Q & A

Will there be another Jeff Tribe mystery?

The second Jeff Tribe novel, a prequel to Intentional Take, will be published in 2008.

Is Intentional Take being made into a movie?

At this time there are no plans for a movie.

Where are the towns from the novel-Spicket Falls, MA and Earnest, NC-located? I couldn't find them on a map.

Both Spicket Falls and Earnest are imagined locations. Spicket Falls is an amalgamation of my hometown of Methuen, Massachusetts, and the surrounding mill towns of Lawrence, Haverhill, and Lowell. The Spicket River is real and runs through Methuen. There is a small falls in the center of town behind the fire station. Earnest is a combination of an area on the northern bank of the Cape Fear where there is a small dock out over the river with a sign next to it warning about crocodiles, a town off Route 421 that mostly consists of a traffic circle, and several locations in and around Wilmington, North Carolina.

Did you do research for Intentional Take? What were some of the sources you used?

My research includes reading books and newspaper articles about the topics and types of characters that will be in a novel, and visiting the locations I will be writing about. Some of the books I used as research for Intentional Take include Hells Angels: Into the Abyss by Yves Lavigne, Rebels: A Brotherhood of Outlaw Bikers by Daniel Wolf, Gangsta in the House by Mike Knox, What Cops Know by Connie Fletcher, Bad Guys by Mark Baker, The Goodfella Tapes by George Anastasia, The Corpse Had a Familiar Face by Edna Buchanan, and Huddle Fever: Living in the Immigrant City by Jeanne Schinto.

Where do you get your ideas?

Basic ideas can be sparked by anything-a newspaper article, conversation, photograph, observation, book, movie, etc.-but turning that idea into a short story or novel is the challenge. For Intentional Take I wanted to write a story about the origins of a private detective with an eye towards an eventual series of novels based on the character as he grows from helping family and friends to becoming a true detective. The kidnapping of a family member and the protagonist's quest to rescue her is the story I eventually decided upon. The title for Intentional Take came from a quote in the newspaper several years ago by a park ranger talking about the theft of plover eggs by someone attempting to speed-up the opening of a public beach. The ranger said that they knew the theft was an "intentional take" but that taking the eggs didn't work because the beach would have to stay closed for the process to start over again. As soon as I read the quote I knew Intentional Take would be the title and the rest of the plot also fell into place.

Do you have any advice for new writers?

My advice to new writers is to keep at it no matter what. Keep writing and keep submitting, but heed any comments you might receive if you think they might help your work. I would also suggest you read as much as you can as well, in your chosen genre as well as out of it. You can learn a lot from the works and techniques of writers who are already published. Finally, there are many books out there on writing and getting published – many of them available for free through your local library – so read and take advantage of those as well. Good luck.