Books

All The Flowers Are Dying

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Lawrence Block is at the top of his game.  Then again, he’s written fifty or a hundred books (I’ve lost count) and as far as I know, he’s never been anything but at the top of his game. ALL THE FLOWERS ARE DYING is prime "Matt Scudder" and Block at his best.  The writing is lean and assured, the story fast-moving, the character strokes deft and memorable.  Some of the scenes are vividly violent and disturbing, but they never feel gratuitous, or ugly for  shock value. The plotting is tight, the  pace ratcheting up the suspense with skilled ease.  Block  isn’t called the Grandmaster at this stuff for nothing, folks.

The prose isn’t the least bit self-conscious or arty and yet stunningly effective. Once again, he reminds us that sometimes the old pros at crime writing do it a whole lot better than the new wave of writers who think they’ve reinvented the form.  I doubt there are many writers out there who consistently deliver the way Block does. The book is a lesson in writing…from a guy who wrote the book on how to write books (actually, he’s written three excellent how-to books, but who’s counting?).

ALL THE FLOWERS ARE DYING is crime writing at its best. Don’t be put off by the fact it’s number 107 or something in the Scudder series — you don’t have to have read a single Scudder tale get the wallop this one delivers (though the punch is stronger if you have).  You’ll be seeing this one talked about again come Edgar time next year…

It Isn’t Easy Being Dan Brown

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For one thing, there’s the $50 million you’re earned over the last two years to be counted, invested, tax-sheltered, and spent. Then there’s Lewis Perdue nipping at your heels.

As if that wasn’t enough, according to today’s New York Times, Dan can no longer travel on airplanes, because the aisles get
clogged with people lining up for autographs.  (And my favorite anecdote, he was in line at
airport security and realized he left his ID at home — so he borrowed a copy of
DaVinci Code from the guy in line behind him and used the author photo to get
on.  Of course, that does raise the question, what kind of moron goes to the airport, intending to leave town, and leaves their ID at home?) .  All of this is having a big impact on his work… a sequel to the DAVINCI CODE.

There are hints that the pressure to repeat his success might be wearing on
Mr. Brown. Long an author who worked in private, Mr. Brown now talks with his
editor, Jason Kaufman, often once a day, sometimes twice – far more often, Mr.
Kaufman said, than when the pair worked together on Mr. Brown’s three most
recent novels, including "Deception Point" and "Angels & Demons."

"We go over every plot point and twist," Mr. Kaufman said. "I function as a
sounding board for him."

Thrilling Thriller Writers

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The newborn International Thriller Writers Association has sealed a big-money deal with Mira books to release THRILLER, an anthology of thrilling short stories edited by the thrillicious James Patterson. The thrillful contributors include Ted Bell, Steve Berry, Lee Child, Lincoln Child, David Dun, Joe Finder,
Greg Iles, Alex Kava, John Lescroart, David Liss, Gayle Lynds, David Morrell, Katherine Neville, Michael Palmer, Douglas Preston, Eric Van Lustbader, Christopher Reich, Christopher Rice, James Rollins, M.J. Rose, Jimmy Siegel, Brad Thor, and F. Paul Wilson. The book will be out in hardcover in June 2006 to coincide with ThrillerFest, the  first convention for thriller writers and fans, in Phoenix. All proceeds from THRILLER will go the ITW to help get the organization up-and-running, though they seem be to up-and-running pretty thrillingly already.

House as Dr. Sloan’s Son

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The folks over at  Toobworld are pondering who should play the father of  Dr. Greg House (Hugh Laurie) on Fox’s hit  HOUSE M.D.  They’ve settled on Dick Van Dyke… as Dr. Mark Sloan.  Here’s their thinking:

From a production viewpoint, [the] obstacles could be smoothed over.  It’s from the inner reality of the plotline that we might face a few arguments.  Most of all, it’s the fact that there was never any mention of a second son for Dr. Mark Sloan in all the years ‘Diagnosis Murder’ was on the air.
He had two children – Steve Sloan, a Los Angeles police detective who often worked with his dad in solving cases;  and a daughter who was tragically murdered.  Added to this is the obvious difference in their last names – Sloan and House.

I’m not the only one who can see the obvious answer, right? Greg House is the illegitimate son of Mark Sloan.

The days when our TV heroes were cast as exemplars of virtue are long gone. Nowadays they have flaws, and foibles, and failings – they are the F-Troop. They make mistakes in Life, but eventually they admit to them and they rise above them. (Unless of course we’re talking about Detective Vic Mackey of ‘The Shield’.) That’s what makes them human, what makes them real. And what makes them interesting to watch week after week. Having been the bastard son of a noted crime-solving doctor on the West Coast might be a great explanation for some of Dr. House’s acerbic attitude towards the rest of the world at large. And a chance to rectify that situation with a renewed relationship with the father he never knew might provide for as many episodes as they wanted to run with it; perhaps a once-a-year type of reunion.  And nothing says they HAVE to iron out all their differences. After all, we don’t want House becoming all sweetness and light – that’s not why he’s
become such an interesting character for the audience.

