Letters from the Dead

Three years ago I had the good fortune to interview Hugh Martin for the column I used to write for the late and lamented North County Times (a daily newspaper purchased and then incorporated into the San Diego Union-Tribune).  My column was on writing and writers, and Martin had just published his autobiography THE BOY…

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Death of a Deliveryman

Recently on this Facebook page I posted about the “signboard” in our neck of town that alerts people to events.  Several days ago a poster caught my eye.  It showed a brown UPS truck and the words, “We Will Miss You Rick.”  That night I told my family, “Rick must have decided to retire.”  Everyone…

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True Confessions of St. Nick

Most writers go to great lengths to try and get the details of their books right.  I’ve worked with homicide teams and private investigators so as to allow me to write authoritatively about characters and investigative work.  I have traveled to unusual and remote locations to get the feel and essence of that place.  As…

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And the Edgar goes to…

Do you remember the scene in Fantasia where Mickey Mouse is the Sorcerer’s Apprentice and those brooms keep coming and coming with the pails of water?  That is sort of how I feel these days, with the only difference that the books keep coming . . . I am on the Edgar Committee for Best…

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