tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40450576824412802382024-03-16T11:52:09.325-07:00One Bite at a Time<i>Bad Samaritan</i>, the fifth Nick Forte novel, is available <i><b>now</b></i> from Down & Out Books.
Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.comBlogger1113125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-84925511103727628302024-03-14T21:00:00.000-07:002024-03-14T21:00:00.246-07:00Off the Books Available Today<p><br />Today is the “official” release date for the sixth Nick
Forte novel, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Off-Books-Detective-Thriller-Novels-ebook/dp/B0CVSKVDRW/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ZaHKNt1O2ORn5MEoW3_8l38b-4glNuQ4DZJnzSi9D8pOufnEiOaKM-diLeULHA33pCrW3JU3pBWuBnKkDkSGgihmNQdErrZ9G__HXXtNcKjyUTfDCdhv9JJxpsdnapxz10ez4yiPsfzR3RU79OE6MR94XFuuQE0i-6jMZpSjl9F2WUCGFp1cf5_dIIeJ3KvvvZpSbXiIp49BJdunW5FgybN8mWxXvb-NXg4ruGP5YoA.40yVJ0hvKh5fSTtxakYtBGmUsMSTCTD23hhqUWa04Rw&dib_tag=se&keywords=off+the+books+by+dana+king&qid=1709221725&sr=8-1"><i>Off
the Books</i></a>. I say “official” because I could have made the book
available anytime I wanted, it being self-published and all. I picked a date
not quite at random, as I’ve been rebranding the previous Forte novels at a
rate of one per month, generally on the third Friday, and saw no reason to
change.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVw5M7PaaxkBNzh-cQYYWAdk-NXlDCDc_ElTnrsli9__JSE6fIjnYdosUerNbVy36rbjfF-IMEe258-rUxBBOhzSDgC6V4ktPxmyI_-U0bC2LlzwCp5D_BalEM4Fvm9VmeA09OEqb0tVjG9LhFS403R5SO7CXDjmhaybL-w6llzSFRSGoabeBAvAqc08A/s2700/OFF%20THE%20BOOKS%20v1%20png.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVw5M7PaaxkBNzh-cQYYWAdk-NXlDCDc_ElTnrsli9__JSE6fIjnYdosUerNbVy36rbjfF-IMEe258-rUxBBOhzSDgC6V4ktPxmyI_-U0bC2LlzwCp5D_BalEM4Fvm9VmeA09OEqb0tVjG9LhFS403R5SO7CXDjmhaybL-w6llzSFRSGoabeBAvAqc08A/s320/OFF%20THE%20BOOKS%20v1%20png.png" width="213" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It's been six years since <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bad-Samaritan-Mystery-Detective-Novels-ebook/dp/B0CV1WFYSP/ref=sr_1_1?crid=45US739RJ6IW&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.t9IZSAYi2AWQTDh8STAIspajD5453XXTkfAuG4QvXbs.35qvKFLdg42psYzB3c7dPXgAdnwiR3d1oFE_6AqlmJM&dib_tag=se&keywords=bad+samaritan+by+dana+king&qid=1709398154&s=books&sprefix=bad+samaritan+by+dana+king%2Cstripbooks%2C63&sr=1-1"><i>Bad
Samaritan</i></a> and Forte has not mellowed. The things he’s seen, the things
he’s had to do—and let’s be honest, some of the things he’s <i>chosen</i> to
do—have worn on him. The hardness at his core has become harder and he’s
quicker to go to it, with daughter Caroline serving as the sole leavening
influence in his life.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">His detective agency has fallen apart in the aftermath of
the events in <i>Bad Samaritan</i> and Forte keeps the lights on and the
mortgage paid doing background checks out of his home office. He pays for the finer
things in life by taking cash gigs for which there are no contracts and nothing
to tie him to the job. These activities aren’t necessarily illegal—he’s not
breaking legs or accepting contracts—but he spends much more time in the gray
areas than he did before.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">What bothers him most in his new arrangement are the people
he works for. Respectable businesses require contracts and don’t want him to do
anything that might sully their reputations. People less accountable with their
money have their own motives for hiring Forte and may prefer not to have
anything linking them to whatever needs to be done. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Allan Worthington wants his missing daughter found, but on
the down low because the girl might be an embarrassment to his business
associates. Donald Bower’s wife witnessed a fender bender in a small town that
ended with a drunk driver brandishing a handgun; Bower wonders why the local
police seem uninterested. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Forte travels to Lundy, Illinois to look into Bower’s case
and stumbles onto something he didn’t expect and can’t ignore. (I’d tell you what
it is but that’s kind of the key plot point in the story and it would be a spoiler.
Even though I am not a financially motivated person, I would like to sell <i>some</i>
of these books.) <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">He finds himself on the horns of a dilemma, torn between
wanting to fix this situation and making those responsible pay for what they’re
doing. Forte being Forte, he sometimes has trouble prioritizing. Mayhem ensues.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">How much mayhem? More than Forte bargained for, and he
doesn’t always come out on top. Witness this excerpt:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">This
time it was five guys in civilian clothes waiting for me in my room. One in
each chair, one in the hallway that led to the bathroom, one leaning against
the wall nearest the door, and one stretched out on the bed with his hands
behind his head like he was watching a ball game Sunday afternoon. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">The one on the bed took charge.
“Shut the door.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Running wasn’t an option. I closed
the door and positioned myself with my back to the corner.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Jefe sat up on the edge of the bed.
A big man with a round, hard belly. His hair had receded back even with his
ears to leave his forehead with a pronounced hat line. His hands were rough and
callused. He wore a denim shirt outside his jeans over a gray tee. “You were
told to stay out of Lundy.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">We wouldn’t be talking if they’d
come to kill me. I was about to catch a beating sure as the sun was coming up
over Indianapolis about now. The trick was not to provoke them and still hide
the fact my sphincter was up around my Adam’s apple. “I’m not in Lundy.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Jefe laughed. Said, “Pete” and the
one nearest the door hit me under the floating ribs like he wanted to see his
fist come out the other side.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">No point pretending it didn’t hurt.
Best I could hope for was to let on I’d seen worse and wasn’t about to roll up
in a ball and cry for mommy. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">They gave me all the time I needed
to be able to speak. I put as much resonance into my voice as I could. “We’re
all working men. I know you’re just doing your job here. So was I, and I’m
about finished. Came back to get my stuff and go home. How about you rough me
up a little so you can tell your boss you did and we’ll call it even?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Jefe smiled again. I appreciate a
good-natured heavy. “The only part about that you got right was when you said
you were finished.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">“I said about finished.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Jefe shook his head. “Trust me.
You’re altogether finished.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">A gnawing doubt grew in the back of
my mind. Maybe in Lundy they did bullshit with people they were about to kill.
I’d been wrong before. “You won’t respect me if I roll over too easy.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Someone had to say it. “We don’t
respect you now, asshole.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Jefe stood. “Let’s go outside.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Deal breaker. Whatever was going to
happen had to happen here, where there was a chance someone might notice.
“Uh-uh. Say your piece, do what you’re gonna do, and we’ll go our separate
ways. I’m not leaving with you.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Jefe nodded. His colleagues each
took a step my direction. I drew the .45 from its holster at the small of my
back. “Here’s my counteroffer: you five go outside and hit the fucking road. I
see you’re gone, I’ll load up the car and drive home.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Jefe shook his head maybe half an
inch in each direction. Said, “Boys” and the other four had guns in their hands
faster than a teenage girl can whip out a cell phone.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">This had to become personal for
someone other than myself. I thumbed the .45 to full cock. Took a step toward
the boss. Leveled the old Army Colt square between his eyes. “I can’t take
everybody, but I can take you. How sure are you I won’t kill you with a reflex
even if they get me with a head shot?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 115%; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">He must have been pretty sure. I
only had time to hear the sap swish through the air on its way to the back of
my head before it dropped me through a hole in the floor I hadn’t seen before.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Off-Books-Detective-Thriller-Novels-ebook/dp/B0CVSKVDRW/ref=sr_1_1?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ZaHKNt1O2ORn5MEoW3_8l38b-4glNuQ4DZJnzSi9D8pOufnEiOaKM-diLeULHA33pCrW3JU3pBWuBnKkDkSGgihmNQdErrZ9G__HXXtNcKjyUTfDCdhv9JJxpsdnapxz10ez4yiPsfzR3RU79OE6MR94XFuuQE0i-6jMZpSjl9F2WUCGFp1cf5_dIIeJ3KvvvZpSbXiIp49BJdunW5FgybN8mWxXvb-NXg4ruGP5YoA.40yVJ0hvKh5fSTtxakYtBGmUsMSTCTD23hhqUWa04Rw&dib_tag=se&keywords=off+the+books+by+dana+king&qid=1709221725&sr=8-1"><i>Off
the Books</i> </a>is available on Amazon. Paperbacks are $8.99 and the e-book
is $2.99. That’s not a typo. An honest-to-Bantam paperback original, six inches
by nine, for only $8.99. I’ll still make a few bucks and you don’t have to take
out a mortgage to read a story.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Who loves you, baby?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-80273838562411557622024-03-07T21:00:00.000-08:002024-03-07T21:00:00.135-08:00Off the Books Available for Pre-Order<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOzZXpyNkg7VBS3atg-kpM-Z0fssfqpiS3T5Aciz8Y1SSMvi2a_585nsqtWd8nyUBj-jG5FbPEWrDsJWTJ0GQj8TrphBH9MBOl3IiJtyAekBLhOKdlILWmvR_OKN1BWAwejTKMeg6abB4l9vbMJdg08kX7ORMWspkMyUFHhABlJmT3KRcI2M7g1kXca0M/s2700/OFF%20THE%20BOOKS%20v1%20png.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="1800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOzZXpyNkg7VBS3atg-kpM-Z0fssfqpiS3T5Aciz8Y1SSMvi2a_585nsqtWd8nyUBj-jG5FbPEWrDsJWTJ0GQj8TrphBH9MBOl3IiJtyAekBLhOKdlILWmvR_OKN1BWAwejTKMeg6abB4l9vbMJdg08kX7ORMWspkMyUFHhABlJmT3KRcI2M7g1kXca0M/s320/OFF%20THE%20BOOKS%20v1%20png.png" width="213" /></a></div><br />Next Friday, March 15, marks the
publication date of the sixth Nick Forte private eye novel, <i>Off the Books</i>.
Here’s the short and sweet:<o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p>Nick Forte has lost his detective
agency and makes ends meet doing background checks and other paperwork. He pays
for everything else through jobs he takes for cash and without any written
contract. What starts out as a simple investigation into a traffic accident
exposes Forte to people who have truly lost everything and have no viable hope
of reclaiming their lives. That doesn’t sit well with Forte, leading him and
his friend Goose Satterwhite to take action that ends more violently than
anyone expected.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p>Some luminaries weighed in with
their opinions:</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p>“The return of Chicago private
detective Nick Forte, the tough protagonist of two Shamus Award nominated
novels, is well worth the wait. Nick’s latest escapade Off The Books—the first
in nearly six years—will surely earn additional praise for the acclaimed
series.”</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">-J.L .Abramo, Shamus
Award-winning author of <i>Chasing Charlie Chan</i>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p>"Nick Forte reminds me of
Robert B. Parker's Spenser: a PI with a finely tuned sense of justice who
doesn't take anyone's s***. Any fan of hardboiled detective fiction is in for a
helluva ride."</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">--Chris Rhatigan, former
publisher of All Due Respect Books<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p>"Six years since his last
appearance, the return of Dana King's no-nonsense Nick Forte is cause to
celebrate for fans of Robert B. Parker's Spenser and Loren Estleman's Amos
Walker. As tough and unsentimental as Forte himself, Off the Books delivers all
the action, acute observations, and wise-cracks required to satisfy that
old-school PI itch. Now we just need King to not make us wait so long for the
next one!"</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">--James D.F. Hannah,
Shamus-winning author of <i>Because the Night</i> and <i>Behind the Wall Of
Sleep<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><i><o:p> </o:p></i>That’s right, Jimmy, it’s been
six years since Forte had his own book, though he did make a cameo in last
year’s Penns River novel. I had so much fun writing his scenes in <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Spread-Penns-River-Crime-Novel/dp/1643963244/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3L92GP6B0IG8J&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.W5yzuCenLmKrUXw5b5gxEh27TnMsdIN-DoHOmZI5kJeh3n56lman9QCp6F2Mt8b56F1EkN8yhv5g_cDP2x0KR7UPy4cqGz0rt5WRVl4l9vxyanyG_KKu3PEw2PJUubt9BmgVSVQCJK5y6HOAvhoavw.pcSHplKAtap3wPeBoyE96OTkoMQgtohHdvRSYt3AbTM&dib_tag=se&keywords=The+Spread+by+dana+king&qid=1708879356&sprefix=the+spread+by+dana+king%2Caps%2C88&sr=8-1">The
Spread<span style="font-style: normal;"> </span></a></i>I started thinking about
getting into his POV again; <i>Off the Books </i> is the result, and I’m happy with how it
turned out.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p><a href="http://tinyurl.com/49pfv5yn"><i>Off the Books</i> is available for $8.99
in paperback, $2.99 for Kindle</a>, and is free for Kindle Unlimited
subscribers. The Kindle version is available for pre-order. The paperback drops
March 15.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p>Six years away has not softened
Forte any, as this excerpt shows:</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">The
diner didn’t serve alcohol and a couple of beers would help me sleep. I didn’t
keep beer around the house anymore and wouldn’t buy any for the motel room
because people who drink alone are alcoholics and I had enough problems as it
was. Rusty’s Lounge was only a small detour on my way to bed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">The inside would be right at home
in a relatively decent local hotel. The bartender wore a white dress shirt, no
tie, with striped garters. The tables were two- and four-seaters with candles,
the ambient light forgiving without creating a trip and fall hazard. Several
couples shared tables. The bar was about half full, with a two-to-one ratio of
men to women.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">No seats where I’d have room on
both sides, so I slid in between a man on my left and a woman on my right, both
already engaged in conversation with members of the opposite sex. I ordered a
Leinenkugel’s draft and looked for a television set. The Cubs were on, but I
watched it, anyway.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">I’d sucked the foam off my second
beer when the man talking to the woman on my right excused himself to go to the
john. She moved away to make room for him just as I shifted forward to dislodge
a knot in my boxers. We bumped. Her fresh drink spilled, but my shirt and pants
kept most of it from ending up on the floor.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">We went through the standard ritual
of mutual apologies. I volunteered to make things right. “My drink is intact.
Let me replace yours. It’s only fair.” Continued before she got the wrong idea.
“You’re here with someone, and I’m only going to finish this before heading
out.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Her shields came down. I waved to
the bartender, a guy who looked like he’d been here a while and still hadn’t
got used to the idea of having to wear shirt garters. He brought her drink and
I paid about half what I would expect to in Chicago.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">The woman nodded in my direction.
“Thank you. You didn’t have to do that.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">“My pleasure. I’m clumsy enough to
make sure people don’t mind too much if it happens again, but not so clumsy
it’ll bankrupt me.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">She gave as much of a laugh as that
deserved. Middle thirties was my guess. Average build with dark hair pulled
away from her face and down to her shoulders. She had a quick and happy smile,
but the fatigue in her eyes implied she’d seen enough of nights and bars like
this.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Her companion returned, passing
behind me to get to his seat. She said, “And now it’s my turn” and adjusted her
stool to stand. I made a show of giving her as much room as space allowed. She
smiled and nodded in appreciation and went on her way.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">I resumed my seat in time to see
the man she was with jerk away from her glass. I pinned his other hand to the
bar. “What did you put in her drink?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">His face gave him away. “What the
hell are you talking about?” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">I waved for the bartender. “Do me a
favor. Keep this glass safe behind the bar and call the police.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Took him only a couple of seconds
to put it together. Eyed the other man with disgust and reached for the glass.