There’s only one excuse for someone giving this idea so much thought.  Procrastination. The same reason I am posting this instead of plotting my next (the seventh!) DIAGNOSIS MURDER novel.  How’s that for irony, eh?

Spur Awards Announced

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The Western Writers of America announced the winners of the coveted Spur Awards,  the Oscars of western-writing. The winners will get their statues at the WWA convention in Spokane in June.Vengeancevalley

Best First Novel: FIELD OF HONOR by  D.L. Birchfield (University of Oklahoma Press).
Best Original  Paperback:  VENGEANCE VALLEY by Richard S. Wheeler (Pinnacle) [his fifth win!]
Best Western Juvenile Non-Fiction:  RATTLESNAKE MESA…STORIES FROM A NATIVE
AMERICAN CHILDHOOD By Ednah New
Rider Weber (Lee & Low Books)
Best
Western Novel: BUY THE CHIEF A CADILLAC by Rick Steber (Bonanza Publishing)
Best Novel of the West:  PEOPLE OF THE RAVEN (Forge) By Kathleen
O’Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear [Best Western Novel is for books under
90,000 words; Novel of the West goes to longer works].
Nonfiction-Biography: BLACK KETTLE: THE CHEYENNE CHIEF WHO SOUGHT PEACE BUT FOUND WAR
by Thom Hatch of Calhan, Colo. (John Wiley & Sons).
Nonfiction-Contemporary: THE TEXAS RANGERS AND THE MEXICAN REVOLUTION by Charles H.
Harris III and Louis R. Sadler of Las Cruces, N.M. (University of New Mexico
Press).
Nonfiction-Historical: BEASTS OF THE FIELD Richard Steven Street of San Anselmo,
Calif. (Stanford University Press).
Short Nonfiction: BLOOD FOR OIL by Jim Doherty of Chicago
from the collection JUST THE FACTS (Deadly Serious Press).
Short
Fiction: THE
PROMOTION by Larry D. Sweazy of Noblesville, Ind., from the anthology TEXAS
RANGERS (Berkley).
Juvenile Fiction: FIRE IN THE HOLE! by Mary Cronk Farrell of Spokane,
Wash. (Clarion Books).
Drama Script: HIDALGO by John Fusco of Burbank, Calif. (Touchstone Pictures/  Disney).
Documentary Script: WILD WEST TECH: DEADWOOD TECH by Laura Verklan of North
Hollywood, Calif. (executive producer Dolores Gavin, The History Channel).
Poetry: A
THOUSAND MILES OF STARS by Walt McDonald of Lubbock, Texas (Texas Tech
University Press).
Storyteller (illustrated children’s book): APPLES TO OREGON by Deborah
Hopkinson of Corvallis, Ore. and illustrator Nancy Carpenter of Brooklyn, N.Y.
(Simon and Schuster Children’s Books).

Congratulations to all the winners! Richard Wheeler offers this amusing anecdote about his Spur-Award winning novel VENGEANCE VALLEY:

This one has a cowboy brandishing a gun on its cover, even if there are no cowboys with guns in the novel. That’s part of the paperback mystique. Almost all western pocketbooks have cowboys with guns on the covers. That’s done so that readers of westerns, who are usually ancient bald males will big and gaseous bellies, can identify them. Vengeance Valley  was the title of a famous Zane Grey novel so the publishers probably thought to get a free ride by giving this story the same moniker. The author had named it Yancey’s Jackpot  but in the world of
mass-market paperbacks, authors’ titles are summarily executed.
This cover is especially egregious because the story takes place on a mountain ridge instead of a valley, and there is no  vengeance in it, and no cowboys with guns in it.

I wonder if Richard has considered putting Dick Van Dyke on the cover of his next book. It has certainly helped my sales.

Branding

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Branding is the big word in publishing these days, even if you aren’t writing a series. Take  the latest novel by my friend Loraine Despres. 8635462 She wrote a terrific, highly-acclaimed novel that came out last year called  THE SCANDALOUS SUMMER OF SISSY LEBLANC, the cover of which is to the left (click for a larger image) . Her new novel THE BAD BEHAVIOR OF BELLE CANTRALL isn’t a sequel, but you wouldn’t know looking at the cover.  Belle4rub2_1Because the publisher created a distinct look for Loraine’s first  novel, they were able to repeat it for the second and establish a visual "brand" for her (I bet if she wrote a dark crime novel for the publisher, they’d probably use the same cover style). Will the branding work? Who knows…but  have you noticed how similar the covers for Anita Shreve‘s last few books have been? It’s obviously been working for her. I hope it does for Loraine, too.

