Getting to Know... Barbara Ebel, M.D

Today, I'm pleased to feature Barbara Ebel, physician-turned author of Operation Neurosurgeon: You never know…who’s in the OR. Barbara writes fiction with credible medicine in the background of her plots, although her characters and plots remain center stage. Since she practiced as an anesthesiologist, her work shines when delivering operating room scenes. Barbara lives in a protected wildlife corridor in Tennessee.

Amazon UK Kindle book:  

  http://amzn.to/k4xol9

Amazon UK paperback book:   

 http://amzn.to/pqBnUw

Book Blurb

Who says a rising neurosurgeon can't fall from his pinnacle?  From the skullduggery taking place deep in the Tennessee woods to the silent tension in the OR, Doctor Danny Tilson's life takes an abrupt turn after performing surgery alongside a scrub nurse with aqua eyes and a velvet voice.

Can Danny’s situation get any worse after the alluring lady disappears, he inherits her roguish retriever, and his Albert Einstein historical book turns up missing? A pack of Tennessee attorneys pursue Danny while he develops a scheme with his paramedic best friend to payback the mysterious woman who left in a hurry.   

Reviews

“Novelist Barbara Ebel’s meticulous and knowledgeable accuracy in background details makes for an especially riveting read from the first page to the last.”

Micah Andrew, Reviewer

The Midwest Book Review

Red Adept Reviews: (The critical, in-depth eBook Reviewer)  July 19, 2011

http://redadeptreviews.com/operation-neurosurgeon-by-barbara-ebel

Overall:  4 ½ stars out of 5

Plot/Storyline:  4 3/4 stars

Characters:  5 stars

Writing style:  4 ½ stars

Editing:  3 ¾ stars

“Operation Neurosurgeon: You never know…who’s in the OR was a marvelous story about the rise and fall of a fictional neurosurgeon in Nashville, Tennessee.”

• Q&A

1.  Have you ever based characters on people you know or based events on things that have happened to you?

 The antics don’t fall far from the truth in Operation Neurosurgeon. It is a unique “romantic suspense,” with some twists.  But all’s fair in love and war, so they say!

I did weave into this plot many different scenarios I have seen as a physician, as well as my personal experience with family court and attorneys. 

2.  Do you have any other books published?

I just published a general/historical fiction novel called Outcome, A Novel: There’s more than a hurricane coming….

I have also penned and illustrated a heartwarming children’s book series about a dog.  It’s called Chester the Chesapeake.  They are written from the dog’s point of view and they are unique because I use real pictures. Chester inspires good behavior in children and he’s also my own working therapy dog.

You can view more information or just see book covers at   http://barbaraebel.weebly.com

3.  Do you have plans for any further books?

I just started working on a self-help book from my physician point of view. I am focusing on fifty to sixty year olds but I will give good advice to  all adults.

4. What is your favorite book and why?

I have multiple.  Here is one I’d love to share:  Tinkers by Paul Harding.  It won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction and it’s a gem.

However, there are so many outstanding books with unknown authors that never win an award.  This is always sad and a loss for all of us who fail to stumble on their work.

5. What piece of advice would you give to a new writer?

Don’t force your writing - sometimes it takes time to develop. Perhaps you are waiting on the perfect plot that’s hatching in your brain. The more passionate you are about something the more productive you’ll be.  And, good luck.

Short Excerpt:

    The salon was wedged between two posh women boutiques. The chatter inside diminished as personnel snapped down bulky dryers and stashed away rinse colors in plastic bottles. The last hairdresser with a client combed and snipped the parched hair of a customer in her chair, the wife of a prestigious partner of a major law firm in Elvis’s hometown.

    “You have the longest legs,” the hairdresser said. “My drape isn’t doing your cream silk pants any justice.” She placed another cloth over the woman’s knees.

    “Thank you, darlin. I’ll be shedding them soon enough. I’m donning my most recent holiday splurge for tonight. And if my husband asks me about the gown’s price, I’ll just tell him it’s one of his Christmas presents to me.” She laughed over her shoulder. “That works for everything this time of year.”

    The younger woman combed her client’s hair forward around her face, scrutinizing for any unevenly cut areas. “Mrs. Rose, in retrospect, what would you do differently? Regarding men, that is?”

    “First off, you’ve used the correct term. Never stop with one.”

    The hairdresser squirted a creamy product in her palms and massaged it into the woman’s hair, creating a silky sheen.

    The older married woman didn’t offer any more advice. “Are you still taking that course you told me about?” She spied the study guide on the hairdresser’s busy counter.

    “I am. I take it online. It’s so easy and it’s only for twelve months. I sit for the certified surgical technician test in a few months.”

    “Wow. There’s good money in medicine.”

    “Not as a tech.”

    “You’re not after lawyers, then, are you?”

    The young woman only smiled. 

    “Smart girl. You strap on one of those masks they wear and you’ll knock them male surgeons dead with those eyes.”

    “Thank you for the kind words, Mrs. Rose. And enjoy your holidays.”

    Mrs. Rose squeezed a twenty-dollar tip into the woman’s hand, paid the bill at the front register and left. The beautician swept her space. The salon was quiet and almost empty.

    The co-owner left the cash drawer open and pulled the window blinds. The pretty twenty-four year old picked up her study guide and gathered her purse from the bottom drawer of the front desk. With her eyes fixed on the inattentive co-owner, her hand smoothly slid a fifty-dollar bill from the register into her blouse pocket.