Vernon, B.C. 乌鸦传媒� Lawrence 乌鸦传媒淟arry乌鸦传媒� Ricketts took the old adage of 乌鸦传媒榳rite what you know乌鸦传媒� to heart while penning his debut novel The Third Law.

Ricketts spent 30 years working for the RCMP, 29 of which as an undercover operator.

Initially, he admits that he never considered becoming a police officer due to his small build and short stature. He described a somewhat serendipitous meeting with an RCMP recruiter which eventually landed him a spot in an RCMP training program.

乌鸦传媒淚 didn乌鸦传媒檛 even know I wanted to be a cop until I had a bad day at work at Woodwards department store 乌鸦传媒� that乌鸦传媒檚 where I worked at the time,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淚 was having lunch when I noticed a guy looking for a place to sit and asked him if he wanted to sit down. Turns out, the man was an RCMP recruiting officer.乌鸦传媒�

After speaking with the recruiter, Ricketts committed to attending the RCMP training program and soon found himself pegged as an informant. He admits that, with a vast theatre background, the job came quite naturally to him.

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乌鸦传媒淲hen I first got into the training program in 1967, I had done a lot of acting and theatre acting and I guess it showed up in my resume because I had no idea what I was in for,乌鸦传媒� said Ricketts. 乌鸦传媒淭hey have what they call an undercover pool and that is run out of Ottawa and so if there乌鸦传媒檚 a murder or a drug problem, any kind of major crime anywhere in Canada and they need a person with certain qualifications, they乌鸦传媒檒l type that into the computer and if your name pops out, they乌鸦传媒檒l ask you if you乌鸦传媒檇 take on the project.乌鸦传媒�

This is where he spent most of his career 乌鸦传媒� specifically in drug sections and major crimes. Starting in Ontario, he worked in Toronto drugs for eight years before moving back out west. He worked in a similar unit in Vancouver for 20 years and spent two years in Victoria doing major crime work.

乌鸦传媒淎fter that long, you become 乌鸦传媒� not an expert by any means 乌鸦传媒� but you have a pretty good handle on human behaviour and what causes people to be bad and then use that to exploit as much as you can after studying a specific target,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淵ou look for any weakness that乌鸦传媒檚 going to help you get close to them and be friendly and that乌鸦传媒檚 the one thing I found. There乌鸦传媒檚 always a weakness.乌鸦传媒�

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After retiring from the RCMP in 1997, he spent about ten years doing private consulting work, setting up operations and training others. Meanwhile, Ricketts began toying with the idea of writing a novel, jotting down ideas when inspiration hit.

乌鸦传媒淭he job was like a 30-year course in human behaviour,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 how I would probably nutshell it and that乌鸦传媒檚 what I used when I started writing.乌鸦传媒�

He describes his stories as a way to relive his career. 乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 what makes it fun.乌鸦传媒�

Set in the late 1990s, the book uses his own experiences, he loosely based all the characters on people he met throughout his career. Authenticity and truth, he said, are his main goal.

乌鸦传媒淭he main reason for writing this was to show how fragile things are and even in bad guys, there乌鸦传媒檚 a bit of good 乌鸦传媒� not a whole lot but no one is totally black and no one is totally white 乌鸦传媒� hence the cover乌鸦传媒� 乌鸦传媒� a yin and yang symbol.

乌鸦传媒淲riting what I know saves hundreds of hours of research 乌鸦传媒� especially if you want it to be truthful and accurate. My whole idea with this book was to make it as truthful as possible and make the characters as believable as possible using the people I had met and worked with and against.乌鸦传媒�

Since the book乌鸦传媒檚 conception, Ricketts said it乌鸦传媒檚 taken 18 years in total 乌鸦传媒� though the result is almost unrecognizable to his first draft.

乌鸦传媒淏y the time you乌鸦传媒檝e finished your first novel, you乌鸦传媒檝e written at least ten.乌鸦传媒�

Produced by Tellwell publishing, the final draft was released in June. Unlike large publishing houses like Harper Collins or Random House, Tellwell is a type of self-publishing platform.

乌鸦传媒淭he difficulty if you aren乌鸦传媒檛 a known author, the traditional publishing houses are very skeptical to take you, plus they乌鸦传媒檝e got a lineup of manuscripts from authors who are known and established,乌鸦传媒� Ricketts said. 乌鸦传媒淭hen you乌鸦传媒檝e got the self-publishing companies who would publish 400 blank pages if you want because you乌鸦传媒檙e paying for it. Tellwell is one of the ones now where you乌鸦传媒檝e kind of got an in-between 乌鸦传媒� they edit it and tell you if it乌鸦传媒檚 good enough to publish.乌鸦传媒�

He said he decided on this route because they offer an honest review of the book before publishing. Though he believes this was the right decision for his debut novel, he乌鸦传媒檚 hopeful his future novels will be picked up by larger publishers.

乌鸦传媒淚乌鸦传媒檝e done everything I thought I could to get it out to people and get their true feeling about it and that乌鸦传媒檚 why I乌鸦传媒檓 excited about it now. And with reviews from well-known writers and being approved by Indie Reader, I乌鸦传媒檓 confident it乌鸦传媒檚 a good book.乌鸦传媒�

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For those interested, the synopsis allows for some valuable insight into its content: 乌鸦传媒淪tarting over for Paul Goldman and his family had been quiet, and peaceful, everything life should be, until one night his world was torn apart. Now, with the leader of a South American drug cartel vowing to have him killed, and the police, trying to protect him, Paul enlists the help of two former comrades from his past to help him stay alive and go after everyone responsible.乌鸦传媒�

Ricketts assures his fans that the story doesn乌鸦传媒檛 end with this book. Though it has the ability to stand alone, he has already begun writing his second novel and tells this reporter that many of the same characters are also included. The Third Law is available on amazon or through Coles, Indigo and Chapters.

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