Seattle Mystery Bookshop

Help! I'm trapped in the Seattle Mystery Bookshop!

So there I was, walking down Cherry Street in Seattle, when the sign jumped out at me. SEATTLE MYSTERY BOOKSHOP. A sign with a bright red hand pointed me toward the door. Next thing I know, I'm being dragged inside, tied to a chair, asked to sign a pile of books, and then propped up in front of a computer screen. Blog, they said. And here I am. Blogging! With no outline, no plan! At Seattle Mystery Bookshop, of all places!

Okay, deep breaths. I'm overdramatizing -- easy to do when you're surrounded by all these fabulous mystery and thriller titles. I wasn't really dragged in. I've been stalking this fabulous store online for months, following their reviews (including a fantastic one of TOKYO HEIST that came out a few months ago!) I've been dying to visit the store in person for months. So when I was invited to come and sign some books, and meet Amber (a major supporter of YA mysteries), I couldn't resist. My sales rep from Penguin drove me here in style. We walked in freely. But yes, I have been asked to blog.

This store is packed with great reads and enticing signs. (I'm dying to see what's shelved under "Cheap Thrills.") They have a section for Scandinavian mysteries. Mystery magazines. They have everything mystery-related you can think of.

But here's what's really exciting about being in this store at this very moment. People around me are describing mystery plots and characters. Volleying titles. Discussing mmysteries for young readers. As a YA mystery writer, and a longtime fan of mysteries for young people, this kind of talk is what sends chills down my spine. More mysteries are coming! Mystery is alive and well! Teens and tweens love mysteries!

I'm especially honored to be the first YA mystery author they've had in the store for a signing. I'm pretty sure I'm not the last. You should see the mystery section for younger readers here. Lots of great new reads, tantalizing displayed. I'm not actually being forced to stay here, but I fear I may never escape.

Diana Renn

Martin Limon answers The Questions

--> How many rejection slips did you get before your first novel was published?

I started writing in October 1986 while I was still on active duty in the U.S. Army.  The reason I started is because I'd been ordered back from Korea and was now a recruiter in Oakland, California and I felt that the life that I and others had lived in Asia had never been properly documented.  I wrote short stories mainly and received more rejection slips than I can remember.  I also started writing novels which were also roundly rejected.  My first published fiction was in June of 1991 in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.  I still write for them.  There was a story of mine, about a retired Army First Sergeant, called "Beehive Round" that recently appeared in the September 2012 issue. 

--> Have you ever thrown away a book that you just couldn't make work?

I've thrown four books away at least.  That's how many I wrote before Jade Lady Burning (the 5th) was published in 1992.

--> Is it still exciting to publish a new book even after all this time?

It's still exciting to publish a new book.

--> If you could have written any single work – novel, screenplay, stage play, poem, history, biography – that you most admire and adore, what would it be?

There are many books/stories I greatly admire.  Topping the list is "To Build a Fire" by Jack London.  I was forced to read it in English class in the 10th grade and while the teacher was watching us to make sure we didn't goof off, I was transported to the Yukon where I was thrown into a struggle for my life in 30-degree-below weather.  Did this inspire me to write?  It had the opposite effect.  The story was so great that I could hardly believe it had been written by a human being and thus, I was afraid to try.

As far as any work I wish I had written, I believe that the stories that I can write come from me, and from deep within me.  Only I can write them.  Similarly, I would never be able to write someone else's stories, no matter how much I admire them.

--> Anything you’ve always wanted to be asked about your writing but no one ever has?

One thing I wish I'd been asked is, when I sign a book, can I sign it in something other than English?  Actually, I can.  I can write my name in English, Korean, or Chinese.  On the recent book tour for THE JOY BRIGADE it suddenly dawned on me to offer people that option.  Many of them took me up on it.

Cheers to the Seattle Mystery Bookshop!

Martin Limon

J.A. Jance answers The Questions

--> How many rejection slips did you get before your first novel was published?