Romeo darted his free hand to spill everything across the bar.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">“Oops.” He half smiled.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">I let go of his hand. Grabbed a
handful of hair and slammed his face into the bar. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">He turned toward me. Said,
“Asshole.” Not the response I had in mind, so I did it again. Harder. Liquid
sloshed from both our glasses. He put a hand to his face and stayed down. Blood
dribbled from his nose to the bar.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">The bartender engaged. “Enough of
that or I’ll call the police.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">I raised my hands shoulder height,
palms out. “Call them, anyway. It might be nice to have this jagov on file in
case something like this comes up again.” The barman hesitated until I told him
I would if he didn’t. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">It happened so quickly no one else
noticed until a woman three seats down looked over and saw Bleeding Man’s face.
That prompted the inevitable gasp and pointing but no general tumult.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">The bartender handed Bleeding Man a
towel as the woman returned. She ran the last few steps. “What happened?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">I kept my voice low and even. “He
put something in your drink.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">“Like hell I did. He wants to take
you home himself.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">I raised an eyebrow. “So I…what?
Broke your nose and called the police? How’s that supposed to work?”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">The woman looked from me to him as
if trying to decide which of us had evolved a spinal column. Started to speak,
pulled it back. Glared at a spot between the bartender and me. “Sometimes I
wonder why I don’t just have the damn thing sewn shut.” People made room on her
way out.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-indent: .5in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">Then I made another mistake. I
waited for the cops. Again.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-886724008167011442024-02-29T21:00:00.000-08:002024-02-29T21:00:00.149-08:00Jeffrey James Higgins, Author of The Forever Game<p class="MsoPlainText">Jeffrey James Higgins is a former reporter and retired
supervisory special agent who writes thriller novels, short stories, creative
nonfiction, and essays. He has wrestled a suicide bomber, fought the Taliban in
combat, and chased terrorists across five continents. He received both the
Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Heroism and the DEA Award of Valor.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Jeffrey has been interviewed by CNN, New York Times, Fox
News, Investigation Discovery, Declassified, and USA Today. He has won numerous
literary awards, including the PenCraft Book Awards Fiction Book of the Year
and a Readers’ Favorite Gold Medal. Jeffrey is a #1 Amazon bestselling author.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">He’s also a hell of a nice guy who is tireless in his
support of other authors. I met Jeff when I moderated a panel a few years ago
at the Creatures, Crimes, and Creativity conference and always look forward to
getting together with him. I suspect you will, too, after reading this.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b> </b></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>One Bite at a Time</b>: Welcome back to the blog,
Jeff. It’s always a pleasure to chat with you.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">The new book, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Forever-Game-Life-Saving-Technology-Deadly/dp/1685133797/ref=sr_1_1?crid=SOSV5Q64MSL5&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ccsfJ59YRisPCB0yzS-C65ZxC_XPPYK5MQApuswB_4DGjHj071QN20LucGBJIEps.N1IF3rXB8yiU4RLQx3D2_a-eBxcqIgPEPtp9e5ZY8t8&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+forever+game+by+higgins&qid=1709048747&sprefix=The+Forever+Game%2Caps%2C176&sr=8-1">The
Forever Game</a></i>, doesn’t just have all the elements that made your earlier
thrillers so popular, but is timely to boot, as it deals with artificial
intelligence. Knowing the lag times between writing a book and seeing it on the
market, you were a little ahead of the curve in latching onto AI as the
motivating force here. What brought this to your attention so much you decided
to write a book about it?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>Jeffrey James Higgins</b>: About five years ago, I
heard about the CEO of an AI company in Silicon Valley who had offered a beta
program to friends and family where he would download a model of their brains.
In effect, he was attempting to preserve a digital version of their minds. The
minute I heard the story, I knew I had to write about it.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Artificial intelligence will change everything. Most
people don’t understand all the ramifications, but the world as we know it is
about to change. AI can be scary, but the genie is out of the bottle, so we
need to embrace the future and try to make the best decisions we can. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Ethical and moral questions are moving from the
theoretical into the real world. It’s an amazing time with potential to make
the world better, but it’s also fraught with danger.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>OBAAT</b>: Adam Locke is a decorated DEA agent, which
is something you know quite a bit about. How did your experiences shape the
story?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>JJH</b>: I open the story with Adam Locke conducting a
DEA mission. I conducted hundreds of operations over the years, and I’ve been
in combat, so I think I write with realism. I’ve had bullets snap through the
air over my head, RPGs fly past me, and rockets land around me. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Having those experiences allows me to describe what
characters feel during life-and-death conflicts. <i>The Forever Game</i> is a
thriller, but the protagonist is an ex-DEA agent, like me, so the way he
approaches a mystery is authentic. I was fortunate to be able to serve my
country, and I hope my investigative experience translates into believable
fiction.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>OBAAT</b>: The Amazon page reads: “<i>The Forever Game</i>
examines the philosophical issues that arise when artificial intelligence can
cure disease, download minds, and offer eternal life. It explores the nature of
consciousness and what it means to be human.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">“Examine” and “explore” can be loaded words in fiction.
Did you have a position you wanted to take, or was the goal only to make people
aware of aspects of AI they might not otherwise think of?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>JJH</b>: My protagonist, Adam Locke, has a girlfriend
who is dying of cancer, and he’s trying to save her. Artificial intelligence
gives him hope that he can do that. But scientists are dying, and he believes
someone is killing them to steal the priceless technology. In reality, AI can
become an incredible medical diagnostic tool. Not only will it be able to
detect disease early on and with less human error, but using technology like
nano bots, it will cure disease and repair the human substrate. It has the potential
to extend life for hundreds of years. If we can model the human brain, we have
the potential to download consciousness. My novel explores the ethical issues
that arise as we near this potential, but it does so within a fast-paced
thriller. I don’t take a position on the issues, but I show the reader the
benefits and dangers we will face living in a world with AI.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>OBAAT</b>: New York Times bestselling author Mark
Greaney said The Forever Game is “a tautly-plotted thriller bursting with both
action and depth.” <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Speaking as both a writer and a reader, I can attest that
pulling off both action and depth is a lot harder than it sounds. Action tends
to skim the surface of thought to trigger the reader’s adrenaline; depth
implies time for thought. How did you balance the two, and did one tend to come
easier for you than the other?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>JJH</b>: That was a nice blurb by Mark Greaney. If
anyone hasn’t read his work, I recommend it. The Gray Man is an iconic
character, and I enjoy everything Mark writes.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">I think depth of character is important to make readers
care about characters when they’re in jeopardy. Internal and external conflict
are both important to a layered story, and both must affect each other. A
character must want something, and obstacles must prevent him or her from
getting it. As important as character wants are what a character needs to
change. One drives plot and the other structures the character arc. Ideally, a
character’s needs must influence the resolution of the wants in the external
conflict.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Action should also be more necessary to advance plot.
Everything in a story should further either plot or character. Plots themselves
can have depth if they include deeper themes. Universality of themes helps
readers relate. I also like to travel up and down the ladder of abstraction to
keep the pace moving and make reader think.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>OBAAT</b>: We’ll talk about Elaine’s more later, but
how does being a more or less full-time restauranteur affect your writing
schedule? Maybe even more important, has it affected your process?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>JJH</b>: I don’t consider myself a restauranteur
because Elaine’s is my wife’s dream, but I work there between 50-60 hours a
week as day manager and general manager. I also coordinate literary events and
interview authors, which takes another 10-15 hours per week.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">I was a full-time author before we opened the restaurant,
and I wrote at least two thousand words a day. Now, I get up early and am lucky
to write one thousand words a day. My time is very structured, which is
necessary when I’m so busy. I think the key to remaining productive is to write
every day. Even a few hundred words a day will result in a book a year. My
process is the same, but instead of having all morning to write, I only have
one or two hours. I believe that’s enough, as long as I stay focused and make
the most of my time. We all can find an hour or more each day, so there’s no
excuse not to write. As a storyteller, I need to write to be happy.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>OBAAT</b>: Elaine’s, the restaurant you operate with
your wife in Alexandria VA has become a salon for writers’ events; you’ve been
kind enough to host me twice in the past year. As I can attest firsthand, your
skills as a moderator and one-on-one interviewer aren’t just excellent; you’re
the best I’ve worked with. How do you put together the questions for such
events, and, maybe even more impressive, where do you find the time?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>JJH</b>: Thank you so much for that wonderful
compliment. The restaurant is my wife’s passion, and I saw the opportunity to
use our space to help the writing community. A massive predatory industry has
cropped up and targeted authors, so we decided to become a haven for readers
and writers. We don’t charge anything for literary events. It’s our way of
helping writers and giving them a place to celebrate their work.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">I love interviewing authors. I’m fascinated by their
relationships with story, how they create characters and plot, and their
process. I think my genuine interest creates fertile ground for good
interviews.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">You’re right about my difficulty in finding the time to
hold these events. I also moderate other events online, and I’ve had weeks
where I’ve interviewed more than ten authors, so I rarely plan more than a few
minutes before each. I usually read a chapter to get a feel for an author’s
style then I question them about their work and the craft of writing. I listen
to what they say and ask deeper questions. I pride myself on asking authors
questions they’ve never heard before and making them think.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">I’ve been recording my interviews, and I hope to share
them as a podcast, videos, or written transcripts. The authors I’ve spoken with
are talented writers and interesting people. I think readers will enjoy hearing
what they had to say.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>OBAAT</b>: What’s on the agenda for you? Conferences,
other appearances, writing projects? Whatever is on your mind right now.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><b>JJH</b>: I’ve never been as busy as I am right now. I
addition to launching <i>The Forever Game</i>, I’m working with three other
publishers. I just signed a four-book contract with Severn River Publishing for
my Nathan Burke espionage thriller series. I’m working with them to edit the
first book, “The Havana Syndrome,” and book two is due in August. Next year,
Running Wild Press will publish “Shaking,” a mystery thriller, and I’m about to
sign a contract with another publisher for “The Fluttering,” a psychological
suspense thriller. My agent and I are also working on “Relic,” an
action-adventure thriller trilogy. I’m also working on a sequel to my novella, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Forsaken-Novella-Jeffrey-James-Higgins/dp/B09MYRFTKD/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3CKWFBQYDVPSV&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.uM3plhGv0ftqOT1qbGPZ4a8gtYetKlWbJdUrbRFSe7vGjHj071QN20LucGBJIEps.lSnNne_FHd7OttlfgIni5ROCLRVIfhyzlkqe3jmwY6o&dib_tag=se&keywords=Forsaken+by+higgins&qid=1709049260&sprefix=forsaken+by+higgins%2Caps%2C96&sr=8-1">Forsaken</a></i>.
I’m excited about all these projects, and I wish I could focus on them
full-time.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">There are so many wonderful writing conferences, and I
recommend authors seek them out to meet other writers. Conferences are
wonderful opportunities to learn the craft and network within the industry.
This year, I hope to attend Thrillerfest, BoucherCon, and Creatures, Crimes,
and Creativity.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText">Thank you very much for hosting me again. If readers are
interested in my writing, they can find links to my work at <a href="https://jeffreyjameshiggins.com/">https://JeffreyJamesHiggins.com</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoPlainText"><o:p></o:p></p><p><b>OBAAT: </b>It was my pleasure, Jeff. Readers, if you
get a chance to catch Jeff conducting an interview or sitting on a panel, take
full advantage. I’ve never worked with a better interviewer. </p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-44806162593333340872024-02-22T21:00:00.000-08:002024-02-22T21:00:00.237-08:00Thoughts on How to Handle Future Bouchercon Controversies<p> I had a post drafted for today that discussed the recent
Bouchercon Otto Penzler controversy, but Anthony Horowitz’s withdrawal from
this year’s conference made the topic moot. The whole episode brought to mind
things that seem to come up with increasing frequency, so I’m considering them
fair game.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>For those unaware, I’m not just a cisgendered white
heterosexual male; I’m old. If that disqualifies my opinion from your
consideration, you can stop reading now. No hard feelings. I’ll catch you next
week.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Among the benefits of being my age is – at least should be –
an ability to gain context through viewing the world through the perspective of
time. I’d hate to think I haven’t learned anything in sixty-eight years, so I
continue to see what I might do differently if faced with similar
circumstances. As a man with a temper, this comes in handy. (Those who have
seen my temper know that is not a self-effacing comment.)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>There is much injustice in the world. Readers and writers
conferences are not immune, and people are right to point it out when it happens.
The recent Penzler controversy had to do with misogyny, but race and LGBTQ+
concerns are never far from public attention, nor should they be. The question
is what to do about them. Too often the first impulse is to withdraw from the
conference and talk about a boycott, but no one ever talks about what a boycott
would accomplish other than making the participants feel good about their
self-perceived purity.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>But what about the collateral damage? Let’s stick with
Bouchercon and Penzler for a moment. Who would it harm if everyone who objected
to his appearance chose to skip the conference? Certainly not Otto, but if a total
boycott were successful enough it could put a significant crimp into
Bouchercon’s finances and endanger future events. Is that what anybody wants?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>I’m sure there are some out there thinking “If that’s how the
conference is going to be run, maybe it should go away.” Let’s step back a
second and think of all the good Bouchercon does. In addition to the charitable
work, the celebration of reading has value in a world that seems to care less
about reading all the time. It’s also a chance for readers and writers – who
are more likely than not introverts – to get together in a safe place with
kindred spirits. Do we want to endanger that over a symbolic gesture not likely
to accomplish anything concrete?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>So what can we do? We can express our displeasure as Lee
Goldberg did so eloquently in <a href="https://www.facebook.com/lee.goldberg/posts/pfbid0Hfhxxs28XMHv6b63BDQ3cabJtPzexyEyfVGtCGUZ9env682gQ2JYFQZbcV5x7A8Rl">a
letter he shared on Facebook</a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>But what if Horowitz hadn’t gotten everyone off the hook by
withdrawing?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I think the best response would have been to go to Nashville,
do everything that makes Bouchercon special, then boycott the guest of honor event.
I can think of no better way to show what the crime fiction community thinks of
Otto than to make him interview Horowitz
in an empty room. A conference boycott would allow him to claim martyrdom; mass
avoidance of his specific event sends a
much more pointed and credible message.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>I raised this point on Facebook and Lori Rader-Day made an
excellent counterpoint: How many people there either don’t know or don’t care
and would go anyway? I have two thoughts on that:</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">1.<span style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">If they don’t know, then it should be our job to
educate them. Have pins made up for folks to wear. It could be as simple as
“Boycott Otto,” though something more cryptic. “Ask me about Otto.” Notices on
the bulletin boards. Arm-, wrist-, or headbands. Messages on the Bouchercon
Facebook page. Whatever works.</span></p><p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->If they know and still want to come, well, it’s
a free country.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Otto Penzler has a right to hold abhorrent positions. Let
him come. It’s not as if he was going to give a pro-misogyny speech or hold a
men’s rights rally. We could demonstrate our disdain by effectively shunning
him, or by making a point of exposing how wrong his ideas about women are by showing
strong, empowered women who no longer feel threatened by his Cro-Magnon
outlook. To say “he <i>can’t</i> come or we <i>won’t”</i> is a form of
cancelation. Seize the opportunity to expose his wrongheadedness to those previously
unaware of it. To discourage such discourse is no better than banning books,
which I assume is something no one reading this advocates.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>I am not defending Otto Penzler, nor Bouchercon’s invitation.
