Working Stiffs welcomes guest blogger Jordan Dane, who has not ONE, but THREE books being released this year. The first, No One Heard Her Scream, is scheduled for release on March 25. The second, No One Left To Tell will be released in May, and the third, No One Lives Forever in June.Confessions of a Debut Crime Author
by Jordan Dane
“Hi. My name is Jordan. And I’m a … ” I bite my lower lip and grimace, but push through the first step of my recovery program. “I’m a crime fiction author.”
Oh sure, some might think this isn’t a big thing to admit. Some may even envy my position, but I’m here to confess that as a crime fiction author, I’m not a well person. Bad men speak to me in my head—and I like it. I visualize a bloody crime scene and all I can think about is, “Does viscera have a ‘C’ in it?” When I say, “I’m cracking open a case” I’m not talking Heineken, people. And making a good impression in my world involves shoe prints or tire tracks. In short, what makes some people squeamish puts me on the fiction happy train.
That’s because crime fiction authors don’t think like normal people. We have a warped sense of reality and of what’s funny. If a man is killed from poisoned chickpeas, this is tragic certainly, but I’m thinking it’s a solid case of hummuscide. And I play deviant games of “what if” scenarios in my head, like what if tupperware could kill? What if coffee shops dispensed mind-altering lattes or espresso was discovered as the sole source of global warming?
Nothing is sacred, literally. I called my mother one day saying, “Yo Mom, I’m putting my Catholic upbringing to good use. I dumped the body in the church.” I waited for her reaction and only heard a deep sigh, a familiar sound by now.
On the less flippant side of the coin, I also try to capture what courage it takes to run toward a gun shot instead of racing away like a sane person. I have respect for those in law enforcement and hope that’s reflected in my writing. And real crime stories influence me. Author Lee Child said that it’s not about writing what you know but rather writing what you fear. So whenever I imagine the pain of losing a loved one to violence, it’s always a soul-searching experience.
I know by now you’re thinking I really love what I do. I’m conflicted, I suppose. Weighing the consequences of becoming a crime fiction author hasn’t been easy, but I’m optimistic I’ll eventually find the right balance in my life—or be forced to find a new set of friends.
So tell me, if you’re a writer, how has writing mysteries and crime fiction affected how you look at the world or how the world looks at you? And if you’re a reader of crime fiction, what draws you to this genre?
“Hi. My name is Jordan. And I’m a … ” I bite my lower lip and grimace, but push through the first step of my recovery program. “I’m a crime fiction author.”
Oh sure, some might think this isn’t a big thing to admit. Some may even envy my position, but I’m here to confess that as a crime fiction author, I’m not a well person. Bad men speak to me in my head—and I like it. I visualize a bloody crime scene and all I can think about is, “Does viscera have a ‘C’ in it?” When I say, “I’m cracking open a case” I’m not talking Heineken, people. And making a good impression in my world involves shoe prints or tire tracks. In short, what makes some people squeamish puts me on the fiction happy train.
That’s because crime fiction authors don’t think like normal people. We have a warped sense of reality and of what’s funny. If a man is killed from poisoned chickpeas, this is tragic certainly, but I’m thinking it’s a solid case of hummuscide. And I play deviant games of “what if” scenarios in my head, like what if tupperware could kill? What if coffee shops dispensed mind-altering lattes or espresso was discovered as the sole source of global warming?
Nothing is sacred, literally. I called my mother one day saying, “Yo Mom, I’m putting my Catholic upbringing to good use. I dumped the body in the church.” I waited for her reaction and only heard a deep sigh, a familiar sound by now.
On the less flippant side of the coin, I also try to capture what courage it takes to run toward a gun shot instead of racing away like a sane person. I have respect for those in law enforcement and hope that’s reflected in my writing. And real crime stories influence me. Author Lee Child said that it’s not about writing what you know but rather writing what you fear. So whenever I imagine the pain of losing a loved one to violence, it’s always a soul-searching experience.
I know by now you’re thinking I really love what I do. I’m conflicted, I suppose. Weighing the consequences of becoming a crime fiction author hasn’t been easy, but I’m optimistic I’ll eventually find the right balance in my life—or be forced to find a new set of friends.
So tell me, if you’re a writer, how has writing mysteries and crime fiction affected how you look at the world or how the world looks at you? And if you’re a reader of crime fiction, what draws you to this genre?
Avon/Harpercollins bought Jordan Dane’s debut suspense series in auction and is launching this trilogy in a back to back publishing event April through June 2008. “We are pursuing an aggressive release schedule,” says Avon publisher Liate Stehlik, “because we believe strongly in this author. Jordan Dane is poised to be the ‘next big thing’ in the romantic suspense genre.” Publishers Weekly called Dane’s NO ONE HEARD HER SCREAM (Apr 2008) a “dynamite debut” and compared Dane’s intense pacing to Lisa Jackson, Lisa Gardner, and Tami Hoag—romantic suspense that “crosses over into plain thriller country”. NYT bestseller Allison Brennan recommends, “Read it in the daytime and have a tall glass of ice water handy.” For more, visit www.jordandane.com.
