is a quality presentation, the host is taking time off from the Real Spies, Real Lives Podcast for the rest of 2023. Look for a new episode Jan. 4, 2024--and Happy Holidays!

What's the difference between self-editing and a full rewrite of a manuscript, i.e., a draft? The author gives her opinion. Plus a reading of a free excerpt of Spy Flash III: The Moscow Rules. Spy Flash III: The Moscow Rules is on sale all this month. The eBook is only 99¢ to download, and there'll be some free days later in the month. You can download Spy Flash III HERE.