the issue and no one on any side escapes unscathed . Through that we can view what ’ s going on today on the same issue , which is all over the news . And we also get to know more about Duke and Jack as individuals . I think in this book we get to see closer inside their complex friendship , learn why their bond is so strong and what makes them both tick and click together .
What do you see as the main inspiration for your novels ?
A lot of my fiction , whether short stories or novels , uses a real life jumping off point , such as the riots or Prop 187 . Broken Windows deals with the illegal alien / undocumented worker issue ( depending which side you ’ re on ) in the form of another noir-thriller . And , of course , this is an issue that was very hot when the story takes place in the 1990s and maybe even hotter today . So , while trying to find the murderer , Duke and Jack have to navigate the dangerous shoals of the whole immigration “ war ” going on around them .
And your characters ?
My characters are often fish out of water , not in the silly sense that you take a country bumpkin and put him in the big city . But in that their world is rapidly changing around them and it ’ s difficult for them to adapt . In their song Out of Time the Rolling Stones sing “ You ’ re obsolete my baby , My poor old-fashioned baby … you ’ re out of time .” And though that song is about a relationship the words can easily be applied to many of my characters , particularly Duke and Jack . They ’ re all on this whirlpool of a ride where the floor drops out and they have to figure out how to get their bearings , while trying to find the killer or killers . So they are obsolete and ‘ out of time ’ in more ways than one .
How do you choose the settings for your stories ?
Author S . W . Lauden said of my work , “ I loved how the action bounced around Southern California , almost as if the region was one of the main characters .” And that ’ s how I like to think of it – that the locations are another character in the stories . Not everything I write is set in L . A ., but much of it is and Los Angeles certainly informs my writing . I grew up here and I ’ ve seen it change a lot since I was a kid . I think all this rapid change causes problems for some people and some kind of emotional displacement . And it certainly does for my characters , who have to deal with the changing nature of the city ( and by extension the country ) while also dealing with the everyday issues of life and , of course , solving the crime .
One last comment from a reviewer ?
Since the book isn ’ t out yet there really aren ’ t any reviews except for this one on NetGalley from Karin C :
“ Outstanding sequel to White Heat ! This story grabbed me from the opening paragraph . I wondered how the author would tie together the 3 storylines but he connected the dots in a way I never saw coming . Perfectly plotted and descriptive of a period of time in the LA area that I had forgotten but shouldn ’ t have . I really like this main character and his sidekick . This book tells the story of a young wom-
SUMMER 2018
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WRITERS ’ TRICKS OF THE TRADE