(I know, it was at Horowitz’s request; the committee still formalized it.) The
apology issued after Horowitz withdrew was an example of the non-apology
apologies that have become so prevalent. The decision to invite him was tone
deaf and insensitive. I dwell on it here because a similar situation is bound
to come up again, and we should all think about what remedies we propose: Will
this accomplish something? Or am I just doing it to make myself feel better?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>I don’t know Otto Penzler; never met him. Based on what I
know, I don’t feel like I missed much. If folks wanted to show their disdain
for him, which do you think would be better: to boycott the conference,
allowing him to claim martyrdom and possibly risking Bouchercon’s continued
existence? Or to give everyone a chance
to show him exactly what they think of him in person?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>I know which I’d choose.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-67690905095533591632024-02-15T21:00:00.000-08:002024-02-15T21:00:00.240-08:00Bad Samaritan Re-Release<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">Today is the re-issue date for the fifth Nick Forte novel, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Samaritan-Nick-Forte-Mystery-Book-ebook/dp/B077GCZS3C/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2P7THU04DBRWK&keywords=Bad+Samaritan+by+dana+king&qid=1706544564&sprefix=bad+samaritan+by+dana+king%2Caps%2C68&sr=8-1"><i>Bad
Samaritan</i></a>, originally published in January of 2018. This is currently
the most recent novel in which Forte is the protagonist, though he does make an
appearance in the Penns River novel, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Spread-Penns-River-Crime-Novel/dp/1643963244/ref=sr_1_1?crid=18JJO4YGKJ0LK&keywords=dana+king+the+spread&qid=1691523710&sprefix=dana+king+the+spread%2Caps%2C81&sr=8-1"><i>The
Spread</i></a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Bad Sam</i> was my examination of men’s activist groups
and the damage they cause to society at large through their refusal to accept
women as equals. The inciting incident is a series of letters received by
soccer mom Becky Tuttle, who writes a series of bodice-ripping potboilers under
an assumed name. Becky is so concerned for her family’s privacy she hired an
actor to handle all her in-person appearances and interviews; a true <i>Remington
Steele</i> scenario. Not even her editor knows who Desiree d’Arnaud really is.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Someone figures it out, though, and is sending Becky letters
addressed to her pen name at the Tuttle residence. The police stand back, as
there is nothing overtly threatening in any of the letters. Still, Becky and
her husband are creeped out.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">While investigating Becky’s situation, Forte encounters Lily
O’Donoghue, the beautiful and expensive prostitute who appeared in Forte 2, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Stuff-That-Dreams-Are-Made/dp/1505301424/ref=sr_1_1?crid=37VIGCLCYS12Q&keywords=the+stuff+that+dreams+are+made+of+by+dana+king&qid=1706545032&sprefix=the+stuff+that+dreams+are+made+of+by+dana+king%2Caps%2C67&sr=8-1"><i>The
Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of</i>. </a>She’s being blackmailed and Forte
volunteers to help out of a sense of obligation to Lily’s dead mother. The
blackmailer turns up dead later the same night Forte confronts him. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I spent more time researching <i>Bad Sam</i> than any other
Forte novel, as I wanted to be sure I was fair to all sides in the men’s rights
argument. That research was the most distressing and disgusting work of my
writing life to that point, as what we see in mainstream media barely scratches
the surface of how vile these people are, including the women who support them.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Bad Sam</i> was a problematic book from the beginning. As
regular readers know, Forte is a tough guy in the Continental Op/Mike Hammer
model, though informed with 21<sup>st</sup> Century sensibilities. While he
empathizes with Becky’s and Lily’s plights, he still comes in as if he’s on a
white horse, which in its way disempowers them even more. As might be expected
in a story where a man feels as though he has to set things right for women
regardless of what resolution they want, nothing works out the way Forte planned.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is my most difficult book for me to write about. If
you’d like more insight into <i>Bad Sam</i>, take a look at <a href="https://www.deadendfollies.com/blog/book-review-dana-king-bad-samaritan-2018">Benoit
Lelieve’s review in <i>Dead End Follies</i></a>. It’s honest and fair and the
best analysis of my work that has ever been done. I’ll let the book rise and
fall on what Ben has to say about it.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Bad Samaritan</i> is available on Amazon. Prices are
$2.99 for Kindle and $9.99 for a paperback. It’s the last re-release in the
Forte series. Next month will see the arrival of the sixth novel, and the first
in six years, when <i>Off the Books</i> drops. Don’t worry that you’ll forget
about it. I’m sure to remind you.<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-57778205356868762342024-02-08T21:00:00.000-08:002024-02-08T21:00:00.155-08:00The Age of Umbrage, Part Two<p> This went viral on Facebook a few weeks ago: Name ten
writers you’ve read at least five books by. The responses were plentiful and it
was fun to see who others come back to time after time.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Until someone decided to take offense. Too many lists were oversaturated
with male writers.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is a multi-level complaint. First, it implies women are
underrepresented as writers, but are they? As of 2021, according to <a href="https://wordsrated.com/author-demographics-statistics/#:~:text=As%20of%202021%2C%2050.45%25%20of,75.58%25%20of%20authors%20are%20White.">Wordsrated.com</a>,
50.4% of authors in the United States are women. True, they only make 96% as
much money, but that can likely be attributed to sales. As women buy most of
the books in this country, I’ll leave that question open. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">(I don’t know why Wordsrated uses the term “salaries,” as
fiction authors generally work on advances and royalties. If anyone can show I
missed something, please let me know in the comments.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">More bothersome was the implication the respondents were <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>prejudice against women authors. Speaking only
for myself as one who named all male writers, my tastes were formed forty to
fifty years ago, when not nearly as many women were published. The Wordsrated
study shows the average age of authors working in the United States is 42,
which means most writers working today weren’t born when my tastes were coming
together.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It was deplorable that women were so badly underrepresented
in so many areas; we all suffered. I recently watched a video of the Vienna
Philharmonic conducted by Leonard Bernstein and was struck by how few female
faces were in what was/is arguably the world’s greatest orchestra. By “few” I
mean “none.” Today’s orchestras are better than their predecessors, if only
because until recently they excluded half the talent pool. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It only makes sense that fiction writing, and reading, is
better off with more proportional representation of <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>women and minorities. That doesn’t change my
tastes. I appreciate Sue Grafton, Sara Paretsky, and Laura Lippman as
outstanding writers; Kinsey Milhone, V.I. Warshawsky, and Tess Monahan are
enduring and ground-breaking characters. I cut my PI reading teeth on Mike
Hammer and Spenser; I like my detectives to be more proactive in their case
resolutions. (Yes, by “proactive” I mean “violent.”) I came to love police
procedurals through reading Joseph Wambaugh and Ed McBain. I’m not apologizing
for it.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Do I wish women had been better represented in those days? Absolutely.
Can I do anything about it? No. Even if I were to read nothing but books by women,
it would not help those who were discriminated against fifty years ago; they’re
all dead. And I <i>really</i> can’t do anything for those who were most damaged,
because their books never saw the light of day.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">People tend to listen to the music they fell in love with in
high school and college for the rest of their lives. Our parents listened to
swing bands long after they were no longer in vogue. I fell in love with jazz
when I played in my high school’s stage band; with classical while performing
in my college orchestra. Now I listen to a lot of country music because that’s
what I heard around the house when I was a kid. It’s musical comfort food for
me. About the youngest country singers I listen to today are Dwight Yoakum and
Patty Loveless. Both are my age.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The types of books men and women write also matters. I doubt
there is a better writer working today, crime or otherwise, than Megan Abbott.
I loved <i>Queenpin</i> and think <i>Bury Me Deep</i> belongs in college
classes. Since <i>Dare Me</i>, though, the books she writes are about people so
distant from my tastes and interests I have no connection to them and, frankly,
don’t really care what happens to them. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Psychological suspense stories are immensely popular gith
now. These books typically involve a middle-class or higher person or family –
often a woman – who is subjected to what can best be described as psychological
torture by someone who may or may not be known to them. The best of these books
are well written and obviously compelling to many or they wouldn’t sell as they
do. I rarely read them. I grew up working class, and my sensibilities and
sympathies remain so. Working class people don’t fuck with your mind; they fuck
with you personally. I am far more likely to be drawn to protagonists in novels
by Dennis Lehane or James D.F. Hannah, as those are people with whom I can most
readily identify. As Lehane said when asked why he didn’t write about rich
people: “I don’t give a fuck about them.” The same applies to my reading.</p><p class="MsoNormal">We all like what we like. As authors, we should be grateful
that people are reading <i>at all</i> rather than taking them to task for not
reading who we think they should read, whatever the reason. I’m 68 years old
and there are more books I want to read than I have time for; I’m not looking
for new horizons. I enjoy stumbling onto someone new – the past two years I
tripped over Don Winslow and Loren Estelman – but their prose falls into my
already established wheelhouse..</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Let’s agree that I won’t criticize or try to shame you into
reading what I think you should, and you will show me the same courtesy.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Or I’m liable to take umbrage.<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-65044133939762661332024-02-01T21:00:00.000-08:002024-02-01T21:00:00.245-08:00Some Critical Advice<p> Some of you know I hold a master’s degree in Trumpet
Performance from New England Conservatory. While I have not played for years,
lessons learned through musical studies still resonate today, almost forty
years after leaving the Conservatory.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Most of the day-to-day stuff came from my trumpet teacher,
Charles Schlueter. Charlie was Principal Trumpet of the Boston Symphony at the
time and he often found ways to relate everyday activities and principles to
music; the reverse also works.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My best piece of writing advice also came from my time at
NEC, from Benjamin Zander, who was then music director of the Boston
Philharmonic. Ben taught a class titled “Chamber Music Interpretation” that was
pivotal in how I approached all performances forever after.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The first day of class, Ben congratulated us on having
chosen to dedicate our lives to music. He said it was a noble calling (he was
right) and mentioned several luminaries whose paths we were following, no
matter how remotely. I took the class out of curiosity but by the end of our
first session Ben had me hooked.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">He spoke of something else that day that stayed with me: being
a musician would not be without cost. Among those costs was a discipline we
would have to self-impose, of never listening to music solely for
entertainment. Not that we couldn’t or shouldn’t enjoy music, but that we must
always listen on a deeper level.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">What did he mean by that? We could no longer afford just to hear
the notes. We needed to look for some understanding of why the composer and/or
performer made the choices they made. It didn’t matter if we were on an
elevator and subjected to a Muzak version of “Thriller.” We should look for
something to take away from it, either good or bad.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Casual musicians and other music lovers have asked if this
ruined listening to music for me. The truth is the exact opposite. Listening
critically opened new vistas of enjoyment, as I came to better understand which
choices were available and which were more, or less, successful. It made
listening a delight, though I must admit that I now listen to little music
while doing anything that requires concentration, as my mind is too strongly
attracted to the music.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">How does that affect my writing? It affects my reading. I
did not begin writing seriously until I was in my forties. I hadn’t taken an
English composition class since freshman year of college, and the experimental
“linguistics” education I received in junior high school gave me virtually no
knowledge of grammar. I had to catch up in a hurry.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">My solution was to adapt Ben Zander’s principle of critical
listening to reading. As with music, once I got the hang of it, critical
reading enhanced my enjoyment of what I read. I no longer read even a newspaper
article without thinking of why the writer made this or that choice, what might
have worked better, or what I would have done differently. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">To prove this constant analysis of what I read in no way
diminishes my enjoyment, I am currently reading Carl Hiaasen’s <i>Bad Monkey</i>.
The Beloved Spouse™ will sometimes comment how she can hear me laughing out
loud at various times, but I am still looking at the bits between the lines and
words. “I see what he did there.” “That could come in handy for me some time.”
“I wonder why he made that choice.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">If you want to be a writer, or claim to be one already, this
might be the one piece of advice I would most want you to take to heart. If it
sounds like too much work, then maybe writing is not for you.<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-2546926861985976372024-01-25T21:00:00.000-08:002024-01-25T21:00:00.136-08:00Trigger Words<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">(This post is not intended for those who get the vapors from
foul language.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Now that the trigger warning is out of the way, let’s get
down to business. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I probably talk about foul language more than I should, but
the controversy surrounding it randomly intrudes on my consciousness until it
becomes an itch I have to scratch. What some consider offensive language is still
language. As a writer, I have nothing else to work with, so yeah. It’s a big
deal to me.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I use (probably more than) my fair share of potentially offensive
language; never for the purpose of giving offense. That is not to say the
character into whose mouth I put those words doesn’t mean to give offense.
Sometimes giving offense is the reason they opened their mouth at all. Whether
a reader is offended is up to the reader. I have plenty else to worry about.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I submitted a story a while back in which a woman, a
detestable person, called a male associate a faggot. He responded by calling
her a cunt. The story was accepted, but I was asked to change “faggot” because it’s
an offensive term.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">“Cunt” was okay.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Here’s the thing: <i>I</i> meant no offense by using “faggot;”
the character did. My job was to expose her for the detestable character she
was, and dialog is an outstanding way to do so. I made the change – to “bitch,”
which I felt was watered down in that context – but <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>it got me thinking.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Conventional wisdom says to avoid potentially offensive
language, lest you scare away readers. Let’s look at that. Lee Child is known for
not using foul language in his Reacher books, yet the streaming “Reacher”
series is laden with it. Are viewers less sensitive than readers?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Maybe they are. Apparently not always, though. Dennis
Lehane’s most recent, <i>Small Mercies</i>, is loaded with references to
“niggers” by racist whites. That’s the point: these people are loathsome
racists and <i>that’s the word they would use</i>. They wouldn’t say, “Those
n-words are going to my kids’ school over my dead body” and it’s stupid to
pretend they would. Lehane faces up to it and the book is critically and
financially successful.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I write about crime. I do not wish to smooth the edges from
a hardened criminal by having him – or her – refrain from language that might
offend someone. Much of what people like that say is <i>intended</i> to offend.
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">While I do not use sensitivity readers, I do take
suggestions from my editor, who I trust implicitly. When he asks, “Are you sure
this is the word you want to use here?” I may not make a change, but I will
seriously consider it.<a href="https://d.docs.live.net/fbab6f7defec042c/Documents/_Writing/_One%20Bite%20at%20a%20Time/20240126%20-%20Trigger%20Words.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference">*</span></a> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Since I brought it up, what Is the role of a sensitivity
reader? To ensure the book offends no one? I hope not. If, as Lehane has said,
crime fiction is the modern form of social commentary<a href="https://d.docs.live.net/fbab6f7defec042c/Documents/_Writing/_One%20Bite%20at%20a%20Time/20240126%20-%20Trigger%20Words.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference">†</span></a>
– with which I agree – it’s not doing its job if it doesn’t offend <i>somebody</i>.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe a sensitivity reader’s purpose is
to identify when a particular group is unfairly characterized – which is worth
knowing – but what are the qualifications for such a job? If you include women,
gays, Blacks, Hispanics, and Innuits in a book, must you get a different reader
for each? If not, who has the <i>chutzpah</i> to promote themselves as the
universal arbiter of hurt feelings? (In case you’re wondering, my personal
standard is “don’t be a dick.”)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Everything offends somebody, especially today, in what can
reasonably be referred to as The Age of Umbrage. Maybe we should worry less
about the potential for offense and more about the context and why someone
considers the word offensive. “I don’t like that word,” or “It hurts my
feelings” are not legitimate arguments.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">A woman named Karen England roams the country recruiting and
teaching people how to get books they consider to be offensive banned from
schools, even in districts in which they do not live.<a href="https://d.docs.live.net/fbab6f7defec042c/Documents/_Writing/_One%20Bite%20at%20a%20Time/20240126%20-%20Trigger%20Words.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference">‡</span></a>
(Could she be more of a Karen?) By her standards, the Kathy Bates character in <i>Misery</i>
is a potty mouth. If that woman isn’t a cunt, I don’t know who is.<o:p></o:p></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://d.docs.live.net/fbab6f7defec042c/Documents/_Writing/_One%20Bite%20at%20a%20Time/20240126%20-%20Trigger%20Words.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference">*</span></a> I will run ideas past
people I know who will have insights and experience I lack. When writing <i>The
Spread¸</i> I contacted a couple of gay friends to ask how a gay character
might resolve a situation, and why. Their input made it a better book, as they
had things to say I would not have thought of. I also did not run the finished
product past them to sign off on.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p> </o:p><a href="https://d.docs.live.net/fbab6f7defec042c/Documents/_Writing/_One%20Bite%20at%20a%20Time/20240126%20-%20Trigger%20Words.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference">†</span></a> Paraphrasing.
