ThrillWriting: Authors Come Together to Support our Veterans with Margaret Daly

Meet author Margaret Daly -

Having written her first paranormal fantasy book at the age of forty-three, Margaret Daly has started a wonderful trilogy. Margaret took her life's encounters and crossed a bridge to a different world with them, a world filled with untamed power and endless possibilities. Being raised in the hills of West Sparta, New York, Margaret lost her home and everything in it to fire at a young age. She dove into the dark world as a teenager and from there on spent most of her life wrapped up in unfortunate situations from bad choices. Margaret learned some things aren't what you expect; some things end up being more.

Now, with her loving husband and four children, a family full of support and love, she has managed to overcome all the odds thrown at her. Becoming the published author she once dreamed of being as a child, Margaret owns and runs her own online marketing and design business, she works with several best selling and award winning authors while promoting their work and still, loves to read and write her own stories. Her newest journey in life is in to the Romantic Suspense Genre with the upcoming Multi-Author Box Set, Love Under Fire created to benefit Pets for Vets.

Fiona -

Margaret, you and I met when we decided that, as authors, we wanted to give back to our community. We chose to work with Pets for Vets an amazing organization doing fabulous work. Can you give us an overview of what this non-profit does?

Margaret -

From their website:

The short run down: Pets For Vets pairs up our Veterans with rehabilitated Shelters Dogs. Each Vet goes through a process to obtain the best match for their needs. The Shelters that work with Pets For Vets have a large array of animals which go through training and rehabilitation to pair up with Veterans.

Fiona -

What I love most about this program is that it's a win-win. A dog gets saved from a shelter, a veteran gets a partner.

My daughter depended for about a decade on a service dog that alerted her to diabetic swings in her blood sugar levels. Before he came into our lives, she was having two to three seizures a week and nothing we could do had any effect in bringing her relief. Very quickly her service dog Little Bear learned his job and was alerting. The day he understood his alert was the last day my daughter had a seizure. She's been seizure free thanks to his constant care for over a decade.

Margaret -

Service animals are deeply meaningful to me. I am so very grateful. This is what I wanted for the veterans who have served our country and sacrificed so much for us. To that end I wrote my novel, Monsters in My Closet.

Book Blurb: A new place, a new start on a life, that’s all Becky wants. A place she can feel safe and free herself from her past. No one knows her secrets, not even her best friend. She wasn’t ready for love, not just yet. At least that’s what she kept telling herself. Deep down she yearned for it, even burned for it. But every time she lets herself fall, it fails miserably. She isn’t going to let that happen, not this time. She will find herself first. All of her plans are thrown out the window the day she runs into Stephen. His smile captures her and no matter how much she fights it, she can’t deny the pull in her heart. Can Stephen help her chase away the past? Can she keep her secrets and her monsters at bay long enough to give love a chance again?

Fiona -

And I wrote my novel Cold Red that I will share about in a future blog post. Margaret and I are two of the twenty-one authors putting our talents to work to improve the lives of Veterans and the dogs who will love and help them.

Watch this:

Pets for Vets explains:

After we receive an application, we reach out to the Veteran to get to know him/her better. We ask Veterans questions about themselves, their expectations, their needs and their lifestyle. There are no right or wrong answers. The more we know about the Veterans, the easier it is to make a successful and lasting match using our unique Super Bond™ process.

We then “interview” pets to find the one whose personality and temperament best complements the Veteran’s. Although most of our skilled animal companions are dogs, we have also placed cats and even a rabbit! It all comes down to the specific needs and desires of the Veteran.

Once a selection is made, the pet spends time in the home of one of our professional trainers who uses only positive reinforcement methods to teach good manners, basic obedience, and other valuable skills. Training may also include becoming comfortable with wheelchairs or crutches, as well as recognizing panic or anxiety disorder behaviors. When Pets for Vets companion animals meet their new owners, the connection between them is almost immediate thanks to the Super Bond™ process.

Because each pet is trained, healthy, and up-to-date on all vaccinations, it is able to fit seamlessly into its new life. A Welcome Package of equipment and supplies is also provided to make the transition as simple as possible. LINK

Fiona -
Can you tell me what made you excited to be part of this partnership of authors and Pets for Vets?

Margaret -

My family roots run deep in the military.

I have experienced first hand the anger and mental anguish of our service members. Things that only the love of an animal can cure. In my opinion, depression is one of the worst thing that is facing our young Veterans.

Fiona -
Your leading heroine in your novel is a veteran! What aspects of her character do you think she developed through her service or do you think helped her most while she was in service?

Margaret -
Becky, that's her name, was a typical girl who dreamed of finding prince charming when she was young and naive. Then after her life went through a multitude of "wake ups", especially with "boys". She enlisted in the Army. The military life was tough, but she was determined. The service helped her to become more regimented and focused but it could never erase her past. That same determination is what held her together and saved her life after the service.

Fiona -

And now we get to read your book, and we can see how that all plays out!