Do I count as a rejection slip not being allowed in the Creative Writing Program at the University of Arizona in 1964. Of course, that was a verbal rejection, delivered in person to me in the English Department. As for actual rejection slips sent directly to me, the number is 1. Whatever others there were came to my agent, and that's between her and the editors involved. I also received a rejection slip for 1 short story. I turned that rejected short story into the novel called Queen of the Night.

--> Have you ever thrown away a book that you just couldn't make work?

No, but I have thrown away plenty of pages before I found out ways to MAKE the stories work!!!

--> Is it still exciting to publish a new book even after all this time?

Yes, there's nothing like opening the envelope that has that first copy of the book, complete with pages, cover, words, and all!! That's still as much of a miracle now as it was in 1985 for Until Proven Guilty. 

-> Do you get ideas for new books all the time and you keep them written down, or does one come to mind when you need one?

I'm always looking for new stories. I don't always write them down and I don't write down ideas that come to me overnight, either. If they're not good enough ideas to make it until morning, they're not good enough to use for writing a book.

--> Do you have entire story arcs mapped out when you begin a trilogy or a series of related books?

No. I hated outlining when I met it in Mrs. Watkins 6th Grade Geography class and nothing that has happened to me in the intervening years has changed my mind. For one thing, I have a terminal fear of Roman Numerals. If you can't do Roman Numerals, you can't outline. At least, I can't. And since I don't outline books, I can't very well outline series, either. I start with somebody dead and spend the rest of the book trying to figure out who did it and how come.

--> Do you know how a book/series is going to end when you begin it?

Absolutely not. If I did, I'd have no reason to write the book. I write to find OUT how it ends.

--> Do you have to enter a different mind-set to write different stories for different names/characters?

Yes.

--> Is there any kind of book you would like to write but haven't?

No

--> If you could change anything about your writing career, what would it be?

I would have switched over to Apple sooner.

--> What’s the most interesting question you’ve ever been asked about your writings, and what was your answer?

When someone asked me where Anne Corley came from, and I realized Anne Corley was me, taking revenge on pedophiles, like my paternal grandfather, who molested children.

--> If you could have written any single work – novel, screenplay, stage play, poem, history, biography – that you most admire and adore, what would it be?

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe

--> Anything you’ve always wanted to be asked about your writing but no one ever has?

What do I like most about my job? Entertaining people--that's what storytellers do!

J.A. Jance

Dueling Authors!

Ron Lovell, author of the Thomas Martindale academic mysteries, and Ann Littlewood, author of zoo mysteries, collided (and colluded) today at this fabulous place called Seattle Mystery Bookshop.

To break up a brief but violent tussle over Jean Matthews latest mystery, the staff distracted the pair with an offer to blog. Quickly they added, "Ann starts." One of them hovers by the phone, ready to dial 911 in case this doesn't work out.

Ann: "So, Ron, why Acadamia for your setting? What's up with the profs?"

Ron: "Professor Martindale's life has not been the same since he was briefly jailed for a murder that he didn't commit. Universities do not look favorably on people with rap sheets stapled to their vitas (resumes). I know because I taught Journalism at Oregon State for 24 years. It's a perfect setting for me, but after several mysteries, I've moved on to a remote part of southeast Oregon, on Steen's Mountain. I love this area--it's so different from the coast where I live and it's so remote. Anyone could get lost there, and in fact, someone does in Murder in the Steens. But enough about me. Why a zoo keeper?"

Ann: "Because I know the inside scoop in the zoo world. (That's a joke, folks). I was an animal keeper for 12 years at Oregon Zoo. When I put down the shovel and picked up a computer to write a mystery, no one else was setting them at a zoo. (No longer true, by the way--zoo mysteries are now a mini-sub-genre.) More accurately, I had left the zoo world years ago and kind of missed it. It's been great to get back, at least in my head. But, Ron, how is it that a laconic professor ends up in the wilderness with a mustang herd and a dead man?"

Ron: "An old school friend asks Martindale to find her missing husband, after the local sheriff botched the search. The loyal professor is always there for his friends, no matter the personal risk. So he's off to the wilderness. He falls in with a quirky flock of birdwatchers, drunken cowboys, and the local king of the range, who seems to have the sheriff in his pocket. It all makes perfect sense. But a zoo keeper? How does a zoo keeper end up involved with murder?"

