Don Helin to participate in talk show about getting published

Congrats to Don Helin on the release of Thy Kingdom Come from Medallion Press! Don was the featured author earlier on this blog. He’ll be participating in the first live Medallion Press Radio show on Saturday, April 4, 2009, at 7:00 p.m. CST! The event, described below, is titled Writing a Great Manuscript and Getting It Published.

Want to get published? Join us at www.blogtalkradio.com/medallionpress for a special live edition of Medallion Press Radio on Saturday, April 4, from 7 p.m.–9 p.m. CST. This is a live, round-table discussion about writing a great manuscript and getting it published. Call in and ask questions of our Medallion Press authors live, on air, or text in questions via the chatroom. We’re only presenting this live show once in 2009, so make sure to tune in if you want to call!

Participating authors include Beth Ciotta, author of Jinxed (Medallion Press, 2004), Charmed (Medallion Press, 2004), Seduced (Medallion Press, 2005), Lasso the Moon (Medallion Press, 2006), Romancing the West (Medallion Press, 2007), and The Fall of Rome (Medallion Press, July 2008). Beth also writes The Chameleon Chronicles series for HQN and is a member of Romance Writers of America. Kathy Steffen is the author of the award-winning First, There Is a River (Medallion Press, 2007), Jasper Mountain (Medallion Press, November 2008), and the upcoming Theatre of Illusion (Medallion Press, May 2010). Kathy is a member of several writing associations, including Novelists, Inc. , Mystery Writers of America, and Romance Writers of America, and she also teaches writing courses at the University of Wisconsin. Don Helin is the author of Thy Kingdom Come (Medallion Press, March 2009), his first published fiction novel. Don is an active member of Pennwriters, a statewide Pennsylvania writers' group, as well as the International Thriller Writers.

Don says, " I'm pleased to be invited to participate on the Author's Panel for the Medallion Press Radio program. I've been helped a great deal by my membership in Pennwriters as well as my critique group.
I plan to stress the importance of contacts and working with other writers to improve not only the craft of writing but also the business of writing.
I hope everyone enjoys the program, and I look forward to any feedback you might have."

If you are on Facebook, the event is also listed there. Don't forget to save the date - Saturday, April 4 at 7 p.m.

Welcome guest author Don Helin!

Today I have the pleasure of introducing Don Helin, whose military thriller, Thy Kingdom Come, will be released by Medallion Press on March 1.
Don is a retired Army officer. During his career in the military,he spent three tours in the Pentagon. He uses this knowledge to create the top-secret, fictionalized world of Colonel Sam Thorpe. Thorpe is a member of the Pentagon's elite anti-terrorist task force.

Welcome, Don! Can you tell us a little about yourself and what caused you to write Thy Kingdom Come?
During my time in the Pentagon, we would receive periodic reports that white supremacists had inflitrated the ranks and were using their military training to rain terror on minorities.
I did research and found that while most Americans believed the threat from white supremacists ended with the death of Timothy McVeigh, the Southern Poverty Law Center has documented a 48% increase in hate crimes since the year 2000. They show 888 hate groups in the U.S., with 33 of these groups in my home state of Pennsylvania.
The threat posed by these groups is real and the threat is now. For example, two white supremacists were arrested this past October for allegedly plotting to go on a national killing spress, shooting and decapitating black people. They planned to then assassinate the then-presidential candidate Barack Obama.


Tell us a little about Thy Kingdom Come.
Thy Kingdom Come is a suspense/thriller in which a white supremacist militia located in central Pennyslvania plans to steal enough cesium-137 for a local university to make seven dirty bombs. Colonel Sam Thorpe, a member of the Pentagon's anti-terrorist task force goes undercover, and assisted by FBI agent Alex Prescott, must find a way to stop them.

How did you arrive at the title?
The Christian Identity Movement, a religious movement imported to this country from England in the 19th Century, preaches racial discrimination. Quentin Oliver, a disgruntled ex-Marine and advocate of this religion, commands the militia, and wants to create a new kingdom where whites will rule supreme.

Please share your sale story with us.
I read about Medallion Press in the Writers Digest. The first novel I sent to them got turned down. Two years later I forwarded them a query letter on Thy Kingdom Come.. It took about three months before they asked for the entire manuscript. One day at lunch six months later, the phone rang. When I picked it up I heard, “This is the Acsquisitions Editor at Medallion Press..."

What are you working on now?
I'm working on the next novel in the Sam Thorpe series, Sons of My Lai.

What are your favorite books and movies?
I love suspense/thriller books and I guess that's why I write them. Some of my favorite authors are Lee Child, Jon Land, Robert Parker, James Patterson and John Sanford I also enjoy suspense movies, although I'm a sucker for sad movies that end on a happy note.

How can readers keep up with your writing and books?
I'd encourage everyone to check my website periodically, www.donhelin.com. I'd love for readers so send an email and tell me how they enjoyed my books and any ideas on how I can improve. I also am looking for places to make presentations and do signings.

Book Blurb
Most Americans believe the threat from local white supremacists ended with the death of Timothy McVeigh. The Southern Poverty Law Center, however, continues to document significant increases in hate crimes. Most of our most sensitive areas, including nuclear plants, lack adequate security, and the nightmare of an armed militia stealing nuclear materials is real. Enter Colonel Sam Thorpe, a member of the anti-terrorist task force, to go undercover and train “The Patriots,” a homegrown militia in central Pennsylvania.
His job: Get close to self-appointed general Quentin Oliver and uncover the core of evil. And evil is what he finds. Oliver, a disgruntled ex-Marine colonel, plans to steal cesium-187 from a local university and construct seven dirty bombs. During training sessions, Sam also uncovers a link between Oliver and the French Separatist Movement in Quebec.
The world is in trouble, and Sam is isolated with only one person In his corner: FBI covert agent Alex Prescott, a kick-ass woman with spiked blond hair and a personality to match. Will she be enough? Or is the world about to realize its worst nightmare?

Reviews
"Thy Kingdom Come crackles with authenticity." ~ CJ Lyons, bestselling author of Lifelines

"Thy Kingdom Come is a scary, prescient thriller that confronts us all with the very real possibility of an attack on the U.S. from the inside instead of the out. Don Helin's taut tale of one brave man confronting white supremists with plans to outdo 9/11 is reminiscent of the best work of Stephen Hunter and Vince Flynn. Terrific in all respects." ~Jon Land, best-selling author of A Walk In The Darkness