I can’t find the original quote.</p></div><div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;"><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="https://d.docs.live.net/fbab6f7defec042c/Documents/_Writing/_One%20Bite%20at%20a%20Time/20240126%20-%20Trigger%20Words.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference">‡</span></a> There is
even a district in Florida where the banners seek to include dictionaries and
encyclopedias.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-80992230066481498282024-01-11T21:00:00.000-08:002024-01-11T21:00:00.166-08:00Imposter Syndrome<p> The definition of “Imposter Syndrome” from Oxford Languages
is</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">“The persistent inability to
believe that one's success is deserved or has been legitimately achieved as a
result of one's own efforts or skills.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">This is followed by my author
photo.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate
every compliment I receive from readers and other authors. I love speaking at
conferences and sharing my knowledge; if I was born to do anything, it was to
be a teacher. I will never refuse a request for advice, or deny a blurb to a
friend.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">I also cannot help but wonder,
“Why are they asking <i>me</i>?”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">This is not unique to my writing
life. As a musician I always lived in fear of my limitations becoming exposed
publicly. It took several months at my first “real” job as a network
administrator before I could leave at the end of each workday without quietly
mouthing, “Fooled them again.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">It’s not like I’m an
anxiety-riddled rodent who gobbles Xanax like they were M&Ms. (Not that
M&Ms aren’t delicious.) Nor do I lack confidence altogether. I look forward
to opportunities to speak in front of strangers, in part because I have seen a
lot of people who are so bad at it you can sense the audience’s discomfort. (Or
disgust over having their time wasted.) I confess, it is not uncommon for me to
listen to a speaker and think, “Step away from the podium/dais/stage. I can do
better off the top of my head.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">So I do have areas of confidence.
(Arrogance?)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">So what’s my problem with writing?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">I think a lot of it stems from
having interacted with those I consider to be my betters. I read books by authors
whose writing I aspire to and am often floored by the fluidity of their
language as well as their abilities to craft unique voices. (I’m not naming
names, as I would inevitably leave someone out.) I don’t see any of the doubt,
re-writing, and editing that went into it; the books strike me as direct
pipelines from the author’s imagination to mine. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">Then I look at my process. It’s
well defined and I have confidence that it works for me, but I always feel like
there should be<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">More nuance to my plots.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">More dimensions to my characters.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">A more unique voice.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">More descriptive language.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">Tighter writing.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">Better dialog.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">A stronger ending.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">I could go on, but I’m starting to
jones for some M&Ms.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">It is not unusual for someone to compliment
my knowledge of craft, or of my genres. I am appreciative of, and grateful for,
the praise. I am also painfully aware of how much I <i>don’t</i> know. If I am
at a conference or talking with friends, or even reading Facebook posts, and
come across an author or book people speak highly of, my first thought is often
<i>I should have known about that</i>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">That doesn’t mean I always follow
up; no one can know everything. The residue of being raised by two
perfectionists is I am always aware of my own imperfections. I understand no
one is perfect, but it still breaks my balls that I am not, even almost
sixty-eight years along the road.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">I try to accept all compliments in
the spirit in which they are intended, but cannot help but think of things the
speaker must have overlooked, or chose not to comment on to preserve my
feelings. I am often uncomfortable when I am too effusively praised, because,
no offense, <i>I know better</i>. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">Imposter Syndrome is not uncommon,
and I suspect it is found more often in people with a certain amount of
ability, as they have something that might be worth impersonating. (No one has
Imposter Syndrome because they think they are <i>better</i> than they are.) <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">I am also aware that people who
are knowledgeable in a field are also the most acutely aware of what they do
not know. I get that. It helps. But after panels or public events that go well,
one thought is still most likely to run through my mind:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;">Fooled them again.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-23475194034217927892024-01-04T21:00:00.000-08:002024-01-04T21:00:00.139-08:00Autumn's Favorite Reads<p> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Subtle-Felonies-Hannibal-Jones-Mystery/dp/B0CBWN5V1X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1GN3ZO0BKU5U8&keywords=Subtle+Felonies%2C+Austin+Camacho&qid=1703611312&sprefix=subtle+felonies%2C+austin+camacho%2Caps%2C110&sr=8-1"><i>Subtle
Felonies</i></a>, Austin Camacho. I’ve always had a soft spot for Hannibal
Jones, Camacho’s PI character, and <i>Subtle Felonies</i> shows why. Jones is
enough like a traditional PI to be comfortable, and different enough to hold my
interest. This complex plot has a twist I did not see coming, but in hindsight
was inevitable. That’s the mark of a well-written and enjoyable book.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Stab-Dark-Matthew-Scudder-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B007A2TTCG/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3IZM7J81A9Q4N&keywords=A+Stab+in+the+Dark%2C+Lawrence+Block&qid=1703611394&sprefix=a+stab+in+the+dark%2C+lawrence+block%2Caps%2C79&sr=8-1"><i>A
Stab in the Dark</i></a>, Lawrence Block. I came late to the Matt Scudder books
and I’m in the process of reading them in order. <i>A Stab in the Dark</i> is
Number Four and frankly, I don’t know that I think it’s as good as the first
three. That said, Block’s standard is so high, even a run-of-the-mill effort is
still as good as 90% of the other books I’ve read. In my mind, Block is to PI
fiction what Ed McBain is to police procedurals.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Small-Mercies-Novel-Dennis-Lehane/dp/006212949X/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1703611490&sr=8-1"><i>Small
Mercies</i></a>, Dennis Lehane. My God, what a book. Eye-opening, shocking,
funny, and heartbreaking with a plot that never goes quite where you think it
will even though the story is set against actual events that took place in my
lifetime, namely the Boston busing riots. Lehane has a touch like none other
for such things. Might be the best book he’s written, and when you stop to
think about what else he’s done, that’s the highest praise I can give. (I had
more to say about <i>Small Mercies </i><a href="https://danaking.blogspot.com/2023/11/small-mercies-by-dennis-lehane.html">last
November</a>.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Chicago ’63</i>, Terrence McCauley. McCauley has written
Prohibition-era crime stories, modern techno-thrillers, war stories, Westerns,
and now this, a fact-based account of an unsuccessful assassination attempt on
President John Kennedy three weeks before the trip to Dallas. The book reads
like a cross between James Ellroy (without the sometimes distracting cadences
of his later work) and <i>Day of the Jackal</i>. McCauley’s writing has never
been smoother or more transparent. (I was lucky enough to score an advanced
reader copy; the expected publication date is February 13, 2024.)<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-34803555925561052192023-12-28T21:00:00.000-08:002023-12-28T21:00:00.141-08:00Our Year in Review<p> Happy holidays to all! The
Beloved Spouse™ and I hope your 2023 was as good as ours, which was so good it
started last year.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">We spent Christmas 2022 in
Florida visiting The Sole Heir™ and Sole Son-in-Law™. Mostly TSH, as SSiL was on
deployment with the Coast Guard. Contrary to expectations, we froze. Literally.
The Sole Heir™ and I had to put a space heater in a friend’s boat so the engine
wouldn’t freeze. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">March saw us attend our first
in-person Suffolk (VA) Mystery Authors Festival. (I had been to a pair of
virtual events in previous years.) An added benefit was having dinner with two good
friends from my largely misspent college days.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">April opened with a visit from
the California branch of TBS’s family,. We all went to an escape room in DC and
had a ball. We don’t get to see them often enough and had a wonderful day.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">The latter part of the month
was full of writing-related activities. First we went to Yonder in Hillsborough
NC to read at a Noir at the Bar event. The next week we trained it to New York
for my first reading at the Mecca of Noirs at Bars, Shade. Then to Bethesda MD
for three days at the Malice Domestic conference. We had a great time, saw old
friends, and made new ones.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">Back to Florida in June where Sleuthfest
gave us an excuse to visit The Sole Heir™ and Sole Son-in-Law. Alas, SSiL was
deployed again, though we had a lot of fun with TSH and Reny. (Reny = 80-pound
yellow Lab.) Sleuthfest was a much better time than anticipated. We’ll be back.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">In July we finished a
renovation of The Beloved Spouse™’s craft room. No construction was done, but
the room had lost much of its allure as her tastes in projects shifted from
card-making to quilting until it no longer suited either. We – mostly her – stripped
it down and built it back up to better accommodate her current interests. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">My eighth Penns River novel (<i>The
Spread</i>) came out in July. This launch was made special through two events.
A dear friend opened her home to host a reading and Q&A; later in the month
another friend made his restaurant available for a discussion of writing and craft.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">The Sole Sibling™ and I celebrated
his 60<sup>th</sup> birthday with a road trip that started in New Jersey to visit
relatives; went to Cooperstown NY for the Baseball Hall of Fame; then on to New
Berlin NY for the Motocross Nationals at Unadilla, the most hallowed track in
the country. I had never been to a motocross race before; don’t be surprised if
you see me at another.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">September marked the tenth
Creatures, Crimes, and Creativity conference, of which I have attended nine. We
are already registered for next year.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">October sent us back to North
Carolina for another Noir at the Bar, Halloween Edition. From there we went to
the Outer Banks for a lovely weekend with two good friends. The weather and
company were perfect.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">As for the extended family, The
Sole Heir™ is working as a primary care physician for the Veterans’
Administration as part of a pilot program that allows her to see patients
remotely from her home; patients do not have to go to a VA facility, just a
local doctor’s office where a physician’s assistant handles the hands-on bits. The
program is popular, TSH loves the work, and it will serve her well when The
Sole Son-in-Law gets his next transfer orders, as she can work from anywhere.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">SSiL continues to thrive as a
Coast Guard helicopter pilot. We didn’t see as much of him as we’d like in 2023
but we plan to make up for that in 2024.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 12.0pt;">We all hope everyone had at
least as good a 2023 as we did and looks forward to 2024 as much as we are.
Happy holidays!<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-15685025142427656172023-12-21T21:00:00.000-08:002023-12-21T21:00:00.154-08:00Triple Forte Now Available for Kindle<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">The Nick Forte Rebranding Tour continues with a bow toward
last-minute shoppers and those who will have holiday cash burning holes in
their pockets. Today marks the availability of the first three-volume “boxed”
set of Forte novels, titled <i>Triple Forte</i>. Included are:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>A Small Sacrifice</i>, the first Forte, nominated for a Shamus
Award by the Private Eye Writers of America as Best Indie Original.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of</i>. Blogger
extraordinaire Peter Rozovsky wrote in “Detectives Beyond Borders,” “It's a
kind of authorial magic that <i>The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of</i> works as
a tribute and as a story, and that neither aspect interferes in the least with
the other… I can imagine this book finding its way into a class on writing
crime fiction as an example of how to pay tribute to one's predecessors while
at the same time writing a story that can stand on its own. It's an impressive
accomplishment.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And last but not least, <i>The Man in the Window</i>,
Shamus-nominated as Best Paperback Original.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Triple-Forte-First-Novels-Detective-ebook/dp/B0CQKH6JNH/ref=sr_1_1?crid=UJXMJ41C14J7&keywords=triple+forte+by+dana+king&qid=1703101179&s=books&sprefix=triple+forte+by+dana+king%2Cstripbooks%2C69&sr=1-1">Triple
Forte <span style="font-style: normal;">is available for Kindle only for $3.99. </span></a></i>(See
the Amazon web site for prices outside the U.S.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The next few months will see more rebranding as a lead up to
the first new Forte novel in six years:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">January – <i>A Dangerous Lesson</i>, in which Forte’s dark
side come more into the open as he matches wits with a serial killer.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">February – <i>Bad Samaritan</i> pits Forte against men’s
rights activists in a story that shows best intentions, inexpertly applied, can
go terribly wrong.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">March – <i>Off the Books</i>, the first Forte since 2018.
What appears to be a trivial case in a small town unearths a heinous criminal
enterprise Forte does not trust the authorities to deal with.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Forte character means a lot to me, as do his associates
Goose, Sonny Ng, Jan Rusiewicz, Sharon Summers, and especially, his daughter
Caroline. PI fiction was what attracted me to reading crime, and Forte was the
first character I created as an adult writer. There is more of me in him than
in any other character (even Ben “Doc Dougherty), so writing Forte always seems
like a bit of a homecoming.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">That’s why it has been so good to hear from folks who are
looking forward to his return. This will not be a one-off. I have two more
Forte novels on the back burner after <i>Off the Books</i>, and he will make at
least one more appearance in Penns River.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Merry Christmas, all.<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-6642957796257697792023-12-14T21:00:00.000-08:002023-12-14T21:00:00.159-08:00Hill Street Moonlighting<p> The Beloved Spouse™ and I recently opened the Hulu vaults for
a couple of shows we loved when they were first aired, <i>Hill Street Blues</i>
and <i>Moonlighting. </i>We did not last long with either.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Hill Street</i> was first. Few programs have broken as
much fertile ground as well as Steven Bochco’s premiere effort. The enormous
ensemble cast, showing the cops’ lives beyond the station, the stresses no one
thought about in the early 1980s. The list of what Bochco showed first could fill
a blog post of its own.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">That’s why I feel half guilty about cutting out near the end
of Season 2. Bochco broke the ground, but a lot of people have since planted
crops that flourished there. <i>The Wire. The Shield. </i>Even Bochco’s and
David Milch’s <i>NYPD Blue</i>. All took the baton from <i>Hill Street</i> and
ran with it, pushing the envelope ever farther. While they might not be here if
not for <i>Hill Street</i>, <i>Hill Street</i> cannot compete.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Again, much of that is due to changing standards in
television. <i>Hill Street</i> was among the first shows – and, I believe, the
first cop show – to extend stories beyond one episode. This has become such a
common thing it is now typical for crime series to invest an entire season in
one primary line and hang lesser plots from that tentpole. Think of how clearly
all five seasons of <i>The Wire</i> focused on a primary story while retaining
others to flesh it out, sometimes going back all the way to the show’s origin.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Networks and streaming services now understand viewers have
adequate attention spans to handle such programming; Bochco had to teach them.
Watching several of the three-to-four-episode arcs we could not help but think
that some stories deserved more time to breathe. Looking back forty years, <i>Hill
Street</i>’s moves in that direction seem tentative. We’re past that now.