Ann: (huffily) Just as easily as some leather-elbowed professor, I'll tell you that! In Endangered, Iris Oakley and her co-worker, Denny, get called on to "rescue" exotic pets from a remote farmhouse after the owners are busted for drugs. But those pets turn out to be something else. And things apparently went wrong during the bust--Iris finds a body. How could a swarm of cops overlook a body? Then there's the lost gold and the screaming macaws that land in her basement and she has a wild fling... Ron, I have to stop now."

Ron: "Wait! I have LOTS more to say about Thomas and the Steens and those mustangs..."

Fran: "Will you guys cut it out? That is enough out of both of you. Put that keyboard down. Now I want you two to shake hands very, very nicely. Good. Now you can come back for your next books."

  

The Sexy End of the Last Minute Tour

SALACIOUS (Fran advised me) gets noticed. I'm at the end of a two week tour, ending at Seattle Mystery Bookshop, one of the most extraordinary stores in the nation. I don't think I could have asked for a better end to the tour -- it's always great to end on a high note. So let me just say this is ONE DAMN SEXY STORE.

One of the most fun things on the tour was handing out the Sam Capra LAST MINUTE T-shirts: Shirts designed with the logo of Sam's Manhattan bar. I think if you order a signed LAST MINUTE you get entered in the store's drawing for one of two shirts. So I not only give you a summer read but a summer wardrobe.

If you haven't read ADRENALINE, the first Sam Capra book, you might want to start there but the second book, THE LAST MINUTE, can be read on its own. In it Sam, former CIA agent, is given an impossible ultimatum: get his kidnapped infant son back if he commits an assassination. Rock and hard place -- that's where I like my characters. I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you support this wonderful store.

Cheers,

Jeff Abbott

Laura Levine answers The Questions

--> How many rejection slips did you get before your first novel was published?

By the time I got around to writing my first novel, I was an established sitcom writer and had created Count Chocula and Frankenberry cereals for General Mills. So my agent was able to sell my first Jaine Austen mystery, THIS PEN FOR HIRE, rather quickly.

I did, however, have more than my share of rejection slips back when I was trying to break into show biz. I think it’s safe to say I could paper my house (and yours) with my rejected screenplays. When I finally did get a movie produced, I went to see it and there were a grand total of five people in the audience. (And four of them were with me!)

My advice to aspiring writers: If you’re getting encouraging rejection letters, ones that say that they really like your writing, but for whatever reason they’re not buying your book, that’s a good sign. If they ask to see stuff you write in the future, that’s a great sign. Letters like that mean you should keep on writing.

--> Have you ever thrown away a book that you just couldn't make work?

I’ve tossed out ideas in the plotting stage, but never once I start writing.

--> Is it still exciting to publish a new book even after all this time?

Astonishing is more like it. I can’t believe I’ve written one book, let alone thirteen!

(Sensitive readers, beware. Shameless plug ahead.) In my latest, DEATH OF A NEIGHBORHOOD WITCH, part-time sleuth and full-time chocoholic Jaine Austen is the cops’ number one suspect when her neighbor from hell, Cryptessa Muldoon, is murdered by someone wearing Jaine’s Halloween costume. Will Jaine exonerate herself and find the true killer? Will she win the affections of a hottie new neighbor up the street? And most important, will she make it through the night without eating all her Halloween candy?

--> Do you get ideas for new books all the time and you keep them written down, or does one come to mind when you need one?

I wish I could say my mind was buzzing with exciting new ideas (usually my brain cells are otherwise occupied trying to figure out where I left my car keys), but I do keep an Idea Box, where I toss in assorted notes. I often get ideas from stories in the newspaper. (Yes, I’m one of the three remaining people on the planet who actually reads a printed newspaper).

--> Do you know how a book is going to end when you begin it?

