Author of Bang Bang You Are Dead
Saul
Warshaw was a colleague of mine for about 15 years and then he retired and
started a while new life in his ninth decade as a writer. The former broadcast journalist is now up to
his latest crime drama, Bang Bang You Are Dead. It follows his debut novels, Killing Memories and A Killing in Business.
The
83-year-old mystery thriller writer is a New York native and resident of Los
Angeles. His newest book takes place in
LA.
When
a prominent Los Angeles businessman is targeted with a series of life
threatening letters and phone calls, and the Police Department’s investigation
is going nowhere, the businessman hires Will Jonas, a retired LAPD homicide
detective, and now, a private investigator.
Will’s assignment: Find the person or persons threatening the
businessman. Will’s investigation,
however, goes far beyond the letters, as he uncovers long hidden family secrets
that lead to a deadly final outcome.
Here’s
an interview with Saul:
1. What inspired your
latest tale? Gee, I wish I could give you an awesome, deeply meaningful
reason -- but the simple truth is -- I'm driven by a "writing bug"
and writing Bang Bang You Are Dead
was simply my latest effort to serve that bug. Too, in my previous work
as a public relations counselor, I dealt with high powered executives, about
whom I'd often wonder -- what's beneath that tough exterior? What about
their personal lives? Their family relationships? The Carl Clemson
character in Bang Bang gives me a
chance to answer those questions.
2. What draws you to
write about crime? I've always been a fan of mystery novels. I devour
them as fast as Michael Connelly and John Sandford can write them. And
back a ways, I especially enjoyed all of the terrific books that Lawrence Block
wrote.So, when I decided a few years ago to take a serious stab at fiction
writing, it was pretty natural for me to write about crime.
3. Why do we have an
insatiable appetite with movies, TV fare, and books that revolve around crime
dramas? That's an easy one to answer. The "good versus
evil" theme goes all the way back to Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden,
the Forbidden Tree, and all the rest of the trappings that go with someone or
something trying to beat up on something good. We may not want to admit
it, but I believe we all like to see a good fight. Crime -- offered via
all of the mediums you've mentioned -- lets us see as many such fights as we
want.
4. What do you admire
about your lead character, Will Jonas? Three things. First, I admire
that Will does have a sense of humor. Without it, he'd be a hard
character to like, in my opinion. Second, I'm also glad that -- hopefully --
I've been able to give Will some traits that all of us exhibit from time to
time. Example: in his fifties, Will is starting to worry about getting
old. Sound familiar? And third, Will does not like to accept things
as they are supposed to be, just because someone said so. Will definitely is
not a "by the book" person.
5. You write about
family secrets getting unearthed. Doesn't everyone have things they'd
rather remain secret? Sure! And that's part of the fun in being a
writer. I can "invent" whatever secrets I want a family to have,
and then write like the dickens to get those secrets out in the open, no matter
how much the folks in the family are objecting.
6. With the police
nationwide under a microscope, can we look to Will Jonas as a model policeman?
No. If Will were operating in 2015, he'd be far from being any sort of
model. Doesn't do things by the book. Cuts corners, just so long as he
gets the perp. That wouldn't be acceptable in 2015. But let's
remember, Bang Bang takes place in 2001. Does this mean that Will needs
to change his way of operating? Well, we've got a lot of years to cover,
until that becomes an issue for the guy, don't we?
For more information, feel free to reach out to Saul directly at saul1warshaw@gmail.com.
For more information, feel free to reach out to Saul directly at saul1warshaw@gmail.com.
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Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog are his alone and not that of his employer. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBl
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