Today’s winter storm along the east coast reminded me of a scene I depicted in The Fever … Sam, the hero, is caught driving across most of the state of Texas in a horrible ice/snow storm. One reader told me it was one of her favorite parts and that while she was reading she had to get up and put on a sweater because the description of the cold gave her a chill.
For me I drew upon several experiences where I, for a variety of reasons, found it necessary to drive hundreds of miles in an icy mix-master of weather. Sometimes you just have to keep going, following the track of the vehicle ahead of you, hoping some overconfident fool in an SUV, who doesn’t realize that four wheel drive means nothing on ice, goes out of control and smashes into you. I drove all the way across South Carolina that way once — 30 mph the entire way. Ninety percent of the cars I saw either smashed or 100 feet off the road in a field were SUVs.
My best advice is to stay home, stay warm, and read a good book like The Fever — of course, in that case you might need to keep a sweater handy!
Don’t forget, the Kindle and Nook versions are ON SALE now, only $3.99!
Scratching the Surface 