My First Book Has Been Sent to the Editor: Notice of Assignment

Writing a complete book is a weird, nerve-wracking, and exhilarating feeling. But the milestone is officially locked in.

Today, we are pulling a wildcard. Rather than our usual Wednesday case file, this episode brings a massive announcement: The debut Cal Brink novel is officially written, finished, and sitting in the hands of a powerhouse editor.

Stepping out of your comfort zone to put yourself out there is a daunting process—especially when your editor has shaped books for major authors like Chad Zunker, Avery Duff, and Karen McQuestion. But the heavy lifting is done, the brag is fully earned, and the countdown to the October 2026 launch has officially begun.

Plus, stick around until the end of the episode for a rare audio peek into Cal’s "DC Diary," featuring a nostalgic, atmospheric look at the Maryland side of Great Falls and the raw, grit-and-peace energy of the city that started it all.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• The Big Four Accomplishments: Where writing a book ranks alongside a 40-year marriage, raising incredible kids, and learning to fly an airplane.
• The Editor’s Desk: The nervous energy of sending a completed manuscript to a top-tier industry professional.
• Two Lanes, One Destination: How The Process Server Chronicles (the true-ish street science) and the Cal Brink Files (the pure fiction) intersect to create a single storytelling universe.
• Sneak Peek at Next Week: A preview of the upcoming behind-the-scenes micro-stories taken directly from the pages of the book.

Key Quote: "I’ve got one lane for true legal. Another lane for fiction. But it all comes from the same place. Me. I'm just telling you how it really was and then letting my imagination run wild."

Become an Early Reader: Don't wait until October to jump into the action. Visit CalBrink.com right now to secure early access and read the first four chapters of the upcoming debut novella, Notice of Assignment. To join the community and share your support, head to ProcessServerChronicles.com and leave a comment on tomorrow's post!

New episodes of the Behavioral Detective Podcast release every Wednesday and Sunday.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:13

Welcome back to the Behavioral Detective. Normally on Wednesdays, we dive straight into a fictional cowbrink case file. But today, I'm pulling a wild card. I have a major personal announcement to share with you. Before I read it to you, I want you to listen to a quick clip from a video I put together to mark the moment. Saturday night, I did something I've wanted to do for 34 years. I sent my first book to my editor. Notice of Assignment. It's a crime fiction novella, and it's dropping this fall. Someone who's read it said it's a hard-boiled novel with a noir ending and a Christian reckoning. That seems about right. It's Kansas City, the Great Recession, and a real estate agent by the name of Cal Brink gets financing for a house that traps him. His past as a PI in Washington, D.C. comes back, and he didn't want it. Real estate is used as a weapon in this novella, just like I've seen it used as a weapon in real life. I'm Chris Lindquist. I'm excited about this. I'm also a lot nervous. And I'm ready. That was the video. Here is what I wrote afterwards over on Substack. There are four great accomplishments of my life. My relationship with Marie, my wife of 40 years. Another is each and every one of my kids. Still another is learning how to fly an airplane, and now writing a complete book. In January, I set off to start the Process Server Chronicles. And that has been fun. But then in February, I realized I had a book inside me, combining all of my life's experiences in a fun crime fiction sort of way. So I set off to write the book, and as the video said, I sent the finished book off to my editor on Saturday evening. Nervously. It's a weird feeling to put yourself out there. What if she hates it? What if she says I really should just concentrate on real estate? This is an editor who has worked with Marty Green, Chad Zunker, Avery Duff, Jenny Milchman, and Karen McQuestion. She knows her stuff. Oh, sure, there will be rewrites to do when she's through with me. But I did it. Thank you for allowing me to brag. Next week I will feature a micro story taken directly from the book and then go into depth on the behind the scenes of what caused me to include it in the book. I hope you'll join me as we march towards October, when the book will be released. Thank you. I'm Chris Lindquist. Become an early reader. Visit calbrink.com to get the first four chapters of Notice of Assignment. More goodies will follow. And if you've listened this long, I want to give you one more little treat. Let me tell you about Great Falls, the Maryland side. What I'm gonna read you next was published a couple of months back on The Process Server Chronicles. And in notice of assignment, Cal Brink finds himself there to meet two old colleagues. Great Falls. My Canon A1, Long Lens and Kodak T Max 400, high-speed black and white film captured the darker side of money and relationships, insurance fraud, cheating spouses, all future court cases. Sometimes all of that got to me. I'm not the guy, never was, that takes his problems home to his family. So occasionally, between cases and serves, I'd find myself wandering down MacArthur Boulevard to the CNO National Park at Great Falls. While Habbit would have me photograph the couple meandering hand in hand down the towpath and wondering what nefarious activity they may be up to, slip into the woods, perhaps, I would instead turn my attention to Great Falls, where the Potomac steps down about 60 to 70 feet in a hurry. The savage roar and flailing water made for a great photo opportunity and a great escape for a man looking to forget about last night's events. Freezing individual drops of water fleeing the violence at one one thousandth of a second was lifelike. The droplets would be fleeing, looking for a better life anywhere else before crashing into the rocks to be dissipated by the wind and the sun, or worse, being reabsorbed into the collective. The peace of the canal, the restraint of the locks, the towpath to somewhere, or nowhere, the roar of Great Falls, it all blended together there, like this city I served. The savage roar of the Potomac and the calm restraint of the canal locks, it all blended together out there in the field, just like the city I served. And look, I know what some of you are thinking. I got one lane for the process server chronicles, the true raw behavioral science of the legal trenches, and I've got another lane for pure fiction with CalBrink files. But the truth is, it all comes from the exact same place. It comes from me. I'm just telling you how it really was back then, and then letting my imagination run wild with CalBrink today. We are officially marching toward an October release for the book. If you want to get the whole picture and see how these two lanes are colliding, head over to ProcessServerCronicles.com and leave a comment on today's drop. And if you haven't yet, make sure you visit cowbrink.com to become an early reader and grab those first four chapters of Notice of Assignment right now. I'm having a heck of a lot of fun building this universe, and I want you to come along with me. Until Sunday, keep your eyes open, watch the water, and stay sharp. You've been listening to the Behavioral Detective.