Bochco’s genius was in many ways hoist on its own petard. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">(Full disclosure: <i>Hill Street </i>left Hulu about the
time we finished Season 1. We found it on Amazon, but after another handful of
episodes they started charging $1.99 an episode, which adds up if you intend to
watch them all. TBS found it on the Internet Archive, but that was more trouble
than we wanted to take for a show we weren’t sure how long we wanted to stick
with.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Then there is <i>Moonlighting</i>. Both of us loved that
show when it originally aired, but it fell flat with us after a few episodes on
the re-viewing. What was wrong?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Personally, I remembered it as being funnier. I wondered why
I didn’t think so this time – it’s not like my sense of humor has become any
more elevated* – until TBS mentioned one evening how Bruce Willis’s
irresponsible smart-ass act has been done to death. We were tired of it.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Again, it’s not Bruce Willis’s fault that he helped to
create such a lasting trope. That still doesn’t make it any fresher after all
this time. Each episode seemed like something we’d seen before, and done
better. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">(Even fuller disclosure: It also did not help that I have
since learned Cybill Shepherd was a pluperfect bitch on the show. This is why
it’s never good to know too much about performers’ backgrounds.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I feel badly that two shows I loved when they were fresh and
new no longer entertain me. It’s a little like seeing an old flame years later
and expecting him or her to look the same. Even if their personalities haven’t
changed – and certainly<i> Hill Street’</i>s and <i>Moonlighting</i>’s have
not; I mean, they’re on videotape – they look and feel old. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So do I. That means I don’t have the time to stick with
something because I might like it down the road; I don’t have as much road left
as I used to, and it’s a dead end. I might watch <i>Hill Street Blues</i> again
on my own sometime as research for a book, but probably not. There are far more
timely and incisive examples today.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Thank you, Steven Bochco and Glen Gordon Caron, as well as
everyone involved with each of your projects, for not only providing the
younger me with wonderful and memorable entertainment, but also for raising my
standards in such a manner your programs have lost much of their appeal, though
not their luster.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">(* - We watched both <i>Cheers</i> and <i>Frazier</i> start
to finish a couple of years ago and loved them. <i>All in the Family</i> also
holds up well.)<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-1308246936855847062023-12-07T21:00:00.000-08:002023-12-07T21:00:00.141-08:00An Interview With Alec Cizak, Author, and Editor of Pulp Modern Magazine<p> Alec Cizak is the editor of <i><a href="https://www.pulpmodern.net/">Pulp Modern</a></i> magazine, as well as the
author of several novels, novellas, and numerous short stories. He also founded
<i>All Due Respect</i> and his championing of dark, gritty fiction that pays
homage to the original pulps of a hundred years ago is unflagging and
respected. One Bite at a Time was lucky to grab a little of his time so those
who are as yet unaware can learn more bou t him.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>One Bite at a Time</b>: Welcome to the blog, Alec. You’re
best known as a pulp writer and editor. “Pulp” is a term that’s been around for
a long time and, like “noir” it has almost come to mean whatever the speaker
wants it to. For some, the two terms seem to be interchangeable. What is your
definition of pulp, and how does it differ from noir?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Alec Cizak</b>: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thanks
for having me! I guess pulp is a term that encompasses all the genres that make
“literary” writers grumble about what does and does not constitute “real”
literature. While “literary” writers tend to dwell on the boring, mundane
minutiae of ‘reality,’ pulp makes the medicine go down with a hint (or
sometimes an overdose) of the fantastic. Whether it’s horror, adventure,
fantasy, westerns, or even romance, the function of escapism is fully engaged
in pulp fiction. We should always remember the original pulps had their prime
in the 1930s, during the Great Depression. Just imagine how important escape
was when you had to scratch and claw for a piece of bread to trick your belly
into thinking you’d had a full meal. Noir differs, I believe, in that it sneaks
up on the realism “literary” fiction pretends it has a monopoly on and offers
readers an escape that is dangerously close to reality. The sole relief,
perhaps, being that the fate of characters in a good noir is much, much worse
than whatever momentarily troubles the reader in his/her/their ‘real’ life.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT</b>: You were the originator of <i>All Due Respect</i>,
which became a leading platform for your kind of fiction. Starting up such a
magazine is a considerable effort. What made you decide to do it?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>AC</b>: I wanted to create a venue that spotlighted a
single writer for a month. I also wanted to create a venue that didn’t handcuff
writers with restrictions on subject matter. Crime is dirty. Crime is nasty.
Crime is violent. And crime is ugly. I wanted to publish fiction that reflected
these aspects of criminality.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT</b>: You eventually moved on from <i>ADR</i> to
start <i>Pulp Modern</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s the
story behind that?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>AC</b>: Pulp Modern started because no venue gathering
all the pulp genres in one place existed. As others have said, if you want to
see it and it doesn’t exist, you must create it. So, I did.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT</b>: Most of your books are of the type of story
you’ve featured in your magazines, except <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Lake-County-Incidents-Alec-Cizak/dp/1957034106/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1S281GJLTTO0P&keywords=Lake+County+Incidents%2C+by+alec+cizak&qid=1701275988&sprefix=lake+county+incidents%2C+by+alec+cizak%2Caps%2C121&sr=8-1">Lake
County Incidents</a></i>. What’s different about that one and why the
departure?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>AC</b>: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I
started writing short stories back in grade school, they were always horror
stories. As I got older, however, I decided I wouldn’t write horror unless I
thought for sure I could freak out the reader in some way. I think if a story
is advertised as horror, it is obligated to scare the audience. Too much horror
I’ve read over the years has failed in this respect. A lot of horror is
predicated on gore, on what Stephen King called “the gross out” (in his book <i>Danse
Macabre</i>). That’s not interesting to me. I had a flash of inspiration,
however, in 2015, and wrote a series of stories I believed would unsettle
readers. Most of them were published at various venues. My publisher, ABC Group
Documentation, asked to see a collection of them and eventually published it.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT</b>: You’ve written several novels. For someone new
to your work, which would you suggest they begin with to get a representative
idea of your style and voice that is most accessible. (Full disclosure: I ask
this because when I decided to investigate James Ellroy I began with <i>The
Cold Six Thousand</i>, which is brilliant but definitely <i>not</i> the place
to start.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>AC</b>: Depending on who you ask, I’ve only actually
written two novels, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Breaking-Glass-Alec-Cizak/dp/1948235242/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=">Breaking
Glass<span style="font-style: normal;"> </span></a></i>and <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cool-Down-Alec-Cizak/dp/1643962388/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=xaVYP&content-id=amzn1.sym.cf86ec3a-68a6-43e9-8115-04171136930a&pf_rd_p=cf86ec3a-68a6-43e9-8115-04171136930a&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=IYHFX&pd_rd_r=98b25572-14e4-4fb7-89b2-ffc22f57081b&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk">Cool
It Down</a>.</i> (A reviewer erroneously called <i>Cool It Down</i> a novella;
it’s not. It’s well over 50,000 words. I consider that the low end of novel
length.) Those books are a little challenging to newer readers as I
experimented with the genre and I’m not convinced they were successful
experiments. For straight up noir that is easily accessible, I would suggest
the novella <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Down-Street-Alec-Cizak/dp/1943402884/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=xaVYP&content-id=amzn1.sym.cf86ec3a-68a6-43e9-8115-04171136930a&pf_rd_p=cf86ec3a-68a6-43e9-8115-04171136930a&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=IYHFX&pd_rd_r=98b25572-14e4-4fb7-89b2-ffc22f57081b&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk">Down
on the Street</a></i>. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT</b>: Given the kinds of stories you write and
accept as an editor, what are your thoughts on trigger words, or, more
generally, on words polite society would not want us to use?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>AC</b>: If a story calls for language or situations some
might find “offensive,” the writer needs to decide what’s most important to
communicate to the reader and go from there. Do keep in mind that I have never published
anything at <i>Pulp Modern</i> that is “offensive” merely for the sake of being
“offensive.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT</b>: Where can readers find out more about you?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>AC</b>: The best thing to do is read my short stories.
ABC Group Documentation just published a collection called <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Nobodys-Coming-Home-Alec-Cizak/dp/B0CJXDSNYJ/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=xaVYP&content-id=amzn1.sym.cf86ec3a-68a6-43e9-8115-04171136930a&pf_rd_p=cf86ec3a-68a6-43e9-8115-04171136930a&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=IYHFX&pd_rd_r=98b25572-14e4-4fb7-89b2-ffc22f57081b&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk">Nobody’s
Coming Home</a></i>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT</b>: What’s next on your writing agenda?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>AC</b>: I’ve been working on a novel since 2020. My
writing agenda is dominated by my desire to finish that damn book!<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-85575117712854037932023-11-30T21:00:00.000-08:002023-11-30T21:00:00.132-08:00In Defense of Blogging*<p>I sometimes ponder the viability of this blog. The page views
are typically a few dozen; comments are uncommon. The frustration always passes
and the blog continues. Why?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Because I don’t write the blog for anyone except myself.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">What about interviews? I do them because<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">I enjoy doing them and<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">I like helping other writers get
the word out, even if only to a few dozen people. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The core reason I do interviews is because I love to talk
about writing. Just because we’re not doing it in real time does not mean I
don’t enjoy it. I ask questions I am curious about and look forward to the
answers with the hope of learning something every time I get a response. I am
rarely disappointed and I am not above sending follow-up questions if the
initial response opens the door.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As for the other posts, this blog is where I work things out
for myself. Some topic will strike me – or, more often, gnaw at me – and I’ll
form an opinion. Opinions being like assholes (Everybody has them and they all
stink), I like to work mine out. Try to develop my own counterarguments and how
to either address them or change my position if I find myself to be mistaken. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Several draft posts a year never see the light of day. I
either abort them partway through the first draft or they cannot support their
own weight through the editing process. I do not consider any of that time
wasted. I learned something, even if all I learned was that my initial thought
was not worth airing.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It’s also gratifying to receive the occasional comment of
appreciation, such as when I list my favorite reads of the prior quarter and
someone thanks me for bringing a book to their attention. Or when I review a TV
series or movie, or build a list, and people thank me for pointing out
something they had not known, or felt was underappreciated. Writers often
operate in vacuums, me more than most, so that is how I keep my finger on the
pulse of what is going on around me.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So the blog continues. (This is Post 1,094.) I promise not
to engage in too much navel-gazing, or too blatantly shameless self-promotion.
I am always happy to help others, so feel free to hit me up for an interview or
guest post if you have something to promote. If I’m full up, I’ll tell you, but
I try to be as flexible as possible with scheduling my posts if it will help to
accommodate someone else.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">(* - A tongue-in-cheek homage to Peter Moskos’s fine and
thought-provoking book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Defense-Flogging-Peter-Moskos/dp/0465032419/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2SZ2I0E6EEXLL&keywords=In+Defense+of+Flogging&qid=1696355321&sprefix=in+defense+of+flogging%2Caps%2C127&sr=8-1"><i>In
Defense of Flogging</i></a><i>.</i>) <o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-50697290721940592082023-11-23T21:00:00.000-08:002023-11-23T21:00:00.153-08:00The Man in the Window<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal">Today is the new cover reveal for the third Nick Forte
novel, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Man-Window-Forte-Mystery-Mysteries/dp/1512304123/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3QYP4CMAF7ZTH&keywords=the+man+in+the+window+by+dana+king&qid=1700576451&sprefix=the+man+in+the+window+by+dana+king%2Caps%2C121&sr=8-1" target="_blank"><i>The Man in the Window</i>. <o:p></o:p></a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Man-Window-Forte-Mystery-Mysteries/dp/1512304123/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3QYP4CMAF7ZTH&keywords=the+man+in+the+window+by+dana+king&qid=1700576451&sprefix=the+man+in+the+window+by+dana+king%2Caps%2C121&sr=8-1" target="_blank"> </a></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is the most personal Forte book for me in several ways.
First, it draws on my experience as a musician; a couple of the characters are
inspired by friends from my musical life. It also allows me to reflect a
little, through Forte, how I felt about abandoning that life. (Though,
thankfully, not the friends.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It’s also largely based on the first Nick Forte story I
wrote, “Auditioning Can be Murder.” In the story, Forte is a former musician
asked to investigate what a current musician claims was a rigged audition. The
story was written as a farewell to my musical life, and a tribute to my
friends, several of whom were easily identifiable to those who knew them. It’s
an ironic satire sent only to those involved, but was well enough received that
I was inspired to continue along that path.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The book takes an entirely different look at the core story,
though a pivotal scene is lifted almost word-for-word. (Edited, of course. I
learned a few things in the intervening years.) From the back cover copy:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>A simple adultery case turns deadly when the client is
shot down on his way to receive Nick Forte’s report. Forte has no choice but to
write it off as a bed debt until a mysterious man hires him to make sure the
police aren’t sweeping things under the carpet. Forte and Goose soon find
themselves involved with an old friend, a major symphony orchestra, and
international terrorists with a range of backgrounds.<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The reviews I cited on the cover are also gratifying:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Dana King's private eye uses a steady string of wise-ass
remarks and clever asides to keep you laughing and caring, reminding me every
chapter of the greatest P.I. writer of all time, Raymond Chandler. I put down
Lee Child when I picked this up. Entertaining as all heck.<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Good story and written with a great sense of humor.
King's insights into the lives of professional musicians made the book even
more enjoyable.<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Oh, and the fact <i>The Man in the Window</i> received a
Shamus nomination for Best Paperback original in no way diminishes my affection
for the book.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Those of you who have read the book already, take note:
there is nothing new here except for the cover and a few changes in the Amazon
metadata. This “re-release” is intended to bring <i>TMITW</i> in line with the branding
changes in preparation for the release of the sixth Forte novel, <i>Off the
Books</i>, next March.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">If you have not read the book, or have read it and think it
would make a good gift – the holidays being right around the bend and all – here
is the <a href="https://tinyurl.com/y5vmmxa8">link to the Amazon listing</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-11467585586092486332023-11-16T21:00:00.004-08:002023-11-16T21:00:00.157-08:00Small Mercies, by Dennis Lehane<p> I don’t often review individual books here. Much of that has
to do with the number of books I read each year, which would turn the blog into
a review site and that’s not why I’m here. Every so often a book compels me to
draw attention to it alone. Dennis Lehane’s latest, <i>Small Mercies</i>, is
such a book.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Small Mercies</i> takes place during the lead up to the
Boston busing riots in 1974. I’ll not say much about what happens; that’s for
you to do if you choose to read the book. Suffice to say the core story concerns
the disappearance of seventeen-year-old Jules Fennessy on the eve of the first
busing protests, and her mother’s (Mary Pat) attempts to find her.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Small Mercies </i>uses the busing protests much the same as
Lehane used the Boston police strike for the backdrop of his 2008 novel <i>The
Given Day</i>, though the scope here is much smaller. This is an examination of
race relations, neighborhoods, and families, using South Boston as the stage.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The core takeaway is not to judge anyone unless evaluating
them in their totality. Mary Pat Fennessy is blind to her own racism, which
makes it even worse and harder to work around. She is also a devoted mother, in
her way, and that way is how parents raised kids in South Boston, which is
recommended in no book ever. <i>Small Mercies</i> focuses on her changes as she
learns who her real friends are and how neighborhood dynamics can fracture not
only friendships but family relationships.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The culture in which Mary Pat grew up is fiercely loyal and
devoted to the neighborhood. People shovel each other’s walks and spread rock
salt around as needed regardless of whose piece of sidewalk it will keep from
freezing. Old women are helped across streets and into their walk-up apartments
with their groceries. This is the standard and everyone accepts it.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In this story, the busing edict is an infringement on their
neighborhood’s rights. To them it’s less about desegregation than resentment
over forcing them to send their kids somewhere they do not want them to go. Fears
for the children’s safety are cited - and may be legitimate - though it is
clear Black families are entitled to the same concerns. More than that, it’s a
matter of outsiders telling them how they have to live. The wounds fester
because “The people who make the rules don’t have to live by them.” True, the
racial prejudice is severe, but class hatred is also a key element. Rightly or
wrongly, these people feel pressed between two forces, neither of which has their
interests at heart.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As close as the people are, the book makes clear the
neighborhood is always paramount; the nail that sticks up will be hammered down
with a vengeance. Mary Pat runs into this as she asks uncomfortable questions
about her daughter’s disappearance, and through that experience comes to see a
little of the other side in this dispute. Both her actions are disloyalties
akin to neighborhood treason.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">No one combines complex characters, vivid dialog, the right
amount of description, and a little smart-assery as well as Lehane. It was he
who said crime fiction is the social novel of our time, and in <i>Small Mercies</i>
he sets a new standard. If I am still around in a hundred years and see Dennis
Lehane is considered at least the equal of Charles Dickens and Victor Hugo, the
only thing that would surprise me is that I’m still around in a hundred years.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-35883345568285646832023-11-09T21:00:00.001-08:002023-11-09T21:00:00.154-08:00The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of<p> Today is the official re-branding re-launch of the second
Nick Forte novel, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Stuff-That-Dreams-Are-Made/dp/1505301424/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=qz8AJ&content-id=amzn1.sym.579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_p=579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=4lMLj&pd_rd_r=3536dcab-ae6c-45dd-8f77-cd0231715e85&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk" target="_blank">The Stuff That Dreams Are Made</a> Of.</i> (The most astute of
you may have noticed the new cover a day or so ago. I’m a one-man operation
focused more on writing than production. This is how things work in my world.)