Absolutely. I’m a firm believer in plotting out a story before I begin. I often start with the murder (who gets killed and why) and work my way backwards. Sometimes I start with a setting (a fun place to put Jaine and her rambunctious cat Prozac). I write each of my scenes on an index card, and color code them. One color for the comedy scenes. Another for the action/danger scenes. Another for the quieter interview scenes. Then I lay them out on my dining room table, and switch them around if need be. Color coding helps give me a good sense of pacing. Don’t want too many comedy scenes in a row, or too many action scenes. Once I start writing, I’m not locked into my outline and I do make changes, but I never work without a safety net of a tight outline.

--> Is there any kind of book you would like to write but haven't?

Someday I’d like to try my hand at a comedy novel.

--> If you could have written any single work – novel, screenplay, stage play, poem, history, biography – that you most admire and adore, what would it be?

Anything by P.G. Wodehouse or Joe Keenan. Agatha Christie, too.

--> If you could change anything about your writing career, what would it be?

You know how some writers say that when writing a book their characters take over and tell them what to say? Well, it is my fondest wish to be one of those writers. My characters are a most uncooperative lot, lounging around eating bon bons all day, expecting me to do all the heavy lifting. When it comes to putting words down on paper, those lazy rascals are nowhere to be found. So if I could change anything, I’d like my characters to get off their fannies and write a chapter or two every once in a while. (That means you, Prozac!)

Tana French - Broken Harbor

We will have signed copies, reserve your copy today because they are going FAST!

 

Fran: 

For those of you who fell in love with Tana French's writing while reading In The Woods you are going to love Broken Harbor.

Michael "Scorcher" Kennedy, detective in the Murder Squad, lands a big-deal case: two kids and dad murdered, mom hanging on by a thread, down in a newly planned community called Brianstown, formerly known as Broken Harbor. Granted, he's got a rookie partner, but Scorcher has the best overall solve rate in the Squad. He's got a good nose for what's what and he follows his rules until he gets his killer. 

And his new partner, Richie Curran, is really working out. For once, Mike may have a partner he can really work with. Except...Richie's keeping a secret.

Then too, the immediate suspect looks really good, except...there are holes in his story, and he's awfully ready to confess.

Sure then, the holes in the walls of the slaughtered family’s home are strange, but so what? Except...what made them? Why? Does it even matter?

Well, and Mike's sister is having a bad time, which wouldn't be any big deal. Except...when Dina has a bad time, so do the folks who love her, and that can get in the way of Kennedy's investigation.

Once again, Tana French introduces us to a whole cast of characters who will immediately grab a place in your life, and they won't let go. With the deft touch and hard-edged writing she has shown from the very beginning, French proves that she isn't just a flash in the pan; Tana French is the real deal and is well on her way to becoming an powerhouse in the mystery community.

And if you loved In the Woods, you will love Broken Harbor. No exceptions.

Linda Fairstein Answers The Questions

--> How many rejection slips did you get before your first novel was published?

I was in a really unusual position - very fortunate, and I am well aware of that.  I started prosecuting in New York - the Manhattan District Attorney's Office - in 1972.  I was in charge of that office's pioneering Sex Crimes Unit from 1976 (until I stepped away in 2002).  In the late 1980's, because of all the creative techniques we had fashioned for investigating these crimes, a publisher approached me and asked me to write a non-fiction book about that work.  I got the permission of the DA and the city's Ethics board (writing about real crimes, real people), and in 1993, SEXUAL VIOLENCE:  Our War Against Rape was published.  It was actually a NY Times "Notable book of the year".

I had always wanted to write crime fiction, so once the first book was published, I set out to create the first novel in my series:  FINAL JEOPARDY.  I had a track record of completing a book and having it well-reviewed and well-received, even though non-fiction and not in the genre.  And probably just as helpful to me was the fact that the publishers knew that they could get media, since I still had the 'real job' that my protagonist (Alex Cooper) had.  So I know the 'no rejection slip' path is an unusual one - not due to my skill, but to my professional situation - so just a lucky break.

--> Have you ever thrown away a book that you just couldn't make work?

Not yet!  It is bound to happen. I have certainly discarded ideas that I just could not make hang together as I tried to plot, and I once had an editor reject a plan of mine, just as I started to write.  But never a partial or completed manuscript.

