#WednesdayWordswithFriends Welcomes Wendy Kendall @wendywrites1

Good Morning,

Well, we've made it through Lent and half-way through Holy Week. Have you succeeded in fulfilling your Lenten promises to God? Have you learned something new about His love, grace, mercy or wisdom? Are you a changed person? Will that change last? These are all questions I ask myself and in many ways I can say YES and yet, in others, my conviction isn't that strong. But, as they say, God's not finished with me yet.

HE's not finished with you either so don't give up! Stay faithful, stay positive and continue to show up for your life and watch Him show up and show off for you!

Today's guest, Wendy Kendall has shared words with us and been in our spotlight before, so without much further ado, I'm going to turn the blog over to her. Take it away, Wendy......

            Thanks so much for this opportunity to share Words with Friends this Wednesday. As a mystery author, a very important word for my writing is - research.

            In my cozy mystery Kat Out of the Bag, purse designer/amateur sleuth Katherine Watson sometimes steps on the toes of Jason Holmes who is a cop. Jason is partnered with his K-9 Hobbs. I researched police dogs for my book. What amazing, smart animals. I have such great respect for all service animals. My research included a ride along with a K-9 patrol. What an experience! I've included so much from this adventure in my novel.

I won the ride along in a raffle and it completely hooked me on having K-9 police partners in the book. I love having the dog in the book – he's a whole additional character. So is Katherine's pampered cat Purrada, but the dog Hobbs is so very different with his loyalty to Jason, his playful side, his training, and because he has a job. 

The ride along shift was 7:00 pm to 5:00 am. One of the major advantages of a K-9 officer is they can see in the dark, unlike their human partner. The German Shepherd responded to commands given in German, to reduce the possibility of civilians confusing the dog with their own instructions. Their job is chase and search immediately on the scene. Once done they must hand off the case to a detective. You can imagine, that can be a little frustrating to hand the investigation over. When in the chase, the best chances of following the scent is in the first 4 hours. What the dogs are tracking are the dead skin cells that people shed all the time. Where I live, in the Pacific Northwest is surprisingly an excellent place for tracking. The drizzling rain and small puddles are places where the dead skin cells float on top and are easier to track. The biggest problem for this type of tracking is wind. The dogs are tracking suspects, or evidence and any clues they can find.

            Sometimes the human checks on a situation on his own, like a domestic violence call. He leaves the K-9 in the car. If the situation escalates and he needs his partner, the officer clicks a switch on his uniform vest that automatically opens the door for the dog to run out and join him in a hurry.

            This working dog had a lot of personality, and whenever the man reached for the radio to talk with dispatch his dog wanted to talk too, and he did always share some choice, and loud dog words. After his shift, the dog understands he's off duty and at home with the officer and his family he becomes a loving pet. 

I learned so much on my ride along and it's fun to incorporate it in the mystery plot. If you'd like to

know more about the ride along, you can hear about it on my YouTube podcast Kendall and Cooper Talk Mysteries.

In Kat Out of the Bag, Katherine Watson is opening Purse-onality, a women's history purse museum. Purses show amazing insight into the lives of the women who carried them. At Katherine's gala opening, the town mayor is murdered.  Working to solve the mystery, Katherine matches wits with local cop Jason Holmes and his K-9 partner Hobbs. They disagree often, but discover an undeniable attraction. Katherine's mother and grandmother provide helpful perspectives into clues. Young college student Amber who manages the museum gift shop, aids in the investigation. They'll have to focus their efforts and combine forces to find that killer before Katherine becomes the next knock off.

Kat Out of the Bag can be purchased at Amazon Barnes & Noble,   Google Play,   Kobo

Bio:  Wendy Kendall has a passion for purses and stories of the women through history who carried them. Her cozy mystery Kat Out of the Bag is the first book of the In Purse-Suit Mystery Series, introducing Katherine Watson an international purse designer/sleuth. The prequel novella is Purse-Stachio Makes A Splash. Wendy is a blogger, editor, speaker, project manager, and syndicated columnist. Catch exciting author interviews on her YouTube podcasts—A Novel Talk.and also Kendall and Cooper Talk Mysteries. There are also fun topics on her two YouTube podcasts – Wendy Kendall In Purse-Suit of Fashion and when she joins other authors on The Cozy Mystery Quartet. She's a hiker, biker and avid reader and loves her two sons, Alex and Brad and her Purrada cat.

Web & Contact Links: 

wendywritesbooks.com

Facebook – Wendy Kendall, Mystery Author

Twitter - @wendywrites1

Instagram – wendyekendall

What a great story, Wendy! My husband was a cop and I, although we didn't own one, I knew all about those K-9 dogs! Beautiful and smart animals. THANKS for sharing. We certainly wish you the best of luck and God's blessings with Kat Out of the Bag!

Hope you enjoyed our guest today, friends and that you'll check back weekly for Wednesday Words with Friends and Saturday Spotlight.

Until next time, take care and God bless.

PamT