The book began as a critical look at the memorabilia industry and ended up as
homage to Dashiell Hammett’s classic <i>The Maltese Falcon</i>.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Russell Arbuthnot isn’t just a ham, he’s the whole pig.
Forte – along with everyone else - <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>figures the bodyguard assignment Arbuthnot
hired him for is a publicity stunt to perk up flagging ticket sales for a
one-man show about to go under. When the actor actually does turn up dead,
Forte faces the kind of publicity he can do without and decides, when a
bodyguard’s client is killed, he's supposed to do something about it. It
doesn't make any difference what he thought of him. He was your client and
you're supposed to do something about it.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Sonny Ng, Jan Rusiewicz, Tony and Joey are all back from <i>A
Small Sacrifice</i>, as are, of course, Goose and Nick’s daughter, Caroline.
Forte also encounters Arbuthnot’s beautiful but damaged manager, a high-priced
escort, and the IRA. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I probably enjoyed writing this book as much or more than
any of them. Trying to tread the line between paying homage to Hammett’s
masterpiece and ripping him off was a challenge, and few comments have ever pleased
me more than Peter Rozovsky’s in his late, lamented blog “Detectives Beyond
Borders:”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>“It's a kind of authorial magic that </i>The Stuff That
Dreams Are Made Of<i> works as a tribute and as a story, and that neither
aspect interferes in the least with the other… I can imagine this book finding
its way into a class on writing crime fiction as an example of how to pay
tribute to one's predecessors while at the same time writing a story that can
stand on its own. It's an impressive accomplishment.”<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">That’s the kind of validation anyone can appreciate.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The only thing new about this “re-issue” is the cover and a
little of the accompanying material in the Amazon listing; the book itself is
unchanged. This might not seem like something that requires an announcement,
but it is part of the lead-up to the March release of Volume 6, <i>Off the
Books</i>. The changes are small, but they will give all the Forte novels the
same look as well as bringing them a little closer to the Penns River branding,
which I wanted to do because both series occupy their own corners of the same
universe.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>The Stuff That Dreams Are Made </i>of is available in
both paperback and for Kindle through Amazon, and only Amazon. With all due
respect to other platforms, their business models leave little room for me,
which leaves little room in <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>my model for
them. I hope that will change someday, but I’m not holding my breath.<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-86208975069505254982023-11-02T21:00:00.001-07:002023-11-02T21:00:00.150-07:00An Interview With J. L. Abramo, Author of Short Cuts<p> <b style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">One Bite at a Time</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: justify;">: Welcome back to the
blog, Joe. It’s always good to chat with you.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">Your new book, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Short-Cuts-Collected-Fiction-Nonfiction/dp/1643963384/ref=sr_1_1?crid=988OJJY98PKA&keywords=Short+Cuts+by+JL+Abramo&qid=1698761406&sprefix=short+cuts+by+jl+abramo%2Caps%2C88&sr=8-1">Short
Cuts</a></i>, is a compilation of short fiction and non-fiction with a little
memoir thrown in. What gave you the idea and how did you choose what to include?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span lang="X-NONE" style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: X-NONE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">J. L. Abramo</span></b><span lang="X-NONE" style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: X-NONE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: Since the publication of the first novel, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Catching-Water-Jake-Diamond-Mystery-ebook/dp/B005FNIWAC?ref_=ast_author_dp">Catching
Water In A Net</a> </i>(2001), I have been invited to submit short stories to a
number of crime fiction anthologies. </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">I thought many <i>fans </i>(and
I use that term in all humility) may have missed many of these—so I decided to
collect them all together in one place, add five never before published short
stories as well as several nonfiction pieces written through the years about my
writing and crime writing in general. The short fiction was easy to select</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">it includes all of my short works aside from those
appearing in my book, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Brooklyn-Justice-J-L-Abramo/dp/1943402124/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=dOBCu&content-id=amzn1.sym.579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_p=579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=T7Gp7&pd_rd_r=6f31dec8-0664-4450-988f-d03b719cd7cf&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk">Brooklyn
Justice</a>, </i>and a story just completed for submission to yet another
anthology. The essays were chosen with regard to those I thought most
effectively depicted those elements I find important in my writing</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">such as location, food, opening paragraphs—and those I felt
were worth researching on the subject of crime and detective fiction
historically.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">OBAAT</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: You’re best known as a private eye
writer, with your Jake Diamond and Nick Ventura characters covering both
coasts. What attracted you to the genre and what keeps you coming back?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">JLA</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: I have always been a fan of
detective fiction, from Holmes to Marlowe, and the film adaptations. After no
one would look at my first attempt at a novel</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">instead
of wallowing in self-pity, I sat down to write. I decided to try something
different. Try a first-person narrative, write something <i>lighter</i>.
Without premeditation, I wrote 20 pages of a scene in the office of a humorous
San Fransisco private detective narrator, Jake Diamond. When I heard of the Saint
Martin’s Press/Private Eye Writers of America contest for Best First Private
Eye Novel, I kept working on it, won the contest, and was published by St.
Martin’s Press. I was advised to continue writing Jake, which resulted in two
additional Diamond novels published by SMP. </span><span lang="X-NONE" style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: X-NONE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">The fourth Jake Diamond novel, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Circling-Runway-Jake-Diamond-Mystery-ebook/dp/B00T3N88OU?ref_=ast_author_dp">Circling
The Runway </a></i>(Down & Out Books, 2015) won a Shamus Award—all good
reasons for sticking with the genre.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> Jake is more over easy
than hard boiled and</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">since I
couldn’t change his nature and wanted to take a shot a tougher, more forceful
private eye protagonist</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">I
created Nick Ventura and placed him in the meaner streets of Brooklyn.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">OBAAT</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: You’ve also written a couple of
procedurals, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gravesend-J-L-Abramo-ebook/dp/B009FR9MBW/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=dOBCu&content-id=amzn1.sym.579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_p=579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=T7Gp7&pd_rd_r=6f31dec8-0664-4450-988f-d03b719cd7cf&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk">Gravesend<span style="font-style: normal;"> </span></a></i>and <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Coney-Island-Avenue-J-L-Abramo-ebook/dp/B01N0U64A1/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=dOBCu&content-id=amzn1.sym.579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_p=579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=T7Gp7&pd_rd_r=6f31dec8-0664-4450-988f-d03b719cd7cf&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk">Coney
Island Avenue<span style="font-style: normal;">.</span></a></i> As someone else
who moves in those genres, I find there are different mindsets involved for
each. Do you make adjustments in your writing attitude depending on whether
you’re writing for a private eye or cops?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">JLA</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: Well, since you asked. </span><span lang="X-NONE" style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: X-NONE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">Th</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">e</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: X-NONE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> <span lang="X-NONE">novel I spoke of earlier, the one no one would look at in 2000 (called,
at the time, <i>A Blot On The Landscape</i>)<i> </i>featured Brooklyn police detectives.
</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">It was reworked throughout the years and ultimately
published in 2012 as <i>Gravesend. </i>What differentiates the procedurals from
the PI works, at least in my case, is two-fold. Although Jake and Nick sometimes
depend on assistance from others—they are, for the most part, the <i>stars </i>of
their respective stories. In <i>Gravesend, </i>and its follow-up <i>Coney
Island Avenue, </i>the detectives of the 61st Precinct depend a lot more upon
each other. These novels, to borrow theater terminology, are <i>ensemble pieces.
</i>On top of that, since these works were allowed to be lengthier than what I
feel a private eye mystery should be, it afforded me the opportunity to delve
deeper into the personal lives of the detectives.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">OBAAT</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: In the section where you discuss
Mickey Spillane you wrote “those of us who command a public audience would be
careless to underestimate our influence or to neglect our moral
responsibility.” I’ve been beating a similar drum for a while now. Not that all
stories should have happy endings or that bad guys cannot be protagonists, but
that we owe the public a realistic idea of how cops and courts and PIs work.
Can you elaborate on your statement a little?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">JLA</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: Although I don’t believe that
reading books about serial killers will make one a serial killer (at least I
hope not), I am not a fan of gratuitous violence. And there are some bad
practices, depicted in books, that might be more readily imitated—particularly relating
to how women, minorities and the handicapped are treated. However, the comment
you mention here, with regard to Spillane (who obviously subscribed to <i>red
scare, better-dead-than-red McCarthyism</i>—fears which in many cases destroyed
lives), was addressing the problem I find with fiction that <i>proselytizes</i>.
I believe those kinds of opinions should be left to nonfiction—which is why I
wrote <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Homeland-Insecurity-Birth-Unrest-America/dp/1643962027/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=dOBCu&content-id=amzn1.sym.579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_p=579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=T7Gp7&pd_rd_r=6f31dec8-0664-4450-988f-d03b719cd7cf&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk">Homeland
Insecurity.<o:p></o:p></a></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">OBAAT</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: The section on location also caught
my eye. Private eyes seem to cry out to be integrated with their settings: The
Continental Op and Sam Spade in San Francisco; Phillip Marlowe, Easy Rawlins,
and Elvis Cole in LA; Spenser and Patrick Kenzie in Boston (Dorchester
specifically for Kenzie); Tess Monahan in Baltimore; V. I. Warshawsky in
Chicago: Moe Prager in Brooklyn. (I particularly enjoy a newer series by James
D.F. Hannah set in West Virginia.) Location is a key element in any novel, but
why do you think private eyes become so closely associated with theirs? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">JLA</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: I totally agree with your observation
that location is a key element in <i>any </i>novel, and therefore I am not
certain if I can answer your question specific to private eye novels. So, I
will relate my thoughts about location in general—and hope it works to address
the specific. For me, location is an additional character in the narrative. If the
writer does the homework, and is accurate with descriptions of places, it
serves a number of purposes. It provides familiarity to those readers who are acquainted
with those locations. It gives readers who are not acquainted a taste of what
these locations are like. And for me, when I write about places I know well</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">like Brooklyn, San Francisco or Denver—it makes me feel
comfortable and at home. And, conversely, when I write of places I don’t know
very well</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">such as
Los Angeles and Chicago</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">it gives
me good reason to research and learn. To quickly address the PIs. Jake Diamond
crossed the continent to California to pursue an acting career, and moved from
Hollywood to Santa Monica to San Francisco on the path to private
investigation. He has become totally assimilated to the pace and rhythms of
Northern California. Diamond belongs there</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">and his surroundings
provide a particular understanding of his character. Similarly, Nick Ventura is
totally a Brooklyn animal—and to not make the borough a pivotal element in his journey
would be criminal. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">OBAAT</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: “Even fictional characters have to
eat.” Growing up in Western Pennsylvania, food was a key element of any social
interaction. When I need to have two characters exchange information, I will
often as not send them out for something to eat, as what they eat helps to
characterize them and the act of eating provides stage business to help the
dialog from being a continuous stream “<i>saids”</i>. How do you use food in
your stories?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">JLA</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: Food is an integral part of
life. A necessity. We deal with food every single day. And food is present at our
most memorable occasions</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Bookman Old Style",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">—</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">weddings,
birthdays, reunions, holidays, even funerals. These realities, if nothing else,
make it difficult for me to write about humans without talking about where, when
and what they eat. That being said, your question effectively anticipates my
answer. It seems we utilize eating in much the same fashion. I always find it
convenient, when I need to arrange a meeting between two or more characters, to
use a dining establishment as a setting—and I feel that if I put humans in
those situations, I may as well talk a bit about the food since food preferences
can serve to demonstrate individual tastes, ethnic backgrounds and cultural
traditions—and the foods people choose can help demonstrate the ways these
characters are similar <i>or</i> different. And…oh…I almost forgot…writing
about food reminds me that I need to take a break from the writing now and
then. To eat.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">OBAAT</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: The inevitable closing question:
What’s next for Joe Abramo?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">JLA</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: Hopefully, a trip to Sicily.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">OBAAT</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">: As always, thanks for stopping by.