 --> Is it still exciting to publish a new book even after all this time?

Oh, yes!  It is always an enormous thrill for me to launch a new novel.  My prosecutorial job was extremely collegial (as I try to show through my characters - Alex Cooper, Mike Chapman, and Mercer Wallace), and the writing is quite solitary.  So for me it's great fun when the boxes of new books are open, and I get to be in bookstores and libraries - day in and day out - and talk to people who love books as much as I do.  Always a thrill.

--> Do you get ideas for new books all the time and you keep them written down, or does one come to mind when you need one?

I get ideas all the time (at least, I think I do)...and yes, I am a crazed note-taker and I clip endless stories from newspapers, which I keep in notebooks by categories.   I'm always looking for ideas for themes for books and for plot devices, because they don't magically appear to me when I need them.  Usually I'm a few books ahead in terms of thinking of what world I want to take my characters into.  The immediate plotting and case background - what Coop is working on - is much more likely to slip in at the time I'm writing the story. 

--> Do you have entire story arcs mapped out when you begin a trilogy or a series of related books? --> Do you know how a book/series is going to end when you begin it?

I work each book at a time.  NIGHT WATCH is my 14th book in the series.  I have no idea how the entire series will end (END?  let's not think about that!).....As I get into each of the novels, as soon as I start the book, I figure out how it will end, for two reasons.  First, the prosecutor in me wants to make sure that I can fashion a logical end to the story - and hopefully get Coop out alive.  And secondly, readers of crime novels are quite appropriately demanding.  They want clues along the way, and they want red herrings - and they want it all to hang together and make sense in the end.  I'm the same way when I read other novelists, and hope to give those things to my readers.

--> Do you have to enter a different mind-set to write different stories for different names/characters?

I only write one series, and since I had the same job as the protagonist, I'm pretty comfortable thinking in her shoes.  I'm pretty much in her head 24/7 - as I move around the world, I'm constantly thinking about what Coop and Chapman would do in every situation I encounter.

--> Is there any kind of book you would like to write but haven't?

Three kinds of books at least.  I'd love to do a crime novel from the point of view of Mike Chapman, which I think would be great fun to write.  I'd love to do a young adult series - sort of Alex Cooper as a teenager (think Nancy Drew with modern forensics).  And I'd love to write another non-fiction book.  The one that was published in '93 is really out-of-date at this point. 

--> If you could change anything about your writing career, what would it be?

Perhaps that I had started earlier, and certainly that I could write faster and publish more frequently.  But my life is pretty full - still doing law, which is a passion, when there are cases that interest me, and I think the quality of writing really suffers when writers put the work out too quickly.

--> What’s the most interesting question you’ve ever been asked about your writings, and what was your answer?

Very early on, a reader in a book store asked me if I was doing this series with a prosecutor-protagonist to be cathartic.  Not that it's so deeply profound, but up to that point, I hadn't acknowledged that fact. The question prompted me to reflect a bit - and yes, it's certainly been cathartic to write about Coop and her pals.

--> If you could have written any single work – novel, screenplay, stage play, poem, history, biography – that you most admire and adore, what would it be?

ANNA KARENINA.  That's the literature major in me.   I love dense and dramatic and sagas, and I would have loved the elegance and eloquence and masterful storytelling in that book.  Closer to this genre, I'd say it's DuMaurier's REBECCA that helped hook me on this genre, and I think it's such a skillfully told-tale...I'd like to have written both of those.

--> Anything you’ve always wanted to be asked about your writing but no one ever has?

I'm sure there are lots of things!  I'm too superstitious to ask them of myself (in YOUR presence) - I'm afraid of how i might answer.

Linda Fairstein

Hello Seattle!

J. R. Rain here. I'm at the Seattle Mystery Bookshop and having a blast. My family is here and a few have already come by. Thank you to everyone who swung by to say hello. I appreciate your support. And so does the store! So even if you do miss me, come out and a grab a copy of my book...and peruse the shelves of this most awesome store. Thank you, Fran and Adele, for having me! Many smiles!

--J.R. Rain