Returning to the Battlefield

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Remember how just yesterday I was whining about having nothing to do? That state of being lasted less than 24 hours. My publisher and Paramount enthusiastically approved my story for the next (seventh)  DIAGNOSIS MURDER novel… so I am back to plotting. I pulled the dry-erase board from my closet, propped it up on my bookshelf, and prepared for work…

…I watched Sunday’s DEADWOOD and two GUNSMOKE reruns back-to-back. Not that those westerns have anything to do with DIAGNOSIS MURDER, but that’s how the first day goes. Whining about nothing to do and then procrastination…such is the life of a professional writer.

Heaven!

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I spent the morning at the Paperback Collectors Show and spent about $75 on a grocery bag full of vintage paperbacks… among mybargain finds, all in good to fine condition:

THE PERFECT VICTIM by James McKimmey (for a buck!)
SQUEEZE PLAY by James McKimmey (also for a buck!)
STOLEN WOMAN by Wade Miller ($2.95!)
THE KILLER by Wade Miller ($2.95!)
DEVIL MAY CARE by Wade Miller (a buck!)
KISS HER GOODBYE by Wade Miller (a buck!)
WHIP HAND by W. Franklin Sanders (Charles Willeford — $30)
KILLER IN TOWN by Clifton Adams (a buck!)
TIL IT HURTS by Nick Quarry (Marv Albert… $8)
NO CHANCE IN HELL by Nick Quarry (Marv Albert $10)
THE REFORMED GUN by Marv Albert ($8)
THE BOUNTY KILLER by Marv Albert (a buck!)
THE MIDNIGHT SISTER by Marv Albert ($6)
STRANGERS ON FRIDAY by Harry Whittington ($6)
LUST FOR LOVE by Harry Whittington ($4)
SADDLE THE STORM by Harry Whittington ($2)
ROUTE OF THE RED GOLD by Dan J. Marlowe ($1)
DESPERADO by Clifton Adams ($1)

Signings A-Go-Go

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Today I had signings at Mysteries to Die For in Thousand Oaks and at the Mystery Bookstore in Westwood….and I landed both those gigs because I was with a young, attractive,  female author named Madison Goldberg. Without her, I doubt I would have wrangled the invites.

At the Mystery Bookstore, Maddie and I signed with my good friend Jerrilyn Farmer, who’s new book FLAMING LUAU OF DEATH has just been released.  Of course, Maddie out-sold both of us  combined. It helps to be young and single.P1010627

Naturally, the whispers  among all of us authors (Jerrilyn, Gary Phillips, Tom Nolan, Gayle Lynds, and Bob Levinson, to name a few) revolved around the notable absense of proprietor Sheldon MacArthur. The latest news, depending on who you talk to, is that he’s retired and is moving up north to either start a mystery-themed magazine,  a mail-order bookstore or a nudist colony for remaindered crime writers.  Whatever his new endeavor might be, we all wish him well.

After the signing, Maddie and I went up the street to visit my old pal Paul Jackson, a prolific TV writer who has opened a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory outlet on Broxton Avenue as a sideline.  Business was booming when we were there… it was probably thanks to my daughter . Now that Maddie has annointed it with her patronage, all her groupies will start going there. Show your WGA card  if you visit his store and maybe Paul will give you free sample. It worked for me.

I’d Like to Thank My Publicist, My Eyebrow Tweezer, and my Proctologist…

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The Los Angeles Times has announced their nominees for the book award in mysteries and, strangely, my latest DIAGNOSIS MURDER novel is overlooked. The nominees are:

Alan Furst, Dark Voyage: A Novel (Random House)
Henning Mankell, The Return of the Dancing Master [translated from the Swedish by Laurie Thompson] (The New Press)
Charles McCarry, Old Boys (Overlook Press)
Kem Nunn, Tijuana Straits: A Novel (Scribner)
Ian Rankin, A Question of Blood: An Inspector Rebus Novel (Little, Brown)

The LA Times loves Henning Mankell…I think this is his second or third nomination. I don’t get it, to be honest. I’ve read a few of his books, wanting to get on the bandwagon (bandwagons are so much fun, all that convivial back-slapping, hearty smiles, and good eating), but they left me cold. 

The judges also love George Pelecanos, who has won twice…once over my brother Tod (who, when George won the following year too, asked if he could have one of the awards. George wasn’t amused).  Luckily for Ian Rankin, George didn’t have a book out this year…but I hear they were thinking of nominating him on general principle.

It’s nice to see Kem Nunn on the list…and an old pro like Charles McCarry.  I remember reading McCarry’s TEARS OF AUTUMN years and years ago and loving it.  His nomination this year is a nice surprise…even though his book is still on my tottering TBR pile (which has become so big, the county is threatening to red tag my house as uninhabitable due to the risk of avalanche.  Suzanne Clarke’s JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORELL alone could crush my skull). I’ve got a copy of Alan Furst’s book in that pile somewhere, too. I’ll have to catch up on the LA Times nominees if I ever finish reading all of this year’s major Edgar nominees…