It’s always a pleasure, Good luck with the trip. Regardless of where you go, <i>viaggi
sicuri.</i></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-25754657238254573322023-10-26T21:00:00.001-07:002023-10-26T21:00:00.137-07:00Readers of the Lost ARCs<p> I routinely post quarterly lists of my “favorite” reads of
the season that just ended. I am careful not to say these are the “best” books
I read, as I’m not into passing that kind of judgment. I use “favorite” as
shorthand for “books I enjoyed the most.” While not an endorsement of what’s
good and what isn’t, my hope is to make those who share my tastes aware of
books they might otherwise miss. Responses to these posts are routinely
encouraging and I’m happy to mention books some might not be aware of,
regardless of topic or age of the book.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I occasionally receive an advance reader’s copy (ARC) of a
book when the author is asking for a blurb or an interview. While some of these
books would make the favorite reads list, I have typically refrained from
writing about them in the quarterly recaps because I always post links to a
book’s purchase page so anyone with an impulse can grab a copy. ARCs are, by
definition, not available yet, and I know a lot of people don’t like to be
teased with things that are out of reach, so I have always left such books out
of the quarterly recap.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Talking to a friend about this the other day got me to
thinking this is a misguided policy. Pre-orders have become so important to
making a book’s success that I am doing the author a disservice if the book deserves
mention and I fail to do so. My reasoning before was that there was no link to
give potential readers, but pre-order links are now available weeks, sometimes
months, in advance. It’s time I got with the program.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In my defense, I never heard of pre-orders when I started
the blog, so they were never a concern. Times changed and I have been slow to
adapt. That said, future “Spring/Summer/Fall/Winter’s Favorite Reads” posts
will include any ARCs that caught my eye. I will note that they are available
for pre-order so that no one gets disappointed if they try to buy one.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">That’s the future. Let’s take the remainder of this post to
catch up on ARCs from earlier this year that escaped notice due to my misguided
policies, with apologies to the authors for my delay.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Double-Exposure-Grant-McNulty-Thriller/dp/1643963090/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1KTCV7XRTR7VA&keywords=double+exposure+by+colin+campbell&qid=1697569818&sprefix=double+exposure+by+colin+campbell%2Caps%2C71&sr=8-1"><i>Double
Exposure</i></a>, Colin Campbell. Grant and McNulty are back, fighting a drug
cartel that has a grudge against each of them. You already know I liked this
one, as I blurbed it: “Double Exposure shows Grant and McNulty in peak form. No
one writes better action sequences than Campbell.” I stand by that.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Sleepless-City-Nick-Ryan-Novel-ebook/dp/B0BT2WZKHR/ref=sr_1_1?crid=HEANZ5DG0M7W&keywords=Sleepless+City%2C+Reed+Farrel+Coleman&qid=1697570069&sprefix=sleepless+city%2C+reed+farrel+coleman%2Caps%2C58&sr=8-1"><i>Sleepless
City</i></a>, Reed Farrel Coleman. Renowned private eye writer Coleman (Moe
Prager, Gus Murphy) moves into the realm of more high-octane action thrillers
with this, the first in what promises to be a new series. While the type of
story told is different, Coleman’s artful writing and careful plotting remain
solid. A lot of writers try to shift gears like this. Few do it as well.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Get-Crime-Novel-Dietrich-Kalteis/dp/1770416846/ref=sr_1_1?crid=385XJVS2ADWUN&keywords=The+Get%2C+Dietrich+Kalteis&qid=1697570240&sprefix=the+get%2C+dietrich+kalteis%2Caps%2C58&sr=8-1"><i>The
Get</i></a>, Dietrich Kalteis. This is a typical Dietrich Kalteis book, which
is to say outstanding. If you’re already a fan, get this bad boy. If you’re not
a fan but like the Elmore Leonard school of writing, there is no better
practitioner than Kalteis, who is able to capture the aura of Dutch’s work
without sounding like a copy.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-77718397773929777132023-10-19T21:00:00.001-07:002023-10-19T21:00:00.152-07:00Defending the Leonard Ten<p> Of all the writing “rules” I have seen, Elmore Leonard’s are
probably the best known and most often vilified, generally because they are
misunderstood. The late Mr. Leonard (I want so bad to call him “Dutch” but,
even ten years after his death, I can’t bring myself to even imply that level
of familiarity) does not need me to defend him, but what else are blog posts
for but to say things that could be left unsaid except that the blogger wants
to say them. So there.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">As Leonard himself said in the original New York <i>Times</i>
piece in which the rules appeared, they are not rules at all, but suggestions.
That said, I have seen few suggestions that make more sense, or that apply to
more cases, than his. I don’t consciously think of them very often, largely because
they are now so well ingrained into my writing process I don’t have to, but they
are always at the back of my mind when I write.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Here they are, with my interpretations. I use none – well,
maybe one -<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>of his explanations, even
though ignoring those is what gets most of his detractors to look foolish.<b><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><o:p> </o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Never open a book with weather.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">“But <i>Get Shorty </i>opens with the weather” is a favorite
refrain of those who take issue these rules. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Let’s look at the offending passage:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>When Chili first came to Miami Beach twelve years ago
they were having one of their off-and-on cold winters: thirty-four degrees the
day he met Tommy Carlo for lunch at Vesuvio’s on South College and had his
leather jacket ripped off.<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It’s a single sentence and less than half of it directly
addresses the weather. The inciting incident for the book is the loss of
Chili’s coat. This being Miami Beach, the reader would have to wonder why Chili
even had a coat with him unless we know it’s unseasonably cold.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Plus, it’s <i>one sentence</i>. Not a page or more
describing clouds or rain or how being uncomfortably cold/hot/wet made Susan
feel about the weather/her life/ John’s failure to call. It’s a sentence to
kick off the story.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Experience has taught me that anyone so willing to ignore
context to criticize something isn’t writing anything I’d care to read.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Avoid prologues.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">If possible. Sometimes it can’t be helped. My current work
in progress is presented as the memoir of a man who lived on the Western
frontier, taken from notes that were lost and only recently discovered. I
present the prologue as an editor’s note to describe how the book supposedly
came to be. (Or a foreword. I haven’t decided yet.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It's also true, as Leonard himself acknowledges, that you
can ignore any of these rules if you’re good enough to get away with it. I’ve
read novellas shorter than the prologue to <i>Empire Falls</i>, yet Richard
Russo makes his so fascinating I would have been satisfied is that had been the
whole story, except that he so masterfully sets up what is to come.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Never use a verb other than "said" to carry
dialogue.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Never use an adverb to modify the verb
"said"…he admonished gravely</b>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">These two go together. “Said” is an invisible word in
dialog, used to avoid confusion about who is speaking. If you feel the need to
use a different verb, or to modify “said,” then the dialog itself isn’t strong
enough to convey what you feel is missing. Change it, and maybe throw in something
to describe how the line is spoken. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Shane said, “I hear you’re a low-down Yankee liar.”<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Wilson’s voice barely crossed the room: “Prove it.”<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">(Note: “He admonished gravely” is Leonard’s tongue-in-cheek
way of telling those who are paying attention that not even he is taking this
too seriously.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Keep your exclamation points under control. You are
allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This goes with the “said” comment above. Exclamation points
too often are used instead of well-chosen dialog to make sure the reader gets
it. They’re explanations, and explanations mean what came before wasn’t clear
enough. As Renni Browne and Dave King say in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Self-Editing-Fiction-Writers-Second-Yourself/dp/0060545690/ref=sr_1_1?crid=UUBPDR819KEI&keywords=self+editing+for+fiction+writers%2C+browne+and+king&qid=1695993302&sprefix=Self-Editing+for+Writer%2Caps%2C123&sr=8-1"><i>Self-Editing
for Writer</i></a><i>s</i>, “resist the urge to explain.” <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Never use the words "suddenly" or "all
hell broke loose."<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is a fundamental “show, don’t tell” thing. Don’t <i>tell</i>
us something happened suddenly, <i>show</i> us. And “all hell broke loose” is
lazy writing, plain and simple. Unless used as dialog from the mouth of a
conversationally bland character.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Notice he doesn’t say not to use it. Such language can help
to define a character. (Think of Dave Robicheaux and Clete Purcell in James Lee
Burke’s novels.) To use too much, or to work too hard to spell the spoken words
phonetically, forces the reader to translate what this character is saying when
they should be immersed in the story. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I typically don’t care for writers who take examples from
their own work unless the are superstars, but this example from my novel <i>The
Man in the Window</i> comes to mind.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>“Mr. Forte, I want to start by telling you what a fine
job you’re doing of fucking up my investigation.” At least that’s what I
thought he said. He wasn’t from around here. Farther south, Alabama or
Mississippi maybe. … What came out sounded like, “Mistuh Foe-tay, ah wunna
staht by tellin yew whut uh fine job y’all’re dewin uh fuckin up mah
vestigashun.”<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And that’s the last I mentioned it, except for the
occasional uniquely Southern idiom, such as how he might be “fixing to do”
something.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Don't go into great detail describing places and things.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">You want readers to be absorbed in your story, which means
you don’t want them to have to stop so they can assemble these people and
places in their heads. Give only as much description as the reader needs to
create the movie in their imaginations. If a detail is important to the story
later on – say a unique tattoo or strikingly-colored eyes – then by all means
mention it, but don’t bury it in a shopping list of other stuff.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Yeah, well, duh. How many times have you had to go back in a
book because a detail provided on Page 123 allows what you just read on Page
136 to make sense, but you skimmed past it because your eyes glazed over from
the minutiae that enveloped said key detail? Well, leave that shit out.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">And finally, Rule 11, which he described as “My most
important rule is one that sums up the 10.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it. <o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Remember, you’re telling a story, not gratifying your ego by
impressing anyone with all the cool words you know or constructions you can
pull off. Cool words and literary constructions are not bad things unless they
get in the way of the story, and, as much as possible, you want your audience
to forget they are reading. They should have the feeling they’re sitting back
with their eyes closed while a movie plays out in their heads.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">That’s what his rules mean to me.<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-38452467611239688802023-10-12T21:00:00.001-07:002023-10-12T21:00:00.145-07:00Summer's Favorite Reads<p> <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Old-Bill-Miner-Western-Bandits/dp/1894384040/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2T928WA4ABDCU&keywords=Old+Bill+Miner%2C+Frank+Anderson&qid=1695480788&sprefix=old+bill+miner%2C+frank+anderson%2Caps%2C98&sr=8-1">Old
Bill Miner</a></i>, Frank Anderson. Brief biography of one of the last of the
Western train robbers. Miner was known as a gentleman bandit, always polite and
deferential. Also not always the sharpest knife in the drawer. The film <i>The
Grey Fox</i> is a depiction of Miner’s life.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Pointed-Them-North-Recollections-Cowpuncher/dp/0806113669/ref=sr_1_1?crid=21BMYB907ZM0X&keywords=We+Pointed+Them+North%2C+E.C.+%22Teddy+Blue%22+Abbott&qid=1695480827&sprefix=we+pointed+them+north%2C+e.c.+teddy+blue+abbott+%2Caps%2C52&sr=8-1"><i>We
Pointed Them North</i></a>, E.C. "Teddy Blue" Abbott and Helena
Huntington Smith. Delightful memoir of a man who worked cattle his entire adult
life. Helena Smith did a wonderful job keeping Teddy’s voice as much like his
spoken dialog as possible. (At least I’m told she did.) It’s funny, it’s sad,
and it’s a master class in what it was like to be a cowboy, both on the
frontier and after.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Hombre-Novel-Elmore-Leonard-ebook/dp/B000FC2IWG/ref=sr_1_1?crid=17F74XH0YPQ9&keywords=Hombre%2C+Elmore+Leonard&qid=1695480862&sprefix=hombre%2C+elmore+leonard%2Caps%2C173&sr=8-1"><i>Hombre</i></a>,
Elmore Leonard. This was the third or fourth time I’ve read this book and I
still think it may be Leonard’s best. When people say <i>Out of Sight</i> and <i>Get
Shorty</i> were the first movies to do Leonard justice, they mean the crime
novels; the movie version of <i>Hombre</i> is pitch perfect. The character
changes made by Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank, Jr. are true to the tone of
the book, and they did well to keep as much of Leonard’s dialog as possible.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Last-Stand-at-Saber-River-ebook/dp/B000FC2IVW/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3MM4CJVA4QO5H&keywords=Last+Stand+at+Saber+River%2C+Elmore+Leonard&qid=1695480893&sprefix=last+stand+at+saber+river%2C+elmore+leonard%2Caps%2C57&sr=8-1"><i>Last
Stand at Saber River</i></a>, Elmore Leonard. The least of the three Leonard
Westerns I read over the summer, but still good enough for inclusion. Written
in the mid-1950s, his style was still forming, and there’s too much internal
monologue, but the story and characters are top-notch. (The TV movie with Tom
Selleck and the Carradine brothers is eminently missable. Just to give an idea,
you get to see a dead man start to stand just before a commercial break.
Apparently he didn’t wait for “Cut!” and the error was missed in editing.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Law-at-Randado-Elmore-Leonard-ebook/dp/B000FC2IVC/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3Q7KG9QB3HVAW&keywords=Law+at+Randado%2C+Elmore+Leonard&qid=1695480928&sprefix=law+at+randado%2C+elmore+leonard%2Caps%2C43&sr=8-1"><i>Law
at Randado</i></a>, Elmore Leonard. Much better than <i>Saber River</i>, and
much more like an Elmore Leonard novel. The dialog is better and the action
flows more naturally. Kirby Frye is a character who could have carried a couple
of books.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bandit-Others-Western-Stories-Estleman-ebook/dp/B007I6QJKE/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3FYEFO7TT2JEV&keywords=The+Bandit+%26+Others+-+The+Best+Western+Stories+of+Loren+D.+Estleman&qid=1695480962&sprefix=the+bandit+%26+others+-+the+best+western+stories+of+loren+d.+estleman%2Caps%2C56&sr=8-1"><i>The
Bandit & Others - The Best Western Stories of Loren D. Estleman</i></a>,
Loren Estleman. Collections of stories by a single writer are typically more
consistent in quality than anthologies by multiple authors. Even so, it’s rare
to find a collection where every story is as good as in this one. (Stop me if
you’ve heard this before.) People have been after me for years to read
Estleman, either for PI or Westerns. I finally listened. Now I must read as
much of him as possible.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Life-Hank-Phillippi-Ryan-ebook/dp/B08QGKXFQ2/ref=sr_1_1?crid=LUWP5ML4RSEV&keywords=Her+Perfect+Life%C2%B8+Hank+Phillippi+Ryan&qid=1695480994&sprefix=her+perfect+life+hank+phillippi+ryan%2Caps%2C51&sr=8-1"><i>Her
Perfect Life</i></a><i>¸</i> Hank Phillippi Ryan. I don’t typically read
psychological thrillers; I like more overt criminal activity. This was in a
swag bag from a conference and HPR is a big deal, so I figured what the hell.
I’m glad I did. In the interest of full disclosure, I thought there was a
little too much time spent in characters’ heads, but that’s a personal
preference. The characters are well-drawn and believable, and the story is
complicated enough to hold one’s interest without becoming so convoluted you
don’t care anymore. The twist at the end is killer.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://www.amazon.com/California-Vintage-Crime-Black-Lizard-ebook/dp/B008IU9PWS/ref=sr_1_1?crid=9SAKAWCBQ0ZX&keywords=California+Fire+and+Life&qid=1695481028&sprefix=california+fire+and+life%2Caps%2C70&sr=8-1"><i>California
Fire and Life</i></a>, Don Winslow. This book was primed to be a disappointment
after the high expectations created by my first trip into Winslow’s <i>oeuvre,
The Dawn Patrol. </i>Nope. I enjoyed <i>CF&L</i> at least as much. All the
things I liked about <i>The Dawn Patrol</i> were there, with the depth made
possible through the use of multiple points of view. Winslow has a unique gift
for providing detail in an entertaining manner that would come across as
information dumps at the hands of most authors. Highest recommendation.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Silent-Left-Place-Elizabeth-Bruce-ebook/dp/B00UCL6NPI/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2LCLV3IAEE4DU&keywords=And+Silent+Left+the+Place+by+Elizabeth+Bruce&qid=1695481085&s=books&sprefix=and+silent+left+the+place+by+elizabeth+bruce%2Cstripbooks%2C60&sr=1-1">And
Silent Left the Place</a></i>, Elizabeth Bruce. I will confess, this one is
personal. Elizabeth Bruce and I have been friends since we met at a writing
workshop twenty years ago. This was her first novel, a literary effort with
fascinating characters and a well-crafted story. No navel-gazing here, and no
use of language just to show the author has command of it. She displays her
talents in an understated yet lyrical manner that made it a pleasure to re-read
after all these years.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p></i></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-16210406435088454932023-10-05T21:00:00.001-07:002023-10-05T21:00:00.146-07:00Beau Johnson, Author of The Abrum Files<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">Beau Johnson is an annual visitor here
with good reason. There are few more personable and forthright people available
in any profession. I just happened to be lucky he’s a writer. Beau’s new book, <i><a href="https://downandoutbooks.com/bookstore/johnson-abrum-files/">The Abrum
Files</a></i>, is a continuation of sorts of his Bishop Rider series. What’s a
continuation “of sorts?” Beau explains.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>One Bite at a Time</b>: Welcome back to the
blog, Beau. Your new book, <i>The Abrum Files</i>, picks up where the Bishop
Rider saga ends. What’s the skinny on Jeramiah Abrum?<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>Beau Johnson</b>: First off, thanks for
having me back, Dana. Always awesome to be here. You’re doing good
things. As for the skinny on Jeramiah Abrum, well, there’s a story there. One
that began some time ago and includes a throwaway line in a story titled “Right
Time, Right Place” that sits within the pages of my first collection, <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Better-Kind-Hate-Beau-Johnson/dp/1943402922/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2WFPE5LLGLYKX&keywords=A+Better+Kind+of+Hate&qid=1695156157&sprefix=a+better+kind+of+hate%2Caps%2C61&sr=8-1">A
Better Kind of Hate</a></i>. Jeramiah didn’t even have a name back then either,
him only being referred to as someone’s child. That someone? Marcel
Abrum—the very dirtbag who set the deaths of Bishop Rider’s mother and sister
into motion. Dun-dun-dun. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>OBAAT</b>: The Hebrew prophet
Jeremiah pronounced God's judgment upon the people of his time for their
wickedness. May I assume your protagonist’s name is not a coincidence?<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>BJ</b>: Well, I did not know that. It’s apt,
however. And I’d like to say that's how it went down, but no, I just liked the
way the name flowed.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>OBAAT</b>: Without giving away too
much, what are the key differences between Jeremiah Abrum and Bishop Rider? How
are they the same? <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>BJ</b>: The two are very much the same in a
lot of ways. Both sharing the same goals and methods. It’s the scope of things
that would sometimes cause them to clash. Before Jeramiah, Rider worked from
the shadows, or tried his best to remain there, but Jeramiah has always been
more of a big picture guy. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but in Rider’s
world, it becomes somewhat deadly. A give and take took place over the years,
but in the end, they mostly went with Rider’s way of things. With Rider now
gone, well..<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>OBAAT</b>: Is it easier or harder
to write for Abrum than it was to write for Rider? Or are they about the same?<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>BJ</b>: There’s more angst to Rider, always
has been, as he struggled with what he set out to do even though he was bent
set on doing it, where Jeramiah, well, he seems more freer when I write him.
Means I have to go with Jeramiah for the win. Don’t tell Rider. Please.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>OBAAT</b>: Abrum faces an
existential decision in the book. What causes it, and how does he come to make
the decision he makes?<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>BJ</b>: It comes back to his father and what
his uncle and father did. How years after the fact, when Jeramiah actually
finds out what they were and what they did to Rider’s life, he makes a choice
not many men would make: to make up for the sins of his father. This is all old
hat by the way, happening earlier throughout my other books, but I revisit it
again in this book, though granted, through another set of eyes.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>OBAAT</b>: Is there more of Abrum
on the horizon?<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>BJ</b>: Undetermined. It could be yes, it
could be no. I have left some threads that do dangle in <i>The Abrum Files</i>,
and I have been writing, but I cannot say with any kind of certainty. I <i>have</i>
stopped saying I’m done with publishing, though. That much I can say for sure.
If I have something I think works, that I have a throughline, yes, there will
be more.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>OBAAT</b>: Please tell me the fact
that you’ve moved on from a series character is not coincident with losing your
taste for cheese. Assuming that is not the case, has your taste in cheese
changed since you started writing the new protag?<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b>BJ</b>: Funny you should say that. And
no, my penchant for cheese has not abated. However, my middle son has become
quite the connoisseur. Lots and lots of new cheeses have entered my house this
last year. Stinky feet I can do without, but Havarti will always have my heart.<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">Thanks again, Dana! Great questions.
Fun was had!<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">Always a pleasure, Beau. Come back any time.<br />
<br />
<br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--></span><o:p></o:p></p><p> </p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-42823645096134610302023-09-28T21:00:00.003-07:002023-09-29T05:53:10.917-07:00An Interview with Author, Graphic Artist, Podcaster, and General Entrepreneur Sarah Burr<p> <b>One Bite at a Time</b>: Welcome to One Bite at a Time,
Sarah. We don’t get a lot of cozy writers here. No offense to cozy writers, but
my books were once described as “a cross between <i>Justified</i> and <i>The
Wire</i>,” so that’s where the posts tend to fall. We’ll talk about your books
specifically in a minute, but first tell us what attracts you to the cozies.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Sarah Burr:</b> There’s so much to love about cozy
mysteries. Not only are the settings warm and welcoming, but the people are,
too. Readers can always be assured that the good guys will win in a cozy. Yet,
there’s something much deeper that drew me to reading and then eventually
writing cozy mysteries. Their sense of justice is really quite remarkable. You
have an everyday civilian (an amateur detective) willing to put everything on
the line to pursue the truth. My heroines could leave things to the authorities,
but their desire to do good in the world outweighs hesitation or fear.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT:</b> The Court of Mystery is a nine-book series,
which is a significant undertaking. I’ve written eight Penns River procedurals,
so I have an idea of what’s involved in keeping a series going that long. What
is it about this universe that keeps you coming back?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB: </b>My characters are really the driving force for me
to return. I love hanging out with Duchess Jacqueline and her friends as they
solve mysteries. I love how her mind works and how she must approach a crime
scene, given that the Court of Mystery series is set in a medieval-like fantasy
world called the Realm of Virtues. I’ve created my own set of rules in this setting,
and it’s been so fun to explore everything it has to offer Jax. While I plan
for Book Ten to be the final story in the series arch, I do have a spinoff in
the works so that Jax’s adventures can continue.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT:</b> You also write the Trending Topics series of
mysteries, which includes <i>#Tag Me for Murder</i> and <i>#Follow Me for
Murder</i>. Please give us a feel for these stories and where you came up with
Coco Cline, the protagonist.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB: </b>A podcaster once described the Trending Topic
Mysteries as “Nancy Drew Meets Instagram,” and I can’t think of a more perfect
summation. Influencer and blogger Coco Cline introduced herself to me several
years ago, back when the cozy mystery genre was still hesitant to get involved
with social media and technology. It’s hard to make the Internet as warm and
welcoming as a small, storybook town. However, as a millennial, I yearned to
see more of myself in the characters I was reading about, someone who viewed
their phone as a resource, not a hindrance. Not long after, Coco knocked on the
door of my imagination, and we’ve been fast friends ever since.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Coco lives in the small coastal town of Central Shores,
Delaware. Beyond her popular lifestyle blog, she runs a small online marketing
business. When she stumbles across a dead body in her client’s breakroom, Coco
realizes she has a major PR nightmare on her hands. Can she catch a killer, or
will Coco end up trending for all the wrong reasons?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT:</b> You also also write the Glenmyre Whim
Mysteries, <i>Too Much to Candle</i> and <i>You Can’t Candle the Truth</i>,
featuring candlemaker Hazel Wickbury. Catch us up on those, please.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB: </b>This series allows me to explore my love of the
paranormal. Hazel Wickbury isn’t just any old candlemaker. She can see when
someone is going to die. So, when a wealthy business developer dies before he
was meant to, Hazel knows there’s foul play involved. Since she can’t alert the
police to her power—what her family calls a ‘whim’—Hazel teams up with her best
friend/aunt, Poppy, to shine a light on a killer.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Glenmyre Whim Mysteries helped me get through the
isolation and uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic. I wanted to create a
charming, happy place where I could escape, and with the help of Hazel, her
friends, and the fictional town of Crucible, New York, I did. This cozy has a
sparkle of magic sprinkled over it, and I have so much fun with its diverse
cast of characters.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><o:p> </o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT:</b> <i>You Can’t Candle the Truth</i> is now
available as an audio book. How did that come about? Was there anything
unexpected about the process of creating the spoken version?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB: </b>I first began working with the incredibly
talented Melissa Green several years ago to bring the Court of Mystery series
to life on audiobook. Since then, we worked together on countless projects, and
the partnership we’ve developed has become truly special. I often hear
Melissa’s performances in my head as I write; she really has become Jax and
Hazel's voice. Also, her performances are so emotive that readers have become
too attached to certain characters (me included). I’ve actually changed my decision
to <i>kill</i> characters based on her narration.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT:</b> Apparently writing doesn’t keep you busy
enough; you’re also a graphic artist with a niche in helping to create images
specifically tailored to book promotion. I’m delighted with the work you did
for <i>The Spread</i>. Please talk a little about that business and don’t be
shy about telling folks how to get a hold of you.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB: </b>I’ve always been a creative techie – I love new
technology and exploring ways to make myself more productive. This has come in
handy as an indie author because you’re required to create your own promotional
materials. I discovered so many great applications to help me do this, and
eventually, other authors took notice of my social media posts, asking me where
they came from. Once I told them I had made the designs myself… well,
BookstaBundles was born. Authors began asking me to create graphics for them,
and soon, I realized I could help others with my passion for graphic design. I
now offer various digital services, as well as bookmarks, posters, and
bookplates. If you’re an author looking to post more engaging content featuring
your novel, stop by <a href="http://www.bookstabundles.com/">www.bookstabundles.com</a>
to check out my portfolio and my offerings. (Editor’s Note: I ordered five
graphics for <i>The Spreads</i> and wa delighted with Sarah’s work and
creativity.)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT:</b> You fill some of what must be copious free
time with <i>The Bookish Hour</i>, a live-stream web series you co-host with
J.C. Kenney Thursdays from 8:00 to 9:00 PM ET. The chats revolve primarily
around craft, which is a topic I don’t think writers talk about enough, as too
many discussions get sidetracked into the business aspects of writing. What led
to this, and what are the joys and challenges of keeping it going?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB: </b>This was another venture that came about
unexpectedly. J.C. Kenney is a dear friend of mine in the writing industry, and
in May 2022, we both had books releasing at the same time. We wanted to host an
online party where our readers could see <i>and</i> interact with us. So, I sat
down at my computer, figured out how to livestream a Google Meet call onto
YouTube, and voila! J.C. and I had a fabulous time chatting about our books and
writing process, and our viewers joined in the fun, too. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">After the livestream wrapped, we received several emails
from our author pals, asking if they could come on “our show” and chat about
their books. With that, <i>The Bookish Hour</i> became a twice-a-month web
series, and we’re now booking into 2025. Our biggest challenge is accommodating
all the requests we have! To do so, we’ve started a companion show, <i>A
Bookish Moment</i>, that allows for much more flexible scheduling. If you have
an upcoming release and would like to swing by and talk with us, you can read
what we’re about at www.itsbookishtime.com.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><o:p> </o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>OBAAT:</b> Based on what we talked about already, I <i>know</i>
you’re working on something now. What’s next for the readers to look forward
to?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>SB: </b>I have yet another cozy mystery series in the
works! I am busy with revisions for Book One in the Book Blogger Mysteries,
which features…you guessed it, a book blogger. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Over My Dead Blog</i> releases later this year, and I
cannot wait for readers to meet Arwen “Winnie” Lark, her brother Strider, and
the folks of Copper Bay, Massachusetts. Interested readers can always learn
more about me and what’s happening in my writing world at <a href="http://www.saraheburr.com/">www.saraheburr.com</a> or by signing up for my
newsletter, <a href="https://bit.ly/saraheburrsignup">https://bit.ly/saraheburrsignup</a>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4045057682441280238.post-72269242840434021762023-09-21T21:00:00.001-07:002023-09-21T21:00:00.133-07:00Re-branding Nick Forte<p> It’s been a while since I released a new Nick Forte novel.
January of 2018 to be exact. While he has appeared in a couple of Penns River
books (<i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Grind-Joint-Penns-River-Crime-ebook/dp/B01LZPHD1Y?ref_=ast_author_dp">Grind
Joint<span style="font-style: normal;"> </span></a></i>and <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Spread-Penns-River-Crime-Novel-ebook/dp/B0C4RQ189B?ref_=ast_author_mpb">The
Spread</a></i>) he has not been the star of his own book since <i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Samaritan-Nick-Forte-Mystery-Book-ebook/dp/B077GCZS3C?ref_=ast_author_dp">Bad
Samaritan</a>.</i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">That doesn’t mean he hasn’t asked for more attention. Ideas
have been percolating from my subconscious all the while. Since the next Penns
River book is going to require more research and thought than usual, I took a
break from that series to write a new Forte novel. <i>Off the Books</i> will
drop in the spring of 2024.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Since it’s been a while since Forte made an appearance, I thought
it would be a good idea to relaunch the entire series as a lead up to <i>Off
the Books.</i> I had hoped to get the first book (<i><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Small-Sacrifice-Forte-Mystery-Mysteries/dp/1500803855/?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_w=zXMCY&content-id=amzn1.sym.579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_p=579192ca-1482-4409-abe7-9e14f17ac827&pf_rd_r=144-0881970-0443005&pd_rd_wg=4uTWt&pd_rd_r=a095eb54-f96b-47f7-97d5-742994457f6a&ref_=aufs_ap_sc_dsk">A
Small Sacrifice</a></i>) out by now, but a little research quickly showed me it
would be in my best interest to dig deeper into how Amazon handles the metadata,
so the first re-branding effort may slip a little.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Since I mentioned Amazon, I might as well go all the way:
these books will be available only through Amazon. It’s a better deal for me to
do it that way, and bookstores won’t carry my books, anyway. So to all those
independent bookstores out there, I love you, but please understand this is
strictly business. Just as I understand that’s the reason you won’t stock my
books. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The tentative schedule is below, but please note: Except for
<i>Off the Books</i>, all of these are re-releases of books that have been out
there for five years or more. If you already own one, there is no need to buy
another. All that will change are the covers and the metadata. Save your money
for <i>Off the Books</i>. Or gift purchases. Those of you who have yet to read
any Forte novels, here’s your chance.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The dates are tentative, and promotional pricing is still to
be decided. I’ll give full notice when the time comes.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">September 2023: <i>A Small Sacrifice</i>, the first Forte
novel, in which Nick investigates a cold case loosely adapted from the JonBenet
Ramsey killing. Nominated for a Shamus Award as best Independently Published PI
Novel.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">October 2023: <i>The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of.</i> My tribute
to <i>The Maltese Falcon</i>, of which Peter Rozovsky wrote in his sadly
discontinued blog “Detectives Beyond Borders, “I can imagine this book finding
its way into a class on writing crime fiction as an example of how to pay
tribute to one’s predecessors while at the same time writing a story that can
stand on its own. It’s an impressive accomplishment.”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">November 2023: <i>The Man in the Window</i>. What begins as
an adultery case ends up involving terrorists. Nominated for a Shamus as Best
Paperback Original.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">December 2023: A three-book set, yet to be titled, to
include the three novels noted above.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">January 2024: <i>A Dangerous Lesson</i>, my only serial
killer story.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">February 2024: <i>Bad Samaritan</i>, in which Forte takes on
men’s rights activists.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">March 2024: <i>Off the Books.</i> This is the new one, showing
Forte in his post-agency life as he treads the line between Spenser and Ray Donovan.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Late 2024: A second three-book boxed set.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I’ll be busy otherwise, as well. My first Western will drop
sometime next year and another Forte, as yet untitled, will come out in either
late 2024 or early 2025. If the next Penns River novel has come together by
then, I’ll return there for a three- or four-book run to complete the series. And
another Western. Probably more Forte. And other projects I have in mind.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Ain’t no flies on me. Not yet anyway.<o:p></o:p></p>Dana Kinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.com2